Days of the walking dead (CLOSED)

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

There was a chorus of “Ja, je hebt gelijk” which meant everyone agreed with Johan.

“Ok…let’s go” Mandy said to Johan as the two departed the bank via the back entrance.

“It is Scheveningen” Mandy told Johan.

“What?” He asked

“No one but a true Dutch person can say that city’s name correctly. We work it into a conversation and a German spy will always blow it” Mandy explained.

He laughed. They peeked around a corner and saw a few zombies walking the street.

“Let’s wait a moment” Johan suggested.

“Johan, I have been thinking about that man that died in the bank and then rose back up.” Mandy said “I think it is like chicken-pox. Once you have the virus in your system, it is there. When your immune system shuts down the virus is no longer suppressed and flares up. With chicken pox that is shingles. With this virus, when you are dead… you become a zombie”

“That what it seems like” Johan agreed and watched as the zombies start to move off chasing some other noise.

“I think we are both might be virus carriers. We might be spreading it” Mandy suggested.

“No, I don’t think so. You can’t spread chicken-pox, if your body is suppressing it” Johan reasoned.

“Good point” Mandy agreed. “You know if the virus spreads, it may end the war” Mandy thought. “Killing people would just create more zombies… so people might stop fighting and focus on figuring out how to deal with the zombies. Kind of what is happening here in Rhenen”

“They might… but knowing mankind’s history, we’ll figure out a way to fight wars even with this virus. But I don’t think this virus is spread unless a zombie kills you” Johan suggested

“That is good to know” Mandy agreed.

“I think it is safe now.” Johan said as the two moved further down the street. Then they turned down a side alley and moved towards the house with the radio. “Ok your turn” He told Mandy

Mandy walked up to the back door knocked. A person arrived at the door but did not open it.

“Tomas, I’m going on a trip to Scheveningen, do you have a few towels I can borrow?” Mandy asked. Tomas opened the door.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

As the door bolted open, I slid my weapons away and then held my hands away from my body. True to form, Tomas saw me, took in my uniform, and made to close the door.

"Think about it for a moment Tomas, if I am a threat, would she have gotten the password and come over here with me in uniform?"

At least Tomas was a smart man and paused to think for a short moment, before letting us in. Once inside, Mandy explained to him about the outbreak and that we would be needing the radio. I could only follow a part of the discussion between the two and soon enough Tomas disappeared behind a fake wall to bring out the radio. It was an old set, but it worked, or so he said. The antennae was a long coil of insulated wire, which I draped over my shoulders before I picked up the radio.

It was only when we went outside, that I realized that we had trouble, we were cut off from the vehicle by a large group of creatures . . . OK, let's call them zombies. Since we had not made any noise when we came out, they did not know about us yet. I motioned for Mandy to take the nearest alleyway, which moved between the houses. There was just no way that we could walk to the church, especially not if I had to carry the radio.

As we walked carefully, trying to avoid the zombies, I once more realized just how resilient people could be, even with the shock of the things happening, the war, and everything attached to it, these people still felt like they had something to hold on to, to protect their country and their own people.

I noticed a wheelbarrow and drew Mandy's attention to it, after placing the radio and wire in it, we could make faster time. There was a rubber covering the wheel, which caused it to not make a lot of noise as we walked.

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

Mandy noticed they were next to the museum she had told Johan about.

“I think this place might have some things we could use” Mandy suggested. She tried the door and it was locked. She picked up a rock and broke the window in the door. Then she reached inside and unlocked the door.

“Breaking the law!” Johan pointed out

“It is an emergency situation” Mandy countered as she went inside the building. The museum was small, and with the door locked Mandy was pretty sure there were no zombies inside. She headed over to the crossbow display. With the rock still in her hand, she broke the display case open and grabbed the crossbow and all the arrows.

“Replicate… and in good working order.” She told Johan. She loaded the weapon and cocked it.

He was looking at the swords. But most of them were very heavy. Big two-handed ones, or long swords. “How did people fight with these” He grumbled putting a huge one back down

“I have no clue.” Mandy agreed. Johan did find two short swords and a dagger for their use.

“Ok, now we can keep going to the church.” Mandy suggested as the walked back out of the museum. They continued toward the huge church and then Mandy saw the small gas station.

“Hey… maybe we can get some gas” She thought. She went over to the small service house. She opened the door to see how to turn on the pumps. It was dark inside and all the shades were drawn. She thought she could see someone near the back door. They were hunched over and squatting with their back to her. She came all the way into the service house. “Hey are you ok?” She asked. The sound of her voice caught the person’s attention and they lifted their head quickly.

Mandy noticed the blood on the floor and the half-eaten corpse in front of the squatting person and knew she had another zombie on her hands. The zombie rose up and spun around toward her… as she raised her crossbow and fired a bolt right through its forehead, driving him to the back wall and pinning him to it. The head shot killed him dead. She ended the encounter with “You’re kind of stuck up! Oh no better still … I hope you got my point!” Mandy finished with a giggle. She turned on the gas pumping system.

“We have gas if we need it” Mandy told Johan.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

I wasn't sure if Mandy was acting in shock, but it seemed like the puns were her way of dealing with the situation, so I left it at that.

"I believe we will need some gas later on, for now, we don't really have a need for it."

I looked around and noticed that this area had not yet attracted more of the zombies, I moved away, looking into the few vehicles to see if they had keys in them. No luck and all of them were locked, I moved back towards Mandy and the wheelbarrow with the radio.

"I can break into one of the cars, but I have a feeling that the sound will attract more of them. I think we should keep walking, you OK in those shoes?"

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

They continued on foot as they turned another corner the church was in front of them. The central was very high at 82 meters. They walked up to the main entrance and entered the church. The interior included beautiful Renaissance-style walls, ceilings and the choir loft.

The main worship area was richly decorated. There were no zombies in the area main that Mandy could see. The only damage to the church was the southwest corner where the wall was unstable and therefore the walkway above it was unusable and not walkable.

“Where to now?” Mandy ask Johan

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

I looked around, the church was beautiful, which made me wonder why people would adorn their place of worship and neglect their souls when they walk out of the building. I shook off that thought and motioned upwards, "Got to see how high we can get with the radio, and then try and get the antennae as high as possible, it is a long stretch for these old units, but I believe we just might make it to Berlin."

I picked up the wire and the radio as Mandy led the way to a set of stairs, we started climbing and I will admit, I just loved watching her ass and calves as she climbed the stairs. "You seem to know your way around the church."

She laughed softly, "This is a popular place to sneak away if you want some private time."

I shook my head, "You people are really very different than what I am used to."

She flashed me a smile over her shoulder and then focused on the stairs again. It took quite a while for us to reach the highest landing, from there a ladder gave access to the bell tower and roof. We stopped to take a breather and I placed the radio down on a chair and finally took off my uniform jacket and placed it over the chair.

I sat down on one of the chairs and looked at Mandy, "From what I understood when you spoke to the people in the bank, they called you German soldier whore?"

She nodded and I continued, "And you told them that your fiance was shot in front of you?"

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

Mandy looked down to the floor for a moment in shame. “Yes” She answered. “I had a friend, Kaatje, she talked me into being a comfort woman. The money was very good. I made more in one night than I could make in 6 months. But I decided, it was not right for me.” Mandy explained.

“The SS officer who I had been with that night, wanted to see me again. I told everyone I had quit. I also, stupidly told them I had a fiancé and would not be doing it any more regardless of the money.” Mandy explained, tears were running down her face.

“You can guess what happened next. The SS officer found Jan and shot him in the street.” Mandy explained. “No more excuses” He said.

“I knew that I was not going to marry Jan. I was not that in love with him. I let Kaatje talk me into having sex for money, while I was engaged. I was such an idiot to tell them he was my fiancé, Jan would be alive today, if I had been honest. I just never thought they would shoot him.” Mandy finished as she put her face in her hands.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

I stood up and moved closer to Mandy, placing my arms around her and pulling her close to me, gently stroking a hand over her back.

"I have heard a lot of times about these executions. I am sorry that you had to live through that."

I found that my hand had moved up, slowly stroking over her hair now, "You can't blame yourself, you could not have known that he would act that way. It is just another reason why I don't trust those SS bastards and their cohorts the Gestapo."

I have no idea if it was helping, but I must admit, it felt good to hold a woman of Mandy's proportions in my arms.

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

“Why can’t there be more good people in the world, like you” Mandy asked. Then she turned and hugged Johan. Her tearing stopped as she felt save in his strong arms.

“You are going save us… this is going to work” Mandy asked

“I think so” Johan said.

Then she leaned in and kissed him. It was a passionate kiss. Johan thought it would be just one kiss, but Mandy did not stop. She continued to kiss him as her hand pressed against his back. Through hugging and kissing him, she felt grounded, safe, and assured. This was instinctive. Men were protector and she needed a protector right now. Finally she pulled back, “Oh Johan… I need you” She moaned.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

I wasn't lying when I said that I think that contacting the War room could save us, but from what I knew saw of the zombies and how they acted, there could only be one way to save us and that did not bode well for Rhenen.

I was taken by surprise when Mandy started kissing me, it was not a thank you kiss, but hot and insistent kisses, pulling me closer to her as her lips ground against mine in what felt like a desperate need. I responded I could not help it. Even with death dwelling around in the streets outside, I would always have responded to her.

I silenced her moan with a kiss, our tongues invading each other's mouths, my hands unbuttoning her jacket and it off of her, pulling her closer to me, enjoying the feel of her warm body against mine as our tongues explored each other's mouth, twirling around each other and rubbing passionately together.

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

Johan helped Mandy out of her top and bra as they continued to kiss. He loved her breasts, just the right size. Mandy deftly released his belt and undid his zip. Her hand went into his underwear rubbing his hard cock. Soon she pulled it out of his pants and felt how hard and big it was.

Mandy was desperate for his cock. This whole encounter might seem strange, but not to Mandy. The sex made her feel safe and loved.

“I want to suck on it” She told Johan as his cock was obscenely waving in his lap. She leaned down and opened her willing mouth. This was no sensual blowjob Mandy immediately started sucking hard on his cock taking as much of his length down her throat as she possibly could.

She was sucking hard and fast as she bobbed up and down on his cock. He grabbed hold of her hair and guided her head on his cock. Mandy moaned louder the more she sucked his cock but she didn't want him to cum just yet, she needed that cock in her pussy.

She pulled her mouth off his cock just enough to tell him she wanted him to fuck her. It was at this point he really took charge of her. He pulled her up spun her around facing away from him.

She felt his hands pull off her skirt. Slipping it over her ass. Next Mandy felt his cock against her pussy lips as she bent over and got on all fours. The head of his cock felt so hard and hot against her wet lips.

"Please fuck me." Mandy begged.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

The whole situation was kind of bizarre in hindsight, but at that moment, I could not have found a problem with it at all. Like I have said before, from what I could see from her while she was dressed, she was a looker and had a sexy body. With her partially undressed, it was quite certain that she was almost everything that I could want, I know that for a moment I wondered why she wasn't wearing any underwear under the skirt, but at her begging words, I forgot all about that thought.

For some strange reason, it felt like coming home when I pushed my cock into her wet entrance, feeling her walls close over my shaft, warm, wet, and very willing. I held her hips as I started to thrust myself deeper into her, she moved back against me, moaning deeply as I filled her with my cock. The harder I thrust into her, the louder she moaned and pushed herself back into my thrusts. Her juices coated my shaft and her muscles rippled over my cock as it slid in and out of her, the need in her moans fuelling me to thrust harder and faster and she met my thrusts willingly, taking my cock deep into her.

It felt so good being inside her, hearing her moan in need and pleasure, but I could feel my orgasm growing as we moved together and from her breathing, I figured that she wasn't very far from her own orgasm as well. I gripped her hips more firmly and started to thrust as hard as I could go, burying my cock deep inside her with each thrust.

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

"Oh fuck," Mandy gasped, falling forward more so that her face sunk near the floor. Her pussy sheath clasped Johan's dick, as he continued to ram his cock into her. He shoved his cock all the way into her. As soon as he was fully inside her, he tightly held on to her hips and pulled his cock back to just inside of the entrance to her pussy...and then slammed himself back into her hard. Mandy gasped as he fucked her hard and fast.

Mandy groaned, pushing herself up so that her arms supported her weight again. Johan leaning forward, he grasped one of her swinging tits with one hand while steadying himself with the other on her hip. His fingers tightened, squeezing the firm mass of her breast. Mandy moaned something he could not understand as spasms deep in her vagina clamped around his dick. He attempted to pull back but could not, he remained trapped while the girl's tense muscles quivered and quaked through an obvious orgasm.

He added his orgasm to her, as his cock could not hold back any longer. He pumped his seed into her. Then as both their orgasms finished, they lay on the floor together.

“Johan, thank you, I needed that. I needed to feel some pleasure, some love. Thank you” Mandy told him.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

I wasn't sure if it was the situation or Mandy herself, but as we lay there on the floor, panting from our almost frantic coupling, I almost felt a bit bad for cumming inside of her. True, she had clamped down so firmly on me, that it almost felt like I could not escape, but deep down, I knew that I could have. I just didn't want to. Almost like flooding her womb with my seed would mark her as my own.

I realized another thing, that she was almost naked and that I was basically still dressed, we had not gotten further taking off my belt and unzipping my pants. This also reminded me that we were not dressed for the situation happening in the town, she was dressed in fancy clothing, and the clothes I wore, were more for working in the office than used in the field.

"I think that I needed that just as much, maybe just for other reasons."

I sat up to look at her, "So, I have two questions. First, what did you say before your orgasm? And secondly, was this what you did in your private time in church?"

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

Mandy laughed at Johan question about her time in church. “I never did anything naughty, except for the times with Jan while we were looking at the view… or until now.” She joked back.

“I said Schreeuw” Mandy explained. “I wanted to scream in pleasure, but that might bring zombies, so I said “scream” in dutch. It is a very weird sounding word.”

They both got up and straightened their clothing out. “Ok let’s get this thing set up.” Mandy climbed up into the bell tower. She helped Johan with the radio and the long antenna.

“I guess you should string the antenna. I’ll connect the radio to the power line.” Mandy suggested. String the antenna would require Johan to hang outside the bell tower. That would require a lot of upper body strength.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

I looked at her, "You wanted to scream so you said scream?"

I had to chuckle, "That is quite hilarious."

After getting straightened out, we got to work. I got up into the tower, trailing the wire out behind me as I climbed. It didn't take me long to finish, it wasn't a great place to be hanging out of. Especially if the slip meant that I could be stumbling around wanting to bite or eat people.

I climbed back down and when Mandy connected the power, the radio came to life. I slipped on the earphones and there was definitely action. I gave Mandy the thumbs up and started to set the channel to the correct wavelength and keyed the microphone. I had to try a few times before the answer came through, it was scratchy, but I could definitely hear them. Turned out that they barely heard me, I had to speak very slowly to make them understand who I was and after the security sign and counter-sign, I started to give my report.

The radio died just after I told them that the SS secret weapon had broken out and was in the town of Rhenen. I stared at the dead radio and then at Mandy, "Well shit, that isn't good."

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

"Well shit, that isn't good." Johan said

Mandy thought she knew what he meant. If the German’s thought their secret weapon was out or not in control. They would want to stop it before it spread. That meant destroying Rhenen!

“Maybe we can get the radio working again?” Mandy suggested. “We have to tell them the situation here. There are people here.”

Johan shook his head no “The radio is dead” he told her

“They are going to send in troops, right? Those idiots aren’t thinking of bombing! Bombing would be stupid. It might create more zombies!” Mandy reasoned, but she could tell from Johan’s face that reason and military actions did not always connect.

“What do we do now?” Mandy asked.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

I thought about it for a moment, we could find a battery and use the backup power system to send out a message. But the problem was that I did not know if the signal would be strong enough to reach Berlin. Mandy was right about one thing though, if Headquarters knew the weapon was loose, they will level Rhenen and the surrounding area.

"The distance is the problem. These radios can take a battery as well, but the range is less than with power. It will take a few hours for the message to be decoded and relayed. It will be marked high priority, but for a change, the German efficiency will be working in our favor. It gives us time to think of something."

I placed the earphones on the dead radio and thought for a moment, "Tomorrow at dawn, two or three wings of bombers. That will be the best way to know for sure. They will wipe the town from the map."

Looking at her, I knew what we had to do.

"We got to restrict the zombies to the army base and the town. They appear to act on movement and sound, so if we can draw them all to a point, seal them in and then run like hell. We might survive this if we can do that."

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

“Draw them to a point and run like hell” Mandy repeated back to Johan. It was impossible. She thought about what they had. They might be able to use the Kübelsitzwagen to draw the zombies out… but the car was too open. They would need to drive slow enough to keep them interested… but fast enough to prevent one from get on the car. The risk was just too high. Even a regular car was a problem. The zombies were as fast as a regular people. Then she thought maybe they could rig up a bell ringing in a square. The zombies might come to that sound. But they would try to get the bell. Most likely destroying it. And how would they rig it up to keep ringing?

“Could we use the bell in this tower?” Mandy asked Johan.

“I think they would lose interest very quickly. I don’t think it would work” Johan told her.

Mandy got up and stared out at the town from under the bell tower. It was so beautiful. The beautiful Renaissance-styled buildings, nestled among the large lazy river, the green farmland and the windmills turning slowing in the wind.

“The windmills!” Mandy gasped looking at Johan. “We can tie bells to the vanes on the windmills. The turning vanes and the noise will draw the zombies in. We can shut the farmland gates. And they will be trapped near the windmills. I think it might work.” Mandy suggested. "The windmill are so close to town, they will get bombed too."

“I don’t know about the base… can you think of something?” Mandy asked

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

I nodded, "The windmills might work, but we will need a way to draw them there. A truck will work, but we will need people who will be willing to drive a few trucks through the town to draw the creatures to the windmill. I think you are right though, the farms are close enough to town to get hit by the bombers as well and if we give them a target like a fire beacon, they would be more likely to drop most of the bombs on that."

For a moment I wondered why I couldn't have a woman like Mandy back home, she was brave and smart, the humor was a bit strange, but there and well, yes, she was a really good-looking woman.

"The base is easy, when most of the zombies in town are couped up, the air raid alarm can be activated. I believe the sound and the searchlights will draw them to it."

"The lights won't be moving though."

I nodded at her remark, "True, but on the lower level of their understanding, sound and sight mean food, so if there is a light, there have to be people, which is food."

We stared out on the town for a moment and I smiled, "Should have come to town more often, it seems like a nice place."

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

"Well, take a good look, it won't last too much longer" Mandy said bitterly.

She was amazed at how quickly they developed a plan. The problems came when they tried to execute the plan. They made it to the ground floor of the church and over to the buildings where town's people had chosen to set up a defense against the zombies.

Mandy and Johan found Magus van der Gaag the leader of the defense.

“Magus, we have a new problem” Mandy started to explain.

“We are still trying to get everyone rounded up from the last problem” He grumbled.

“We contacted the German headquarters and told them about the secret weapon getting out. Then we lost communications. Johan and I think that the Germans are going to bomb the town and the base. I mean bomb it flat, like Rotterdam.” Mandy explained.

“WHAT?” Magus yelled in anger. “FUCK”

“Magus, yelling is not going to help. We have a small amount of time, to get everyone to safety. Johan and I are going to draw the zombies into the fields near the windmills. We think we can trap them there. We are going to need a few trucks, and a volunteer or two to help. Once we have the zombies tilting at the windmills, just Johan and I will take care of the base zombies. All you have to do is get everyone out of town. We think the best way to do that, is via the river. Load everyone on a barge and let it drift down stream. We have not seen any zombies try to swim. I think it is too hard for them, just like turning a door knob.”

“The German’s are going to bomb the town flat?” Magus asked for clarification. Mandy nodded her head in agreement. Magus turned on Johan “You fucking Germans… I ought to…”

Mandy slapped Magus’ face hard.

“This is not his fault. Now adapt or die. We have a new plan… we need you help to execute it” Mandy yelled at Magus.

“Ahh, ok” Magus agreed as he rubbed his cheek were Mandy slapped it. “Jan and Han can get you two trucks… and help. I’ll start getting the people moving to the river.” Magus agreed.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

To be honest, I expected the reaction from Magus, in fact if you told anybody that you are going to wipe their home town from the face of the map, they will react the same.

"If the United States joins the war, the same thing will happen to Germany. Towns and cities bombed into rubble." I predicted. This earned me a few stares and I shrugged, "It is what it is when you start a war, you should be able to take what you give."

"Your Dutch is improving." Mandy said to me in German, and I realized that I had spoken in Dutch. There wasn't time to dwell on that though, the afternoon was getting along and we still had to find bells to tie to the windmills. Which Magus told us we can get from the general goods store, they sold cowbells.

I pulled Mandy aside, "Listen, you don't need to keep putting your life in danger. I am not trying to tell you what to do, I just say that it is not necessary. I want to help with getting this sorted out and stop an outbreak as I am in a way partly responsible for it."

I smiled, "But I get the idea you are going to tell me that you're going along, so I think we need better clothing."

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

“I want to” Mandy started to answer then she realized what she was about to say. She thought about and finished her statement “I want to stay with you” she said firmly. Johan looked at her. It was almost as if she said “I love you”. Not the same of course, but her willingness to stay with him meant she was going to put her life on the line with him to save the people of this town.

“This is a cause bigger than both of us. This is something that will change history. I have to help” Mandy justified further. But deep down, she could still help and not be with Johan. She wanted to be with him.

She reloaded her crossbow “Now let’s get some clothes and cow bells” she told him.

They move down the street to the clothing store. There were various stacks of folded outfits. She headed to where the farmers shopped for their clothing. She picked out a traditional set of cloth, with a long baggy skirt, boots, and a blouse, she even grabbed a traditional dutch bonnet. It was made of white cotton, and characterized by triangular flaps or wings that turn up on either side.

She quickly changed into the new clothing. She really looked cute in the outfit. “Does this turn you on?” She asked Johan. Johan laughed. She did look REALLY cute in the outfit.

They moved to the general store and picked up the cow bells. As they returned to the street, a zombie stepped around a corner and ran towards them. Johan pulled out his gun, but Mandy said “I got it”

She waited until it was closer and fired her crossbow. The bolt went through one of its eyes and out the back of its head. The zombie fell down dead.

“Eye got it” Mandy joked.

 

[TertiusHuman]

Johann

I have no idea why the more practical clothing actually made her look even better. I had selected sturdy pants and a working shirt with a jacket, the boots I kept. I never was one to wear office-type shoes or shiny boots. I wore battle boots, which of course were hidden under the pant legs. I groaned at Mandy's joke, I doubt that she had planned it ahead, but she was quite sharp when it came to making silly jokes.

We made our way back towards the rally point, where we met Jan and Han. They mentioned three people with trucks inside the town and we decided to go to the nearest, get the truck and use it to transport us to the other two points, where we would start to draw zombies from houses and streets using the cowbells and horns of the trucks.

I held the two swords at the ready as we started out towards the bakery

 

[milkmaiden38]

Mandy

The bakery's blazing red door made it standout among the other shops on the street. Everything else about the shops were similar such as white-painted window frames, modest gray brick walls and wooden frame. There was also a the large fountain in the square that provided the citizens some additional beauty.

Mandy mind thought of grabbing some food before getting the truck. Maybe the baker had some Speculaas, fresh from the oven, waiting for them. That always made her salivate in expectation. Or maybe the baker had made some Stroopwafels!

“Maybe we can get some Speculaas while we are here?” Mandy suggested to Johan. He gave her a funny look.

“It is a cookie that contain basically every spice associated with Autumn, Winter and the festive season and smell very similar to mulled wine. The cookie has a crunchy texture and pairs wonderfully with coffee, tea or hot chocolate.” Mandy explained.

"Mandy! Thank God you are safe” Berchard greeted her with a smile as soon as she pushed the door open, the bell chiming her presence in the dim fragrance of the bakery.

The baker was a jolly sort, red-cheeked and the kind of man whose eyes sparkled with humor, infecting everyone around him with good cheer. "You look wilted, my dear, come sit and eat." He suggested.

“Berchard, this is Johan. We are in a hurry. We need your truck. But I think we have enough time to grab a few cookies too” Mandy explained. “Then you need to go with the other to the river. This city is going to be bombed.”

“I will never leave my bakery” Berchard stated firmly. As he gathered up a few items for Johan and Mandy.

“Berchard… you must evacuate. Understand” Mandy told him as he gave her the keys to the truck and a bag of cookies.

“I’ll think about it” He replied. But Mandy could tell the words were empty.

“Johan… tell him” Mandy said as she reached into the bag and took a bite of a cookie. It was a Stroopwafels. It melted onto her tongue like a lover's embrace. She closed her eyes in hedonistic abandon. "Oh that is good"