The day Sevita and I were arrested I knew that Mitsi would find a way to get us out. When Graz came two days ago, he told us that Mitsi was coming tonight and we had to be ready. I wake Sevita up. I was surprised that the Police put us in the same cell, as she is a woman and I am a man. I looked at Sevita. She is sleeping. Even in her sleep, she looks frightened. Sevita is blind. She has been blind for three years. No one knows what happened to cause her blindness. Mitsi found her. Sevita was going to be put to work in the mines, because she ran away from her husband, who beat her every night. Sevita is only twenty-two. She had been married for ten years. I don’t want to wake her up, but the hatch in the roof opens, and I know that Graz and Mitsi are coming. I shake Sevita’s shoulder. She sits up immediately.

“It’s alright, Sevita.” I say.

Sevita’s face changes from fear to relief. She can’t get over her marriage. It took her a week to trust Graz and I, and even now she jumps every time one of us talks.

“What’s happening?” she asks.

“Mitsi.” I say.

Sevita smiles. “Good.”

I watch Graz saunter past. He is a little self-absorbed and stupid. But he’s a good man. Mitsi drops through the hole and lands silently on her feet, like a cat. But she’s smart and quick, like a fox. She pulls a long, thin knife from her sleeve and picks the lock. She opens the cell door, and Sevita and I hurry out. She helps us through the roof and onto the ceiling. She grabs the edge of the hole and pulls herself up. She is halfway up and I help her all the way up. She straightens her tunic quickly, but I get a glimpse of the scars on her lower back. We both have those scars all over our backs. The first time I met Mitsi, she was trapped under a pile of rocks in a mine. It took me two hours to dig her out. By the time we got back to the orphanage, it was past curfew and Mitrov turned us over to the Police, who seem to be fond of whips. We both bear the scars of that night, even though it was nine years ago, when we were nine years old. She looks at me and I look back.

“We need to go.” She says. “You’re both fine?”

I nod and so does Sevita.

“Good. We have to run.” Mitsi moves to the edge of the roof. She looks worried, and I understand why. Speed is crucial right now. If we are caught now, it’ll be worse than if we got caught earlier in the day. It is past curfew. It’ll be worse for Mitsi if she’s caught, just because she’s the Fox. She turns back to us.

“I didn’t bring rope.” She touches Sevita’s hand.

Sevita smiles. “Mitsi.”

Mitsi and Sevita are like sisters. I think it’s because when Mitsi has been the only girl living in the Fox cave for a year. Mitsi looks down to the ground again. She puts a leg over the side of the building and glances down again. The buildings in the Underground are low, so she isn’t worried about the height, but I can tell that she is worried that we’ll be caught. She takes a deep breath and puts the other leg over, then drops down. I hear the muffled thump and the gravel crunching when she lands. Sevita and I walk over and I help Sevita over. Sevita had learned how to move and work as if she can see. I drop down and the three of us stand together in silence. Then we move along the side of the building. The Policehouse is the last building in the city before we come to the Shantytown.

“I can’t let Graz know you’re out. He’ll have to leave on his own.” Mitsi say quietly.

I nod, knowing she’s right. We run through the Shantytown. Usually, there would be children running with us, but its past curfew. Even the biggest man in Ambraiesa is scared of the Police. No one wants to be caught out after curfew. On the other side of the Shantytown there is a faint trail. We run along it, up a hill. At the top of the hill, there is a cave. It is the Fox cave. We hurry in and move the large stone into the front of the hole. I light the fire and light fills the corners of the cave. A scraping noise comes from the back. Mitsi gasps and I looked over. Reyman, the head of the Police is standing, with his arms crossed. He is smirking.

“Hello, Fox.”