Lloyd and Werner looked back into the auditorium.

Seeing the women safe, Lloyd and Werner looked back into the auditorium.

Volodya was fighting the big man bravely, but he was in trouble. He kept punching the man face and body, but his blows had little effect, and the man shook his head as if pestered by an insect. The Brownshirt was heavy-footed and slowmoving but he hit Volodya in the chest and then the head, and Volodya staggered . The big man drew back his fist for a massive punch. Lloyd was afraid it could kill Volodya.

Then Walter took a flying leap off the stage and landed on the big man's back. Llyod wanted to cheer. They fell to the floor in a blur of arms and legs, and Volodya was saved for the moment.

The spotty youth who had shoved Werner was now harassing the people trying to leave, hitting their backs and heads with his truncheon. 'You fucking coward!' Lloyd yelled, stepping forward. But Werner was ahead of him. He shoved past Lloyd and grabbed the truncheon, trying to wrestle it away from the youth.

The older man in the steel helmet joined in and hit Werner with a pickaxe handle. Lloid stepped forward and hit the older man with a straight right.The blow landed ,perfectly, next to the man's left eye.

But he was a war veteran and not easily discouraged. He swung around and lashed out at Lloyd with his club. Lloyd dodged the blow easily and hit him twice more. He connected in the same area, around the man eye's, breaking the skin. But the helmet protected the man's head and Lloyd could not land a left hook, his knockout punch. He ducked a swing of the pickaxe handle and hit the man's face again, and the man backed away, blood pouring from cuts around his eyes.
Lloyd looked around. He saw that the Social Democrats were fighting back now, and he got a jolt of savage pleasure. Most of the audience had passed through the doors, leaving mainly young men in the auditorium, and they were coming forward, clambering over the theatre seats to get at the Brownshirts; and there were dozens of them.

Something hard struck his head from behind. It was so painful that he roared . He turned to see a boy of his own age holding a length of timber, raising it to strike again. Lloyd closed with him and hit him hard in the stomach twice, first with his right fist then with his left. The boy gasped for breath and dropped the wood. Lloyd hit him wit an uppercut to the chin and the boy passed out.

Llyod rubbed the back of his head. It hurt like hell but there was no blood.

The skin on his knuckles was raw and bleeding, he saw. He bent down and picked up the length of timber dropped by the boy.

The big man who had started it all was on the floor, groaning and holding his knee as if he had dislocated something. Wilhem Frunze stood over him, hitting him with a wooden shovel again and again, repeating at the top of his voice the words the man ha used to start the riot . 'N ot! Wanted ! In!Germany! Helpless, the big man tried to roll away from the blows, but Frunze went after him, until two more Brownshirts grabbed the man's arms and dragged him away-

Frunze let them go.

Did we beat them? Lloyd thought with growing exultation.
Maybe we did!

Several of the younger men chased their opponents up on to the stage, but they stopped there and contented themselves with shooting insults as the Brownshirts disappeared.

Lloid looked at the others. Volodya had a swollen face and one closed eye. Werner`s jacket was ripped, a big square of cloth dangling. Walter was sitting on a front-rowseat, breathing hard and rubbing his elbow, but he was smiling, sailing it across the rows of empty seats to the back.

Werner, who was only fourteen, was exultant. 'We gave them hell,didn't we?'

Lloyd grinned.'Yes. We certainly did-'

Pg 42 From the book “Winter of the world” by Ken Follet

Robert resembled Walter

Robert resembled Walter, but was more fussily dressed, with a gold pin in his tie, seals on his watch chain, and heavily slicked hair. Jörg was younger, a blond man with delicate features and a cheerful smile. The two had been prisoners of war together in Russia, Now they lived in an apartment over the restaurant.

They reminisced about the wedding of Walter and Maud, held in great secrecy on the eve of the war. There had not been guests, but Robert and Ethel had been best man and bridesmaid. Ethel said: “We had champagne at the hotel, then I tactfully said that Robert and I would leave, and Walter - “ She suppressed a fit of giggles - “Walter said: “Oh, I assumed we would all have dinner together.”

Maud chuckled. “You can imagine how pleased I was about that!”

Lloyd looked into his coffee, feeling embarrassed. He was eighteen and a virgin, and honeymoon jokes made him uncomfortable.

More sombrely, Ethel asked Maud : “Do you ever hear from Fritz these days?”

Lloyd knew that the secret wedding had caused a terrible rift between Maud and her brother, Earl Fitzherbert. Fitz had disowned her because she had not gone to him, as head of the family, and asked his permission to marry.

Pg 26 From the book “Winter of the world” by Ken Follet