by Erin Johnson
Maple and I pouted.
I conjured up my best baby voice. “But, we’re going to this costume party.”
Maple nodded. “And we wanted to match.”
Smith gingerly grabbed the uniforms and attempted to lay them back into the drawer, but we held on tight.
“We really, really want them.” I batted my lashes. “Please…?”
“I can’t.” He shook his head, his blond brows lifted in the middle. “If my boss found out, I’d lose my job. It’s a security issue.”
I fought to hold in a smile. “I know janitor is a very important position, but we would never violate the janitor code and use these uniforms for ill intentions.”
He frowned. “Wait.” He held the black uniforms up. “You think these are janitor uniforms?” His mouth twitched toward a grin.
Maple nodded. “We’ll be sexy janitors!” She clapped her hands and bounced on her toes.
I joined in on the clapping, while Smith continued to look at us, a perplexed expression on his face. “How will that be sexy? And anyway, these will we be way too big for you two.”
“Oh, uh.” I waved it off. “We’ll cut the bottom of the shirts off and tie them above our belly buttons.”
Maple nodded. “And we’ll cut the pants to make short shorts.”
I clapped. “Ooh, and we can carry brooms and mops.”
Smith’s throat bobbed. He licked his lips. “You ladies are seriously going to cut these up? They’ll be practically unrecognizable.”
I nodded. “Yeah, but we’ll know that they’re authentic janitor’s uniforms.”
Maple flashed a dazzling smile. “And that’s what counts.”
Smith shook his head, which I understood, because at this point, I was confusing myself. He turned and looked back at Wiley. “Yeah, but, you can’t seriously be willing to trade back all my chips for some costumes, right, man?” He gestured to the cot. “I’ve got some gold chains you might want? Or a spare fuel cell for your airship?”
Wiley shrugged. “You know, I’m pretty good on chains and fuel cells.” He swept an arm towards Maple and me. “If that’s what the ladies want, then I’m willing to give you all your money back for those uniforms. Happy wife, happy life, right?”
I glanced at Maple. Her cheeks flushed. She mouthed, “Wife?” at Wiley. He winked.
Smith licked his lips and his eyes fell. “Yeah. Probably good advice I should keep in mind.” He shook his head and turned back to Wiley. “Are you for real, man?” He looked at Wiley’s bulging pockets. “That’s over two thousand doubloons plus a—”
Wiley held up his hands. “Look, money’s no object for me, and if that’s what my gal wants, I’m willing to pay for it.” He shrugged. “You’ve got to have another janitor’s uniform or two, right?”
Smith shook his head. “Just one more. I’ll have to do a lot of laundry.”
Wiley held his hands up like scales. “Extra laundry, or lose all your money?”
Smith scrubbed his face with his meaty hands. “Fine.”
I beamed.
“Fine. It’s a deal.”
Maple and I squealed and danced around with the uniforms. Wiley grabbed his wand and magicked all the chips from his pocket and floated them into a little pile on Smith’s bed.
He grinned. “Pleasure doing business with you. Best of luck out there.” He clapped Smith on the shoulder and we climbed out onto the platform next to the bouncers. Smith hesitated inside.
“If—if you go back in, tell those other fellas I’m heading out for tonight.”
Wiley grinned. “Good choice, man.”
Smith nodded and shut the door. A moment later the tether magically retracted and his airship swerved out and away, into the night sky.
I bit my lip. “I feel kinda bad that we basically stole his uniforms.”
Wiley hugged Maple to his side. “Don’t be. I gave him more money than I took from him. Hopefully he uses it to get help.”
Maple grinned up at him. “You did?”
He nodded and she beamed and snuggled tighter against him. The bouncers called our airship in. It had nearly reached the platform, tugged in by the rope, when the door to the Slivered Moon flew open. It battered against the side as the creepy old guy from earlier staggered out. He jabbed a thumb over his shoulder, his wand in his other hand. “Fight inside!”
The bouncers spun toward him.
“Hurry, fellas, there’s a lot of blood!”
Both bouncers dashed inside. As soon as they crossed the threshold, the old man pointed his wand and the door flew shut.
“Hey!” The guys spun and tugged at the door. It bounced, but remained closed.
The old guy leveled his wand at Maple.
Chills crept up my spine. “What are you doing?” I hugged my bundled uniform tighter against me.
He grinned a Jack-o-lantern smile and ignored me, his crazed eyes on Wiley. “Yer old man stole my lady from me! Now I’m a take your ladies—looks like you have a spare!” He cackled his wheezing laugh.
Wiley slid in front of Maple and me, his arms stretched out at his sides.
“We can defend ourselves.” Maple lifted her brows.
“I know,” he hissed over his shoulder. “Normally, but you’re both barely managing to stay upright.”
Good point, Wiley.
The door shook as the bouncers tried to bust their way out. They pounded the door, their muffled shouts coming from within.
“Leave it, Goakes,” Wiley practically growled. “Your beef was with my father and I’m not him.”
“Oh ho ho! No?” The old man, Goakes, swayed in place. “Yer ol’ man wasn’t satisfied with your momma—had to have my wife, too. And looky at you. You got yerself two ladies, too.” He glared with his bright red eyes. “That’s enough to share.”
I clenched my fists. Even with the wind whipping my hair and swaying the platform right and left, I’d forgotten to be afraid of the heights in my anger. My nails dug into my palms. “Ooh. Let me at him.”
Maple scrunched up her face. “Me, too.”
Wiley shook his head. “Just don’t fall, okay?”
Goakes moved surprisingly quick for an old man. Out of nowhere he jabbed his wand and whipped a spell at us. Fast as lightning, Wiley lifted his wand and shielded us. The spell ricocheted and hit Goakes. It knocked him to his back and he slid up against the side of the gondola, his splayed body blocking the door. Wiley dashed forward and stood over him, his wand pointed.
Goakes sneered. “Go ahead, boy. Show me just how much like your papa you are. Kick a man while he’s down.” He lay there, panting and sneering.
My lip curled in disgust—what a gross guy.
Wiley stood there for a couple of long moments, his shoulders heaving.
A blast of light flew from Wiley’s wand and knocked Goakes’s wand out of his hand and over the edge of the platform. It fell and disappeared among the clouds.
Goakes cackled. “Oh, now yer gonna do in an unarmed man, eh?”
Wiley cast a spell again and Goakes’s words became muffled as he seemed unable to open his mouth. He pried at his lips with his dirt-caked fingernails and let out muffled shrieks. Wiley spelled the door unlocked and the bouncers shoved it open, pushing Goakes to the side. They pounced on him and held his hands behind his back.
Wiley squared his shoulders. “Like I said, I’m not my father.”
He turned and Maple took his arm. She beamed up at him, her face full of admiration. I followed them into our airship, which now hovered at the end of the platform.
15
The Lab
The next morning Hank found me on my way from my morning bakery shift to a ladies’ luncheon.
“I missed you last night.” He jogged up to me from down a long, airy white hall.
I paused and grinned. “Well, this is a happy surprise.”
He flashed me a bright smile as he came to a stop in front of me. “You feeling better?” He reached out and stroked my cheek w
ith his thumb. “I was a little worried when I got your note.”
“Oh, yeah.” I nodded. That note. I’d had to lie about not feeling well—another lie—to get out of a ball last night in favor of going to the Slivered Moon with Maple and Wiley. “Yeah. I’m feeling much better.” I glanced down. “Thanks.”
“Emmaline said to tell you hello.” He chuckled. “And you missed it. Tristan and Louella finally turned on each other. The snark was palpable.”
I grinned. “I’m sorry I missed it. I love a good snark fight.”
“Hey.” He took my hands. “I found something.” He glanced around. The hall stood empty aside from us, but still he lowered his voice. “In the file we found about that secret lab. An address.”
I lifted my brows. “You found the lab?”
He shook his head. “Not exactly. All the important information had been blacked out and magically sealed, but someone missed this. It was a stamp on a letter from the post office. Since we know the post office location, I figured the lab would have to be fairly close by.”
I nodded. “Makes sense.”
“Oh, and this.” He fished around in his khaki pants pocket, then handed me a photograph.
I frowned at the photo. “Is this the lab?”
Hank came next to me to look over my shoulder. “I think so.”
Overdeveloped bright spots obscured big parts of the photo and it had faded and browned with aged. Most faces were too blurry to make out. Big rounded windows with multiple panes lined the top half of the left-hand wall. The space itself seemed tall and vast, with long tables lining the room. Glass beakers and potion bottles littered the tables. A slight man in a white lab coat and black retro glasses stood front and center with a clipboard in his arms. Other men and women in lab coats dotted the room, along with men wearing black chest plates and tall black boots. They looked like soldiers, or guards.
Hank tapped the photo. “Does this guy look familiar to you?”
I squinted and held the photo closer to me. “Can’t we do some magicky thing to make this clearer?”
Hank chuckled. “This is after all the magicky things I could think of. The original was even more damaged.”
In the back of the photo a man appeared to be bound, upright, to something like a gurney. His face was turned to the camera, though it appeared to have been scratched out. I shivered—creepy. But one thing stuck out, literally—his ears. I looked up at Hank. “Is this Colin?”
He nodded, a grim expression on his face. “I think so.” He tapped the photo on the right side. “And see there?”
A huge black box that looked about the size and shape of a coffin sat on the floor. “It’s the box of swallow’s mew.” I shook my head at Hank. “So, Colin was definitely involved with the lab somehow.”
He nodded. “Seems that way.”
“You did say he often went with your father to the Air Kingdom, right?”
Hank nodded.
I bit my lip as I debated if I should say what I was thinking. I sighed. “Look, I’m sorry to say this but… yesterday we thought maybe your mom had killed Colin and we were very wrong but…well, what if it was your dad?”
Hank let out a heavy exhale and shook his head. “Believe me, I’ve been wondering the same thing.”
“Right?” I counted on my fingers. “Your dad probably pardoned him, then hired him as your tutor, then took him to the Air Kingdom. There was definitely something going on between them. And if this box was developed in an Air Kingdom lab, how did it and Colin end up in the attic of the Water Kingdom palace… unless your father was involved.”
Hank dragged his hands over his face and through his dark hair. “I know. But even though I’m not a fan of my father, it hurts too much to think that of him. I won’t, unless I’m sure.”
I nodded. “I understand.” I didn’t completely, though. The way his father treated him, Hank didn’t owe him any loyalty, and there didn’t seem to be any love lost between them. I shook myself. King Roch was still Hank’s dad though, and that meant something.
Hank gave me an exaggerated smile. “Feel like playing hooky to look for it? The post office is on a tiny island about an hour from here.”
I scoffed. “The Air Kingdom is that big? Wow.” I handed him back the photo. “And yes, you never even have to ask—I am always up for playing hooky.” I frowned as I remembered we had our final prison heist run through this afternoon with Horace. “I just have to be back by two, is that okay?”
Hank took my hand. “Absolutely.” We started towards the hangar. His mouth slid to the side in a lopsided grin. “Getting back wouldn’t happen to have anything to do with a special event tomorrow, would it?”
My stomach sank and I tugged on his warm hand. “Seriously. I’m really sorry, but I’ve got a lot going on, it’s been really chaotic. I would love to throw you a party, anything you want, but can we do it next Friday?” If I’m not incarcerated.
He chuckled. “Oh. Sure. Absolutely. I’ll expect nothing at all tomorrow, just an ordinary day.”
I heaved a big sigh as we crossed the glass sky bridge to the floating hangar. “Hank. For real. Look at me.”
He turned. He pressed his lips together and his eyes danced. “Mm-hmm.”
I sniffed. Why did he have to be so handsome? He was making this harder. “I really need you to hear me. There isn’t a party for you tomorrow. You deserve one, you really do, and you’ll have one—but it’s not tomorrow. I didn’t have time. And I can’t bear to see you disappointed, so please, truly, it’s not happening.” I shook my head.
Hank blinked a few times and his smile fell. “Oh. You’re serious.”
I nodded. Finally. “Yes.”
“Psh. Oh, that’s fine.” He turned his head and pulled his brows together. “It’s not like I’m a child, I understand.”
I squeezed his hands. “I still want to celebrate with you.”
He smiled. “That’s all I care about. Spending it with you.” He brushed a stray strand of hair behind my ear. “And cake. Your poppy seed cake to be specific. That’s all I need. You and cake.”
I chuckled. “Fair enough.” I quirked my lips to the side. “Can I eat some of the cake, too?”
He looked lovingly at me. “Not a chance. All mine.” I batted at his arm and he jumped back, laughing. “Hey.” He cocked his head to the side as he gave me an earnest look. “So, if you’re not planning a surprise party, then what’s been going on?”
I raised my brows, feigning innocence. “What do you mean?” Sea snakes.
“You were whispering all secretive with Emmaline the other night, and I assumed the prison tour was some kind of decoy.”
I shook my head. “No. No, I’m really going on that.”
“Okay. Then why are you suddenly so interested in the prison?” He frowned. “And why did everyone act so strangely when we walked into the bakery the other day?”
I scratched my neck and looked away. “Did they?”
“And you’ve been jumpy, lately. And now that I think of it—”
I threw my hands up. “You got me.”
He arched a brow.
I gave a dry laugh and shook my finger at him. “You… You’re good, mister. Can’t keep anything from you. You guessed it.”
His face split into a big smile. “I did? The surprise party’s real?”
“So real.” Where was the nearest hole to crawl into and die?
“Yes!” He wrapped me in a big bear hug and lifted me off my feet. “I know I said it was fine when I thought it wasn’t happening, but I have to admit I was a little disappointed.” He smiled hard and flexed his throat muscles. “Ah. I’m so excited now! I haven’t been excited for my birthday in… well, ever.”
I whimpered and nodded.
A couple hours later we stood before a giant warehouse on the small, industrial sky island of Nubis. We’d found the post office, a dingy thing with quite unhelpful employees. Apparently this was a universal phenomenon that spanned all kingdoms, m
agical and otherwise. We’d spent the next hour wandering the litter-filled streets past warehouse after warehouse until we found this boarded-up gem.
Hank held the photograph up and we looked between it and the building before us. “I think those are the same windows.”
I nodded. “I think you’re right.”
The tin siding had rusted brown and many of the panes on the second story windows had been busted out completely, or hung on by jagged shards. But… it could be the place. Hank lifted his hands and the wooden boards that barricaded the large double doors peeled off the building and piled themselves to the side. I glanced right and left down the empty street, where our only company was the skittering, chirping rats that rustled piles of garbage. A cheery place.
I followed Hank through the doors, which creaked as they opened, into the cavernous space inside. Most of the tall warehouse lay in semidarkness. Rodent squeaks and scratches sounded from the dark corners, and brown beams of sunshine shot in through the windows and illuminated floating dust particles.
I coughed into my elbow. “Doesn’t smell like anyone’s been here in a while.” I scrunched my nose at some rustling loose papers. “Except for the mice.”
Hank found my hand and we walked together towards the overturned metal tables on the left. When we reached them, Hank lifted the photograph again.
“Wow.” I nodded. “This is definitely the place.” The tables before us were the same as in the picture. Now though, glass shards littered the floor, scorch marks blackened the walls and some dubious brown marks stained the floor. What had happened here?
We spent some time walking the space, looking into the corners and under the table for clues. Eventually I reminded Hank that I had to get back soon and we headed home.
In the airship on the way home, I glanced over at my prince boyfriend. He expertly navigated the maze of buttons and levers on the ship’s dashboard, hardly even glancing at it. He kept his eyes on the sky before us.
I lightly touched his arm. “Sorry we didn’t find anything.”