Set in 1943 when the Nazis occupied Denmark, ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen is asked to carry out a heroic deed and aid her uncle in his efforts to smuggle Danish Jews across the sea to Sweden, where they will be safe. She has already lost her older sister, Lise, in the Danish Resistance, and now it appears that her best friend, Ellen Rosen, is in danger. The Johansen's take in Ellen, while her parents are relocated somewhere outside of Copenhagen. When it becomes apparent that the Danish Jews aren't safe, Mrs. Johansen takes her children and Ellen to Uncle Henrik's house on the coast. Until now, Annemarie has accepted the secrets and unusual silence of her parents, but when it falls upon her to deliver a mysterious packet to Uncle Henrik's fishing boat, she conquers her fears and learns the real meaning of courage.