Ja and nej. The poor man struggled when he spoke. He’d probably struggled in school too, what little schooling he must have had. Surely he’d been teased. To come out of that with a gentle disposition was remarkable.
They turned down a path through colorful gardens shaded by trees in full leaf.
Two young men approached and tipped their caps to Else and Laila. The black peaked caps of the Germanic-Danish SS, recently named the Schalburg Corps after a Danish Nazi officer killed in Russia fighting for Germany.
The men would be mortified if they learned they were flirting with a Jewish woman. Although pointing that out would give a rush of ironic pleasure, Else didn’t want to endanger Laila. No antisemitic laws had been implemented in Denmark, but the Danish Nazis were infamous for harassing Jewish people.
So Else looked right through the men as if they didn’t exist. Den Kolde Skulder.
“Horrible,” Laila said in a fierce whisper after they passed. “Traitors to Denmark, to humanity.”
“Thank goodness there are so few of them.”
“Far more of us on the other side.” Her glare softened to sadness. “But far, far more sitting out the war.”
Else sighed. “I’m afraid my bravery doesn’t extend past roller coasters.”
They emerged from the gardens. Beside a shimmering lake, the Chinese Tower rose in red and black magnificence.
Before the war, Tivoli glowed at night, with light bulbs outlining each building, strung between trees, and reflecting in the lake, topped by fireworks shows in the summer. Although the park remained open during the occupation, the lights had been extinguished.
Laila leaned her forearms on the fence around the lake. “I’m not supposed to be involved with the paper, but I am. Now it’s your turn. We need you.”
Else glanced around, but no one stood nearby. She edged closer to her friend. “Me?”
“One of our duplicator machines broke, and another was captured by the enemy.” Laila’s voice barely reached Else’s ears.
“Oh dear.” PrintingFrit Danmarkrequired dozens of hidden machines.
“You have access to a duplicator, and thanks to Mortensen, no one would think twice if they saw you using it.”
“I couldn’t. It’s against the law.” Recently a dozen leaders of the illegal paperDe frie Danskehad received prison sentences up to two years.
Laila gazed to her right, where children queued for a boat ride. “We Danes are so good at following the law. What has it gotten us? The Germans are still here.”
“The Allies will come someday,” Else whispered.
Laila’s expression sharpened. “What then? They’ll snub us for not resisting. In every other occupied country, people make life miserable for the Germans. They have to send more troops to maintain order, drawing soldiers from the front. And we in Denmark do so little.”
“I know.” But Else’s stomach squirmed at the thought of riots and destruction and executions. Of deliberately causing conflict.
All her life she’d avoided conflict.
“Don’t you see?” Laila said. “By not opposing the Germans, we’re effectively allying with them. Isn’t that a greater evil? Isn’t that worth risking our comfort and safety?”
Across the lake, children frolicked on the playground. “Even if I took the risk myself, how could I bring risk to the institute? I’d have to use the institute’s machinery and ink and paper. That’d be stealing.”
Laila’s hands clenched together, tendons taut.
Time to change the subject. “But now, our carousel awaits.” Else gestured in that direction.
With one raised eyebrow, Laila told Else she wasn’t off the hook. But she followed Else around the upper loop of the lake, where children maneuvered tiny motorboats on the water.
One little tyke toddled down the stairs, squealing in joy, about to jump in. Just in time, his mother grabbed the child about the waist and scolded him.
Else smiled at the scene.
Laila stopped walking. “Have I told you the latest story circulating among the patriots?”
