War Photographer's Notebook

On September 1940, 9, in a hidden space in the basement of the Philip Castle Lighthouse, Heidi wrapped her belongings with two pieces of fabric cut from the corners of the bed sheet under the light of the Davy lamp, and sewed them separately stitch by stitch. The armpits of wool thermal shirts and the inner thighs of underwear.

After sewing these belongings, she carefully put the needle and thread into a sewing tube made of clam, which was only the size of a later disposable lighter. It was the first gift that Spier gave her, and she always wore it close to her body.

After finishing the rainy day preparations, Heidi listened to Wei Ran and Vanessa chatting in Latin outside, and then lay helplessly on the single bed, as if she couldn't understand Hebrew. Can't understand Latin either.

"Whose name do you think it belongs to?"

Outside the hidden space, Wei Ran, who was sitting on the canvas roll, asked in surprise to Vanessa, who was sitting opposite.

“You can never go wrong”

Vanessa returned the gold case pocket watch in her hand to Wei Ran, "The original owner of this watch must be Napoleon's second wife, Victor. Where did you get it?"

"Found from under my generous grandfather's pillow"

Wei Ran made nonsense about the origin of the gold watch in his hand. Originally, he just took out his pocket watch and looked at the time, and casually asked Vanessa if she knew the origin of the long list of names on the back of the watch case.

He didn't expect that Vanessa could give him the answer, nor did he expect that this gold watch would have such a great origin.

Of course, compared to the extraordinary origin of this watch, its more important role at this time is to maintain the most important and basic work of a pocket watch. If it keeps time accurately enough, there will be less than five minutes left before 7 p.m.

Except for the food delivered in the morning, Spear never came down to deliver water or food to them for almost the whole day.

Similarly, except for Mr. Vicente in the morning, no one has visited this lighthouse, just like the roar of fighter jets in the sky is almost constant.

It could be said that throughout the whole day, Wei Ran and Vanessa passed the time by chatting in Latin, while Heidi had been hiding in a more hidden room and never came out from the beginning to the end.

"I remember there were a lot of pocket watches among the things we buried in the yard"

Vanessa guessed whimsically but with a painful look on her face, "There won't be Napoleon's pocket watch in there, right?"

Before Wei Ran could answer, the two of them heard footsteps coming from above their heads, followed by Heidi emerging from the small hidden space.

After a moment of waiting, the oil drums and wooden boards covering the entrance and exit of the basement were removed one after another. While passing a milk can and a baguette in, Spear said hurriedly, "I'm sorry for the late delivery. There were Germans outside the lighthouse all the time and they would come in at any moment."

Before sisters Wei Ran and Heidi, who had taken the milk cans and baguettes, could say anything, Spier continued, "We will find a way to leave tonight. Remember to try on those diving suits after you eat, Vic. "More, will you inflate the cylinder? There are oxygen cylinders and inflation tubes under the bed."

"No problem, leave it to me!" Wei Ran agreed.

"That's it. It will get dark in about an hour. We will set off at night. You should be ready at any time."

After speaking, Spier hurriedly covered the entrance and exit of the basement with wooden boards before waiting for the hesitant Heidi to speak, and pressed the wooden boards again with oil barrels.

In the basement, the three of them, Wei Ran, glanced at each other by the light of the flashlight, then silently walked into the depths of the basement and got into the small hidden space.

"Let's eat first"

Wei Ran was the first to break the silence, using the spoon from the milk jug to fill each of the sisters' lunch boxes with a large portion of stew.

Heidi and Vanessa opened their mouths to say something, but after seeing each other's expressions, they each swallowed what they wanted to say.

After finishing his late lunch in silence, Wei Ran carried the oxygen bottle under the bed to the bed and said, "You go outside first, the space here is too small."

"If you need help, call us anytime." After Heidi said that, she pulled Vanessa out. Obviously, the sisters had something to say.

It wasn't until the two sisters' backs were completely blocked by debris that Wei Ran took off a diving suit hanging above his head, connected it to the oxygen tank, and started inflating it.

As the Davie light hanging above the head flashed again and again, the two cylinders placed horizontally on the abdomen of these diving suits were also filled with liquid oxygen one after another.

After a final inspection to make sure there was nothing wrong, Wei Ran immediately called on the two sisters outside to help take all the diving suits outside.

It can be seen that Heidi and Vanessa are very familiar with diving. At least, they are very skilled in wearing these diving suits.

He fumbled to put this black one-piece diving suit made of natural rubber on his body, then tightened the straps on his hands and trousers to prevent water from getting in, and waited until he picked out a pair of deck shoes of the right size to put on. By then, Heidi and Vanessa had already bitten into the respirators and started trying them out.

He slowly put on the one-piece hood and buckled the diving mask. As the valve opened, the breathing bag on his chest gradually inflated. Wei Ran also smoothly took a breath of air mixed with the smell of rubber, and breathed out The baby was sent back into the breathing bag through exhalation.

Although this diving suit is primitive, this breathing system is enough to be called a standard closed circuit rebreather (CCR).

No matter how many shortcomings this underwater breathing system has in this day and age, at least it has one huge advantage that cannot be ignored: breathing underwater produces very few bubbles, which naturally reduces the possibility of being discovered.

After closing the air valve, he checked the diving watch and depth gauge fixed on his wrist. He even pulled out the diving knife, looked at it, and tried to cut a knife on the canvas, and then opened the breathing mask.

Perhaps those few breaths of oxygen had a boosting effect on the body, or perhaps it was the inspiration brought by the diving suit itself. At this time, the three people hiding in the basement seemed to have become more confident.

"When was the last time we dived?"

Heidi asked with a smile while helping Vanessa unzip the back of the wetsuit.

“Last summer, in Saint-Malo”

Vanessa smiled and replied, "We also found a huge anchor on the seabed that time we dived to a depth of ten meters."

"Yes." Heidi's approval was also mixed with an uncontrollable smile.

Listening to the memories of the two sisters, Wei Ran also took off the upper body of the diving suit and hung it around his waist. He sat on the canvas bundle and tried on the huge rubber flippers. By the way, he also put on the expensive The pocket watch was placed in the chest pocket of the thermal shirt, and the watch chain was tied to the buttonhole of the collar.

Just at this moment, the bang bang bang bang on the door made the three people hiding in the basement immediately quiet down. Immediately after, Wei Ran also blew out a pot of paper placed between the three of them after Heidi and the sisters sat down. David lamp on broken table.

A moment later, Spear also ran downstairs and opened the wooden door on the first floor of the lighthouse.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Mucci!"

Spier greeted him in French enthusiastically, "You're here just in time. I've just finished wiping the lighthouse's condenser mirror and am getting ready."

"Spear, I'm not here today to check on your work."

Under the eavesdropping of the three guards, a slightly arrogant loud voice said in French, "Let me introduce you, this is Mr. Fogel, he is an experienced lighthouse keeper. Starting tonight, he will I will guard this lighthouse with you.

Spear, next you take Mr. Fogel to visit and introduce to him the work here. In addition, give your room to Fogel and find a place to rest. "

"No problem!" Spear responded happily, "Mr. Fogel, please come upstairs with me."

"Not urgent"

A slightly hoarse voice rejected Spear's invitation in not very fluent French, and then asked, "Why are there two oil drums there?"

"It's used to supply oil to the tower lamp on the roof."

Spear familiarly introduced, "Although there is an oil depot outside the lighthouse, it only adds a few bottles of oil at a time. It is really not worth running frequently. After all, it is cold, so I put two barrels on the first floor. Every time the oil is added here, When it is used up, we will go to the oil depot to get barrels of fuel.”

After Spier explained this, the three people hiding in the basement also noticed that their voices were getting closer and closer, and they were also mixed with the sounds of getting closer and closer.

"Why are there wooden boards underneath? What's underneath?"

When the new lighthouse keeper, who seemed to be named Fogel, asked this question, Wei Ran had already noticed something was wrong.

But at this time, the three of them were wearing diving suits, and it was obviously unrealistic to crawl back into the small space hidden in the debris.

"Down below is an abandoned basement that used to be an oil depot used to store kerosene. Later, after it was abandoned, it became a place for storing sundries. It was also used as a toilet by the former guard. In addition, the moisture inside was very heavy, so every day There would be a strong smell in the summer, so I covered it with a board.”

At this point, Spear added, "Mr. Mucci knew about this. I applied with him at the time. Right Mucci. Well, it seems he has left."

"Open it and let me see what's down there," said the man named Fogel.

"No problem!" Spear responded happily.

He had just finished saying this, and Wei Ran had already fumbled to find the bundle of canvas. Amidst the noise of Spier moving the oil drum, he pulled Heidi and Vanessa and hid behind a broken table, unfolded the canvas and They were tightly covered with themselves.

Almost immediately, Spear had already lifted the wooden board, and immediately after, the man named Fogel also pulled out the flashlight on his waist and shined a beam of light into the basement.

Fortunately, due to the various debris piled up at the entrance and exit, the guard had no intention of climbing in and taking a look. Naturally, he did not see the three people hiding where the flashlight could not shine.

When he turned off the flashlight, Spear secretly breathed a sigh of relief and pushed the withdrawn diving knife into his cuff again.

"Mr. Fogel, do we still need to block here?" Spear asked proactively after waiting for the other party to move away.

“No need for now”

Fogel waved his hand and ordered as he walked upstairs, "Speer, I'll give you a week to clean the basement and throw away all the debris in there."

"Yes sir" Spear agreed happily.

"Now take me to see the working environment," Fogel continued, "Help me get my luggage, it's at the door."

"Ok!"

Spear responded, picked up the two suitcases placed outside the door, and quickly followed Fogel.

Hearing that there was no movement outside, Wei Ran slowly lifted the canvas above his head and took a look outside.

"What should I do?" Vanessa asked in a low voice in panic.

"Shh-" Wei Ran lowered his voice, "It will get dark soon. We just need to wait patiently."

"Is Spear in danger?" Heidi asked in a low voice.

"I will help him in the evening." Wei Ran gave a difficult answer.

Meanwhile, at the top of the lighthouse, Spear was busy making room for Fogle.

"Are you a Jew?" Fogel, standing by the window, held up his binoculars and asked firmly while observing the situation on the beach.

"Yes sir."

Spear replied cautiously, and at the same time couldn't help but secretly look at the other person's back.

This old man, who looked to be in his fifties, was wearing a straight black uniform, and on the belt around his waist was an iron flashlight that was nearly half a meter long.

There is also a cowhide holster in the corresponding position on the other side, which contains a Luger P08 pistol that is slightly outdated for Germany at this time, but has great symbolic significance.

In addition, Spear also noticed that there was a sheathed trench knife stuck in the old guy's boot.

There is no doubt that whether it is a gun or a knife, it is a huge threat to him-if he wants to deal with the successor who hinders his escape.

Of course, if Wei Ran were to observe this person at this time, the first thing he would notice would be the black oilskin hat that Germany issued to the Home Commando members during World War I.

He was able to conclude from the fact that this hat did not have any cap emblem and had many bruises that this old guy was definitely a veteran of World War I.

"What do we do now?"

As he spoke, Fogel put down his telescope, turned around and looked at Spear and asked, "Also, how will we settle our dinner?"

"In about 15 minutes, we should light the tower light. Before that, we need to fill it with kerosene."

As he spoke, Spear raised his hand and pointed at the setting sun outside the window, "Until tomorrow the rising sun dyes the sea level golden or the fog on the sea dissipates, we must always ensure that the tower light is lit, and every two hours, we must light it. The rotating mechanism of the tower light is hand-wound once.”

"Is there anything else I need to pay attention to?" Fogel asked while observing the lounge.

"If you hear an air raid siren sounding outside, turn off the tower lights as quickly as possible."

Spiel paused and added, "The lighthouse cannot be relit until the all-clear is given."

"Where's dinner?" Fogel asked, nodding.

"I usually prepare dinner after lighting the tower lamp, and I will cook for a whole day at a time. Every morning, someone will deliver the ingredients. Occasionally I will go to the river to try to catch some fish, or go to the beach Catch some crabs and improve your life.”

Spear pointed to the coal stove placed against the wall not far away and continued, "The coal is stored in the room downstairs, and there is a bathtub there specifically for coal. I will also move there later. If you run out of coal, you can go to the oil depot outside to get it." "Not bad, very good."

Fogel said with satisfaction, "Although you are a Jew, you are a conscientious lighthouse keeper. Spear, work hard. As long as you satisfy me, I will let you continue to work in this lighthouse."

"Thank you for your compliment, I will work hard."

Spear, who was holding his own bedding in his arms, thanked him sincerely, and then said apologetically, "Mr. Fogel, I'm afraid I have to refuel the tower lamp. In ten minutes at most, we should light the tower lamp." .”

"go"

Fogel waved his hand casually, and after watching Spier leave, he also took off his greasy hat, then opened his suitcase and began to decorate his own room.

At the same time, after Spear casually threw his bedroll into the corner of the room downstairs, he immediately climbed to the top of the tower, took off the oil can and ran back to the first floor.

Looking up at the floor above, Spier unscrewed the cap of the oil drum and asked in a low voice while filling the oil can, "Do you have a watch?"

"Yes," Wei Ran, who had already heard the noise, answered.

"What time is it now?" As Spier spoke, he stopped what he was doing and took out his pocket watch and took a look.

"Seven fifty-two," Wei Ran, who was hiding in the shadows of the basement, replied in a low voice.

"At half past eleven"

Spear said in a low voice, "If I don't go downstairs before then, you can knock on the wooden door on the first floor at 11:. Remember to put on your diving suit in advance, and take out my diving suit by the way."

"Okay" Wei Ran responded simply, and then there was no movement at all.

At the same time, Spear also took a deep breath, carried the oil can filled with kerosene, and ran upstairs again.

"What is he going to do?" Heidi asked worriedly before the sound of Spear's footsteps disappeared.

"nothing"

Wei Ran, who had already guessed something, did not explain, "There are still more than three hours. You should sleep for a while. It will be very hard tonight."

As if she could tell that Wei Ran didn't want to explain too much, Heidi wisely didn't ask any more questions and sat down on the open bundle of canvas worriedly.

During the slightly long wait, the sky outside the lighthouse became darker and darker, and the appointed time got closer and closer, but Spear never came down.

At 11: in the night, Wei Ran, with the help of Heidi and Vanessa, carefully moved away the debris blocking the road.

At 25 minutes, he was the first to crawl out and took out the diving suit prepared for Spear and placed it in the shadow of the oil drum.

"In five minutes, knock on the door."

Wei Ran, who was wearing a diving suit and flippers hanging from his waist, said as he handed the gold case pocket watch to Vanessa.

"What about you?" Vanessa took the pocket watch and asked nervously in a low voice.

"I'll go up and have a look"

As Wei Ran spoke, he had fixed the breathing mask on his shoulders and quietly started to climb up the stairs.

Seeing this, Vanessa and Heidi looked at each other, then gritted their teeth and opened the case of the pocket watch, staring nervously at the beating hands on the dial.

These five long minutes were enough for Wei Ran to silently crawl to the door of the room directly below the tower light.

Through the wooden door with light-transmitting edges, he could clearly hear Spier describing in French the scene when the British retreated from Dunkirk a few months ago, showing off the things he picked up from Dunkirk. Lunch boxes and British Army kettles.

And the man named Fogel asked seemingly insignificant questions from time to time.

"Bang bang bang!"

At 30: in the night, a sudden knock on the door came from downstairs. Spear also said strangely, "Who would knock on the lighthouse door at this time?"

Before he finished speaking, he had already walked to the window and muttered at the same time, "It's not those idiots who want to escape again, is it?"

"Does anyone often knock on the door at this time?"

While Fogel was speaking, he had already walked to the window, raised the telescope hanging around his neck and looked downstairs.

"There are always a few every month. Poof!"

Before Spier finished speaking, he had already stabbed the diving knife in his hand fiercely into Fogel's stomach.

"you"

The expression on Fogel's face froze, one hand grasped the wrist of Spear's knife-holding hand, and the other hand had already touched the holster at his waist. At the same time, Wei Ran, who had not seen what happened, also noticed that the door of this room had been locked from the inside.

Seeing that Fogel had opened the holster and pulled out the pistol, Spear looked panicked and subconsciously focused his attention on the pistol.

But just for such a moment of distraction, the World War I veteran seized the opportunity, pushed his knife-holding hand horizontally, and easily made a wound on Slpi's other arm. .

"what!"

Almost at the same time as he heard Spear's scream, Wei Ran had already opened the door, ran over quickly, and before Fogel stabbed the diving knife into Spear's neck, he stabbed him in the side ribs. Pierced the liver.

Before the old guy could scream, Wei Ran had already pulled out his diving knife, covered his mouth, and then slashed his neck.

"Pfft!"

Fogel's body fell limply to the ground. Wei Ran glanced at Spear's bleeding arm and asked, "Where is the medical kit?"

"Downstairs," Spear said with a grin as he covered the wound on his arm, "In the wooden basin filled with coal."

"You go downstairs first"

As Wei Ran said this, he bent down and took away the flashlight from the waist of the still alive corpse, turned around and ran downstairs.

Without any effort at all, he easily found a British army lunch box filled with a British individual first aid kit after overturning the wooden basin containing coal downstairs.

Unfortunately, these first aid kits only provide gauze bandages, styptic powder and only three analgesics.

"did you find it?"

As he spoke, Spier walked in with a Ruger P08 pistol, his face covered in blood. The blood on his face was sprayed on his face by the corpse that Wei Ran had just wiped his neck on.

"found it"

"Just bandage it here, hurry up."

Spear urged, "11:40 is the time for the night patrol to change, and then we have five minutes to run to the dock."

"immediately"

Before Wei Ran finished speaking, he had already inserted a morphine stick into Spear's arm. At the same time, he did not forget to ask, "Where else are you injured?"

"This is the only place, hurry up!" urged Spear, who was holding a pocket watch in his other hand.

"I can only bandage you, but I don't have the conditions to sew you up."

Wei Ran did not wait for the morphine to take effect completely before he pressed the dressing on the wound and then wrapped the bandage tightly around it.

"Have they all changed into their diving suits?" Spier asked with a grin on his face.

"Changed"

Before Wei Ran finished speaking, he wrapped the second roll of gauze around it and tied it with a tight enough buckle.

"Go down first and don't let them turn on the light." After speaking, Spear lowered his voice and added, "Don't talk about my injury."

"it is good"

Before Wei Ran finished speaking, he had already run out of the room. After going down the stairs, he greeted Vanessa and blew out the oil lamp. At the same time, he did not forget to dig out a few condoms that he had previously found on the chained dogs and put them He put it on the flashlight he just picked up and pinned it to his lower back.

"How's it going?" Heidi asked in a low voice.

"It's solved, he will be down soon." Wei Ran comforted him in a low voice, then carefully leaned against the door and listened.

Less than half a minute later, Spear ran downstairs in the dark and asked Wei Ran to help put on the diving suit, while also asking Vanessa to help keep track of the time.

"It's already 11:40," Vanessa said, handing the pocket watch to Wei Ran.

"Take it."

Wei Ran, who was busy tying Spear's arm straps, said casually that because he was worried about the impact of water pressure on the wound, he specially helped Spear tighten the straps on his arms.

Hearing this, Vanessa opened the collar of the rubber diving suit and stuffed the pocket watch directly inside.

"Everyone put on their breathing masks and follow me later."

After speaking, Spier put on his respirator mask and opened the door without even waiting for Wei Ran and the other three to get ready, and walked out holding the Ruger pistol he had just seized.

Just like the night Wei Ran experienced in another time and space, the dark clouds in the sky at this time had blocked the moonlight or starlight that should have appeared, and the howling northeast wind had covered up too many sounds that should have been alerted.

For the German Air Force participating in the Battle of Britain at this moment, this is indeed an unlucky night. This roaring northeast wind can give the British aircraft fighting against the enemy as much extra lift as the Germans fighting with the wind. How much lift the plane loses.

This seemingly small advantage can sometimes be enough to change the outcome of a war. Like.

Just as the four of them had reached the edge of the pier, they suddenly saw two German soldiers hiding under the leeward embankment, smoking cigarettes and peeing side by side.

This sudden encounter was obviously unexpected by both parties. After a brief moment of stunned silence, the two German soldiers immediately released their respective faucets and spit out the cigarettes in their mouths, or prepared to blow the cigarettes hung around their necks. Whistle, or hurriedly preparing to raise the weapon hanging on the shoulder.

The one who reacted the fastest here was undoubtedly Wei Ran. Although he walked at the end, he secretly took out the gas mask bag halfway, took out the small PPK pistol from it and loaded it with bullets.

"Bang! Bang!"

Just as he continuously pulled the trigger towards the two men, Spear, who was walking at the front, also pulled the trigger almost at the same time.

"Jump!"

In the howling wind, Spear shouted through his breathing mask, pulled Heidi and ran onto the trestle and jumped off without stopping.

"go!"

Wei Ran also pulled the dazed Vanessa and jumped off the trestle.

"help!"

Spear picked up a rope from the water, and vaguely greeted Wei Ran and Vanessa who had just jumped out to help drag along the rope, and finally pulled out a long canvas bag that was not too big from the mud. .

Seeing that there was already a flashlight beam on the river embankment shining near the pier, the four people immediately dived into the water. After each opened the valve of the cylinder, they held on to the rope and allowed Spear to lead them all the way down in the darkness. Entering the water, driven by the current, it moved rapidly in the downstream direction.

"Da da da!"

Almost at the same time they left the trestle, intensive gunshots penetrated the water and entered everyone's ears. At the same time, moving flashlight beams also appeared on the river.

Before these beams of light could find them, the four people on a rope began to dive hard, but they didn't even have time to put on their flippers, so they swam desperately toward the entrance of the sea.

Fortunately, driven by the current, Wei Ran, who was holding on to the end of the rope, could clearly feel that the faster they swam, the faster they swam. They didn't even have to swim at all, the current would push them forward quickly.

However, just as they were about to swim the less than two kilometers of river into the sea driven by the current, Vanessa, who was also holding the rope and was in front of Wei Ran, suddenly fell into panic. among.

Almost subconsciously, Wei Ran grabbed the other party's belt that was used to secure the lead pendant, while Vanessa panicked and touched Wei Ran's other hand that was holding the rope, and pushed the rope she was holding onto him. in hands.

When he got the rope handed over by the other party, Wei Ran couldn't help but feel chilled. The rope was cut by Spear in front!

Subconsciously looking at Vanessa who was close at hand, Wei Ran couldn't help but sigh. In this cloudy weather, in the depths of the river that was about to enter the sea, even though they could reach out and touch each other's body, there was nothing in their field of vision. There is only despairing darkness!