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33

Lizzie

Huntsville,Alabama

1950

I knew something was up when Calvin came home from work one evening and immediately joined me in the garden. The sun was setting on the horizon, and we swatted mosquitoes away as we exchanged pleasantries:How was your day? Yes, mine too. Pork chops. No, I didn’t make dessert. Sure, I can make an apple pie for tomorrow night.I picked up my second watering can and moved to water the broccoli, but Cal followed me, as if he were trying to gather the courage to say something hard.

“What is it?” I prompted.

“The police went to Jürgen’s house.”

I looked at him in surprise.

“They just got around to doing that now?”

“No, they went right away. Jürgen only mentioned it today.”

“Oh.”

“He’s been pretty good about that, considering. I apologized—told him Henry fought in the war and sometimes has vivid dreams.”

“Okay,” I said stiffly. I knew my brother’s problems weren’t his fault, but I was also aware that he wouldn’t want anyone outside of our circle to know his private business—and that was doubly so for thesepeople.

“It seems there was an incident yesterday.”

“An incident?”

“Jürgen’s wife came by with a cake for you. A peace offering, apparently,” Cal said quietly.

“I was home most of the morning.”

“It was early. Maybe when you were out at the grocery store.”

“But I didn’t see any cake.” I frowned. I wasn’t sure how I felt about such a gesture. I had no interest in a friendship with Sofie Rhodes, but we weren’t exactly at war, either—we’d had one uncomfortable conversation and that was that. Why would she bring a peace offering? Then I thought about the police visiting her home and sighed. Maybeshethought we were at war.

“Henry was here,” Cal said.

“Henry went to work early yesterday,” I said, but then I paused. My days generally looked the same and tended to blend together so quickly. Was it yesterday Henry only had the black coffee for breakfast and refused my offer of eggs, or was that the day before?

“I don’t know what to tell you. Sofie asked him to pass it on to you and he...” Calvin paused, then cleared his throat. “Lizzie, she says he threw it at her.”

“What?” I said in disbelief, then immediately added, “There’s no way that’s true.”

“Jürgen said it gave her quite the fright. And he said Henry has been walking past the houses where the German families live. Sofie has seen him a number of times.”

“Please tell me you aren’t buying this. My brother wouldn’t hurt a fly. I didn’t see anymess from this supposed cake and you know as well as I do it makes perfect sense for him to walk that way to work.”

I turned and glanced toward my front porch and a sudden memory flared. Some of the pavers had been wet when I came home from the grocery store. I just figured it was from when I watered the young red buckeye the night before, but what if—

No.I shook my head, frowning. My brother wouldn’t throw something at a perfect stranger, even under theseconditions. “We don’t know these people, Cal. We certainly can’t take their word over Henry’s.”

“Sweetheart. I really need to get to the bottom of what happened,” Cal said quietly, but firmly.

“So we’ll talk to him,” I said impatiently. “He’ll tell you she’s making the whole thing up.”

“I’ll have a chat with him tonight and straighten this out.”