Recap: Something is very strange. Sabrina told Miri that the year is 1497, which Miri says is impossible. There are no cars and there is no refrigerator. The trees in the courtyard look smaller. Mrs. Dolar tells the girls there is a visitor named Mrs. Cornwell. She warns Miri and Katie that they should not say anything about being Jewish and must pretend to be Conversos. Mrs. Cornwell asks them questions and then says she looks forward to seeing the girls in church. Miri thinks to herself that she will never set foot in a church, and she needs to get out of this dream – or whatever it is – fast.
After Mrs. Cornwell left, we headed to the secret room to daven Minchah. There was something special about holding the handwritten siddur. It felt like I was holding history in my hands, and it made me feel so close to Hashem.
Katie finished davening and then she turned to me. “How can a huge olive tree just disappear?”
“How come there are no cars or trucks and no electric lights?” I asked.
“We’re davening in a secret room. How can we be in a different century? It’s not possible.” Katie paced back and forth.
Just then, Sabrina rushed into the room. There was a petite girl with her who looked terrified. She had dark, curly hair.
“You’ll be safe here, Esther.”
“My sister Ita and the twins...” She was sobbing.
“Tell us what happened.” Sabrina put her arm on Esther’s shoulder. “It will help you feel better to talk about it.”
Esther took a long, shuddering breath.
“It was late at night, after eleven. My mother told me to make sure all the doors and windows were locked. Then she took out the precious flour to make into matzos. My father ground it in a special, hidden spot in the mill behind our house.
“Madre placed the dough onto a baking sheet. I poked the holes, and then she slid it into the stone oven to bake. I’d scrubbed the hearth so no chametz could be found. The twins and Ita were sleeping peacefully in the next room.
“As she pulled the matzos out, we heard horses approaching.
“Padre glanced out the window and yelled to Madre, ‘The children! Send them away. Fast!’
“Madre ran into the bedroom, shook Ita and the twins awake, and told them to climb out the back window and run away as fast as they could into the woods. ‘Ita, watch the twins.’
“She turned to me. There wasn’t enough time for me to follow. They were at the door. I rushed into the food closet and closed the door.
“They stomped into the house. The soldiers of the Inquisition. A man read from some parchment: ‘We have information. You are baking religious bread. Jewish matzos.’ They grabbed my mother and father and dragged them away.
“The house was empty. I ran to Mrs. Dolar’s house. I told her what happened.” Esther stopped the story and sobbed quietly. “What if I never see them again? What if my whole family perishes?”
“Mr. Sanchez will help. Don’t despair,” Sabrina said.
This poor girl. What a horror to experience!
Mrs. Dolar strode into the room and closed the door behind her. She was carrying a mug of hot coffee and a small bowl of broth, which she laid down on the table.
“Esther, we already sent people to look for your siblings. Hashem is with us. He will save them.”
“My parents were taken to prison,” Esther said between deep sobs.
Mrs. Dolar sat down on a small couch that was in the corner of the room and took Esther into her arms. The poor girl was so overwrought she couldn’t stop crying.
Katie and I exchanged worried looks.
Mrs. Dolar motioned us over. “Sabrina, you and Miri and Katie should go help in the search. Sabrina knows the woods very well. Esther, describe your sister and the twins so the girls can help search for them.”
Esther turned to us. Tears streaked her pale cheeks. “It’s almost dark now. Ita is only eight. She’s scared of the dark. She has the twins, Naftali and Batya. The twins are three. I don’t know how she’s going to take care of them. She’s just a little girl. It’s going to get cold, and they have no food.” She began sobbing again.
“What does Ita look like?” Mrs. Dolar asked.
“She has dark, curly hair like me, and she’s small for her age. The twins are babies. They’re just three.”
Mrs. Dolar glanced at the mantel clock. “Oh, I must go upstairs. The ladies from the palace are coming for a gown fitting. Esther, drink the coffee and broth. You need your strength for whatever lies ahead.
“Sabrina, show her the small bedroom where she can rest, and you girls go out through the underpass in the courtyard. Hashem should help you succeed.”
Sabrina motioned for Esther to follow her. Then she opened a hidden door that led into a small alcove with a bed, a small dresser, and a candle holder. “There’s a candle here to light when it gets dark.” She took a candle and lit it from the small fire crackling in the outer secret room. She lit the small fireplace in the alcove bedroom, too.
“Once your siblings are found, my mother will arrange for all of you to be transported to Amsterdam.”
“Thank you. You are so kind. But my parents... What will happen to them?”
“With Hashem’s help, there is someone who helps prisoners escape. G-d willing, he will be successful for them as well.”
“I’m so scared,” Esther said. “My mother was baking matzos in our secret kitchen in the basement. I don’t know how anyone knew about it, but someone informed on us. Instead of a Seder...” Her voice trailed off.
I felt my stomach clench. We had to help her. Informers and the Inquisition. Could it be that we really were in the year 1497?
To be continued…
Susie Garber is the author of 11 popular Jewish books, including her newly released historical fiction novel The Blizzard (Menucha 2026) and recently published novel Captured (Menucha 2025). She is also the current news editor of Binyan Magazine.
