The Ardennes forest was dark, the trees towering overhead, the ground covered in fallen leaves. Lena walked through the woods, Alex beside her, their breath visible in the cold air. Winter was coming. The same winter her grandfather had fought through, decades ago.
“It’s hard to imagine,” Alex said. “Fighting here. In the cold. In the snow.”
Lena nodded. She had read about the Battle of the Bulge—the surprise attack, the frozen soldiers, the desperate fight. Her grandfather had been there. He had survived. But he had never forgotten.
“There’s a memorial up ahead,” Alex said. “A plaqu