Part 32 (1/2)

Okay. What if somebody wakes up and sees me? Seth asked.

Run for it, Kendra said. I'll play it by ear. Just because they see you won't mean they'll know I'm in the house.

Maybe I can lie low and save the day after things settle down.

Or maybe somebody else will save the day for a change, Seth said. Besides, if they find me I bet they'll search the house.

Where's the best hiding place on this floor?

If I were you, I'd hide in the study, like behind the desk.

You'll have quick access to a window that will take you outside.

Going out through the side should give you a chance to avoid the imps. If they catch me, you should probably take off. Maybe you can leave the preserve and try to find the Sphinx.

We'll see, Kendra said.

Wish me luck. Hopefully my growling stomach won't give me away.333 Wrapped in her sheet, Kendra walked to the entry hallwith her brother. As he started climbing the stairs, staying close to the wall and treading lightly, she went to the study.

She unlocked the window and squatted behind the desk.

She noticed a letter opener on top of a pile of papers. She picked it up. It felt comforting to have some sort of weapon in her grasp.

All she could do now was wait. Maybe she should be the one wearing the glove and creeping into Vanessa's room.

Seth would never have let her, since sneaking around was more his specialty. But it was an awful lot of responsibility to give to somebody who liked sticking French fries in his nostrils.

At the top of the stairs, Seth moved stealthily down the hall to Vanessa's door. A light had been left on in the bathroom, so the hall was fairly bright. The door to Vanessa's room was closed. There was no light s.h.i.+ning underneath it.

Cupping his ear against the door, he waited invisibly, but heard nothing.

Gently he turned the k.n.o.b. It made a faint clicking sound, and he paused. After several slow breaths, he turned the k.n.o.b the rest of the way and eased the door open. The room was darker and more shadowy than the hall, but he could still see fairly well. Vanessa was lying on her side on the bed beneath her sheet. The blankets were folded at the foot of the bed. Containers full of strange animals were everywhere.334 Seth took a slow step toward her bed. A low croak disturbedthe silence. Seth froze, turning invisible. Vanessa did not stir. Apparently she was accustomed to animal sounds in the night. That should work in his favor.

Her bed was on the far side of the room. He decided that instead of crossing the center of the room, he would work his way along the perimeter. That way if she woke up, there would be less chance of her accidentally b.u.mping into him.

Seth crept along the edge of the room taking small, quiet steps. The sheet did not cover Vanessa's shoulders, so he could see that she had not changed out of her clothes.

Staring at her, he had a hard time picturing her as a traitor.

She was so pretty, her dark hair spilling over her pillow.

Seth glimpsed a metal pole under her chin. It had to be the artifact key! She was sleeping right on top of it!

A bird chirped and he halted, watching the narcoblix intently. Satisfied that she remained asleep, he worked his way along the wall, pa.s.sing numerous cages. Vanessa was facing him. All she needed to do was open her eyes while he was moving and all would be lost. Finally he reached the nightstand beside her bed. Her blowgun lay on the nightstand, along with three small darts. What if he picked up a dart and p.r.i.c.ked her? Did narcoblixes have immunity to sleeping potions? It wasn't worth the risk. But he picked up a tiny dart anyhow, for backup.

Another step closer and he was standing over Vanessa.

If she stretched out her hand she could touch him. If he reached out his hand he could touch her. There was no way335 he could get to the artifact key. She was partly on top of it.He would have to wait for her to s.h.i.+ft positions.

While he waited, he scanned the room for the dungeon keys. There were many surfaces where they could be resting, on top of cages or terrariums as well as on tables or dressers. He did not see them anywhere. They could be in her pocket. Or tucked away in a secret spot. Or Errol might have them.

Vanessa continued to breathe evenly, showing no sign that she would ever change positions. Maybe narcoblixes were really deep sleepers. She might not move all night.

There was simply no possible way he could slide the long key out from under her without waking her up. Most of it was under the sheet with her.

Seth noticed a box of tissues on the nightstand. He removed a tissue. It made a slight sound as he pulled it from the box, but Vanessa did not twitch. Seth stared at the tissue, but it vanished along with the rest of him as he held still.

Wiggling his hand, he stared again at the tissue, figuring out the best way to let it hang. This would be risky. He might very well wake Vanessa up. But he had to make her s.h.i.+ft positions. She showed no sign of budging on her own.

Leaning forward, Seth moved the dangling tissue toward her face. Slowly but surely it came closer, until a corner of the tissue brushed her nose. Vanessa smacked her lips and scratched her face. Seth jerked his hand away and held still.

Vanessa twisted her head back and forth, hummed softly,336 and then her regular breathing resumed. She did not alterher position. The key remained mostly beneath her.

Seth waited for a long time. Then he leaned forward with the tissue and again let it gently brush her nose.

Vanessa s.n.a.t.c.hed the tissue and her eyes opened suddenly.

She had been waiting for it this time! Seth froze, his invisible hand less than a foot from her face. She glanced at the tissue, squinted in Seth's direction, then turned to look the other way. When she looked away, Seth jerked his hand back, flickering momentarily into view. Fortunately her eyes were not on him. It reminded him of playing Red Light ---- Green Light when he was younger. He and Kendra had to sneak up on their dad while his back was to them. If he caught them moving when he turned around, they got sent back to the start. The stakes were higher, but the game was the same.

Vanessa sat up. Who's there? she asked, eyes darting around the room. She looked straight through Seth several times. Errol? she called loudly, reaching for her blowgun.

On the way to her blowgun, the side of her arm brushed against Seth. She yanked her hand back. Errol! she yelled, kicking the sheet off of her.

Striking quickly, Seth jabbed the tiny dart he was holding into her arm. Her eyes widened in surprise when he flashed into view, but she had no time to react. She had been rising out of bed, but instead she hesitated, lips corn'

pressed, and then collapsed heavily to the floor. Seth grabbed the long key off the bed. It was quite heavy, and337 several inches taller than him. He was glad to see that it disappearedalong with him when he held still.

Seth could hear Errol thumping down the hall. He leapt away from the bed and stood still as Errol raced through the doorway and saw Vanessa on the floor. Intruder! Errol shouted.

Seth realized that Errol would probably suspect he had already fled, so he held perfectly still. Errol briefly surveyed the room, then ran out into the hall. Seth heard the front door opening downstairs, followed by heavy footfalls on the stairs. Would the imp smell him? What should he do?

He heard a door downstairs slam shut. The imp on the stairs grunted urgently. Seth heard Errol das.h.i.+ng down the hall. In the study! he shouted. Bring the intruder to me!

Seth heard Errol racing down the stairs. Kendra had created a diversion, but now she would have everybody right on her heels. Seth didn't like her chances. Leaning the key by the door, he picked up a terrarium full of dark blue salamanders and ran down the hall. He could hear them ramming the door to the study.

From the top of the stairs, Seth heaved the terrarium over the banister into the entry hall. He did not stay to watch it hit the floor, but he heard gla.s.s shattering like a bomb and Errol shouting. Seth hastily retreated to Vanessa's room. Picking up the key, he crossed the room, unlocked the window, and threw it open.

Vanessa's room was above the back porch. Seth dove through the window onto the roof of the porch. He could only hope that the commotion had already brought the imps338 stationed on the porch into the house. Otherwise he wasabout to be caught. He closed the window, hoping his pursuers might not be sure where he had gone. For all they knew he could have retreated to any of the rooms, or even gone up to the attic.

He heard Kendra screaming for Mendigo from the side of the house. She sounded desperate. Seth hurried to the edge of the porch roof. The porch was raised above the level of the yard, so even the lowest part of the porch roof was a good ten feet above the ground.

Seth tossed the key onto the gra.s.s. Then he found a portion of the roof that stuck out over a thick bush. Turning and crouching, he grabbed the lip of the roof and stepped off, hoping to dangle before dropping. The weight of his body was too much, and he lost his grip, falling awkwardly on his side, but landing in the bush.

Hitting the bush sideways turned out to be a lucky way to fall. He mashed the bush down, and it absorbed the brunt of the impact. Shaken, heart racing, Seth rolled out of the bush, picked up the key, and sprinted for the woods, his oversized bathrobe flapping behind him.

After waiting in tense silence, Kendra knew they were in trouble when Vanessa started calling for Errol. She opened the window so she would be ready for a quick exit.

Then Errol yelled about an intruder, and she realized Seth had not been caught. She heard the front door open and the imp charge up the stairs.339 She had to create a distraction. Kendra ran to the studydoor, opened it, and banged it shut. She locked it and rushed to the window, wis.h.i.+ng she had more to wear than a sheet.

She put her legs through first, so she was sitting on the windowsill, then turned around and boosted herself backwards.