The Woman with the Blue Star, Pam Jenoff [highly recommended books txt] 📗

to the grate in the middle of the day with so many people around. Someone will see you.”

“Yes,” I agreed. She was right. Standing over the sewer grate and talking to Sadie in broad daylight was too risky for both of us. Even if I had not encountered the Germans, people could see me looking down and they might even notice Sadie if they passed by too closely. I recalled what Krys had said about the awful things that were being done to the Jews. Sadie’s very life depended upon her remaining hidden and out of sight.

A flicker of sadness crossed her face. “Your visits are just such a bright spot.”

“I know. I like coming, too. But it’s hardly worth it if I cause you harm.” She looked as if she wanted to disagree, but could not. No, I couldn’t come here anymore, but I couldn’t abandon her either. There had to be another way. I thought of the sewer, which Sadie had once described as a labyrinth of tunnels. It ran beneath the entirety of the neighborhoods that lined the southern bank of the river. Surely there had to be another place where it came to the surface that we could meet.

“We have to find somewhere else, close to the river, maybe?”

Sadie’s face brightened as a light seemed to dawn in her eyes. “There is,” she said. “I found it when Saul and I were walking.” She had not mentioned Saul before and I wondered who he was. I could tell from the way she said his name that she was fond of him. “There’s a ledge that I can climb that will bring me out on the riverbank. I’m not quite sure of the specific location, but it is in Podgórze, close to where the ghetto was located.”

“I will find it,” I promised. “Let’s try meeting there next time.” My spirits brightened at the prospect of an alternative place to meet, and a way not to stop coming to see Sadie. She was not just some poor girl I was trying to help anymore. At some point, we had become friends.

“It might not be safe for you there either,” she fretted.

“For me? I’m worried that it might not be safe for you.” We laughed softly at the irony. “Aren’t you afraid?” I asked, serious now. The police nearly discovering the grate had made the peril of her situation all the more real. “I mean, not just about coming to the grate, but all of it, living in the sewer...”

“And worrying that, at any time, I might get caught?” she asked, finishing the sentence that I could not. I nodded. “Yes, of course. But what choice do I have? To live with fear or grief or any emotion constantly would be paralyzing. So I put one foot in front of the other and I breathe and I string the days together. It isn’t enough,” she continued, gaining force behind her words. “I want more for my life. But this is the reality.” Her face saddened.

“For now,” I added, admiring her courage. I regretted my question, which seemed to make her feel worse, and quickly changed the subject. “We will try the other grate next time.”

“I don’t know if it’s a good idea,” Sadie said, her brow wrinkling, seeming to second-guess her own suggestion. “When Saul and I found the other grate, there were Germans with dogs near the river. But it’s a quieter spot, and if you wait until there are no people around, it may be possible.”

“I’ll manage it,” I said, not at all sure how. The riverbank was open, exposed. We couldn’t possibly meet there during the day when my actions could be easily seen. “Why don’t we try meeting at night instead?”

“Do you think it will be any safer?” she asked doubtfully.

“Maybe.” I was not at all sure that was true. I would have to sneak out and break curfew. But I had to try something. “I’ll have to wait until next Saturday,” I said, thinking of Ana Lucia. Slipping out at night would not be easy and I needed to go when Ana Lucia was either out or entertaining, and would sleep heavily from the alcohol. “Ten o’clock?” I asked.

She nodded somberly. “That should work.”

“I will be there, trust me.”

“I do,” she said solemnly. “Wait for twenty minutes,” she said. “If you don’t see me, it means that it wasn’t safe to come.” None of this was safe, I realized, for her or for me. Fear rose up in me then. I wanted to tell her that it was a bad idea, that we couldn’t possibly do it.

But it was too late. “I will meet you there,” Sadie said, her eyes brimming with hope.

“Be careful,” I added, my concern for her deeper now. A moment later, she disappeared into the sewer. I started for home, overwhelmed. Now seeing Sadie meant sneaking out at night and breaking curfew—not to mention the fact that today, I had very nearly been caught. How had all of this happened? Once I had kept my head low and planned to ride out the war without being seen. Now life was getting more dangerous by the day and there was no going back. I couldn’t abandon her now.

12

Sadie

After leaving Ella, I started back toward the chamber. Earlier, after the Germans had appeared on the street, I thought that she might not be able to come and see me at all anymore. She was intent on trying at the new location, though. She had not given up on me—and for that I was grateful.

As I rounded the corner, there was a sudden clattering. Someone was in the tunnel. I leapt back. Then I recognized Pawel’s familiar voice. I relaxed slightly. It was Sunday, not Pawel’s usual day to come see us, but occasionally he visited unannounced, bringing an unexpected bounty of apples or cheese that he had found. Who was he talking to? I wondered. I heard an unfamiliar voice demanding