in time to hear a low whisper somewhere down the hall. That grabbed my attention. I made the effort to move quietly and crept a bit closer, Listening as I went.
"I dont know, " hissed a male voice. "I looked for her all day. Shes never been gone this long."
"Just my point," growled a female voice. "She doesnt stay gone this long. You know how she gets by herself."
"God," said a third voice, the light tenor of a young man. "He did it. He really did it this time."
"We dont know that," the first man said. "Maybe she finally used her head and got out of town."
The womans voice sounded tired. "No, Ace. She wouldnt just leave. Not on her own. We have to do something."
"What can we do?" the second male said.
"Something," the woman said. "Anything."
"Wow, thats specific," the first male, apparently Ace, said with his voice dry and edgy. "Whatever youre going to do, youd better do it fast. The wizard is here."
I felt the muscles in my neck grow tense. There was a short, perhaps shocked silence in the room down the hall.
"Here?" the second male echoed in a panicky tone. "Now? Why didnt you tell us?"
"I just did, dimwit," Ace said.
"What do we do?" the second male asked. "What do we do, what do we do?"
"Shut up," snapped the female voice. "Shut up, Fix."
"Hes in Mabs pocket," said Ace. "You know he is. She crossed over from Faerie today."
"No way," said the second voice, presumably Fix. "Hes supposed to be a decent sort, right?"
"Depends on who you hear it from," said Ace. "People who get in his way have had a habit of getting real dead."
"God," said Fix, panting. "Oh God, oh God."
"Look," said the woman, "if hes here, we shouldnt be. Not until we know what it means." Furniture, maybe a wooden chair, creaked. "Come on."
I slipped back down the hall and around the corner into the lobby as I heard footsteps leaving the small side room. They didnt come toward me. Instead, they moved further down the hall, away from the lobby. They had to be heading for a back door. I chewed on my lip and weighed my options. Three very apprehensive folks, maybe human, maybe not, heading down a darkened hall toward a back door that doubtless led into an equally dark alley. It sounded like a recipe for more trouble.
But I didnt think I had any options. I counted to five and then followed the footsteps.
I saw only a retreating shadow at the far end of the hall. I looked into the room the three had been in as I went past it and found a small lounge with several upholstered chairs. I hesitated for a moment at the corner and heard the soft click of a metal door opening, then closing again. As I rounded the corner, I saw a door with a faded sticker spelling EXIT .
I went to the door and opened it as quietly as I could, then poked my head out into the alley it opened into and rubbernecked around.
They were standing not five feet awaythree of the young people from Reuels photo. The small, skinny man with the blond-white hair and dark tan was facing me. He was dressed in what looked like a secondhand brown suit and a yellow polyester clip-on tie. His eyes widened almost comically, and his mouth dropped open in shock. He squeaked, and it was enough to let me identify him as Fix.
Beside him was the other young man, Ace. He was the one with the dark curly hair and goatee, wearing a grey sport coat with a white shirt and dark slacks. He still had his sunglasses on when he turned to look at me, and he clawed at the pocket of his jacket upon seeing me.
The third was the brawny, homely young woman with the muddy green hair and heavy brow. She had on a pair of jeans tight enough to show the muscles in her thighs and a khaki blouse. She didnt hesitate. She didnt even look. She just turned, her arm sweeping out as she did, and fetched me a blow to my cheek with the back of one shovel-size hand. I managed to move with it a bit at the last second, but even so the impact threw me out of the doorway and into the alley. Stars and cartoon birdies danced in my vision, and I rolled, trying to get clear before she could