Lotte stepped off the train, nostalgia sweeping across her heart. Gerlinde and Jan in tow, she walked through the destroyed city to Anna’s apartment on the grounds of the Charité clinic. A golden autumn sun shone down on them, casting Berlin in a warm light, but without the heating the air. At the beginning of November, winter hung in the air.
Several months earlier, she’d thought how much more beautiful Warsaw was than her beloved Berlin. But after what the Nazis had done to Warsaw, even a Berlin in ruins appeared to be the epitome of elegance.
She had phoned her sister Anna in advance to let her know she was coming to visit, but hadn’t been able to give details, for fear of the line being tapped. Now the three of them stood in front of the sad and dirty employee housing where Anna live
