In March 1947, Adeline receives a fourth letter from Emil. They write in a code that they developed earlier when living under Communist authorities because they know Lieutenant Gerhardt is reading their letters. Lieutenant Gerhardt routinely warns Adeline that Emil is an enemy of the state and that Adeline will be arrested or killed if she tries to join him.

Emil insists that she and the boys must sneak across the border before it permanently closes. Adeline takes a walk and encounters Lieutenant Gerhardt, who informs her that Peter had a stroke. Adeline goes to the Schmidts’ house to comfort Greta, and Greta mentions that she and Peter had planned to escape to West Germany. She tells Adeline their plan.

On March 18, 1947, Adeline wakes Walt and Will early in the morning to catch a train to Berlin. As the boys sleep on the train, Adeline prays to God to see them through their escape. At the Berlin station, they try to transfer to a train that will take them to Oebisfelde, the last stop before the British Zone. The conductor suspects Adeline and initially refuses to let her on the train, so she bribes him with whiskey, cigarettes, and molasses.