Recap: They finally reach Rabbi Sarna’s home. Miri is feeling extremely ill. A maid answers and doesn’t want to let the children in.
The next thing I knew, I saw sunlight filter through a window. A rooster crowed. It was morning. Where was I?
Sabrina tiptoed over to me. “You’re awake. Are you feeling better?”
“What happened?”
“You had a very high fever. You fainted.”
“Where are we?”
“Rebbetzin Sarna let us in. The lady at the door was her maid. The Rebbetzin is very kind. She says we can stay until the Rav returns.”
I sat up. “I get these throat infections. I need penicillin.”
“What’s that?”
I realized they didn’t have penicillin in this time period.
“A doctor was here, and he did bloodletting with leeches.”
“Ew!” I said.
“Shh!”
“He said you should rest and drink a lot. I have some ale for you.”
She held the cup for me, and I tried to swallow the bitter brew.
“Nasty!”
Katie came into the room. “Are you feeling any better?”
I nodded. I tried to sit up, but the room spun. I sank back down onto the soft bed.
“When is the Rav coming?” I asked.
“You’ve been out of it for a few days. The Rebbetzin expects him in a week or so.”
“She doesn’t mind us staying?”
“She said it’s fine. She is so kind.”
“I’m going to see if I can help the Rebbetzin with cooking,” Sabrina said.
Katie plunked down at the foot of the bed. “Miri, I’m so worried. What if we never get back? Pesach is coming, and we won’t be there for the sedarim.”
“We’ve come this far,” I croaked.
“Don’t strain your voice.”
“I know. You’re right, but I worry. I miss my parents.”
I missed my mother, and a sudden new concern hit me.
“Katie, they must be so worried about us. They won’t be able to find us anywhere. At least Liselle and Dovid can reunite in the same time period.” I sighed. I wasn’t helping Katie feel better. “Look, Hashem has helped us to get to Rav Sarna. He won’t let us down.”
There was a knock at the door, and a small lady with tiny feet, wearing satin gold slippers, a gold-embroidered headscarf, and a beige robe, came into the room with a tray.
“I heard you were awake. I’m Rebbetzin Sarna. You are Miriam, I understand.”
“Yes, thank you so much, Rebbetzin. I’m so sorry for coming here and causing you all this trouble.”
“Trouble? Not at all. You gave me a wonderful mitzvah.”
I wondered how much the Rebbetzin knew about our problem.
“Sabrina told you about Liselle Rosa and Dovid?” I asked. I would start with the less unusual problem first.
“Yes, yes.”
“Did she explain our problem?”
The Rebbetzin shook her head. “Are you also looking to reunite with your family?”
“Yes.” I tried to think of how to explain our unique situation. Would she believe us? How could she? It was too unbelievable.
“Hashem should help you, dear.” She stood up. “You should rest. You had quite a high fever.”
I didn’t want her to leave me. I wanted her to know what our problem was so she could reassure me that he could help us. After all that we had been through, I wanted to know that Rav Sarna could help us to go home.
“Please, Rebbetzin Sarna. Please let me explain.”
The Rebbetzin sat at the edge of the bed. I pulled myself up to a sitting position. I noticed my hair was neatly braided. “Who braided my hair?”
“Your cousin Katie, dear.”
Everyone had been taking care of me.
“You see, my mother and I traveled to Spain to an old Spanish castle. My cousin Katie and her little sister Breindy traveled with us. Her parents were here – I mean, they’re making a documentary about Jewish history in Spain.” I thought back; it seemed like such a long time ago when we first arrived, and I had the dreaded first meeting with Mr. Norman.
“I’m not sure what you mean by a documentary.”
“An educational film.”
“Film?”
I forgot they didn’t have films or videos or anything like that in this time period.
“Anyway, I took Breindy to a carnival.” As I retold my story, I recalled the not-so-positive feelings I had towards Katie. She was the popular cousin who was not afraid of anything and was so different from me.
So much had changed now. I’d learned my own strengths, and Katie leaned on me for courage. We’d grown close now since our journey back in time.
“There was a huge rainstorm and lightning, and we were in the courtyard, and a huge branch from a tree was coming towards me.”
Rebbetzin Sarna nodded.
Now came the hard part to explain. “And somehow it… Somehow we… You may find this really hard to understand… We went back in time.”
Rebbetzin Sarna gazed at me with sympathetic eyes. She nodded. “There, there, sweet. You had a high fever. A fever plays tricks on the mind. You rest now.”
I didn’t want to rest. I wanted to explain our terrible problem.
“Lie back down, Miriam. You need your rest.”
She was a petite woman but very strong-willed. There was nothing else I could say. She blew out the candle, tucked the blanket firmly around me, and left the room.
Tears of frustration pricked my eyes. She didn’t believe me. What if the Rav had the same reaction? He wouldn’t help us if he didn’t believe us.
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.