Sunny glares at him.
“It’s okay!” I say quickly. “It’s not a spelling test! It’s a clue.”
“Another clue,” Sunny says, shaking her head. “Which leads to another clue, which leads to another—”
I wag my finger. “Watch it, Patrick Gates.”
“Patrick who?”
“Ugh. You guys really need to watchNational Treasure.” I hold Julia’s notebook out to the others. “This message may look random and vague, but I promise you, it’s not as bad as‘a giant between streets.’ Figuring outthatphrase was like finding a needle in a haystack. Only people who already knew about Harvey’s party and the White Night riots would get it.”
“Except we figured it out,” Julia says. “Because we’re total badasses.”
Gabriel raises an eyebrow. “Whoa—the Girl Scout curses.”
Julia’s eyes flash for a moment, and I look at her curiously. There’s something she’s not saying. Suddenly, I want to be back upstairs in the science lab. I want her to tell me why she’s really working on this puzzle. But before I can say anything, Julia shrugs and smiles.
“I only curse on special occasions,” she says. She nods to me to keep going.
“The point is,” I say, “this message isn’t actually random. It’s justdisguisedas something random.”
Sunny massages her forehead. “I think I literally hate you right now.”
“You go right ahead.” I hand over Julia’s notebook and log off my computer.
“Where are you going?” Julia asks.
I stop at the door. “Weare going on a field trip. Pack up the hate in a to-go box, Sunny. We’re heading to the library.”
To everyone’s blank stares, I add, “Unless anyone here has a copy ofTreasure Island.”
Gabriel and Julia shake their heads. Sunny continues to glower. But all three grab their bags and follow me out of the Bat Cave.
The Sunset neighborhood library holds court on the intersection of Irving Street and Eighteenth Avenue. It’s not actually any taller than the other town houses and apartment buildings surrounding it—but there’s something about the wide, heavy stones on the façade, the three giant arches over the front door, and the words etched into the architrave that give it a regal appearance.
Sunset Branch San Francisco Public Library
“Check out the doorway,” Gabriel says as we walk up to the front.
We look up at the stone frieze carved above the central door. It’s of an open book flanked by scrolls on either side. Above the book, a globe spins as though in motion. The meaning seems clear enough: Through books, you can explore the world.
“Treasure, island, builder, reads.” Gabriel flings his arms toward the door. “Reads!And it’s a book!”
“Yeah, because it’s a carving over the doorway to alibrary,” Sunny says dully.
“It’s a pediment,” I murmur.
Julia nudges me. “What?”
“A pediment. It’s the triangle above a doorway. This one’s a broken pediment—see how the frame at the top doesn’t connect all the way? It’s a stylistic thing.” I pull the door open. “My mom’s an architect.”
Gabriel grins at me as he walks past, into the library. “Architecture, seven two three!’ ” he whispers, like I’m just as much of a clue as the carving above the door.
And I mean, I get it. Once you’re in the mindset of solving riddles, everything seems connected. I remember that feeling washing over me two summers ago as I chased shadows with Cam and felt like the entire world was one big challenge for the two of us to solve. Everything we did seemed to have another deeper, secret meaning. It felt like together we were stumbling upon something huge and weighty and…and it’s probably for the best that I don’t think like that now. Most things, after all, are just coincidence. And the real skill in tracking down a treasure is figuring out what’s real life and what, at the end of the day, only exists in your head.
The warm cherrywood shelves sit under the giant arched windows and welcome us inside. I love the smell of libraries. It’s not even the same as bookstores. The paper here has a distinctive scent. There must be something about being passed around a community that changes a book at its DNA level. Shared stories just hit different.
“I think we should check out the reference desk,” Sunny says.
