Grace burst into her room and threw herself onto her bed, holding in a scream of frustration. A Nazi? Really? He couldn’t just have been a shy trapper from somewhere “east of here”? But of course he was a Nazi! A damn murdering German most likely bent on killing them all. And he was a liar. He’d acted so quiet and sweet at the store, made her feel so special—how stupid she’d been! How utterly naive!
Then again, she should have expected something like this, she reminded herself. She should have known she couldn’t get that lucky. After all this time, what right did she have to fall for a normal, attractive, interesting man? She squeezed the pillow, trying not to cry and failing miserably.
Her father knocked on her door. “Grace?”
She sat up, wiped her eyes. “Yes?”
“Can I come in?”
She didn’t look too bad in the mirror. Maybe he wouldn’t suspect the tears. “Sure, Dad.”
He peered around the door. “You okay?”
“I’m fine. Just . . . oh, you know. Thinking about Norman.”
“Well, I don’t mean to intrude, but I wanted to tell you the same thing I just told everyone else. About the man downstairs. Rudi’s his name.”
“Oh?” Even hearing her father say his name made her feel like sobbing again. “What was that you said about him being a Nazi?”
He stuck his thumbs through the base of his suspenders, leaned against her door frame. “We’re in a bit of a spot right now. From what we’ve heard, he’s a German deserter. But he did save Tommy’s life, so—”
“What?!”
“Tommy fell through the ice. Rudi pulled him out and brought him home.”
This was the strangest conversation she’d had with her father in a very long time. Maybe ever. How could he stand there, calmly calling Rudi a Nazi, then telling her Tommy almost died?
“Anyway,” he was saying, “I’ve decided to let him stay with us for a while, since he doesn’t have a place to live. He’s been out at Abbecombec, at the camp.” One eyebrow lifted. “But, Grace, I don’t want any fuss about this. We’re not going to mention to anyone that he’s here until we get to know him better. If anyone sees him and asks who he is, we’ll say he’s a friend of a friend, freshly returned from war, and he’s not in any condition to hold conversations. I want everyone to stay away from him, including you.”
“Fine.” She couldn’t think of anyone she’d rather not see. “What’s he gonna do out here? Work at the plant?”
“Tommy suggested that, but no. Whether he’s deserting or not, he admits he was a Nazi. Not too many people around here would appreciate knowing we have one of them living here. I said he could stay and do some jobs around here until we figure out something else. That way he’ll be out of sight.”
She didn’t know how to answer. So many emotions swirled through her, blocked her words. Rudi’s a Nazi. Rudi is a liar. Rudi’s going to live right here!
“All right then. You sure you’re okay?”
“I will be.” He started to close the door behind him, and she dared herself to say what she was thinking. “You’re being awfully generous, hiding a Nazi here.”
His mouth twisted to one side. “Well, we’re not hiding a typical Nazi, I hope.”
“Sounds like you are.”
He sighed and drummed his fingers against the door frame. “We have to give him the benefit of the doubt. He saved Tommy’s life. And he says he doesn’t want to be a Nazi, which is something we should encourage, don’t you think?”
“Yes, if you think he’s telling the truth. I just don’t know if he is.”
“Of course. I’m unsure too, and I hope I made the right call. It’s just that when I think about the predicament he’s in, I can’t help but think about your brothers. I’m doing what I hope someone would do for one of them, if it ever came to that.” He shrugged. “We’ll find out soon enough, I imagine.”
She switched on the bedside lamp after he’d gone, sat back on the bed, and reached for The Body in the Library, thinking maybe Miss Marple could distract her. But the little wooden ladybug stared woefully down at her from its perch on top of her stack of books.
“You didn’t tell me about him,” she muttered, smoothing her finger over its back, “and I did ask.”
For two days she followed orders and stayed away from Tommy’s house, but she was aware of Rudi’s presence every minute. She heard him hammering, occasionally saw him striding towards the shed, carrying supplies. When he paused midstep and glanced up at the house one afternoon, she actually ducked behind her window.
And that’s when she decided it was getting ridiculous. He might be the enemy, but he wasn’t going to force her to hide in her own house. She had to face this problem head-on. On Sunday morning, as her family prepared for church, she excused herself, saying she felt unwell. Her mother came to check on her, but she waved her off.
“I’m not a child, Maman. And I’m not deathly ill. Thank you, but I’ll be all right. I just need a little rest.”
Then the bells on the wagon jingled, her family’s voices faded, and Grace got to work.