They crossed the bridge over the Nieuwe Rijn and took back alleyways lined with bicycles to Erik’s street. He leaned her bike against the wall outside his building, and they climbed the steep steps to his one-room apartment on the third floor.

Ans knew how indecent it might look for them to be alone, but there were few places in wartime Leiden where a young couple could go to be together. Eating in restaurants had become too expensive, and Erik felt uncomfortable in Eloise’s elegant town house. Besides, the dating rituals appropriate before the war no longer seemed to matter in these uncertain times. Even so, Ans knew that Erik respected her moral principles, so they’d decided to spend an evening or two together each week at his apartment where they would cook dinner, kiss and hug, and talk about all manner of things to take their minds off the war. Erik would walk Ans back to the town house before curfew.

“It looks like our dinner will be meager tonight,” he said, showing Ans what was left of his bag of rice. She took it from him and poured it into a small pot, then added water to cook it.

“It’s hard to plan meals when you never know what’s going to be available from week to week,” she replied. She struck a match to start the cookstove. “Hooray! At least we have gas tonight.”

“And these are all that’s left of my spices from home.” He held up the nearly empty containers of Indonesian spices. “I won’t be able to get more until the war ends, so I suppose we’ll have to eat Dutch food.” He glanced at her and smiled. Erik lit the other gas burner, drizzled a tiny amount of oil in the pan, then tossed in vegetables. Oil was becoming scarce too.

“I love your spicy food,” Ans said. “I’m going to miss it. And that’s another reason to pray that the war ends soon.” With so many more Dutchmen now being forced to go underground to escape the labor camps, she was glad that Erik was still beside her. But his exemption as a member of the Nazi Party still bothered her. “What about after the war?” she asked aloud. “What will happen to NSB members when the Nazis lose?”

“You mean if they lose. They’re very powerful, Ans. And they’re deeply entrenched all across Europe.”

“Except in Great Britain. They haven’t won there yet.”

“No, but the British are taking such a pounding from the Luftwaffe that they’re certain to give up before long. At least, that’s what the Nazi generals are saying.”