The Criminal in Auschwitz

The still warm barrel of the gun was pressed firmly against the center of the trembling skin of his forehead. The criminal, barely 8, had marks from tears running down his face. He muttered words but they all became blurred as my head was spinning I knew I needed to shoot the little boy but I couldn’t. His features were stereotypical of a Jew- the large hooked nose, pursed lips, small forehead from which his long, dark hair was infested with lice, fell around his ears which had cuts and bruises on them to his tattered shirt three sizes too big for him. He wore minimal facial hair because of his age; his eyes filled to the brim with tears still with a terrified and sad expression which one would expect with one who had a gun placed on his head.
Taking a deep breath the small boy exclaimed in small sentences taking short breathes in between each fragment “I’m Yoni. My sister. Sarah’s sick. The food. It was for her. I had too. She was going to die. She needed food. Please. Don’t kill me.”
Slowly his eyes welled up letting a single tear fall down his precious tiny face and shimmered in the sun while a shot rang out. I can’t do this. All he did was take some food for his baby sister. I had to make sure that he was the one who stole the food but I was positive it was him from what he had just blurted out. This is a legitimate reason to steal food; if I was him I would have done the same thing. It seemed as if the whole world stopped; the snow paused in mid-air. All of the other soldiers froze along with all the Jews who worked until their deaths. The snow would fall on the dead bodies causing them to freeze; this would be the fate of Yoni and many others today. Unlike in the summer the bodies now looked beautiful in the winter glistening in the cold. It still brings me pain every time I see a new corpse knowing that they died for no reason. I kept the gun placed on his head so that he would not run away even though that is what I wanted to happen. Run away. Run away. Run away. Please. He was only a young boy trying to take the place of his father to keep his sister safe. He hadn’t mentioned anything about a mother I’m sure he’d lost her already.
I spoke quietly making it seem like I was about him kill him, honestly I was just trying to kill time saying “Where is your mother?”
Quietly with fear, pain and agony he spoke after a great deal of thought “She got shot for stealing food for my sister.”
I paused shutting my eyes for a moment and the muscles in my arms tensed as I pulled the trigger. Again I took a slow shallow breath and paused before bringing the trigger all the way down. I don’t want to do this. I have to for my family’s fate. If I don’t do this then my family will be dead and it will be my fault. He was just trying to save his sister. The shot causes my ears to ring as I keep my eyes shut knowing I couldn’t look at the body now lying at my feet. Slowly I opened my eyes as slow as possible looking past the ground. Yoni. He was running through the courtyard with his sister perched on his back. I stand in complete awe as my mouth relaxes and a slight smile appears as I see his escape. Snow still falls as he escapes I don’t stop him because this is what I wanted in the first place.
I can’t believe he escaped in the mere moments I shut my eyes. He will be shot for sure but at least now I don’t have to shoot him. I stopped for a second watching him as he gracefully ran to the fence. I take a few more seconds until I ran him yelling “Fuck!” If they find out I didn’t shoot him my family is dead and it will be all my fault.
My aching legs gave no pause for thought before they beat the ground forcefully with long, forward strides, bringing me to the fence. At once everything was no longer still and everyone watched as I sprinted towards the fence. My family’s life depended on me getting to that boy to kill him even if that meant killing his sister too. As I got within fifty feet of the fence I see the Yoni and Sarah climb steps over the fence. A staircase-that is built with great craftsman-is ahead of me appearing out of nowhere. They look as if they belong in a mansion not on a concentration camp. As they get to the top I see people dressed in all white gowns and little crowns atop their heads leading them away from this hell called Auschwitz. They will be able to live without the fear of being shot or not have enough of anything.
I turned seeing a fellow soldier yell, “What the hell are you looking at the fence for?”
Looking at the soldier for that single second caused me to lose sight of the steps vanishing along with the boy and his sister.
Breaking down I stutter out landing firmly on my knees “My families going to die.”
I dragged my body back to my feet roaming at most a mile per hour; meandering back until I stumble upon 2 dead bodies both small in size.
Yoni and Sara Sheer are dead; their bodies lie with bullet holes in their heads; lie softly above the snow covered ground next to the living quarters of the Jews in Auschwitz.