The boy smiled. He said: “Do not fear, Ingrid. Hilde will never talk. If things get too bad I know what she will do.”
Ingrid nodded. She said: “Yes…so do I. She will kill herself—if she can. But sometimes that is not easy.” She sighed. “You must be thirsty, Gunnar. You’ve come a long way. Would you like the beer?” She indicated the mug on the table.
The boy said: “Thank you.” He picked up the mug, drank a little of the beer. He said: “Here’s to Hilde. And to Norway!”
He handed her the mug. She smiled at him. She put the mug to her lips, drank some of the beer.
She said: “Did you come in by the town? Did you see anything?”
He shook his head. “I came in the town,” he said, “by the back alleyways. You know, inside the town limits no one is allowed to be out at night. I saw Nielenberg—the
