The officer's eyes narrowed. "Disturbance? I have heard of no
disturbance."
"That is of no matter. We were sent."
The squat officer stared hard at Franz. "Hmm, I see. And what is your
rank number, Provost?"
Franz told him a number that he remembered.
The officer looked them over searchingly, his lower lip protruding in
obvious contempt. "Very well, carry on. But Provost, I'll remember
you!" He stood watching as they marched away, rubbing his chin
thoughtfully with the palm of his hand.
Sten felt a sickening void in his stomach as they marched past the
officer. Surely the man suspected. Would it all end right here, before
they even had a chance to get started? He felt the reassuring pressure
of the knife inside his belt, the one weapon that Franz had advised,
and resolved that, if it should be necessary, their lives would be sold
dearly.
After a while they turned into a series of side passage-ways and Franz
stopped before the door to one of the cubicles. The corridor was empty,
and they were out of range of the view-screens. Johnathon relaxed
against the wall and sighed. "What a sight. I never expected it to be
as bad as this. Did you notice the look in most of their eyes? It's
a dull, glazed almost dead look. They're nothing more than beaten
animals."
"Easy," Franz cautioned, "wait till we get inside."
He pressed the button on the door. A woman's voice came through the
door panel. "What do you want?"
"Open. In the name of The Leader. It is a Provost."
Slowly the door swung open and the men saw a small brunette standing
before them. "What do you want?" she repeated in the same monotone.
"Interrogation!" Franz pushed his way inside. The others followed.
The woman stood against the wall cowering from the soldiers. Franz
searched around the apartment carefully, then confronted the woman.
"Do you not know me?"
The woman stared into his eyes. Finally she said, "No, no, I don't know
you."
"Do you not remember Jeannine? The girl you worked with? Remember the
plans? The plans to leave here and go outside to build a new life?"
Her chin quivered as she tried to speak. "Yes, now I remember. You are
Franz, Jeannine's lover. That was before The Leader found out and ...
and sent Jeannine away. You disappeared, I thought you had been sent
away, too. It is hard to remember. You know we are ordered to forget
the past. What ... what do you want of me?"