the open dumbwaiter, then sat at his usual place near the middle of the table. He greeted Roza and Vilja, who flanked the head of the table where Alise would inevitably sit. The blond girls waved back at him and whispered to each other, giggling.
Mia, Juliana’s roommate, arrived and hurried over to sit next to Sebastian.
“Hi, Mia. Where’s Juliana?” Sebastian asked.
“She’ll come.” Mia leaned close to him and whispered. “She’s very upset today. I hope you can comfort her.”
“They didn’t make her do more animal tests, did they?”
“No, they just...” Mia frowned. “They wanted her to...kill a man. With her touch.” She placed her hand on Sebastian’s, as if to demonstrate.
“Are you serious? What kind of sick people are these Nazis? Is she in her room?” Sebastian began to stand, but Mia grabbed his arm.
“Alise is talking to her now,” Mia said quietly. “God knows what she’s saying. They should be here soon.”
Sebastian pulled his arm free and started for the door, but then Juliana and Alise entered the room. Despite what Mia had said, Juliana had a broad, glowing smile and a drifting-on-a-cloud look in her eyes.
Sebastian smiled and reached out to hug Juliana, but she looked right through him. She trotted after Alise like a loyal puppy and sat down next to Roza, on Alise’s end of the table. Roza gave Juliana a disgusted look and scooted her chair away, but Juliana didn’t seem to notice. She gazed droopy-eyed at Alise, with a drunken smile.
“Alise touched her, didn’t she?” Sebastian asked, taking his seat again. “How could Alise touch Juliana without getting the plague?”
“I don’t know, but it looks like she did.”
Sebastian shook his head. Alise had only touched him a few brief times, but her power was clearly strong. Even those brief touches had made him feel intoxicated, and a couple of times, had left him with painfully swollen erections that wouldn’t go away for hours.
“I have an announcement,” Alise said. “Now that both halls are together.”
Sebastian tried to catch Juliana’s eye, but she hadn’t even looked his way since entering the room. Either Alise had dosed her pretty heavily, or Juliana was angry at Sebastian about something.
“Orders have come down that we will no longer tolerate music, film, or literature corrupted by Jewish, homosexual, Communist, or liberal influences,” Alise continued. “No more degrading Hollywood filth, no more records of music by the lower races. We will enjoy only civilized film and music, promoting proper German virtues.”
“No!” Mia said. “Please, Alise!”
“Excuse me? Do you have a problem, Mia?” Alise stared at her, and Roza and Vilja copied her cold look. So did Juliana, as if she’d become part of their clique. The four girls seemed to be trying to intimidate Mia.
“I have to agree with Mia on this one,” Sebastian said. “We really need our entertainment around here.”
“You’re taking her side?” Juliana scowled at him.
“It’s not about sides, it’s about not losing our music and movies,” Sebastian told her.
“Juliana, I read there’s a new Mae West coming out,” Mia said. “Called I’m No Angel. Don’t you want to see that?”
“It sounds exactly like the kind of degenerate film we’re trying to avoid,” Alise said. “We’ll be collecting all unsuitable records from the common rooms. You will still have the records of many fine German composers.”
“This is ridiculous,” Sebastian said. “We should at least keep the records we have.”
“We are not debating the new rule, I am simply telling you what it is,” Alise said. Juliana, Roza, and Vilja all nodded, as if Alise had made an excellent point.
“Why are you doing this?” Sebastian asked.
“I am responsible for guiding all of you toward healthy bodies and healthy morals, too,” Alise said. “This may shock you, Sebastian, but we caught Juliana and Mia together on Saturday night, drinking wine and dancing to Negro music in a very lewd manner.”
“You did? Where was I?” Sebastian grinned at Juliana, but she was still imitating Alise’s withering glare. It was as if the Juliana he’d always known had vanished, and a new minion of Alise had taken her place.
“The behavior was unacceptable and violated several dormitory rules,” Alise said. “Gruppenführer Kranzler and I agree that the corrupting influence of foreign, racially inferior music is to blame.”
“American music isn’t foreign to us!” Sebastian said.
“Sebastian, please don’t fight with Alise,” Juliana told him, her blue eyes frosty and hard. “She has a difficult job looking out for all of us. We should support her and listen to her. If she wants to remove corrupting