—— An Arduous Battle ——81‘Well, lads, we’d better get back to base. One by one. Filatov,
you cover us with the machine gun!’ Lieutenant Butorin decided.
‘Let’s do it in short rushes, zigzagging and without bunching up.
Well, off we go!’
He went first, weaving across the snow and stooping low,
towards the safety of the trench. It was only a distance of sixty
metres, but it seemed endless. Filatov set off running and ducked
for cover, and I dashed after him. Bullets crackled overhead and
underfoot – the Nazis in the pillbox had noticed us. With a few
short bursts of fire Filatov kept them quiet for a while, and this was
when the lieutenant and I made a run for it.
‘No, we’re not going to make it! And what about Filatov?’
I thought, and then I saw that Filatov was also running. Streams of
fire issued forth from the gunport and the lieutenant fell. Was he
wounded or dead? I sent Filatov over to Butorin.
‘Quick, get to the lieutenant! If he’s dead, bring him back. Don’t
leave him there. And give me the machine gun. I’ll cover you. Well,
go for it!’
I grabbed the machine gun off him and opened fire on the
gunport. Their machine gun fell silent. I kept my eye on Filatov,
who crawled towards the lieutenant, loaded him onto his back and
crawled back to the trench, clearing the snow with his hands. Firing
back at the enemy, I didn’t allow the gunner in the pillbox to raise
his head. The pillbox fell silent – for ever, it seemed. But my joy was
premature; the Nazis launched a heavy mortar bombardment on
the lake. The target was us three.
Mortar bombs were exploding right beside us, squelching up
ahead and to the side – and all around us. Suddenly one of them
exploded right on the lieutenant’s back. Butorin and Filatov had
perished. ‘It’s all over. Now it’s my turn!’ I realised that it was
impossible to get out of this hell alive. Only by a miracle, if such
things happen. And I kept running, covering my head with the
round magazine on the machine gun. I ran weaving back and forth,
trying to get out of the fire zone – to the left and to the right. But
the Germans were using their fire to cut me off from the trench,