Elephant Run

Hilltop asks Indaw about the conditions, and Indaw gives him a briefing on camp life. Indaw is surprised to learn about Mya's disguise and that she is only a few miles away with Hannibal and Nick. Indaw shows Hilltop the POW camp during morning roll call: “The men were gaunt, worn down by heat, lack of food, and disease. It was hard to believe that any of them would survive the day” (263). Indaw agrees to leave and go with Hilltop and Mya to the monastery at Umphang, where they will be safe through the war. They plan for Nick and Mya to come to market day at the camps, where they will be above suspicion because of the many suppliers and outsiders coming to the area to sell goods. Hilltop returns to check in on Nick and Mya. 

Nick and Mya are relieved when Hilltop returns. They sleep for a while, planning to go on elephant-back to camp the next morning. Nick wakes with a start sometime before dawn. He decides to walk down to the stream to get water. Halfway there, he remembers the nightmare that woke him: “He had been dreaming about the camp graveyard [...] The bamboo crosses seemed to stretch for miles. There were grave diggers wielding shovels and picks [...] The man in the grave was his father” (271-72). Nick makes an impulsive decision to cross the stream and scope out the camp. He manages to catch burial duty as a few men leave to dig graves. Nick realizes their guard is Sonji and also recognizes his father. Nick watches as they gently bury a man, with Sonji helping the sick men dig. Nick eventually returns to camp but can't find his way back. Kya Lei surprises him and helps him find his trail in the forest; at the same time, Kya Lei admits that the has been asked to follow Nick and the others by an undisclosed source. Nick finally returns to camp, where Mya is furious. He tells them about Kya Lei but doesn't share the information he gained about his father. 

Nick, Mya, and Hilltop journey into the camp during the market. It is busy, and the soldiers are lively and distracted by access to luxury goods and delicacies. The trio run into Sonji, who greets Hilltop and asks to catch up with him. Nick can feel Sonji eyeing him, sizing him up, but he says nothing. They make their way to Indaw's cabin—he has visitors but soon sends them away. He shows Mya and Nick a trapdoor under the floor where they can hide if soldiers come. While talking to Indaw, Nick reveals his secret journey to the camp. Indaw believes it will be impossible to rescue Jackson, but Nick suggests they appeal to Sonji to help him escape, since Sonji is the guard on burial duty, and his temperament makes it unlikely he will shoot. Hilltop goes alone to find Sonji, and they talk as old friends. Sonji recognized Nick and Mya. He is uncertain about helping them because it is treasonous, but Hilltop argues: “The soul does not have a nationality” (287). When Hilltop returns to the cabin, Captain Moto is there. He threatens Hilltop, but the villagers take a stand, and he is forced to stand down. After they leave, the trio plan to save Jackson and return to safety regardless if they cannot help him.