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In the Dark
A Jewish novel for Jewish kids & Jewish teens: danger, suspense & faith make for a great read in this gripping Jewish kids' historical novel as a young Jewish girl struggles against evil in war-torn England.
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It was very late before Rochel heard Miss Darwen leave the house that night. As she sat on the edge of her bed, waiting for her return, a terrible loneliness descended upon her. Through the silence she heard a muffled voice, rather like a child’s, at the front of the house. She listened - there was the voice again - and it was definitely not John’s. And then...a second voice, high and excited.
Terrified,Rochel opened her bedroom door and went out into the landing. The dog was standing in the hallway, ears pricked up, body tense with fear. The voices moved away to the back of the house. Rochel returned to her bedroom and looked out of the window. She heard the outhouse door open and saw the figure of John hurrying away. He must have heard the noises, too. She could imagine how terrified he would be of being found.
She could see figures now moving about in the darkness - children - about five of them. They seemed to be forcing the kitchen door. The footsteps were inside now. She stood, paralyzed with fear, and then, as the sounds moved through the hall and the dog began to bark frantically, she ran back into her bedroom.
There were panicky whisperings and some other terrible sounds which Rochel could not identify; the barking subsided to a whine, a yelp, and then ceased altogether.
From the drawing room and parlor there were muffled sounds of activity, a crashing noise of breaking glass, and a cry of pain, quickly smothered. And then - more footsteps coming up the stairs, past her bedroom, right up to the top floor. Rochel could hear the children running in and out of the rooms upstairs, opening and shutting cupboards and drawers. Daniel, woken suddenly by the noise, began to scream. The footsteps stopped suddenly and, for a moment, the only sound was of Daniel’s cries.
Rochel hurried over to him and covered his mouth with her hand, but he pushed it away, quite mad with fear. He continued to scream as the intruders rushed downstairs and out of the house.
Rochel waited until she was sure that they had all gone, and then she opened the bedroom door. Daniel was still screaming. “Stop it now,” she whispered fiercely. She went over to him and held him firmly. “Stop it now, I said.” He sniffed and looked at her sulkily.
“Where are you going?” he said, between sobs.
“Downstairs,” she said. “To see if everything’s all right.” Daniel did not protest. He watched her through the doorway as she made her way onto the landing and down the stairs. She opened the kitchen door. The dog was lying on the floor very still, its eyes open, a trickle of something red from its mouth. Next to it lay a piece of half-eaten meat. It did not look as if it was breathing at all. Rochel turned away in horror.
She went into the drawing room. The doors of the sideboard had been forced open, the floor strewn with broken crystal and china, music books and papers. Miss Darwen’s violin lay smashed by the window.
There was a photograph lying face down on the floor. The frame was broken, the glass shattered, and the picture spattered with blood. Rochel picked it up and peered at it. In the darkness it was difficult to make out the faces, but they seemed like a younger Miss Darwen together with a boy. Rochel turned over the photograph but there was no writing on the back, no clue as to the boy’s identity. Rochel replaced the photograph where she had found it on the floor. Miss Darwen must not know what she had seen. She must pretend that she had stayed in her room, afraid to go down.
For a moment, she thought of going upstairs to the top floor but something held her back. It was too great a breach of Miss Darwen’s trust. Miss Darwen had expressly forbidden her to go there. She returned to her bedroom.
Daniel was sitting up waiting for her, looking as if he was ready to cry again. “Lie down now, Daniel,” said Rochel soothingly. She came over to his bed and stroked his hair softly. “Everything’s all right now. The naughty people have gone.”