Free Spark of Life by Erich Maria Remarque

later,” said Berger.
    “Just leave me,” whispered Lohmann. “This now—is easy—”
    “Maybe we’ll find a few more matches.”
    Lohmann didn’t answer any more.
    509 felt the gold crown hard and heavy in his hand. “Come out,” he whispered to Berger. “We better talk it over outside. We’re alone there.”
    They groped their way to the door and went to the side of the barrack that was protected against the wind. The town was blacked out and the fires to a large extent extinguished. Only the tower of St. Catherine’s church still burned like a gigantic torch. It was very old and full of dry timber; the fire-brigade hoses were powerless against it; there was nothing to be done but to let it burn itself out.
    They squatted down. “What’ll we do?” asked 509.
    Berger rubbed his inflamed eyes. “If the crown is registered in the office, we’re lost. They’ll investigate and hang a few of us—me first.”
    “He says it wasn’t registered. When he arrived, they hadn’t started that here. He’s been in the camp seven years. At that time gold teeth were knocked out, but not registered. That came later.”
    “Are you sure of that?”
    509 shrugged his shoulders.
    They were silent for a while. “Of course we can still tell the truth and hand over the crown. Or stick it in his mouth when he’s dead,” explained 509 at last. His hand closed tightly round the little lump. “You want to do that?”
    Berger shook his head. That gold was life for several days. Both knew that now they had it, they wouldn’t give it up.
    “Couldn’t he have broken the tooth out years ago and sold it himself?” asked 509.
    “Do you think the SS would fall for that?”
    “No. Certainly not if they discovered the fresh wound in his mouth.”
    “That’s the least worry. If he holds out a bit longer, the wound will heal. Besides, it’s a molar in the back; that makes checking more difficult, if the corpse is already stiff. If he dies this evening, he’ll be that far by the morning. If he dies early tomorrow we’ll have to keep him here till he’s stiff. That should work. We can fool Handke at the morning roll call.”
    509 looked at Berger. “We’ve got to risk it. We need the money. Especially now.”
    “Yes. There’s nothing else left for us to do. Who’s going to get rid of the tooth?”
    “Lebenthal. He’s the only one who can do it.”
    Behind them the barrack door opened. A few men dragged out a figure by its arms and legs and lugged it to a heap beside the road. Here lay the dead who had died since the evening roll call.
    “Is that Lohmann already?”
    “No. Those aren’t our people. They’re Mussulmen.”
    The men who had dropped the dead staggered back to the barrack.
    “Did anyone notice that we got the tooth?” asked Berger.
    “I don’t think so. They’re almost all Mussulmen lying there. The only chance is the man who gave us the match.”
    “Did he say anything?”
    “No. Not yet. But he can always come and ask for his share.”
    “That’s our least worry. The question is if he considers it a better business to betray us.”
    509 thought for a while. He knew there were people capable of doing anything for a crust of bread. “He didn’t look like it,” he said finally. “Why else would he have given us the match?”
    “That hasn’t anything to do with it. We must be careful. Otherwise, we’re both done for. And Lebenthal as well.”
    509 knew that too, well enough. He had seen many a man hang for less. “We must watch him,” he declared. “At least until Lohmann is cremated and Lebenthal has got rid of the tooth. After that he won’t be able to do anything.”
    Berger nodded. “I’ll go in again. Maybe I’ll find out something.”
    “Okay. I’ll stay here and wait for Leo. He must still be in the labor camp.”
    Berger got up and went over to the barrack. He and 509 would have risked their lives without hesitating if anything could have saved Lohmann. But he could not be