Patreon LogoYour support makes Blue Moon possible (Patreon)

Leonard Benjamin's Sleeping Compartment

Traveler

Pulsar
Joined
Feb 5, 2014
Location
PST
Leonard Benjamin's Sleeping Compartment

vsoe-grand-suite-venice.jpg
The door to Mr. Benjamin's compartment directly faces the small sink that is afforded the cabin. To the right the cabin opens into a small sitting area which includes a couch and a small table for private dining. At the end of his compartment a double bed fills the entirety of the wall between his cabin and the next. To the left of Leonard's cabin is an empty one, to the right are Mr. Walsh's cabin, then Estrella's, then Jane's.

The room has the musty scent of all the cabins in it, plus and underlying scent of Leonard's cologne, a spicy, cedar-based fragrance that has hints of pipe tobacco and bourbon to it. There is also the subtle scent of leather wax and the stale smell of cigarette smoke tinged with clove and menthol.

A suitcase with three suits, two pairs of casual clothes, night clothes, a second pair of dress shoes and a pair of work boots in a cloth bag, and his personal hygiene articles. Nothing unusual in the case.

He also has a briefcase with papers for the business acquisitions in Istanbul, a set of ten checks from the Brooks & Banksy accounts, a journal, ink pens, and a second passport that lists him as a citizen of the USA.

Citizenship: United Kingdom, Britian
Name: Mr. Leonard Wesley Benjamin, Esq.
Accompanied By: N/A
Place of Birth: Bicester, Oxfordshire County, England
Birthdate: April 10, 1900
Height: 1.83 m
Weight: 79 kg
Eye Colour: Green
Hair Colour: Brown
Peculiarities: None
 
Mr. Leonard Benjamin, Esq.
(Reposted from here)

Strasbourg, Germany, approximately 00:06 Thursday​

The sounds on the train had died down to a comfortable low din. People walked by his door and distant voices could be heard, but overall the sound of the train's wheels on the tracks drowned out the majority of the distraction, and soon Leo fell into a deep sleep. What seemed like hours later he felt the train shift and slow, pulling him out of his dreams and causing his eyes to flutter open. He could see the lights of Strasbourg outside his window as the cars slowed over miles of track, then come to a squealing stop in the station. The bright lights outside his window drew Leonard to climb out of bed and pull the blinds completely down, but not before catching a glimpse of the passengers waiting to board.

Hopefully the darkness of his cabin kept the new passengers from seeing his bare torso as he reached up, his slim body marked by firm lines that swept across his planes of muscle and tendon. Then his cabin was once again washed in comforting darkness and he crawled back into bed, intending on making the most of this opportunity to rest.

He woke again as the train began to move. Rolling over, he tucked an arm under his head and fell back to sleep. There was almost four hours until their next stop, and then two after that. With any luck he would be able to sleep undisturbed until they reached the Stuttgart, Germany, station. His alarm was set for 06:00. He had already dialed back the hands an hour to make up for the time difference between England and Germany, and knew that he needed as much rest as possible if he was going to be sharp-minded when they reached their destination.
 

Mr. Leonard Benjamin, Esq.
Leonard Benjamin's Sleeping Compartment
Karlsruhe to Stuttgart: Almost Breakfast Time​

Leonard heard the gentle knock at his door, a steward's voice announcing that breakfast would be served in fifteen minutes. Leo groaned. Despite having slept for many hours his body felt stiff. The bed was soft and ample, but it was not the bed he was used to, and the rolling motion of the train kept lulling him back to sleep every time he woke to change his position.

His alarm went off a moment later, signaling that it was already six in the morning. Leo slapped a hand on the small, folding alarm clock he took with him on travels. It had the Olympic symbol over the arms, a thing that had stirred Leonard's bile when he thought of the propaganda the Nazi's were continually feeding to the world. If ever there was a bad time to be traveling through Germany, it was now.

He slid out of the bed and pulled his blankets up, then washed up before dressing for breakfast. He dressed in a thick blue suite, the vest beneath the jacket double-buttoned despite the early hour. He was on business, after all. He was representing the entire company during this journey. Every detail was immaculate, from the dangling chains from his pocket watch to his tie pin, he ensure that each detail was as perfectly aligned as he strove to be. Once he was done dressing he slid the door to his compartment to the side and stepped out into the hallway to make his way to the first class dining carriage.
 
Three dead? Leo only recalled the girl in the room adjacent to his, and the missing gentleman, Charles Walsh. Charles hadn't died, had he? Leo had no idea who the third death could be. As Jane brushed by him and entered his room, he slid the cabin door shut behind her and turned to follow.

Moving to the opposite side of the bed, he was somewhat relieved to see the modern woman take a clinical approach to checking the blond, looking almost like a nurse as she did so. And her assessment was correct; no matter the unconscious girl's condition or reason for being in his room, he would be penalized for the mere appearance of impropriety.

"Where do you suggest we put her, then? Your room?" Time was of the essence. He'd seem even more guilty with the woman in his arms exiting the room. "That chambermaid is bound to have the Nazis scrambling to find the murdered woman, and as you said, it won't matter to them if she's sick or merely asleep." He frowned down at the girl and then pulled her to a sitting position. "Here – perhaps I can get her to vomit out whatever she has taken," he said, hoping that it was, indeed pills she took, and that she wasn't injected or forced to breath vaporous poisons. "You don't think that she merely over imbibed? I do smell a little alcohol on her, but not so much that it seems she is intoxicated."

Holding her back up with one arm, he grasped the sides of her jaw with the other and opened her mouth, then slid two fingers passed those lovely lips and teeth, following her tongue to the back of her throat to irritate her gag reflex muscles. He wasn't kind about it. Long fingers invaded her throat to trigger her survival instincts, and if the woman had any reflex ability at all, she would most likely spew the contents of her stomach all over his bed. He didn't know why he should care if she lived or died; more than likely it wouldn't change his circumstances.

'If only that chambermaid hadn't screamed out,' he thought. He had no idea why the chambermaid had decided to open his door and peer inside. Likewise, he had no idea why this woman would have chosen his room and fainted within. He recalled seeing her in the dining car but they hadn't spoken, and as far as he knew, the girl didn't have a room in this car.
 
Jeudith's initial screams brought the attention of a handful of people that happened to be in or around the first class sleeping car. A well dressed couple emerged from their compartment, looking nervously curious. But it wasn't long before 2 German soldiers showed up, weapons at the ready, they had come from the front of the train and had only heard the scream. With the door to the compartment closed, it wasn't clear to anyone what exactly the trouble had been. The couple suddenly regretted their curiosity as they looked at the wrong end of the German sub-machine guns. "We heard a scream, we don't know anything." The husband said as he hurried his wife back towards their compartment. The guards stayed silent, listening for further signs of trouble but little could be heard above the steady din of the train traveling at speed deeper into the German heartland with every heartbeat.



From the back of the train, Reinhard entered the hallway. There he saw his two guards looking alert but unsure of what exactly was going on. Of course he didn't need their report to tell him exactly who he was looking for and where he was likely to be. He had a satisfied grin on his face as he looked at the compartment numbers. "Knock on each door." He told the soldiers for appearance sake. He himself went to the compartment of one Leonard Benjamin and knocked firmly, each strike seeming as if it might bust through. "Öffnen Sie sich im Namen des Reiches!"
 
"My compartment might be a temporary solution. Perhaps they'd just think she was an overnight guest there who was still asleep after a long night."
Jane had no more spoken before she heard determined heavy footsteps outside followe by a violent rapping at the door and realised it was far too late to move the sleeping girl in any direction other than out the window and she was not quite prepared to go to such lengths since that would certainly mean the poor girl's death. She was not prepared to kill any one without knowing who they were or what they might be guilty of. Her position with the S.I.S did give her license to be both judge, jury and executioner if she needed to be but this was not such a situation. This required a completely different kind of solution.

Without thinking too much about it she undid the top three buttons of her salmon-pink short-sleeved blouse and pulled it partially out of her loose-fitting beige high-waisted trousers as if she had dressed herself in something of a hurry. While she did this she told Leo to move the girl under the bed and hide her there as much as he possibly could. Lastly she ruffled her short hair a bit to make it look as if her head had recently been rubbing against a pillow.

Once that was done she rubbed some lipstick on his collar and some on his cheek to suggest they had been engaged in intimate activities.
"Now just follow my lead," she said and slid the doors open after having made sure the unconscious girl was hidden well enough to not be seen at a casual glance into the compartment.
She then gave Leo a kiss on the cheek and leaned up against him rather cat-like and seductive.

At first sight it would appear to anyone outside that the two had shared a few moments of passion and she was now about to leave to go back to her compartment.
"Oh what's all the commotion about," she said as she turned to look at Sturmbannführer Müller outside.
"Has someone else been naughty as well," she asked softly, almost cooing and brushed up against Müller as she pushed herself past him.
"Would you please excuse me," she said with the same playfully subservient voice as she pretended to notice the dishevelled state her clothes and hair was in.
"I think I must go freshen up a little. See you at dinner then Leo," she added and walked towards her own compartment blowing him a kiss.
"You did after all pay for the whole evening."
 
Mr. Leonard Benjamin, Esq.
Leonard Benjamin's Sleeping Compartment
@MsBloom @xavierrol
Leo nodded at Jane's agreement to move the girl – he hadn't thought she would. The implications to her and the risk it put her in made such a decision risky, and although she had come over to his room on her own accord, he was loathe to involve an innocent person in this mess, even though he was faultless as well.

Then a loud knock nearly burst down the door, making Leo jump. The Sturmbannführer's voice sent shivers through his body, and the blood left his face in the course of one heartbeat. His eyes went to Jane and he couldn't comprehend what she was doing, not until she told him to hide the body.

"Oh God! We're hiding the body!" he thought. He slid his arms beneath the blond's body and pulled her to his side, lifting her and quickly lowering her to the floor. He pushed her beneath the bed, then pulled his jacket off and shoved it under, covering her hair from the side and then slipping an extra pair of shoes beneath there to break up the silhouette of the body. As he straightened, he followed her lead and unbuttoned his shirt hastily, pulling the tail of his shirt completely out of his waistband, undoing his belt, and then stepping quickly with her towards the door.

He was surprised when Jane smeared her lipstick on him, but he nodded as he inhaled shakily. "Okay," he whispered, thankful for this chance and wondering at the big-hearted gesture from the woman that he barely knew. This would be the second time he was involved in a tryst that never was, and he thought for a moment that he knew what many bridesmaids fussed about.

Always a bridesmaid, never a bride.

As she slid the door open, he fumbled with his belt to pull it through the buckle, the implication being that there had been some activity that he, too, was covering up. He leaned into her kiss and glanced at Jane, the smile on his lips and in his eyes both grateful and sad. It was appropriate for a man who had just been interrupted.

Watching the woman smoothly slide by the Fuhrer's man, he inhaled deeply and sighed, his eyes followed the enticing woman, and then he brought his gaze back to the commander and nodded. "Sturmbannführer Müller, may I help you?" He dropped his eyes in deference to the man's rank and power, one hand on the door frame, the other sliding into a pants pocket.
 

Müller was like a wolf stalking his prey as the door to the Jew's compartment slid open. The Nazi could feel his adrenaline pumping as the thrill of the hunt was about to reveal his helpless and cornered prey. There was no hope for Mr. Leonard Benjamin, he would be caught red handed defiling the purity of the Aryan race with his sub-human taint. He would be made an example of, his 'crime' further inflaming the passions of the German people, already at dangerous levels.

The cruel face of the hunter as it was revealed by the opening door was soon replace by obvious perplexity as his eyes flicked back and forth from Leo's face whom he expected, and Jane's whom he very much had not. Instead of the performative rage he had planned to play out in taking the rapist Jew into custody, his demeanor shifted to more genuine indignity. As much as the Nazi's loathed races such as the Jews and Slavs, they had a certain if grudging admiration for the British. Though Britannia's time had come and was about to go, the British heiress would have been something of a sexual and social conquest for the up and coming Nazi.

Temporarily stunned as he was, the Sturmbannführer was still a dangerous man. His confusion melding back towards his more typical hatred, especially as he heard Jane speak of the Jew as having paid for the whole evening. Clearly he had mis-classified the attractive and modern woman and the thought of her submitting the the sub-human made his blood boil. One corner of his mouth fluttered upward into something like a primal snarl like a growling wolf.

Openly armed himself and flanked by two heavily armed guards, Reinhard was still in control of the situation even if he didn't fully understand it. As Jane went to casually leave, he reached out and physically stopped her. His hand pressing into her firm belly as it reached around her. He pulled her towards him, as if claiming her for himself. His effort turning her to face away from him, back towards Leo.

His gaze settled for a moment on Leonard. "This man shall remain under arrest in his compartment, see to it he does not leave." Though his eyes focused with a cruel coldness, his words were meant for his men.

His lips now very close to Jane's as he whispered to her. "You have some explaining to do." And he turned them both around and pushed her out of the compartment and into the hallway. He had all but forgotten his 'bait' in this arrangement, his plan seeming to have unraveled as he struggled to adapt.

Leo was left seeming alone as a guard closed his door with both remaining outside. It could still be locked, though it wouldn't but slow down a determined guard if he refused to open it voluntarily, it did offer a hint of privacy.
 
Mr. Leonard Benjamin, Esq.
Leonard Benjamin's Sleeping Compartment
@MsBloom @xavierrol

The two guards flanking the Sturmbannführer should not have surprised Leo, but they had. Armed Nazis were never something that a man wanted to face, and if that man was a Brit with Jewish ancestry it was even worse. He blinked at the man's words, directed not at him, but the intent was clear; try to leave, Juden, and you'll see my wrath.

Leo's eyes jerked to Jane's face as the harsh leader pulled her away, and for a moment the attorney almost reached out to stop them. It wouldn't have helped her cause in any way, and he would have most likely received a rifle butt to his face, so Leo simply stepped back as his door was drawn to a close.

He wished he could lock the door. The latch was still broken, and he knew that even if it worked, a determined man could break the metal and force his way inside. There was still the matter of the woman under his bed. If she was still alive…

Was she still alive?

He looked down at the clothes he was wearing. It was all business clothes – linen slacks and nothing good for living, or running – and if they chose to jail him, whatever he wore would be what he had. Quickly he changed his clothing into something more practical, and put on the kind of clothing he would wear if he was going into Constantinople's nearby wilds on a hike or a light bird hunt. Sensible boots, thicker fabric trousers, and a white button-down shirt that afforded him free use of his arms, unlike the more constrictive dress shirts. He hoped he was wrong about his fate, but being arrested in his room was akin to being tried and judged.

Once he was dressed he got down next to the bed and extended a hand to check on the woman. His fingers found her pulse, and though it was slow and steady, it was beating. He was torn; he didn't know why she had come to his room. Yet the mere presence of her there made him a criminal in the Sturmbannführer's eyes. The woman was certainly an Aryan. He was not. Whether he had actually touched her, he would be deemed a rapist and condemned.

Leo struggled with his thoughts. On one hand he could try to revive her and save her life, although that would undoubtedly condemn his own. On the other hand, he could push her from the train, but that would be a death sentence to her, and his own soul would suffer the consequence.

He slid out from beneath the bed and went to the window, peaking out at the sky. It was almost completely dark. If he waited another hour, it was less likely that anyone would see anything outside aside from the lights from nearby towns and the moon. He felt like there was a heavy stone in his heart; save himself, possibly, and condemn the fräulein, or try to save her and let himself be labeled a rapist. Then there was the fact that he was bound to be condemned no matter what. If Müller wished, he could arrest Leo merely for the crime of being a Jew.

He felt like his options had all been depleted. His eyes went to the window once more. Another hour, and then he'd make his decision. Guiltily he hoped that the blond would expire on her own in that time. It was much easier to excuse himself of the crime of sending her out the window if she was already dead.
 
Hedwig Wolff NPC
@Traveler


While the sleeping powder had been strong enough and in high enough a dose to knock her out it was not efficient enough to keep out the commotion outside the compartment of the man she had been tasked to entrap. She had begun to stir already when she was moved off the bed and under it but not quite enough for anyone to notice. The loud pounding on the door though, the loud voices outside were enough to wake her and when she opened her eyes she realised that she had been stuffed under the bed, presumably so she would be hidden from view of anyone looking in from the outside. Turning her head to the left she could see the feet of a man changing clothes in something of a hurry. She was unsure of what had happened but she understood enough to realise that something had gone wrong with the plan. Slowly she pushed the suitcase aside and herself out from under the bed. She had no idea really what she was doing. She was still far from fully awake and the sleeping powder still held her mind in a state of semi-consciousness.
 
Mr. Leonard Benjamin, Esq.
Leonard Benjamin's Sleeping Compartment
@MsBloom

He felt the weight of his guilt on his soul like a dark, sooty cloud. His thoughts were as dim as the sky outside, and he felt like his sin had already been committed. Leo rested his hands on the edge of the windowsill and looked outside. He could see his reflection in the glass. How had he come to this?

Hearing the sounds of soft scuffling he turned, then saw a hand appear on the other side of the bed. As the woman began to stand Leo felt the blood rushing from his face. He could not have been more concerned had he seen a ghost. In truth, that was what she appeared to be, a ghost who had just emerged from a grave and was now determined to drag him to the depths of Hades.

Not realizing he had moved, he rushed to her side and reached to grab her by her arms, half afraid she would cry out and half fearing that she might faint and hit her head on the small table behind her.
 
Hedwig Wolff NPC
@Traveler


Hedwig did stand up, or at least tried to. She was still off her balance from the sleeping powder and the room was not entirely in focus either. It was blurry around the edges and so was the man who had suddenly appeared in front of her, was it the same man Müller had wanted her to entrap, who else could it be, just in time for him to catch her as her legs gave way beneath her. She fell into his arms with her back towards him which placed his hands dangerously close to her large round breasts. Anyone coming into the compartment at that moment would have been hard pressed not to think that Leo was groping the obviously drugged young woman in his arms.
 
Mr. Leonard Benjamin, Esq.
Leonard Benjamin's Sleeping Compartment
@MsBloom

This was going to be more difficult than he thought. Leo's arms flew around her falling body, his hands groping her unwittingly, as he struggled to hold the woman upright. She was the kind of girl whose image was painted on airplanes; buxom and blond, with too many curves that threatened to burst from her clothing. It didn't help that she seemed quite out of it, and her presence in his room was definitely unwanted.

He had never understood the fixation men had for voluptuous women whose only assets seemed to be how well they applied lipstick or filled out their brassieres. Yet here he was, stuck in a room with what most men would deem a fortunate situation; a woman who seemed drugged or drunk, was easily accessible if he wanted to ravage her body and fill her with his seed, and the guarded privacy of a room no one would enter except…well, except the Sturmbannführer.

And that man was undoubtedly entertaining himself right now. Leo's thoughts went to Jane and he felt his chest clench. Whatever torment she was currently under, and whatever future scrutiny she might endure, was because of him.

Caring not whether his hands grasped breast or nipple, waist or ass, Leo tried to get the woman to lie back down. He didn't wish her ill (despite his thoughts of throwing her from the train) and he didn't want her death to be counted against him. As he lowered her body, he brushed the hair from her face and cupped her cheek. Whispering quietly he tried to direct their situation towards something mutually beneficial. At least he hoped she wouldn't scream.

"Shh, it will be alright," his voice was decidedly British in accent and the planes of his tanned, handsome face reflected concern for her. Leo's grey-blue eyes searched hers for clues of what kind of drug she might be on, and though he did catch the faint fragrance of wine, he didn't think that she was drunk. No, this was something else. Something entirely different. "Someone tried to hurt you, didn't they? I'll help you," he offered. "Just stay calm, please."
 
Hedwig Wolff NPC
@Traveler


"You? You'll help me?"
Hedwig was still in a haze and only barely managed to open her eyes to look at a rather foggy version of Leo's tanned face. Why would he help her she wondered. He was supposed to be in Sturmbannführer Müller's clutches now, being dragged off to be interrogated for crimes against the Aryan race, as in having attempted, or at least intended, to forcibly breed her with his inferiour seed. Hedwig didn't quite understand what was going on. She had expected to wake up in her own compartment. This was all wrong. And yet, his arms around her felt safe and there was nothing in his voice or appearance to suggest any ill will towards her. Had it not been that she did remember her orders to place him in a situation where Sturmbannführer Müller could arrest him she might actually have believed that he had just saved her from some form of danger, perhaps the same danger it was supposed to look like she was actually in.
"You would help my brother too?" she asked without really knowing why or what she hoped to accomplish by it.
"They will hurt him if I don't do everything they tell me," she added in a slightly less drugged tone of voice as she was now starting to wake up more properly and as she did she sat up straight but did not wrestle herself away from his caring strong arms.
 
Mr. Leonard Benjamin, Esq.
Leonard Benjamin's Sleeping Compartment
@MsBloom

Leo felt a wash of relief that she was cognizant enough to speak. Had he really been about to throw her lifeless body from the window? His eyes darted to her, green gazing at her like a sunrise over a grass covered hill. "If your brother is in need, and it's within my power, then yes," he decided.

She explained some of the mystery then; the woman was being blackmailed. Leo's brows pulled together. "They have your brother then, and they're using him to manipulate you." Things began to make sense to the attorney. If this was a 'normal' world where people were not judged by their ancestry, but by their actions, he might have had a chance with the laws of the land. As it stood, he did not.

"Is he here on the train?" He studied the young woman. Barely old enough to be considered an adult, her brother was most likely even younger. She was probably trying to protect the poor lad.

Of course, there was the chance that the 'poor lad' had already been recruited into the Brown Shirts and would just as easily slit Leonard's throat as give him a glass of water. But the Brit had few options, and this seemed the best by far.

"Tell me, uh…" his forehead knitted tighter over his nose. "Miss…?" Once he had her name, he continued. "Tell me what you can, Fräulein, and I'll do everything I can to help you."
 
Back
Top Bottom