Archer rubbed his ears and waited for Oliver to stop shouting. Once he did, Archer cautiously put the headphones back on.
OLIVER: I don’t think he can hear me. He’s not responding. Are you sure the frequency is right?
ADÉLAÏDE: Where’s the paper with his number?
OLIVER: It’s on that box.
ARCHER: I can hear you, Oliver. The frequency isn’t wrong.
OLIVER: Wait. I hear something. ARCHER? IS THAT—
ARCHER: It’s me! But please, stop shouting!
OLIVER: OH! I’M SOOorry. I might have dozed off when Amaury was explaining how this works. Yes, I can hear him now. We’re about to leave, Archer. Hurry, Kana. We have to get going.
ADÉLAÏDE: Leave her alone. We still have time.
KANA: That was very good hot chocolate.
OLIVER: Archer, we’re leaving the café and should be . . . What are you—No. I’m in charge of the—
KANA: Hi, Archer. It’s Kana. How are—
OLIVER: Give it back. And please don’t touch it again without asking. Sorry about that. We’ve left the café and—Oh! Hold on.
ADÉLAÏDE: Did he just eat something off the ground?
KANA: He did.
OLIVER: It was a lemon drop. Don’t look at me like that. It wasn’t dirty. It was in the snow.
ADÉLAÏDE: But don’t you realize where that came from?
OLIVER: DuttonLick’s, probably.
ADÉLAÏDE: Yes, but it must have belonged to the lady who was hit by the bus.
OLIVER: . . .
KANA: He’s going to throw up.
OLIVER: I’m fine. Keep going. I’m just rinsing my mouth with snow. . . . Pyuck.
ARCHER: What’s going on?
OLIVER: Nothing important. We’re crossing Foldink Street now and heading north around Rosewood Park. We . . . but I think . . . the Hollow? . . . it’s where? . . . so we’re . . .
The signal cut in and out as they crossed Rosewood Park, and he could barely hear Oliver.
OLIVER: I think I lost him. Archer? Are you still there? Hello?
ARCHER: I can hear you now. Where are you?
OLIVER: We’re on Deangor Street.
KANA: That’s my old house. Isn’t it pretty? That’s the Birthwhistles’ house.
OLIVER: Mr. Birthwhistle’s house is completely dark. I don’t think anyone’s home. We’re walking up the Figs’ front steps. You should knock, Kana. You’re the one who knows them.
Knock knock knock.
OLIVER: It sounds like someone’s—
MRS. FIG: Oh! Kana, dear! What a lovely surprise. We’ve missed seeing you. But who are . . . Is that a radio strapped to his back?
ADÉLAÏDE: Uh, his father runs the Doldrums Press. And his father . . . he asked us to do a report on the Rosewood snow for an article. We thought we’d interview Digby to get his thoughts.
MRS. FIG: Yes, this winter has been something, hasn’t it? Those horrible Helmsleys have really—
The conversation muffled. Archer guessed Oliver had covered the microphone with his hand, but Mrs. Fig’s opinion of the Helmsleys was no secret to Archer.
MRS. FIG: Regardless, it’s wonderful to know Digby has responsible friends. Keeping busy and working hard over the break. Please, come in! You all look perfectly frozen. Digby! You have friends here!
OLIVER: We’re inside, Archer. Mrs. Fig’s fetching Digby.
MRS. FIG: They’re frozen, Digby. Get them something hot to drink. I’ll be upstairs if you need me.
ADÉLAÏDE: We need to hurry, Digby. Do you have the—
DIGBY: Shhh! Wait till she’s gone. All right. Here’s the key. Bring it back as soon as you’re done.
OLIVER: We have the key, Archer. We’re heading next door and—
ADÉLAÏDE: Go back! Hurry! Get inside!
OLIVER: What’s going on?
ADÉLAÏDE: A Society truck just pulled up.
OLIVER: Is it Mr. Birthwhistle?
ADÉLAÏDE: I didn’t see. Check the window.
OLIVER: It’s Mr. Mullfort. He’s waiting on the front steps. Mr. Mullfort’s early, Archer.
KANA: Mr. Birthwhistle isn’t with him.
ADÉLAÏDE: Digby, does this key open the garden door, too?
DIGBY: Yes, it opens all the doors.
ADÉLAÏDE: Do you have a ladder?
DIGBY: Why do you need a ladder? What’s going on? And where’s Benjamin’s gift?
ADÉLAÏDE: I’ll explain in a minute, Digby, but please. We need a ladder. Quickly.
There was a lot of scuffling, and everyone seemed to be talking at once. Archer couldn’t make sense of it.
OLIVER: Change of plans, Archer. We’re in the garden. We’re going over the wall. Where’s Digby? Did he get the ladder?
KANA: He’s coming now, but look at him. He knows we’re lying. He’s panicking.
ADÉLAÏDE: He’ll be fine.
DIGBY: Will this work?
ADÉLAÏDE: That’s perfect, thank you.
DIGBY: What exactly is going on here? Did you . . . I have a bad feeling about this.
KANA: What sort of bad feeling?
ADÉLAÏDE: We don’t have time for feelings. Oliver, help me with the ladder. Don’t make the angle too steep. Step on the first rung. Wedge it into the snow. Is it steady? Shake it. Good. You go first.
OLIVER: Stand back. I need room to get up.
ADÉLAÏDE: Be careful with Amaury’s radio. Clear some of the snow. Don’t slip.
OLIVER: There’s a small greenhouse in the backyard. It’s next to the wall. I think if I . . . Yes, I can just—
ADÉLAÏDE: OLIVER!
OLIVER: I’m fine. The snow was deep. But be careful. The greenhouse roof is slippery. Archer?
ARCHER: I’m here, Oliver. Are you in the backyard?
OLIVER: Yes. The lights are still off. They can’t be inside yet. Hold on. Adélaïde’s coming now. I’ve got your foot. Slower!
ADÉLAÏDE: Now hurry, Kana.
OLIVER: Tell her to watch her footing. She’s going to knock the ladder. Give me your hand, Kana. We’re all here, Archer. We’re going to . . . No. I told you not to touch the microphone.
KANA: You need to tell Archer about Digby. He’s not going to wait for us. I told you he was panicking.
ADÉLAÏDE: Digby, what’s going on?
DIGBY: . . .
OLIVER: Digby, we know you can hear us. We just left you.
DIGBY: I’m sorry. I’m not sure what you’re up to, but I can’t be a part of this. I promise I won’t say anything if you bring back the key. I need that key.
OLIVER: Digby, put the ladder back! Digby! No. You can’t leave us—
ADÉLAÏDE: He’s gone.
OLIVER: Archer?
ARCHER: Yes?
OLIVER: We have a problem. Digby abandoned us. And he took the ladder. No, Kana, I don’t think he’s just getting a drink of water. Look, he turned off the garden lights.
ARCHER: Oliver?
OLIVER: Yes?
ARCHER: How are you going to get back out?
OLIVER: I have no idea. Change of plans again. We need to focus on getting out of here. We can use the greenhouse to—
ADÉLAÏDE: Archer, it’s Adélaïde. Listen, we’re fine. We don’t need Digby’s ladder. We’re over the wall, and I have the key. Getting out was always going to be the tricky part, but we can use the front door. I’m giving the microphone back to Oliver. We have to hurry.
OLIVER: Adélaïde unlocked the garden door. We’re going inside.
ADÉLAÏDE: Where’s the flashlight? Thank you. There. The stairs.
OLIVER: We’re going upstairs. Hopefully Mr. Birthwhistle’s office is on the second floor. Their house sort of reminds me of yours. Except it’s very neat. I’m afraid to touch anything. Mr. Birthwhistle might notice. Is that an office?
ADÉLAÏDE: It has to be. Look at it.
KANA: That’s a lot of plants.
ADÉLAÏDE: Shhh. Do you hear that? Go to the window.
OLIVER: Mr. Birthwhistle arrived. He looks angry.
KANA: They’re coming inside.
ADÉLAÏDE: Quick. We need to hide. Oliver—the closet. Can we all fit?
OLIVER: There’s barely room for one.
ADÉLAÏDE: You get inside. I’ll shut the door behind you.
OLIVER: Leave it open a crack so Archer can hear.
ADÉLAÏDE: Kana—under the couch.
KANA: What about you?
ADÉLAÏDE: I’m going under the desk.
Archer pressed the headphones tight to his ears and increased the volume. Everything went muffled when Adélaïde shut Oliver in the closet. He thought he heard Adélaïde and Kana scrambling, and then all he could hear was radio static and his heartbeat. His friends were in danger. And he we wasn’t with them.
Footsteps entered the office.
♦ THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME ♦
MR. MULLFORT: Can I talk now? You’re being awfully dramatic. And why do you keep scratching your arm?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: I brushed against two things I shouldn’t have, and one of those things was you. Now tell me, how long were you standing outside my front door for anyone to see?
MR. MULLFORT: I arrived a few minutes before you did.
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: I told you we were not to have direct contact. Why do you insist on failing me?
MR. MULLFORT: I’ve done everything you’ve asked. I’m the one who has been failed.
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: Were you not given Strait of Magellan? Did you not cash out on your bets?
MR. MULLFORT: Everyone wants their money back.
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: I told you not to get carried away.
MR. MULLFORT: Don’t lecture me. I don’t care about the money anymore. I just want this over with. Where’s the journal?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: That’s no longer your concern. Your concern is keeping the stolen journal safe. That is your alibi in case Mr. Bray becomes suspicious after the forgery leaks. Be ready. . . . Why are you tapping your pocket like that, Eustace?
MR. MULLFORT: No reason. And don’t worry about Bray. I’ll deal with him if he becomes a liability. But he wasn’t the only one in the shop the night I bought it. The Helmsleys’ grandson was there, too. And his friends.
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: They saw you buy the journal?
MR. MULLFORT: I’m not sure what they saw. But it wasn’t my first run-in with them. They were in your office at the Society before the Helmsleys were ostracized.
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: How would you know they were in my office unless you were also in my office?
MR. MULLFORT: Where are the communications?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: You thought I would be careless with such a thing? I’m a little insulted, Eustace.
MR. MULLFORT: We agreed to destroy them. Why keep something that connects us to the iceberg?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: I always have a reason. They’re tucked away at the Society. But this is becoming messy, and you know how I feel about messes. One thing at a time. First, is Captain Lemurn ready for Suplard’s test?
MR. MULLFORT: He’ll be fine. Lemurn has the heart rate of a whale. Dalligold was trying to pick off the crew, trying to get them to testify against us, but none would.
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: Dalligold. He’s the one I should have put on the iceberg.
MR. MULLFORT: Why?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: Ralph’s an ox. I think he was pulling a plow that Dalligold was steering. Regardless, about the grandson—
MR. MULLFORT: I wouldn’t worry about him. If I had to guess, I’d say they were in the right place at the right time.
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: We don’t make guesses, Eustace. We make certain. Being in the right place at the right time can happen once, but twice? The eyebrow rises. They might be tailing you. And if it continues, you’ll have to deal with them as well. But this will be more delicate. Do you remember what I told you about fingerprints?
MR. MULLFORT: If we use other people to do what we want done, we won’t leave any.
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: Precisely. And there’s someone inside Helmsley House who can take care of the boy for you.
MR. MULLFORT: Who?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: Mrs. Helmsley. That family’s story is no secret. She kicked Ralph and Rachel out of their own house. When news of their survival reached Rosewood, she sent the boy up to Raven Wood. Benjamin wrote me the moment he arrived. Yes, I know. Quite the coincidence.
MR. MULLFORT: But how is that going to help me? And what about the other two?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: If Mrs. Helmsley thinks the boy’s in danger, she’ll take him away. Clean and simple. As for the other two, when you cut out the root, the plant will die.
MR. MULLFORT: How are we going to make her think the boy is in danger?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: We’re not. It’s you they might be tailing. It’s you who should be concerned. And should it be necessary, it’s you who will take care of this. And while I know it’s not your strong suit, this will call for subtlety. We don’t use a spear to make a pinprick. And a pinprick is all you’ll need.
The room grew very quiet. Archer’s mind was racing. Was Mr. Mullfort really going to come after him? He pushed that thought away and pressed the headphones even tighter. His friends were the ones in danger. He could hear Oliver breathing, but why was no one talking? What was—
MR. MULLFORT: Why are you smiling at me?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: We mustn’t turn on each other, Eustace. We are allies.
MR. MULLFORT: Who said I was turning on you?
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: Listen, Eustace. Do you not you hear that?
MR. MULLFORT: . . .
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: What are you up to? What’s in my closet? It wasn’t humming when I left this morning. Why is it humming now?
MR. MULLFORT: You’re completely paranoid.
MR. BIRTHWHISTLE: Or are you trying to be clever? Let’s see what you have in—WHAT IN THE—
C L I C K
Archer didn’t move. He didn’t breathe. He stared at the glowing radio dials. How could they not have noticed the radio had a hum?
“Oliver?” he whispered into the microphone.
There was no reply. Only static. What had he done to his friends? He tore off the headphones. He had to tell his grandparents.
Archer hurried across the hall, but stopped, hearing his grandparents downstairs. He raced to the second floor and stopped again. Why was Mr. Suplard down in the foyer, speaking to his grandparents?
“It’s an evaluation of what?” his grandmother was saying.
Mr. Suplard motioned to one of the Deputies with him. The Deputy clicked open a black case and revealed a complicated machine.
“A lie detector?” Grandpa Helmsley asked.
“It’s policy, Ralph,” Mr. Suplard said in his nasal voice. “Part of our Inquiry. You know that. In cases of contradicting testimonies. And while personally, I don’t believe you two are . . . well . . . I’m not convinced you are telling the whole—”
Grandpa Helmsley raised himself to his full height. Mr. Suplard and the Deputies took a step back. Archer thought his grandfather might launch them out into the snow.
“Please, Ralph. Let’s not do anything rash. The Inquiry Department is impartial. We’re not for or against you.”
“You expect us to believe that? The banquet was a setup! You knew Birthwhistle’s plan was to force an Ostracization.”
Mr. Suplard seemed genuinely insulted at this accusation.
“Strap Lemurn to the lie detector,” Grandma Helmsley insisted. “Ask him if he left us on the iceberg.”
“Captain Lemurn will be evaluated tomorrow. This evening it’s you. If you have nothing to hide, this test should help you.”
“We have nothing to hide,” Grandpa Helmsley replied, directing everyone up the stairs. “We’ll do it in the map room. But I need to call Dalligold. I want him here for this.”
Archer’s heart was beating wildly as Mr. Suplard passed him on the second floor.
“Please allow my
Deputies room to pass, Master Helmsley. Thank you.”
Archer grabbed his grandfather’s arm, wanting desperately to shout what was happening across town, but how could he tell his grandfather that his friends had broken into Mr. Birthwhistle’s house while the head inquirer of Society Codes and Conduct was there? Mr. Suplard might think his grandparents had put them up to it.
“You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Archer,” Grandpa Helmsley said. “Don’t get yourself worked up. We’ll be fine.”
“I have to talk to you,” Archer pleaded. “Privately.”
“It’ll have to wait, Archer,” Grandma Helmsley said, ushering his grandfather up the stairs. “We won’t be long.”
Archer watched helplessly as they disappeared. Should he go to the Birthwhistles’ alone? He rushed to the front door, pulled on his coat, shoved his feet into his boots, reached for the knob, and—
“What’s going on?” Mrs. Helmsley asked, pressing her hand firmly against the door.
“You have to let me go! It’s important! I can’t explain. But please! You have to let me go!”
Mrs. Helmsley glanced at the clock. “I’m sorry, Archer, but you’re not going anywhere—especially if you can’t give me a reason. Does this have to do with Mr. DuttonLick’s party?”
“No. It’s Oliver and Adélaïde. They’re in trouble!”
“And how would you know they’re in trouble?”
“I heard . . . I have . . . It’s a feeling.”
A feeling wasn’t going to get him through that door. The truth wouldn’t get him through it, either.
“If something’s going on, Archer, you need to tell me right now.”
Archer wanted to tell his mother. He wished he could. But he never could tell his mother the truth—about anything. And she hadn’t lifted a finger to help his grandparents. Did she even care what happened to them? If he told her what he’d done to try to help, he’d never see his grandparents or Helmsley House again. And that was exactly what Mr. Birthwhistle wanted.
“It’s nothing,” Archer said bitterly, pulling off his coat. “I imagine things, that’s all.”
♦ HALLUCINATING BEACONS ♦
Upstairs in the map room, Mr. Suplard and the attendants were setting up their equipment. Archer’s grandmother was standing before the glowing radio. Archer tried to get his grandfather’s attention, but he was on the phone. And one of the Deputies, seeing Archer first, abruptly shut the door. Archer ran to his room. The polar bear shouted after him.
The Doldrums and the Helmsley Curse Page 13