Hero Read Online Free PDF Page A

she’ll have a foal. Beside Marijke is Clasina, Hero’s mother. Clasina is a little skittish, especially if she doesn’t know you.”
    Gabe seemed to know everything about the horses. Izaak wished he knew about horses too. He stood close to Hero’s face and smelled the strong smell of the animal. Hero’s nostrils trembled. He gazed calmly at Izaak. Izaak’s heart skipped. Without thinking, he touched the smooth skin of Hero’s face. Hero nuzzled his sleeve. Izaak smiled. His cheeks burned. He felt like he was in a magical dream.
    â€œSee,” Gabe murmured. “Hero wants to make friends already.”
    For a moment Izaak had forgotten about the boy with the purple face.Now he looked at him again; Gabe didn’t look like a monster at all.
    â€œTwice a day, before and after school, you will help take care of the horses.”
    Izaak walked past Hero, remembering to stroke the horse while he walked beside him. A warm feeling filled his chest, the first good feeling he had had since he’d left Amsterdam.

School
    â€œJan, I’m not waiting!” Annie’s voice sang out.
    Izaak buttoned the green, rubber coat and pulled the hood over his head. He stuffed his feet into wooden clogs and followed Annie out the door. Together they ran down the lane to the house near the farm. Raindrops pelted them like small stones. As he skipped to avoid one puddle, he landed in another. The water splashed over his clogs, soaking his socks. He laughed, stretched his arms and held up the palms of his hands. The watertickled his fingers. He licked the rain from his lips. He sprinted to catch up with Annie. Her hood had come off and her red curly hair bounced up and down in stretched ringlets.
    Annie had been at the farm much longer than he had. She was Jewish just like him. The only difference was that Annie didn’t look Jewish.
    Annie’s cries sang in the early November morning. He couldn’t keep up with her. She headed for the small house at the end of the farm buildings. Albert, Nel and their six children filled the small but tidy dwelling.
    From behind the bare wooden door appeared Harm, a tall boy, wearing a black cap and Elizabeth, his sister, with long, spindly legs. Next came Jaap, a boy Izaak’s age, followed by the twins, Klaas and Durk, who were six. One older girl, Mien, worked in the village at the bakery.
    For the last month, Izaak had joined this group of children as they walkedthe one-and-a-half kilometer road to the village. They all attended the two-room school. Jaap and Izaak were in grade three, the twins and Annie in grade one. The headmaster, Mr. Abma, taught Elizabeth in grade five and Harm in grade six.
    Izaak, Jaap, Annie and the twins had a teacher named Miss Afke.
    While they tromped and splashed through puddles and mud, Izaak thought about school. Since the war began, he hadn’t been allowed at school. Jews were forbidden to go anywhere. They couldn’t walk in parks, go on buses and streetcars or in many stores. He was glad he could go to school here. Life on the farm kept him busy as well. Every morning before school, he fed Hero and made sure the stallion had enough fresh straw for the day while Gabe looked after the other two horses. Hero greeted Izaak as soon as he opened the door to the stable. Izaak’s chest filled with warmth every-timehe stroked Hero’s neck and ruffled the long thick mane.
    On the first day of school, the children of the village had stared at him. A big boy with a mean smile had called him “a dirty Jew” and had pushed him during recess. Izaak froze, but Harm and Jaap had been right there, so the boy had sulked away. From that day on Izaak felt safe with Albert and Nel’s children. They were rough and loud, especially the twins, but he liked them.
    After school, they often came over to the farm. They played hide-andgo-seek. The farm was isolated. It was built on a man-made hill called a terp. A wide