Among the Enemy

Chapter Thirty

Matthias felt no surprise, just a growing sense of \ dread. The empty tree branches above him clicked together ominously in the cold wind, as if they were counting off the final minutes of his life. His, and so many other children's.

"I think I can tell you this now," Nina said. "It's not really so secret anymore. Remember Project Exchange, that you wrote that note about earlier? The project they're supposed to finish next week? The Population Police ordered everyone in the country to turn in every I.D. card. That's what's been happening the past few weeks while you've been…"

"Hanging out with the commander," Matthias finished for her. "Getting my food on trays."

Nina grimaced and nodded.

"People get receipts for their I.D.'s," she said. "The Population Police say they'll get their original I.D.'s back soon. But there have been all sorts of rumors going around about what the Population Police intend to do with all those I.D. cards in between. We heard about Project Authenticity, but we weren't sure… we hoped… we didn't want to believe it was true. But you just gave me the proof."

"Now they can catch every third child who has a fake I.D.," Matthias said. 'And no third child without a fake I.D. will ever dare to come out of hiding."

"Right," Nina said. "It'll be the Population Police's dearest dream come true."

Matthias stared out into the frozen landscape, fighting a sense of hopelessness.

"Why are they going to so much bother?" he asked. "To collect every I.D., from every person in the entire coun-try? Why didn't they wait until they were sure the authenticity test worked, then just go house to house, testing as they went?"

"We think they don't want the word to get out," Nina said. "They want to do everybody's at once, so nobody will know ahead of time what's going to happen."

She bent to pick up a wet towel and flung it over the clothesline. Matthias watched her red, chapped hands fumble with the clothespin.

"But you've got a plan, right?" Matthias asked.

"We did," Nina said glumly. "We've had lots of plans since we got here."

She kept hanging up towels.

"Do you know where the Population Police are keeping all the I.D.'s?" Matthias asked. "Can't you go and — I don't know — burn down the building or something?"

"We thought of that," Nina said. "We thought it was a brilliant idea. But you put a stop to those plans." She shook her head sorrowfully.

"Me?" Matthias was astonished. "What did I do?"

"You told us where the Population Police keep their extra food."

"So?"

Nina turned to face Matthias, tears glistening in her eyes.

"The food and the I.D.'s — they're all in the same place."