Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4 Gertie dropped off to sleep in Hugo's arms, and Hugo leaned back against the wall. He looked around the room, wondering if he would spot any celebrities. Hugo had seen photos of famous athletes and millionaires posing on the famous airship.

But from what Hugo could see, most people looked like rich businessmen and fancy-looking ladies. No Yankees, that was for sure. As he scanned the room, he caught sight of a group of uniformed men standing near the exit. They were Nazi soldiers, the men closest to Germany's leader, Adolf Hitler. Each man wore a black leather coat with a bloodred band on his left arm. The armbands were decorated with a hooked black cross — a swastika, the symbol of the Nazis. Hugo shuddered. Hitler and his Nazis were dangerous, Mom and Dad had said, even evil. And the sight of those men gave Hugo a bad feeling — dark and shadowy — like when he saw hippos lurking in the waters of the Thika River near their farm. The hippos looked tame, with their blubbery bodies and fat noses. But in a blink, the four-ton monsters could explode out of the water and chomp you in half.

Hugo was so deep in his frightening thoughts that at first he didn't notice that Mom and Dad were now standing right in front of him. Mom smiled at the sight of Gertie sleeping so peacefully. "The inspection took forever," Dad said. "I'm surprised the guard didn't look inside my ears." "Sweetheart, what's wrong?" Mom said to Hugo. "You're pale as a ghost. You look like you just found a cobra in your bed." Hugo's mind swung from Nazis to the giant snake he'd discovered curled up on his pillow not so long ago. The startled serpent had flared its hood and bared its gleaming fangs as it prepared to leap up and bite Hugo on the neck. Luckily, Panya had come to the rescue. The little mutt had a bark so strange and ferocious that he could scare away the most fiendish beast. "Garoo, garoo, garoo, garoo!" Even now Hugo could still picture the petrified snake as it practically flew out of the room.

"I'm fine," Hugo said. "I just wish we were already in New York." "Me, too," Dad said. "But we should try to enjoy this voyage. I think it's going to be unforgettable." Hugo didn't doubt that was true.