It did not take long to free Anton. Daniel had returned with some of the older boys and several of the women, including the one named Rina whom Bubbe seemed to know. The passageway was narrow, but they managed to squeeze in and form a line. They wiggled and pulled at the rocks until they were loose enough to move, then passed them like a bucket brigade to get them out of Anton’s way. One of the boys was named George and he worked like a demon, scrambling into the small spaces and clawing away at the rocks and mud. Within a few minutes, the last of the boulders had been pushed away and Anton could finally stand. Daniel helped him to feet.

“Ow!” Anton winced and grabbed his sides.

Rina took him by the shoulders. “Are you all right?” she asked.

“I don’t know. My ribs ache. But only when I breathe,” he said.

Rina took the flashlight Daniel had brought and shone it on Anton. He was covered from head to toe in mud and could not stand up completely straight.

“Help me get his coat off,” Rina said to Daniel. As they carefully removed Anton’s jacket, he groaned in pain.

“Show me where it hurts?” Rina asked.

Anton pointed to the spot on his right side and Rina’s fingers probed the area.

“Ahh!” he groaned as her fingers continued running back and forth over his ribs. His eyes watered, but he did not cry out again.

“I do not think your ribs are broken, so that is good news. But they must be bruised quite badly. Can you walk?” she asked.

“I think so,” he said.

Rina undid the long scarf—called a babushka—that concealed her hair, which was long and brown and reached the middle of her back.

“To be safe, let’s wrap your ribs. It will keep them from moving too much. When we return to the cavern, we can examine you more closely and make sure nothing is actually broken.”

Anton nodded. Rina and a woman named Miriam wrapped the babushka snugly around his chest. When they tightened it, tying it into a knot, he thought he might pass out. He took a deep breath and held it until they had finished. When he let it out he found himself able to take only shallow breaths, but his ribs did not hurt as much.

“We should go now,” Rina said.

The rest of the group turned away, ready to return to the cavern.

“Wait!” Anton said. “Daniel, the light, please?”

Daniel handed him the flashlight. Anton pointed it up to the ceiling. About a half meter over their heads, he saw the spot he had touched just before the rocks collapsed on him. He peered at a small hole in the ceiling that hadn’t been there before.

Anton switched off the flashlight. It took a moment for everyone’s eyes to adjust, but soon they could see the starlit skies above them. And the hole wasn’t actually as small as it had first seemed. It was just big enough for a child to climb through. Flipping the light back on, Anton spied a rock the size of a watermelon sticking out of the side of the hole. Small beads of water ran down its sides and dripped into the passageway.

He tried to reach his hands over his head to grasp the rock, but the pain in his side was too great to continue. “Daniel, help me,” he gasped.

“What are you doing?” Daniel asked.

“Uncle Dmitri wanted us to find another way out of the cave. If we widen this hole, and stack up some of these fallen rocks, we will have our exit,” Anton said.

“We can do that later,” Rina said. “Right now, you should be resting.”

“But we can’t know when we might need it,” Anton said. “If we can just get this one rock out of the way, then stack up some of the stones like steps, we will be able to climb out at a moment’s notice. Please. We are already here. We should finish the job.” Anton looked at Daniel and Rina, his eyes pleading.

The two of them looked at each other, then shrugged. Anton watched as they grabbed hold of the large rock and pulled. It would not budge. They dug at the dirt surrounding it and tried again. It was wet and slippery, making it difficult for them to get a good grip.

They scraped at the dirt some more. “Be careful,” Anton cautioned them. “Don’t let it fall on you. Be ready.”

Rina and Daniel kept digging until, without warning, the rock came loose from the soil holding it in place and crashed to the ground. Daniel and Rina lurched out of the way. It landed on the floor of the passageway with a thud. Anton flashed the light on the hole above them. It was now big enough for an adult to crawl through.

“Well done!” he said. “Now if we stack some of these rocks against the wall, like a staircase leading up—”

“We?” Daniel interrupted. “There is no we here, friend. There is us doing all the work and you giving us directions.” His breath came in ragged gasps, but he was smiling.

Anton chuckled. “True, but at least I do not creep down the passageways like a frightened squirrel.”

Daniel playfully punched him on the shoulder. It made Anton wince, but he was glad of it. Daniel had been so quiet and reserved since they’d arrived at the cave. It was good to see him smiling.

The group went to work. The women and boys formed another line in the narrow passageway and returned the fallen rocks that had trapped Anton one by one to Rina and Daniel. Carefully, the two of them stacked the stones against the wall. They scooped mud from the tunnel floor to help support the rocks, and soon they had a makeshift stairway. It would take some careful climbing to reach the hole above, but it was better than nothing.

When they were finished, Anton inspected their work. “Excellent. Now we will be able to reach the surface if we need to. Uncle Dmitri will be pleased. Perhaps they will find a ladder on one of their night missions, and we can it bring here. Until then, this will work well.”

Rina and Daniel smiled. The group finally headed back down the passageway, with Daniel in the lead, lighting the way with his flashlight. They were tired and dirty. Anton winced with each step. But he was happy to have done what his uncle had asked of him. Even if it hadn’t gone exactly the way he had planned.

Now if the gestapo comes we will be ready for them, he thought to himself as he limped along.

We will be ready.