“One . . . two . . . three!” They shoved together and the window slid open, bringing a blast of damp air. Ans was slightly relieved to see a flat, narrow ledge about two feet below the dormer where they could stand. But they were four stories above the street and the wind was blowing. And there was nothing to hang on to. Eloise braced her arms on the windowsill and hoisted herself through the opening. Her silk nightgown snagged and tore. Ans’s instinct was to stay inside on the crate, but she had no other choice but to follow Eloise outside into the cold, clear night. She linked arms with her, gripping the window frame with her other hand.

“You’re shaking,” Eloise said.

“It’s cold out here. And it’s an awfully long way down.”

But Eloise was looking up, not down. “There! Look!” she said, pointing. “Den Haag is in that direction.”

Ans saw faint flashes of light on the horizon, followed by a rumbling sound several seconds later. “Are they bombing the city?”

“My guess is they’re bombing the airport. There’s an army airfield over there.”

“Maybe it’s a training exercise.”

“Why would our army use Nazi airplanes for training? Look, over there.” She pivoted in the narrow space and pointed to an entire formation of planes that filled the sky like migrating birds. Ans felt the deep throb of their engines in the pit of her stomach. Dread filled every inch of her.

“See? Nazi planes,” Eloise said. “It looks like they’re heading toward Scheveningen on the Noordzee coast. And look! They’re dropping paratroopers!” Ans watched in disbelief as the planes spewed out tiny specks like soot that drifted slowly to the ground. “See? They’re invading us.”

“Heaven help us . . . ,” Ans murmured.

“You can save your breath, Ans. Heaven didn’t help us the last time.”

Ans studied Eloise’s face in the dim light, searching for signs of an emotional collapse. The professor said that sights and sounds or even smells might act as trip wires, triggering dark thoughts of harming herself. If the news from Norway had nearly created a crisis, what would the sight of a Nazi invasion do?

“Oh, my poor, dear Herman,” she said. “He’s caught in the middle of that mess.”

“I’m sure he’ll be fine, Eloise. They’ll have shelters and a safe place for him to go.”

“Yes, but how will he ever get home?”

Ans scrambled for a reply. “I’m sure our soldiers are fighting back. We have troops stationed in Den Haag to protect the queen and the royal family.”

Eloise gave a harsh laugh. “Our tiny Dutch army doesn’t stand a chance! Name one other country that has been able to stand up to the Nazis.”