Looking from them to Cyrus as he said this, Flors saw that he hadn’t dropped his weapon. She went to shout at him to do as the Germans instructed, but at that moment Cyrus dashed outside, shooting as he did so.

Flors screamed at him to come back, falling onto her knees. ‘Cyrus, no! Oh God!’

Frantic orders shouted by the Germans saw one lone soldier come through the door. With his gun, he indicated that she should move over to where Ella was. Crawling on her hands and knees, Flors listened to the panic outside and knew, by the way the voices faded, that Cyrus had run into the forest and the rest of the soldiers were chasing him.

Finding Ella’s hand, she held it in her own, trying to find some courage to give her. But Ella’s eyes held despair and fear, which Flors didn’t know how to combat. Their situation was desperate and their lives were in grave danger. But with the courageous action that her darling Cyrus had taken, he was in even greater danger than they were, and she feared she’d never see him again. Oh, Cyrus, my love, I cannot bear to lose you. Please, God, let him get to safety.

His action, Flors knew, had been a last-ditch attempt to save them all. He had the dead soldier’s ammunition belt and a powerful gun, and every chance of winning this last stand, given his training in warfare. Putting her arm around Ella, Flors pulled her close. The soldier demanded that they let go of each other and stand apart. Flors could see that he was only very young and that his nerves were on edge, just as theirs were. She and Ella were probably similar in age to his mother, and he might have a younger sister like Lonia. This gave her courage because, if her thoughts were true, that might make them safer. She imagined her own sons in a similar position and knew they wouldn’t shoot their prisoners. They wouldn’t be able to.

The sound of shooting in the distance filled her with fear. Flors held her breath. It stopped and then started again. They’ve caught up with my darling. Please, please, God, let him be the victor.

She watched the soldier, saw a nerve jumping under his eye. His hands shook. He backed to the door, keeping his gun trained on her. She knew that he wanted to know what was happening, as she saw him bend backwards and peer towards the trees. Then her heart dropped as he gave a smile of relief and renewed his stance.