Hey guys! Sorry for the delay in the update, life happens. Along with writing for another full-length story, and getting lots of ideas for even more full-length stories.
I swear I have no life.
But that's good for you, so without further ado, enjoy!
"This'll be a good spot."
Ludwig pulled the jeep off of the abandoned street, parked it, and killed the engine. He looked the building up and down, then nodded. "It's far enough away to divert suspicion, but close enough for easy access. What do you think?"
Gilbert nodded his head and smiled. "I like it."
The two brothers stepped out of the jeep and into the street, rifles in hand. Ludwig turned to Gilbert and said, "Gil, you stay with the jeep. I'll check the place out."
Gilbert nodded. "Be careful, alright?"
"Yeah sure," Ludwig strode up to the door of the building and put his hand on the doorknob.
"Shoot first, ask questions later!" Gilbert called out.
Ludwig gave a thumbs-up, took a deep breath, raised his rifle, and turned the knob.
The first thing that struck him was the sheer darkness inside. The shadows were dark as night, and the thickness of the black pressed against his lungs.
The smell of the air inside was heavy, old, musty. The stale air from the dark mixed with the fresh air of the outside.
Ludwig eased the door closed behind him, enveloping himself in the shroud of the suffocating black. There was no sound. His ears were numb. Lead weighted his boots to the ground. His finger tingled where it rested against the trigger.
He took a moment to breathe before slinging his rifle over his shoulder, effectively freeing his hands to fish a flashlight out of his pocket and to draw his pistol from the holster on his hip. Ludwig gripped the flashlight between his teeth as he chambered a round, the metal click echoing on the walls. He then took the flashlight from his teeth and held it in his right hand. Arms extended, with the hand holding the flashlight resting lightly over top of the hand that held his pistol, Ludwig clicked on the light.
The pale yellow beam cut easily through the inky darkness with a column of light. The beam slowly made its way around the room, revealing the room to be empty but for a handful of broken chairs and a thick layer of dust. Still no sound. There was an open doorway across the room that led to what looked like a hallway, and Ludwig watched for anything that resembled movement, but there was none. The only movement was his own, and the only sound was that of his shaky breathing. In through the nose, out through pursed lips.
When he stepped forward, the creaking of the floor beneath his feet made Ludwig freeze. Five seconds. Ten seconds. There was nothing that disrupted the silence. Ludwig resumed his journey across the room.
Through the open doorway was a narrow hall with three doors on the left side, all of which were open. To the right was a staircase.
Ludwig searched every room on the lower level, but there was the same nothingness in each of them. As he climbed the stairs, Ludwig was greeted by two doorways. One of the doors was open, the other shut. The room with the open door was empty, as expected. The door that was shut revealed a room so small, Ludwig had to stoop to avoid knocking his head on the slanted ceiling. What greeted him spread a wide grin on his face.
The room was fashioned with a threadbare mattress, a pile of thin blankets in a far corner, and a tiny window in the ceiling which let in a narrow stream of afternoon sunlight. There was nothing else in the room.
This is exactly what we need.
-x-x-x-
"How's it look?"
Ludwig pulled the door of the building closed behind him. He squinted in the now all-too-bright light of the outdoors. "The building appears to have been cleared out a long time ago, but it's perfect for our purposes."
Gilbert nodded, stroked a finger against his chin in thought, then nodded again. "Alright, let's get them inside. The sooner they're settled, the better."
Gilbert and Ludwig ushered the girls into the building as fast and as discreetly as they could, and they were thankful that the street and nearby buildings were deserted. Or they at least looked that way, and the both of them prayed that appearances didn't deceive. A curious onlooker could inevitably sign their death certificates and put all four of them in the ground.
The youngest of the girls clung to Ludwig with all of what little strength she had as he carried her inside. The older girl held onto Gilbert's arm with both hands, her knuckles white. Ludwig led them as quickly as he could through the first room, down the hall, up the stairs, and into the tiny upper room.
"Well, this is certainly cozy," Gilbert remarked as he closed the door of the room behind him. "Heck, all it needs is a radio and it's good to go!" Ludwig rolled his eyes and tried to set the youngest girl down on the floor, but when she gripped him tighter, he settled for sitting on the bed. She proceeded to make herself comfortable on his lap.
"You know," Gilbert said as he watched the proceedings between the younger girl and Ludwig, "We never asked their names."
Ludwig thought for a moment. "You're right. We didn't."
He looked down at the girl on his lap and asked, "Quel est votre nom?"
The little girl grinned, showing off the space where her two front teeth should be. "Miriam."
Ludwig smiled broadly, then turned the question to the oldest girl, who still held Gilbert's hand. She replied with a curt, "Monika." She then added, "Et ce que vous à propos?"
Gilbert frowned. "What's she saying?"
"She's asking what our names are." Ludwig looked her in the eye and said, "Mon nom est Ludwig." Monika then looked up and waited for Gilbert's reply.
"Gilbert," he said carefully. Ludwig said that they were brothers. Monika watched him for a moment more before she did something astonishing. She smiled. It was small, nearly imperceptible, but it was a smile nonetheless. Gilbert's heart soared. He gave her hand a tiny squeeze, and she returned it. Despite the fact that neither of them could understand a word that the other said, Monika and Gilbert shared something that surpassed any language barrier: The tiniest flickers of a thing that had grown to be so rare, it had been nearly eradicated. Hope.
-x-x-x-
Gilbert and Ludwig stayed in the hiding place for their girls for a couple of hours, until the sun had nearly set. During that time, they had pulled the jeep into a more concealed location, brought up food, jackets, and other things to keep the girls warm and provided for until they would be able to come again. They had made their best attempts at cleaning the girls up and removing as much dirt and grime as they could, but it wasn't as well done as they wished. Gilbert and Ludwig sat on the bed and finger-combed the girls' hair as they sat on their feet on the floor, and the four of them whispered quietly and learned what they could about each other. Of course, it was only the important questions were asked, such as favorite colors, favorite flavors of ice cream, and favorite games. While they were discussing the cultural importance of blue ribbons as opposed to green ones, Ludwig glanced to his left and had to do a double take.
"Gil," he said, "I didn't know you could braid hair…"
Gilbert looked up from his hands, which were holding a magnificent-looking Dutch braid together against Monika's head, her brown curls spilling over his intertwined fingers and wrists. "This surprises you?" Gilbert stifled a laugh. "You have much to learn about me, little brother!" From the corner of his eye, Ludwig caught sight of Monika sitting on Gilbert's booted feet, her hands folded in her lap, with a semblance of a contented grin on her face. Ludwig couldn't help but to crack a smile as he turned back to Miriam, who had fallen asleep against his shins.
-x-x-x-
The sun had nearly set, and the time had come for Gilbert and Ludwig to be getting back. The two men talked for a moment, then sat the two girls down on the bed next to them.
"Now, what we're going to tell you both now is very important," Ludwig said, instantly switching from speaking in German for Gilbert to speaking in French for the girls. He made sure that they were both paying attention before he continued. "You must be very quiet during the day. As quiet as possible. If anyone knows that you're here, then bad men would come and…" He took a moment, rolling the words around in his head. "...And they would take you away. Bad things would happen." No, stop sugarcoating it. They need to know. It's for their own good. "These bad men would most likely kill you."
Miriam's eyes grew to be the size of saucers. Monika only took ahold of Miriam's tiny hand.
"That's why you must be quiet. Do you understand?" The two girls nodded. "Now, Gilbert and I, when we come to visit you, we will knock on both the front doors and on the door to your room three times slowly, then three times quickly. Like this." He demonstrated on his open palm. "This way, you'll know that it's us and not the bad men." The girls nodded again. "There's a lock on this door. Monika, I need you to make sure that the door stays locked at all times." Monika nodded solemnly. "Don't open the door to this room for anyone, not even if you think it's us, unless we specifically ask you to. This is very important. Do you understand?" The girls nodded again, and Ludwig sighed. "There's not much food here, so one of us will come and bring you more in the next day or so. You have our jackets and the blankets in case you get cold. Just… Just stay safe and stay quiet until we get back, alright?"
Monika and Miriam both jumped to their feet and wrapped their arms around both Gilbert and Ludwig. Their ears were filled with many repetitions of "Merci beaucoup", and their cheeks were covered with kisses. It was nearly impossible for them to tear themselves away.
Sometimes cute fluffy chapters are nice. They give some relief to both reader and writer.
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That's all, thanks so much for reading! Sorry so short...
Much love, Harley