Opened Eyes

<p><em>Opened Eyes</em> is a World War II historical fiction story told from a perspective rarely seen. </p><p></p><p>When Rainer Vogel a German soldier turns his back on the SS he begins a desperate escape across a war-torn Europe with Lev a Polish boy he rescues from a concentration camp. Together they travel through snow-covered forests ruined villages and shifting front lines searching for a place where war cannot reach them.</p><p></p><p>But escape is never simple. Rainer is haunted by the things he once believed-and the things he has done. Lev holds tightly to hope dreaming of bread shops in France and a life beyond fear. Along the way they encounter French soldiers American allies and reminders that even in war kindness can survive.</p><p></p><p>This is not a story of generals strategies or nations. It is a story of <em>people</em>-of friendship guilt identity and the fight to reclaim one's humanity. <em>Opened Eyes</em> explores how war changes us how we choose who we become and how even in the darkest places something good can still take root.</p><p></p><p>This novella offers a personal emotional view of World War II from the ground level-where every step is survival and every choice matters.</p><p></p><p><em>Sometimes the hardest battle is the one fought inside yourself.</em></p>