My Dark Angel

12. Hitching a Ride (Michelle)

"How long will it take to get there?"

Otto sighed, his skinny figure in front of us as he led the way. "I think it would be at least eight hours." He said.

I really tried not to groan in annoyance, because I should have been grateful that I wasn't going to Holland or anywhere else with countless other Jews from a concentration camp. A concentration camp like Ravensbrück.

I shivered at the name, knowing that this particular concentration camp was hideous, cruel, even more so than usual. It was a horrible place, and I really hoped that anyone I knew wouldn't be captured and herded over there.

A question popped into my mind and I found myself curious of my two comrades. Since Jeene was closer to me, actually, we were side by side as Otto led the way, I decided I would ask him. "Hey, Jeene..." I started.

His round face gleamed with sweat as we trudged on through obliterated cities and roads. "Yeah?" He asked, his accent becoming more prominent as he became more tired. His shoulders were slumped and the sweat was now sliding down his arms, of what I could see.

"What concentration camp where you and Otto sent too?" I clamped a hand over my mouth, sincerely regretting my question coming out so brash. "I mean, you don't have to answer if it's too personal -" I said.

Jeene stopped my rambling with a flick of his hand, his breaths coming out in wheezes. "To be honest, kid, it is too personal for me, right now anyway. Don't know if Otto will be more open than me about past events." He said.

Sadly, I saw that he had completely sealed all his emotions from me, and I could tell he had moved away a step as we walked. Not enough to be noticed easily, but the action was still there, as prominent as the fact that I'd screwed up. With the only friends I had, too.

"Sorry." I said, but he didn't seem to hear, instead focusing on the sights in front of him than on me. It was all my fault, now wasn't it? Why did I have to ruin things with a question I knew was too personal? Why did I let my curiosity override my logical thoughts?

I didn't voice any of this, opting to keep silent and trudge on as we got closer and closer to the train station once more. I saw it loom up in the distance, quick enough to see the train before ours start forward once more, leaving the train station full of a smoky vapor, most likely.

"Okay, we're here." Otto whispered, as we crouched in the shadows again. "Stay low, and don't get seen. The train station guard might have come back since the last time I was there."

I got a small feeling of deja vú, knowing we had done the same thing with me and Jeene only almost an hour back.

We creeped in and out of the shadows, pressing against the same walk we had been against before, facing the train station. "Surely, you're not going to sneak in again and see if the guard came back?" My voice was a mere whisper, but it sounded long and loud in the penetrating silence.

"No, I think it's better that we just sneak in together. The train we will take will be pulling in soon, and I already know where the guard has his office, so if he's there, we'll just creep around it to get to the front of the station." Otto said quickly.

"Look!" Jeene pointed at the train station's back, where the back door had just opened and closed.

I squinted and tried to find the person that had just gone through the door, but I couldn't see the person. It looked like he or she was deliberately hiding in the shadows. "He's a Nazi." I whispered threateningly. "What's he doing here? Otto, you said this one wasn't controlled by Hitler's power!" I finished off my speech, my hands coming up to rub the creases in my forehead.

"That's what I thought!" He countered with a frustrated sigh of his own.

I wanted to hit something. Hard. Why did life have to so difficult?

Like he had sensed the direction my thoughts were going, and despite the fact that I had popped his personal bubble, Jeene put a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Hey there now, we'll get through this." He said, a reassuring smile adorning his face. "It doesn't make this any harder, actually. Either way, being spotted is not an option."

I nodded thoughtfully, even though I was still quite riled up. "Alright." I said, relenting.

Jeene clapped his hands together, looking at both of us in turn. "Fantastic, we got that out of the way. Now, the plan?"

I couldn't help but smile at my two comrades, despite our current situation.

_________________________________

"I can't believe we're actually doing this." I whispered to Otto as we successfully slinked by the guard we had seen before, who was now smoking a cigarette. I couldn't help bit glare at the guy as we passed - especially, my eyes were trained on the badge that proclaimed he was part of the Nazi movement.

Through the back door we entered the train station, going straight past the empty office and into the equally as empty terminal. We'd gotten there just in time - I could year the beeping of the train coming at the station at a fast pace.  Only seconds later I saw it in the distance.

I was actually feeling giddy for once, after a long time of worrying over everything.

"We did it." Jeene said, another one of his infamous smiles on his face. The train came to a stop and we saw people come off it from the shadows, having slinked back so they didn't see us. Once everyone was off - mostly, everyone rich - and the train was about to depart, we jumped from the shadows.

We managed to board the train just as it pulled out of the terminal. For once, I allowed myself to relax. For a while, at least.

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Hey guys! Here's the next chapter of MDA! Sorry it's such a filler chapter :/

The cover up there was made by Juli! Isn't it beautiful?

Don't be afraid to point out my mistakes!

~Michelle <3