“W-what are you going to do?” The lady in black smiled widely and said in her sweetest voice, “Punish you.”

Mariah looked up in shock at the lady in black. She tried to hide the page in her hand, but the woman leaped forward and wrenched it from her before she could do anything.

“Jewish prayers? Are you insane?”

“I-I’m sorry! I’m sorry! It was a m-mistake a-and I-I-”

“Silence, child!”

The lady in black stared long and hard at Mariah, her face contorted in fury. Her shoulders rose and fell as she breathed heavily, her dark eyes boring into the orphan girl.

“A punishment is called for, don’t you agree?”

“Yes,” Mariah whispered.

“What did you say? I can’t hear you.”

“Yes, a punishment is called for.”

“That’s better. I’ll tell you what I’m going to do. I’m going to assemble all of the other girls in the dining room in the cellar. Meet us there in a half hour.”

Mariah felt a lump form in her throat.

“W-what are you going to do?”

The lady in black smiled widely and said in her sweetest voice, “Punish you.”

***

Half an hour later all of the orphanage girls were assembled in the cellar. Mariah was told to stand on a chair while the lady in black and two of the priests who worked in the orphanage stood nearby.

“This naughty girl was caught reading a Jewish prayer book. I thought it would be best to punish her publicly, so that the rest of you will understand why what she has done is so terrible. Apparently, many of you were aware of Mariah’s little reading habit and yet no one told me anything about it. I think you all don’t truly understand the truth about the Jewish people, so today you will be enlightened.”

One of the priests stepped forward.

“The Jews are not like us. Not at all. They’re an evil people, a lesser people. They’re cursed. The fact that one of you wonderful Christian girls could even consider reading one of their prayers is a very sad thing indeed.”

“I don’t believe you.”

No sooner were the words out of Maria’s mouth than she instantly regretted them.

“Excuse me?” The priest turned to her as the entire room gasped.

“You don’t believe me, do you?” The priest stepped forward and bared his yellow teeth. “Do you know that the Jews have horns? Why do you think they have so much hair around their ears? Also, I personally know of two beautiful, Christian children just like yourself, who were murdered and their blood was used for the Jewish Passover bread!”

A murmur rippled across the room and a few girls even shrieked.

The woman in black smirked.

“What do you have to say to that, Mariah?”

“I-I haven’t met too many Jews in my life, so I can’t say for certain whether they have horns or not… The only Jew I’ve ever seen was Jacob, the bread man who used to deliver food to the orphanage three years ago. He was nice and polite, and also the only person who came into this orphanage who ever asked my friends and I how our day was going.”

The priest let out a bark of laughter and waved his hand through the air, the sleeve of his black robe flapping loudly.

“You silly goose! What good is a smile when Jacob would also love to cook you together with his Passover bread? Just imagine it, Jacob the smiling bread man cooking his bread with you in it, his big horns poking out of his head!”

“Have you ever actually seen their horns?”

The priest gritted his teeth.

“No, but everyone knows….”

“And don’t the Jews have a different version of what happens almost every Passover? Don’t they say that Christians, consumed in their hatred for Jews, murder innocent children and plant their bodies in Jewish homes!”

“This child is hopeless.” The priest turned to the lady in black. “She can’t see the truth.”

The woman hissed. “I see that now… hmmm… From now on, until she sees the light, she will no longer be called Mariah. She will be called the Jew Lover!”

The girls in the room began giggling and a chant broke out.

“Jew lover! Jew lover! Jew lover!”

Mariah felt her face burning, but there was pride mixed with the feelings of humiliation. As the chants around her got louder and the two priests gleefully joined in, she resolved that one day she would meet an actual Jew and learn the truth once and for all.

Of course, first she would have to escape the orphanage.

***

Mariah bided her time, secretly collecting important information about the different times things took place at the orphanage. She marked down the exact times the deliveries were made, noted when the woman in charge was absent most from the building and when the front doors were not barred. She told no one of her plans to escape the orphanage, though; there was no one she would consider trusting anymore. All of the other girls were told to keep their distance and to oppress her as much as possible.

One day the lady in black summoned her to her office.

“A little birdie told me that you are not happy in my orphanage.”

“No, I’m very happy here.”

“Don’t lie to me. You walk around like a miserable wretch, as if you weren’t living in a lovely home that provides you with everything you need.”

Mariah thought about the smelly, cold orphanage, with its crumbling walls, horrible food, and wicked headmistress.

“What are you thinking about, girl?”

“About how wonderful this place is.”

The lady in black stood up angrily.

“Stop smirking! You think this is a joke! I don’t want girls in my orphanage who don’t appreciate being here!”

A heavy silence hung in the air.

“Ahhh...”

The lady in black stepped close to Mariah and smirked.

“Your face is like an open book to me. You want me to throw you out of the orphanage, don’t you? Don’t lie to me. You think you’ll be happier outside of these four walls. Well, guess what? You are never, ever going to leave here. Not until you’re much older and of marriageable age. And of course, you’ll have to be a fully committed Christian….”

The lady in black placed her hands on Mariah’s shoulders and whispered, “You will never escape.”

Mariah fought back the tears welling inside of her eyes. Even if it meant traveling through fire and water, she would escape this place.

to be continued...

(Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 792)