Summary

In Chapter 43, Gerta and Lev are on route to the British Mandate of Palestine with a group of 12 led by Michah, who smuggles them out of the camp by handing an envelope to the British guard at the gate. They cross the threshold of Bergen-Belsen for the last time and they travel by foot across Europe, resting in barns of sympathetic villagers along the way. One day, Michah apologizes to Gerta and explains that flirting with many girls helped him cope with his loss. When they reach the French port, they board the Oasis boat. They almost reach Palestine when a British vessel catches up to them. They will be forced to turn around, so the refugee women and children are loaded into life boats and the men jump into the open ocean. In Chapter 44, Gerta reaches the shore and frantically looks...