RAGNI VOL 2 eBOOK

“Margaret, you know I’d let you have one of mine, but— ” Effie paused midsentence as if one of her mad schemes were hatching in her head. Holding a finger in midair, just like the words she let hang, she continued, “Margaret, instead of you adopting a child from some family you know nothing about, why not let Rudolph and me give you our next child?” “What?” Margaret said, taken back in surprise. “Sure! Why not? I mean, we’ve been close all our lives. We’ve always shared things; why not our children? After all, if something were to happen to Rudolph and me, you would be the first I would ask to take care of them. If you want a child and can’t get one and I can, why not? I’d love to do that for my best friend. I can talk with Rudolph. He’s so busy now that I don’t think he even knows how many children we have! I’m sure he’d think it was a mad plan but would go along with it as well! What do you say?” Effie said, bubbling with enthusiasm and pride for coming up with this crazy but simple solution for her friend. “Well, I mean, I’ll ask Karl. I suppose he’d feel a bit strange about it, but I guess there would be no harm in asking,” she said, trying her best to accept the plan. “Listen, if it were any other family in Germany, I’d say they’d have to be crazy to try to raise a child in these times, but your family is well off enough to take care of a child,” Effie said convincingly. Thinking about the society they were living in, Margaret commented, “Yes, for most, it’s a very difficult time now.” Effie jumped in, “Have you been following the political scene lately?” “Not really—you know how I’ve always been about those things.” “Yes, me too, until I moved here,” Effie said. “Rudolph follows things pretty closely, and I’ve begun to as well.” 99

“Last week, on November eighth or ninth, this young fellow from Austria named Adolf Hitler and the  Nazi Party  led a coalition group in an attempt to overthrow the German government at a beer hall rally organized outside of Munich. He was yelling that the national revolution had begun. They tried marching on Munich to take it over with a few armed men when the police shot some of his followers, and he was eventually caught. Can you imagine the nerve? The thing is, Rudolph, says he almost could have gotten away with it! They’re putting him on trial in the spring. I’m telling you, this government is so shaky now; I’m not sure what’s going to happen. Some say it’s ready to be taken over by the communists. It has all the markings for the same kind of thing that happened in Moscow a few years back. In April of the following year (1924), the “young fellow from Austria,” Adolph Hitler, was tried for treason. Refusing a lawyer, he acted as his own defense in court and turned the trial into a public speaking platform where he gave impassioned speeches and brilliant cross-examinations. To the millions of Germans who were following the trial with curiosity, wondering who this audacious young man was that tried overthrowing the government with just a few men, they saw a man of vision who wanted to restore Germany to its former greatness and raise them out of the miserable and seemingly hopeless mire of debt and poverty they now wallowed in. By now, practically all of Germany had their fill of the Republic. By the end of the trial, Hitler had emerged as a patriot and hero, a man whom all the hopes and dreams of Germany seemed focused in. Though he was found guilty of high treason and sentenced to five years in prison, he had gained global recognition by virtue of the headlines in all the world’s newspapers. In August 1924, Sophie was born to the Rosenbergs and, true to their promise, they delivered the infant to Margaret and Karl. Due to the maze of confusion in the government, the two couples bypassed any formal documents of adoption, and the child was registered on the birth certificate as Karl and Margaret Mannheim’s child by birth. 100

The early years were spent quietly enough in the house on the banks of the Neckar River. In the house next door, lived a couple slightly older than Karl and Margaret, Erich and Claudia Steiner. Erich was a major in the army, as was Karl, and the families became close friends. The Steiners had a son, Gunter, who was two years older than Sophie, and the children often played together. Sophie inherited her mother Effie’s light blond hair and blue eyes, and though the neighbors knew she had been adopted, she looked so much like Karl that most people forgot the fact as she grew up. Gunter was growing up to become a model of Germanic blood: he was tall for his age and his platinum blond hair and cool steel-blue eyes drew compliments from the other parents in the neighborhood. Soon, all in the neighborhood would rarely see Gunter or Sophie without the other, and if strangers saw them playing together, they would have thought them to be brother and sister instead of neighbors. Adolph Hitler spent only one year in Landsberg Prison, where he was treated as a hero and spent the time in moderate luxury. He was released during a Yuletide amnesty in December of 1924. During his internment, he finished writing his book, originally titled Four and a Half Years of Struggle Against Lies, Stupidity, and Cowardice, but the manager of the Nazi publishing house suggested shortening it to Mein Kampf or “My Struggle.” In this book, he outlined his plan for the Thousand Year Empire. First, he would be the sole German leader of a purely Aryan civilization. To purify this race, all Jews and non-Germans would be eliminated from Germany. To be married or involved with a Jew would be a crime. All of the other races of the world would then be made German slaves or exterminated. The final part of the plan was to conquer all of Europe, starting with the revenge of the first Great War. The Treaty of Versailles would be torn up and destroyed, and so would France. Once the enemy to the West was gone, he could annex the largely German countries on Germany’s eastern borders: Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland. Once those were his, Russia would be his major target. After conquering Russia, he would have the base to take the rest of the world. 101

Slowly but surely, after brief setbacks and more struggles, the Nazi Party began drawing more members, but throughout the rest of the 1920s, it still remained a relatively small and obscure party due to some economic advances made by the Republican government in Berlin. The Treaty of Versailles reparations were amended and reduced to a more reasonable amount, and American businessmen began buoying the German economy by investing heavily in industry. As long as the economy was on the rise, the German people had no reason to support a far-right group like Hitler’s Nazis. The Social Democrats, the reigning party and controlling force in the country, were able to maintain their power hold on the Republic. The Nazi Party received 810,000 votes and elected twelve deputies out of a possible four hundred ninety-one to the Reichstag, the German Parliament, which was dominated by President Paul von Hindenburg. The Nazis were seen as somewhat of a joke now to most of the Germans, until October 29th, 1929, the day the New York Stock Exchange crashed. The resurgence of the German economy since the high inflation period of 1924 had been based on American loans and world trade, and now that the Americans and practically everyone else in the world were broke, the loans ceased, and payment was demanded. The German banking structure couldn’t handle it and collapsed, sending the country spiraling into ruins once again. This was the chance Hitler had been waiting for. President von Hindenburg scheduled new elections for September 1930 since the Social Democratic Party was unable to come up with a plan to get out of the quagmire. Campaigning feverishly, Hitler and the Nazi Party promised work to the unemployed and prosperity to the large industrialists through a strong rebuilding program of the military. During the elections, the Nazi Party received six and a half million votes and one hundred seven seats in the Reichstag, becoming the second-largest party in the country. The Prussian military aristocracy and heavy industrialists saw Hitler as the man that could bring them prosperity once again and stop the communists, socialism, and trade unions that threatened their bases of power. 102

In the 1932 presidential elections, Hindenburg received nineteen million votes, Hitler, thirteen and a half million, and the Communist Party leader Ernst Thaelmann four and a half million. On January 30th, 1933, by a series of political deals which Hitler made with von Hindenburg and a rival of the current chancellor who had been elected by majority vote, Hitler was appointed chancellor, an act only the president could have carried out. Within two days of being appointed chancellor, Hitler called for a new election set for March 5th, 1933. A few days before the election, Hitler’s aides, Goering and Goebbels, staged a fire in the Reichstag building, blaming the communists. Declaring a state of emergency in the face of communists trying to overthrow the government by force, he convinced von Hindenburg to sign a decree giving the Nazi Party legal power of martial law to maintain the elections. Even though the Nazis didn’t win a majority in the elections, a few days later, getting a little less than half the vote, they were able to terrorize the Reichstag members on the right to vote in their favor and denied the one hundred eighty-one seats to the communists. This gave Hitler the two-thirds majority he needed to amend the constitution. By the end of March, he had the Reichstag proclaim all legislative functions from them to him personally. By summer, he forced all parties but the Nazi Party to dissolve. By July, the only remaining obstacles to total domination of Germany were von Hindenburg and control of the military. Hitler’s brown-shirted Sturmabteilung, or S.A. (Stormtroopers), led by Roehm, now began to call for the Nazi Revolution promised by Hitler. Realizing it would be impossible to replace all non-Nazis in the government, army, and industry, since the military was deeply entrenched by old Prussian aristocracy and had control over all equipment and knowledge of war, Hitler made another deal with the generals shortly after hearing that von Hindenburg was ailing and near death. Knowing von Hindenburg and the military wanted the Hohenzollern monarchy to be restored after he was gone, and knowing it would mean the end of Hitler and the Nazis since the old family of emperors would never tolerate him, Hitler proposed an idea whereby he would restore the military to its old 103

strength, granting them the former privileges they once knew, in exchange for appointing him president upon von Hindenburg’s death. In doing so, Hitler also agreed to get rid of the S.A. agitators, thus leaving the military to be run by old military men, in one sweep ridding German streets of the roughnecks and their bullying tactics. The generals agreed, and on June 30th, 1934, Hitler sanctioned the Nazi Blood Pure, or the “Night of the Long Knives,” where one thousand S.A. leaders, as well as other potential political foes, were hunted down by his S.S. guard and murdered, including his closest friend and head of the S.A., Roehm. Hitler broke the very force that put him in power. A month later, on August 2nd, 1934, von Hindenburg died at age eighty- six. Hitler was now the sole leader of Germany. He had his cabinet decree that all his political offices were now combined into a new title: “Fuhrer and Reich’s Chancellor.” Now the commander in chief of the armed forces as well, he made every soldier swear a personal oath of allegiance to him as Fuhrer. He was now the dictator of Germany and was ready to begin his three-point plan as outlined in Mein Kampf. 104

CHAPTER 8 R agni took the separate room next to Anita. They were on the eighth floor of the hotel and had a beautiful view of the river. Ragni was in a pure state of mind. She was in deep thought about her past life. The light was off, and her eyes were open. A bright light appeared in her room, and she could clearly see the long white beard and tall, transparent body. The whole room was shimmering with light. It was the Angel. “I am here to help you with the hidden questions in your mind,” the voice said. “Are these dreams about my past life true?” Ragni asked. She was relaxed. “These dreams are very real because you have the inner power to see your past. It is very rare. But, there are some exceptional cases on earth.” “Please, tell me about the natural laws?” “The first law is that you can be, do, and have what ever you can imagine. The second law is that you attract what you fear. I will tell you more about the second law now.” “Emotion is the power that attracts that which you fear. An animal knows immediately if you are afraid of it. Plants even respond to your love. None of this is by accident. There are no accidents in the Universe. There is only a grand design, which we can call a giant snowflake.” 105

“Emotion (a natural instinctive state of mind deriving from one’s circumstances) is energy in motion. When you move energy, you create an effect. If you move enough energy, you create matter. Matter is energy moved around. If you manipulate energy long enough, you get matter. Every master understands this law. It is the secret of life. Thought is pure energy. The energy of your thoughts never dies. It goes from you out into the Universe. A thought is forever. Then all thoughts meet other thoughts, forming a changing pattern of great beauty.” “Like energy attracts like energy, forming masses of like kind. When enough masses run into each other, they stick to each other. It takes a huge amount of energy sticking together to form matter. It continues in life after life. The biggest driving force behind it is love, which is pure energy, and you are a typical example. This is the only way matter forms. Now you understand how people of like mind can work together to create a favorable reality. The phrase whenever two or more of you are gathered in God’s name becomes more meaningful. Of course, when entire societies think in a certain way, wonderful things happen. Also, for instance, a society living in fear produces in form that which it fears most”. “Large communities often find miracles happening when they come together and say a common prayer, and I must make clear that even individuals, if their prayer is strong enough, can have miracles happen as a result. However, they must not be looking for miracles. Miracles must happen by themselves. In normal circumstances, only when one has reached the master level can they produce a miracle.” The laws are simple: One: Thought is creative. Two: Fears attract like energy. Three: Love is all there is. 106

“I let you go back to your past life reality.” The voice stopped, but her heart was full of love, and her soul was at peace. Her eyes were full of tears. She opened her eyes and looked at the bright light moving through the window, merging with the Universe once again. She put on her nightgown and went near the window. The white light was touching its horizon in the deep, blue sky loaded with shining stars. She went back again to her past life secrets. “Come on, Sophie, I want to show you something,” Gunter called up to her room from outside. “Just a moment, Gunter,” she replied from the third-story window. A moment later, Gunter was leading her by her hand to the backside of his house and to the small dock. “It’s a birthday present from my parents,” he said proudly, pointing to a green rowboat tied to the wooden walkway extending into the river. “Come on, I’ll take you for a ride,” he said as he stepped in carefully and offered a hand to her. As they rowed down the flowing waters, Sophie looked up at the clear blue sky and wondered if there could be anything better in the world than what she was doing here now with Gunter. Sophie’s childhood had been pleasant enough. Throughout the emotional wave of Germany’s Nazism, her family remained stoic and balanced, believing more in the steadiness of one’s own inner nature and the dedication to hard work and precision characteristic of Germans, rather than the hyper Aryan super-patriotism spread by Hitler’s propagandists. The upper echelons of the old military and Prussian families of which the Steiners and Mannheims belonged remained cool and in power before and during the Great War and planned to survive after this impending war as well. Although many of the other boys joined Hitler’s Youth Organization when they turned fourteen, Gunter preferred to spend time alone, wandering 107

the streets of Heidelberg or hiking in the nearby woods. During these outings, Sophie would see him leaving his house and would ask to go along, which he never objected to. She was a spunky girl and liked the same kinds of things he did, preferring his company to that of girls her own age. Margaret took Sophie with her numerous times to visit the Rosenbergs in Berlin, and while Sophie didn’t know exactly who these people were, she considered them her aunt and uncle. The Rosenbergs always treated her well and loaded her with Christmas and birthday presents in an effort to spoil her. She remembered their house as being happy and full of fun, with the three children running about and getting into mischief. But this last time she and her mother visited, Aunt Effie seemed troubled. It was August 1934. “Hello, Margaret, Sophie,” Effie greeted them, hugging both mother and daughter. “Come in, please,” She was glad to see them, as always, but today she was crying. “Sophie, why don’t you play with the others,” Margaret suggested. After Sophie left, she turned to her friend and said, “Effie, what’s the matter? You’ve been crying!” “It’s Rudolph—you know how the Nazis have been harassing us because we’re Jews. Now they’ve beaten him up and threatened him with more if he doesn’t stop practicing medicine. Before, we could turn to the police, but now that Hitler’s in total power, there’s nothing that can be done. The children are abused by those Nazi gangster children in the brown shirts. Every week one of them comes home bloodied from fighting. Margaret, I’m scared. I wanted to leave and have Rudolph take us to London, but he was always so stubborn. Now, I think it’s finally occurring to him that we may have to leave,” Effie sobbed. “Maybe it’ll pass. Maybe this Hitler fad will blow over, and things will go back to the way they were,” Margaret tried to soothe her. “No, Rudolph says it’s going to get worse—much worse before it’ll ever get better. He’s making plans for us to get out of here soon. We have to sell the house 108

first, and then there are his longtime patients and duties at the hospital he has to tie up before he can leave. But our decision has been made. Oh, Margaret, I’m going to miss you so much!” Effie said, hugging her. When she returned to Heidelberg, Margaret began following what was going on in the newspapers, and she could see Rudolph’s premonition that things were going to get much worse before they got better was accurate. Now that Hitler controlled the government, the German people were fed a steady diet of the party’s tenets: hatred of the Jews, eventual takeover of Europe and the world, and that all things in Germany, including all the inhabitants, belonged to Hitler. Even in churches, Bibles were outlawed and replaced with copies of Mein Kampf and a sword. Pictures of the Fuhrer were everywhere, and radios were sold cheaply so that every family could hear the constant broadcasts of Nazi propaganda. Because Hitler needed soldiers, not educated people, university enroll- ment dropped drastically. German artists and scientists fled under the persecution of being Jews or degenerate intellectuals useless to the Reich. Albert Einstein’s theories were dismissed because he was a Jew. Hans Bethe left because his mother was a Jew. Architects and designers Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Walter Gropius, and Marcel Breuer of the famed Bauhaus School were harassed by the Nazis and fled to the United States as well. Famous artists, writers, musicians, and philosophers persecuted by the Nazi regime left Germany, a great portion migrating to the United States. Their works were replaced with Nazi art, bland and bombastic representations idealizing the virtues of Aryan life, and Aryan features became the ideal. All over Germany, the nation was building up its armaments and training its people for war while the rest of the world, weary from the Great War, passively watched on, not believing Hitler was serious. “Yes, Karl, the more that I think about it, the better an idea I feel it is. I’ve always wanted to see England myself, but since joining the military, I have been 109

unable. Now this summer, when schools are off, it would be a very educational experience for young Gunter,” Erich said. “Are you sure Margaret doesn’t mind? After all, she and her mother will be inconvenienced,” Gunter’s father, Erich, said to Karl. “Don’t be silly. It was at Sophie’s insistence that Gunter come along with her and her mother. Once Margaret thought it over, she realized it would be a good idea to have a young man along, and her mother in London agreed. It will be a good experience for everyone. There is plenty of room at her mother’s in London. Besides, it will only be for a couple of weeks,” Karl replied. Then, looking a little uneasy, he moved closer to his friend Erich and said, “Just between the two of us, I’m not sure how much longer it will be possible to visit England, the way our country is gearing up for war.” Both men nodded in silence. Though both of them were in the rapidly rising military, neither liked the idea of waging war with the rest of the world, having served and seen too much from the First World War. The trip to England was a fruitful one for both Sophie and Gunter, who had never been out of Germany before. It was a chance for Sophie to see the land where her mother was from, and though Gunter wasn’t a member of the family, he had always felt close to Margaret because of Sophie. English life agreed with him, and in the short two weeks they spent in and around London, he grew to form a friendship with Margaret’s mother, who took an immediate liking to both of them, but especially Gunter. She saw in him the son she never had. The following year proved to be more of the same—Hitler’s grip tighten- ing on the freedom of the German people. They were nearly a completely totalitarian state by now, and individual rights were replaced with the laws and dictates of Hitler. Women were relieved of government and medical 110

jobs, and the new Nazi policy toward women was that they should be home, making children for the Fuehrer in order to increase the Aryan population. Government loans and tax incentives benefitted families with many children. The Lebensborn or Fountain of life Program was set up, the goal of which was to provide six hundred extra regiments of soldiers in thirty years. Setting up housing and confiscating large Jewish resorts and homes around the country, Hitler’s program called for young women, married or not, to bear their children free of charge. S.S. men with Aryan pedigrees were encouraged to mate with one or more young women, and special rallies were held for this purpose. The constant hammering of Nazi ideology into the population’s minds had them believing and going along with anything Hitler proclaimed. Dissidents were quickly beaten up or swept into the newly constructed camp outside of Munich in the town of Dachau. Margaret was worried because she was unable to contact Effie, so she told Karl she was going to Berlin to pay the Rosenbergs a visit. After leaving the cab that dropped her off at the Rosenbergs’ house, she noticed a large truck moving furniture into the house. “Excuse me, sir. Can you tell me where the Rosenbergs are?” she asked one of the men hauling in furniture. “Sorry, ma’am. Don’t know anyone by that name. We’re moving in a family named Kreuger. The man’s an S.S. Officer, if you know what I mean,” he said. She didn’t know what he meant at all. Going to the house next door, she knocked and was greeted suspiciously by the neighbor. Opening the door just a crack, she asked, “What do you want?” “I’m Margaret Mannheim. We’ve met before—I’m a friend of the Rosenbergs,” she explained in broken German. “If you know what’s good for you, you’ll get out of here as fast as you can. After the Laws of Nuremberg declared that Jews were no longer citizens, Dr. Rosenberg made a comment to one of his patients, who happened to be a 111

Gestapo agent. The entire Rosenberg family is now in the Dachau concen- tration camp. You will likely not see them again. Their house now belongs to an S.S. Officer. Now, if you please, I don’t wish to be considered a Jewish sympathizer or even to be seen talking with one that is.” She slammed the door in Margaret’s face. Horrified, Margaret wandered up and down the street in a daze trying to think of something she could do. Finally realizing the futility of it, she began to weep tears of anger and frustration. She hoped that her husband or their neighbor would be able to help the Rosenbergs. When she arrived home and made sure Sophie wasn’t within earshot, she relayed the grim story to her husband. Remaining silent, he paced the room. “There is nothing to be done,” he stated flatly. Margaret’s jaw dropped open. “Nothing to be done? Nothing to be done! Do you realize that we are never going to see them again? Don’t you remember who those people are? Have you forgotten you would not have a daughter if it—” He cut her off before she could finish her sentence and whispered rapidly in a controlled rage, “What do you mean have I forgotten? It is you that has forgotten! What do you think would happen to our daughter if we were ever implicated and one of the Rosenbergs told what they knew? Forget them! I’ll be forever grateful to them for Sophie, but I know what goes on in those camps, and I don’t have any desire to land in one! There is nothing that can be done. Do you think it would make them feel any better to see you and Sophie herded into the camp? Look outside! Those little boys in the brown shirts—they are starting to turn in their own parents for remarks that are even remotely sympathetic to Jews. The Gestapo is everywhere looking for someone to throw into Dachau. I am telling you, for your sake as well theirs, if you want to help them, forget them and never mention their names again!” 112

In March of 1935, Hitler publicly announced to the German people and the world that Germany was once more building up the army and air forces. Though it was in direct violation of the Treaty of Versailles, he gambled that France and England would be too concerned with domestic problems and a desire for peace to take action against him. There were denouncements and protests from the French and English, but he gambled right: no one did anything. A year later, on March 7th, 1936, in another direct defiance of the Treaty of Versailles, a single German division marched across to the demilitarized west bank of the Rhine, land they ceded as a result of the loss of the Great War. The army had orders to retreat if the French were to march against them, but they never did. The world’s finest and largest standing army was reluctant to attack. Had they done so, it would have meant the end of Nazi Germany as a military power. In July, General Francisco Franco started a fascist rebellion in Spain and asked Germany and Italy for aid. Sending planes and tanks, Hitler’s true intention was to bring Mussolini into an alliance with him, thereby surround- ing France with fascist governments and threatening to control the Mediterranean Sea. In February of 1938, Hitler gave the Chancellor of Austria an ultimatum: surrender the country to Hitler or be marched on. Although the Austrian chancellor gave in, Hitler marched anyway, securing the first of his attack points and buffer states for his planned Russian invasion. Czechoslovakia was taken next in the fall of that same year. This takeover provided a different set of problems for Hitler since France and Russia had a treaty with them. Hitler was also worried that England would be ready to intervene, but their prime minister, Neville Chamberlain, wanted peace at any cost, and he ceded the southern part of Czechoslovakia, the part with some German population, over to Hitler because he thought it meant keeping world peace. Because England would not back France in a war, and Russia would enter war only on the condition that she be joined with France and England, 113

Hitler walked in. Marching his troops into the Sudetenland, he secured the land. In March of 1939, by the threat of a forceful takeover, the resident of Czechoslovakia surrendered the remaining part of his country to the Nazis. In April of 1939, Hitler made plans for the invasion of Poland. France, Great Britain, and the Soviet Union agreed to ally against Germany; Hitler attacked Poland. In August, Hitler negotiated with Stalin. The agreement was that, when Germany attacked Poland, they would split it with the Soviet Union and allow them to annex Latvia, Estonia, and Finland, and thus stay out of the war if and when Great Britain and France declared war against Germany. On September 1st, 1939, Hitler attacked Poland. On September 3rd 1939, France and Great Britain declared war on Germany. By September 15th, the Polish government fled, and by October 1st, the Soviet Union attacked from the east, and Poland was split as planned, between the Nazis and communists. Practically before the fighting was over, Hitler began moving his army back west to prepare for the attack on France and England. In October, the Nazis made plans to take Norway so they would have a northern shore in which to operate their navy against Britain. And on April 9th 1940, overran Denmark in the process. On June 9th, 1940, all of Norway surrendered, and the Allies and Nazis all prepared themselves for the war in the west. After the Great War, France built a giant wall/fortress called the Maginot Line running the length of the southern border between the two countries, up to the thick Ardennes forest, where it was deemed impossible to move an army through. This left a clear passage to France, through the northern low countries, Belgium and Holland, and the only logical place an invasion could occur. On May 10th,1940, the Nazi army bombed Rotterdam and overran Belgium and Holland in just four days, ready to sweep into France from the north as expected. Anticipating the move, the major part of the French army, backed by a smaller British force, massed themselves to meet and attack the pend- ing onslaught. But as the forces met, the real German attack plowed through the dense forest on May 14th, racing to the French Coast. They encircled the entire French and British army in ten days and started driving them to the sea in a slaughter. 114

Well over 300,000 Allies were forced into a seven-mile wide perimeter on the French coastal town of Dunkirk and were on the verge of being annihi- lated by the pressing German army. Every available ship rushed to rescue the men—British destroyers, small sailboats, and motor steamers—across the English Channel to safety in England. When it was over, 114,000 French and Belgian soldiers and over 225,000 British were evacuated to safety. The Nazis then swept south toward Paris, but for all practical purposes, the French army was beaten and in total disarray. As the German planes bombed villages and towns, refugees streamed into the road by the thousands, clogging them and, in the process, clogging any attempts of the French army’s part to meet the advancing Germans. By June 15th, the Nazis occupied Paris, and two days later, France asked for peace. On June 5th, the surrender was official. By this time. France had lost 125,000 men, another 200,000 wounded, and well over a million captured, and the British lost 70,000 and all their supplies and equipment, but more importantly, they lost 40 percent of their air force, which was going to be needed against the impending battle with England. The German losses were only 27,000 killed. The Nazis had done the seemingly impossible and beaten the greatest land army in the world in a rout. The armistice left the Germans occupying Paris, the northern and eastern coasts, and most of France, the other smaller portion left to be controlled by puppet regimes appointed by Hitler. Hitler now looked to England. The British Isles could be conquered. He could hold the whole nation hostage, conquer the land and all they owned. He would be master of the seas. And all the far-flung colonies. Realizing England could be successfully invaded by sea since their navy was still intact and the strongest in the world, it would have to be bombed into submission by air. In early July, the stage was set for the Battle of Britain. “Oh, Gunter! You look so handsome in your Luftwaffe uniform!” Sophie said admiringly. “I am proud of you, but I am also going to miss you very much.” Their fathers were already off fighting, Karl Mannheim, now a Major 115

General somewhere in France, and Erich Steiner, a general with the Luftwaffe on the northern French coast helping the plan for the air attack on Britain. The overall mood in Germany was one of euphoria, with the swift seas victories. All of Hitler’s Promises were coming true, and it was looking like the German race was indeed meant to rule the world. Hidden from most German eyes, though, were the plans of the “Final Solution” of purifying the world of all non-Aryan races. This meant enslavement of useful but non-Germanic peoples and total extermination of all Jews, gypsies, terminally ill, retarded, and the aged. With each new land conquered, the Jews would be rounded up for death, the heaviest killings in Poland and occupied Russia. “Come on, Sophie, let us go for one more boat ride for old times sake,” he said, taking her hand. “Oh, bring your wooden flute; you can play your tune for me. I am not going to hear it for a bit after you are gone. One more time for me?” she asked. Smiling, he said, “Sure,” and he ran into his house to get it. The river rides in the rowboat had become a special place for Gunter and Sophie to be together. Over the years, their relationship had changed from one where he looked after her as a kid sister or a little tomboy always wanting to tag along after him to a deep friendship where he could share all his deepest thoughts, dreams, and desires. He was twenty now and about to leave for the northern coast of France as a newly trained T1 heavy bomber pilot. He was no longer a young boy but a man. In the past two years, he became more aware of the changes in Sophie as well. She had just turned seventeen and had blossomed and filled out in pleasant curves from a tall, gangly tomboy to a beautiful young woman. He was no longer able to look at her as just his pal, and Sophie, though she never looked at Gunter as just a buddy, was able to express her womanly feelings, only now, her physical appearance made Gunter take much more careful notice of them. 116

“Got it?” she asked. “Right here!” he said, holding up the flute as he ran down the front porch stairs. Then, taking her hand, they ran around to the back of the houses to the little boat dock. Steadying the boat for her to get in, he untied the rope holding it to the wooden railing, and stepped in. Rowing out to the middle of the river and letting the boat drift, he took up the flute and began playing the ancient tune Sophie loved so much. After a few minutes, he stopped and put it on the bench next to him. ‘Why did you stop?” she asked softly—still in the dreamy mood the tune always put her in. Leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees, he looked her in the eyes and reached into his breast pocket. He pulled out a small box. Seeing this, she sat upright and moved forward to see what it was. He opened it and pulled out a delicate gold chain with a heart-shaped locket, and handed it to her. She looked at the locket with surprise and opened it. Inside was a tiny photo of Gunter. “Oh, Gunter, thank you, it’s beautiful!” she said, hugging and kissing him. “Careful! We are not buddies anymore,” Gunter said, laughing. She was holding him tight while the golden glow of the setting sun reflected off of their faces. Pulling her over to his side of the boat on the bench next to him, he said, “I am hoping this war is not going to last too long. When I get back, we can talk of getting married.” As the little green rowboat floated down the Neckar River amid the beautiful houses on the banks, the two sailors embraced in a long kiss, one that she realized was going to have to last until the war was over. 117

CHAPTER 9 T he score was two to zero in India’s favor. With a little more than five minutes left in regulation play, it would take almost a miracle to beat the Indian team. This final match worked out to be a contest between the two undefeated teams of the tournament: the favored Indian team and a sur- prisingly strong West German team. Now that it was almost over, it was almost anti-climactic for the Indian coach, but the fans were still frantically trying to cheer their home team on to some kind of miracle finish. Pulling out all the stops, the West Germans attempted to tie the game with an exhausting desperation charge, but Kanwar repeatedly cleared the ball from the onrushing German forwards, and in the final seconds, team India scored another goal against the poorly defended German nets, all their efforts being centered on the attack. As the gun signaling the end of the match sounded, both teams and coaching staff met in the center of the field to congratulate each other. Anita wanted to cheer wildly, but she realized she would have been the only one screaming amongst thousands of disappointed German fans who were politely applauding both teams’ efforts, so she contained herself and limited her enthusiasm to hugging Ragni. After the grounds crew hurriedly hauled a portable platform onto the middle of the field, a medal ceremony took place, the third-place trophy going 118

to The Netherlands, West Germany taking second place, and India taking the first-place trophy. It was early evening now since this final match hadn’t started until three in the afternoon, and it took another hour for Kanwar and Hermanjit to come out of the locker room. “My hero!” Anita said, hugging Hermanjit as he exited through the stadium’s rear door. “Congratulations, Kanwar!” Ragni said as she gave him a hug too. “What do you want to do, victors and conquerors of Germany?” Anita joked. “First things first—let’s get something to eat, preferably a lot of it, what- ever it’s going to be!” Hermanjit said. “I’m for that! After five straight days of running around, I’m ready to eat anything!” Kanwar added. Piling into the car, they drove into the An der Hauptwache (heart of downtown). As Kanwar drove, he and Hermanjit began to get rowdy, releasing some of the pressure they had been under during the matches, but once they entered the restaurant, they settled down again. “Ragni, you’ve been so quiet all evening. And you hardly touched your dinner. Didn’t you like the food? Is something wrong?” Kanwar asked as he stuffed the last bite of black forest cake into his mouth. “Oh, no, the dinner was fine. I guess I just wasn’t as hungry as I thought I was,” she said. All week long, she had masked her confusion over the strange dreams she had every night, almost as if they were some sort of serial television program. She worked at being cheerful and enthusiastic around everyone after the games, but after last night’s dream, she felt the need to talk to Kanwar about them alone. 119

After dinner, they went out into the warm evening air. Hermanjit said, “Well, what now? No curfew tonight, and we have all day tomorrow to sleep and goof off. What should we do?” “Let’s find something exciting to do!” Anita chimed in. Kanwar was about to suggest something but noticed the strained look on Ragni’s face and stopped himself. “Uh, I think I may be a little worn out. Maybe you can drop Ragni and me at the hotel, and the two of you can take the car and paint the town red.” Ragni looked up at him gratefully while Anita and Hermanjit fell silent. “Are you sure?” Anita asked, somewhat surprised. “Yes, really. Drop us off at the hotel, and you two go out and have some fun,” Kanwar assured them. As they pulled in front of the hotel, Hermanjit asked once more if they wouldn’t reconsider, but Kanwar thanked them and politely refused. Once their car was out of sight, Kanwar took Ragni’s hand and asked, “Want to take a walk and talk for a bit?” Smiling and nodding, she followed him to one of the well-lit streets by the hotel and began to reveal the series of dreams she’d had since coming to Germany. After nearly two hours, they went into a snack shop for tea and pastries. “That’s really quite a series of dreams, Ragni, but what’s the point of it all? What do you think it means?” Kanwar asked. “So, do you remember when Anita and I first went to Heidelberg, and I was acting so quietly? Now I know why it affected me like it did. It’s because I was there! I was there, and so were you! I was the little girl, Sophie Mannheim, and you were the German boy, Gunter Steiner. Do you remem- ber the strange song you played on the flute that night years ago in the old 120

deserted temple grounds back in Bhatian? It was the same song Gunter used to play to Sophie while they went rowing down the Neckar River! It all makes so much sense! When I came here to Frankfurt, some of it was familiar to me, but I was confused because so much of it wasn’t. Then when I got to Heidelberg, the whole town was familiar. It was like I knew where everything was. Then I realized the reason Frankfurt wasn’t familiar to me was because most of it got bombed and destroyed during World War Two! Most of what we’re seeing has been rebuilt just recently. Heidelberg never got bombed at all during the war, and that’s why I was able to recognize it so well. It’s been the same since the days when you and I lived there! I know I’ve lived there before, and I know you did too! I even have drawings of Gunter at my house that I drew when I was a child. They look just like you; only it’s not you; it’s you in Gunter’s body back then!” Ragni said excitedly, talking faster by the minute. All of this was becoming confusing and too hard for Kanwar to believe. Shaking his head, he said, “Ragni, it all sounds so fantastic. I don’t know if I can believe in what you’re saying. To tell you the truth, I don’t know if I believe in reincarnation. If all of what you are saying is true, why don’t I remember anything around here?” Standing silent and unable to come up with a good response to his question, Ragni finally spoke up. “I don’t know why you don’t remember all the things I do, but I know a way I can prove what I’m saying is true! “Anita! Psst! Anita. Kanwar and I are going to Heidelberg together this morning. There’s something I have to show him there. We’ll rent another car, so you and Hermanjit can use one too. Maybe we can meet later tonight for dinner or something,” Ragni said, shaking Anita gently in bed. Anita struggled to open her eyes and fell back on her pillow when she tried sitting up. 121

“Oh...Hermanjit and I stayed out too late last night. I think the sun was starting to come up by the time we came back to the hotel. What did you just say?” Ragni just laughed. “Never mind. Kanwar and I will be gone for the day. You and Hermanjit keep the car, and maybe we’ll meet for dinner, okay?” Anita grunted her response and went back to sleep. Ragni went down to the lobby to meet Kanwar. “Come on, Kanwar, it’s only a little more than an hour to Heidelberg. We can eat breakfast once we get there. I know of a cute little restaurant,” Ragni said, taking his arm and leading him to the rental car in the hotel parking. As they drove south through the countryside, Kanwar joked, “It doesn’t look familiar to me yet.” Ragni shot him a dirty look, and he laughed. Once they arrived in Heidelberg, Ragni directed Kanwar to park the car near the center of town so they could walk to the restaurant. Now more than ever, Ragni knew she had lived in this town before. Things were becoming more familiar to her, and although some of the shops and restaurants had changed over the years, many things had remained the same, not only from one lifetime ago but for centuries in the old town. After eating breakfast, they walked to the old bridge and caught the same boat ride down the Neckar River, where they would be able to see the entire old city. As it puttered down the river, they could see the buildings on the river’s edge. As they cruised farther away from the center of town, the buildings became smaller until they were in a residential area. As they neared one section of houses, Ragni sat upright, almost as if being jolted by an electric shock. “What is it? What’s wrong?” Kanwar asked, noticing that she was riveted to something on the right side of the riverbank. Pointing to a row of houses, she said, “There, over there by that big tree— there’s one house that looks abandoned. Do you see it?” 122

“Yes, I see it. What about it?” “Mark that place in your memory, and we’ll go there after the boat ride is over,” Ragni said. Kanwar just shrugged but took notice of where it was. When the boat returned to the landing by the old bridge, Ragni took Kanwar’s hand and practically dragged him back to where their car was parked, while Kanwar just shook his head in wonderment. They drove the road that ran along the riverbank, and Kanwar slowed the car as they approached the residential area. Like she was honing in with an inner radar Ragni said, “Over there, on the left! There it is, the old abandoned house! Let’s pull over.” Practically before Kanwar had a chance to park the car along the curb, Ragni was out of the car and walking across the street to the old house. “Ragni! You just can’t go over to that house; someone owns it. You would be trespassing!” Kanwar called after her. Ignoring him, she went right to the overgrown grass and called back to him; she seemed to be looking for something in the weeds. “Kanwar! Over here, look what I’ve found!” When he walked over to her, she pulled an old rusted piece of metal out from the tall grass. It was a nameplate that had fallen off the metal pole nearby. After scraping the caked dirt off the front of it, the letters could barely be discerned. “There,” she said, “Read this! There is the first proof!” Kanwar took the rusted piece of metal from her and read the name: General Mannheim. With a look of slight disbelief, he looked at Ragni. “Maybe it’s just a coincidence. And besides, I thought you said he was a colonel.” “He must have gotten promoted. Besides, how can you say this is just a coincidence? If you need more proof, come on in the house, and I’ll show 123

you!” she said as she marched up the walkway onto the old wooden porch, which was neglected and in disrepair. “Ragni! Don’t go in there!” Kanwar pleaded, but to no avail. “Come on, Kanwar. It’s obvious no one lives here anymore,” she said as she gave the door a shove and went in. Nervously looking about to see if anyone was watching, Kanwar ran up the stairs to follow her and closed the door behind him, glancing through the window to make sure no one saw them enter the house. “How do I get into these messes?” he muttered to himself as he found Ragni wandering through the rooms of the house as if returning to a place she had been away from for a long time. The house looked like no one had lived in it for few years. The furniture was still in good condition, as if it were waiting for the owners to come back to live there someday. A thick coat of dust covered everything, but other than that, the house was in relatively good shape. “Come on upstairs, Kanwar,” she said, taking his hand. When they reached the narrow hallway upstairs, Ragni hesitated briefly and then made her way to one end where the sunlight was streaming through a window. She stopped at the door at the end of the hall, her heart beating strongly. “What is it?” Kanwar asked. Without saying anything, she turned the doorknob and swung the door open. After pausing and looking around the whole room, she said slowly, “This used to be my room.” The bed was by the curtained window, and there didn’t appear to be any personal items in the room. The blue and white flowered wallpaper was faded and yellowed and peeling away near the ceiling. A dresser stood against the wall. Ragni pulled the drawers open, but nothing was inside them. She went over to the iron bedpost and quickly started yanking on it. 124

“What are you doing, Ragni?” Kanwar asked, surprised at her sudden actions. “Help me move this bed aside,” she said as she struggled to drag it to the other side of the room. Kanwar helped shove the bed, and it made scraping noises across the wooden floor. Ragni rushed back to where the bed had been and pulled part of the floorboard away from the wall. Reaching into a small hole, she produced a little box. Brushing away the dust, she opened it with trembling fingers and held up a delicate gold necklace with a little golden heart-shaped locket dangling on the end. Opening the locket, she held it close to her face, looking at what was inside. Then, without words, she held it to Kanwar’s face so he could get a better look. “Do you recognize the picture?” she asked. “That is Gunter. It’s you in your previous lifetime. I have a drawing that looks just like this photo in my dorm room,” she said. Kanwar stared at the photo in the tiny locket for a long time, a confused look on his face. “Do you recognize yourself?” Ragni asked quietly, studying his face for any reaction. “I—I don’t know what to think,” Kanwar replied, shaking his head. “Come on, I can show you more,” Ragni said as she led him out of the room. “What should I do with this? Who does it belong to now? You or Sophie?” he asked, holding up the gold chain. “Leave it here now; it belongs to the past,” Ragni said. As they went back down the stairs and out of the house, Ragni led them both to the house next door. “Ragni, someone lives here. We can’t go back here!” Kanwar protested as she led him around the house to the back where the river ran. 125

He held back from following her into the backyard, but when he saw that she wasn’t listening to him, he went after her. When he caught up with her, she was standing by the riverbank next to the remnants of an old dock. “The boat is gone, but this is where we used to go for those long boat rides down the river. You used to row us out to the middle, and we’d drift off while you played songs for me on the flute. Do you remember any of this?” Ragni asked. Putting his hand to his forehead, he strained to remember, half confused and half wanting to believe. A face looked out a window from inside the house. Ragni saw her first and took Kanwar’s hand, and led him up the back walkway through rows of little yellow and pink flowers to the rear door. Knocking on the door, the face in the window disappeared and showed up again in the door’s little window. The door opened, revealing a gray-haired woman of about eighty. When she spoke in German, Kanwar just shook his head, unable to under- stand. When he replied in English, the old woman just shook her head at them. “Fräulein Steiner?” The old woman looked surprised and nodded. Ragni was excited to see her. “Wie gehts, Mrs. Steiner,” Ragni was holding her hand, and the old lady was comfortable with it. Kanwar was unable to understand anything she said. Turning to Kanwar, she said, “Do you recognize her?” Shaking his head, he turned to Ragni and said, “N-no, I don’t think so.” The old woman, who was at first dubious and suspicious of these foreign strangers, began to smile, seeing that they meant no harm. Looking at them both now with narrowed eyes, she said something to Kanwar and came a little closer to him “Ragni, did you recognize Mrs. Steiner?” It was the angel’s voice, but nobody could hear it except Ragni. 126

“Of course I did,” Ragni replied. “With whom are you talking?” Kanwar looked at her “Nobody,” Ragni said quickly. She was focusing on the angel’s voice. “Mrs. Steiner had a long desire and suffering to see her son—to see his soul. She feels he is still alive, and in a way, she is right, but she doesn’t know her son’s body has changed. Please touch her shoulders with your hands. I will help her to see through her inner vision,” the angel instructed.   Ragni touched both of their shoulders to say goodbye.  As Kanwar and the old woman looked at each other, their eyes locked. It was as if they were now looking beyond the facades of the outer appearances into the inner beings of each other. The old woman started to reach slowly out to touch Kanwar’s face. Tears welled up in the corner of her eyes as she whispered, “Danke Gott.„ She stroked his cheek, saying, “Gunter, Gunter.” 127

CHAPTER 10 I n ancient Indian Ramayana, there is an epic story of the king of Sri Lanka who kidnapped the beautiful wife of the Hindu god Rama by building a bridge across the ocean connecting India with Sri Lanka. Rama invaded with his army and rescued her. Every fall around the end of October, Indians celebrate the victory and homecoming of Rama and his wife, Diwali. The celebration is called the festival of lights. It is India’s largest festival celebrated by Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs alike. All of Bhatian was shimmer- ing with candlelight, and fireworks were being launched from everywhere.         “You’re very quiet tonight,” Kanwar said to Ragni as they sat together in the corner of the living room where Rajinder and Shamsher were throwing a party. Kanwar had leave and was able to attend the festivities with Ragni, who was spending the weekend with her aunt and uncle. “Would you like to go for a ride on my horse?” he suggested. Nodding but still not saying anything, they slipped quietly past Rajinder and Moheeni, who were busy among the female guests passing around trays of sweets and appetizers. The men were busy draining glasses of liquor and talking about local politics, and no one seemed to notice the two as they left. Kanwar untied two horses. Their dark brown, silky hair was shining in the sunset. The beautiful Arabian horses walked majestically down the temple road. They could see the candlelight in everyone’s houses glimmering like little fairies in the darkening skies. Without a word, they rode toward the 128

temple grounds; the only sound was the huffing, panting, and clopping of the horses. When they reached the temple grounds, they slowed the horses, and eventually, Kanwar helped her down. Walking slowly in front of the horses and leading it with the reins, Kanwar waited for Ragni to unfold her mood. “Last night, I was lighting a candle on your land where Jaswant’s cremation took place. I was surprised to see something in that corner. At first, I thought it was you trying to sneak up on me, and I called out your name, but you hadn’t arrived from the airbase yet. Then I saw it again. It was like a person, only it was transparent and glowed in a strange yellow- white color. It was Jaswant’s ghost. I couldn’t hear what he was trying to say to me, but I understood him just the same. He was angry that his killer hadn’t been brought to justice yet.” Kanwar walked in silence a few steps. “Then he would be angry with me as well. I have failed to avenge his death.” When they reached the temple, Kanwar suggested, “Let’s go in. I’d like to see the priest, so I can ask him some questions.” Tying the reins to a nearby tree, he took her hand, and they walked up to the temple entrance. Taking their shoes off first, they walked in and were met by the old priest. By now, he must have been in his late eighties. His hair and beard were completely white, matching his white clothes. His face was glowing with meditation as if there were some kind of translucent light coming from his body. “Sat Sri Akal, Baba Ji,” Kanwar respectfully greeted the priest as he and Ragni customarily touched his feet. The priest blessed them and invited them into the inner part of the temple, almost as if he had been waiting for them this night. 129

“Ah, yes—I remember you both. You live in the village and this young lady—it has been many years, but I remember you as a young child with the purest of auras. And I see it has not diminished but grown richer with time and maturity,” the priest said. He continued, “You carry one of the greatest gifts of God: youth. Perhaps I am an old man now, but I partook of His wonderful gift at one time, too, though it may be hard for you to believe!” He chuckled softly. “Would you tell us more of yourself?” Kanwar asked the old man. “I have come by here many times and often wondered about the past of men such as you, who live so quietly—so alone on the temple grounds.” Looking up and breathing deeply, as if it helped him to remember those many years of his past, he began, “When I was thirty years old, I was a horse trader, traveling to the Middle East in search of fine Arabian Stallions to bring back to British India. I had learned my trade well, and God had given me much to be thankful for—wealth and the love of my wife and family. By this time, it was my custom to bring them along with me on my trading expeditions so that my young sons could learn my trade. “On one particular venture, we had employed a ship to take us through the Persian Gulf and then across the Arabian Sea where we were to land in Bombay so we could trade our cargo. On the second night at sea, a storm swept over us, and our ship was sunk. I lost my wife and two sons, as well as the horses. The next morning a fishing trawler picked me up. I had somehow ended up draped over a piece of the wrecked ship; some heavenly power pulled me from the bottom of a stormy sea. I still remember everything; I felt as though my soul changed. I was not the same person. I arrived back at home and spent a year mourning for the loss of my family, trying to understand why God had given me such happiness, only to take it away in such a manner. “I traveled all over India to the holy cities to find an answer. I lived in Haridwar and Varanasi and bathed in the Ganges. In the end, I came to the Golden Temple. While praying, I was shown that the only thing important to 130

God is love. People and things are temporary and only houses, for the soul is eternal. The soul cannot be destroyed by death; only the forms change. And knowing that soul can never die, its divine mission is to learn to love, for love is the essence of God. Through my family, I had learned to love, but now that they were gone, and I had a choice to make. I could retreat in mourning, or I could learn to love all of life. I chose to love life. I was granted this reali- zation in the Golden Temple, so it is this religion that I chose to work under, but in truth, to me, the religion is not as important as what is in one’s heart. Remember, God and soul existed long before any of man’s religions did. As my life is getting old, God has gifted me some healing and prediction power to help the people who need it—a gift to touch the heart of those who are suffering from the pain and hardship of life.” He stopped talking, and his eyes were closed. He had been meditating for many years and studied many ancient books. He received the wisdom to read of the Akashic Records. He had the knowledge to tell occurring thoughts, words, and actions—a collection of mystical knowledge stored in the etheric levels. “The vibrational records of each individual soul and its journey are contained here, making it a profound spiritual resource for consciousness development and expanded spiritual awareness—guidance, wisdom, and healing information from the past, present, and future.” “Baba Ji,” Kanwar said, “I am sorry. I don’t like to change the subject, but something is confusing me. Would you help me?” Kanwar asked, thinking of Ragni’s story of seeing Jaswant’s ghost, “How does the life and death cycle work?” “Life and death are just part of the natural cycle of experience. Death does not stop the soul from experiencing life. The soul lives in the invisible worlds. It does not use just a physical body,” the priest said. “What of ghosts?” Kanwar prodded. “It is my understanding that at death, the soul passes quickly to the other world. Sometimes, the death occurs so rapidly, the soul doesn’t have time to adjust or accept the demise of the physical body and will hover near 131

the physical shell, thinking it’s where it still belongs, unaware that the body’s no longer fit to live in. When a ghost is sighted, one is seeing the astral form of the individual. This form may appear very similar to the physical appearance of the individual but will be of a much finer vibratory rate,” the old priest replied. “What about reincarnation then? Is it possible for two people to get together again from a past life?” Kanwar asked in reference to Ragni’s claims in Germany. “There are two things that can bind two beings together: good and bad Karma. If there is a debt to be repaid, then two beings must come together and work out that debt until there are no longer any negative feelings between the two. However, if it is good Karma, then the two will meet again in a bond of love, to help and love each other.” “Are there any that can know another’s past lives?” Kanwar asked. “Yes, the ability to experience these past lives is a rare gift. They usually keep this secret to themselves and are quiet. You have this gift. You have the purity to see beyond your lower self, and therefore, have the far-reaching sight. I can see it in your eyes,” he said, looking at Ragni. “I had talked to your aunt about reading your Akashic records many years ago. More recently, I shared the opportunity to talk with your parents in Chandigarh about them. Your father said a friend of his, a Pandit, was working on them. I saw a few of the records, but it is not possible to do a reading of all of them, for the number of each individual can reach several million. I can share a few of the more recent ones with you, however. The two of you have been together for the last five or six lifetimes. But each lifetime, you were unable to meet in love. It is possible there was a karmic debt or perhaps a bad karmic debt that prevented you from becoming lovers.” “Well, that’s our past, but what about our future?” Kanwar asked. The old priest frowned slightly. He knew a little of their future, and it was not particularly something he wanted to share with them. After all, the 132

future was always subject to change, depending on the choices made by the individuals. “There was not enough material for me to tell you of your future. I know some difficulties are coming, but I am reluctant to discuss this; however, your overall future looks fine. You are getting married soon. Let me know of this wonderful event, and I shall give you my blessing.” He tried to change the subject. Nodding, Kanwar thanked the old priest, and he and Ragni left him to his meditation. Life had been going smoothly for Ragni since she came back from Germany. So many secrets and mysteries, which had always confused her, were becoming clearer as she received the answers to her questions slowly but steadily. Time passed by with normal routines. She was becoming more mature. Moheeni was now the new student dean, in charge of all the women in the dorms, and their friendship had become even closer. It was March, and she was preparing for her final examinations before graduating in May. One afternoon, a letter was slipped under her door. She tore it open and noticed that it was from her mother. As she read it, her heart jumped for joy. “What is it?” Anita asked, peeking up from her textbook. “It’s from my parents—they’ve set the wedding date for Kanwar and me: May ninth, just a couple of months away!” Ragni exclaimed happily. Anita jumped up off her bed and hugged her. “I’ve got to go and tell Moheeni! I’ll talk to you later,” Ragni said, running out the door. Hugging her, Moheeni wiped away the tears of joy and said, “What can I give you for a wedding gift?” 133

“Oh, don’t be silly. I just want you to come—that would be the best wedding gift.” “But I have so much money! You have to help me get rid of some of it!” Moheeni joked. “Very well, just get me anything then. It doesn’t matter.” Then, remem- bering something, she asked Moheeni, “Saturday evening, Kanwar is meeting me at my parents’ house to take me shopping the next day. Would it be possible for you to give me a pass out for that day?” Just as she was about to agree, Moheeni stopped herself. “Wait a minute. Saturday is the college variety show. You’re one of the main characters in the drama. You know how important the show is for fund- raising. Isn’t there some way you can postpone going until Sunday morning? ” Ragni gathered her thoughts and said, “Yes, you’re right. I have a commit- ment to the show. The only problem is that I don’t know where Kanwar is now. He said he was out on maneuvers and would be coming straight from an undisclosed destination.” “You can leave a message with your parents that you’ll be there Sunday morning instead of Saturday,” Moheeni suggested. “Thanks, Moheeni. I guess that’s what student deans are for.” Ragni laughed. “That’s strange. There’s always supposed to be guards here. I wonder where they went.” Kanwar mumbled to himself as he drove his Jeep up to the little guard station at the entrance of Ragni’s parents’ compound. Off to the left, he saw giant yellow flames leaping in the dark evening sky. The police headquarters was on fire across the road. 134

That explains why there’s no guard here, but the alarms aren’t going off. Someone must have cut the power to them, he thought. He shifted his Jeep into first gear and drove on through to Ragni’s parents’ home. As he pulled in front of the house, he could see that all the lights in the house were out, but the outer gate was open. He took a flashlight out of the glove compart- ment and started walking to the house. As he reached the gate, he suddenly felt faint, his knees buckled, and he dropped in his tracks— out cold. When he came to, he could see the stars high in the sky. Totally disorient- ed, he stayed on the ground for a few moments until he recalled who he was and what he was doing. As he started to sit up, he noticed he was holding something in his right hand. Horrified, he looked down to find there was a pistol with a silencer attached to it instead of the flashlight. Confused, he dropped it on the ground and stood up. As he started to walk to the house, he came across a body lying on the porch stairs. Sensing danger, he picked the gun back up and cautiously proceeded up the stairs. After checking the guard for a pulse and finding none, he went inside. None of the light switches worked, so he had to find his way through the house by groping with his free hand. Cautiously making his way up the stairs, he eased up to Ragni’s bedroom door. He opened it and looked around, but it was clear she wasn’t there. He searched the other rooms and found all of them empty as well. He was back downstairs when he heard something that sounded like heavy breathing. It was Tiger the German Shepherd lying on the floor in the kitchen in a pool of blood. He had been shot in the stomach and was bleeding to death. Kanwar looked around and came across the body of Ragni’s long-time family servant, also in a pool of blood. Rushing over to him, Kanwar checked for a pulse, but he was already dead. Kanwar quickly went to the other part of the house and nearly tripped over the body of the other house guard, also shot dead. Kanwar began to panic and tried to calm himself. Well aware that the killer might still be inside, he carefully checked the rest of the rooms to see if there was anyone there. As he crept by one bedroom door, he heard 135

noises inside. Trying the doorknob, he found it was locked, and after calling and getting no answer, he kicked it down. Ragni’s father lay on his bed, his chest saturated with blood and a bullet hole in his forehead. The wind from the open window made the curtains flutter, and Kanwar rushed over to it, hoping to catch a glimpse of whoever had slipped out of it. He saw two men wearing black hoods covering their whole faces, running out of the gate. He jumped out the first-story window and gave chase, the gun still in his hand. As they ran across the compound, they slipped into the cover of some heavy bushes and vanished. Kanwar started into the bushes, but he couldn’t see any signs of them. He stood, turning in all directions, looking confused. As he started to turn down one pathway, he saw some police racing toward him with flashlights and pistols drawn. “Am I ever glad to see you? There were these—” but before he could finish, they grabbed the gun out of his hand and pulled his arms behind his back, slapping handcuffs on his wrists. The variety show was over and had gone well. When Ragni went to bed that night, instead of falling asleep, she drifted into the endless darkness of the other worlds, and a vision came to her. It was a vision of a place she was unfamiliar with, and it had a sinister feel to it. There were two turbaned figures whose features she couldn’t make out. They were driving a military Jeep and talking in low voices. Then she saw her father getting out of his chauffeured car and the four-armed police guards surrounding him as he entered a hotel in downtown Chandigarh. Inside the hall, there was some kind of large political function with a banquet and speeches following the meal. In the kitchen area of the hotel, she could see a man in a white waiter’s uniform peering through the round portal window of one of the kitchen doors. As the function ended, the man in the waiter’s uniform ran out the back door of the kitchen and tossed the uniform into the alley, leaving him dressed all in black. Then racing out to the Jeep on a side street where the other two men were waiting, he jumped in. 136

“Did you do it?” one of the men in the front seat asked. “No. I couldn’t get a clear shot. Besides, there must have been fifty officers in there. I never would have made it out alive. Our best chance is when he’s back home. We’ll only have to contend with one or two guards at the most. Let’s go with that plan.” As DGP Mohinder Partap Singh came out of the hotel with his guards and the other officials, the carload of men in black drove off toward his house. Ragni’s eyes popped open. She knew it was only about a twenty-minute drive from that hotel to her parents’ house. Without even saying anything to Anita, she turned on the light and raced out of the room in her robe and slippers. Moheeni’s bungalow had a telephone—that was her only chance. “What is it? What’s going on out there?” Moheeni called through the closed door in a sleepy voice. “Moheeni, it’s Ragni! You have to let me in! Please! Quickly!” she pleaded in a panicked voice. As soon as the door opened, Ragni rushed to the phone and asked if she could use it. “Of course,” Moheeni said, turning on the light near the small table the phone was resting on. Dialing a number, she said, “Police? The DGP is going to be murdered in fifteen minutes in his home in the Chandigarh compound.” “Who is this?” the voice on the other side of the line asked. Ragni ignored his question. “Please! You must listen to me! There are killers who are waiting for him to get home. They set the police head- quarters on fire; you cannot afford to waste any time!” 137

Before the voice on the other line could ask any more questions, Ragni heard the sound of a gun being fired, and the man on the line stopped talking. “How do you know such a thing is going to happen, Ragni?” Moheeni asked. “While I was drifting off to sleep, a vision came to me! I saw it all—the same way I saw what was happening to you and Jaswant the night he was murdered. They’re going to kill my father, and I have to go home right now. Moheeni, please help me!” Ragni begged. Pursing her lips, Moheeni said, “Okay, I’ll call a cab and then get dressed. In the meantime, run back to your room and grab some clothes. Meet me in the inspection room, and we’ll take a cab there.” “Oh, thank you, Moheeni,” Ragni cried as she rushed out the door. The drive from Jullundur to Chandigarh was the worst three hours of Ragni’s life. By the time they reached the compound, there were police and fire trucks everywhere. “I’m sorry, you can’t go in there,” the guard at the compound entrance said. “But my name is Ragni Kaur. This is my parents’ house—I must get in to see them!” she said as she held up her student I.D. After checking the card, the guard went to the little station box and called on his walkie-talkie. When he returned to the cab, he waved them on. When she tried to get into the house, she was stopped again, this time by Mr. Khosla, the deputy inspector general. “Ragni, what are you doing here?” he asked. Not knowing what to say, she just asked, “Where are my parents? Is my father okay? ” Putting his arm around her shoulders, he led her away from the house. “Ragni, a terrible thing has happened. Your father was murdered.” 138

She broke down sobbing in his arms, clutching his jacket with her fist. He led her to his Jeep and had her sit down in it while Moheeni tried to comfort her. A moment later, the cook came over to the Jeep as well. “Mother! Where is my mother?” Ragni asked Berganja, the cook. “She is alright. She’s in Bhatian making arrangements for your wedding,” the cook answered, stroking Ragni’s head. Weeping softly and trying to get herself under control, Ragni asked what had happened. “Shortly after your father arrived home from the political banquet, he retired for the evening. Everything was quiet. I was in the kitchen with Shanti cleaning up when I heard Tiger start to bark. Then I heard a muffled sound, like a puff of air, and Tiger stopped barking. Shanti went into the hallway to see what Tiger was barking about, and then I heard the puffing sound once again. I poked my head into the hallway to see what was going on, and I saw Kanwar with a gun. Kanwar didn’t see me, so I ducked back into the kitchen and crawled under the table to hide. Then I heard Kanwar run upstairs and back down. Then he went to your father’s room, and I heard the door being kicked down. He must have disappeared through the window. When the police arrived, they caught him outside. The last I heard, he was being taken to the station.” Ragni’s eyes grew wider as she listened. When Berganja finished, Ragni rushed out of the Jeep to find the commander. “Where is Kanwar?” she asked the district commander. “He was found with what we believe is the murder weapon. He’s at the police station now, being held as a suspect. “No! Kanwar is innocent! He didn’t kill my father. We’re supposed to be married in two months! What possible reason would he have for killing my father? He’s innocent; I know he is! You’ve made a terrible mistake,” Ragni screamed hysterically. 139

“Ragni, if he’s innocent, you have nothing to worry about. He will be proven innocent. But for now, there is nothing we can do. He was found with a gun in his hands trying to get away from the compound. There are no other suspects,” the commander informed her. In a fit of despair and frustration, Ragni ran from him into the darkness; she wished she could find a place where it was light—somewhere she could wake up from this nightmare. 140

CHAPTER 11 L “ et’s darken the room a little and then look at these video tapes more closely one more time,” Acting Director-General Khosla said to Mr. Khanna, the prosecuting attorney. As they rewound the tape in the recording machine, Khosla was thinking to himself that things didn’t look good for Kanwar. All the evidence was pointing against him. The post-mortem report clearly identified that the gun used in all of the killings was the one Kanwar was found carrying. His fingerprints were the only ones on the weapon, and although he claimed to never have fired the gun, the most incriminating evidence was about to be seen once again on the videotapes taken from hidden cameras in DGP Mohinder Partap Singh’s home. When the director-general moved into the new house, surveillance cameras had been installed in the front and rear entrances of the house and on the first floor; only the servants and police knew of their operation. Mr. Khosla punched the button of the video player, and the tape played back the scene from the time of the crime. A copy of the tape taken from the eight cameras was spliced to show just the movements of Kanwar from the time he entered the house. The tape started out by showing a military Jeep pulling up to the gate in the front of the house. Kanwar, dressed in his air force uniform and turban, got out of the Jeep and waited for the first house security guard to open it for him. As the guard let him through and they walked to the house, Kanwar lagged 141

behind a few steps. When they reached the porch, he pulled out a nine- millimeter pistol with a silencer attached to it and shot the guard in the back of the head. He fell onto the steps, killed instantly. Kanwar bent over his body and placed his finger on the guard’s neck, feeling for a pulse. Satisfied that he was dead, he went up the porch steps. Upon entering the house, the second security guard approached to see who it was and was shot through the heart, falling to the floor in the hallway. Tiger began to bark, and as Kanwar kicked at him, the dog jumped aside and was shot in the stomach. Making his way to the rear of the house, Shanti appeared in the kitchen hallway, apparently hearing the commotion made by the dog. He looked at Kanwar with a frozen stare when he saw the gun and then fell as he was shot in the chest. As he fell, Berganja peeked out the kitchen door, although Kanwar apparently didn’t see him. When he saw the gun, he scrambled back into the kitchen. Kanwar then made his way to the rear of the house and into the kitchen, but finding it empty, he returned to Shanti and the security guard to check their pulses, making sure they were dead. Tiger was still breathing, but seeing that he was incapacitated, Kanwar just stepped over his fallen body. He continued on to the master bedroom and knocked on the door. When DGP Mohinder Partap Singh asked who it was, there was no answer. When he opened the door, Kanwar shot him through the heart and then once more in the forehead. DGP Mohinder fell backward onto the bed, dead. Kanwar walked into the bedroom to check his pulse. Satisfied that he was dead, he walked to the window and looked out at something. When he turned to leave the bedroom, the lights and the camera went dead. “That’s when the power failure occurred in the compound,” Khosla explained to the prosecuting attorney. “Electricity wasn’t restored until twenty minutes later. By that time, Kanwar was found running outside by the compound security guards with the murder weapon in his hand.” “Yet, Kanwar insists on sticking to the story that he blacked out and doesn’t know where the gun came from or how the others were killed?” Khanna asked. 142

Shaking his head, the prosecuting attorney said, “He’s making it easy for me to convict him. Why is he doing this to himself? And why did he even do it in the first place?” “I wish I knew. It doesn’t make sense, but it’s all there on tape, and his prints were the only ones on the gun. It all matches with the cook’s story. It just doesn’t make sense,” Khosla said. “Is there a possibility Kanwar would be able to claim temporary insanity in view of his testimony that he blacked out?” “It would never hold up in court. I would pick him apart. You saw yourself how deliberately and methodically he shot all those people, how he carefully checked all their pulses to make sure they were dead. That tape is the most cold-blooded sequence of killing I’ve ever seen. There was no anger or emotion in him at all. He didn’t waste a single shot. Even though the dog wasn’t quite dead yet, he knew it couldn’t testify against him, and he didn’t bother wasting bullets on it. When the judge and jury see that tape, the majority of the jury will be in favor of the death sentence. This is going to be the easiest prosecution case I’ve ever gotten,” Khanna clarified. The helper put the food on the dining table. Air Commodore Mulltani and his wife began their dinner. “The DGP murder case news is highlighted in all of the major newspapers of the nation, and it is even on the desk of the president and prime minister. I can’t believe Kanwar could do something like this. We have been watching this young man for some time now—we’ve had him over here for dinner several times and even met his fiance. His family is well off, and from what I can gather, there were no family quarrels. He was to be married in two months. None of this makes sense. There is no reasonable motive. He is not capable of these kinds of actions,” he said to his wife. “What will happen to him if he’s found guilty?” his wife asked. “There would be no alternative but death by hanging. Killing the director- general of the state is just too serious a crime—not to mention killing two security guards and a servant besides.” 143

“The new DGP, Mr. Khosla—wasn’t he a friend of Mohinder Partap Singh?” his wife asked. “Yes, a close associate and friend. I believe he had even met Kanwar before at their engagement party. If he can’t help Kanwar, I don’t know who could,” he said. At the central jail in Delhi, the two security guards had Hermanjit empty all his personal belongings from his pockets onto a table and then frisked him thoroughly. After walking him through a series of locked corri- dors and gates with guards at each of them, he was taken to an empty, drab room lit by long, flickering fluorescent lights. The whole prison smelled of musty human grime, and the unfriendly, no-nonsense attitude of the guards matched the oppressive feeling of the place. The room was about ten by ten feet, with a set of thick, black iron bars separating it into two areas. There was a heavy metal door on each side of the bars, and on the other side was Kanwar, dressed in all white prison clothes, looking very miserable and flanked by two mean-looking and burly prison guards.             “You have only ten minutes,” one of the guards informed Hermanjit, his words echoing off the stark walls.             “Thanks for coming, Hermanjit,” Kanwar said. “They’re not letting anyone but government officials and lawyers see me. I can’t even see my mother! I’m surprised they even let you in.” “I guess the uniform counts as being a government official,” Hermanjit answered. “Listen, I came to tell you some news. It’s not very good news, I’m sorry to say, but I wanted to keep you informed of what’s going on from what I hear on the outside.” Kanwar nodded and said, “I appreciate it. Even if it’s bad, please let me know.” 144

“I found out the political bosses that run the police from the govern- ment side are pressing the prosecuting attorney for a quick conviction. It looks bad for them to have the top man in the state murdered, and they want to get you as soon as they can. It’s all a show. They almost couldn’t care less if you were innocent or not; they just want to get it over with as soon as they can. It’s all a matter of prestige for them,” Hermanjit said. Kanwar looked down. “I guess it doesn’t look too good for me, does it?” Then, grabbing the bars and looking up, he said, “Hermanjit, in case the worst happens, will you look after my mother? I’m all she has left. Maybe, just make sure she has enough help on the farm, and the neighbors treat her well— I’m sure they will. Then as far as Ragni goes, if the worst happens and I am convicted, don’t let her see me in here. I don’t know what it would do to her—she’s so sensitive. Promise me that!” “I promise, Kanwar, I promise! But don’t give up hope yet; the trial hasn’t even started yet. Something may turn up to prove you didn’t do it! You know how the air force is—they’re not going to let you take the blame for something you didn’t do. Their reputation is at stake as well in this case,” Hermanjit said, trying to be encouraging. “Your ten minutes are up. You’ll have to go back now,” one of the guards said to Hermanjit as he tapped him on the shoulder. As he left and as the guards on the other side of the bars led Kanwar away, Hermanjit said, “Remember, don’t give up hope. We’re going to be trying on our end!” Life at home in Chandigarh was too difficult for Ragni. She was unable to visit Kanwar because she couldn’t get permission to overrule the visitation restrictions. All of her appeals fell on deaf ears. It all was driving her to insanity and frustration. Her mother took a bungalow in town provided by the police, where she isolated herself in her room and rarely went out. Lethargic and still 145

in a state of shock, she let go of Berganja, the remaining servant and hired new ones in an attempt to forget anything associated with her past. Though Ragni tried to help her mother, it seemed the best she could do was to give her time to be alone. After graduation, Ragni decided to take a job teaching kindergarten in a convent school of a small mountain village in the Kulu Valley, about 160 miles north of Chandigarh. She loved teaching the small children, and the job gave her a private bungalow with a view of the pastoral valley and mountains in the background. She thought this new job would give her something constructive to do until the trial, but as she looked out at the sheep grazing on the mountainside in this idyllic setting, it only brought home the loneliness and pain of being unable to see Kanwar. Here in the fresh country air, the craggy capped peaks in the near distance, and the peacefulness of this mountain village, she felt the pain and despair of Kanwar constantly. The knowledge that he might be convicted and sentenced to death cast a pallor over any joys or peace she might have otherwise enjoyed. Every night, as she lay on her bed, ready to sleep but not quite fully asleep, she found herself drifting away. She would see Kanwar in his cell, isolated and lonely, wondering why he was there and what was going to happen to him. Her heart would feel the pain that he felt, but as she would reach out her hand to try to comfort him by stroking his cheek, she would find herself back in her room in the valley. The cruel reminder of their separation would only inflict more pain, and she would end up crying herself to sleep. In the mornings, she would awaken feeling that she had gotten no rest, and finally, realizing she had to try again to prove Kanwar’s innocence, she decided to visit her mother. On one fateful evening, Sukhbans Kaur lost her husband, and her future son-in-law’s life was hanging on the sword. In spite of all the incriminating evidence, she knew in her heart Kanwar couldn’t have killed her husband and all those other people, but there was little she felt she could do. Now, she was gradually pulling her life together and accepting her husband’s death. 146

“Mother? It’s me, Mother,” Ragni called through the screen door of her mother’s bungalow. “Ragni! I’m so glad to see you!” Sukhbans Kaur said. “Come in!” After taking her bag into the house and calling on her housemaid to serve some tea, she had Ragni sit on the couch with her. “So, tell me about teaching in Kulu,” she said. Ragni noticed the improvement in her mother’s condition. She was now much more full of life, and the drained look she used to have was gone. “Well, teaching is wonderful. I have twenty-one students, and I really enjoy them. The school administration has been very good to me. I have my own bungalow with a view of the mountains, and the valley is in full bloom—it’s so beautiful there,” Ragni said. “But tell me of yourself—you look like you’re getting on much better.” “Yes. I went through a very difficult time there for a while, and I hope you’ll forgive me for isolating myself so, but losing your father was such a shock. It was bad for me, but for you, it must be worse, losing your father and having your future husband imprisoned,” Sukhi said. “Mother, you needn’t apologize. I understand. I had two reasons for coming here. I wanted to see how you were doing, but I also wanted to visit Mr. Khosla. I still feel there is some way I can help Kanwar by talking with him, and I wanted to know if you could help me meet with him. Father and you were his personal friends. I thought if you could go with me, maybe I would have a better chance of talking to him.” “Tomorrow is Sunday, and he’ll be home. Let’s pay a visit then,” Sukhi suggested. Ragni hugged and thanked her, and Sukhbans said, “What do you say we go out for a walk, and when we come back, we can have some dinner?” 147

The next day, Sukhi and Ragni had the chauffeur drive them to the compound where the new DGP was living. “Madam Sukhbans and Ragni! What a pleasant surprise. Come in, come in,” Khosla greeted the two women at the door. “How are you doing? I haven’t seen you since the initial hearings.” “A little shaky at first, but much better now,” Sukhi said. “And you, Ragni?” he asked. “I’ve taken a post teaching kindergarten at a small school in Kulu,” she answered. “Good! Good! I’m glad to hear things are going better for you both.” After a pause in the conversation, he grew serious and said, “I’m very glad to see you both, and I’m happy you’ve taken the trouble to come to visit with me, but now what can I do for you?” Ragni and Sukhi looked at each other uncomfortably and shifted in their chairs before Sukhi finally spoke. “Mr. Khosla, we both know you’re doing all you possibly can to help Kanwar, but is there anything at all we can do to try and help prove his innocence?” “Unfortunately, I’m in the middle,” he explained. “On the one hand, I must furnish the prosecution with all the evidence I can. This is the very evidence that is going to be used against Kanwar. At the same time, I must keep searching to try and find who the killer is. It may be Kanwar, and it may not be. Though you are my personal friends, I cannot allow my feelings to sway me in my duty. If Kanwar is the guilty party, I must do all I can to help convict him. If he is innocent, I will try my best to produce the guilty party.” “I have heard that the police department is getting political pressure to speed up prosecution,” Ragni said. 148