"No, I am not going to shave the hair above my lip! And no, I am not a man! If I were, my balls would be bigger than yours, you coward!"
In amused awe Anna looked at them. She did not know that Irene and Mikis were in fact good friends. They had grown up together and had gone to the same schools, and now they were side by side fighting for Greece. Irene helped Mikis to get up, and both dusted off their black clothes, then continued up the steep terrain.
Finally, they reached the "Horn," a huge boulder sticking out of the ground, majestically facing east.
"Let's rest for a while," said Mikis, taking the horse's reins and guiding the animal under the shade of an ancient olive tree. He lifted its hooves to check all four shoes and let it feed on the dry grass.
Anna patted the horse's head gratefully, and then stretched her body with relief.
"I am glad to have my feet on the ground again," she said, running her hand on top of some wild thyme.
The fragrance filled the mountain air. They sat in the shade and ate bread, raw onions, and olives. The meal ended with carobs that grew wild in abundance.
Anna pointed out to the others, the stream of women, young and old alike, carrying their handcrafted dowries on their heads and lowering them into a cave for safekeeping. They looked like ants, frantically gathering food to their nest, before a storm.
"This is not a good sign," murmured Anna.
"Not at all," agreed Irene solemnly.
"Ahead of us, the road is very uncertain," Mikis cautioned. "There are groups of men and women who are divided into many factions. We are the nationalists, who favor a free Greece. Then there are those who support communist Russia and flirt with the Germans. And there are still others who side with the
British and the Americans." He coughed. "And I am the one who is responsible for your safety."
Irene looked at him without a word.
"We all have our instructions," continued Mikis. "Our main objective is to reach the Heraklion airfield."
The two women nodded their agreement.
***
It must have been another hour or so of exhausting walking before they reached the outskirts of Vianos. Suddenly, gunfire sputtered out from behind the marble gravestones of the town cemetery. Mikis grabbed Anna from the horse and all three lay flat in a dry ditch with the trunks of the olive trees shielding them.
"Oh God! Lower your heads!" shouted Mikis, as a hand grenade hurdled over their heads and landed a few meters away. Mikis sprung up and kicked it out of the way. It exploded, showering them with moist dirt and weeds.