The Balicki children try to make the most of their situation by making do with what they have, but Edek has become involved with stealing supplies and provisions from the Nazi camps.  The risk is great, but Edek knows that merely scavenging around town for food and supplies is not enough to provide for himself and the girls. 

The most significant event of chapter seven is that Edek is caught smuggling food out of the city.  He is arrested by the Germans, probably to be sent to a forced labor camp, leaving Bronia and Ruth without any means of provision.