“I believe him,” I say, unsure if I truly do. David is right. It’s known that the Gestapo have been sending Jewish people to labor camps for crimes less than an unpaid traffic violation.
Frau Alesky tries to force a quivering smile and gives me a quick hug. “Only time will tell,” she says, her words pinching at the end. “Danner said he would find out where he is and contact a lawyer, if one can be found. There aren’t many Jewish ones left, and no one else will help us.”
“I could help look for a lawyer too. Anything I can do, please—I-I will,” I offer, speaking so quickly I’m not sure she understood what I said.
She nods and stares past me in a sad daze before walking away as if we weren’t in the middle of a conversation.
“Frau Alesky, I—I can cancel the party. I’ll—I’ll send everyone home right away. I can’t imagine sitting here—this is horrible timing. I’ll take care of this all. Why don’t you just?—”
She turns back for me, her expression crumpling with grief as her toes meet mine. “Please, please,” she says, placing her hand on my cheek. “It’s his birthday. I’d rather he be with his friends tonight. What you did—this is special. Don’t send anyone home.”
She steps past me into the private space where more people are beginning to gather.
I grab a hold of David’s arm and pull him in toward me. “Are you okay?”
He shrugs. “What if he isn’t back in a few days?”
I reach up and grab his chin. “Look at me. Your father will do whatever he can to get home to you. You must believe that.”
“Thank you, Emi,” he says, leaning down to give me a lopsided hug. Fifteen and still awkward, but I love him as if he were my little brother. He was just two when I first met him.
“Is Danner okay?”
“You know him. He’s fine until he’s not. He’s sure Papa will be home before tomorrow night.”
“Good. Listen to Danner. He knows best.”
David rolls his eyes at me and steps to the side to move into the room. A few brief minutes pass between the last person arriving and the sight of Felix’s red fedora. I turn toward the gathered group and hold my finger up to my lips while pointing toward the entrance.
I count down with my fingers, creating a perfect moment for Danner to enter while we all shout “Surprise!”
Shocked, Danner’s cheeks burn red, and he turns around to face away, taking a minute to collect his thoughts before spinning back toward us.
“For me?” he asks.
“Who else?” I reply.
He walks toward me, and I open my arms to give him a hug, but he takes my hand and squeezes it gently. “Thank you, Emi. This means so much.”
“It was all of us. We all planned this party to celebrate you.” It was my idea, and I coordinated most everything, but we’re a pack—our group of friends.
He makes his way around the room, giving everyone else warm hugs and words of gratitude, making me wonder if I’ve done something wrong, or if he’s putting on an act for everyone so they won’t think something is upsetting him. No one else knows about his father.
What an awful birthday.
Otto returns to my side, wrapping his arm around me, and hands me a beer glass. I spot Gerty off in the corner, kissing Calvin as if she hasn’t seen him in two years. Felix, David, and Danner are having a private chat off to the other side of the room, and Frau Alesky is sitting at one of the small round tables alone, staring at her reflection in a fork.
“Where is Herr Alesky?” Otto asks.
I stare past them, avoiding the topic their family might not want repeated. “He must not be feeling well.”
“Well, I hope Danner has a wonderful time. It’s a lovely party,” he says, kissing my cheek.
The moment Otto’s lips touch my skin, my eyes lock with Danner’s and for the briefest moment, his eyebrows furrow and he fights a grimace before turning away.
“You know, now that I’ve decided to study medicine like you, next fall when we start classes at the university, we’ll be able to have lunch together and walk to and from school together just like we always did. It’ll just be the two of us, but it will be nice, won’t it?”
My acceptance to the university has been something I’ve had a challenging time wrapping my head around. Most women aren’t accepted, and the nursing program is small. It doesn’t seem real yet and I keep thinking someone will tell me my acceptance was a clerical error, but I pray that’s not the case. I want to be a nurse more than I want anything else. Conversely, Otto just made the decision within the last few weeks to start medical school. He applied and was accepted almost at once, even though he’s never picked up a medical book in his life—at least not that I’m aware of. In fact, he’d never mentioned anything other than the idea of becoming a pilot.
