“Where are we going? Did something happen to Krys?”

“He’s fine. He needs you to come right away.”

“Why? Is something wrong?” I wondered if he had decided to accept my offer to help with his work. But Kara shook her head, unwilling to speak further or answer my questions on the street. She walked at a swift pace, nearly running, and despite the fact that my legs were a good deal longer, I struggled to keep up.

When we reached Dębniki, I expected Kara to lead me to the café. Instead, she started in the direction of the alleyway behind the church. She had not been to the sewer grate with us before, I realized. Krys must have told her where it was. “Did something happen to Sadie?” My stomach tightened.

“She’s fine, as far as I know.”

As we neared the alleyway, I could see someone standing by the sewer grate. For a second, I panicked. But it was Krys, I quickly realized. I started toward him. Kara, who had led me to him, hurried off, leaving us alone.

Beside him on the ground were two rectangular wooden crates. “What are those?” I asked, hoping for a second that he had somehow managed to find more food and was delivering it to Sadie for me. The crates were industrial, though, stamped with large black Cyrillic letters that screamed some kind of warning. “Krys, are those the munitions?” He did not answer right away. “We already talked about this.”

“Your note said you wanted to help.”

“It said that I wanted to help. Not Sadie. Not like this.”

“Ella, we have to hide these munitions. We’ve been expecting them for weeks and we will be able to get them where we need to go by tomorrow, the next day latest. It should not be more than one night.”

“Absolutely not,” I said, furious now. “I already told you, I won’t endanger Sadie for your cause.”

“My cause?” It was his turn to be angry now. “It isn’t a cause. We’re fighting for our very lives, Ella. Yours and mine, and Sadie’s, too.” Krys lowered his voice. “These munitions, ammunitions and explosives, are hard to come by and they are critical for an upcoming operation in Warsaw, part of the larger battle that is to come. You must understand, the sewer, it’s the perfect place,” he pressed. “Out of sight, impossible to find. I need to do this.” This time he was not asking—the stakes were too high. “It’s only for one night.”

“But it’s so dangerous. If the munitions are discovered or if they somehow detonate, Sadie and her friends will be found.”

“That won’t happen.” To Krys, the notion that his plan would fail was unthinkable. Still, I knew that anything could happen.

“You can’t be sure,” I protested. There were so many things that could go wrong.

“I promise, no harm will come to Sadie. I will lay down my own life before I let that happen.” His eyes were steely and resolute. “You said in your note that you were ready to help,” he added.