Free Web NovelChapter 93: Chapter 3: Gambit and Heartbeat
Keller had a flash of understanding. "So that’s why you were so vague just now. You didn’t agree, but you didn’t refuse either..."
"Exactly." Werner smiled. "I left the door open for him, letting him know that I ’might’ consider cooperating. That way, he’ll keep waiting, keep holding on, until he can’t hold on any longer."
"But Boss, what if he really finds another way?"
"He won’t," Werner said with certainty. "The Wall has been up for weeks. If he had another way, he would have used it long ago. He wouldn’t have waited until now to send someone to test me. Right now, he’s gambling. He’s betting that my stock is running low too, and that while I might have a channel to West Berlin, it’s not stable enough and I need his help."
He exhaled a puff of smoke. "Too bad for him, he bet wrong. Not only do I have goods, but my channel is also very stable. I don’t want his help. I want his network of contacts, his customer base, the entire Black Market system he’s built up over twenty years."
"Then how long do we have to wait?"
"Not long." Werner gazed at the wall in the distance that split the city in two. "A week at most. No matter how long Krupp tries to hold out, he won’t last more than a week. The people in the Black Market aren’t fools. If he goes three days without moving any product, they’ll start to get suspicious. A few more days, and there won’t even be any need for suspicion. Everyone will know his supply has been cut off."
"By then, he won’t be able to hold onto his position in the Black Market. And I—"
Werner turned, his eyes glinting with ambition. "Will become his only lifeline."
Keller nodded, though he didn’t seem to fully understand.
Werner walked back to the shelves, his gaze sweeping over the neatly stacked goods.
Cigarettes, coffee, radios, nylon stockings, watches, chemicals... These things were commonplace on the Black Market just a few weeks ago, but now, every single item was as good as gold.
"Starting tomorrow, raise the prices by another twenty percent," Werner said. "Tell anyone who comes asking that we still have stock, but it’s first come, first served. If they want it, they’ll have to play by my rules."
"Yes, Boss!"
Werner looked at the mountains of goods piled up in the warehouse, a faint smile playing on his lips.
The Berlin Wall was up.
The old king was struggling to hold on, and a new order was quietly taking shape.
Krupp would be back, and it wouldn’t be long. The old fox who had dominated the East Berlin Black Market for twenty years was now facing the greatest crisis of his life. He thought he was testing Werner, but in reality, Werner had already seen his hand.
Now, the only thing to do was wait. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
Wait for Krupp’s stock to run out completely. Wait for his prestige in the Black Market to utterly collapse. Wait for him to be forced to cast aside all his pride and schemes and come to the table to negotiate a partnership favorable to Werner.
When that time came, Werner wanted more than just Krupp’s supply lines and customers.
He wanted the entire East Berlin Black Market.
******************
Werner stood on a corner of Potsdamer Strasse and looked up at the gray, hazy sky.
In early September, a chill was already starting to creep into the East Berlin air.
He walked toward the state-run foreign trade store.
In the shop windows along the street, the product displays were noticeably sparser.
A few women emerged from the shops, carrying empty shopping bags, their faces etched with disappointment.
"Out of stock again."
"I heard even the flour rations are being reduced."
"The people on the other side of the Wall have it so easy, but we..."
Werner quickened his pace.
Complaints like these were becoming more and more common on the streets, but smart people knew when to hold their tongues.
Pushing open the glass door of the foreign trade store, he saw Eva at once.
She was standing behind the cash register organizing foreign exchange coupons, wearing a work apron over her white blouse, her golden hair tied back with a ribbon.
When the bell on the door chimed, she looked up. The moment her gaze met Werner’s, a complex mix of emotions flashed through her eyes—joy, worry, and a certain indefinable guilt.
"Werner," she said softly, her fingers unconsciously stroking the foreign exchange coupons in her hand.
Werner nodded and pretended to browse casually among the shelves.
There were only two or three other customers in the store, all carefully selecting from the few Western goods available.
He noticed the chocolate counter was half-empty, and the once fully-stocked canned goods section now held only a scattered few cans.
Even the foreign trade store had been affected since the Wall went up.
"The shipment you asked about last time," Eva’s voice, tinged with nervousness, suddenly came from behind him. "It’s arrived. It’s in the warehouse, hasn’t been put out yet. Want me to take you to see it?"
Werner turned around.
Eva stood about two steps behind him, her hands tightly clutching the hem of her apron.
There were faint dark circles under her eyes, as if she hadn’t slept well for several nights.
"Okay," he said.
"The store manager went to headquarters for a meeting today," Eva said in a hushed voice, her eyes quickly scanning the other people in the store. "Only Rita and I are on duty."
She led Werner through a hallway at the back of the store and pushed open the rear door. free𝑤ebnovel.com
A few delivery trucks were parked in the courtyard, and a pile of empty wooden crates sat in a corner. The warehouse was at the far end of the yard, its door secured with a rusty iron lock.
Eva took a key from her pocket, but her hand was trembling slightly.
The first time, she missed the keyhole, and the key made a harsh scraping sound against the surface of the lock.
She took a deep breath and tried again.
The second time, she got the key halfway in before it slipped from her fingertips and fell to the ground with a sharp CLINK.
"I..." Eva crouched down to pick it up, but her hands braced against the ground as if she had suddenly lost all her strength.
Werner bent down, picked up the key, and steadied her arm with his other hand.
"I’ll get it," he said.
Eva’s arm trembled in his grasp.
Werner unlocked the door and pushed open the creaking wooden door.
The warehouse was filled with the smell of old wood and cardboard.
Dim light from a bare bulb in the ceiling cast hazy shadows on the floor. The shelves were filled with boxes of various Western goods. In the corner, an old-fashioned fan whirred, but it did little to dispel the stuffy air.
Eva closed the door and leaned against it.
Her breathing was a little ragged, the collar of her blouse fluttering with each rise and fall of her chest. A few strands of her golden hair had come loose and clung to her slightly pale cheeks.
Werner stood in front of her, less than a meter between them.
It was quiet in the warehouse, with only the monotonous whir of the fan and the occasional sound of a car engine from the distant street.
"After that day..." Eva began, her voice soft but firm. "I’ve been wanting to see you. Not for business."
She looked up at him. The dim light cast tiny specks of brightness in her eyes.
"Is there something you want to say?" Werner asked.
"Ever since that day, I feel like I owe you so much," she said, pausing for a moment. "It’s not just about saving me and Hans. It’s also... you made me feel like I wasn’t alone in this city."
"We’re partners," Werner said. "It’s only natural that we help each other."
"Just partners?"
Eva didn’t look away, her eyes fixed on his.
Werner didn’t answer right away.
He knew how Eva felt about him.
He also had to admit that he felt something different for Eva. It wasn’t entirely pity, nor was it purely desire, but a more complex emotion.
’Maybe it’s the understanding and trust that grew from walking side by side in these gray areas. Or maybe it’s the vulnerability she occasionally shows, which reminds me of my own helplessness when I first arrived here.’
But he was also keenly aware that in this era, emotions were the most dangerous weakness.
"Eva." He reached out, gently brushing a stray strand of hair from her cheek.
Eva shivered at the touch of his fingertips.
"I want to do something for you," she said suddenly, her voice carrying a gentle yet almost stubborn tone. "Not because of a deal, not to repay a debt. But because... I want to."
She raised her hand, hesitated a moment, then placed it over his.
Her other hand rested on his chest. Through the fabric of his shirt, she could feel his heartbeat.
The air in the warehouse seemed to grow even stuffier.
"I know now isn’t the right time," she said, her gaze slowly drifting from his eyes to his lips. "But I... I want you to know that if you ever need anything, anything at all, I’ll help you."
As she spoke, a deeper flash of pain crossed her eyes, as if she were making some kind of silent amends.
Werner’s hand slid from her cheek to the nape of her neck.
Eva’s breathing grew more and more rapid.
Her eyes were fixed on Werner’s lips, as if waiting for something.
Werner felt his own breath grow uneven.
She was so close. All he had to do was lower his head...
