Sergeant Bayer drove across the border, back into Belgium, and minutes later they entered Tournai. Ziegler admired the city as it sprawled before them—brick buildings and tile roofs, anchored by the belfry tower and the cathedral. It seemed a nice town to visit, even holiday for a few days if times were different. But soldiers now patrolled the streets, machine guns at the ready. No one resisted. The residents went about their business, trying to pretend it was the same as before the Germans came. Even though they knew it never would be.
The German occupation force had commandeered a hotel near the town center to house officers and aides. Around the corner, next to a Belgian bank, the Gestapo had confiscated the law offices of a Jewish attorney. Ziegler was given a cramped space in the re
