Jenny Plague-Bringer(66)

Niklaus parked in front of one of the squat concrete buildings and climbed out of the car.

“We’re not staying here, are we?” Sebastian asked. “We’re just stopping here for a minute, and then driving on to the real place. Right?”

“This is the end of your long journey,” Alise told him. Niklaus opened the door for Alise and held her hand as she stepped down.

“I knew we couldn’t trust that Barrett guy,” Sebastian whispered to Juliana.

“Then why did you come?” Juliana whispered.

“To watch out for you. I knew you wouldn’t turn down a chance to find a cure.”

“I don’t have as much hope for that now. This place feels wrong.” Juliana sighed. Niklaus opened her door and offered his hand, but she shook her head at him as she climbed out.

They carried their luggage inside the low concrete building, where a single guard sat at a desk in front of a heavy steel door, like the door to a bank vault. He exchanged a few words with Alise as he stood and unlocked the door, and then he grunted as he hauled it open.

Juliana and Sebastian leaned forward, curious. Beyond the door, a wide concrete staircase descended deep underground, lit on both sides by a row of electric bulbs.

“Down here.” Alise smiled and led the way, her polished black flats echoing with each step.

Juliana and Sebastian held hands as they followed, Sebastian’s suitcase bumping as it dragged along the stairs. Niklaus followed, and the guard heaved the door shut behind them. It slammed with an echoing clang, like the door of a prison cell.

The stairway took them to an underground hallway, as brightly lit as a hospital and wide enough to drive a truck through. The floor was concrete, but the walls were plastered white and hung with huge pictures. Some depicted German historical events Juliana didn’t recognize, mostly large battles. Others were different pictures of the same man, an odd, stern-looking person with a Charlie Chaplin mustache. From the German text on the posters, Juliana guessed this was the politician who so excited Alise, Chancellor Hitler. Stormy classical music echoed from somewhere.

“Boys,” Alise said, pointing to the right. Then she pointed to the left and said, “Girls.” She smiled at Juliana, while Niklaus returned Juliana’s suitcase to her.

“Sebastian and I can’t stay together?” Juliana asked.

“We stay on separate halls,” Alise said. “Men and women together on the same hall would be too much fun.”

“Can’t we just stay together for the first night?” Sebastian asked. “While we get accustomed to this place?”

“You will accustom fast,” Alise said. “We will see each other again at dinner, very soon. Maybe even screen a movie tonight, to celebrate that you are here?”

“That sounds nice,” Juliana said.

“This way. No need to fear.” Alise started walking away.

Juliana gave Sebastian a quick hug and a kiss.

“Are you going to be okay?” Sebastian asked.

“I hope so.” Juliana gave him a smile, though she was feeling scared and lost. “I’ll see you at dinner, I suppose.”

He hugged her again. “If anybody gives you any trouble,” he whispered in her ear, “Just kill them.”

Juliana laughed as she reluctantly stepped away from him and followed Alise down the corridor.

“Girls’ hall,” Alise said as she opened a pair of double doors. The short hallway, with five doors on each side, was carpeted and hung with pretty pieces of art, like paintings of flowers and sunset landscapes. The lighting fixtures were encircled with colored glass, and the walls themselves were painted gentle pastel colors. The classical music was louder here, echoing from somewhere up ahead, where the hall ended at another set of double doors.

“Oh, this is much nicer,” Juliana said. “I thought you were joking.”

“I always tell the truth,” Alise said. “Even when people don’t like to hear it, which is nearly always.”

Juliana laughed, and Alise showed her to an open door. Alise knocked on it as they entered.

The dormitory room was wide with a high ceiling. A bed occupied each end of the room, with plenty of open space in between them. Drawers, cabinets, and bookshelves were built into the walls, many more than Juliana could imagine needing for herself.

One side of the room was empty, the walls bare except for the built-in shelves, the bed made up with a colorful quilt thrown on top of it, which looked like it had been made by somebody’s very talented grandmother. The other half of the room was plastered with pictures of Hollywood movie stars cut from magazines and newspapers. A girl lay on the bed there, reading a paperback, and she quickly sat up when Alise and Juliana entered.