Run ... by Kenzie

There is a knock on the door. Mama answers it but then goes stiff when she sees who is there. The Nazi officers march through the door, demanding to see father. I hug my little sister, Anetta, closer to me. Mama goes to my father's study and the Nazi's stare at me and Anetta. Father turns pale as soon as he sees the Nazis.

"Yosef Hersch?" the taller officer asks.
"Yes." My Father replies.
"Come with us."

My Father picks up his bag which he had packed weeks ago because he knew this day would come. He tells me to take care of Mama and then he leaves. Anetta asks Mama when he is going to come back.

"He'll be back soon." she replies.

By the look on her face I can tell that she isn't so sure herself.


Mama, Anetta and I are sitting down to a roast dinner when there is a tap at the window. Mama gets up to see Gabriel Gefril, our neightbour, tapping the window. She immediately lets him in. He is out of breath and had sweat running down his face.

"I was just in the village," he says, "and I overheard the Nazi officers saying how they were going to take the Hersch family to an imprisonment station to be deported to the camps."

My Mama knew this day was coming so she tells us to pack out things into suitcases.

"Where are we going?" Anetta asks.

"On a special holiday." Mama replies.

Of course I know where we are going. I grab my warmest clothes and my favourite book, Little Women. I also get my gold necklace from my jewellery box. My father gave me the necklace with a key on it. He never told me what the key opens but I think one day I will know.

"Oh dear," I can hear Mama say from the kitchen, "Tatiana had sent me an invitation to the Ladies' Ball but I won't be able to attend it."

I love my Mama. At times like this she still thinks about things like balls and events. I meet Mama and Anetta at the front door and Mama locks up. We walk away from town because the officers will come from that way.

The road gets dusty as we walk along but after a while we arrive at a nearby town. A few shop windows are smashed by what looks like rocks and  stones. These shops would have been run by Jewish people. As we keep walking I see some colourful parrots and lorikeets in the trees, which makes me smile because I know that there is still joy in times like this.

We are just about to reach the next town but then we hear a rustling in the bushes. Suddenly three men in uniforms jump out with their guns. Mama screams at me and Anetta to run. I run but slip. The Nazi's grab me but I can only scream out one more word.

"Mama!"