Re: Blood and Iron

Chapter 248: A Brief Return to the Family Estate



While the first stop on his brief visit to the Fatherland was the shipyards in Hamburg, Bruno made sure to make his way home after business had been concluded.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

The introduction of his new landing craft could ensure minimal casualties were spent gaining control over Gallipoli, a campaign that in his past life had been utterly disastrous for the allied forces that landed in the peninsula.

And while his people worked behind the scenes to get the vehicles adopted by the Kaiserliche Marine, Bruno had very little to do with his time, and thus returned to Berlin for a brief visit to his wife and children.

Heidi having contacts in Military intelligence was all too aware that her husband was coming home, and thus made sure herself, and the children were presentable outside the doors of their home as they waited in the courtyard for the arrival of the head of their house.

She was wearing a rather lavish dress, with both of her chivalric orders pinned on her dress. The Order of Lousie was pinned just below her right breast, while the Bavarian Order of Saint Elizabeth was pinned on the shoulder hem of her lavish gown.

Alya was standing next to her fiancé, which was Bruno's eldest son Erwin. While his older and younger sisters stood by their sides. In addition to this, the younger children were properly groomed and dressed for the rare occasion of their father returning from the frontlines for a brief period of rest and respite.

When the motorcade pulled into the grounds of Bruno's rather exceptional estate, a group of armed soldiers opened the doors for the German General who stepped out of the back of the car he was sitting in. Bruno himself was wearing his full-dress uniform, with his rank, medals, and other distinguished badges and cords on full display.

When he saw his wife and kids waiting for him, the man broke out into a smile as he stepped forward and hugged his wife, kissing her on the lips in a romantic gesture before commenting on her beauty, and more specifically, her newest award.

"My, my, has my little angel been awarded for her charitable acts? You look absolutely ravishing, darling..."

Naturally, being surrounded by nothing but men for months at a time on the battlefield made Bruno more than aroused the moment he saw his wife and her all perfection on display for him. Heidi was quick to remind Bruno that their children were present and that any further attempts to be intimate with her so openly would be nothing short of inappropriate.

"My love, our children are present. You should mind your surroundings before being so flirtatious in the future."

Bruno couldn't help but scoff as he turned to his eldest daughter, Eva, who was growing like a weed, and quickly hugged her, the girl damn near in tears as she greeted her father, who had returned home to her safe and sound.

"Daddy! Thank God you are safe. I have heard stories about the brothers and fathers of my friends... They.... They-"

Before she could finish her statement, Bruno placed a finger to his young daughter's lips and shook his head, instantly silencing the girl on the spot. While assuring her he would never end up in such a miserable state.

"Relax, sweetheart, your father is not like those men... God is on his side, and until the day the Lord calls me to him, I will remain unharmed..."

Eva swallowed whatever worries she was about to express and simply continued to hug her father, as the man himself desperately tried to pry himself away from his child, who was latched to him as if she were a lamprey.

Ultimately, Erwin managed to pull his elder sister aside, and chastise her, before greeting his father, the man of the house, and welcoming his return.

"Get ahold of yourself Eva, father has been gone for roughly half a year, and yet you're acting as if he has been gone for all of your life! Father, it is a relief to see you home, safe and sound. Though I trust you will not be around for long, not with the war being waged as we speak?"

There was a look of longing in the teenage boy's eyes, as if he personally wanted to pick up a rifle and fight in defense of the fatherland's untarnished honor.

Bruno of course was quick to remind his son that he was far too young, and not to get any ideas as there were more than a few schoolboys who were stupid enough to go to the trenches whether in this life or the previous one he had come from.

"Don't get any ideas boy, you are far too young to go fight, and I would have you immediately returned to your mother if you ever attempted such a damned foolish thing! Besides, if you got yourself killed, how the hell would I continue to bully your fiancée's father? He is dreading the idea of handing off his little girl to a brat like you!"

Alya rolled her eyes and sighed when she heard of her father's continued immaturity, but she also shook her head and facepalmed after hearing that Bruno was behaving just as childishly in his taunts of her father.

She, however, was the only one to dread such an idea, as Heidi and her daughters found it humorous. Bruno couldn't help but chastise his soon-to-be-daughter-in-law when she saw her behavior.

"Alya, I know you grew up quickly because of the war in Russia, but you are never too old to have fun, especially at a friend's expense. You should enjoy the small things in life, because if you don't, your face will age as quickly as your mind, and your future husband will come to dread such a thing..."

This comment caused Alya to become both flustered and self-conscious as she pulled out a hand mirror from her purse and silently inspected her face for potential imperfections caused by stress and age.

Whereas Heidi was quick to assure the girl that she was fine. All the while, Bruno spoke with the rest of his sons and daughters. Greeting each and every one with a loving gesture before walking inside their home together.

Despite his sons all wanting to hear their father's war stories, Bruno would not speak of his time at war while he was at home. Reliving such an experience was the last thing he needed now that he finally had some peace in this world.

It had been years since Bruno had seen combat, and now that he had done so again, some of his old quirks began to re-manifest themselves, which was something that Heidi most certainly took notice of, even if she did not mention it throughout the day.

Ultimately, his time in Germany would be short, no longer than a fortnight before the need to deploy back to the Balkans emerged. There was one threat in the region which Bruno had underestimated, and the chaos of the small country was about to spill over into its neighbors.