Chapter 61 Section 61

All three of us fell asleep in our last shelter, until the whine of a train in the distance woke us up.In the darkness, we couldn't see where we were, but the shrill whistle of the train ushered in a new day, and with it, new horrors. The arrival of the steam train seemed to cheer Nikolai up again.For the past three days, he was like a soulless machine, following me in hiding, erratic, always holding on to Yiluo's hand.At this time, the sleeping little boy in that thin and weak body was awakened again. He reacted again to what was happening outside, his eyes were almost bright again, and he couldn't wait to see the train coming.This obvious change made me so excited that I didn't care about being cautious, and led the children to grope as far as I dared to approach, just to get a better look.

Now I could see that we were on the other side of the camp boundary, and the glowing chimneys we had seen when we first arrived were just around the corner.We watched the two huge iron gates on the railway line slowly open, only a few hundred meters away from the gate of the camp.As the train crossed the border, the loudspeakers in the square blared music that I later learned was Wagner.Nazi guards, prisoner chiefs and workers greeted another group of people on the square. The front of the car stopped, and the snake-like carriage trembled. I saw a change in Nicholas's expression. I must have remembered the tragic journey we had experienced.I wanted to pull him under my protection, but he held onto Yilo's hand tightly.I wanted to bring him to me, but in the end, I watched as silently as the two children, overwhelmed by the welcome.

I breathed a sigh of relief when the doors of the carriages opened one after another and the passengers stumbled out.They looked tired, but most of them were safe, and I guess they had a much shorter trip than our dreadful one, which is why they were so safe. The first few cars carried women and children, followed by men, but none of them wore the armbands that signify Jewishness. We watched families torn apart during the journey reunite in the square, children and wives rushing to their fathers and husbands.I was filled with admiration, and the hustle and bustle of family reunion even overshadowed the loud music in the square. At this moment, the fear caused by the words of Henrik and Maxim disappeared from my heart instantly.

Now, it is clear to me that Maxim was indeed mistaken, perhaps because of his debilitating health, he lost his judgment, was misled by rumors and rumors, and mistook the tragedy caused by typhus for the Nazis. single-handedly committed crimes.Thinking of this, my mood suddenly cheered up. After the music stopped, those Nazi soldiers stepped forward and spoke to hundreds of people in jerky Polish, confirming my guess that the new arrivals were indeed Polish people, sent from other parts of the country. Come here to work. Someone asked: "Where is our luggage?" At that moment, great fear rose in my heart. I found that everyone had no luggage, not even a small suitcase. The scenes I witnessed in Warsaw are still vivid in my mind.A soldier reassured them that their luggage was in the back compartment and would be unloaded in a while.And I let myself accept that statement as the only way I can have hope that my mother will be back soon.

The soldiers started walking up and down the crowd, asking about their occupations and skills, separating those who could be used, and leaving the rest where they were.My heart beat faster when I heard a woman answer that she was a tailor, and watched without blinking as she was sorted into the chosen group.Mom is also a seamstress, which is clearly a career that works for them.If Mama had made it to Auschwitz safely, she would have been chosen too, and even now she was probably working somewhere nearby. I watched them continue to separate the crowd according to skills, and my hope increased again. I tightly held the hands of Nicholas and Yilo, and a smile could not help but float on my lips.

Soon, the job was over, and they took those skilled workers away, promising them that they would be able to reunite with their families after the skills assessment was completed. The Nazi soldiers then turned to the few hundred Poles who remained in the square, warning them that typhus was endemic in the camp, that the deadly disease was spread by lice, and that all newcomers had to Sanitized.However, he did not explain why those skilled workers entered the camp directly without disinfection. I watched the men being led to some windowless barracks nearby, where they would pass by our hiding place.

My brain spins rapidly.Take this opportunity to join them, sneak in as the crowds pass by, and join them in a sanitizing shower to get rid of lice and refresh. Thinking of this, I smiled and put my arms around Nicholas' shoulders.After the shower, we'll be taken straight to the girls' barracks, and maybe today we'll find Mom.I just couldn't resist showing up. I moved forward slowly, whispering to the children to get ready, when Yiluo touched my arm, and I saw alertness and fear in her eyes. As if reading my mind, Yiluo said softly: "No, Anka, I don't like these. I think something is wrong here."

Maybe it was her intuition, or maybe it was just childish fear, but what she said made me suspicious.I can't quite put aside Maxim's words yet.His crazy talk about those showers is unbelievable, but I can't get over the pain in his face, warning me that it's not as simple as it seems. I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and considered the correct answer.right decision.Finally, I said softly: "You are right, Yiluo. Now is not the time."