“Don’t despair,” Gerlinde said and took Lotte’s hand.
There it was again, the caring friendship they’d almost lost over the constant slew of lies Lotte had fed her friend.
Gerlinde dragged her friend behind, stopping every now and then to ask passersby about a place to spend the night. Finally, a young woman said her mother owned a small inn in a village outside Hamburg.
“I’m going there right now, and you’re welcome to come with me. Not many paying guests these days,” the woman told them.
“We would be more than happy,” Gerlinde said.
Lotte could only stare with dull eyes. The desolate state of Hamburg had slashed her reserves, making her fold beneath the oppressive weight of sorrow for her family. She nodded to everything Gerlinde arranged, unable to voice an opinion of her own.
Tod
