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The Adventures of Kevin Krämer in Communist Europe
- The Escape from Communist Europe -
By: Justin Brown (a pen name)
Recommended reading for ages 14 and older.
This is a novel for teens and adults.
This novel contains some violence (such as gunshots and fights); intense chase scenes;
clean romantic elements (i.e. clean conversations between a guy and his girlfriend);
and themes appropriate for teenagers and adults.
You will not find any profanity, immorality, or gore in this novel.
It is written to edify the reader, and not to provoke sinful thoughts.
This story is free to be copied, printed, and distributed, but it must remain unaltered.
_________________________
Synopsis
Europe has been invaded, the superpower across the sea is no more, and the country of "Baltania" is controlling Europe through communistic puppet governments. Under the oppressive cloud of communism, a small group of underground Christians faces a powerful crime organization bent on their capture and destruction.
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| (The entire story is in a complete PDF file which can be read at this link on Google Drive. I make no money from this story. It is entirely free.) |
Together with some friends, Kevin and Maritza must do their best to avoid being captured as they learn to trust God and follow His guiding hand in these last days just before the rise of the Antichrist. This fast-paced story is designed to be fascinating. But, don't just take our word for it...
[Note: Baltania is a fictional country within the Eurasian landmass. At one time, it had a communistic past. During a third world war, communism revived in this country as its armies conquered Europe. Since we do not want to point fingers at any particular country, we will not name this country or coalition of countries.]
[Note: Baltania is a fictional country within the Eurasian landmass. At one time, it had a communistic past. During a third world war, communism revived in this country as its armies conquered Europe. Since we do not want to point fingers at any particular country, we will not name this country or coalition of countries.]
Chapter 13
"Divine Miracle"
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Right click the link and select "Open link in new tab.")
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___________________
5:28 A.M.
A heavy, razor-sharp
guillotine blade, sparkling in a bright, overhead light, hung in slotted tracks
over Svenja’s head. The time displayed on a large, digital clock, which was
fastened to one of the concrete walls of the execution room, was 5:28:03 A.M.
On the wall beside it was an electric buzzer. A row of fifteen guillotines sat
empty to Svenja’s left.
At 5:30, a guard was
scheduled to pull a metal chain which would release the heavy guillotine blade,
which hung menacingly over her neck. She believed she only had a couple minutes
before her life would end.
Svenja trusted that her
husband, Rolf, was praying for her, and she was praying for him. Even with the
heavy blade hanging high above her, she felt a strong and powerful sense of
peace that she knew could only come from God. She had felt that peace ever
since she had learned that she would be executed, unless her husband renounced
his faith in Jesus Christ as the only way
of salvation and renounce his “non-conformist” Christianity.
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| (Click on this link to read brief descriptions about some of the characters from this novel.) |
Shortly after she had become
a Christian, Svenja had realized that dying to herself involved forsaking
worldly things, such as lying to the secret police and living selfishly, but
she knew that if she had to face death, she would not deny Jesus because she
knew that when she dies, she will be in Heaven.
It was now 5:29:00 A.M.,
according to the large, digital clock. She only had 60 more seconds left until
it reached 5:30:00, the scheduled time of the execution. Footsteps came to her
left and she turned her head slightly to see a soldier walking toward the
release chain, which hung from the guillotine. As he drew near, he snatched the
chain and prepared to tug it at the moment a beeping sound would issue from the
signal buzzer near the clock.
___________________
Light Has Arrived, 6:30 A.M.
The forest was now aglow with
the light of the morning and filled with the cheerful chirping of many species
of birds. Pine needles crunched softly under the boots of Kevin, Konrad, and
Maritza as they hiked across a carpet of pine needles which rested at the bases
of woody pillars. Birds chirped cheerfully in the upper branches of spruce
trees, and small ones flitted from one branch to another.
Kevin and his friends had
been hiking for hours with a few quick breaks, and they were feeling hungry and
somewhat tired, but God had given them the strength to go so far. And, Kevin
believed God would continue to give him strength until he made it to Daniel and
Monika’s house.
Konrad, walking five meters
ahead of Maritza and Kevin, suddenly stopped and squinted into the landscape of
trees and bushes. Then, he turned around and his eyes lit up with excitement.
“Kevin, Maritza, I can see
Daniel and Monika’s place. We’ve made it,” Konrad said.
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| (Some conversions between metric units and English-system units) Right click the picture and select "Open link in new tab." |
He jogged forward, and his
two younger friends followed. Soon, they arrived at the chain-link fence.
Standing before it, Kevin looked up and guessed its height. ‘The fence appears
to be over 3.6 meters,’ Kevin thought to himself. ‘Perhaps, there is an opened
entrance somewhere around here.’
Beyond the fence appeared a
complex of four buildings. There were two houses; a large, metal, utility shed;
and a small, storage shed. ‘The green, two-story building closest to us has to
be a large guest house,’ Kevin thought, ‘because I can see the dark-blue,
three-story main house about 40 meters beyond the guest house.’ To the left of
the dark-blue main house sat a white, metal shed large enough to fit three
parked cars. It had an open garage door which revealed a boat, a pickup truck,
and a boat trailer. Thirty meters to the right of the blue house rested a
small, wooden storage shed.
Konrad was already on the
move, walking along the fence. Kevin and Maritza followed him until they
arrived at a closed gate. The gate had a padlock on the inside, which prevented
it from being opened. Now, they were able to see the blue house more clearly,
as it lay 40 meters from the gate.
Konrad cupped his hands over
his mouth and said loudly, “Daniel, or someone, it’s me, Konrad. We’re here.”
A little, middle-eastern boy
about the age of 6 came running from behind the blue house, and a little
middle-eastern girl was chasing him, laughing. As they came into view, Konrad
called out to them. “Hey, could you get Daniel for me?”
The little boy was giggling
as he ran, trying to avoid being tagged. When Konrad called again, the boy and
girl slowed to a stop and turned to see two men and a woman standing outside
the gate. One of the men was Nigerian, and the other was German.
Seeing them, the boy and girl
said in unison, “Who are you?”
“I am a friend of Daniel and
Monika,” Konrad said. “Would you bring Daniel out here?”
The little boy nodded his
head and ran up to the front steps of the blue house, opened the door, and
vanished inside. The little girl shyly looked at the strangers and said, “What
are you doing way out here?”
“We’re here to escape the
secret police and bounty hunters who are hunting for Christians,” Konrad said.
“That’s right,” Kevin added.
“I’m Konrad, by the way,” Konrad
said, giving the child a friendly smile.
“I’m Fatima,” the girl said
shyly.
Just then, the front door
opened and a Chadian man emerged, followed by the middle-eastern boy. The
African man appeared to be in his mid-fifties but was in excellent shape and
health. With a smile on his face, he looked at Konrad and then glanced at his
friends as he approached them.
“Well, if it isn’t my good
friend, Konrad,” the Chadian man said as he drew a ring of keys out of his
pocket.
“Daniel,” Konrad said, “it’s
good to see you, my friend.”
Once Daniel had unlocked the
padlock and had opened the gate, he gave Konrad a warm hug and then hugged
Kevin briefly. He smiled graciously at Maritza and nodded toward her before
turning back toward Konrad.
“So, who are your friends and
what brings you here to my house?” Daniel said.
“You wouldn’t believe what we’ve
been through to reach you, but once I’ve told it to you, I’m sure you’ll know
it is true,” Konrad said.
Daniel chuckled as he looked
the Nigerian in the eye and said, “My friend, I know you aren’t lying. But,
come in. Have some coffee and breakfast. You can tell me, my wife, and our
guests about your experiences. And, I’m sure you’d like to hear theirs. You
see, God had told me that three Christians would be showing up at my house
today. I received ten guests two nights ago and some just this day. And, I
expect to receive more, now that the communist authorities are clamping down on
Christians stronger than before.”
“How many guests do you have?”
Kevin said with some curiosity.
Daniel turned to face him. “I
have, let’s see…” He tapped his fingers together, quickly and silently,
comically counting the adults and children staying with him. “I have at least 30-and-a-half
guests in all.”
“What do you mean by half a
guest?” Maritza said, facing Daniel. She glanced at Kevin to see what he thought
of it. He appeared slightly bemused.
Daniel grinned. “I could
spoil the surprise for you, but I’ll tell you about that half guest later, or
you’ll see him first.”
Then, he continued with his
monologue. “If you include my lovely wife, my son, my daughter, and me, the
total number of people in this estate is 34, or so. I have four families
staying with me. Three families are living in the guest house, and one family
is living on the third floor of this blue house.”
“You have a lot of people
staying with you,” Maritza said. “Is there room for us?”
Daniel looked at Maritza and
said, “Honey, there is plenty of room for you three. I have divided my second
floor in half with a solid, sound-proof, partition wall. On one half of the
second floor is a section for single men. The other half is for single women.
Each half of the floor has its own bathroom, which I think you will find is fit
for royalty. And, it is impossible to get from one half of the floor to the
other half, since the dividing wall has no doors or windows.”
“Also,” the Chadian
continued, saying, “each half also has its own dining room and living room. I
had the extra rooms installed eight years ago because God had shown me to do
that in preparation for hosting a lot of people.”
He took a deep breath and
smiled. Then, Daniel closed his eyes and stuck his chin up, as if to mimic the
behavior of a European aristocrat. And, he said spoke in a quick and comical
way: “I am sure you will relish and adore this copious, palatial estate and
these fabulous chateaus in this serene and picturesque environment, among a
plethora of evergreen flora, (such as the ubiquitous spruce and pine trees) in
the interior of this exquisite countryside, through which one may enjoy
promenading, or sauntering, or moseying ‒
however you like to say it.”
Maritza chuckled at his sense
of humor.
“But, seriously, folks,”
Daniel said, lowering his chin and relaxing, “it was God who had provided us
with this place. And, it is not a palace, but it is a temporary lodging place.
Our home is in Heaven.”
“How many families could you
comfortably fit in your living space?” Kevin said, curious.
“I would say at least eight
large families,” Daniel said. “Three large families could fit in the guest
house and three extra families could fit in my three-story house because
the basements of both houses have been remodeled. My wife and I just have the
first floor for ourselves, and for our kids.”
“That makes six extra
families,” Maritza said. “But, you said you could fit eight large families in
your buildings.”
“That’s right,” Daniel said,
smiling. “But, I also have a sub-basement which is below my first basement.
Both houses have a two-story basement, in other words. So, those two extra
basement floors provide enough room for two more families.”
“I don’t think I would want
to live in the sub-basement,” Maritza said, grimacing somewhat comically.
Daniel chuckled as he said, “You
certainly don’t have to. You can stay in the first basement floor of the guest
house, and the men could stay in the first basement of my blue house.”
“You’re joking, right?”
Maritza said.
“Do you really not enjoy
basements?” Daniel said. “These basements are nicely equipped with conveniences
and are tastefully remodeled. You won’t see any cracked concrete surfaces;
rusty washing machines that are ready for the scrap heap; cobwebs; plumbing
pipes, or big, hairy spiders. We got rid of those years ago.”
Maritza chuckled. “How did
you get rid of the pipes and cracked concrete surfaces?”
Daniel looked at her and grinned.
“That’s a good one. You got me on that one. But, we may still have some big,
dinner-plate-sized, hairy spiders in the sub-basement.”
Daniel placed his right hand
on top of his left and moved his fingers up and down to mimic a spider as he
spoke.
“What?” Maritza said,
repulsed at the thought of a large arachnid crawling around in the basement.
“I’m only kidding,” Daniel
said, smiling.
“Speaking of dinner plates,”
Kevin said, “my stomach is growling at me.”
Looking at Kevin, Daniel
said, “Okay, let’s go eat. It’s about time for breakfast anyways. And, I will
make sure not to serve big, hairy spiders for Maritza.”
“Gross,” Maritza said. “I
hope to eat something like eggs and toast.”
“Me too,” Kevin said,
chuckling, as he followed Maritza in through the front door of the blue house.
As they entered a spacious,
comfortable living room, Maritza said, “Daniel, who is the half-guest?”
As she spoke, a brown and
white tabby cat softly approached her from a corner of the room and looked up
at her with a curious expression on its face. Maritza reached down to gently
pet the cat on the head and Daniel said, “That is the half-guest. He is not
even human, so he is half a guest. See?”
“I get it,” she said, petting
the cat’s chin.
___________________
5:29 A.M.
A small amount of fear was
attacking Svenja as she looked up at the sharp, glistening guillotine blade
high above her, but she closed her eyes and prayed silently. “Dear, Jesus, I
commit my life into your hands. I’m willing to die for you because I know you
will receive me into Heaven through your one time sacrifice on the cross.”
The guard coughed and then
chuckled to himself as he muttered, “Another Christian is going to meet the
blade of doom.”
“Thank you, dear Abba Father
God,” Svenja continued praying, “that you have never forsaken me, and you never
will. Father God, forgive these men for the sin of murder. Thank you for your
love and peace. In Jesus Christ’s name…”
Before she could say amen,
a beeping sound came from the buzzer and the guard pulled the chain, causing it
to become taut. A clicking sound came from the mechanism holding the guillotine
blade in place. It was being released, and the heavy, sharp piece of metal was
beginning to fall toward Svenja. In a fraction of a second, the blade would
reach her.
___________________
The Meeting
Wolf angrily paced back and
forth in the carpeted living room of Mr. Schmidt’s commandeered, rural home.
The blond-haired tyrant was fuming over loosing Python and over his own
foolishness in not having his men bring machine guns with them into the forest.
‘Rapidly-fired bullets will stop a wild wolf pack,’ he thought. ‘Why didn’t I
just bring three machine guns?’
He had known there had been a
risk of wolves, but he had wanted to travel light, which had been a big
mistake, he now realized.
Wolf knew that his boss,
Claw, would be upset to learn that Python was dead due to a wolf attack, but
Wolf began to believe he could “regain” his value to Claw by capturing every
Christian hiding in the vast, Kühnburg forest. If he didn’t do something wise,
he knew that Claw might demote him from the rank of “venom commander” to a “team
sergeant,” or even down to as low as a “strike corporal” in the Red Venom crime
organization.
“Wolf, I just saw a van
pulling in,” Rat said as he came down the first floor hallway and walked into
the living room.
“I know,” Wolf said as he
continued to pace. “Jackal, Whiplash, Stingray, Vulture, and Grizzly have just
passed through the gate guards. I was notified just a minute ago by them.”
Wolf continued pacing around
the living room until he came up before Rat and stopped in front of him,
towering over him.
“Rat,” the muscular tyrant
said as he looked down at the bald-headed man with a red goatee, “you are going
to come with me and these other men, and we are going to head over to where
these filthy Christians are located. They will not slip through my fingers
again, or I will have you and all these men demoted to the lowest pay grade.
Understood?”
“Yes, sir,” Rat said,
nodding.
“Good,” Wolf said as he
continued pacing about the room.
A few minutes passed before
the front door opened and four men entered. Rat immediately recognized them.
They were Scorpion, Stingray, Jackal, Whiplash, Vulture, and Grizzly. Each wore
dark-green, forest-camouflage uniforms and carried a backpack and a modern
bullpup machine gun with him. Their faces were covered with camouflage face
paint, which caused their eyes to stand out.
Wolf stopped pacing and stood
stiff and straight. He could see a fifth man enter through the front door. It
was Claw himself, and Claw looked very angry. He was dressed in a black
pinstripe suit and a red tie, with a black patch over his left eye.
“Welcome, sir,” Wolf said,
maintaining his rigid posture.
“At ease, Wolf,” Claw said,
controlling his anger. His suit jacket was unbuttoned and a black, silk vest
appeared beneath. Claw reached into a vest pocket and drew out a gold pocket
watch on a chain. Flipping the watch lid open, he checked the time, and then
snapped it shut, making a small click. Beneath his nose appeared a dark
mustache, frowning lips, and goatee.
“We have a team assembled,
sir, and we will be ready to capture these troublesome Christians,” Wolf said.
“I know. I rode with the
team,” Claw said.
“We will not allow any to
escape, sir,” Wolf said, feeling slightly nervous.
“I know you won’t, Wolf. And,
that’s because you will not be in command of this group,” Claw said, coldly.
“Then, who will, sir,” Wolf
said, trembling slightly, anticipating receiving a death sentence or a
demotion.
“I will command the men and
go with them. You will come too, but I will give all the orders, understood,”
Claw said.
“Yes, sir,” Wolf said. He
knew that Claw was a wise leader and could lead men in complex operations, but
Wolf also knew that Claw had not led the men directly for at least half a year.
Claw’s desire to lead again on the “battlefield” was a little strange for Wolf
to grasp. ‘It must mean that Claw doesn’t trust me to lead these men. He must
have heard how I had not prepared for a possible wolf attack, which got one of
my men killed,’ Wolf thought to himself. ‘Or, he is thinking of how Python,
Cobra, and Scorpion failed to capture two Christians.’
“May I ask you a question,
sir,” Wolf said.
Claw gave him a cold stare. “What
is it, Wolf?”
“You haven’t led out on the
field for a while. Why do you want to do it now?” Wolf said.
“You lost two men on your
mission,” Claw said coldly, “and that is not good leadership. I have lost none
out on the field, so I am more qualified than you to lead this group. You will
obey all my orders, or I will have you demoted to the lowest rank in our
organization.”
“Yes, sir,” Wolf said,
feeling embarrassed and humiliated. But, even in the midst of his
embarrassment, he had a desire to move up the ranks of power until he could
replace Claw as the “grand Venom commander” of the Kühnburg chapter of the Red
Venom organization. Wolf knew that Viper, the “supreme district count,” would
appoint him to be the next “grand Venom commander” if he could prove himself on
the field. With this goal in mind, he began to plan how he could possibly
remove Claw from power, for good.
“My men back at the Kühnburg
headquarters have located the exact point where the Christians are headed,”
Claw said. “It is a large residential home and guest house deep within the Kühnburg
forest. For some reason, the secret police have not paid any attention to it or
been aware of it. We found it because the Christians that Rat was tracking are
heading straight for it, and our drones spotted it after scanning over the
forest. So, we have the opportunity of capturing possibly over two or three
dozen Christians and selling them to the secret police for a month’s wages per
person.”
“I can take them down all by
myself,” Whiplash said, stepping forward with a greedy look in his eyes.
“No you won’t,” Stingray
said, irritated.
“You need smoothness and subtlety more than brute force,” Jackal said as he turned to face Stingray, a man who had short, black muttonchops, a “butch” haircut, and a muscular build.
“Alright, men,” Claw said,
turning back toward the men he came with. “I have ordered a stealth helicopter
to rendezvous with us in a farm pasture five miles from here. It will not be
heard by anyone since its rotors are very quiet, being designed for secret
missions.”
“How did you get the
helicopter, boss?” Rat said.
“I have some connections to
the armed forces of the Communist Republic of Germany,” Claw said, slightly
annoyed at the question. He cleared his throat and began to lay out the plans
for capturing the Christians staying at Daniel and Monika’s house.
___________________
Svenja’s Predicament, 5:30 A.M.
A beeping sound had come from
the buzzer next to the digital clock on the concrete wall of the execution
room. Svenja was lying down on a bench with a metal pillory locked over her
neck. The executioner had just pulled the release chain, and a clicking sound
had just come from the mechanism holding the guillotine blade in place. Being
released, the heavy, sharp piece of metal was beginning to fall toward Svenja.
In a fraction of a second, it would reach her.
But, just as the blade move
another ten centimeters down the slotted tracks in the metal stand, Svenja
suddenly found the scenery change before her very eyes. She was standing in a
pine forest outside a chain link fence. It was night time, but the darkness of
the night was slowly beginning to lighten to dark purple hues as the earth
rotated, bringing the sun’s rays to the German forest.
She slowly walked along the
fence and squinted, looking in all directions, wondering where she was and what
had brought her here. ‘Am I in Heaven? This doesn’t look like Heaven. Where am
I?’ she thought to herself.
She turned toward the area
that was fenced in and noticed some structures beyond. Had she somehow escaped
the prison or been rescued by someone at the last moment before the blade would
have hit her? That didn’t make sense. The blade was in the middle of sliding
down the slotted tracks toward her neck when she suddenly had found herself
here.
“Svenja, is that you?” a deep
voice came from behind her. She turned to see a large figure standing before
her in the shadows of a tall pine tree. The shadowy figure stepped out into a
dim patch of moonlight and she instantly recognized him. It was her tall
husband Rolf.
“Rolf, how did you get here?
You were in a prison cell with Abdul,” Svenja said. “Are we dreaming?”
“This isn’t a dream,” Rolf
said. “Do you remember Acts chapter 12?”
The husband and wife talked
for a little while before they spotted Abdul walking along the fence.
“Abdul,” Rolf said, “you’re
here too. This is amazing!”
“God brought us here,” Abdul
said, with wide open eyes. “He is the God of miracles!”
The three walked together
along the outside of the chain link fence and talked until they came to a gate.
Standing before the gate, they saw Daniel walking toward them. He was fully
dressed and wore a bright smile on his face even though it was still early in
the morning.
“Hello, folks, I’ve been
expecting you,” Daniel said as he approached the gate from the other side. He
had just emerged from a blue, three-story house. “God told me that two men and
a woman would be here. One of you would be middle-eastern, and one of you would
be very tall.” With a chuckle, Daniel added, “And, you certainly all match the
descriptions God gave me.”
___________________
AN EXCERPT FROM CHAPTER 14 ("A Mysterious Stranger Arrives"):
'... Maritza noticed the stranger staring at her for a few seconds, and she suddenly felt uncomfortable. But, his eyes quickly shifted to Monika, who was standing up at that moment. Something about this man brought Maritza a deep feeling of concern. ...'
(Note: I do not make any money from this story. It is free to be read, printed, and distributed, but the text must remain unaltered.)
➠➠ ➠ If you would like to know Abba God the Father and Jesus Christ (God the Son), and be saved from sin, click here to read more.
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