Copyright (c) 2014 Phyllis Zimbler Miller
All rights reserved.
Jessica held her grandmother’s one hand while Julie held the other hand.
No one spoke, but Jessica guessed what her grandmother might be thinking. Grandma’s own grandmother had survived the Nazis' Auschwitz death camp during the Second World War, the only one of her extended family to survive. Jessica’s grandmother had spent years piecing together a family history in order to preserve the memory of the murdered family members. Then she had shared those stories with her own grandchildren.
Now Jessica imagined the selection at the disembarkation platform at Auschwitz where the Jewish men, women and children who had survived the horrifying conditions in the railroad cattle cars were sent to the right or the left. Some to be gassed immediately, others to be killed later in a multitude of ways.
“It’s okay, Grandma,” Jessica said. “Julie and I are with you.”
Her grandmother nodded, and Jessica saw the tears pooling in her eyes.
***
Julie looked away from her grandmother after hearing what Jessica had said. Julie understood what Jessica meant, and Julie wanted to distract herself from thinking about that.
Instead she watched Isidora walking with Graciela. If Jonah and Isidora had sex last night, Julie saw no difference in Isidora today.
Julie wondered whether, if they had had sex and Isidora never saw Jonah again, she would wish that they hadn’t had sex. Or would she be glad that they had?
Then Julie glanced around her grandmother to Jessica. Would she and Jessica ever get to have boyfriends? Or would this escape be only a brief respite from the end of their lives at age 10.
Suddenly Julie felt her throat constricting. Her mother had given her these 10 years by illegally saving Julie from being eliminated at birth. Now Julie wondered had that risk to her mother been worth it for a mere 10 years?
***
William looked at Gregor across the meeting table after asking for a report on the first group home visiting day. William caught the hesitation before Gregor answered.
“Overall it went well. The mothers and children followed the visiting rules, including no gifts of any kind, not even food treats, to be brought into the homes. Mothers were body imaged at each group home before admittance to check for contraband.”
William nodded. This was good – no children should benefit more than others. “What about the children whose mothers didn’t visit?” he asked.
Samantha smiled. “Your idea for that was genius,” she said. “All the children whose mothers weren’t visiting got to spend time in a very special play room filled with food treats and fun games. We’re making sure those children now tell the other children all about the special room.”
“Excellent,” William said. “And then you’re providing the opportunity for all the children to send messages to their mothers saying to stay home next time?”
“Of course,” Gregor said. “We’re arranging e-messages to be written by the older children and dictated by the younger children.”
YOU ARE READING
THE MOTHER SIEGE: A DYSTOPIAN THRILLER
Science FictionImagine the future of 2049 and the government has just decreed that, in 30 days, all children from the ages of six months to 18 years will be removed to group homes. And as a mother you are already a subversive -- having falsified the death of one...
