The Voyage Read Online Free PDF Page B

ship…something will happen to save them. They will meet you in America. You must believe.
    When Alex left Anna on the deck, he returned to his cabin where he sat on the floor, awake, thinking. He was damaged, and he felt that he would never recover. If he had been less outspoken, perhaps his family would be alive. This guilt haunted his every moment. As he sat watching the sun rise, Alex felt the ship come to a stop. The easy swaying motion ceased, and he knew that they had docked somewhere. His first instinct was that they had returned to Germany. It had been a trick all along. The Nazis had given them two days of peace only to return them to hell. Sweat beaded on his brow. His hands shook so badly that he could not steady them. Alex knew he must rise and awaken Manny. He stood up, his knees wobbling beneath him, and walked over to where Manny slept, unaware of what had happened.
    “Manny, get up,” Alex said, shaking Manny’s shoulder. “Get up, the ship has stopped moving.”
    Manny rolled over on to his back and looked at Alex, confused, still hazy with sleep.
    “What are you talking about?”
    “Sit up. Do you feel it?  We’ve stopped moving. I am afraid they have returned us to Germany. I think perhaps this has all been a trick, and now we are all going to concentration camps.”
    Manny sat up in bed. It took a few minutes for him to acclimate himself, but once he did, he realized that Alex was right. The ship had docked…somewhere.
    “What are we going to do?” Alex said, more to himself than to Manny. “There is no place to hide on this ship. They have us. We are their prisoners.” He got up and began to pace the small room. “I would rather jump into the sea and drown than ever see another concentration camp. I can’t take the torture, not again…”
    “Alex, you are getting ahead of yourself. Now please, nobody is jumping in the water. Let me get some clothes on and I will go up and see why the ship has stopped. Perhaps we are having some trouble with the engine or something. All right? Don’t panic, give me a chance to see what is happening.”
    Alex sat on the floor while Manny dressed.
    Manny looked over at Alex. Could he be right? Could he have been right all along? Maybe they were back in Germany, and it had all been a cruel Nazi trick to bring those who were in hiding out into the open, where they could be caught and sent to camps. Oy , this was not good. But before he would allow himself to believe the worst, he would try to stay optimistic. That was always his way. Manny could find the good in the most terrible situations. And he would not abandon hope, not yet.
    “I’ll be right back. You stay here, and don’t do anything crazy. Give me a few minutes, and I’ll find out what is what.”
    Alex nodded as Manny left the cabin, closing the door.
    Manny walked up onto the deck. There were people everywhere…boarding the ship.  He walked over to a crewmember who stood assisting the new passengers, with their luggage and room assignment.
    “Excuse me,” Manny said. “May I ask why we have stopped and who all of these people are?”
    “We are in Cherbourg, sir. We’ve come to pick up additional passengers. It should only be a few hours before we are on our way to Cuba. I am sorry for the delay.”
    “Thank you,” Manny said, breathing a sigh of relief as he heard a couple speaking in Yiddish with a French accent.
    As quickly, as he could Manny raced back to the cabin, to tell Alex. Alex was still sitting on the floor when Manny opened the door.
    “We’re all right. We’re still in France. We’ve picked up some more people. I saw them. They are boarding. One of the men from the crew told me that we should be leaving here soon.”
    “Do you believe him?”
    “I saw the passengers boarding. I do believe him. We are all right, Alex. Everything is fine.” Manny bent to pat Alex’s shoulder. “Come on, get up from the floor. Let’s go upstairs and watch the others come