The train pulled into the Milan Train Station mid-afternoon and the Von Trapps disembarked with the rest of the passengers. They stopped and looked around the station to orient themselves when suddenly Liesl gasped.

"Look," she said, pointing her finger upwards toward the train schedule on the wall. Georg and Maria both followed her motion and read the dreaded words: No Departures Until Further Notice.

"I had a feeling," Georg grumbled to himself

"Well, why don't we find the track where the Genoa train would have left from, just to make sure? It worked in Innsbruck," Maria suggested with feigned optimism.

She turned to Liesl for support and the girl shrugged her shoulders and nodded mutely.

Maria forced a smile and returned her attention to the train schedule, surveying it for the details regarding the now-cancelled Genoa, Italy departure. "Here it is. Track 12."

"That's right over there," Liesl pointed out, indicating to a large sign at the end of the platform.

They walked toward the track and Georg found an unoccupied bench that he claimed for his family. He knew that Zeller would know they had gone to Milan, so they would have to figure out how to get out of the city quickly.

Upon settling his wife and daughter on the bench, Georg surveyed the area for any hope of escape.

"It seems awfully crowded being that there are no departures," Maria observed.

"I was thinking the same thing," Georg said distantly.

"Why do you suppose that is?" Liesl asked, looking between both of her parents.

"I don't know, but I'm going to find out," Georg told them dryly. "Stay here. I'll be back in a minute."

He turned around and walked toward the train, certain that there had to be a way out of the country and determined to find out what it was. As he neared the ticket window, he overheard a gruff voice at the counter telling a pleading woman that no tickets were being sold because no passenger cars were leaving the country; only baggage and cargo cars were allowed out.

Glancing backward toward Maria and Liesl, Georg saw them engaged in conversation and decided to quickly continue down the platform. Walking past the ticket booth, he noticed a group of individuals surrounding the conductor as cargo was loaded onto the Genoa train. As he watched, Georg's eyes narrowed when he saw a handful of passengers holding handfuls of money out to the man. His suspicions increased when he saw the conductor shake his head slowly and shrug his shoulders.

The disheartened men dropped their hands to their sides with dejection and began to dig in their pockets for additional cash. The sight intrigued Georg and he walked closer. As he approached, he heard the conductor speak loud and clear.

"It's not enough. How many times must I tell you? Come back when you have 2,000,000 Lire. Then we can talk."

The conductor turned around abruptly toward the workers who were loading the cargo onto the train. "Load this one up too!' he shouted, pointing to the nearby car.

"Wait a minute," Georg called in Italian, holding his hand up and walking quickly toward the man. He was grateful to have developed a proficiency in the language while at sea.

The conductor turned toward him with an impatient look upon his face. "What?" he nearly barked at Georg.

"Hello," Georg greeted him with a nod and a tight smile. He motioned the conductor aside and the man took a pace and then stopped.

"How much do they have?" Georg asked him in a blunt voice.

"What does it matter to you?" the conductor replied angrily.

"Please," Georg implored.

The man sighed with impatience. "Not enough," he said with an annoyed smile.

"Listen, please," Georg said earnestly. He glanced at the other passengers and saw that they were all watching him curiously. "Would you accept what they have plus the difference in Schillings? It's all I have at the moment, but I assure you it's enough."

The conductor looked at Georg with a scowl and hesitated in thought for a moment. "Yes, I'll take both," he said brusquely.

"Thank you," Georg said with a satisfied nod; relief filled his entire body.

The conductor stared at the Captain in disbelief for a moment. "Show me the cash," he instructed him in a dry tone.

Georg reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of Schillings. Counting through it carefully, he removed most of it and put the little remaining cash he had back into his pocket. He held out his hand to the man who stared openly and then reached forward to fondle the cash to verify its legitimacy.

"It should be enough," Georg assured him.

The conductor counted through the money a few times. After a moment, he turned his gaze upwards to Georg and nodded.

"Get in!" he ordered the group.

A few of the passengers looked at Georg gratefully, but none of them needed a second invitation to board. Everyone began to file into the baggage car, when the conductor spoke once more. "And save a spot on the front wall for--," he began, turning to Georg for further information.

"For three," Georg answered with a serious look.

The conductor nodded and waved the passengers to continue boarding, all the while keeping a close eye on his surroundings so that his mission would not be discovered.

"I'll be right back," Georg told him as he stepped backwards quickly to retrieve Maria and Liesl.

He waved to them and Maria helped Liesl walk towards the train.

"Hurry, the train's leaving in a few minutes," he told them with urgency.

Maria narrowed her eyes at him and gave him a questioning look.

Seeing her sceptical glance, Georg leaned towards her ear. "I'll tell you later," he promised her.

Maria stepped upwards onto the train, but remained in the doorway to help Liesl. She turned back to face her husband and nodded but cast him a sidelong glance. Slowly, she raised her eyebrow. "Legal?"

"Oh I paid for it all right," Georg told her with a small smile. Without waiting for her reaction, he turned toward Liesl to help her onto the train and followed closely behind them.

Maria looked around at the dingy wooden baggage car on which they would spend the next hours of their life. It was halfway filled with cargo, overloaded with passengers and had an unmistakably musty smell. She placed an arm around Liesl and helped to guide her towards the corner of the car at which Georg was pointing.

The couple settled Liesl and then without hesitation, Maria plopped herself down on the ground next to her daughter.

Georg squeezed between his wife and daughter and placed an arm around each of them. He leaned over to Liesl and kissed her forehead and then did the same to Maria.

Suddenly, the door of the car slammed shut and the dim car became pitch dark. A few gasps were heard and a young child began to whimper on the other side.

"Rest," Georg whispered. He leaned his head backwards towards the hard wall and felt Maria and Liesl snuggle closer to him as the train began to slowly roll out of the station.

A stream of sunlight seeped through a narrow crack between the two doors of the baggage car. The creaking of the rickety doors as the train teetered back and forth had initially disrupted Georg's slumber, and the ray of light that was now shining in his face seemed to wake him completely.

The wooden wall he leaned upon had caused his back to stiffen, but Georg remained relatively still, not wanting to wake his family. Shifting only slightly, he repositioned his arm around Maria as she slept pressed up against his shoulder. Georg stroked her cheek and moved the coat that covered them both, more snugly around her face. He leaned over and placed a light kiss on the top of her head as she slept.

Turning his attention to his side, Georg reached down and moved a strand of hair out of Liesl's face, as she lay next to him on the ground sleeping. He tucked his jacket more tightly around her, hoping that it had kept her warm through the night, but sensing from her curled-up position that the chill in the air had affected her.

Glancing around the car, Georg could see the silhouettes of a few others onboard who were also awake. He caught glimpses of a few of them when the light shined their way, and most seemed to be either thinking to themselves or watching their families sleep. Some of the faces seemed grateful to finally be entering into freedom, but others wore an unmistakable look of grief. Georg frowned at the sight, protectively stroking Maria's shoulder and glancing toward Liesl, thankful that his wife and daughter were both safe in his presence.

All of a sudden Maria stretched her arms in front of her, while arching her back and rolling her neck. Her eyes fluttered open and for a moment she looked around in the darkness, confused as to where she was.

"Good morning," Georg whispered, leaning close to her and placing a kiss on her cheek.

Maria glanced upwards toward her husband and her wide eyes softened as she recognized her surroundings. "Yes it is," she murmured upon seeing Liesl when the light filtered over them.

Georg followed Maria's gaze and smiled at his sleeping daughter. He leaned his forehead against Maria's and instantly noticed that the tension that had been present in her body yesterday had disappeared.

Maria snuggled closer to her husband.

"We should be close to arriving, but it's hard to tell what time it is," Georg said while holding his watch upwards, hoping to catch a ray of light so that he could see the dial. After a moment, he sighed with frustration. "I think it's nearly five o'clock. I figured that we'd arrive around five-thirty."

Maria sighed deeply. "I can't believe that we made it, Georg. Well I had confidence in us, but still, with everything we were up against," she mused.

"I knew we would."

"I shudder to think of what could have happened," she said, closing her eyes to try to put the harsh reality out of her mind. "God truly is with us."

Georg moved his hand up and down Maria's arm as she rested her head underneath his chin. "He's done so much in our lives," he said with a humble nod. He felt Maria exhale slightly with contentment.

Leaning close to her ear, he spoke in a serious tone. "But do you know what occurred to me?"

She raised her head and even in the dark Georg could see her sparkling eyes watching him. "What?" she asked lowly, concern filling her voice.

Georg leaned his head closer to Maria and flashed her a loving smile. "Well, I realized that I haven't thanked you for everything. For just being you."

Maria breathed a loud sigh of relief and gave Georg a reproachful look. "You had me worried that something else had gone wrong while I was sleeping."

Georg's eyes softened at the unintentional alarm he had caused her. "Forgive me, darling. I didn't mean to worry you."

Maria cocked her chin upwards toward Georg and the forgiveness he saw in her eyes reassured him. "I know you didn't. Now you were saying, Captain?"

"I was commenting on how I haven't expressed my thanks to you," Georg said in a low voice.

Maria placed her chin against Georg's chest and merely relished in his closeness. "You're here with me and Liesl's safe. That's thanks enough."

"Yes it is. But I do think you deserve a more proper show of gratitude as well," Georg whispered into her ear.

"Oh?" she asked shyly.

"Oh yes. Any gentleman would agree," he murmured, gently nibbling on her ear.

"Mmm," Maria moaned softly.

"And I really can think of several ways to express my thanks," Georg continued with a suaveness to his voice that made Maria feel as if they were the only two people in the crowded car. Gently, he ran his fingers up her side.

"I see. In that case, I won't stop you," Maria said coyly.

"Hmm…that sounds familiar. I think I might have heard it before," Georg whispered while catching a glimpse of her in the dim lighting.

Maria could feel her cheeks reddening at the implication. "Is this familiar?" she asked with a smile, trying to keep her voice steady and very grateful that she was already sitting down. Gently, she leaned towards him in the darkness and brushed her lips to his.

"How could I forget?" he growled in Maria's ear in the low, masculine tone that never failed to make her heart race. Georg could feel her shiver in his arms as he held her.

Maria sighed with total bliss. Six weeks married, fully a woman in every sense of the word, and she marvelled at how her husband could still make her weak at the knees with so little effort. And probably would always be able to.

After a moment, he pulled away from their embrace and stroked Maria's face with his fingers. "I thank God everyday for bringing us together. I can't tell you enough how important you are to me, Maria. I could never have done this without you," he confessed with total awe in his voice.

Maria smiled softly. "We're a good team, Captain."

Georg leaned his head toward Maria and rested it against hers. He closed his eyes in thought for a moment and then opened them again as a grateful smile crossed his face. "And thank you for dealing with me. I know I can be difficult at times."

Maria smiled softly and reached her hand upwards to gently caress his cheek. "But you got us through this," she whispered.

"We got us through," he corrected her.

Maria nodded softly. "Besides, who says you're the only difficult one in this family?" she said with a smile.

Georg grinned. "No, I didn't say that. I'd say we're about even," he replied with a chuckle upon seeing the look of surprise on Maria's face.

However, his face suddenly beheld a more serious look and he continued to speak. "Thank you, Maria. I mean it."

Maria held his gaze. "I know."

Georg moved his hand behind her neck and ran his fingers over her soft skin. He drew her to him and held her tightly, letting all of the worry and tension of the past few days melt away.

As the couple embraced, Liesl stirred and stretched her legs absently. She sat upright and noticing that her parents were awake, albeit preoccupied, she smiled and cleared her throat in a low tone.

They pulled apart from their embrace and Georg felt Maria instinctively reach upwards to smooth her hair and adjust the collar of her blouse. "Well good morning," he bid his daughter with a smile.

Liesl giggled. "Sorry I interrupted."

"We'll have to get used to it," Georg teased, squeezing Maria's hand in jest. He bent over and placed a light kiss upon his daughter's forehead. "Did you sleep well?"

Liesl nodded. "Like a baby. I suppose I really needed some rest."

She hesitated for a moment. "Everything that happened almost seems like a bad nightmare, doesn't it?"

"I'm afraid it's all too real," Georg answered in a sorrowful tone.

Maria took Georg's hand as it rested on his thigh. She entwined their fingers and squeezed it in solace. "It could have been worse. Besides, it's in our past now," she assured her husband and daughter.

They both nodded.

Liesl stared off at the stream of light and squinted her eyes at the brightness of it. "Austria really has changed, hasn't it?" she asked as she placed her head against her father's shoulder.

Georg and Maria both nodded mutely.

"In that case, I'm glad we left when we did. I want to remember it the way it was," Liesl said with a sigh.

"Sometimes change is the most difficult, but best, decision of all," Maria mused.

Georg rubbed Maria's hand with his thumb and placed his arm around Liesl's shoulders. "Yes. The most important thing is that we're safe and together," he asserted.

"And remember that home is where the family is," Maria added bitter sweetly, believing her own words yet also sad that they might never return to Austria.

The trio remained silent for a few minutes, reflecting on their ultimate good fortune. Despite the losses they had incurred and the potential danger they had faced to get to where they were, they had so much to be thankful for.

Suddenly, the train came to an abrupt halt, causing everyone in the car to be jolted. A young child began to cry on the opposite end of the car and low voices could be heard in the darkness. Maria was thrown forward and then bumped her head on the wall when she was thrust backwards again. She released an instinctive cry, more out of surprise than pain, and absently raised her hand to rub her scalp.

"Are you both all right?" Georg asked them, as he brought his hand upwards to caress Maria's head.

"I'm fine. I was just caught off guard," she said with a reassuring smile while placing a soft caress on Georg's cheek.

"I'm fine too. Another small tear in my dress, but that's all," Liesl said with a shrug. "Does this mean we've arrived?"

Georg glanced around the car and held his watch up to try to read the dial. Before he had a chance to answer, the doors flew open and the conductor appeared.

"Genoa!" he announced.

Georg turned to them. "Come, let's get on line. There's one forming over there," he told them while pointing toward the side of the car.

They got to their feet and Georg helped Liesl walk to the end of the queue to disembark. As they approached the edge of the car, he helped both of them get off the train.

Surveying the scene outside, Georg noticed that they had pulled into a desolate indoor track. A sign for the Genoa Port was situated on the wall a few yards away.

"This way," Georg directed his family.

They followed him and after a short walk through the cargo area of the train station, arrived at the main entrance. Leaving, Georg surveyed the scene outside and saw the ticket booth and some food vendors across the road. Several hotels and restaurants could be seen in the distance, on the other side of the tracks.

He knitted his brow and tried to determine what course of action to take now. As Maria watched him, she could see his face darken.

"We don't know where the others are, do we, Father?" Liesl asked in a worried tone.

"No we don't," Georg replied bluntly, his mind preoccupied with weighing the options for finding his children in this moderately populated city.

Maria approached Georg and placed a light hand on his forearm. "We'll get to them."

Georg's stoic demeanor gradually faded upon hearing Maria's reassurance. He looked to her and nodded with belief. Turning to Liesl, he patted her cheek softly and smiled. "We don't know exactly where they are, since we weren't supposed to separate."

Liesl twisted her mouth slightly in thought. "The Detweilers don't have any acquaintances here, do they?" she asked.

Georg shook his head.

"Maybe they're at a hotel?" Liesl proposed.

"I was thinking that too," Maria added with a nod.

"But there are so many of them," Liesl observed with a slight loss of hope while looking around.

Georg motioned with his hand for them to follow him and he placed an arm around Liesl to help her walk. They crossed the road and found an empty bench on which to rest. He beckoned for them to sit down and glanced around at the food vendors that were behind them. Reaching into his pocket, Georg produced a small handful of Schillings and frowned.

"Let me go and see if there is a bank where I could exchange some of this into Lire. None of us have eaten anything substantial in a few days and it might be a while until we find the others. We should get something to eat while we figure out what to do next," Georg said decidedly while glancing at the vendors once more.

"Should we go with you, Georg?" Maria asked, rising from the bench again.

He shook his head with surety, squinting his eyes to see which stores were located in the near distance. Having noticed a bank far down the road, Georg focused his attention on Maria again and looked her in the eyes. "No, stay here and rest. I see a bank so hopefully this should not take too long."

Maria smiled at him with understanding; she realized that Georg knew she wanted a chance to talk with Liesl alone and this would be a perfect time.

"I'll be right back," he told both of them and then turned to walk toward the bank.