Hania released a breath; then she softened her glower and pulled me close. I wrapped my arms around her, combatting shaky breaths. Of course I understood her reservations, but the fastest way to get back to her sons was through liberation. It did no good to fight for daily survival if the end was inevitable. That’s why we had to change the ending.

“If I’m going to do this,” she murmured at last, “could I borrow some of your chutzpah?”

I looked up to confirm what I’d heard. “You’ll join?”

Despite the lingering concern in her eyes, Hania offered me a small smile. “Don’t you dare say ‘Checkmate,’ or I’ll quit right now.”

Chapter 21

Birkenau, 11 October 1942

ON A DREARY October day, I trudged through mud up to my ankles and bowed my head against the lashing wind and rain, making my way to the latrines. I should have grown accustomed to the lack of roads and drains in Birkenau by now, considering that the female inmates had been moved to Auschwitz’s new addition in August, but each day I missed the minimal amenities of the main camp more than the last.

As I approached my destination, I blinked water from my eyes and made out the SS guard stationed outside. He took shelter against the building and grimaced as he wiped rainwater from his face, but when he saw me he brightened. He’d come to expect my visits. Without a word, I pressed a pack of cigarettes into his greedy palm, and he allowed me inside.

Janina, the redheaded Jewish doctor who worked as a nurse, motioned for me to sit beside her on one of the long concrete benches. I obliged, avoiding the cluster of holes that served as the toilets.

“According to my sources, Pilecki recovered from his recent bout with typhus and was released from quarantine last week,” Janina murmured. “He transferred to the tannery kommando and has started organizing valuables hidden in leather goods.”

As if to prove it, Janina offered me four small diamonds. Giving a silent, solemn thanks to whoever had left them behind, I tucked them into my pocket. They’d be useful for future exchanges.

“My next update isn’t good,” she continued. “We lost one, a woman named Luiza. She wanted to avoid transferring to another camp, so I gave her a false case of typhus.”

“Injection or gas chamber?”

“Injection.”

“You work in the hospital, Janina, you had to know it was overcrowded.”

“Of course I did, but I never know when the guards will empty it.”

Closing my hands into fists, I stood and turned away. This was why I hated when members entered the hospital under false pretenses. It was too risky. Now Luiza was dead for nothing. If we kept losing women this way, we wouldn’t have anyone left when the rebellion happened.