The Chase Page 0,47

good at figuring out the clues so far," she said, keeping her voice level so the others wouldn't think she was drowning in self-pity.

"Because Julian wants it that way," Dee said. Jenny had told them about the dream-leaving out the kiss-on the drive to Zach's house. "He's not playing this Game straight. We got the first clue in plenty of time, but it was too hard. The second clue was dead easy, but there wasn't time to do anything about it."

"I should have woken up sooner," Jenny said in a low voice.

Beside her, Tom started to reach for her, and Jenny saw his face, all planes and shadows in the early morning light. Tom Locke even looked good at the crack of dawn; he woke up looking that way.

Tom's hand dropped back to his side. Jenny knew what it was without asking. She was sitting on his right in the car, and her left hand, with the ring, was in between them.

She looked out the window fiercely and pretended she didn't mind.

"You know, there's one reason I did want to go to school today," she said. "To try and find out about Eric-the guy Audrey was with. See if he's okay."

"I could probably call his house and ask. I know him a little," Tom said, to show he was still talking to her, even if he wouldn't touch her. Oh, we're terribly courteous, Jenny thought. For all the good that does.

"We can call from the apartment," Michael said. "We should probably get some food first."

"No, I tell you what let's do," Dee said, her voice excited. "Ixt's go see Aba."

"This early?"

"Not everybody sleeps like you, Mikey. Besides, she'll give us breakfast."

In the back seat Jenny leaned forward. A heavy weight seemed to have lifted from her chest, at least for the moment. "You're right," she said to Dee. "Let's go see Aba. Maybe she knows what we should do."

Aba lived in a house beside Dee's mother's house. The two buildings were on the same property, but Aba's house had a distinctly different character. Dee and her friends always called it the Art Pavilion.

One entire wing was devoted to Aba's craft, centering around the studio where she did her sculpting. The large, airy room was all soaring asymmetrical walls and skylights.

Aba was at work when the children came in, taking moist gray clay from a bowl and slapping it on a wire armature.

"What's it going to be?" Dee asked, coming up behind her.

"Good morning," Aba said firmly, and when they'd all said good morning, she said, "A bust ofNeetu Badhu, your mother's manicurist. She has a very interesting face, and she's due here at seven."

"Then we'd better hurry," Dee said. "Is it okay if we use your phone? And get some breakfast?"

"There are caramel rolls in the kitchen," Aba said, "Get them-and then come back and tell me why you're here."

While the others went to the kitchen, Tom got on the phone.

"Eric's okay," he said when he hung up. "He was home from school today, but there's nothing really wrong with him. The police are interested in talking with anybody who saw the attack, though-which means Audrey."

Michael stopped eating his roll. "Which means they might be trying to track her down," he said. "Great."

"Don't worry about it, Mikey," Dee said comfortingly. "You'll probably be next, so you won't be here when our Great Deception comes crashing down."

"Dee," Aba said, "have you been telling lies?"

"Yup. Our whole life these last few days has been a tissue of fibs."

Aba shook her head and wiped her clay-smeared hands on her denim smock. "Now," she said to the group, "tell me."

And they did. They told her the truth about what had been happening since they'd been released from the police station; how they'd been looking for the paper house, how they'd found it, what Julian had said to Jenny about the new Game. And what had happened to Zach and Audrey.

Aba listened to it all, her beautiful old face grave and attentive. When seven o'clock came, she sent the manicurist away, covered the bust with a wet cloth, and kept listening.

When they finished, she sat quietly for a moment. fenny half expected her to say something about how wrong it was to deceive their parents-Aba was an adult, after all. She half expected Aba to say that Dee couldn't stay with the rest of them because it was too dangerous. And, although she didn't expect it, she wished passionately that Aba would say, "Here's the