Chapter 205: The Iron Cross 2nd Class
While Heidi made use of her contacts to search for those responsible for the murder of the Bosnian Serbian family, which had rather graciously served German and Austro-Hungarian troops who occupied the city of Sarajevo a year prior.
Bruno himself stood in the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina as a royal procession was made for the troops in the region. Not only did the Kaiser come with his personal guard, but he also brought reinforcements to the front lines.
Less than a week had passed since the war began, and yet things were going better than anyone had thought possible. British expeditionary forces had yet to make their way to the European mainland, with every attempt being sunk in the seas before they ever reached the shores of Normandy.
Meanwhile, the French Army's repeated attempts to assault the German border fortifications, prepared long in advance at Elsass-Lothringen, had met with repeated and gruesome failures. At the start of the war, Bruno had crushed one half of the Royal Serbian Army.
Though the Serbians immediately began conscripting and arming every man and boy who could bear arms in preparation for the upcoming siege of Belgrade, Kaiser Wilhelm II had recalled Bruno back into Austro-Hungarian territory to reward him for his crushing victory over the enemy in the opening stages of the war.
To put it simply, Bruno was being awarded for his efforts in two distinctive ways. While the German Army secured the area where the Kaiser would publicly promote Bruno to the rank of Generalfeldmarschall-the highest rank in the German Army-the Kaiser also intended to pin a distinctive honor on the man's chest.
Bruno once more found himself face to face with the German Emperor as the man stripped the shoulder boards from his uniform, replacing them with the distinctive crossed batons that a Generalfeldmarschall would proudly sport.
In addition, Wilhelm handed Bruno an Iron Cross 2nd class and pinned it in front of his other medals. For this ceremony, Bruno only wore those medals authorized by the German Army, such as his China Medal and his Cross of the Iron Division.
Everyone else who would be rewarded for their efforts at the Serbian border would receive their honors from their direct commanding officer. Only Bruno, who now answered solely to the Kaiser, would have the medal personally pinned on his chest by Wilhelm.
"I suddenly get the feeling that this campaign is about to become a long and brutal affair..."
It did not take long for Heidi to receive confirmation of her worst fears. The family who owned the restaurant where Bruno had been personally seen dining, and with whom he had casually and cheerfully struck up a conversation, had been murdered in connection with the actions of Serbian intelligence.
The Serbian Government had decided to rile up ethnic tensions in the region to destabilize Bosnia and Herzegovina following Bulgaria's defeat in the Second Balkan War. After it was discovered that Bruno had given an excessive tip to the young waitress, local nationalist militias assumed she had been sleeping with him as his mistress.
Sleeping with a general representing a foreign and occupying power? In what world was that not treason? Because of this, she and her family were brutally murdered, and their place of business was burned down as a reminder of what would happen to others who had done the same, or sought to do so.
Unfortunately, this was all a misunderstanding, resulting from the Black Hand's deliberate attempts to cause trouble in the region. And when Heidi learned of this, she felt nothing but pain for the victims and for those who would yet suffer.
She knew all too well that Bruno's lack of mercy extended to the innocent caught within the blast range of his artillery when aimed at his enemies and wherever they might be hiding. Because of this, there was a part of her that wished not to tell the man what she had come to learn upon investigating the incident.
But she also knew she had told him not to show any mercy to their enemies, and this heinous crime was a provocation toward Bruno. Whether intentional or simply the result of the chaos, the Serbians had sown in the region, Heidi couldn't find out, but she knew the results would be the same, regardless. Thus, there was a heavy tone in her voice when she finally spoke to her husband on the phone, conveying her thoughts as she did so.
Bruno was silent for a long while, causing further concern within his wife's troubled mind. He spoke up before she could inquire as to whether he was alright, stating a simple phrase before
hanging up entirely.
"I'll handle it. Get some rest..."
Heidi suddenly got the feeling that Bruno was about to do something unreasonably destructive and, in doing so, might provoke the Balkans into a stiffer resistance than they otherwise would have fought with had he not decided to make an example of the Serbian Royal Family and their seat of power...