Josef Kramer was an infamous Nazi. He was known as the “Beast of Belsen” because of his horrid nature and cruel methods. Although he was a beast, he somehow managed to form a family, with a wife and three children. His eldest child was named Abel.
As a young boy, Abel loved to play outside with his friends. One of his closest friends was his neighbor, Ester. She’s a young Jewish girl, same age as him, with dark brownish hair and brown eyes, in contrast to Abels blond hair and blue eyes. They had grown up together, and were very close. Abels secrets were Esters and Esters secrets were Abels. Although they were close, they began to grow distant from each other when the war began. Abel began to go to those Nazi camps for all of the German boys, were they could learn how to become a good Nazi. There he learned of the amazing things the Nazis were doing, and how they would shape the future. When Abel would come home from these camps, his father always had something for him to do, so the time he spent with Ester decreased even more.
One day, his father Josef had something special planned for Abel.
“Abel,” said Josef.
“Yes father?” replied Abel.
“How would you like to come with me to work today?”
“I’d love to come along!” Abel eagerly said.
“Let’s set off then.”
Abel said good bye to his mother and siblings and then got into their car with his father. On the ride to the camp, Abel was squirming with excitement, since he had always heard of the great things he father and other Nazis were doing at his camps, and now he would be able to see what they did firsthand. When they got there, his father, the Commandant of the camp, gave a few orders to his men and then started to give Abel a tour of the camp, but what he saw stripped him of his excitement and his childhood innocence. Abel saw men, women, and children, all starving with their skins stretching across their bones. He saw stacks of rotting bodies falling over, for there were just too many for them to stay in one spot. He heard cries of fear and pain with the screams of human suffering. He heard the flies buzzing over the dead and soon to be dead. The smell of death saturated the air and filled his nostrils. His father wanted Abel to see this and all of the “great” work he was doing. He saw Abel following in his footsteps and becoming a Nazi officer like himself. But Abel is appalled by what he sees and what he smells. He decides right then and there that he wants nothing to do with the Nazi party. He tries to look away from the suffering of the prisoners, and he finds himself gazing at a new truck load of Jews being transported to this camp. As he observes the new prisoners pouring into the camp, one of them catches his eye. She’s a girl with short brown hair and brown eyes. As the trucks comes closer, he sees that she’s also wearing a silver locket, similar to the one his childhood friend Ester wore. He tugs at his father’s sleeve to show him that their old neighbors have been captured, thinking there must have been some mistake, but when his father sees what Abel was trying to show him, he just chuckles and leads him away from the prisoners. Abel looks back to see Ester one more time, but she sinks away with the rest of the prisoners. A few months later, Abel turns 18; he has now reached the dreaded age where he must become a Nazi. He is at home with his entire family standing around him and his smiling father is handing him a letter from the government telling he’d been drafted.
“Abel, it is time for you to join the revolution,” says Josef.
Abel puts his hand on the letter and pushes it down.
“No,” Abel replies.
“What?” says his father sharply.
“I do not want to join the army,”
“Are you crazy? Do you know who I am, what my position is?”
“Yes, I’ve seen what you do, and it haunts me everyday,”
“Listen here boy, don’t toy with me. We have a status and reputation to uphold. You will join, and you will do it now.”
“I will not”
Josef rushes forward and back hands Abel. His mother has a look of shock on her face, but she recovers quickly and leads Abel’s siblings upstairs.
“Watch it, you are testing my patience,” growls Josef.
“I am not going to become a monster,” states Abel.
“What else are you going to do then, huh? Are you going stay at home and do housework like a woman? Or are you even more useless than that and will do nothing at all?”
“I am not useless. I will to aid those who have been hurt by the Nazis,” Abel says proudly
“Get the h--- out of my home,” coldly replies his father as Abels mother comes back downstairs.
“But-“she begins, but is cut off by Josef.
“There will be no questions. This piece of trash is no son of mine. Leave my home at once,”
Abel looks at his mother and hesitates a little, but looks back to his father and replies “Fine, I see that I do not belong here. I shall take my things and go.”
He goes upstairs to his room and finds his little brother and sister waiting for him. He quickly packs some clothes in a bag and then kneels down in front of his siblings.
“What’s going on Abel?” they ask.
“I’m going on a trip to a faraway place,”
“Are you going by yourself?”
“Yes, and listen. While I am away, be good to mother. And remember, do what you think is right, not what others think is good,”
He kisses them on the forehead and walks downstairs. He looks around his home for one last time and then turns to his parents. He looks his father right in his furious eyes. His eyes then move to his mother who is starting to tear up. She begins to walk towards him, but his father raises his hand to stop her.
“Goodbye mother,” and as he walks out of the front door, he can hear his mother begin to sob. He doesn’t look back, but instead thinks about how he can achieve his goals. He starts walking to the one place he knows there are innocent people that need his help, the Ghetto. He feels that he needs to help protect the Jewish people from his father and other Nazis. On his way there, he comes across a camp where something catches his eye. Ester. She and a few others are being held up against the side of camp with guns pointed at them by a few soldiers. He catches her terrified and desperate gaze, but she doesn’t seem to recognize him.
“Ready, Aim…” says one of soldiers, who seems to be their commander.
“STOOOOOOOOOOOP!” screams Abel
He runs forward and puts his arms out, standing in between the guns and the people.
“Please stop,” he pants.
“Get the h--- out of the way you idiot!” yells the commander.
“Do you know who my father-“starts Abel
“I don’t give a d--- which idiotic b------ fathered you, so just get out of the d--- way!”
“But-“
“Jesus Christ, shoot this stupid b------ along with the Jews,”
Abel opens his mouth to say something, but it is stuffed by a spray of bullets. As he falls to his knees he thinks that someone is calling out his name, but the sound starts to fade away along with Abel.