Perfect day for a wedding

The venue was unusual: beach pavilion Zeezicht (Sea View) in IJmuiden. A wooden pavilion, built on high poles with magnificent views on one of the widest beaches in the Netherlands, on the IJmuiden jetties and the sea. The day was perfect for a wedding: bright blue skies, a glorious sun, lots of flowers and the air filled with happiness. It was perfect as it was, but it got even better. In the Netherlands we have an expression that says that your Prince Charming will arrive on a white horse. This groom arrived on a white horse and swept away his foxy lady in her golden gown to live happily ever after.

So much happiness is good, but I am always on the look-out for twists and turns. Half way the party I wandered off to find some silence and inspiration in the dunes. I found silence and only minutes later inspiration, when I stumbled upon a hidden German defense bunker. The bunker, a silent remnant of the Atlantikwall – the German WWII defense line – was barely visible as it lay buried in a hollow in the dunes. A small corner, worn-out by decades of rain and shine, was the only concrete proof of its existence. I circled it, but could not find an entrance. It reminded me of a newspaper article, just a few lines, about the police discovering a weed plantation in a bunker and I knew instantly where my protagonist in An Accidental Death, my new YA novel, was heading…