Free A Flicker of Light by Roberta Kagan Page B

into a sweet slumber. Realizing how tired Petra looked, Siegland insisted that she go back to her room and get some rest.
                  Petra fell into a sound sleep , and for the first several hours the infant remained quiet , but a few minutes before two o’clock , the child awakened with a loud shriek. Petra heard it and woke instantly. Hurriedly, so as not to disturb Siegland or Klaus, Petra picked the baby up and lay him on a small table that Klaus had built for her to use to change him. Her hands shook as she took great care wit h the large pins that held his diaper. The love s he had for the little boy felt stronger than anything she had ever known.
                  After she’d removed the urine-soaked diaper, she rocked him in her arms as she carried him into the bathroom where she cleaned his bottom with a warm, wet towel. Then she took him back, and powdered and re-diapered him. Fresh and comfortable again in his mother’s arms, little Hans felt his mother carry him to the rocking chair in the living room. Daisy quietly accompanied them. The old dog wanted to be a part of everything that had to do with the baby, and she stayed with the two throughout the night. The room smelled of powder and laundry soap as Petra sat down in the rocker. Then, in the dark, she took the baby to her breast. Reaching down, the new mother kissed her child’s soft head and took in his sweet baby smell. As the infant suckled, she watched the stars flicker , giving light to the night sky and thought how lucky she was that some miracle of God had brought her to these kindhearted, generous people.

 
    Chapter 10
     
    T
    he sound of movement in the kitchen alerted Petra. She thought she heard a paper rustle, perhaps a rat. Her heart pounded in her ears in alarm. Going back to the baby’s room, she placed him in his cradle. Still hungry, the infant screamed in protest, so she picked him up again. If in fact she saw a rat scurry across the room, where would she put the baby while she went after it? Certainly not on the floor, and she could not put him on a chair. He might fall off. Again she heard the sound of the paper moving, only louder this time. Frightened that an even larger animal had entered the house, Petra put the baby back in the crib and closed the door to protect him as he cried out. She cringed as the wailing broke through the quiet house. She did not want to become a burden and disturb the family, but she knew that she must go to the kitchen to uncover the cause of the noises.
    If a dangerous person or animal had entered, she felt it her responsibility to do what she could to keep them all from harm. The creaking of the front door stopped her cold as she stood listening. Then a thud followed and she realized someone had shut it. Not making a sound, she stood listening with her heart beating in the dark hallway. Someone had entered the house. Did she dare go forward, or should she quiet the child? If the intruder heard little Hans, might he not come and kill him, or kill them all? She felt a drop of milk escape from her nipple and roll down her stomach, and she shivered in response. The baby finally began to quiet down, and she went forward, still keeping out of sight to see who might be in the house. Perhaps carrying a pair of scissors might be a wise idea, but the only pair she knew of was in the sewing table drawer in Siegland’s room, and she did not want to awaken and frighten her. Resigned that she had no weapon and not sure what she would do with one if she did, she went forward with Daisy at her side. Terror struck her as she considered that an intruder might kill the old dog. She had no doubt Daisy would stage as much of an attack as her old body could muster.
    When she reached the main room, adjacent to the kitchen, she saw no one, only large packages on the kitchen table. Still hidden behind the wall of the hallway, she watched for several minutes, waiting. Nobody came. Curious, she went