Jenny Plague-Bringer

Chapter Eighteen



After a week of travel, which Juliana and Sebastian spent eating, drinking, dancing, and playing, the Eurydice reached Le Havre, France. They marveled at the massive number of ships from all over the world porting at the sprawling industrial city. Juliana wanted very much to visit Paris, but it was three hours each way by train, so they didn’t have time.

The ship carried them into the cooler weather of the North Sea, around the Netherlands, then south along the River Elbe towards Hamburg, Germany. Farms and woodlands lined the wide river, and heavy boat traffic flowed both ways.

Juliana stood on the deck, gripping Sebastian’s hand as the German port came into view. It was a beautiful city, full of canals, bridges, and symmetrical neoclassical buildings. Trees lined the streets, and the spires of cathedrals soared here and there along the skyline. The city looked both ancient and extremely modern, even futuristic, and it was situated in the center of Europe. It felt like they were arriving at the center of the civilized world. As their ship approached the busy docks, full of cranes unloading automobiles and railroad cars, a sudden stab of panic struck Juliana.

“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.

Juliana felt relieved when they finally disembarked at a tiny, unidentified station in the mountains, guarded by a pair of S.S. officers in black uniforms. Nobody was coming or going here except Juliana, Sebastian, and their two escorts.

Niklaus loaded their suitcases into the back of an old black Brennabor sedan, the only car in the small lot. The car coughed and chugged its way up a newly paved mountain road, which passed through a solid wilderness of old, mossy spruce and thick banks of fern. The mountain forest was unbroken until they reached a fork in the road. They stayed to the right, while a smaller road branched off to the left.

The steep road took them up toward a brick wall with square towers at each end. As they drew closer, Juliana saw guards in the watchtowers, partially shielded by metal-grill walls, with machine guns mounted below the grillwork. A coil of wire ran across the top of the brick wall, and the gate was made of steel doors. Juliana had imagined a place that looked sort of like a college, set among trees and mountain streams, but this looked more like a prison than any kind of research lab.

“Do not fear,” Alise told her, seeing the look on her face. “It is all for our security. The inside is nice.”

“Okay,” Juliana replied. She couldn’t think of anything else to say. She had a sudden urge to announce that she’d changed her mind and wanted to go home right away.

Guards were posted at the gate, and they spoke briefly to Alise before opening up for them. Niklaus drove them inside.

Juliana didn’t think the interior was at all nice, either. The brick wall was actually a big square perimeter, with a guard tower at each corner. There were four low, squarish buildings, single-story and made of plain concrete, and a long brick building like a warehouse along the western wall. She saw some smaller structures that she took for strangely tall brick water walls, circular and with slanted tin roofs mounted a few feet above them. As they passed one, she saw that it had a whirling electrical fan inside, and seemed to be sucking down a large quantity of air.

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.

“Heil,” Alise greeted the girl, then spoke to her in a language that was neither English nor German—French or Italian, maybe. She gestured to Juliana and mentioned her name, and the girl slowly nodded, glancing nervously at Juliana. Her hair was a dark burgundy, almost black, and her eyes were sea-green. Her skin was olive, and she looked very exotic to Juliana. She wore a long black skirt and a white blouse edged with scraps of bright color. Her hands were gloved almost to her elbow, Juliana noticed.

“Juliana,” Alise said. “This is Mia. She will room with you and help you find your way around. She is from Sicily, but knows a little English.”

“Oh...that’s good.” Juliana smiled, feeling uneasy. “Hello, Mia.”

“Piaciri di canuscirvi. Hello, Juliana.” The girl waved and tried to smile, but her face showed that she was just as nervous as Juliana felt.

“Oh, you’re going to love each other!” Alise said. “I’ll make sure of it. I have to report to General Kranzler and Dr. Wichtmann now, so they know you and Sebastian arrived safely. We’ll talk more at dinner! Any special food requests?”

“Anything to eat would be great. I’m starving,” Juliana said.

“I’ll make sure the cooks give you plenty!” Alise winked as she left the room.

Juliana and Mia looked at each other awkwardly.

“Your bed,” Mia finally said, pointing to the empty side of the room and nodding.

“Thank you.” Juliana carried her suitcase to the bed and sat down. There was another long, awkward pause. She looked at the pictures pasted around Mia’s bed.

“You like movies?” Juliana asked.

“Yes!” Mia said, with an exuberant grin, probably just happy to have something to talk about. She pointed to one of the pictures, an advertisement for the film Red Dust with Clark Gable and Jean Harlow locked in a passionate embrace. “I lived in Rome for a time, many films. You like Clark Gable?”

“Yes, he’s very handsome,” Juliana said.

“Handsome.” Mia nodded and pointed again. “Douglas Fairbanks?”

“Yes, also handsome.”

“Charlie Chaplin?”

“Very funny!” Juliana said. “I love him.” She looked over the girl’s pictures. “You like Mae West?”

“Mae West, yes!”

They shared a smile—Mae West was bold, flirty, and fearless, which, as a woman, made her controversial and the talk of much scandal. A modern, outspoken woman who just happened to be gorgeous and glamorous.

“How long have you been here?” Juliana asked.

Mia concentrated. “Many days. One...week? Or is it month?”

“I’m not sure. Do you have a touch?” Juliana raised her hands and nodded at the gloves Mia wore. “Like me?”

Mia leaned forward, raising her eyebrows like she was about to share some good gossip. “I see your future.” Mia stripped off her gloves and stood up, striding towards Juliana, closing the door along the way. “I can show you.”

“No, wait! I’m poisonous.”

Mia hesitated in mid-step. “Poisonous?”

“Yes. I can’t help it.” Juliana took off a glove and spread her fingers. She called up the demon plague, letting her hand fester into open sores.

Mia gasped and stumbled back to her own bed, where she pulled up her knees protectively. Juliana started to regret bringing up the subject of their powers.

“I am sorry,” Juliana said. “But you should be warned. No touching me, for your own safety.”

“No touching.” Mia shook her head, staring warily at her now.

“I am sorry,” Juliana told her again. She lay back on her new bed, looking up at the pastel-pink ceiling. She’d felt the possible beginning of a friendship with the girl, but now she’d scared her away. Everyone else had something useful: Sebastian could heal, Alise could make people happy, Mia could see the future. Only Juliana had a useless curse, one that could only hurt people.

Even among the freaks, she was a freak.