“I believe it’s in braille. I could feel it through the envelope.”The seat across from her made a slight swishing sound as Rick sat.
Chaisley ripped into the envelope. It was indeed in braille. She set down her dish and smoothed out the paper on her lap. Then she read it. A smile grew as she continued toward the end. “It’s from a small group of blind students at the music school we visited yesterday. They wanted to thank us.” She paused and her smile slipped. “And to ask for our help. Their teacher is Jewish and is leaving soon. Within the week. She advised them and their parents that it would be best for them to leave the country as well.”
Melanie placed a hand on Chaisley’s shoulder. “How many are we talking about?”
Her fingers flew over the page and her heart clenched as the reality of what was happening sank in. “Twenty students. About half of them are Jewish. All are blind, some from birth and the others from sickness or accidents.” Her breath left her in a whoosh. “Can we help that many?”
“How much longer are we here?”
Rick must be writing on paper. She could hear the scribbles of his pencil.
“Two weeks.”
Melanie patted her shoulder. “I’ll call Dr. Grafton right away.”
She nodded. “That’s probably best. Then we’ll need to get in touch with his contact. They’ll need visas and a safe place to go.”
Amsterdam—Monday, May 23, 1938
“Celestia, I have an idea.” Dr. Grafton removed his spectacles and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
“I’m listening.” She studied him. The man was tired. They’d spent the last thirteen days doing everything in their power to get visas, travel arrangements, and accommodations for the blind students and their families. Many of those days, he’d stayed up wellpast when she’d given in to exhaustion and gone to bed. A couple of times, she’d found him still at it in the morning.
He rubbed his face and replaced his glasses. “I just received word from a friend in South Africa. I think he might be able to assist in getting these families visas there for a long-term option after the students and their families journey here. Afrikaans is another form of a West Germanic language. It’s closer to Dutch than German, but the Swiss German is different anyway. If these students and their families know their language well, it will help them overcome a lot of the pronunciation differences.”
“That’s a great distance for these people to travel.” She tapped her fingers on the desk. “Costly as well. It will most likely need to be a permanent relocation.”
He held up the letters in his hands. “From the sounds of what the parents have written, most of them are hoping for something permanent. They haven’t felt an immediate threat in Switzerland, but they’ve heard too much from Germany and feel it encroaching on them. They don’t think they’ll be safe in many places in Europe. If they’re going to travel, they’d rather go farther from the threat while they can.” He grimaced. “Which, I have to admit, I think is a smart idea.”
She leaned back. “I hadn’t thought about that. Tensions are high, and every diplomat I’ve spoken to here will give us a visa to get them here, but then they are pushing to make sure they move on once they arrive. I wonder if they’re telling us everything, and I canfeelthe fear underlying their tones. I also have friends in the United States. Perhaps we should think about that as a destination as well?”
“We should. Make the inquiries to get us started. The more safe avenues we have, the better our chances as things escalate.” His face was a bit haggard. The past few months had aged him.
Celestia reached out a hand and patted his shoulder as she stood. “God willing, everyone’s eyes will soon be opened to what’s really happening. Let’s just do the best we can each day. As Chaisleytravels, I’m sure there will be more and more who we will need to help. Especially when she heads into Germany.”
His shoulder tensed under her hand. Had she laid another brick on his already heavy load? “Does that worry you as much as it does me?”
Her grimace—no matter how fast she covered it—couldn’t be missed. “If I were still in England and not here? I would be far more worried and yet less concerned all at the same time.” She couldn’t bear to hold his gaze so she turned to the window. “There? I would be far away and hearing the rumblings with nothing to do but twiddle my thumbs and worry. Here ... I know far more and am entrenched in my own work to help. But I also know that God has called us to this. I can’t deny the work He has called Chaisley to and the hope she can share. But if anything happens to her—”
“I have to keep pushing those thoughts down because I tend to get too worked up and angry.”
Bile rose in her throat, hearing her silent fear echoed in the doctor’s voice.Oh God, have we done the right thing, involving Chaisley? Melanie?She glanced down at Dr. Grafton and sighed. “That is what keeps me up at night.”
He remained silent for several moments. “If I think too much about the consequences, I want to whisk her away someplace safe and keep her there until all this is past. I’m not even sure we will all live through this, but I know that Jesus is waiting at the finish line so we must soldier on and do what we can.” He nodded and took a sip of his tea. “I should probably take a short nap since I haven’t been getting much sleep. Then I will make some more calls. But first...” He caught her gaze right before she refilled her own cup.
“But first, what?”
“When are we going to discuss your plan?”
“What plan?” The man was entirely too astute for his own safety.
“Celestia, you’re going to need my help. So tell me about the hidden rooms.”
chapter
Ten
Salzburg, Austria—Saturday, May 28, 1938
