Jenny Plague-Bringer: (Jenny Pox #4)

by J. Bryan

  “Have a good night,” he told her.

  “You don’t have to sleep in there!”

  “That’s right. I can curl up on the rug in your room. Sleep by the fireplace, which you probably have, too.”

  Juliana took his hand. Inside her stateroom, there was no talk of sending him to sleep on the couch or the rug. They kissed each other hungrily, and his hands explored all over her body, caressing her through the summer dress.

  She stepped back from him, lifted her dress over her head, and tossed it on the carpet. He gazed at her, desire in his eyes.

  “Are you sure?” he asked.

  She didn’t answer, but she walked to the bed, turning off all the lamps in the bedroom, and he followed. He took off his cotton shirt and dark trousers, and she could see him thick and hard inside his underwear. The two of them together, almost completely undressed now, made her shake in anticipation. She’d longed to get out of their clothes together, to let every part of him touch every part of her, skin on skin, a sensation she’d never experienced. She wanted it so much it frightened her.

  The rain fell faster as he lay her across the bed, splashing against the glass and making the steel hull echo with thousands of tiny pings.

  He kissed her slowly, touching the tip of his tongue against hers. His hands moved from her hips and across her stomach and ribs, not hurrying at all, as if he wanted to feel every part of her. He had the rough-skinned hands of a boy who’d grown up working hard for little money.

  She sighed when his hands touched her breasts through her bulky, starchy cotton bra. She unlatched it for him, then shivered in delight when he touched her bare skin. He kissed her and she held his face close, unable to get enough. He tasted like sunlight on her lips.

  His hands moved down her body, at a speed she found agonizingly slow. His fingertips brushed low on her stomach, beneath her navel and just above her cotton panties. Juliana traced her hand down the muscles of his abdomen and touched the erection that strained against his undershorts. She took a breath and reached inside, touching him without any cloth barrier. He felt scorching hot in her fingers, and he grew more rigid as she explored his length with her fingertips.

  He slowly drew down her panties. They lay naked for a moment, looking at each other in the silver moonlight as a thunderstorm ripped across the ocean, rocking the vast ship around them. Juliana embraced him, kissing him hungrily and pressing her body against him. He wrapped his arms around her, and the feeling of their bodies wrapped in each other was better than she’d ever imagined. She wanted to stay just like this forever, his skin on hers, his breath on her lips.

  “I was dead,” she whispered. “You brought me to life.”

  Her fingers touched his lip, and his hand brushed down her side. They kissed again, and his fingers rubbed her gently at just the right spot between her splayed legs. Her body filled with a roaring fire, and a burst of lightning filled their cabin.

  He climbed on top of her and slowly entered her. She bit her lip in pain. After a lifetime of solitude, the intimacy hurt almost as much as the physical loss of her virginity. She clung to him while he was inside her, and her breath came out in short, hot gasps. She had never felt so close to anyone.

  “I love you,” she whispered afterward, too low for him to hear over the rumbling thunder. She lay against him and let the ship rock them to sleep.

  * * *

  Eighty years later, telling the story to Seth and Mariella, Jenny would skip the more intimate details of their first night on the ship...but she would pause and give Seth a secretive smile, for reasons he didn’t even remember.

  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 t
ook 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.