by Liz Tolsma
Gisela couldn’t stop her tears. Mutti had been restored to her. God had brought her back. She clung to her.
“Oh, Gisela, I wondered if I would ever find you. Now I know we will be fine. Vater will come home and life will be sweet once more.”
“I thought you were dead.” In a way, God had brought Mutti back to life.
“The Lord spared me. He spared us. We owe so much to this man.” She gestured toward Mitch.
He held Gisela’s hand and squeezed it. His mere presence brought her comfort. “You owe me nothing. I love your daughter and would do anything for her.”
Mutti glared at Mitch. “And what do you plan to do about this?”
“I plan to make your daughter my wife. For real.”
Her stomach tripped, though the words had little chance to settle in before footfalls flew up the steps and Frau Mueller appeared, red-faced and panting.
“Frieda, is that you?” Frau Mueller embraced Mutti and the two friends laughed and cried. “I have a little broth on the stove in the cellar. Let me fix you a bite to eat. Then we want to hear about your adventures. You will stay with me until your husband comes back.”
Two little girls clattered up the stairs. “Oma, Oma!” They attached themselves to Mutti, one on each leg. “Come see the horses Jorgen has carved for us.”
“And who is this Jorgen?”
Annelies tugged on Mutti’s arm. “He’s my friend.”
Mutti turned to Gisela. “Her friend?”
“A boy soldier I rescued. When this is over, we will reunite him with his family. Right now it’s too dangerous for him on the streets.”
“And those crazy sisters? Are they here?”
“Ja, until I can contact their niece in Düsseldorf. Go on down with the girls. Mitch and I will be there in a bit. Don’t start the story until then.”
The welcoming party left Mitch and Gisela alone in the back hall. A sudden shyness overtook her, and she limped down the hall to sit on the bottom stair.
Mitch took a seat beside her. “Did you hurt your foot?”
“I’m fine. Thanks to you, I’m fine.” She swallowed hard. The ending would have been much different if he hadn’t appeared when he had. “You saved me.”
She dared to hold his hand. “Do you think less of me? Because of what they tried to do? Do you hate me?”
“Never.” He clutched her in a sideways hug. “You weren’t at fault. Nothing could make me think less of you.”
Warm relief flooded her. “God brought you to me at just the right time.”
“Yes, He did.”
Mitch touched her bruised cheek, his fingertips just brushing her skin. She shivered even as heat raced through her body. Catching his hand, she kissed the inside of his palm.
A small sigh escaped his lips. “You ought to be a cricket bowler, the way you threw that brick.”
“I wonder if the New York Yankees would draft a girl.”
“I would want you on my team. When I told your mum that I wanted to marry you, I meant it. And I am willing to raise the girls if Ella doesn’t return.” He leaned in as if to kiss her, then pulled back. “With my whole heart, I want to kiss you.”
“You may.”
“Are you sure? After your ordeal . . . ?”
She nodded. His peck on her lips was short and sweet.
He wanted to marry her. And care for Annelies and Renate. Every bit of the horror and suffering faded away. Her timidity fled and she returned his affection with ardor, pulling him close, wanting him always. To be one with him.
He pulled away, breathless. “I love you, Gisela, with everything I am. Please tell me we have a future. I will follow you to the ends of the earth.”
Could you sink to the depths and soar to the heights in one day? She studied his face, his dimpled cheeks, his crinkled eyes. Even the bright California sun paled in comparison to her passion for this incredible man. He filled a void in her, made her feel clean and whole. If she had to go through this ordeal again just to get to this ending, she would. “I love you too, Mitch. You don’t need to follow me. I’ll stay with you forever.”
She knew their love would last far longer than the faded daisy pressed in her Bible.
EPILOGUE
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
October 1946
Gisela pulled her lightweight jacket around her as the sea breeze whipped across the tarmac, tangling her green silk skirt around her legs. She craned her neck to look into the blue sky. The buzz of the plane’s engines grew ever louder as it approached its landing.
She stood on her tiptoes, as if she might be able to reach up and pluck it from the sky. It took eons to circle the airport, tipping its wings in one direction, then the other, finally straightening.
“Is the plane here yet?” Annelies mimicked Gisela and stretched.
Renate copied them both. “I want to see too.”
“It’s coming, it’s coming.” If only the plane would contain Ella. It had taken some doing, but several weeks ago they received word of Ella’s and Opa’s deaths. She wiped away her stray tears.
She returned her attention to the aircraft mere feet from the runway.
When its wheels touched the ground, they sent up a puff of dust. Gisela had all she could do to keep from dancing in circles. She silently urged the ground crew to hurry and wheel the stairs to the doorway.
Mutti held her shoulder to restrain her from climbing over the fence to the runway. “He will come soon enough. All of your jumping around will only tire you out and make you warm.”
Gisela aged another ten years before the cabin door opened and the passengers began to disembark.
Her breath caught in her throat when he appeared at the head of the stairs. He was more handsome than she had remembered.
She waved. Even from this distance, his smile shone, his dimples deep. He took the steps two by two and raced across the airfield.
“Oh, Mitch.” She fell into his arms.
He picked her up and swung her in circles. “Yee haw!”
She laughed. “What was that for?”
“Isn’t that what you Americans say?”
“No, we say this.” She kissed him on the lips, hard, not caring if Mutti saw them.
“I’m so glad you got out of Berlin.”
“It’s good to be home. You finally came.” The past year of separation while both of them had waited for permission to come to the States had been excruciating.
Mitch leaned in to whisper in her ear. His breath tickled her neck and started a funny fluttering in her stomach. “I have three surprises for you.”
“Isn’t you being here enough excitement for now?”
“Look.” He stepped out of the way and pointed to the airplane.
At the top of the stairs came a wonderfully familiar silhouette.
“Vater! Mitch, you brought Vater home to me.” She hugged Mitch’s neck.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you.”
Hand in hand they raced across the tarmac.
She fell into Vater’s arms, but only for a minute. He released his hold as Mutti joined them, tears racing down her cheeks. The three of them clung to each other.
“We thought you were still waiting for approval from the embassy.”
Vater stepped back, wiping the dampness from his wrinkled cheeks. “That is cleared up. But I didn’t tell you because I wanted to surprise you. Mitch worked to get me on the same flight as him from New York. You have a very fine man, Gisela. I’m proud.”
Then, from the corner of her eye, she noticed a woman with platinum-blond hair. “Audra.” She turned to Mitch. “You brought Audra too?”
Audra laughed. “I’m in California. Where Hollywood is. Are there actors and actresses here?”
Now Gisela giggled. “Not right here.” Then she embraced her former foe. “I’m glad you are here. May all of your dreams come true.”
Gisela turned to Mitch. “That’s only two surprises. What’s the third?”
; Right in front of the whole world, he got down on one knee. Her hands shook. Could he really be . . . ?
“Gisela Cramer, will you do me the honor of being my wife? For real this time?”
She squealed like a little girl. “Oh, yes yes yes.”
He pulled a box from his pocket, opened it, and slipped a ring on her finger. The engagement ring had a large center diamond with small diamonds surrounding it. It looked like a daisy.
“It’s gorgeous.” She helped him stand.
“No more beautiful than the woman with whom I’m going to spend the rest of my life.”
No more beautiful than the life they would have.
THE STORY BEHIND THE STORY
The author with her aunt, Lillian Tolsma, the inspiration for this book and a truly courageous woman.
Ruth Sabine Hildegard Lippert, seventeen years old in February 1945, is the inspiration for the first half of this story. In her own words: “Soon thereafter, on February 8, the Russians marched into our city; we escaped by night, in temperatures of minus 20 degrees, launched into a four-week Flucht [escape]. Through the Lord’s grace and shielding, I was able, as a fearless leader, to save a group of about ten people from certain death or captivity.”
They crossed the frozen Frische Haff, were shot at by Russian planes, and rode in trucks and on trains. She endured many trials and hardships and finally arrived at home in Bad Homburg four weeks later, only to be bombed out of her home the same night she arrived.
The second half of the book is based on the stories told by my aunt, Lillian Tolsma, born in the United States to parents of German descent. In the late 1930s, her family decided to return to Germany. She spent the last part of the war in Berlin, surviving almost constant bombing raids and having her apartment building bombed out while she was away from home. Once the Soviets entered the city, she had to hide from the Russians soldiers, escaping their clutches more than once.
These women’s stories demonstrate that the war affected ordinary citizens on both sides of the conflict. The courage it took to survive one of the darkest periods in history was amazing.
READING GROUP GUIDE
1. Did Gisela make the right decision to leave Ella and Opa in East Prussia? What might you have done in that situation?
2. Was it Mitch’s fault that he and the men with him were taken prisoners by the Germans at the beginning of the war?
3. Is the lying and stealing that take place throughout the book commendable or condemnable?
4. What effect did her sister’s death have on Gisela?
5. Kurt and Audra used Mitch and Gisela for their own ends. What other ways could they have gone about reaching their goals?
6. What kind of emotional toll did the near-constant bombing of Berlin take on the characters?
7. Mitch says of Gisela, “She collected waifs like people collected porcelain figurines.” What does that tell you about her character?
8. How is levity added to the story? Why is it added?
9. Mitch and Gisela were both searching for redemption. Did they find it? If so, where did it come from?
10. How has the story changed your view of the everyday German citizen during the war?
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
My deepest appreciation to Lillian Tolsma and the family of Ruth Lippert for sharing your stories with the world, so we may know what true courage looks like.
Thank you to the fabulous staff at Thomas Nelson Publishers. I have enjoyed working with my editors Becky Philpott and Julee Swarzburg. You have made me a better writer. Many thanks to Ruthie Dean, my former publicist. Your help was so appreciated. Thanks also to Becky Monds, Jodi Hughes, Daisy Hutton, and all of the many, many wonderful people there. I cannot begin to thank you enough for your care and concern for me during the illness I battled while editing this book. What a joy to work with people who understand what is important in life.
Thank you to my agent, Tamela Hancock Murray. Your support and availability throughout this process have been a true encouragement to me.
Without my terrific critic partner, Diana, this book wouldn’t be what it is. It’s fun “thinking with my fingers” with you. Thank you for spurring me on to be better and for telling me like it is.
Thank you to my eighth-grade locker partner, Ruth Lyons, for your translation of Ruth Lippert’s biography. You helped me to truly understand her story.
My family’s love and support allowed me to follow my dream and write this book. Thank you to my children, Brian, Alyssa, and Jonalyn, for being flexible and understanding when dinner was late or nonexistent because of a deadline. And to Doug, thank you for holding down the fort, for cleaning and cooking and carting kids around so I can follow my passion. You make me a better person.
And while so many people had a hand in making this book a reality, the truth is that without God’s blessing, not a single word would have been written. He planted the desire and the ability in me and surrounded me with just the right people at just the right time. All praise to Him.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo by Bentfield Photography
Liz Tolsma has lived in Wisconsin most of her life. She and her husband have a son and two daughters, all adopted internationally. When not busy putting words to paper, Liz enjoys reading, walking, working in her large perennial garden, kayaking, and camping with her family.
Visit www.LizTolsma.com