Geertrui
- In the nights that followed Geertrui's first night with Jacob, she has the best time of her life—those six weeks are the highlight that she will think about when she dies, she says.
- Mrs. Wesseling finally comes out of her room after ten days and goes to church. No one speaks of her withdrawal or detachment from everyone else, but Geertrui knows she just isn't the same. No longer does she pick on Geertrui for doing things wrong, or make comments about everything—she is resigned to her life, so much that Geertrui even feels sorry for her.
- Meanwhile, the war comes closer and closer to their doorstep. They hear about towns being raided and all the men taken away; there is nothing left for the soldiers to take in most places.
- This and the work on the farm are all they can focus on during the day, but at night, Geertrui sneaks away to Jacob and the two of them talk and well, you know—some nights they do more than just talk.
- Geertrui and Jacob read Sam's book of poems together and swap stories about growing up and their lives before they met.
- They are scared Jacob will be found and taken away (or worse), but they live in the moment, loving their time together because they know they might not get much more.
- On the first sunny morning in two weeks, the couple starts dancing together outside. They are happy, carefree, and loving life, when—very suddenly—Jacob drops to the ground. Geertrui asks him to get up, to quit it, but he doesn't, or he can't, because he's dead.
- It seems so unfair to Geertrui, after all they've been through together, for him to die on her now. Mr. and Mrs. Wesseling come out to see what's wrong and figure he must have had a heart attack; they know they have to bury Jacob's body so no one finds it.
- Geertrui is distraught and devastated, but she helps get him ready to be buried.
- The next morning, Mr. Wesseling digs a hole in the corner of the garden and they bury him there. Geertrui knows they've got to get back to work—to life—so no one suspects anything, but she's numb with pain.
- Geertrui sends Jacob's belongings home to Sarah, his wife—all except for three small things, which she will tell us about later.
- She reads a poem aloud from Sam's book: one by Ben Jonson called "It Is Not Growing Like a Tree." Ahem: this is the same one the young Jacob reads to the old Geertrui in the nursing home.