Poetry: The Boys of Winter by Alan Bold

-William Spears

The air was frozen and crisper than the stale bread fed to us. The chambers
huffed and puffed its big black smoke ascending to the sky releasing a horrid
smell while guards watched the sight. Markels footsteps crept up like a fox and
attacked from behind with his shovel in one hand. Look at them. Snow around
their boots, they gather like an embodiment of the weather, he hastily
whispered. It had been five days since a member of Cell Block 17 escaped to
England by train. A ride that could be his ride to death. We continued to dig the
under the fence that separated us from the rest of the world. Markels breath of
clouds in the cold came closer, Are you prepared for tonight? he said with the
glimmer of hope in the souls of his eyes.
Men were crying for their wives and for the safety of their children every night
but deep into the night, there was pure silence. My calloused body pulled itself
upright to look outside the windows and hear the whispers of the night. Guards
trotted around on the dirty snow with their guns loaded like animals dressed for
battle. The Postenpflicht was being followed by stricter than ever to stop the rate
of escapes. The silence was broken and a pair of eyes were set on me.
Markels small build crept out of the shadows with a face paler than the white on
the Nazi flag. He waved his hands like a mute man and signaled to go to him.
We must leave now, there will be more guards in the morning., he whisper-
yelled. My eyes became heavy and tears fell onto the cold concrete floors,
maneuvering through the snake-like bodies that lay on the ground. Bang! The
room stayed still but Markel had fallen to the ground with a womans hand
clasped to his wrist. Please, please, please take my son with you! I will not tell
anyone about this, I beg this of you. There, there was no time to waste.
We scattered out like ants coming out of an ant hill. Holding the baby as tight to
my chest as I could. Whispers throughout the week said a train was coming at
sunrise and it was soon coming. Markel did not want to leave the baby behind, so
we saved another life. The sun crept on us and the guards did too, without a
trace down the hole we went. The rag got caught on the fence, like a tug of war
telling us we could not win. Waaah-waaaah-waaah, the innocent screamed. With
blood dripping down his face and the rag torn to pieces, behind us were the
animals.
My breath was quicker than my heart beat but slower than my legs. Metres felt
like miles with the baby in my hands. Markels body was like a kite, getting
thrown around by the monstrous winds. But with a trigger pulled, the string cut
loose and the kite flew above us in the deep winter breeze.