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Patricia locks KT in our bedroom as KT bangs on the door, begging to be let out. I stand back, my arms crossed as I stare at the back of my Sibuna crew's heads. This feels wrong. Nina would never go for it. I mean, she'd agree that we need to keep an eye on KT, but she'd never suggest we pull a Denby or a Secret Society and lock her away.
Patricia lifts up the corner of the mat in the hallway. "Okay, this is where we're gonna hide the key." It was her idea to lock her up in our bedroom, and she'd already convinced Mara to spend the night in the other girls' room with me, giving some excuse about her and KT trying to spend some more time together after the rocky start they got off to. Mara bought it hook, line, and sinker.
"Let me out!" KT shouts. "I haven't done anything wrong."
"Do you think we're doing the right thing?" Eddie asks. I remain silent, not wanting to risk my being locked up, too. I honestly believe that if KT were the sinner, she'd be more careful about it. She'd be more directly malicious and, well... more like Patricia.
Patricia takes her hand in Eddie's. "It's really great how much you believe in your friends."
"Come on, guys!" KT goes on, and I can't stand the sound of it. "Let me out. I'm not working with Team Evil, I swear!"
"We really should get some sleep," Fabian suggests.
Eddie turns to Patricia. "You sure you can stay with her all night?"
"I mean, someone has to watch her," she says. "And it can't be Ashley, since KT's proven how easily she can manipulate her. She'd let her out." I glare at her; yeah, it's official, Patricia's officially my least favorite person in this house (and this includes Victor, who is definitely working for Team Evil and definitely planted that guillotine to try and murder us Henry VIII style). But she goes on to Eddie, "You've shown me how brave you can be. So I can be, too."
Gross. In what would does Patricia Williamson need help being brave? She literally accused Nina several times over of having something to do with Joy's disappearance within the first hour she was here, not to mention literally everything else Patricia's done. Also, it's just gross.
I check my phone as I get a text—Joy. I leave the corridor quietly, going down the stairs to meet Joy in the living room. I sit beside her, inquiring, "What's up?"
"Hear you're spending the night on our floor," Joy says, her translations so far open on the page. It doesn't look like she's gotten much further since lunch.
"Unfortunately.Unless you'd like to give up your bed."
"Not likely. So," she gets right into hieroglyphic business, "I've been a little busy with the play, but I did do some research on Ammit since it seemed like she was a pretty big part of whatever Lily dreamed. She's terrifying."
"Well, knew that, but your point?"
"My point is that—hypothetically—if this is what you're going up against, it's not looking good." She points at the image of a supine mummy with her pen. "That one means death. The one beside it means sin."
"You sound worried."
"Did your grandmother have dreams like this often?"
"I don't know, but I do sometimes."
"Yeah, I'm worried."
Any further conversation is cut off by a head suddenly appearing between us, causing both of us to let out exclamations of surprise as Jerome inquires, "What's been translated?"
"God, Jerome!" I shout, hitting him on the arm as he stands up straight.
Joy groans, closing her notebook. "Seriously? Wait, how does he know?"
"He's kind of the one who found it," I inform her reluctantly.
"You said it was you—"
"Yeah, that's 'cause I didn't want this to happen," I say, gesturing back toward him. "Which, also—how'd you know Joy was helping me translate?"
Jerome looks at us with raised eyebrows. "Uh, because I saw you guys looking at it at auditions this morning? Remind me to tell you you're not subtle. So, anything?"
"Don't tell him anything," I tell Joy sharply, getting up and grabbing his arm to drag him out into the hallway. "You know you just completely blew my cover?"
"Your cover?"
"Yeah! Now Joy's gonna want to know why you had Lily's diary."
"Just tell her the truth, I stole it. It's not like that's unusual of me—"
"I was trying to keep it a fun, not-Sibuna related activity."
"Well, that was stupid. What happened to Fabian?"
"Oh, what happened to Fabian?" I repeat mockingly. "Let's see, I'm having some issues with everybody and let's just say no one trusts anyone."
"No one trusts anyone?" he says. "You guys? Seriously? What happened?"
"Ah, telling you would get you involved which is the last thing you want—"
Jerome interrupts, "You're being stubborn. You're trying to be the protective girlfriend, aren't you?"
"I'm also trying to protect Joy and I'm not her girlfriend, so not really."
"No, you're being the protective girlfriend. I think it's hot."
My mouth parts out of incredulous shock and I gesture between myself and him. "Are you seriously hitting on me right now? I thought we were having a fight!"
"I didn't," Jerome retorts simply, and I roll my eyes. He puts his hands on my shoulders as I cross my arms. "Okay, look, I think you need to de-stress and we haven't had any time together lately, so how about we have lunch together tomorrow? An hour away from whatever's going on in your Scooby gang, just you and me."
"Yeah, okay."
"A little more enthusiasm would be nice."
"Sorry. I am looking forward to that. I'm just—I'm just tired, Jerome. A lot's happened today."
—
My night was not good. I slept on the floor in the other girls' room while Mara took KT's empty bed. Patricia and KT were a volatile pairing at the moment and the only solace I got was a text from Eddie telling me he was gonna sneak up and stay with the two girls to make sure nothing happened. Patricia wouldn't even let me in my room in the morning; instead she just tossed me my uniform and everything else I needed and pushed me out before I could even see how KT was doing.
Sibuna's gathered in the kitchen—well, everyone except KT and Fabian. I grab a glass from the cupboard, handing it over to Alfie as Fabian comes in. Actually, he runs in, grabbing my arm and nearly knocking me over as he comes to a stop.
"Guys, guys, guys!" he shouts. "You have to come to the secret room, right now."
"What's wrong?" Eddie asks.
Fabian's breathlessly grinning. "It's... you just have to see for yourself!" He runs out again.
"Well," I say, "he seems happy. I'm gonna go see why." I follow him out, hearing two pairs of footsteps behind me and Patricia saying she was gonna bring KT some breakfast first.
Once we're all, excluding Patricia, down in the secret room, Fabian points to something. "Look." It's the phonograph—it's been fixed!
"You fixed it," Alfie states.
"Fabian, you genius," Eddie adds.
"Well, yeah," Fabian says, "except I didn't fix it."
I look up from the phonograph, laying my confused eyes on him. "What? Then who did?"
"I have no idea," he confesses. Our dark shadow Patricia joins us. "I just came down here to work on the phonograph before school, and there it was, completely mended, no missing parts."
Alfie shakes his head. "Why would anyone else want to come in here and..."
"The house," Patricia suggests certainly. "Come on, Osirian, you of all people know how much the house haunts us." I bite the inside of my cheek. Yeah, totally not like my great-grandmother didn't live in this house and it's not like—okay, I'm being bitter. Also, Patricia seems to be sucking up to Eddie a lot lately.
"You know, she could be right," Eddie agrees. And that's why she's been so... attentive to him. Way more than usual. He'll agree with anything she says.
"Well, whatever put it back together," I state, "let's see what it plays, shall we?"
So we listen to what the phonograph has to say. Frobisher's voice comes through, clear as day. "If you are listening to this, the unthinkable has happened. I have returned from my sleep, but I am not myself. If I am allowed to go about my business uninterrupted, there will be the most terrible consequences for the entire world. Locate the four artifacts. When assembled, they will form one complete object. This object is all you require to stop the evil."
"It looks like we're home and dry," Fabian says.
"You should already be in possession of these artifacts. I have given instructions to the members of my expedition party, excluding Michael and Elizabeth Henry, to pass on to each successive generation. If you are their descendants, you already know this."
"Hold on," Alfie says, "what?"
"This is your only hope... and mine. Good luck."
Fabian stops the phonograph recording. Alfie, Patricia, Jerome, and Joy—they're our key to defeating Frobisher. But... what artifacts?
Eddie stands up, looking at the two we have with us as he stands by Fabian and myself. "So? I mean, you guys are the descendants. You know what he's talking about, right?"
"Not me," Patricia claims.
It'd be suspicious if Alfie didn't add, "Me, either."
I sigh deeply. "Chances are Jerome and Joy won't, either."
—
So, somehow we found ourselves standing in Alfie and Jerome's room, ducking from the objects Alfie's throwing backwards at us as he searches through his things. Fabian catches a green dinosaur plush and I narrowly avoid being hit by a foam arrow.
"Itching powder, whoopee cushion... ooh! Chocolate."
"Come on, Alfie!" Eddie exclaims. "Think old. Dusty, artifact-y."
Alfie turns around. "I can't think of anything my parents gave me like that. What about you?"
"I'd know if I had an ancient artifact," Patricia responds dryly.
"Cheese straws."
"What?" Fabian asks flatly.
"Granny gave me cheese straws every single Christmas."
"Guys, come on," Fabian says incredulously. "We need to solve this."
He throws the green toy at Alfie, and it squeaks hitting him. Alfie says sadly, "My cat."
"That's a cat?!" I exclaim.
Fabian turns to me. "Has Jerome ever told you anything about something his parents passed down to him?"
"Other than general sneakiness?" I say. "No, he hasn't."
"Still, we need to go see—they're doing rehearsals at the school."
—
When we get to the lounge, where the play is in rehearsals, it appears that Jerome's standing in for Eddie as Jo's brother—but no one's standing in for Jo. It's KT! She got out of the room somehow, but not our top priority. Well, not mine.
Fabian interrupts the rehearsals, "Jerome, Jerome, Jerome, family heirlooms—do you have any special ones in particular?"
"What is she doing here?" Patricia asks harshly.
"I just remembered there's somewhere I need to be," Willow says hastily. Joy follows her out.
"What are you talking about?" Jerome asks.
"Right, me and you need to take a little walk," Patricia says to KT.
I scoff, turning to her. "That's a lot coming from someone who didn't want to be anywhere near her less than twenty-four hours ago."
"Oh, no, KT stays," Mara states. "You all stay. Again." I take a look at the script Joy left on the couch to see what scene they're rehearsing; Jo's having a hard night and her brother's singing her a lullaby their parents used to sing.
For the record, I've never heard Jerome sing. He's not absolutely horrible (like Atticus was), but he's also not gonna be nominated for any Grammys any time soon. "Upstairs, downstairs, outside, in. Always search to conquer sin." This is supposed to be a lullaby? "High and low in dale and hill, see ye all to mend all ill."
The next surprise is that Alfie recognizes the song. And he recites the next lyric along with him. "There is just one thing you'll need."
"Wait, Alfie, how do you know that?" Jerome asks, eyes wide. "My parents made that up."
"No," Alfie counters, "my parents made that song up."
"No, no, actually my parents made that song up," Patricia remarks.
Wait... all three of them? Joy!
"Carry on," Jerome says, and they continue with the song.
"There is just one thing you'll need." And they sing different lines, next. Alfie's is, "The lodge's heights are hot indeed." whereas Jerome's is, "In the parlor, the lines will lead."
"You got it wrong," Jerome says.
"No, you got it wrong," Alfie disagrees.
"Can someone tell me what this is about? Ashley?"
"I honestly have no idea," I say, shaking my head as I look between the two boys. "Fabian, an audience, please?" The five of us huddle into a group circle, speaking in lowered voices. "Uh, could that be—"
"Maybe," Fabian agrees. "If I'm right, if we're right, your parents did tell you how to find the artifact."
"The rhyme's the clue!" Eddie realizes.
"From the top!" Mara instructs.
"In the parlor, the lines will lead," Fabian recites the Clarke line, and then the Lewis one. "The lodge's heights are hot indeed."
"Great, let's start with the parlor," Eddie suggests.
"Let's go," I say, nodding toward the door as we all ignore the questions from everybody else.
—
When we get back to the house and go into the parlor area, Eddie says, "All right, if you're right, the artifact should be in this room."
"What if he's wrong?" Alfie asks.
"Okay, uh, in the parlor, the lines will lead," I repeat the line. "What lines? Fabian, lines."
"There are lines everywhere," Fabian points out, looking and sounding stressed out. I sigh, going over to the window to see if there's, like, a symbol or something that'll help. "Lines of latitude? Directions on a map."
"That's a thing?" Alfie questions.
"It is now," Fabian answers, going straight to the globe. We crowd around it and Eddie pushes down on it. "Great, it doesn't move."
"But it does spin," I state. "Maybe there's something on the map we're supposed to line up."
"That's brilliant," Fabian tells me, kneeling in front of the globe as he spins it slowly. "Egypt." He lines up the country with the axis, and something clicks and grinds. Oh, my God.
"Did you hear that?" Eddie says, and carefully, he lifts the globe open. Everything in it is covered in dust, but that means there's stuff in it! It looks like a bunch of bottles, but one is very strangely not covered in anything. Eddie opens it and cautiously pulls out what's inside it, and the five of us share grins. It's long, black and gold, and definitely old. "Is this what an artifact looks like?"
"One down," Fabian says, "three to go."