Danzig Passage (novel)
Danzig Passage (1992) is the fifth novel of Bodie and Brock Thoene's Zion Covenant Series, covering a period from Kristallnacht to the beginning of 1939 and immediately following up where Jerusalem Interlude left-off.
Plot summary
Amongst those watching the pulling-down of the Berlin Wall on November 9, 1989 are 75-year-old Elisa (Lindheim) Murphy and her husband--who reflect that this occurs on the 51st anniversary of Kristallnacht exactly as had been revealed by God to Elisa's father Theo Lindheim when he was flying out of Berlin that fateful day.
In Vienna, Lucy Strasburg, a Bavarian farm-girl and migrant worker, finds herself pregnant by her paramour SS-Major Wolfgang von Fritschauer. She tells this news to Wolf, assuming that he will marry her--whereupon he reveals that he is already married with two daughters, and had impregnated her solely for the Lebensborn program (and the hope of producing a son), and asks her to go to the Lebensborn Centre for care. Lucy has been living in the apartment earlier abandoned by Elisa Lindheim, obtained by Wolf through Otto Wattenburger, who had taken over as the building's superintendent, after helping Leah and Charles to flee Vienna.
Also in Vienna, 16-year-old Peter Wallich watches the burning and destruction of Jewish homes, synagogues and businesses from Otto's apartment--along with his mother, baby brother and sister. They are frightened upon finding a photo of "Uncle Otto" in [...] uniform receiving an award.
In Berlin, Pastor Karl Ibsen (husband of Anna Lindheim's younger sister Helen) of New Church drives to the home of a congregant, Richard Kalner (a Messianic Jew), to take him to New Church for safety--and is arrested along with Richard and his wife Leona; the Kalners' two sons, Jacob and Mark, hide in the apartment's attic overnight and then flee from there through the streets. The SS soon come to New Church and arrest several Jews hiding there as well as Helen, also taking away the Ibsen's son Jamie to sign him up for [...] Youth--but fail to capture Jamie's sister Lori (who likely have placed by SS for Lebensborn).
Also in Berlin, the British Ambassador has to deal with repeated Gestapo demands to turn Theo over to them; he arranges a car to take Theo to the American Embassy, to be smuggled out on a diplomatic flight to the US--which will go via London.
Alfred Halder, a 15-year-old somewhat mentally-[...] savant known to the Ibsens and Kalners, escapes from a State mental hospital where he has been consigned for destruction to the courtyard of New Church. There, he befriends a multi-coloured stray cat (which he names "Joseph"--he discovers later that Joseph is female when it bears a litter of kittens; he adopts the sickliest of the litter, a male, as his own, naming this kitten Werner). Eventually, Jacob and Mark arrive at New Church's gate, and are let in by Alfie. They are soon joined by Jamie who has escaped from the [...] Youth barracks.
In Mandatory Palestine, Captain Samuel Orde commences training of a Jewish militia to defend the Jews against the militant movement (supported by [...] Germany, of which Orde has proof) of Haj Amin Husseini; among the first recruits is Moshe Sachar, the younger brother of the murdered Eli Sachar.
After some time in New Church, Mark and Jamie climb into the bell-tower; there they see a sign announcing the condemnation of New Church for a community centre. When they reveal this to Lori and Jacob, they are initially punished for their unauthorised jaunt--but Jacob recognises the need to plan their escape. Lori, remembering one of Karl's last instructions, calls to TENS (as Karl has given her the visiting card of one of its correspondents), but before she can talk long, Jacob disconnects the phone warning her that it is exactly what the Gestapo would like them to do (as they can trace the call; however, it is not the Gestapo, but a hard SS agent named Hess who listens in).
In Vienna, Peter's mother and sister board a train to Danzig and thence to Warsaw; they leave Peter a peace of paper with the address of Rudy Dorbransky (who has been dead since 1936). Lucy finds out the issues of getting to Warsaw (such as visa and travel charges) and decides to go to Danzig (where she will not need a visa, but can then cross freely to Poland)--Peter and his brother travel with her. At Berlin station, SS-Major Alexander Hess boards the train and looks at Peter menacingly. Eventually, near the border, Peter seizes Hess' gun and forces Hess to strip, tossing his clothing outside--and then finally forces Hess to jump [...] into the cold night.
Jacob, Lori, Mark, Jamie and Alfie soon find Karl's abandoned car, which they drive out of Berlin along secondary roads. They then take a lift from a farmer to Shneidemuhl and hike to the border. When the Danzig Express passes overhead, Jacob sees an SS-Major's uniform falling--and dons it (though its trousers are loose and shirt/jacket tight) as a useful disguise. When Hess jumps, the disguised Jacob raises the alarm--whereupon the SS border guards release their vicious dogs on Hess. The five, meanwhile, board the train and hide there till it reaches Danzig station.