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“Started off collecting cars and branched out a bit. Interesting work that keeps me busy. Never know what’ll turn up from one day to the next. So what is it I can do for you?”
“We’re looking for a ride into Wroclaw.”
“I’m headed that way. If a couple of you don’t mind riding in the back . . . Not enough room up front.”
“About that,” Sam said. “Might be better if we all hid in the back.”
The man stroked his beard a moment. “Exactly what sort of trouble are you in?”
“Don’t suppose you’ve heard of the Guard?”
His brows went up. “How’d you cross paths with them?”
“Sort of a long story.”
“Give me the condensed version while I load the truck. Get us out of here that much faster.” He unlocked the cabin door, dropped the keys into his pocket, then rolled the dolly in.
Sam, Sergei, and Gustaw followed while Remi kept watch out front. A few boxes were stacked by the door next to a table and, beside it, two wooden crates. “What goes in the truck?” Sam asked.
“Everything. Couldn’t get it all in the first trip. This is the last of it.” Sergei and Gustaw carried the table out as Sam helped move the two crates onto the dolly, all while giving a quick version of their hunt and the Guard’s pursuit.
Once everything was removed from the house, the man locked the door, then met them at the back of the truck. “It’s a good thing I happened along, then, isn’t it?”
“Definitely,” Sam said. “So you’ll help?”
“Gladly. But we’re going to want to move those boxes to the other side of the truck bed.”
“What’s wrong with them?” Sam asked.
“They’re covering the trapdoor to the false bottom.”
Sam eyed the truck, only then realizing that the rear bumper and side panels concealed the hidden compartment beneath the raised floorboards so that it couldn’t be seen from the outside. “You think we’ll all fit?”
“Three of you, it’ll be tight. It was used to smuggle supplies so the Nazis couldn’t find them. Occasionally, children and resistance fighters were smuggled out as well. Someone will have to ride up front.”
“I’ll do it,” Sergei said. “I’m probably the last person they’re looking for. And I speak Polish.”
Sam jumped into the back of the truck. “Let’s get this show on the road.”
41
Remi slid onto her back into the hidden compartment in the truck bed next to Sam, who was next to Gustaw. Sergei and the driver lowered the floorboards over them, then moved the boxes into place, the space turning suddenly dark. As the truck started down the road, she wondered how terrifying it must have been for the children hidden there during the war.
After several minutes—the road, thankfully, fairly smooth—she felt the truck slow, then stop. A few moments later, she heard someone talking and strained to listen as the antique dealer, speaking Polish, said, “Is something wrong?”
“There was an escape. Dangerous criminals in the area. We’re searching every vehicle.”
“Nothing back there but boxes and old furniture. It’s been locked the whole time. I can’t imagine how they could get in, then lock it.”
“We’d like to look. For your own protection.”
Remi slid her hand toward Sam’s as she heard the sound of someone walking toward the back of the truck. “Do you have a key?” the man asked the driver.
“I can open it for you.”
“Just the key. Please.”
The engine shut off. “Here it is.”