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Earl looked uncharacteristically somber when he said, “I’m afraid we might all get a chance to sacrifice before this is over.”
*
I got to the store early the next morning because I couldn’t wait to learn what the elves had discovered. It had taken all my self-control the night before not to return to the building across from the gateway park and spy on the operation. Instead, I’d dragged Owen to a movie—Casablanca, since they only ever screened classics in romantic movies and it was Owen’s favorite—and then tried not to let on that I knew anything was happening so he wouldn’t have anything he felt obligated to tell Mac.
Owen was with Mac in the park, although I couldn’t think of what he might have to share with the Council guys, since I’d been keeping him out of the loop. I waved a greeting and then went into the store. Earl wasn’t around when I went through his section, so I went upstairs to the coffee shop.
Florence was already there, and she seemed unusually jittery. “Don’t tell me you’ve gone back on caffeine,” I joked.
She didn’t seem to find it funny. “Don’t you have a meeting with the boss?” she snapped.
“We do meet most mornings. Has that been a problem for you? I know we get busy up here, but that’s when I can catch him.”
“You should probably get back downstairs and talk with him.”
“He’s not in yet. He’s still talking to some friends across the street.” I gestured toward the windows that faced the park.
She followed my gesture with her eyes, and then she took what appeared to be an involuntary step forward. I turned to look and saw that gray guys were massing in the park and heading for the store. “You’re right, I probably ought to go meet with him,” I managed to choke out before fleeing down the stairs.
I saw Earl first. “Hey, I was just going to talk to you,” he said.
I grabbed his arm. “Not now. I think something’s up. Did anything happen last night?”
Suddenly alarmed, he asked, “Why?”
I didn’t have to answer, since there were now gray guys in the store. Without a word, we both ducked behind the nearest bookshelf. Instead of lurking, the gray guys were approaching people and facing them directly for a few seconds before moving on. “They’re not just watching,” Earl said. “It looks like they’re enchanting everyone. We have to go, now.” Without waiting for me to respond, he took off toward the back stockroom. I ran after him.
He magically unlocked the stock room, and when we were both inside, I locked the door from the inside and he added a magical ward. “Owen’s out there,” I said softly when that realization struck me, but I suspected it was already too late for him. I knew how to revive him, though. All we had to do was wait it out, then when the gray guys were gone, we could find Owen and set everything right.
That was, if he hadn’t already done it himself. We were all carrying memories with us, so he was sure to find one of those pieces of paper he had stashed. He’d probably be worried and looking for me before I got to him.
“What happened last night?” I asked Earl.
“Our spy reported back and didn’t seem to be discovered. Like you thought, it was a shift change. He didn’t get anywhere near a portal.”
“You know, the operative word there is ‘seem.’ How do we know they didn’t turn him—or that he wasn’t a mole all along?”
“Have you always been this suspicious?”
“They’re sending guards around to redo the spell on everyone. I don’t think I’m overreacting.”
“No, I trust him.”
“What about someone who might have heard the information?”
“There weren’t many of us.”
“Or maybe they let him go, since it doesn’t sound like he learned anything we can use.”
Both of us were quiet for a while, and then I said, “I think we should go back out there.”
“Are you crazy?” His first word came out as something of a shriek before he remembered where he was and modulated his voice.
“If they’re re-enchanting everyone, they’re probably working off a list, and they’ll track us down. But the spell will probably be weak on me because my magic levels are really low, and I know a shield spell that might deflect enough to keep me sane without it being obvious to them that their spell hasn’t worked. I can revive you again once they’re gone, and then we can go back to the way things were, with them thinking we’re enchanted and us being free. We’ll have to start over with waking people up, but as long as one of us stays free, that’s a minor setback.”
It took him a while to answer, and I could practically hear the gears moving as he thought about it. At last, he said, “Well, I guess it beats hiding in here forever.”
Hoping I knew what I was doing, I collected an armful of books, secured my shield spell that would work like magical immunity, then headed into the store. Earl came behind me with his own load of books. “Now, we’d better get these shelved,” I said loud enough to be overheard. Not that there was anyone to overhear. There weren’t any gray guys lurking around the stockroom, so they must not have noticed our escape.
