One morning when Mrs. Beaufoy came to give us breakfast, she had some news. "I'm afraid to say that we just got the news that... Louis died."
Maman's knees buckled. I ran to hold her up and asked, "How do you know?" My voice trembled.
"Well, in the paper they publish all the deaths of residents in Bourges. And Louis was one of them."
"No!" I cried. Tears streamed down my face. Mrs. Beaufoy set the tray down next to the mattress and sat with us for a long time. None of us spoke. Eventually, I picked up the tray, Maman and I started eating toast, and Mrs. Beaufoy got up to leave. When she had reached the stairs Maman said, "He died a brave young man, fighting for the Allies, fighting for his nation and its citizens, fighting against cruelty and injustice."
"Yes. Yes he did, you're right." You could see pride in her and Maman's eyes. Mrs. Beaufoy had known Louis for a long time, before I was born. She had almost been like a godmother to Louise. Mrs. Beaufoy exited our humble "room" and Maman, Phillipe, and I ate breakfast together, silently remembering memories about Louis.
YOU ARE READING
We Were Given A Miracle
Historical FictionGisele lives in France with her family in the 1940s. When the Nazis conquer the country, her world is turned upside down. Gisele and her family are Jewish, which complicates the situation even more. With the looming threat of being sent to a concent...
