PART V - Part 02

The day passed and they resumed their trek through the woods. Ziso was leading. They began to climb the second mountain peak. Ziso smiled. They had reached the border belt. They turned and began to follow the bottom of a brook. They were chest deep in bushes and vegetation. Maria Stavridis’s baby began to cry. Fear leaped into everyone’s eyes. Iana Chakalarova cradled him in her arms but could not stop him from crying. German’s face lost its blush and turned yellow. He looked angry. He went over to Iana.

“Shut him up!” he said angrily.

Iana became upset.

“What do you want me to do? Suffocate him?” she replied with the same tone of voice.

“Better one of us than all of us. Shut him up! I am ordering you!” he threatened.

Iana Chakalarova didn’t know what to do. She hesitated. The people began to murmur.

“Do you want to get us all killed?” asked a woman who was close to her. “Put your hand over his mouth or I will!” she threatened.

Maria Stavridis turned pale with fear. Even though she did not understand the language in which they spoke, the woman sensed that her son Kosta was the reason for their anger. She went over to Iana and, with her eyes full of tears and fear, stared at her. Iana’s eyes welled up.

The people were getting really nervous. The child would not stop crying. Iana Chakalarova kept cradling him but it did not help. German grabbed the baby from Iana. Maria Stavridis screamed. She raced towards German and grabbed him from his hands.

“Kill me! The baby must live! It is not his fault that there is a war and misery…” she pleaded nervously looking at German. She unbuttoned her chest and pulled out her right breast. She put her nipple into the baby’s mouth, with her thin fingers. The baby stopped crying.

“It will be the end of us with that child!” the same woman yelled at Iana.

Iana quickly looked away. She listened and heard footsteps. “Horses!” she thought. They all shut up and ducked down. They thrust themselves into the grove quietly. Their hearts were beating wildly. Everyone’s thoughts were on the child. They were afraid it would start crying again. Maria Stavridis covered his face. She was ready to sacrifice him. She anxiously looked into his eyes, pressed her hand over his mouth and nose and held him tightly. The horses slowly disappeared into the distance. He was still squirming, but barely, when she let go. The baby took a painful breath. She considered herself lucky. She was happy. Iana and German helped her out and brought her back to the others. They then all left together. Ten minutes later they arrived at the Prevalets border crossing. Maria Stavridis was completely calm and smiling now. She was sure that her son Kosta was going to live.

6. Led by Ziso, the group of refugees descended down the slope and, about an hour later, arrived in a small town. They walked down a narrow cobblestone road and stopped in front of a large building. Ziso went inside and several minutes later came out with a long-haired man wearing a leather jacket. They stopped in front of the group. The long-haired stranger curiously looked them over one by one and constantly raised his eyebrows. Ziso approached him.

“Comrade Bozhin, where can we stay?” he asked.

The man turned to look at Ziso and his eyes caught Iana Chakalarova’s beautiful face. He thought for a moment.

“We can put you in the school building! I will show you where it is,” he replied and led the way.

Ziso and the others followed. They were all exhausted. Iana Chakalarova picked up Kosta. Her son Risto walked beside her, wiping the dirty sweat from his face with his hand. Maria Stavridis was struggling and could barely stand on her feet. They soon arrived at the school and were placed in the classrooms. They all sat down on the benches and most fell asleep. Bozhin and German left the school.

IV

1. Iana Chakalarova and Maria Stavridis came out of the building and began to look for the address that the administrator had written on a piece of paper. They soon arrived at the grey, two-storey house. Iana knocked on the wooden door. She heard a male baritone voice inside.

“I will be with you in a moment. I need to get dressed…” said the man inside.

The women looked at each other. A tear dropped from one of Maria Stavridis’s eyes. Iana fixed her hair. The door opened and a man appeared at the threshold. He was smiling. He had not shaven in a long time. He had gentle eyes and a properly shaped nose.

“Did the Board send you? Please come in,” said the man and motioned them to come inside. As they passed by him he tapped Risto, Iana’s son, on the head and followed them into the room with the open door. His wife greeted them inside. She extended her hand to Iana and they shook hands.

“My name is Traianka. Please sit. I will treat you to some sweets…” she said and then said hello to Maria Stavridis. “I am sure you are all tired,” she added.

“What is your name?” the man asked Iana.

“Iana Chakalarova,” replied Iana. “This is Maria Stavridis,” she said and then pointed at Maria, with Kosta sitting in her lap.

“It’s bad down there. We can hear the shooting all the way here. The town is full of refugees. What did you do to anger God to punish you like this?” asked the man.

“I don’t know. I honestly don’t know…” replied Iana.

Traianka was back in the room. She was carrying a tray with a large jar on it. She put the tray on the dresser and pulled out three small shallow bowls from the shelf. She opened the jar and, with a spoon, scooped some sweet from the jar and placed it in the shallow bowls. She them took some tiny spoons from the shelf and placed everything on the tray. She then walked over to her guests and offered them each a bowl and spoon.

“You will by staying in that room,” said the man and pointed to the door of the room.

Iana Chakalarova took the sweet.

“What is your name?” the man asked Risto, Iana’s son.

Risto did not know what to say. He looked at his mother shyly. She smiled.

“And what do they call you, Uncle?” she asked the man.

“I am Kocho,” he said and smiled.

“My name is Risto!” Iana’s son piped up.

“No… you are lying to me…” replied Kocho.

“I am not lying to you, Uncle!” replied Risto, surprised that the man did not believe him. “Ask my mother!” he insisted.

“Okay young Risto, I believe you! Later I will take you to the orchard and we will pick some apples. Would you like that?” replied Kocho.

“Yes I want that. I love apples. Can we go now, I am not tired,” replied Risto enthusiastically.

“Let’s leave that for later…” said Kocho in a gentle tone of voice and left the room.

2. Traianka gathered the little dishes and spoons and put them back on the tray sitting on the dresser.

“I will show you to your room. Rest for now and later we will have lunch,” said Traianka and led them to the room designated for them and left them. Maria Stavridis put little Kosta on the bed and covered him with an old blanket. She then lay beside him. Iana Chakalarova lay down on the other bed. Risto stood in the middle of the room staring at the crumbling walls.

“Come here and lie down!” Iana said to Risto. Her voice trembled and her eyes welled up with tears.

“No, I don’t want to sleep. I want to go out to the yard,” he said and left the room. Iana lay there for a long time thinking. She was very tired and fell asleep. She woke up late. Maria Stavridis was still sleeping. Traianka looked in. She noticed that Iana was awake.

“You will have to go to the Board. They will give you coupons for food. You can’t purchase food without coupons. And bread too…” she said and left.

Iana Chakalarova got out of bed, painstakingly put on her shoes and went outside to the yard. She saw Risto standing beside the fence. She grabbed him by the sleeve and dragged him with her. They soon

arrived at the Board building. They were cheerfully greeted at the front desk by a man with an eagle beak, shaped nose.

“Here are some coupons for three days. After that we will determine if you will still stay here or move elsewhere,” he said and handed her the coupons.

“Where will they take us? God, I should have stayed in Solun. Where to now?” she asked.

“Don’t worry! You will be accommodated in a village somewhere around here...” he replied in a kind tone of voice.

“Sure…” muttered Iana Chakalarova. Risto anxiously grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the door. They rushed home panting and went into their room. Maria Stavridis was still sleeping. Little Kosta was awake.

Risto went out into the yard. Iana lay on her bed and silently wept.

“These are cursed times!” she thought. “Terrible times…”

3. Iana Chakalarova found herself at the front desk behind which sat the man with the eagle beaked nose.

“Good morning!” the man said cheerfully. “You will be going to the village... damn... I forgot its name. It’s written down here somewhere. It is near the village… Anyway, go, get ready! They will take you there by truck.”

Iana Chakalarovo took the long list from the man’s hands and looked at it. She was unable to read it.

“The alphabet… what alphabet is it written in?” she asked the man indignantly.

“In the Macedonian… in the Cyrillic alphabet…” she heard a voice behind her say. She turned around. Her eyes opened wide.

“Evangelia! What are you doing here?” she said, hugged her tightly and began to weep.

“I have been here for a while. When did you arrive?” asked Evangelia.

“Three days ago,” she replied. “How is Stavre? Is he here too?” Iana asked.

“That’s what I wanted to ask you. Stavre has been missing for several months. I am here with the children. We have twins, you know?” she replied.

“God bless them! You say Stavre is missing? Come over to our place, we can talk some more…” said Iana.

“Okay…” said Evangelia and followed her. She began to cry on the way. Then Iana began to cry. Then they both began to laugh. They were both smiling when they entered the house.

“Do you think we will ever go back?” asked Iana as she entered the room. Evangelia followed her inside.

Maria Stavridis made an unusually grimacing face. Evangelia was surprised. Then they had some tea. When they finished their tea Evangelia stood up.

“I must go. Today we are moving. This is our fate now…” she said and left.

Iana and Maria also hastily began to prepare for their trip. They said goodbye to Traianka and Kocho and left for the Board building where they were greeted by the same man.

“The truck is here waiting for you,” said the man, got out from behind his desk and escorted them to the truck. Iana helped Maria climb into the cab and then handed her Kosta. Risto then climbed in and Iana climbed in last. The driver put his key in the ignition and started the engine. It began to hum and move slowly. Iana waved goodbye to the man with the eagle beaked nose.

The road was bumpy. About an hour later they crossed a bridge over the great river and then turned right. They took the road leading to the village. They soon arrived in front of the village Board. They got off the truck. A tall, skinny unshaven man of about fifty came over to greet them.

“Welcome!” he said smiling. “Please feel free like you are in your own home! This is our country…” he added and brought them into the school building. He then apologized that he had to go and left.

“Is this where I am going to spend the rest of my life?” wondered Maria Stavridis and began to cry.

V

1. The school was opened to the children in the fall and Iana and Maria were moved to a house at the end of the village. They were happy there. Risto began to attend school. He stayed up late at night under the lantern and studied from the book he was given at the school. His teacher, Ivan Tomovski, often came over and helped him with his lessons. He began to appear more frequently at the house and even began to teach Iana how to read. The villagers began to talk, wondering if there was more to the teacher’s visits to Iana Chakalarova’s house than teaching. The teacher always shook his head implying “No!” But then it happened: they began to fall in love. The teacher began to spend more time with Iana. Then there was the unnamed witness who claimed he saw Iana and the teacher naked in bed. The teacher had no choice but to admit that he was in love with her and that he wanted to become engaged to her.

Iana was not sure about his announcement. The teacher, however, was ecstatic. The village bachelors envied him. Iana began to isolate herself. She pondered her situation for a long time and began to avoid the teacher. However, he kept forcibly crawling into her bedroom but Iana never tried to dissuade him. This is how she greeted the spring when she began making plans for how to start supporting herself.

One day a stranger arrived in the village and went inside the village Board office. About twenty minutes later the village Board president summoned Iana and Maria. The stranger greeted them.

“My name is Georgios Kokoianis,” he said. “I am looking for volunteers who are willing to work at the Katlanovo hospital where wounded fighters from the Democratic Army are brought to be nursed back to health. We need nurses,” he added.

Iana Chakalarovo volunteered immediately.

“I will come and work at the hospital. I have first aid training,” she said enthusiastically.

“Thank you, comrade. The wounded fighters will appreciate your help,” replied the man.

Maria Stavridis looked at Iana and said:

“What about Risto?”

“He will stay with you, Maria. I have to help at the hospital. Risto is a big boy now. He will be able to help you. Also, I will come and visit you from time to time,” replied Iana.

Maria Stavridis was silent.

“Get ready, we are leaving in half an hour…” said Kokoianis.

Iana nodded affirmatively, left the Board office and headed for home with Maria following her. The moment they arrived she began to pack her suitcase.

“Where are you going, mother? Are you taking me with you?” asked Risto.

“No, son! You will be staying with your Aunt Maria. You will continue with your schooling. I am going a little further away. We will see each other less often until I am able to take you with me,” she replied.

“Okay, mother. I can look after myself,” replied Risto.

“Thank you, son. You are a smart and brave young man!” she said, took her suitcase and went outside. Risto remained behind wondering what was happening.

“Are you going somewhere?” Iana heard a voice saying in the distance.

She turned to see who it was. Wrinkles appeared on her forehead. She sharpened her view. It was the teacher.

“Yes I am leaving right now, Ivan. I must go,” she replied.

“Are you leaving because of me?” he asked.

“My people are bleeding in the mountains. If you don’t understand that it best I don’t explain it to you!” she replied.

“You are lying to me! You are leaving because you don’t want to marry me!” he said.

Iana looked around then looked him in the eye and caressed his face with her hand.

“My people are being destroyed and they need me. Our love is over. My homeland is calling me,” she replied.

“Is this not your homeland?” he asked.

Iana became enraged. She partly shut her eyes and clenched her teeth tightly.

“Listen, Ivan! If you need a woman until I come back, go look somewhere else. I can’t ignore my people just for your...!” she said in a rough tone of voice and left. She ran down the hill on the road and did not turn to say goodbye. She stopped in front of the village Board building, left her suitcase at the door and went inside. She then came out with Georgios Kokoianis and the three other people

who accompanied the village Board president. Kokoanis helped her put her suitcase on the jeep and then they all climbed aboard. Iana sat on the back seat. Kokoanis and the three others sat in the front seats. The jeep drove off.

2. The road led them to Skopje. Three hours later they crossed over the River Pchinia and turned right. They traveled on the road that followed the river. It was winding and bumpy. They hopped around on their seats. Suddenly people moving around on crutches appeared before them. They had arrived at the hospital. The jeep stopped and they all got off. Kokoianis took Iana to the reception area. They stopped in front of a makeshift desk.

“This is the new nurse,” said Kokoianis.

“You may go now Mr. Kokoianis,” said the woman behind the makeshift desk and turned her attention to Iana.

Iana Chakalarovo turned to look where Kokoianis was going and then sighed.

“What is your full name?” asked the woman behind the counter.

“Iana Chakalarova,” replied Iana.

“Date of birth?” she asked.

“1917,” replied Iana.

“Place of birth?” she asked.

“Solun,” replied Iana and looked at the ledger in which the woman was writing down all this information.

“Are you married?” she asked.

“Yes!” replied Iana. “But my husband was killed in the Second World War.”

“Was he a communist?” the woman asked.

“Yes! He was a member of the CPG,” replied Iana proudly.

“Do you have children?” she asked.

“One. Male,” replied Iana with a sad look on her face as she thought of Risto.

“Where is he located now? Address?” asked the woman.

“He is in Marvintsi, Valandovsko,” replied Iana quietly like it was a secret.

The woman finished writing down the information, looked at Iana, stood up and began to move away from her desk.

“Come with me! I will show you to your quarters, kitchen and where you will be working. But first we need to find you clothes to wear and you need to take a bath,” said the woman.

Iana followed her silently. They entered a narrow room. The woman looked at Iana and pulled out a clean white bundle of clothes from the large shelf and gave it to her. Iana took it. She then pulled out a long white coat and handed it to her.

They left the room and climbed up to the next floor. They stopped in front of a door with patterns. The woman went inside. Iana followed. The room was small. There were two iron beds with old mattresses resting on them.

“This is your room. When the other girl arrives there will be the two of you here,” said the woman and placed some bed sheets on the mattress. “The bath is in the bathroom and the kitchen is downstairs. Have your bath and go down and eat something!” she said.

Iana was silent. The woman left the room and she was left all alone. She kept looking at the mattress for a long time. She put her suitcase on the floor and opened it. She took out her blankets, white tablecloth and pillow case and put them on the bed. She held her

coat in her hand. She sighed a difficult and painful sigh and went into the bathroom. She took off her clothes and washed them in the tub. She then took a bath and wiped her body with a towel. She put on the white coat over her naked body and carried her clothes under her arm back to the room. She opened the window and spread her clothes to dry. She made the bed and then lay down to rest. She fell asleep. About an hour later the same woman who had brought her there woke her up. A young woman was with her. Iana quickly got out of bed, nodded her head and said:

“Excuse me, I must have dozed off.”

“This is your colleague. She is from Bapchor. Her name is Maria. You will do well together…” said the woman and left.

“Please sit. My name is Iana. I am from Solun,” said Iana.

“Please let me get washed first, then we will talk,” replied Maria. “I am really dirty and uncomfortable like this,” she added.

“Okay, no problem,” said Iana and lay down. Maria went to the bathroom, had a bath and soon returned. Iana was sleeping. Maria sat down on the other bed, leaned on the iron bars and dozed off naked.

VI

1. Iana Chakalarova was often alone in her room. She thought more frequently about her son. Some unknown force was pushing her to go and see him. She often saw photographs of her patients with all their family members together. Many had pictures of their wives. There was a younger man in the hospital. He was from Drama. He kept a photograph of his son on his chest and showed it to everyone in the hospital. He also showed it to Iana. They became friends. The man constantly looked at the photograph. This caused Iana a lot of pain. She began to hope that they would give her time off to go and visit her boy in the small village near the great river, but the war was raging on and every day the number of wounded in the hospital

increased. Those who were healed were sent back to the front, but there were only a few of them.

The only thing that made Iana think less of her son were the stories she was hearing from the front, told by the wounded fighters who she was helping in the hospital, which made her so angry that she wanted to pick up a rifle herself and go out there and fight.

She was alone in her room during the evening of New Year’s Eve when there was a knock on her door. It was Georgios Kokoianis. He was so excited that he was red in the face. He was smiling when he sat down on the other bed.

“Get ready to move. You are leaving in two days. You are going back to your own homeland,” he said excitedly.

Iana Chakalarova looked at him with a sharp look and was about to say:

“This country here is also my homeland, Mr Kokoianis!” but decided not to. “I will be ready, Mr. Kokoianis. Don’t worry!” she said instead.

“Then I will see you in two days…” replied Kokoianis.

“Can I go and see my son before I leave?” she asked.

“Sorry, I can’t approve that. Only headquarters can. I will inquire promptly,” replied Kokoianis and left.

2. Iana Chakalarova climbed into the truck. She sat on a wooden bench under the tarpaulin. She looked into the faces of the young people being sent back to the front. The truck left and soon arrived in the Pchinia valley heading for Gevgelia. Iana was hoping to see her son. Kokoianis was also sitting under the tarpaulin.

“Sir, we will be passing by my village. Will I be able to see my son?” inquired Iana looking upset.

The truck hit a large pothole. Iana and the others were sent flying up off their seats. They landed hard on their asses. Some grumbled and murmured. Iana was silent, thinking of Risto.

About three hours later the truck stopped. The young fighters raised the tarpaulin. Iana was staring at Kokoianis’s pale face.

“Everyone off the truck! From here on we go on foot!” ordered Kokoianis.

Iana Chakalarova got off the truck.

“Why did you not allow me to see my son?” asked Iana.

Kokoianis turned red in the face and looked uncomfortable. He became upset but said nothing. Iana passed him by silently with contempt. She lost the colour in her face. Concern appeared in her eyes.

“Death is a bad companion but love is greater than everything else,” Iana thought to herself and followed the young men traveling over the rough terrain.

3. Soon they arrived at the border and crossed it quietly making sure no one saw them or heard them. They stopped at Bel Kamen and waited. A while later they saw several silhouettes in the snow-white distance. They hid behind the stones with rifles ready to shoot. They looked confused and upset at the little column approaching. Iana recognized someone in the column. She ran out from behind the rocks yelling. Everyone was confused.

“Stavre…! Stavre…!” she kept screaming as she ran towards the column. Then she reached out and lunged at one of the men and put her arms around his neck. They hugged tightly.

The column stopped. The people behind the stones put their guns down. Stavre Nakovski wept with happiness.

“Iana! What the hell are you doing here?” he asked her quietly.

“Stavre my friend! It must have been God’s will to send you my way,” cried Iana.

“Let’s get moving people!” said one of the fighters.

Stavre and Iana separated from their embrace.

“Let’s go! It’s a long way to Kostaneria,” said Stavre, put his arm around her and led her along the goat paths through the mountains. The young men who came with Iana and Stavre’s fighters followed. Their feet were getting sore from the rugged terrain. Some were getting stuck in places where the snow was deep. They all moved silently. They did not rest at all before they arrived in Kostaneria in the evening. They passed by the first set of guards and entered the village. Several dogs barked at them. No one got upset. They stopped in front of Stefanos’s store. The newly arrived fighters were sent to various houses. Iana was sent to Kolio Bochvarov’s house. She was very tired and immediately fell asleep.

Tired, Stavre Nakovski sat down in Stefanos’s store. The Asia Minor colonist brought him some rakia. After he drank his rakia he fell asleep.

VII

1. Lazaros Papadoglu wearily walked along the slope and slowly approached the first line of guards. He stumbled over a root, fell and rolled in the snow. He lay in the snow for a moment or two. He then brushed himself off and continued. Two armed men appeared from behind the trees. Lazaros stopped. He was frozen with fear.

“Are you looking for someone, friend?” one of the men asked him threateningly with his gun pointing at him.

“I am going to Kostaneria. I am not at war with anyone,” replied Lazaros sounding upset.

“Do you have relatives there?” asked the other man who appeared to limp from one of his legs.

“I have. I am going to see Stavre Nakovski,” Lazaros replied.

The man with the limp laughed out loud showing that he was missing a lot of teeth.

“Search him!” the limping man ordered.

The other armed man approached Lazaros carefully, searched his pockets and under his arms and then moved away from him.

“He is clean. Like he is off to a wedding…” he said.

“Let’s go. Walk in front of us!” ordered the limping man and pointed with his rifle in the direction he wanted Lazaros to walk.

“But I am going to Kostaneria…” rebelled Lazaros naïvely. He was confused and wanted to get away from the clutches of the two armed men.

“We are from Kostaneria…” said the limping man and shoved Lazaros in the back with his rifle barrel. “Now let’s go!” he yelled out.

Lazaros Papadoglu walked slowly in front of them. His legs were heavy and he could not move any faster. The limping man pushed him forward with his rifle barrel prompting him to move on. Lazaros sped up. When they arrived in the village street they met other armed men. Lazaros kept looking at them in amazement. About half way down the little village Lazaros began to slow down.

“Stop!” yelled the limping man. Lazaros stopped. “Wait for me here! I will go inside and see the commander. I will be right back.”

Lazaros Papadoglu cursed the day that he had taken advice from Urania Papaioannou, who had sent him here to Kostaneria. He was sorry that he had run into these two men and sorrier for mentioning Stavre Nakovski’s name. “Now they will bring me before a judge

and shoot me,” he thought and began to despair. He then contemplated overpowering the other man and running away but did not have the courage, so he decided to wait. The limping man finally came out and went towards him. He approached Lazaros and said:

“The commander is not here. What did you say the name of your relative in Kostaneria was?”

“Stavre Nakovski,” replied Lazaros.

“I will check immediately. And what is your name?” he asked.

“My name is Lazaros,” he replied.

“Okay then, I will immediately check to see if Stavre Nakovski is related to you,” replied the man.

“I want to see him,” said Lazaros and flinched at the thought that Stavre Nakovski might say that he doesn’t know any Lazaros, which could easily happen, and then they would shoot him.

“Was Stavre a relative or not?” wondered the limping man. “Maybe this Lazaros was hiding something?” he thought.

“We should jail him in the basement while we wait for the commander to arrive,” he said calmly to the other armed man. “Why are we wrecking our brains with him?” he added.

“Please take me to Stavre Nakovski, I beg you,” said Lazaros calmly.

The limping man pondered for a while, then pushed him with his rifle barrel.

“Let’s go!” he said sternly.

Lazaros began to move. About twenty metres along the street the limping man stopped. He then went inside Stefanos’s store. Moments later he came out with Stavre Nakovski. The limping man then pointed at Lazaros.

Lazaros laughed out loud and yelled:

“Pondilaki! Pondilaki my brother you save me from death!” and then ran down the street and threw himself at Pondilaki who was coming towards him.

“How the hell did you get here Lazaros?” asked Pondilaki and laughed out loud.

“God, what luck! Those two would have killed me!” said Lazaros and, while hugging Pondilaki, pointed at the limping man.

Stavre Nakovski giggled loudly. Pondilaki heard his laughter. Lazaros became upset. The limping man was confused. The other armed man lowered his rifle and tossed it over his shoulder.

“Go back to your posts! This man is one of us!” yelled Stavre.

The limping man saluted and he and his co-fighter left and went in the direction of the village’s lower neighbourhood where they had come from. Stavre Nakovski went towards Pondilaki and looked at Lazaros.

“This is Lazaros Papadoglu, a journalist from Solun,” said Pondilaki and tapped Lazaros gently on the shoulder.

“Glad to meet you!” said Stavre cheerfully. “Are you a democrat?” he then asked.

“A communist!” replied Lazaros proudly.

“And the soldiers who brought you here… they too are communists. In future watch out that you don’t kill each other!” said Stavre.

“And you are Stavre Nakovski?” asked Lazaros.

“Yes… that’s me,” replied Stavre.

“Urania Papaioannou sent me to see you. My life was in danger,” explained Lazaros.

“Urania Papaioannou?!” said Stavre.

“Yes exactly, her…” said Lazaros proudly.

“That’s great… Urania Papaioannou…” muttered Stavre and laughed. “This is Iana Chakalarova a true beauty,” said Stavre and introduced Iana to Lazaros and the others.

Pondilaki was delighted. Lazaros opened his eyes wide. He could not get enough of the beauty that was coming over to meet him. Iana came close and gave her hand to Pondilaki but instead of shaking it he grabbed her and hugged her.

“Welcome… We are now complete…” he said.

“Let’s go inside the store!” suggested Stavre and walked in. Pondilaki led Iana by the hand. Lazaros walked in behind them. Stavre sat in the usual wooden chair and invited the rest to join him. They all sat down.

“It’s a nice day. I hope it will be peaceful,” said Stavre and coughed.

“Some rakia here?!” ordered Pondilaki.

Stefanos brought a bottle of rakia and glasses and then went back behind the counter. Manoli Strezovski walked in with mail from supreme command and placed it in front of Stavre.

“From headquarters?” asked Stavre.

“Yes, from headquarters. They said it was important…” replied Manoli.

Stavre Nakovski opened each envelope. There were typewritten letters inside. He read over them quickly and carefully and set each page aside when he was done. He then whistled loudly.

“The new government is asking us to be more active,” Stavre said to Pondilaki. “It is ordering us to open free schools, to implement agrarian reforms, to nationalize the forests and pastures, and to respect the rights of minorities and treat them as equals.”

“These are affairs of the state. Only the government in Athens can decide on such matters!” said Lazaros surprised.

Pondilaki laughed.

“Now we have two governments in one country. Last year they sent us documents declaring Greece a democratic and free state, and a non-aligned republic. Where have you been living?” replied Pondilaki to Lazaros.

Lazaros Papadoglu turned red in the face.

“The name of the president of your new government is Markos Vafiadis,” said Pondilaki to Lazaros sarcastically.

Lazaros was completely confused.

“They want two of us in supreme command. Who do you think we should send?” said Stavre to Pondilaki.

“Iana Chakalarova and Lazaros Papadoglu. They are smart, literate and great democrats,” replied Pondilaki and laughed.

Iana and Lazaros were both surprised. Stavre continue to browse through the letters and then raised his head.

“I thought of sending you,” said Stavre to Pondilaki.

“They are younger and are making their own future. If they make mistakes they will be making their own mistakes with no one to blame,” replied Pondilaki and took a sip of rakia.

“Agreed! They leave tomorrow after breakfast,” decided Stavre.

Jana and Lazaros looked at each other. They were confused.