Simon watched the girl with anger. Then, he shouted, "You! Why are you here?" Simon noticed the window was open.
"Oh no! It's you!" she exclaimed. "You have to stay silent or else they will hear us!" She closed the window and pulled the curtains.
"Be silent? Are you running from the police?"
"That is not important! If they find me they will also kill you!"
"Kill me? I am a police officer! If I report you they will spare me!" Simon ran to his telephone.
"Don't report me! Please!"
"I don't trust an enemy of the state!" Simon's hands began to call the emergency number. The girl had a look of absolute shock. Simon was one number away from calling the emergency line. His finger grazed the last number. He then thought about Alexa. Why would they take her? What is the reason? Why would they not let her stay? Simon's mind began to fall even further into a trough. Then he remembered the thoughts from the monorail. He remembered the ideas. He remembered the new heart. "My... the state... they took her."
"Who?" asked the girl.
"My niece, Alexa, they took her away."
"That must be hard to cope with. I'm sorry."
"Don't be, it wasn't your fault. It was that damned Mosley."
Simon fixed some coffee and gave it to her. She was wearing that puffy coat again. She also wore brown, leather boots. Simon then asked, "What might your name be?"
"Nancy, Nancy Gillard."
"I'm Simon Frank."
"That doesn't sound English, where are you from?"
"The New American Order, Indiana."
"Oh..."
"Also," explained Simon. "Sorry for shouting at you."
"No problem. I knew what it was like to be loyal to the state."
"Hey! I'm still loyal to the state, just not happy with them."
Nancy nodded, still doubting him in her mind. Then Simon said, "You can stay here for a couple of weeks until they stop searching, then you have to leave. You can sleep in Alexa's room."
"Alright," she said.
Simon walked to his bedroom. He locked the door and fell onto his bed. Then he dressed in his sleeping clothes and laid on his bed. Then Simon began to think, "Where did they take the convicts? Where were they going? And why do we never follow them into the ground transports?" Simon fell asleep.
The next day when Simon awoke Nancy was still asleep. He exited his room and stood in the kitchen. He then began to make breakfast, this time for two. He fixed some scrambled eggs and beans, for that was all he had. Simon did not want to wake Nancy so he left a note on the table and the breakfast. Simon fitted himself into his uniform and proceeded to work. He descended through the elevator shaft and exited by the street. The streets were crowded and many pedestrians roamed the cement sidewalks. Simon's heart began to pound as he saw two officers showing a picture of Nancy asking where she was. Simon walked faster fearing the two question him. Then Simon's heart froze in place when he heard the officer exclaim, "Hey! You in the uniform! Come back!"
Simon pretended he did not hear them. Then he heard the notorious noise of an officer's rubber boots behind him. He felt a hand squeeze his shoulder. Simon turned around and exclaimed, "Excuse me?"
The officer looked at Simon then their expression radically changed. The officer sounded overcome with joy, "I knew it was you!"
Simon was deeply confused, "Um... do I know you?
"Simon? It's me Gorge!"
Simon then was surprised and also joyful. Then he exclaimed with astonishment, "Gorge! From Franklin?"
"Yes!"
"Oh my goodness it's great to see you!"
"You too! Your an officer too?"
"Yeah! I drive the transport for the thirty-first unit!"
"That's great! Oh also," Gorge pulled the picture of Nancy out from his pocket. "Have you seen this girl? The whole squad's out to get her. She's in a whole lot of trouble!"
"What kind of trouble?"
"I don't even know."
"Oh... well, I'll keep an eye out for her."
"Good to know!" Then Gorge and Simon separated.
Simon continued to walk down the street towards the monorail station. He punched his pass and climbed the stairs. The intercom chimed, "Attention all passengers: The A-45 train is now arriving. Repeat: Attention all passengers: The A-45 train is now arriving. Attention all passengers: Be on the watch for a girl named Nancy Gillard she is an enemy of the state."
Simon was now extremely worried. What did she do? Why is she wanted so badly? Simon continued his journey. He entered the train. His regular schedule took place. Board train, arrive at the station, exit the station, board a cab, exit the cab at the precinct.
When Simon arrived at the precinct posters with Nancy's face were strung about the walls and doors. He entered the building and there on the "Most Wanted" list was Nancy, on the top spot. Simon shivered. When he entered the Gruppenführer's office he saw he had a file open. He asked the Gruppenführer for the target list.
"Ah yes..." he replied. The Gruppenführer handed Simon the target list. He then headed for the door not until the Gruppenführer dropped the file and spoke. "Do you know of a girl by the name of Nancy Gillard?" he asked.
"N-N-Nancy Gillard?" Simon responded
"Yes, Nancy Gillard."
"No sir, I have not seen a girl by that name." Simon began to feel nauseous and light-headed.
"Oh... too bad."
Simon exited the tension-filled room. His palms were chapped and sweaty. He could hardly speak or breath. What has she done to deserve this much attention? After Simon drew the routes for targets he once again entered the Gruppenführer's room. "Gruppenführer?" he asked.
"Yes, Lieutenant Frank?"
"What did this girl do exactly? The one you asked me about."
"I don't know, Obergruppenführer Samuels never told me. He doesn't even know. Only Mosley and the Führer."
Simon's eyes widened, "What could she have done?"
"I have no clue," then the Gruppenführer peered at his watch. "You need to get going."
"Alright Gruppenführer Adams," Simon responded. He then rushed out of the office and told the unit they needed to leave. Simon with the rest of the unit boarded massive juggernaut. They all flew away with the massive one-ton jets blasting. The next hours were Simon's normal routine, fly detain, fly detain, fly detain, fly and sometimes kill. That is all it was.
After the workday, Simon switched clothes and left the precinct. He took his usual amble down the sodden streets. Cars rushed by him switching and snapping cables while creating a great deal of wind. Simon never usually noticed the great and beautiful architecture of pre-war buildings.
He then once again started to climb the mountainous monorail station. All the water from earlier was now gone, evaporated into the sky soon to fall once again. He boarded the familiar snake-like vehicle. It sped past all other objects in existence. Simon was desperate to go home as he needed to ask Nancy questions. The monorail stopped and he hastily exited.
"Need to ask. Need to ask!" he repeated to himself. "What did she do! What did she do!"
He rushed into the bus, the driver barely saw his pass. "Need to ask! What is she hiding!"
"Report any convicts! Report any convicts!" the bus radio chimed. "All enemies are the enemies of peace and the state! Report any convicts! The top convict right now is Nancy Gillard! The reward is one-million Reichsmarks!"
"WHAT DID SHE DO!" Simon shouted.
The bus driver looked back at him in confusion. Simon held his hand forward, motioning and apology. Simon began to spiral into madness. He needed to get home, his life may depend on it. He repeated under his breath the crazed words of a lunatic.
When the bus halted to a stop and sprinted as fast as he could out of the vehicle. He ran towards the elevator entrance. He seized the cell phone with his wet, sweaty hands. "Operator, operator! Simon Frank 1689957! Quickly, quickly!"
"Sir, can you repeat that? I need ID and name."
"Damn woman! I already told you! Simon Frank 1689957! I need to get to my room!"
"Sir calm down, talk slower."
"Simon Frank 1689957 can't you hear!"
"Can you repeat your ID, Simon?"
"You idiot! 1, 6, 8, 9, 9, 5, 7. Are you deaf!"
"Ok, what is your floor, sir?"
"45! Now send me there please!"
"Sending you to 45."
Simon was panting like a dog. The elevator doors closed and the small room ascended through the shaft like a blazing chariot. Simon was out of breath, tired, and anxious. He did not know if he was going to die that day or not. What if officers were waiting there. What if they had already detained her and they were investigating the room for the owner. Simon heard pounded with fear. His throat closed in on itself. The elevator made an infamous "ting" and the door opened. Simon sprinted forward while ransacking his jacket for the keys to his apartment. When he located them he shoved the keys into the brass knobbed door. When the door opened he burst through and saw Nancy in the middle of the kitchen holding the Grimm's Fairy Tales. "You!" Simon shouted. "What did you do! I have been seeing pictures, warnings and rewards about you. What did you do! I don't want to die" Simon had gripped Nancy by the shoulders and shook her. "I don't want to go to one of those Siberian prison camps! I want you to tell me what you did!"
"What are you..." Nancy was all the edge of having a heart attack. Her face changed from a peachy skin tone to an almost white color. She had a look of absolute shock. "If you must know..."
"Oh! I must!" shouted Simon.
"I broke into the pantheon that night at the train station. My parents, a long time ago, were living with me in Liverpool. My father was an underground librarian along with my mother. We lived in a large pre-war building. My father refitted it into a hidden library. We had all the restricted material, Huck Finn, the Bible, Moby Dick, The Great Divorce, War and Peace, and The Screwtape Letters.
"Then one day the police and their cable-cars arrived at our door. They rushed into our house. Once my parents heard the sirens they brought me to the alleyway and told me to run. When I hesitated they shouted and gave me this book," she pulled out of her coat a leather-bound booklet that read The Bible. "When I was a few blocks away I saw smoke coming from the building. Later, I heard on the radio two people was being sent to a camp because they had an illegal library.
"I broke into the pantheon because I wanted to know where my parents were sent. That is when I found out about the camps. The last camp to be used was in 1952," she said. Simon has a look of confusion. "They don't send people to camps on those transports. They kill them. That is why they want to arrest me so badly. I know what they are doing. It was almost like a dagger in the heart, to hear that my beloved parents were... dead."
Simon was shocked. He sat down on his red couch. All those convicts and criminals that he had arrested, all of them were dead. All the bookkeepers, all the revolutionaries, all the poets, all dead. "I... am... so, so sorry for shouting at you," said Simon.
"No, I'm sorry. I should not have lied."
"I'll make dinner," Simon said. Simon did not know this at the time, but he now had no more faith or trust in the state. All loyalty to the state, to the Nazi Party, to his job, disappeared like dust in the wind. His mind shall now be used for revolutionary purposes and ideas. Simon although, knew none of this.
"How was work, Simon?" Nancy asked.
"Now that I know all about the transport trucks, depressing."
"Besides that, what happened."
"Well, your face was plastered on every corner and bulletin."
"Really? I didn't know it would be this bad."
"Even the bus was advertising your reward and arrest."
"Oh... Oh, dear," responded Nancy.
"They are really hunting for you."
Nancy had an appearance of absolute horror. It looked as though she had not the smallest clue that she was the public enemy number one, of the largest most powerful super-empire in the world. Then Simon said, "Hey, I am sorry if I made you upset. I didn't mean to hurt you in any way."
"No, no, no. It's alright, I was just afraid you would report me. That's all."
"I would never. I am against the state too." Simon then grabbed his plates and leftovers and put them in the sink. He walked back to the dining table saying, "I'm heading to bed. I advise you do too. Just put the plate in the sink when you are finished." Nancy nodded and Simon walked along to his bedroom.
He walked through the doorframe and then turned the brass lock. Next, he fitted himself in his nightly clothes and drifted asleep. That night, Simon has a peculiar dream. He was standing in an empty nothingness, he was wearing his normal police uniform. A few feet ahead of him stood a massive, gushing heart. The veins and vena cava pulsed with the beat of the heart. Simon heard a distant gunshot and the great heart started to burn. The aortas and atriums began to shriveled and swirl. The massive blood-filled balloon released one last beat until it turned to ash. Then there was a deafening shriek and the brightest light surrounded Simon. It consumed him and cared for him, it made him comfortable. Before Simon could see the beacon he awoke from his sudden illusion.
He peered at his digital bedside clock. "7:22 AM," it read. He stretched his long lanky arms and stood adjacent to his bed. He opened the wooden door to his bedroom. The hallway was filled with the smell of eggs. Simon walked down the thin, tight hallway. To his surprise, Nancy was making breakfast. "Why are you cooking? And why are you awake at this time?" Simon asked.
"Just wanted to be kind to you since you have been so kind to me."
"Oh... Well then, thank you." Simon sat down on one of the wooden chairs. Nancy placed the steaming bowl of eggs in front of him. "Thanks," Simon repeated.
After breakfast, Simon adorned his blue suit with the helmet and mask. He plucked his massive pea coat from the table and inserted his lengthy arms through his coat sleeves. He said his sendoff to Nancy and then left his apartment numbered 5578.
His commute to work was heretofore taking place normally. His walk to the monorail was orthodox and not at all wrong. Although, when he arrived at the station the intercom chimed, "Due to a crash on section 42A all trains are delayed for three hours." Then the message went on to repeat.
The large mass of pedestrians let out one large sigh. Simon then sat down on one of the metal benches, upset for going to miss another prompt arrival. He could not take a bus or walk to the precinct as it was an immense distance and myriad miles. His head fell backward and he then stared at the familiar ceiling. Simon then waited.
After the three hours, Simon stood and grabbed his suitcase. The intercom once again chimed, "Attention all passengers: The A-67 high-speed monorail is now arriving. Repeat: Attention all passengers: The A-67 high-speed monorail is now arriving."
The serpent slithered to a halt. The whistle of the reptile slowly diminished while echoing through the city. He then boarded the red metallic vermin spotted with swastikas. The countdown had finished the machine moved along its cement track. The three-foot-long rail was built to maneuver through the city. The snake never went up, nor down, it just turned and veered at supersonic speeds while the car itself bobbed. The only thing Simon could see was the blur of buildings and cars attached to their electrified cables. Soon the monorail arrived at the intended destination.
Simon stepped out and took in a deep breath of the polluted downtown area. He walked down the colossal stairs and punched his laminated pass into the steel gates. Once he was through he called a cab. Yet, no cabs came to him, so he was forced to walk. On his walk, he saw all the wanted posters for Nancy. The buildings were massive in this area as well. He saw the cameras hanging from their telephone posts, street lamps, building walls, and traffic signals.
Cars rushed past him at high speeds. Bikers riding to their factory jobs sped past him. Then a large escort of cars all bravely flying the german swastikas drove past. Simon noticed that this was only for important staff members of the S.S. and the government. He then spotted in the sky a supersonic jet traveling high above any man-made building.
He finally arrived at the stone brick precinct. The large metal numbers hanging on the outside read 31 like it was its birthday. He once again opened the notorious lengthy glass doors which hung from their golden hinges. The tiles of the police station floor seemed more guilty then they had ever been. Their white marble exterior almost red with blood. The police station was more haunting like a lonely abandoned morgue. Once he had climbed the stairs all the whole unit was upstairs gathered around the center table. Then Sharper greeted Simon, "Well look who showed up! No hard feelings, after all, you live in Borehamwood. Anyway, we have all the targets lined up, time to strike!"
"Alright then, I'll just go greet the Gruppenführer."
"Oh Simon, the Gruppenführer left on important business," responded Buldton.
"Why? Where did he go?"
"Oh, he had to go to Berlin, all the Gruppenführers of capital cities, Obergruppenführer, and the Führer himself."
Simon's eyes widened as this was the first time this had happened. What did he need to do? Of course, no one knew.
They all exited the precinct's roof. The cement scruffed all of their rubber boots which were used for clicking. The boots were placed on the grated steel steps that marked the entry of the massive metallic hovercraft. Then he mounted himself into the black and red vehicle suffused with swastikas and police symbols.
Once he was inside the machine's cockpit he flicked the normal switches for closing the door and ascending. Soon the massive autogiro was lifted off the painted landing area. Its shadow touching everything as rising darkness. The vehicle flew across the unfamiliar fascist sky. The clouds not even daring to touch the iron fist of the law. It landed on its first target. Simon did not think of this as clockwork anymore, he thought of it as an assassin's job and duty.
The next stops felt like time was moving sluggishly. It was almost like his mind wanted him to be miserable, seeing all the prisoners, innocent men and women walk out of the brick buildings like corpses in a morgue.
The clock ticked slower and slower till one fateful stop. The wheels of the chopper landed gracefully on the suspended cement pad. The sky looked so familiar like he had grown up with it.
After the long unbearable minutes passed the unit exited the building. Simon's faced turned pale white. His pupils dilated and his heart almost stopped beating. Then his heart started beating faster than it ever has. The blood rushed through every organ and vein as fast as a bullet. His muscles immediately rushed to the switch that controlled the door. As the door rolled back all the soldiers had a prompt and perplexing appearance.
Simon's spine froze in fear and shock just by looking at the image. In the grip of the last two soldiers was Nancy Gillard.