The Magic Misfits - Neil Patrick Harris Page 0,34

a little more about Kalagan’s intentions before we all walk right into what might be a trap.”

“Should we at least try to talk to Dean?” Theo asked. “He was the one who gave us the name that led us to the fire pit.”

“As good a place to start as any,” Ridley answered.

“Do you know if he’s working at the resort today?” Carter asked the twins.

“Gah!” said Olly. “If only one of us was psychic!”

Izzy shrugged. “We can call up there and find out.”

“Or… yeah, we could do that,” Olly finished with a nod.

SIXTEEN

Ridley phoned the resort and learned that Dean was off for the evening. After they tracked down his phone number, they called him at home, but there was no answer. And after they checked the phone book for his address, the Misfits snuck out of the Larsen house and made their way into the village toward his house. On the way, Leila continually burst into tears. Carter kept saying that everything would work out in the end. But Ridley wasn’t so sure. She felt like Kalagan’s influence was starting to infiltrate her own mind, sending her down bramble patch tunnels to dead end cliffs.

The best she could do was scan the street, making sure that no one was following. So far, she’d noticed three cars parked at three separate corners with suspicious-looking people just sitting behind the wheels and staring straight forward.

On Emory Street, they came to a small, white, Cape Cod–style cottage with black shutters, and a number on the mailbox that matched the one listed in the phone book for Dean. Unlike the other houses on the block, there was no landscaping in front, and the lawn was untidy and overgrown. Ridley had a strange feeling about the place.

“Do we knock?” asked Theo.

“He didn’t answer when we called,” said Carter.

“Maybe he was in the bathroom,” Olly suggested. “My dad can stay in there for hours, it seems.”

Ridley rolled her eyes. “Ring the doorbell at least.”

Theo climbed the step and pressed the button. A buzzer sounded from somewhere deep inside. They waited and listened, but after several seconds, there was still no response.

“Leila, do you have your lock picks?” Ridley asked.

Leila raised an eyebrow. “Really? Right here? In front of the whole town?”

“Maybe there’s a door around back?”

At the rear of the house, Leila paused, tools in hand. “This feels wrong,” she said. “It’s Dean’s house. He’s our friend.”

“I don’t think any of us is arguing that breaking into a house is the best option,” said Ridley. “But if the house was on fire, would the firefighters stand here and wonder if they were doing the right thing by smashing open the door?”

“Dean’s house is not on fire, Ridley,” said Theo.

“Even so,” Ridley went on. “This is an emergency. And who knows? Maybe Dean’s in there and needs our help.”

Leila released a shaky breath. Within seconds, she had the back door open. The Misfits crept inside.

“Hello?” Ridley called out. “Dean?” It felt slightly less like an invasion if he knew they were coming. They entered into a dimly lit kitchen with peeling linoleum on the floors and a dank smell that made Ridley wrinkle her nose. She opened the cabinet underneath the sink to find it mostly empty. Same with several drawers that contained only a single set of silverware and a few cracked plates. Ridley’s strange sense about the house only grew stronger.

The front room contained a ratty-looking green velvet couch and a couple of folding tray tables, as well as a large console radio and a tall bookcase against the wall. Through a doorway, there was a twin bed with blue sheets tucked in military style and a blanket folded neatly at the foot. There were no frames hanging on the walls, no artwork or mirrors or photographs—nothing that gave away any part of Dean’s life, which, come to think of it, Ridley realized that she really knew nothing about.

“Come on,” said Carter. “Let’s go. This is pointless.”

Ridley was about to turn back toward the kitchen when something behind the bookcase caught her eye. A line of wooden molding was attached to the wall. She pointed it out, and Olly and Izzy moved the case carefully out of the way, revealing a door.

“Whoa,” Ridley whispered. “There must be something inside that he doesn’t want anyone to see.”

Leila tried the knob only to find it was locked, but she made quick work of it, and then pushed the door open. Darkness stared back at them. Ridley