But Jack called a halt. “We can’t walk here. We need to go back down the hill about twenty yards and cut through the brush.”
“Why should we leave the path?” demanded Queenie. “That’s ridiculous. I’m hot, I’m tired, and I’m not going to fight my way through that stuff.”
“Actually it’s not ridiculous, dink!” he exploded. He’d had enough of his sister for one day.
“So what’s the score, Jack?” asked Sam, obviously trying to calm the situation.
“If we walk along the top of this hill, anyone can see us for miles. Just look back down. If we can see Frederik’s house, he’ll be able to see us against the skyline. We need to keep off that ridge line. I don’t like it any more than you do, Queenie, but we can’t risk getting busted.”
“You call me Queenie one more time today, you little cretin, and I’m gonna clean your clock!” But without another word, she was the first to plunge into the thick brush.
Once beyond Frederik’s farm, they found an easier path through the hills and finally took a break on a grassy hillside with a clear view of the Hohenstaufen. They still had about three miles to go, but it was time for lunch.
Jack dug through his rucksack to unearth seven of the PBJs, only slightly smashed. He tossed one to each of his friends. Hans and Günther looked at theirs with polite skeptism.
Hans gingerly touched the brown-and-purple glop oozing from a worn spot in the wax-paper wrapper. “What is this?”
Charlie looked puzzled. “Peanut butter.”
Günther’s jaw dropped open. “You milk peanuts?”
That pretty much got all the American kids rolling in the grass.
“Sorry,” said Jack. “That sounded funny. No, we just smash peanuts up and somehow that makes them spread like butter.”
Sam added, “Peanuts and grape jelly are great together.”
Hans and Günther each took a bite and were instant fans.
As the kids dug more food out of their rucksacks to eat or trade, Charlie noticed the canteen Günther was drinking from.
The German boy smiled. “You want to trade us your American canteens for our Nazi canteens?”
“Heck, yes,” said Charlie.
And that’s how he and Jack each ended up owning Nazi canteens. And how Hans and Günther became the proud owners of US Army canteens. Each kid knew he got the better deal.
“Okay, troops. Enough chitchat,” said Jack. “It’s time to get on with the last leg of this journey.”
They moved out.
“Wow, look at that!” Charlie pointed into a huge pit the size of three football fields.
As Jack approached, he realized this was the stone quarry Ingrid had described on their first trip to the train store.
He didn’t see any workers below, but he carefully studied the bulldozer, front-end loader, and huge dump truck just in case. It looked like no one was in the quarry. No better time to explore!
The kids scrambled down into the quarry, swarming over the big equipment. When Karen climbed into the huge scoop of the front-end loader, she found a large chunk of sparkling rock.
“Diamonds!” she shouted.
Everyone rushed over.
Hans said, “We call this Quarzkristall.”
Jack smiled. “So do we—quartz crystal.”
“What’s quartz?” Karen asked. “Is it a jewel?”
Hans shrugged. “They crush it and then melt it.”
Günther winked. “Like peanut butter.”
“And a Glasbläser puts it on the end of a tube to blow it into glasses and bowls.”
Queenie said, “Glass blower? I’ve seen one.”
Hans nodded. “We Germans are some of the greatest Glasbläsers in the world.”
The others quickly joined the Great Quartz Crystal Hunt. They found samples that were white, dark gold, and clear.
Jack found a two-and-a-half-pound chunk with a beautiful golden color. He took off his web gear and put it in his rucksack. Even if it somehow smashed the PBJ he was saving for the trip home, sacrifices had to be made. He added the smaller crystals he’d found. Now, more than ever, he wanted the rock quarry model at the train store. He could surround it with the quartz he’d found. Next objectives: Earn enough money, and make Ingrid take him to Göppingen.
Queenie found a nice piece, too. She eased up to Jack and said, “It’s probably starting to get late. Should we head up the mountain?”
“Yeah. Good idea.”
“It’s been a good day, Jack,” she said, smiling. “You know I won’t say anything to Mom. Right?”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Hey, Jack, I don’t have a backpack. Will you carry my rock?”
“Nope! It’s been a great day, but you carry your own rock.”
“I’ll pay you.”
Jack needed money now more than ever. “How much?”
“Twenty-five cents,” she suggested.
“Seventy-five.”
“Not good enough.”
“Fifty. Twenty-five to haul it up the mountain, and twenty-five to haul it all the way home.”
“That’s a lot.” But she held out the rock.
“Money first.”
“I only have twenty-five cents with me.”
Jack thought about it. “Okay, gimme that much now. You can have the rock back when you pay me the other twenty-five.”
“Deal.” She dug the quarter out of her jeans pocket and handed it over with her rock.
Jack smiled at his shrewd bargain. But his back would be in serious pain by the time he got home.
As Queenie walked away, he noticed Jayla was looking like the one whose rucksack weighed a thousand pounds.
He walked over. “What’s wrong? We made it. Mission Mountaintop is a success.”
She shook her head. “Not till we reach the top of the mountain, and not till we make it home.”
Jack thought, That Upshur officer was right; an objective has to be remember-able. “Jayla, getting to the top is just for fun, not part of our objective to prove we’re as good as Russian kids.”
“What are you saying, Jack?”
“Think back. Mrs. Campbell said there was no way we could get to the Hohenstaufen all by ourselves. Correct? She never said we had to get to the top of the mountain or all the way back home.”
When that sunk in, everything about Jayla changed, as if the boulder in her rucksack turned to paper mache. “You’re right. We’ve already proven her wrong. We’ve done it!”
“Yup,” he said. “We’re as tough as any Russian kid.”
34
Unexpected Encounter
Hans gathered the group. “It’s about two kilometers to the top. Definitely not the hardest hike in Germany. I mean, there’s no rock climbing or anything. We just have to keep following the path.” He made a zig-zag motion with his hand. “But toward the top it gets pretty steep.”
Jack did some quick calculations. “We’ll have to keep up the pace to get back in time.”
Queenie sighed. “Plus there’s all the way home.”
Jack shrugged. “Anyone who doesn’t feel like keeping up can hang out down here.”
Everyone started for the path.
Serious exhaustion set in as they neared the summit. But once actually on top, the magnitude of their accomplishment filled them with energy.
“We are victorious!” Kevin shouted, dancing around, with arms pumping overhead.
“Take that, Russian kids! We’re as tough as you are,” Charlie yelled, his fists flying in a series of jabs.
“And more resourceful, too,” said Sam, spinning like a dancer.
Queenie just stared at them. “What are you guys talking about?”
“One day in school, Mrs. Campbell said we could never climb this mountain. Of
course, she never even thought we’d try,” said Sam. “We just proved her wrong.”
“Actually,” Jayla piped up, with a glance at Jack, “we proved her wrong when we reached the mountain. By climbing to the top, we’ve exceeded her challenge.”
“But, of course we have,” said Sam. “Because we’re with the great Jayla Jones and she always exceeds expectations!”
Everyone laughed, then collapsed on a grassy incline. Sprawling on the grass, letting the summer breeze cool them, they looked over the patchwork of fields and towns of Wunderland.
Jack had given them time to rest before they had to head back down. Queenie and her girlfriends peeled off by themselves. Jack could hear them jabbering—as usual. The German guys were talking quietly together. Plopping down by the others, Jack traced the route they’d taken to get here. Far in the distance, he could just make out the airfield on the Army base.
It brought back a memory of the first time he’d looked out over that airfield from the cliff in front of The Glass House—that first day when he trudged alone around The Circle in the snow, wondering if he’d ever find his place here and make friends. Wondering if anyone would ever follow his lead. The next day, there was Kerrigan, calling him a weenie, forcing a fight. Charlie had stood by him that day, and every day. Then Kevin had stuck his neck out for him on his first day of school. What had Kevin said to Mr. Reynolds? That it seemed wrong to kick a guy when he’s on the ground. That was probably why Kevin had stuck by him through Little League, and covered for him with the coach when he’d deserted the team. Kevin had convinced him not to quit.
Jack felt Sam looking at him. He turned toward her triumphant grin. She’d thought he was crazy to try to build Black Squirrel Crossing, but she hadn’t bailed on him. She’d hung in there. Literally! He could still see her hanging on to that parachute cord for dear life as they hoisted the skid into the air. She’d wanted to kill him for cutting the cord when the Sevens showed up. But she’d taken up the cord to begin again. Black Squirrel Crossing let them duck the Sevens, get over the ravine, and make it to the mountain.
Jayla was staring down into the valley, lost in her own thoughts. The day they first met, she’d razzed him about all his military jargon. But she always got the point of his war stories. She was smarter than he was—smarter than all of them. And fast with her fists. She’d kept Basketball Head off him in his big fight with Kerrigan. She’d always signed up, no matter his objectives. Well, he’d signed up for her mission, and they’d made it work.
Behind Jayla were Hans and Günther, now part of the gang. And they knew it. Their One-Way Street to Germany was key to Mission Mountaintop. And Jack’s German was what made their friendship possible—which he owed to his mother’s crazy “No English with Ingrid” rule. His mom would be mortified to know she had helped them get to the mountaintop. That made him chuckle.
Jack leaned back and closed his eyes to concentrate on the breeze against his cheeks, the hum of his friends’ chatter, and the fresh smell of mountain air. This time, it wasn’t just doing Mr. Reynolds’s ritual to use his senses, he was truly relishing the moment. The end of a great quest with true friends.
Jack forced himself back on his feet. “Okay, guys. If we want to get home by six, we’ve got to get a move on.”
That got everyone up, gathering their packs.
Hans suggested a steeper, but more direct, route down the mountain that led through a village. That sounded fine to Jack. In less than half an hour, they reached the village.
As they walked by a crowded, little bar, Sam came over to Jack. “My canteen is empty. Could we go inside to buy something to drink?”
Hans looked into the bar. “It might be better to keep going.”
Jack followed his glaze. He noticed a few patrons looking out the open door at the mob of kids draped in army gear.
“Sorry, Sam. Let’s keep moving,” Jack said. “We’ve made it this far. No point pushing our luck.”
“You’re probably right,” she said reluctantly, and kept moving.
Jack checked once more to see if interest in them had died down. Something caught his interest: a man standing at the far end of the bar, talking on the phone. Jack couldn’t see his face, but even so, he could tell the guy had military bearing. He stood very erect, speaking with authority.
Probably a cop or something, thought Jack.
As if he’d sensed Jack eyeing him, the guy whirled around—and Jack recognized him. Shocked and strangely disturbed, Jack moved out of his line of sight.
He caught up with the others.
“Wait up a second,” he said shakily.
After one look at him, they gathered around.
“There was a guy at the end of the bar using the phone,” Jack said. “Did any of you notice him?”
No one had.
“People like that bar because they let you pay to use their phone,” Günther offered. “So it’s not that unusual.”
“Maybe not, but I got a clear look at the guy. I’m pretty sure it was Herr Stein, our janitor from school.”
“Good thing we didn’t stick around,” Sam said. “He might have recognized and reported us.”
“True,” Jack said, “but something’s bothering me. Something about him being there.”
“Oh, come on, Jack. We all know the guy’s a dipstick,” said Queenie. “Why get bent out of shape?”
“I dunno,” he said. “There was just something about him. Something’s off. At school, the guy always seems old, and like a nobody. Ya know what I mean?”
“Yeah. So?” said Charlie.
“Well, the guy I just saw was totally different. He seemed very serious and superior and in command. In fact, at first I thought he might be a cop or military. I don’t know what to think.”
“I’ll go check it out,” Queenie offered. “I won’t be long. And don’t worry. I’ll be stealthy. I just want to see if it’s really Herr Stein.”
“I’ll come along to help you fit in,” said Günther.
“Thanks. I bet these blue jeans shout that I’m an American.”
Günther shrugged. “All German girls want American blue jeans. It’s our canteens and army stuff that will make people look.”
Jack held up a hand. “Thanks for offering, Laura, but we need to do more than make sure it’s Stein. We need to know what he’s up to. I have to listen in on his call.”
Sam’s eyes said she thought things were spinning out of control. “This isn’t the time to get nuts. If we’re busted, even I will get killed for being up here.”
Jack’s eyes hardened. “I can feel it. Something isn’t right. That guy is up to something—something bad. Something that could hurt not just us but the adults.”
“I don’t get it,” Sam said.
“Neither do I. That’s why I need to get close enough to hear him.”
“Well, you can’t just walk in there,” Jayla said. “And you’d better be quick. His call won’t last forever.”
Günther’s face was pinched in thought. “I’m pretty sure that place has a door off the back alley. Maybe we could use that.”
“Günther, Hans, come with me,” said Jack. “The rest of you head up this street, but then wait for us.”
“Please don’t!” Sam pleaded.
The three were already gone.
The back door was locked. Jack forcibly resisted the urge to kick it.
Hans swallowed hard. “I’m going around through the front. There’s got to be a bathroom in the back. I’ll ask if I can use it.”
A few minutes later, the door opened and Hans came out, closing the door but not entirely. “He’s still on the phone. We can hide under a counter at the end of the hall. It’s pretty close to that end of the bar.”
The hallway was so dark, Jack could hardly make out the Toilette sign over a door. Hans squatted under the counter
and the others followed.
Squished underneath, Jack pressed his back against the wall. The space gave them cover from above, but anyone looking from the side would easily see three boys crouching there.
At first they only heard general noise coming from the single, large room.
Then a man said, as if on a phone, “Yes . . . um-hum . . . um-hum.”
Jack could tell the other two were getting anxious. “We have to confirm it’s Stein. Let’s take a quick look while he’s preoccupied with his call.
The caller said, “Yes. . . . Yes.”
Jack and Günther peeked around the corner. The guy’s back was to them, but they could both see him in the mirror that ran behind the bar. It was definitely Stein.
If they could see him, he could see them. They slowly ducked back around the corner.
Stein said, “Well, call back right away.” He hung up the phone.
Jack nodded to the others, and they pressed even harder against the wall.
Günther eventually whispered, “What now?”
Very quietly Jack said, “Let’s stay put and see if they call back—”
An old man rounded the corner. Seeing them, he poked his head under the counter and demanded, “What are you three up to?”
But before they could sputter an excuse, his face broke into a grin. “Scared you, didn’t I?” Clearly pleased with himself, he headed for the bathroom.
Heart pounding like crazy, Jack leaned over and said, “Forget that old man. Günther, I think you and I will stay. Hans, you get outta here. Make sure the bartender sees you leave so he doesn’t get suspicious.”
Ring. . . . Ring. . . .
“Hello. . . . One moment, sir.”
“Yes, sir. . . .” This time the voice wasn’t Stein’s.
Jack signaled Hans to go. But added, “Get a good look at who’s on that phone.”
Hans got to his feet and strolled nonchalantly through the bar.
Jack thought, That Hans has nerve.
The man on the phone said, “Yes, I can confirm they just received six new-model tanks. . . .” Long silence. “Yes, two new diesel tanker trucks. . . . We’ll try to find out. . . . We’ll let you know. Yes, you can reach us at the usual number.”
BRAT and the Kids of Warriors Page 37