The Heritage Paper

Chapter 40



Whenever Veronica couldn’t make a decision, whether it be one with life-changing implications or as simple as what dress to wear to a party, Carsten would always tell her to trust her gut. And when she did, the right answer always seemed to present itself.

All day the gut was very clear—keep Maggie and Jamie as close to her as possible—but for some unknown reason she didn’t listen this time.

Maybe it was because of Zach’s presence. He had a way of making her feel like everything would be all right. For the first time in a long time, she didn’t feel like she was totally on her own. Maybe it distracted her from the inner voice.

They followed Sterling and his guards into the open plaza that led into Sterling House. The granite park was normally a quaint place, but tonight a small rally was taking place in support of Kingston, filled with energized college kids handing out pamphlets.

Sterling was proud of the plaza. It was created back in 1950 with the intention of it being a gathering place, especially for displaced European Jews and Holocaust survivors who ended up in this new crazy world called New York. His face lit up when he described letters he’d received from married couples who had met there. Including one couple who’d just celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary.

He was equally proud of Sterling House. He said it was important for the building to symbolize the Jewish people as strong and resilient, as they healed the wounds of their battered self-esteem following the war. But also a reminder of the past, as it included a black marble scroll with the names of Holocaust victims engraved on the side of the building.

Despite his claim of being short on time, Sterling took a few moments to talk to the Kingston supporters. Veronica was getting jumpier by the second, needing to get to her kids.

They eventually moved inside the lower level of the building. Sterling bragged that over five million pounds of bronze was used during construction, as they rode an elevator to the top floor. Veronica hadn’t been in the building since she’d picked up Carsten’s belongings after his death, and felt a similar discomfort. When they exited the elevator, they followed Sterling into a lavish office that overlooked Manhattan Island, the guards remaining outside.

No sign of Bormann’s skull.

As Sterling wheeled behind a desk, he noticed Zach looking at the pictures hung on the office walls. “That’s my father Jacob Sterling,” he said, pointing proudly at the picture of the balding man in a suit, sporting horn-rimmed glasses and a gray mustache.

“My father came from a wealthy family in Prague. He didn’t have to work a day in his life, but he chose to become a doctor to help those in need. He worked in the Jewish ghettos of Prague, helping the most weary and poor, and he never took a dime in his life from his patients.”

Veronica’s mind infested with conspiratorial thoughts, centering on Sterling’s eagerness to separate her from her children, and now seemingly stalling, when he previously claimed hurry.

“Then when the Nazis took over,” Sterling continued, “he was arrested for treating Jewish patients. I was a medical student at the time. We were sent to separate concentration camps, and I feared it would be the last time I’d see him. My father wisely used his wealth and connections to get my mother and two younger sisters out of the country to flee from their inevitable capture. Then, after the war, we were able to rejoin them here in America.”

“From the looks of things, America has been good to the Sterlings,” Zach observed.

Sterling smiled. “America is the land of opportunity. And we took advantage of that opportunity to give back to those who were oppressed. My father started his publishing business for the sole purpose of telling the stories of those who suffered in concentration camps. The ones who weren’t as lucky as us. He wasn’t going to let the world forget.”

“You’ve definitely succeeded in that area,” Zach said in a conciliatory tone.

“It’s an ongoing fight, which is why we expanded the business to include the Sterling Center, which promotes Jewish causes throughout the world. And when my father died, back in the 1960s, I took over the entire business.”

He caught himself. “I’m so sorry—I’m babbling—you said you had some questions for me?”

He sat with a satisfied look—the lights of the city reflecting off his old face. Veronica wanted to grab him and shake the truth out of him. But Zach gave her his calming “follow my lead” look.

Her gut told her to follow. She wasn’t going against it again tonight.