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“Pardon?” The boy looked up, his face expressionless. It was as if he hadn’t noticed the massive German approaching, and even now, he didn’t seem particularly ruffled.

The German sneered down at him. “Well? Where did the girl go?”

“Who’s that?” the boy asked just as blankly, sounding far calmer than he should have.

“There was a girl, you stupid Jew. She was running.”

“I’m afraid I haven’t seen anyone,” the boy said.

“Sir,” the German said coldly, assessing the boy.

“Pardon?”

“You haven’t seen anyone, sir . You will address me with respect, Jew.”

“Yes, sir, of course, sir. I’ll let you know, sir, if I spot anything suspicious. Sir.”

“Yes, well,” the German said as he looked around the street, where a handful of passersby were hurrying past him nervously. Colette shrank further into the shadows. “Watch yourself,” the German added gruffly before turning on his heel and striding away.

The boy waited until the German had been gone for a full minute before he turned and looked right at Colette.

He gave her a small smile and jerked his head, beckoning her to come out from her hiding place.

Still he didn’t move; it was as if he was rooted to the spot.

Slowly, Colette unfolded herself from the shadows and made her way down the block and across the street until she was standing just a meter away from him.

“I believe you may have dropped something,” he said by way of greeting, holding her gaze.

Colette patted her pocket and felt the breath go out of her when she realized it was empty. At that moment, the boy moved his foot slightly to reveal what he’d been standing on, and she gasped. Beneath the scuffed sole of his right shoe was the bangle she’d stolen.

Cheeks flaming, she bent quickly to grab the bangle and straightened, shoving it deep into her pocket. “Why did you help me?”

He shrugged. “I was already heading this way when I saw you drop it.”

“But you could have been arrested. Things are terribly dangerous now for—” She swallowed the end of her sentence, for things were dangerous for all Parisians, but they both knew what she’d meant.

But the boy just shrugged. “One should always help if one can.”

The words did something to her, for it was just how she felt, too. “Indeed.”

“Forgive me for asking, but is the piece yours, mademoiselle?”

“Not exactly.” She hesitated. “But the woman it belonged to is a collaborator.” He looked confused, so she added, “Think of this as a redistribution of riches.”

He chuckled, then his expression melted into one of concern. He stared at her for a moment, and she had the sense he was assessing her. “You shouldn’t be caught with something that has gone missing. Not until the Germans have stopped looking.”

He was right. What would happen if she brought the bangle home to her mother, and the Germans came door-to-door looking for it? No, she would need to hide it somewhere until the threat had passed. “But where will I keep it?”

“I have an idea.” He gestured for her to follow, and after a second, she started after him. He led her halfway down the block to a building with a dark green door and pushed it open.

“But this isn’t where you live, is it?” she asked as she followed him through an archway into a small courtyard.

The space was surrounded on all four sides by the building, but above, it was open to the sky.

Someone had planted a small garden here, and in the midst of bricks and stone, several rows of flowers reached for the sun.

“I’ve lived on this street my whole life. I would know you if you lived here.”

“You’re right. I live a few blocks away, but there’s no lock on the door here—I suppose because it only leads into this courtyard.

You must enter through that door over there to get inside the building itself,” he said, pointing to another dark green door on the other side of the garden.

“I come here sometimes when I need a moment of peace. There’s something about seeing these flowers survive against the odds that makes me feel hopeful. ”

Colette’s gaze flashed to the yellow star on the boy’s shirt, and as their eyes met again, his cheeks turned pink. “It’s beautiful,” Colette said after a moment, looking back at the flowers. “But I’m not sure it would be safe to hide something here, out in the open.”

He smiled. “I very much agree. But you haven’t seen this yet.

” He walked to the wall on the left side of the courtyard and paused, looking up at the windows above.

He scanned them quickly and then, seemingly satisfied that no one was watching, he moved so that his body was blocking the wall and quickly slid a brick out. “Here,” he said, his voice low.

She gaped; the gap behind the brick was the size of a jewelry box—large enough to secret away a few small treasures. “But how…?”

He smiled. “I noticed the loose brick last month. I’ve been watching. I don’t think anyone knows but me.”

“You would share your spot with me?”

The boy nodded.

“But… why?”

“Because the best secrets are meant to be shared, don’t you think?”

He held her gaze. Maybe one day, she would tell him her secrets, too: that this wasn’t an isolated incident, that she was a jewel thief, that she was determined to risk everything to restore justice.

But for now, it was enough to feel that she was the keeper of his confidence, and so she pulled the bangle from her pocket and they both looked at it as it sparkled in the sunlight.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” she asked after a moment.

But when she looked back at the boy, he was no longer looking at the bracelet. He was looking right at her. “I think perhaps it’s the loveliest thing I’ve ever seen.”