Ewa watches the forest from a tall wooden tower. It is the dry end of summer. At six o'clock the radio says that eight children and their teacher are lost in the Black Valley. At ten past nine Ewa sees a tiny fire far away. She is afraid of a forest fire, so she calls the fire brigade. Then she sees a second fire and a third, in a triangle.
Ewa stops. Three fires in a triangle is an old signal: "We are lost. We are here." She taught it to children last summer. It is not a forest fire. It is the children!
She guides the rescuers by radio and turns the big lamp towards the valley. Before midnight the radio says, "We have them. Nine of nine." Ewa sits down and laughs and cries.
