“Then, hopefully we can make it to Dijon.” Alex leaned over and kissed me. His eyes remained closed as our lips parted. “I never had the chance to thank you for agreeing to sell your mother’s Haggadah.”
I felt his breath warm against me, and saw the dark rounds of his eyes.
“I would like to believe it was destiny,” I whispered. “Without that book, we would never have met each other.”
Alex’s fingers tightened around mine. “I wonder if Rabbi Avram and his wife are smiling down on us. All these years later, the book has been passed down through countless hands, creating a story with each of its owners.”
I smiled. This book, which had been created to teach the ancient traditions of the Jewish faith, had now inspired love and also helped ensure our survival. I was not thinking of Rabbi Avram or his artistic wife, however. I was imagining the woman who owned the Haggadah before me. My thoughts were solely of my mother.
***
That evening, a farmer outside of Bourges agreed to let us use his loft in exchange for some francs Monsieur Armel offered for usstaying the night. When we all climbed the wooden ladder, we discovered that the accommodations were sparse. We would be sleeping on mattresses that smelled of straw.
Leo seemed unlike his playful self. He hovered close to his mother. His pallor was chalk white.
I undressed behind the stacks of hay, pulling my nightgown over me like a tarp. Beneath the white cotton, my skin flushed. I kept Marthe’s pearls around my neck, believing they were safest there.
It was cruel to be so close to Alex and not be able to touch him. The slender gold band on my finger felt like a promise, and now, beneath my nightgown, I could feel the pull of my body yearning to be close to his. Alex had brought the box with my Haggadah and the other valuables into the loft so they wouldn’t be left in the car overnight.
He placed them between our two mattresses. And as I lay down on the bed, I closed my eyes and imagined the books forming a bridge, hoping he, too, felt my desire flowing through the space between us.
***
In the morning, I found Monsieur Armel crouched on an old wooden crate speaking with Solomon. He held a long twig in his hand and he was drawing a map on the dusty floor.
“If we don’t encounter any problems, we can get to Lyon from here by the evening.”
Solomon’s eyes were focused on the ground. He looked haggard, as if he hadn’t slept all night.
“That will keep us on track for meeting Clavel’s dealer Thursday morning.”
Solomon nodded.
“Our own exodus.” Monsieur Armel nodded in agreement with Solomon. “Let’s hope the waters also part for us in Marseille just as they do in the pictures in the Haggadah.”
***
Leo had slept curled at his mother’s side all night, his cheek pressed to her chest, his arm draped over the width of her body.
“Lieblinge,” Solomon whispered as he knelt down closer to them. “Darlings.”
Rachel’s arms instinctively stroked her sleeping child as she was roused from sleep. The sight of such pure, maternal affection warmed me as I slipped away to get dressed behind the bales of hay. When I emerged, Alex had already put his pants on and was buttoning his shirt.
“Seems like we’ll be off as soon as the children and Rachel are ready.”
I nodded. I was nearly ready. All I needed to do was put on my shoes.
Alex and I glanced over at Rachel, who seemed to be whispering to Solomon. Her face looked pained. Leo was still in his pajamas and she cradled him in one arm, his legs dangling over her lap.
We both sensed something was amiss.
“I think she just told Solomon the child has a fever.”
We watched silently as Solomon placed a hand on Leo’s forehead. The little boy shivered slightly at his father’s touch.
Solomon’s face was also now pale. He said something again in Yiddish that neither Alex nor I understood. But Monsieur Armel, who had a working understanding of the language, seemed to understand perfectly well.
For several minutes, we stood silently, unsure of what would happen next. Rachel was now rocking little Leo in her arms in an effort to soothe him. Eva, who had awakened and dressed herself, now walked over to Alex and me.
