Jenny Plague-Bringer: (Jenny Pox #4) (24 page)

“What’s wrong?” Sebastian asked, seeing the look on her face.

“What if this is a mistake?” she whispered.

“Then we’ll go home.”

“What if they don’t let us?”

“Why wouldn’t they?” He looked into her eyes. “This is what you’ve always wanted,
a chance to be cured of the demon plague.  It’s why you came looking for me in the
first place.”

“You think we made the right choice?”

“We don’t have much to lose, do we?”

Juliana thought about their life back home, scratching out a meager living as they
traveled America in the middle of the Depression.  Strange men paying pennies to leer
at her diseased, nearly-nude body. Her body had thickened in the time since they’d
met Mr. Barrett, and her ribs were much less visible.

“Not much to lose at all,” she agreed.

“With modern science and the latest technology, they can find a cure, if there’s one
to be found,” he said. “Mr. Barrett was right about that.”

“I hope you’re both right,” she said.

The ship docked, and she drew very close to Sebastian as they descended the gangplank
towards a dense crowd of people coming and going in every direction.  She wore a hat
and an unseasonable scarf, as well as her gloves, but she always worried.  Maybe,
she thought, the scientists of Europe really would cure her, and she would never again
need to fear being around other people.

The vast concrete terminal struck her as overwhelmingly foreign—not just that most
people in the crowd spoke German, or that the frequent, crackling loudspeaker announcements
were in German, and all the signs, newspapers, and magazines were in German, but there
was an overwhelming array of countless tiny differences, from the buttons on people’s
coats to the steamy pickled smell of the food sold by the vendors.

“Where do we go?” Sebastian wondered.

“Look there.” Juliana pointed to a uniformed chauffeur holding up a placard with Sebastian’s
name on it. “He must be here for us.”

They made their way through the crowd toward the young man, but as they got closer,
Juliana realized that what she’d assumed what a chauffeur’s uniform was actually black
military or police wear, with a matching peaked cap and boots.  He wore a brown shirt
and a black tie underneath his jacket.  The only splash of color was a red armband
with a strange symbol, like a broken, twisted black “X” inside a white circle.  As
they made their way through the crowd, Juliana spotted a few other men in similar
uniforms.

The young uniformed man saw the two of them approaching his sign.  He whispered something
to a tall, beautiful young woman who stood near him, and she turned to face Juliana
and Sebastian.  She had a similar uniformed look, a black coat and dress with a starched,
high-collared white shirt.  The two of them looked similar to each other.  Their eyes
were gray, the boy’s the color of a dark stormcloud, the girl’s much lighter and clearer. 
They had blond hair—again, the boy had a darker, dirtier shade, while the girl’s hair
looked like spun gold.

“
Heil!”
the young woman greeted them, smiling, as they arrived. “You are the two sent by Herr
Barrett from America? What are your names?”

Sebastian told her, and she gave a short, crisp nod, as if verifying she had the right
people.  She took Sebastian’s hand for a moment and looked into his eyes, and an odd,
glowing smile spread across Sebastian’s face.

“I am Alise,” the gray-eyed girl said. “This is Niklaus.  I am your...welcoming committee.”
She smiled.  Her English was hesitant but perfectly clear. “Welcome to the new Germany. 
We will go this way.  Niklaus!”

When she said “Niklaus!” the boy immediately reached for Juliana’s new suitcase. 
Juliana instinctively stepped back, holding her suitcase close.

“No, no,” Alise said. “He can carry it.  Boys should carry.” She gave Juliana a bright,
heartwarming smile, as if she were desperate to win Juliana’s approval.

“Hmm...” Juliana smiled, then handed her bag to Niklaus. “Maybe boys
should
carry.”

The gray-eyed boy touched the brim of his hat and gave Juliana a very slight nod. 
He had a solemn, serious expression that didn’t change.  Juliana noted that he wore
black leather gloves, while Alise wore none.  Alise looked at Juliana’s gloves and
frowned, but said nothing.

As they passed through the cavernous building at the terminal, which echoed with the
sounds of dockworkers hoisting and dropping large shipping containers, Alise fell
into step beside Juliana, while the boys lagged behind with the luggage.

“We have all been so excited to meet you,” Alise told her. “Especially me.”

“Why is that?”

“Because there are so few girls who are truly...like us.” Alise covered her mouth
and giggled a little. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Like us?  What do you mean?”

“You have the touch,” Alise said. “Yes?  It moves through touch.”

“What do you know about me?”

“I read telegrams, letters.” Alise smiled.

“Are you in the research project?  Are you a scientist?”

“Scientist...” Alise turned the word over in her mouth, and then laughed. “No!  Not
a scientist.  More of...administrator?  I apologize for my English, I will study more
of it for you.”

“You don’t have to do that.  I’ll learn German.”

“I need the practice, thank you,” Alise said.  She glanced over her shoulder, and
then whispered, “What I read about you, I recognized.  You both have the touch, you
and Sebastian.  Disease and  healing.  Opposites.  Sometimes, people like us are opposites. 
Like Niklaus and me.”

“You are?” Juliana looked back over her shoulder at the gray-eyed boy. “What does
his touch do?  What does yours do?”

“Sh!  Already I am saying too much.  General Kranzler and Dr. Wichtmann may not want
us to speak of such things.”

“Who are they?” Juliana asked.  They approached the crowded railroad terminal by the
port, which looked like a modernist castle, complete with arches and a clock tower. 
The city teemed with life, people hurrying everywhere, and the air smelled like industrial
smoke and grease.

Instead of answering her question, Alise turned back to face the boys. “Do we move
too fast for you?”

“What have you been whispering about?” Sebastian asked as he and Niklaus caught up
with them.

“I am hoping your journey was comfortable.” Alise touched Sebastian’s forearm, drawing
another smile from him.  He brightened up a little too much at her touch, Juliana
thought.

“It was nice.  I could use a beer, though,” Sebastian said.

“
Yah, bier.”
Niklaus nodded as he spoke his first words since their arrival.  He also gave his
first hint of a smile.

“
Nein!”
Alise snapped at him.  Then she turned a sweet smile on Juliana. “We go to the rail
station now.”

“For Berlin?” Juliana asked.

Alise shook her head.

“Mr. Barrett said we were going to Berlin,” Sebastian said.

“Herr Barrett does not know about the new laboratory,” Alise said. “In the Harz mountains,
very pleasant.  You will like it there!” She smiled. “I promise.”

Sebastian and Juliana traded worried looks, but there wasn’t much they could do but
go along with whatever Alise told them.

They rode in a spacious, first-class car, divided by heavy curtains into private areas
with plush seats.  A porter secured Juliana and Sebastian’s luggage above them, then
left the group alone.

Niklaus tapped Sebastian’s shoulder and pointed down the aisle, toward the club car.
“
Bier?”

“
Yah, bier!”
Sebastian replied, already learning two key words of German.  He glanced at Juliana,
who shrugged.  The two boys left for their drinks.  Alise looked toward the ceiling
and shook her head.

“What can we expect when we get there?” Juliana asked her. “What will they do to us?”

Alise smiled. “First, they treat us all very well.  Good food, nice rooms.  There
is radio, books, and even a small projection room.  Sometimes we watch Hollywood movies!”

“That sounds nice.”

“Of course, they test our powers.  They do these tests on me, too, and Niklaus.”

“What kind of tests?”

“For you, it is very dangerous,” Alise said, then shook her head. “Your
touch
is very dangerous.  So...animals?” She shrugged.

Juliana frowned.

“It is necessary science,” Alise said, nodding firmly. “They will use microscopes
to study your blood, skin, hair.  And, if you are like me, they will find nothing!”
She laughed, almost looking proud of it, but Juliana felt her heart fall.

“They find nothing?” Juliana said. “Why not?”

“Because the touch is a mystery.” Alise raised her hand and wiggled her fingers. “Even
for the best scientists.”

“What does your touch do?” Juliana asked again.

Alise glanced at the empty aisle, then out the window, as if she expected someone
to be spying on them.  A bell clanged, and the train crept forward.

“My touch,” Alise whispered. “Makes people feel...happy.”

“Happy?”

“Happy.” Alise touched her heart and smiled wide. “Sometimes
too
happy.”

Juliana laughed, trying to imagine a room full of people feeling “too happy.”  Would
they be dancing?  Singing?  Kissing?

“Yes, happy,” Alise said.  “We should talk no more on this until we arrive.  It is
not public information, we must keep it very quiet.”

Juliana nodded.  If Alise filled people with happiness, it explained Sebastian’s comically
large smile whenever Alise touched him, but that didn’t exactly make Juliana feel
reassured.  She looked out the window and saw long, stiff vertical banners hanging
at regular intervals along the platform.  They  billowed as the train picked up speed. 
They were red, with a white circle and the black twisted-cross design in the center,
the same one that was on Niklaus’ sleeve.

“What are those?” Juliana asked.  She tried to imitate the strange shape with her
fingers.  Alise quickly covered Juliana’s gloved hands and shook her head.  Then,
probably remembering that Juliana’s touch was deadly, she snapped her hand back away
from Juliana.

“It means National Socialist party,” Alise explained.

“Is that a...political party?” Juliana didn’t know much about European politics. 
She knew that Germany had been an enemy of the United States during the Great War,
but that had been old Germany ruled by a king.  They were a democracy now, so they
were probably more peaceful.

“They are the only party that matters anymore,” Alise said. “They are raising Germany
up, up from darkness.” She raised her hand high above her head, as if measuring rising
water. “Creating a better future for us.  My father has helped the party for years—he
was one of the first to see they were Germany’s best defense against the Communist
threat.  I personally helped to organize
Bund Deutscher Mädel in der Hitler-Jugend
.” She smiled proudly.

“The what?” Juliana asked.

“League of German Girls...Hitler Youth,” Alise translated.

“What is a Hitler?”

“Sh!” Alise looked cross, and glanced into the aisle to check if anyone had heard
Juliana. “The leader of the National Socialists and of Germany.  You will need education.”

“I suppose,” Juliana said. “I’m sorry, I just don’t know these things.”

“Politics,” Alise said, then pretended to yawn, and Juliana smiled.

The boys returned with beer for everyone, and they kept the conversation light after
that.  They learned that Alise was the daughter of a duke, making her “nobility.”
Though Germany was a democracy, belonging to the old aristocracy seemed to still count
for something.  Niklaus was her first cousin, which explained the strong resemblance
between them.  Alise was twenty-five, while her cousin Niklaus was nineteen. 

Juliana gathered that Alise was the truly influential one, and she had pulled strings
to have her cousin Niklaus made into an officer of the
Schutzstaffel
, apparently some kind of elite police force.  His main job, as far as Juliana could
tell, was acting as Alise’s bodyguard, driver, and all-around footman.

Though she reminded herself not to trust Alise, or anyone else just yet, Juliana felt
relieved to have a girl about her own age to explain things to her—in English, especially.  

The train left the city of Hamburg and picked up speed across the green countryside,
rushing them towards the mountains and their uncertain future.

* * *

They had to change trains at a mountain town called Wernigerode, which had a number
of impressive Gothic buildings with pointy spires, including a castle overlooking
the town from a hilltop.  They moved to a special narrow-gauge track built for the
steep curves and narrow passes of the mountains.  The view out the window became both
lovely and terrifying, full of steep gorges dropping away toward lakes and waterways
far below the narrow tracks.