The Sound of Light, page 33
“You—you gave our son to—to total strangers?”
Bas shrugged. “You saw it yesterday, mothers shoving their children through car windows.”
Desperate mothers, certain their children stood a better chance in a car than on foot. “But we already have a car. What on earth? Where—how—what were you thinking?”
A horse-drawn cart stopped in front of them, and Bas stomped the brakes.
Aleida scrambled out of the car, her chest heaving. She had to find her son.
“Aleida! Get back here.”
“No!” She ran down the road and wove through the crowd. “Theo! Theo!”
She peered into the open window of a black sedan. No Theo. “Have you seen a little blond boy, three years old, with—with an English couple?”
“No. No, I haven’t.” A middle-aged woman looked at Aleida with alarm.
A hand clamped onto her arm, and she cried out.
“Get in the car.” Bas jerked her around to face him.
“I will not.” She yanked her arm in vain. Why could she never break free of this man?
Something hardened in her, hardened so brittle it snapped, and she glared into Bas’s thundercloud eyes. “I will not go with you. I’m looking for my son, and I never want to see you again.”
His lips curved up like a sword. “Now, why would you want to leave me? I’m the only one who knows the name and address of the couple in London.”
Air and hope and strength leaked from her chest. She was trapped. The only way to find her son was to stay with the man who’d given him away.
“If you ever leave me . . .” Bas’s grip drilled into her arm, dug grooves between muscles. “Or if you ever talk that way to me again, you’ll never again see that monstrosity you call a son.”
A cry tumbled out, all her grief for Theo mingling with the burning pain in her arm.
More cries rang out, as if the whole world wept with her.
Someone bumped Aleida.
All around, people scurried off the road.
She gasped. Three black aircraft dove down.
“Get in the car.” Bas dragged her down the road. “You’ve cost me enough time with your hysterics.”
He didn’t care about her, didn’t care about his child, only about himself.
At the car, Bas reached for the door handle.
A coiled spring burst inside her. She planted one foot and spun backward, toward Bas, slammed her shoulders into his arm, broke his grip.
She bolted for the trees.
“Get in the car!” Bas yelled. “One!”
When he got to three, he’d beat her senseless.
Aleida flung herself flat under the trees and covered her head.
The airplanes roared closer, screaming, spitting.
“Two!”
Aleida hunkered low among strangers crying and praying and pleading to live.
Shots rang out, clattered along the pavement, a giant chainsaw ripping the road in two.
“Thr—” Bas’s voice spiraled up into a squeal, almost girlish.
The aircraft noise died down, but everyone still cried and prayed and pleaded to live.
Bas never finished the word three.
Aleida forced herself to stand, to walk. Numb.
Sebastiaan Martens, a powerful man with powerful friends, lay by his expensive car, his limbs at grotesque angles, his eyes dull as ancient pewter.
So much red.
Aleida had wanted him dead. Now it had happened.
But now, how could she find her son?
Author’s note
Dear Reader,
Thank you for journeying with Henrik and Else through a fascinating time in history. The story of Denmark in World War II is remarkable and often surprising. When the Germans invaded on April 9, 1940, the tiny country fell in a matter of hours. The Germans made Denmark a “model protectorate.” Conditions were excellent, with freedoms unseen in other occupied nations and with more food than even in Germany.
As in all occupied countries, reactions ran from active resistance to passive resistance to passive collaboration to active collaboration. Up until late 1943, the vast majority of Danes didn’t make waves, fearing the harsh conditions seen elsewhere. However, few Danes actively supported the Nazi cause. The Frikorps Danmark, Schalburg Corps, and the Danish Nazi Party were small and often mocked and derided.
Active resistance began among the communists, an unpopular group in Denmark, leading to further reluctance to resist. Over the years, resistance groups grew, often aided by the British SOE. Real groups mentioned in the story include BOPA, Holger Danske, and the Ringen. The Freedom Council, which first met on September 16, 1943, unified these groups, and the roundup of the Jews in October 1943 led to an explosion in popularity. The resistance continued to grow up until liberation in May 1945. Real freedom fighters named in the story include Mogens Staffeldt, Erling Foss, Flemming Muus (code name “Jam”), and Christmas Møller.
Illegal newspapers flourished in Denmark, including the papers mentioned—Frit Danmark, De frie Danske, and Land og Folk.
Henrik’s story was inspired by Knud Christiansen, a Danish Olympic rower who is named in the “Righteous Among the Nations” by Yad Vashem for hiding dozens of Jews in his seaside home and transporting them to Sweden in his racing boat. Christiansen is among the estimated thirty to forty thousand Danes who rose, almost as one, to rescue the Jews of Denmark.
As noted in the story, the Germans did not force the Danish government to impose antisemitic laws. Danish Jews never were required to wear the yellow star, and they kept their jobs and freedoms. Since Denmark had a small Jewish population, the Nazis bided their time.
As tensions rose in 1943, Werner Best, the Reich Plenipotentiary to Denmark, under pressure from Hitler and Himmler, issued a decree to round up all the Jews in Denmark on a single night, October 1–2, 1943. However, he leaked the information to his friend, Georg Duckwitz, German shipping attaché in Denmark. Duckwitz, at great personal risk, informed some Danish politicians, who spread the word to the Jewish community and the resistance.
Between 7,200 and 7,800 Jews were safely transported to Sweden in October 1943. The Germans deported 474 to Theresienstadt, but due to hounding by Danish leaders, the Danish Jews were treated well, with about 58 deaths—the highest survival rate in a Nazi-occupied country. As depicted in the novel, the Gestapo chief did indeed issue an order not to break down doors or to loot, and German soldiers often looked the other way when Jewish families passed—truly astounding. This is believed to be due to the strong protests made by the Danish population and leadership.
The world-renowned Institute for Theoretical Physics in Copenhagen was renamed the Niels Bohr Institute after Bohr’s death in 1962. As a chemistry major, I was intrigued to find the name of this Nobel Laureate in my World War II research, and I couldn’t resist making his institute a focal point for this story.
Bohr sheltered refugee scientists in the 1930s, was friends with many in the resistance, and sent valuable information clandestinely to the Allies—a fact I was unable to include in this story. On September 29–30, 1943, he and his wife fled by boat to Sweden, with his sons following soon after. His pleas to the Swedish king and prime minister on behalf of the Danish Jews may have helped influence the granting of asylum.
Niels Bohr arrived in New York on the HMT Aquitania on December 6, 1943—the same day the Germans officially took over his institute in Copenhagen. However, intervention from Werner Heisenberg led to the Germans releasing the institute back to the University of Copenhagen.
The story of atomic research during the war is fascinating. Due to their isolation, physicists in Denmark didn’t know about the key discoveries made during the war, which is reflected in Else’s story. Real-life physicists at the institute mentioned in the story include Georg von Hevesy, Hilde Levi, and Stefan Rozental. Hevesy did in fact dissolve Nobel medals in aqua regia. The dissolved gold was precipitated out after the war and cast into new medals for Max von Laue and James Franck. Hevesy received his own Nobel Prize on December 6, 1943.
I hope this story encourages you to learn more about the big things accomplished during the war in this tiny nation.
Acknowledgments
Writing acknowledgments is always challenging. If I were to list every person who helped, inspired, or encouraged me, this section would be longer than the novel itself.
As always, many thanks go to my family and friends, who give me latitude to be a strange writer and to occasionally go missing into my story world. All right, “often” is more accurate than “occasionally.”
Thank you to my critique partners, Marcy Weydemuller, Judy Gann, Sherry Kyle, and Lisa Bogart, for keeping my story on track.
I’m also thrilled to work with the best in the publishing industry! My editors, Vicki Crumpton and Kristin Kornoelje, have edited all fifteen of my novels. Vicki’s humor and love of history and story make editing enjoyable! Thank you also to my agent, Rachel Kent, for her calmness and incredible insight. And thanks to Michele Misiak and Karen Steele at Revell for the outstanding work in marketing and publicity.
And my dear readers, tusen tak (thousand thanks) for reading my books and letting me know what the stories mean to you. Please visit me at www.sarahsundin.com to leave a message, sign up for my email newsletter, and read about the history behind the story. I hope to hear from you.
Pronunciation Guide and Glossary
Key
U(r)—to pronounce the Danish Ø, say UR but without the R.
(Uh)—the uh is almost swallowed.
Dh—pronounced like th in smooth.
Note: Å is now used in place of Aa, but it wasn’t introduced until 1948, so the older spelling is used in the novel.
Note: in the Danish alphabet, Æ and Ø follow Z.
Pronunciation Guide—Names
Henrik Ahlefeldt—[HEN-rick AY-luh-FELT]
Else—[EL-suh]
Birgitte—[Beer-GEE-d(uh)]
Bruun—[Broon]
Hyllested—[HOO-luh-STEDH]
Ib Malmstrøm—[Eeb MELM-stru(r)m]
Janne—[YEN-(uh)]
Jørgen Wolff—[YUR-(uh)n Vohlf]
Kaj—[Kigh]
Laila Berend—[LIGH-luh BAIR-en]
Margrethe—[Mar-GRAY-t(uh)]
Mogens—[MOH-(uh)nss]
Ove Nyholm—[OH-v(uh) NOO-hohlm]
Skov—[Skoh]
Svend Østergaard—[Sven U(R)-stuh-GAR]
Søren Sparsø—[SUR-(uh)n SPAR-su(r)]
Thorvald Thorup—[TOHR-vel TOH-rup]
Pronunciation Guide—Places and Groups
Amalienborg—[ah-MEH-lyeen-BOH]
Berlingske Tidende—[BAIR-leeng-sk(uh) TOODH-uh-n(uh)]
Bispebjerg—[BEESS-puh-BYAIR]
Blegdamsvej—[BLIGH-damz-VIGH]
Bredgade—[BREDH-GAH-(uh)]
Bøllemosen—[BU(R)L-uh-MOH-sen]
Dagmarhus—[DOW-mar-HOOSS]
Frederiksgade—[FREDH-rickz-GAH-(uh)]
De frie Danske—[dee FREE DEN-sk(uh)]—The Free Danes
Frihedsraad—[FREE-hedhz-ROHDH]—Freedom Council
Frit Danmark—[Freet DEN-mark]—Free Denmark
Fælledparken—[FEL-udh-PAR-k(uh)n]
Gilleleje—[GEE-l(uh)-LIGH-(uh)]
Gothersgade—[GOH-duss-GAH-(uh)]
Helsingør—[HEL-sing-ur]
Holger Danske—[HOHL-guh DEN-sk(uh)]
Hven—[Ven]
Jægersborg—[YAY-uhz-BOH]
Kongens Nytorv—[kong-EENSS NOO-tohr]
Kystbanen—[KOOST-bay-n(uh)n]
Land og Folk—[LAN oh FOHLK]
Langebro—[LANG-uh-BROH]
Det lille Apotek—[duh LEE-luh AH-poh-taik]
Lyd-af-Lys—[LOODH-ow-LOOSS]
Nordhavn—[NOHR-hown]
Nørrebrogade—[NU(R)-uh-bro-GAH-(uh)]
Nørreport—[NUR-uh-PORT]
Plads—[Pless]—place/square
Raadhuspladsen—[ROHDH-hooss-PLESS-uhn]—city hall square
Skodsborg—[SKAHDHZ-boh]
Sorgenfri—[SOHR-en-FREE]
Store Kongensgade—[STOH-r(uh) kong-EENSS-GAH-(uh)]
Strandvej—[STRAHN-vigh]
Søllerød—[SU(R)L-uh-RU(R)DH]
Trørød—[TRUR-u(r)dh]
Vedbæk—[VEDH-baik]
Vesterbrogade—[VEST-er-bro-GAH-(uh)]
Vestre Fængsel—[VEST-r(uh) FENG-s(uh)l]—western prison
Øresund—[UR-uh-SOON]
Østerbrogade—[U(R)-stuh-bro-GAH-(uh)]
Glossary
Aaben—[OH-pen]—open
Boghandel—[BOH-han-(uh)l]—bookstore
Brunede kartofler—[BROO-nedh-(uh) kah-TOHF-ler]—caramelized potatoes
Der er et yndigt land—[dair air it OON-deet lan]—“There Is a Lovely Land” (Danish national anthem)
Far—father
Farfar—father’s father (grandfather)
Farmor—father’s mother (grandmother)
Farvel—[far-VEL]—goodbye
Fru—[Froo]—Mrs./ma’am
Frue—[FROO-(uh)]—Miss
God aften—[Goh OFF-ten]—good evening
God dag—[Goh day]—good day
Havmand—[HOW-man]—merman
Hej—[high]—hi
Herre—[HAIR-(uh)]—Mr./sir
Hyggelig—[HOO-guh-lee]—cozy, nice
Ja—[yah]—yes
Kagemand—[KAY-(uh)-man]—“cake man”—traditional birthday cake shaped like a man
Kirke—[KEER-g(uh)]—church
Den Kolde Skulder—[den KOHL-dh(uh) SKOO-luh]—the cold shoulder
Krone (plural kroner)—[KROHN-(uh)—KROHN-uh]—unit of money
Lille Havfrue—[LEE-luh HOW-froo-(uh)]—Little Mermaid
Lukket—[LOH-kud]—closed
Manuel arbejder—[MAN-oo-el AR-bye-der]—manual laborer
Min elskede—[meen ELSS-kudh-(uh)]—my beloved
Min kære—[meen KAY-uh]—my dear
Mor—mother
Nej—[nigh]—no
Og—[oh]—and
Onkel—[OHN-kul]—uncle
Smørrebrød—[SMUR-(uh)-BR(UR)DH]—open-faced sandwich
Stikker—[STIGG-uh]—informer
Tak—[tahk]—thanks
Tante—[TEN-t(uh)]—aunt
Æbleskiver—[AY-pluh-SKEE-wuh]—spherical sweet pancakes
Discussion Questions
The story of Denmark in World War II isn’t well known. What aspects of this history surprised you or made you run to the internet to check something?
Henrik is inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s tale “The Little Mermaid,” which varies in many details from the Disney version. How does this tale and the statue inspire Henrik throughout the story? Are there any fairy tales or legends that have inspired you?
Else’s great dream has always been to be a physicist. What difficulties has she faced achieving this dream? What drives her? When she’s at the chalkboard solving a problem, she feels great joy. What in your life gives you that kind of joy?
Henrik has a difficult relationship with his father. How do his attitudes toward his father shift during the story, and why? How has this relationship led Henrik to “waste his potential”—and how does this change? What helps you forgive others when they hurt you?
All her life, Else has avoided conflict and confrontation. In what ways is this good, and in what ways is this bad? How does she change during the story? Does she “overcorrect”? Do you tend to avoid conflict—or thrive on it?
Henrik lives a double life. What would be difficult about this? What has he sacrificed?
Else struggles with her decision to join the resistance, wondering if it’s ever “right to do wrong to do right.” In what situations is it right to break the law? And when is it best to obey laws we don’t agree with or that make life difficult? Which factors should we consider in making these decisions?
Danish resistance ranged from “Den Kolde Skulder” to printing papers to sabotage to assassinations of Germans and Danish “stikkers.” In similar circumstances, would you be involved? To what degree?
Else tries to build a hedge around her growing attraction to Hemming due to their differences. How does she grow in this regard? How does she learn to balance her desires for attraction, intellectual stimulation, companionship, and character?
Henrik battles his attraction to Else for entirely different reasons. What factors does he have to consider? Do you agree with the decision he made in the middle of the story regarding Else and his secret?
Henrik tells Else that sometimes silence is courageous and sometimes it’s cowardly. What do you think of this? How do these statements inspire them throughout the story?
The rescue of the Danish Jews is one of the most astonishing and inspiring stories to come out of World War II. The Danes outspokenly refused to allow the oppression of other human beings—and acted on that principle. Does that change or modify how you might act?
Light and prisms and the duality of light (both wave and particle) are recurring motifs in the story. How do you see this in the story? Did it make you think differently about anything else in the world?
Sarah Sundin is the bestselling author of Until Leaves Fall in Paris and When Twilight Breaks, as well as the Sunrise at Normandy, Waves of Freedom, Wings of the Nightingale, and Wings of Glory series. Her novels When Twilight Breaks and The Land Beneath Us were finalists for the Christy Award, The Sky Above Us received the 2020 Carol Award, and The Sea Before Us received the 2019 Reader’s Choice Award from Faith, Hope, and Love.
During WWII, one of her grandfathers served as a pharmacist’s mate (medic) in the US Navy, and her great-uncle flew with the US Eighth Air Force. Her other grandfather, a professor of German, helped train American soldiers in the German language through the US Army Specialized Training Program.
Sarah and her husband live in Southern California and have three adult children. Their two rescue dogs make sure she gets plenty of walks and fresh air. Sarah teaches Sunday school and women’s Bible studies, and she enjoys speaking for church, community, and writers’ groups. She also serves as codirector of the West Coast Christian Writers Conference. Visit www.sarahsundin.com for more information.
