635798

Later that night, I was awoken to someone banging on my bed. The loud clangs shook me into a sitting position. I prayed an Aufseherin didn't wake me. All I had on was my underwear.

“Get up, Wolfgang!” Vater’s voice boomed.

I moaned and lied back down on the bed. “What time is it?”

“Time to get up. Put your uniform on. We have some training to do.”

Once Vater left, I rolled out of bed. Someone snorted in their sleep when I landed on the hardwood floor. Groaning, I did what Vater told me to do. Why did he want to train this late at night? We didn’t even have roll calls at this time!

I shuffled to the outdoors. I had to rub more sleep out of my eyes to make sure they weren’t deceiving me. Unfortunately, what they told me was true. I groaned and dragged my hands down my face. It was still nighttime and the sun made no sign of showing itself. What the hell.

I followed Vater’s tracks in the dirt to another barrack. This one wasn’t for prisoners. It was just another Nazi headquarters. Vater hung out here a lot even though his barrack was the same as mine. Jonji stayed at this, and he’s become quite attached to that dog. I just didn’t see why I needed to be there at this time of night. The Nazis that needed training could wait.

Someone was waiting for me at the door. After confirming who I was, the SS guard guided me inside. In the back of the barrack, I saw Lenz, Gretel, and Vater. I walked over to them without the SS guard.

“What?” I asked, aggravated.

The three of them, all in uniform, backed away. My eyes widened when I looked down. Jonji sat before me. In front of him lied a female German shepherd. The two of them followed three puppies with their eyes.

“You woke me up for this?” It came out ruder than I intended. “Since when did Jonji have a family?”

“Since a month ago,” Vater said. “You’re going to help Lenz train the pups.”

“Right now?”

“Yes. Right now.”

I looked over at Lenz who had an arm loosely wrapped around Gretel’s waist. Her annoying smirk was on her face. She eyed the puppies as if they were prey.

“Excellent dogs they’ll be!” she exclaimed. “With the help of Lenz, these could be the most loyal German shepherds you’d ever have!”

“Let’s name them,” Lenz said. He bent down and looked at each puppy individually. “All boys.”

“Berlin, Rome, and Tokyo. There. Done. Settled,” Gretel said.

For some reason, I wanted to smack her.

“Who’s who?” Lenz asked.

Gretel had that settled quickly, too. Rome’s ears were both black and Tokyo looked as if his tail had been dipped in black paint. Berlin was the happiest puppy. At least that was what it seemed like. He jumped along everywhere while panting hysterically. His tail wagged vigorously, hitting the side of his mother’s neck. I noticed his two front paws were completely black, as if he stepped in mud.

I pointed to Berlin. “That one seems too happy to be named ‘Berlin’.”

“What do you mean? Germany is a very happy country. It fits the dog well,” Vater said.

I sighed. No use in fighting with them.

I picked Berlin up. He tried licking my face but I held him at arm’s length. His black paws wrapped around my thumb.

“Why train now?” I asked.

“What better time to train than now?” Lenz smirked.



“I rather be sleeping than this bullshit,” I said.

Lenz and I were walking around the dark camp with the puppies. Lenz held Rome and I had Tokyo and Berlin. I didn’t have a clue as to what we were doing. I’ve never trained a dog before. How did one turn a happy puppy into a mean, deadly dog?

“You’d rather be doing anything as long as you weren’t in this place,” Lenz said. He smirked.

I clenched my teeth. I took in a deep breath and said, “Look. I’m here now, aren’t I? No need to make fun of me anymore.”

“Took you long enough,” Lenz said. He tripped over a stick but quickly caught himself. He looked at me through his peripheral vision, looking to see if I noticed or not.

“I don’t see why my opinion on this war bothers you so much,” I said, stopping so the puppies could pee.

“I’m glad you stopped being a chicken and became a true German.”

I sighed, aggravated. Being a true German did not mean I had to want to become a Nazi. Lenz was so caught up in this war that it was atrocious.

Suddenly Lenz snapped his fingers. “I have an idea.”

By now I was walking again. I looked at him with a worried expression.

“Follow me,” I was told.

Lenz turned towards the opposite direction of our original path. We pulled the puppies along. Berlin’s tongue was out and his panting nearly echoed through the camp. He jumped over ditches, hitting Tokyo with his hind legs. A yip was heard every now and then. Tokyo and Rome stayed silent.

Before I knew it, the five of us were standing before the clinic. Tokyo and Rome stayed silent even though Berlin barked happily in their faces. Lenz had a smirk on his face and his eyebrows form a deep V, creating creases on his forehead. I sucked in a breath. What were we about to get ourselves into?

I followed Lenz inside. Nurses looked at us but we weren’t questioned. Lenz picked up Rome and took his leash off. He walked up to a closed door with the puppy in his arms. I watched him open it and walk in the room. The nurses and I held our breaths. Even Berlin was quiet.

Screaming erupted from the room. A laughing Lenz ran out, puppy-less. The nurses seemed to be appalled. A prisoner ran out of the room. As she ducked under a nurse’s desk, Rome ran out. Instead of running towards us, he ran the opposite way. He ran from room to room and each time, more screaming erupted.

Lenz was still laughing. “Isn’t this great? All I did was throw Rome on top of one of these insects.”

I opened my mouth to say something but my voice hitched. Lenz bent down and undid the leashes of Berlin and Tokyo. The two puppies bolted down the hall. I watched them enter rooms and listened to the screaming get louder. One patient ran out with Tokyo biting her ankle. A nurse smacked the pup but he ran away before she could grab him.

“What is wrong with you two?” a nurse exclaimed. A band with the Star of David was wrapped around her arm. She was a Kapos.

Lenz didn’t notice it. He wouldn’t have responded the way he did. With a hint of laughter still in his voice, he said, “Aw, come on, lady. We’re just having fun.”

“Get those mangy dogs out of here!” another nurse screamed.

Straight away I bolted into the hallway. Lenz was at my heels but not for long. Within seconds he was going from room to room, teasing patients. Women began crying. I clenched my teeth and started looking for the puppies. I poked my head in rooms. Some were empty while others weren’t. There was one room where a patient and I made eye contact. She cowered underneath her blanket.

I found Berlin in a room at the end of the hallway. He was whimpering underneath a patient’s bed. I stepped into the room but stopped in my tracks. A child was in the bed, shaking and crying. She looked at me with fear in her big, brown eyes. I held my hands up in surrender while inching closer. At her bed I bent down slowly, avoiding more eye contact. I picked up Berlin and quickly left.

The majority of everyone stopped screaming but there was still one person. Her screaming came from my left, near the other side of the hall. I crept closer, concerned. I’ve heard that screaming before. The light of her room was the only one on. I leaned against the wall and poked my head in the opening. My eyes widened as I gasped. I nearly dropped Berlin.

Lenz had 635798 by her collar and he was pounding her against the bed frame. Whimpers came out of 635798’s mouth which gave Lenz more encouragement to keep doing was he was doing. 635798’s eyes rolled to the back of her head every time she made contact with the metal.

The Kapos nurse ran to my side. A gasp escaped her lips as we watched Lenz and 635798. Lenz jumped off the bed. He grabbed 635798 by her wrist and then pulled her off her bed. Before I could completely process what was happening, she was thrown to the floor. A loud cry exploded throughout at the room. 635798 arched her back. I saw tears stream down her cheeks.

Lenz forced his way between 635798’s legs. The nurse and I caught her biting her lip. Together, we watched Lenz lay down on top of her. He grabbed 635798’s wrists and pulled them over her head. I held my breath. The nurse looked at me with wide eyes, pleading that I stopped Lenz. I didn’t know why I wasn’t doing anything. I promised myself to keep 635798 safe, correct? Why wasn’t I doing so now?

All of a sudden, a scream that made my blood boil erupted. A loud gasp came out of the nurse’s mouth. I looked back at Lenz and 635798. My mouth dropped but I couldn’t make a sound. Lenz was jerking across 635798’s body. His pants were down a little. The more 635798 cried, the more I realized what he was doing.

I shoved Berlin in the nurse’s arms. Once in the room, I wrapped my arms around Lenz’s neck. I pulled him up before he had time to think. He fumbled with his pants as I dragged him to the door. The nurses slipped passed us and to the wailing 635798. My back was to them so I couldn’t see what was happening.

“What the hell?” Lenz exclaimed.

I threw him to the floor. “What is wrong with you?”

The whole clinic was quiet by now. Only 635798’s quiet whimpers were heard.

Lenz stood up, wiping dust off his pants. “No. What’s wrong with you? Why did you save that disgusting parasite?”

“Parasite?” I punched Lenz square in the jaw.

“You’re offended that I said that?” Lenz rubbed where I hit him. “Normal Nazis laugh at that. Is there something going on between you two?”

“No,” I said too quickly.

Lenz grabbed me by the neck and pushed me against the wall. I lifted my knee, hitting him as hard as I could at the penis. He yelped and backed away. At this advantage, I punched his face. The forced knocked him to the floor. Blood gushed out of his nose. Before he stood up, I jumped onto him. He grunted under me. Suddenly I was pushed over to my back. Lenz was on top of me, squeezing my neck.

“I’m gonna fucking report you,” Lenz said through clenched teeth.

“Not if I tell Gretel you had sex with a Jew,” I spat.

Lenz’s grip around my neck loosened. “You wouldn’t.”

I burrowed my feet under him. Then I pushed his body away from me. After standing up, I said, “Watch me.”

Lenz stood up. An arm came racing towards me but I grabbed it. I pulled it behind his body and twisted. He screamed and pleaded until I let go. With a glare on his face, Lenz raced out of the clinic, yanking Tokyo and Rome out of the nurses’ arms along the way.

I held my hands up. “It’s alright. You can all go back to work now.”

I slipped into 635798’s room before anyone could speak to me. She and the nurse were still on the floor. The nurse had an arm wrapped around her (the other one still carried Berlin). 635798 had her legs pulled up to her body and her hands were covering her still-swollen face. I inched closer. The nurse and Berlin looked up at the sound of my footsteps but 635798 didn’t. I bent down next to them. I tried putting a hand on 635798’s face. Once she felt my fingertips, she slapped my hand away. The nurse stopped herself from shrieking. I held a hand up, telling her it was okay. I tried again, but this time 635798 burrowed herself against the nurse.

“Maybe you should leave,” the nurse whispered. “I don’t think she’s ready for another Nazi encounter.”

“I’m not leaving yet,” I said. I scooted even closer. “Six-”

I couldn’t finish saying her serial number. Her hands flew towards me and started hitting my chest. She yelled each time, showing she was putting all her strength into it. Tears streamed down her cheeks. The nurse was screaming, and more gathered by the doorway. 635798 kept hitting me. Every time I backed up, she followed.

The nurse grabbed her shoulder. “Stop! Please. He’ll-”

635798 shoved her away.

“We have a gun somewhere,” another nurse said. “You can shoot her if you want.”

I ignored her. After letting 635798 punch my face, I stood up. I held up my hands. “Fine. Fine. I’ll go.”

635798 took Berlin out of the nurse’s hand and held him up towards me. I watched angry tears slip onto 635798’s lap before taking the puppy. I nodded slightly, acknowledging her request. Turning, I saw the faces of the other nurses. All looked horrorstruck. Something, like a batch of bandages, hit my head and by the way they all gasped, I knew 635798 was the one who threw it. I walked out of the room, pushing passed the nurses.

A nurse caught up to me by the time I reached the clinic’s exit. She put a hand on my bicep. “We have the gun ready. Are you sure you don’t want to shoot her?”

I walked out of the clinic.