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were blocked at every turn. Soldiers were posted on every street. Only a bird could fly from this trap.
    I ran down the alley where earlier Ihad taken Javert. Years ago I had run from him with Cosette. Now I was running again. That time I had found a way to escape by going up. I couldn’t do that this time.
    I looked on the ground. If only the earth would open up and swallow us. At any moment a soldier would think to check this alley. We would be caught and killed.
    My eyes searched everywhere for a way out. Then I saw it—the iron grate at the edge of the road. It was half hidden by the paving stones.
    I laid Marius on the ground. The grate was about two feet square. It was just big enough for me to crawl down and pull Marius through.
    Soon Marius and I were underground. I replaced the grate. In seconds we had gone from midday to midnight. The clamor of battle was now a mumble above our heads. We were in the Paris sewer!
    The channel was narrow. I could touchboth walls at the same time. The floor was wet under my feet. A foul stench hung in the air.
    Slowly my eyes got used to the dark. We were under the heart of the city. There were two passages in front of me. One passage would lead to the country. The other would lead toward the Seine River, and death.
    There was light to the left but I chose the right, the darkest part of the sewer. It went uphill and, I hoped, away from the city.
    Marius’s arms were around my neck. His feet dragged behind. I held both his arms with one hand, using my other hand to follow the wall.
    Yesterday’s rain lay in the center of the channel. I stayed close to the wall so I wasn’t in water. I walked slowly, like a creature of the night.
    I walked knowing there were pits in the sewer and we could be swallowed up at anymoment. I walked knowing each step could be my last.
    Questions raced through my mind. Would I find a way out in time? Would Marius bleed to death? Would I wander the sewer until I starved to death? I couldn’t stop the questions.
    Then the ground changed. We were walking downhill now. The stream washed around the heels of my shoes, not just the toes. Perhaps we were heading toward the Seine.
    If this were true we would be washed into the river and drowned. The danger was great. But the danger behind us was greater. So I walked on.
    Marius’s cheek pressed against mine. His breathing was faint.
    We finally came to the end of the channel. There was a grate above my head. I put Marius down and looked through his pockets. I found a slip of paper in his wallet.
    Marius had written, “My name is Marius Pontmercy. My body is to be taken to the house of my grandfather, Monsieur Gillenormand.” The address followed.
    Now I knew where I would take Marius once I removed the grate. I could see the early evening sky through the iron bars.
    But this grate was different from the other one. It was bolted. Only a key would open it. We had come to a dead end!
    I was exhausted. I didn’t have the strength to turn back. And Marius was near death.
    Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder.
    â€œWe’ll go halves,” said a low voice.
    I turned. It was Thénardier! He didn’t recognize me. I stood in the shadows, and there was blood on my face.
    â€œHow are you going to get out?” Thénardier went on. “You have no way of unlocking the grate. But you’ve got to get away from here.”
    â€œThat’s true,” I replied.
    â€œSo we’ll go halves,” he said.
    â€œHow do you mean?”
    â€œYou’ve killed a man,” Thénardier pointed at Marius. “I don’t know you. But I’m ready to help you. I have the key. Give me half of what you found on this dead man’s body. Then I’ll unlock the grate for you.”
    I couldn’t believe it. Escape was in the hands of the wicked Thénardier! My good angel wore an evil disguise.
    â€œI’ll give you this rope,” he continued. “You