Reyna Feldman, a twenty year old Jewish girl from the tiniest of villages in France, is on the run. Captured by German soldiers while trying to escape over the border, she's taken to an internment camp in Freiburg, Germany, where she meets SS Philli...
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I was originally going to wait to post this chapter, but I already had it written so I figured I'd go ahead and upload it! I hope you guys are enjoying it so far! I can't wait for you guys to meet some new characters in the upcoming chapters!
"I am SS Hauptsturmfuhrer Krause," The officer spoke in German, turning on her heel. Reyna and the other girls followed silently as she led them deeper into the camp. "But you can call me Ms. Krause," She added in heavily accented English. "You have been selected to work in the sorting sheds," She pressed on. "You are to report to work at 7am sharp, and will work until 6pm each evening."
Reyna looked at the ground, trying to make sense of Ms. Krause's instruction. This was all too much. That morning she'd been with her family ... Her future had been uncertain, but at least she'd had one. There was no future in a place like this ... Just survival.
"Breakfast will be served at 6am each day, and you will be escorted back to the dining hall for lunch and dinner," Ms. Krause continued, leading the group into one of the concrete structures Reyna had saw earlier. "On top of your duties at the sorting sheds, there may come a time when your presence is requested by an officer within the camp," She paused, turning to face the girls. "You are to stay as long as they wish, and follow any orders they give," She trailed off, letting her words hang in the air.
Reyna looked up for the first time since they'd arrived inside the barrack. There was a girl, about Reyna's age, standing beside Ms. Krause. She wasn't dressed in an SS uniform, but stood with the lofty confidence of a soldier. Reyna examined her. She had on a plain cotton dress, much like what the other female prisoners wore, but her's seemed nicer. The fabric was thicker, more durable, and there were pockets sewn into either side of the skirt.
"Due to that ever present possibility, you will be afforded certain luxuries others here are not," Ms. Krause chimed on pleasantly, as if she were delivering the best news they'd ever heard. "There will be a bathhouse available to you five days a week. You will be allotted ten minutes each of those days to shower and take care of any other hygiene necessities. You will be given three sets of clothes, which you will be responsible for laundering. Any questions you have are to be directed to me, or Elizabeth," She said, gesturing to the dark haired girl Reyna had been eyeing.
"Y-Yes ma'am," The five of them said in unison.
"Good," She gave a stark nod. "Elizabeth will show you to your bunks. All of you need a good washing before dinner." With that, she turned on her heel and exited the barrack.
Reyna followed along with the other girls as Elizabeth led them further into the barrack, each girl falling away from the group as she was shown to her respective bunk, until it was only Reyna left.
"Why would we be called upon by German officers?" She asked in a hushed whisper once she'd finally mustered up the courage to speak.
"They pick the young, pretty ones to work in the sorting sheds," Elizabeth began matter-of-factly. "That's not really what we're here for though," She added, giving Reyna a knowing look.
"What are we here for?" Reyna asked, furrowing her brow.
"To keep the soldiers company," Elizabeth shrugged.
"What do you mean by that?" But she thought she understood perfectly what Elizabeth meant. Her stomach turned at the thought of it.
"That indignant look on your face tells me you know exactly what I mean by that," She cocked an eyebrow. Reyna looked away, embarrassed. They walked in silence the rest of the way, until they finally reached Reyna's bunk.
"Do the soldiers call for girls often?" Reyna asked, mustering up the courage to speak again. Her mind was racing with a million possible scenarios, each worse than the last. She'd only ever been kissed once ... When she was sixteen, by a boy in her village she'd known her entire life. They'd climbed up the hill that had overlooked town and had sat underneath an oak tree watching the sunset ... How different she'd thought her life would be back then.
"Some more that others ... Some not at all," She shrugged. "The men tend to have their favorites," She paused as the horrified expression Reyna had been trying to hide, surfaced. "As long as you're not one of them, you won't have anything to worry about," She added in an attempt to reassure her. "My name's Elizabeth, but you can call me Liza," She said, sticking out her hand.
"Reyna," She replied sheepishly.
"Nice to meet you Reyna," Liza smiled at her. "Listen..." She put an arm around her shoulders in an almost motherly way. "Just try to keep your head down ... You might go unnoticed entirely."
"Ms. Feldman," Ms. Krause's heels clicked as she rounded the corner. "Lieutenant Muller's asked for you."
"Or maybe not," Liza muttered, her mouth turning down into a grim expression, despite her best efforts to conceal it. "Let's get you cleaned up." With that, she ushered Reyna out of the bunk room.
"I can't do this," She shook her head fiercely, pushing down the panic rising within her chest.
"You don't have a choice," Liza said, pulling her towards the bathhouse.
She allowed herself to be led into the showers, unable to object as Liza turned the water on and began to undress her. She was frozen in fear, her mind racing a million miles a minute. Her surroundings faded around her as she struggled to keep her composure, willing herself not to fall into the pit of despair she was on the precipice of.
She was pulled back to reality as a scratchy, cotton fabric was slipped over her head. She noticed, for the first time, that her hair was wet and smelled faintly of flowers now. Liza had bathed her and was now dressing her. She blinked ... How long had she been out of it? She watched in the reflection of a cracked mirror on the adjacent wall as Liza towel dried her hair before pinning back the damp curls.
"What's going to happen to me?" She asked in a shaky voice.
"Nothing," Liza said, placing one more pin in Reyna's hair before stepping back to admire her handy work. "Just do as he says, do you understand?"
She nodded, swallowing down the knot in her stomach. She was petrified.
