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When the blackness finally lifted from her vision, Sabine tried to open her eyes but found that one of them was swollen shut. She grimaced in pain as she tried to peel it open but it wouldn't budge. Through her one good eye, she could see blank cement walls surrounding her and her wavering shadow dancing on the floor from a dimly-lit blinking bulb that hung directly above her head.

"Finally awake, you Jewish witch?" a familiar voice echoed around the room. Sabine struggled to turn to face the speaker because her arms and legs were bound to the chair she was sitting in with coarse rope.

"Where am I?" Sabine asked. "Why am I still alive?"

"A good question," the voice answered as its owner loomed into view. Sabine was confronted by the Nazi officer who had been holding the matchbox. The light cast a menacing shadow on his face that accentuated his sharp eyes and glinted off a name tag that read, "J. Wolf". Upon closer inspection, Sabine recognized him as the Rapportführer of Natzweiler-Strutof, who was in charge of disciplining prisoners and was known for his extensive cruelty. "We were going to light you on fire as a fitting punishment for your malfeasance, but when my cohort struck one of your matches he disappeared in a red blaze."

"I don't know what you're talking about..." Sabine attempted to lie but the officer saw right through her.

"What demonic magic did you curse us with?" Wolf leaned in close to her face and shouted. She could smell the sharp scent of booze lingering on his breath.

"N-nothing!" Sabine stammered. Wolf's piercing blue eyes stared into her own and she found herself unable to blink.

"You will tell me how it works and how I can harness it," Wolf demanded. "Where did it send him? Is he dead?"

"I don't know!"

"Lies!" Wolf snapped.

"I don't know where it sent him! I'm telling the truth!" Sabine pleaded with him to listen to her but he would not.

"We will find out, one way or another," Wolf retorted. He walked out of Sabine's sight and returned with a small silver blade that glinted under the dim light. Sabine felt small droplets of sweat growing on her forehead as the gleam off the knife blinded her one good eye. She pressed her back against the chair in an attempt to distance herself from Wolf and his blade as much as possible.

"Please," Sabine begged as tears came cascading down her cheeks. She was absolutely terrified of what the Nazis could do with the matches, but in that moment she was more scared of the man holding the knife. Her journey with the matchbox had made her grow up considerably since the start, but strapped to that chair with an imminent threat looming over her, Sabine felt like a child again.

Wolf traced the tip of the blade along Sabine's cheekbone, collecting her tear drops on the shiny silver as it went. The cold metal mixed with her fear of the knife sent goosebumps up and down her arms. "Tell me what the matches do and how I can use them."

Sabine gritted her teeth and tried to slow her racing heart before she answered, "I can't."

With a quick movement, Wolf had swiped the blade across her cheek and left a long, red cut. Sabine whimpered as a burning sensation emanated from the wound and consumed half of her face. Drops of blood mixed with her tears and rolled over her lips, filling her mouth with the taste of salt and iron.

"Let's try that again, shall we?" Wolf snarled. He moved the knife from her face down to her arm.

Sabine's lip trembled as she forced herself to look Wolf in his eyes. "I can't," she repeated.

Another quick swipe and Sabine was left with a matching crimson cut on her arm. She watched the blood trickle down her wrist and drip onto the floor. In the suspended silence of the room, she could hear each drop echo in sync with her beating heart and in a strange way it soothed her. Sabine suddenly felt it easier to calm her mind and a plan quickly formulated in her mind. She channeled the resilience of Lena, the cleverness of Maria, and the determination of her parents for what she was going to do next.

"I can do this all day, you filthy rat," Wolf sneered, moving the blade to her thigh. She grimaced as he dug the point in, creating a tiny red pool of blood that soaked through her thin uniform.

A sudden change overcame Sabine as her bravery and confidence restored itself. "I can show you, but I need the matchbox and you need to untie me," she instructed.

"You think I'm stupid enough to fall for such a trick?" Wolf laughed.

"I'm the only one who knows how to control it, and now that you've touched it you are cursed with an ancient magic. The red tips of the matches are dyed with my blood and without me, it will continue to kill your men one by one," Sabine lied through her teeth, but this time her tone held the confidence she needed.

Wolf pulled the knife away from her leg to contemplate what she just said and she could almost read every thought going through his mind as she studied his face. Sabine could tell that he was suspicious, but that part of him believed her. He had seen something he couldn't explain today and because of that his curiosity would drive him to find the answer. Most importantly of all, however, she could also tell that he still underestimated her.

Sabine tried to hide her smile as Wolf called in three other men, one of whom was carrying the box of matches. He said something in German to them that she couldn't understand before he turned to address her. Wolf held the matchbox before her face so that she could see the cursive writing. "What does 'Second Chance Matches' mean?"

"The matches have the magic to make you all-powerful," Sabine lied again. "But only if you use them correctly. If you use them incorrectly, you will be burned alive like your comrade. I designed it as a back-up weapon for the Allies to win the war, but now that it is in your hands you hold the power to turn the tide."

"Teach me," Wolf demanded, his eyes consumed with a thirst for power. In that moment, he almost resembled the animal he was named after.

"First, you need to untie me," Sabine instructed him. "The ropes are restricting my abilities." Wolf nodded to two of the men, who took up a stance on either side of Sabine's chair. They bent down to begin untying the ropes restraining her hands and feet when Wolf put up a hand to stop them.

"If this is some sort of ruse, I will fillet you where you sit," Wolf threatened. The Nazi still standing by his side unstrapped the gun at his hip and trained it on Sabine's head. Sabine gulped as she stared down the barrel of the gun and prayed that her plan would work. "Remember, you are a pathetic little negro mutt and we are four powerful men with the divine strength of God and the Führer."

Sabine nodded her head as the guards on either side of her began to untie the ropes. Once her wrists were free of the restraints, she rubbed the rope burns vigorously before sticking her hand out for Wolf to drop the matchbox in. She became confused when Wolf and his men struck up a hearty laugh that echoed around the tiny room. "We had a deal," Sabine scowled.

"I said you would teach me," Wolf tutted. "Why would I hand you the source of your power? You would surely use it against us to escape!"

In a way, Wolf was correct. Sabine had originally planned on convincing him to hand her the matches and using one to transport herself out of there, but it was quickly falling apart and now she had to think on her feet. Even if she was able to persuade Wolf to strike a match and transport himself, she still had his companions to deal with and several other Nazis that she could hear moving about on the other side of the door.

Sabine had to place her trust in the matches and hope that she would travel with them, regardless of whether she struck the match or not. It had worked at Maria's and she had to pray that it would work now. She also had to pray that it would take her somewhere within the camp. She wasn't ready to leave yet, not without the other prisoners. She had a mission to complete.

"Fine," Sabine said between clenched teeth. "But it takes immense mental strength and focus."

"Did you not hear me before, you stupid girl?" Wolf immediately retorted, highlighting the end of his sentence with a slap across Sabine's face. "I am the superior being! If somebody as inferior and weak as you can make the matches work, then it will be a breeze for me!"

"First, take out a match," Sabine directed him between shaky breaths. The pain of the burning cut on her face was amplified from the slap and Sabine could feel her eyes glazing over with tears. Sabine waited until Wolf had followed her first direction before giving him the next. "Now is the most difficult part. You must concentrate as hard as you can and repeat the following phrase three times: 'bless my blood and bones with the power of the gods'."

Wolf laughed before repeating Sabine's instructions. "That's difficult for you? The Jewish race is even weaker than I thought. 'Bless my blood and bones with the power of the gods, bless my blood and bones with the powers of the gods, bless my blood and bones with the power of the gods'."

"Good," Sabine commended him with a forced smile. "Last step is to light the match and throw it."

Sabine held her breath as she watched Wolf tap the tip of the match against the strike pad. He clucked his tongue and smiled before he spoke, "And then I become engulfed in a red blaze?"

"N-no," Sabine stammered. She was thrown off by his comment but she tried to maintain a steady confidence. If she faltered, he would see right through her. "Why would I lie to you? Even if it were to kill you I still have a gun pointed at my head."

Wolf's piercing gaze nearly burned through Sabine's retinas as he maintained intense eye contact with her. Part of her wondered if he even needed the gun in the first place, his glare seemed lethal enough to make her drop dead. "I light it...and then I throw it?" Wolf repeated the instructions.

"Yes," Sabine confirmed with a nod of her head. She felt her heart begin to race again as she waited for Wolf to follow through on the last step. If he didn't light the match, she had no way to escape.

Sabine held her breath as she watched Wolf finally scratch the match against the strike pad and hold it before the group for everyone to see. Sabine strained her eyes to see the tiny scene playing out but before she could make out any details, Wolf flicked the match straight at her. The flame caught on to her paper-thin uniform and ate its way up her body. Sabine couldn't tell what was louder: the crackling of the fire that was consuming her, or the mad laughter of Wolf and his comrades as they watched her burn.

Sabine's only wish as she disappeared with the tendrils of scarlet smoke was that she could have seen the look of surprise on their faces.

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