“And there are others too? Others in hiding? Mama has a whole sack of potatoes.”

“Can you just give me the food, moje wszystko?” he pleaded. “I’ll get it to those who need it. I don’t have to stay in your home where the Nazis might find me. If I were to do as you ask, I’d have to come to and leave your house at least once a day. It is far too dangerous.”

I rocked back on my heels and crossed my arms over my chest.

“Remember when you said I was spoiled, Tomasz?”

“I...do...”

“Well, I am accustomed to getting my own way,” I said flatly. “And I am not above blackmailing you when I know it’s for your own good. So you will come stay with us, or I will find another way to get the food to those who need it.” He stared at me impassively, so I raised my eyebrows and added slowly, “Maybe I can visit Nadia Nowak? Perhaps she has some ideas how I could distribute this food myself.”

His eyes widened.

“Alina Dziak,” he said incredulously. “That is...”

“That is the deal.” I shrugged. “Take it, or leave it.”

“You leave me no choice.”

“That’s exactly what I was intending,” I said. He shook his head at me, clearly frustrated. “I have more tricks up my sleeve, Tomasz. Don’t make me use them.”

“What are these tricks?” he asked, frowning harder now.

I leaned forward and brushed my lips against his.

“I will save them for the next time you underestimate me,” I said softly, then I brushed the hair back from his eyes. He was still frowning at me, so I kissed him again, then turned away to return to the house, calling softly over my shoulder, “Come once it’s dark. We’ll be ready for you.”

CHAPTER 18

Alice

I go through the motions at home. Wade is working late, making up lost time for yesterday—he has some plastics project on that’s been causing him grief so I’m not surprised. As soon as the kids are in bed, I pour myself a glass of wine, put some music on and sink into the sofa.

Alice plane Poland.

It’s an absurd request. Completely unreasonable. Totally impractical.

I just have no idea how I can ever decline it. If Babcia asked for the moon right now, I’d have to try to find a way to get it for her. And I think all she’s asking me to do is get on a plane, take some photos and come home. How quickly could I go? How quickly could I come back? I don’t even know where Trzebinia is. All I really know about the geography of Poland is that it’s in Europe, and Warsaw is the capital.

I could look it all up on Wade’s laptop. It’s just within my reach, resting on the coffee table in front of me. I don’t reach for it. Instead, I listen to the music, and I wait until I hear Wade pulling into the garage.

We haven’t spoken a word to each other since the argument last night, but even so, I know he’s going to bring flowers home with him tonight and he’ll be desperate to earn my forgiveness. Right on cue, he walks into the house carrying a bouquet of long-stemmed red roses and wearing a contrite expression. I set the wineglass next to the laptop as I stand, take the roses and accept the kiss he offers.

“I’m sorry,” he whispers.

“Me too,” I whisper back.

“How are the kids? How is Babcia? How are you doing?” Wade asks.

“Why don’t you go get your dinner and I’ll fill you in while you eat?”

* * *

“...even if I wanted to go, it would be impossible.”

Tonight, Wade has been listening in silence while I talk, and it kind of reminds me of our earlier years, when I was the chatty one and he was the calm, scientific one. It used to astound me that someone so brilliant seemed to have endless interest in whatever I had to say—in the early months of our relationship, we talked until the sunrise more than once, and I’d never felt so important before. We’re a long way from that place these days, but for a moment, it actually feels nice to remember that’s the kind of people we used to be together—almost like we’ve taken a brief vacation back to a special place we used to visit.

Wade’s gaze is expressionless as he asks, “Do you want to go?”

“It doesn’t matter what I want,” I say stiffly. “How could I possibly leave the kids?”

He’s back in my good graces well and truly after listening to me prattle on and on about this for the last forty-five minutes, but in one fell swoop, he’s right back into my bad books.

“Jesus, Alice,” Wade says. His exasperation is immediately on full display. “Give me at least a little credit. I have a PhD, for God’s sake. I can handle a few days on my own with two kids.”

Red rage rushes in at me, so vivid and sudden that I can’t actually see past it. I’m a boiling, seething pile of fury and I have no idea what I’m supposed to do with all of this anger, so I just stare at him, my jaw hanging loose.

“Really?” I say when my rage fades enough that I can bring myself to speak again. “It’s as simple as that, is it?”

“Yes, it is that simple,” my husband says flatly. He leans back in the chair and crosses his arms over his chest. “I’m not saying I’d do everything your way, but we’d get by.”

It’s my turn to lean back in my chair, and I exactly mirror his stance—crossing my arms over my chest and jutting my chin up a little.

“And what would that look like, Wade? What would you do with Eddie, for example?”

I’ve broken the unspoken rule of our family life: one does not draw attention to the elephant in the room. Wade’s lack of a relationship with Eddie is a ghostly specter we can all see, but we never directly address. The flush on my husband’s cheeks suggests he’s embarrassed by the question, but the impatience doesn’t fade from his glare.

“He’d go to school. Like a normal kid.”

“He can’t handle full-time school, Wade,” I say pointedly. “Even his teachers agree.”

“Well, he’d deal with it for one week. Maybe it’s time we push him a bit more.”

“Push him a bit more?” I repeat the words blankly, but I can feel my eyebrows drawing down as my face shifts into a derisive scowl.

“Yes, Alice,” Wade says impatiently. He pauses, then he says carefully, “It’s just that sometimes, maybe, you coddle him a little—”

“Coddle him?” I gasp, and that’s it—I am done. I slam my hands onto the table, ready to stand, but we’ve been married for ten years—Wade really does know me too well.