“Hello?” Jo said. “Annabella?”
Aunt Tina gasped.
“Yes!” Lu exclaimed in a loud, clear voice. “This is Annabella. Can…you…hear…me?”
Jo laughed. “Sure. I’m in Australia, not on Mars. What’s up?”
Jo’s casual response took everyone by surprise.
“What’s up?” Uncle Nathan exclaimed while crowding next to Lu. “Are you kidding me? Where is my daughter?”
“Mr. Feng?” Jo said. “Are you there too?”
“And so am I!” Aunt Tina said, pushing next to Lu. Now all three could be seen huddled together in their own window.
“Where is Jenny?” Aunt Tina demanded.
Jo scowled. She didn’t expect to answer the Skype call and be attacked by three very anxious people. She looked off camera and said, “I think they want to talk to you.”
“Jenny!” Aunt Tina yelled. “Are you there?”
She strained to see who Jo was talking to, as if moving to the side would let her see around the corner, off-camera.
Jo slid out of the shot, and another girl took her place.
It was Jenny.
Alive and well.
“Hey,” Jenny said with a smile. “Is there a problem?”
The three sat there with mouths open in shock. Nobody knew how to react. It was Uncle Nathan who was finally able to speak.
“You’re okay?” he asked tentatively.
“Of course,” Jenny said, laughing. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
The three shared stunned looks. In that moment their emotions sped from nervousness, to relief, to confusion, and finally…to anger.
“Are you kidding me?” Lu shouted. “Problem? Yeah, there’s a problem! You disappeared for weeks! Nobody knew what happened to you!”
“What?” Jenny said, shaking her head. “That’s not true. I left a note.”
“What note?” Uncle Nathan exclaimed. “I didn’t see any note!”
“I put it on the kitchen counter the day before I left,” Jenny said. “It explained everything.”
“There was no note on the counter,” Aunt Tina said.
Uncle Nathan ran out of the room, headed for the kitchen.
“Well, that’s where I left it,” Jenny said. “In an envelope with your names on it. It explained everything.”
“Why didn’t you just tell us you were going to Australia with your friend?” Aunt Tina asked, tears forming in her eyes.
“Because you would have told me not to go, Mom,” Jenny said. “You know that. Jo had a great opportunity. A whole semester in Cairns to study erosion of the Great Barrier Reef. She asked me to tag along, and all I had to do was come up with the airfare. If I had told you I wanted to go, you would have gone off on how irresponsible it was and how I couldn’t miss work, and you would have done everything you could to stop me. So I didn’t ask. I left you a note and took off.”
Uncle Nathan came back into the room holding a note and the envelope it had been in.
“It was stuck in a pile of junk mail,” he said. “We must have dumped the mail on the counter and scooped it all up together. Jenny, why didn’t you just tell us you wanted to go?”
“Because you would have stopped me, Dad. You know that.”
“Then why didn’t we hear from you?” Aunt Tina asked.
“My phone doesn’t work in Australia,” Jenny answered. “And you guys don’t go online. I left you numbers to reach me, but when you didn’t call, I figured you were mad and didn’t even want to talk. We Skype with friends from Internet cafés all the time. We just logged on, and when Jo saw that Annabella had an account, she answered right away.”
Uncle Nathan examined the note. “All her numbers are right here,” he said, dazed, still trying to get his head around what had happened.
“We’re not mad at you, Jen,” Aunt Tina said.
“I am, a little,” Uncle Nathan said.
“We were so worried,” Aunt Tina said. “We didn’t know where you were or if something terrible had happened.”
“I’m sorry, Mom. I really am. I didn’t mean for you to worry. But there was no way I was going to miss out on this chance. I mean, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.”
Lu took the fortune card from the desk and read from it. “ ‘Seize the moment. You may not get another opportunity. Follow your heart.’ ”
Jenny laughed. “You found that? That card is the reason I’m here. A dumb fortune I got from a machine at Playland. I actually followed the advice. If I hadn’t gotten it, I wouldn’t be sitting here right now. Can you believe it?”
“Yeah,” Lu said. “I can.”
I blasted into the Library, yanked the Paradox key out of the lock, and slammed the door shut behind me before I could be spotted by any cops or security guards. I made sure the door was shut tight, then spun around to come face to face with Everett, who was clutching the black book.
He looked pissed. His head was going bright red again.
“You are playin’ with fire, boy-o!” he exclaimed as he shook the book at me angrily. “You can’t go breakin’ laws, no matter how important it may seem. You go and get yourself locked up in jail, you won’t be doing anybody any good. Especially yourself.”
“Yeah, that was a close one,” I said as I hurried past him.
“It’s still a close one,” he exclaimed as he fell in behind me. “When you return, you’ll be going back at the exact same moment you left. The police will still be coming for you.”
Oh. Right. Forgot about that.
“Yeah, well, I’ll figure something out,” I said dismissively.
I went right to the circulation desk and reached below it to pull out the 1937 clothes I’d need to wear to blend in at olden-day Playland.
“You were right, Everett,” I said. “There’s way more to this story than we thought. It’s not just about Baz. Two ghosts are haunting Playland. Baz and Derby. They’re in limbo because neither of them knows what really happened the night Baz was killed. My guess is Derby thinks he’s the one who killed Baz. He left a candle in the Magic Castle, and a fire burned the place down. That’s his disruption. His spirit is probably trapped there as punishment. But it’s not the end of the story. There’s no way that little fire would have spread so quickly. I think the fire that killed Baz was set some other way. That’s what I’ve got to figure out.”
Everett flipped through the pages of the book quickly, scanning for details.
“I agree. The timing doesn’t seem to add up,” he said as his spectacles slid down onto his nose. He was gradually calming down and focusing on what needed to be done, rather than on the trouble I’d gotten myself into.
“As long as Baz’s spirit is hanging around Playland, protecting that machine, there’s no way I’ll be able to nab that crystal ball,” I said.
“I believe the police will have something to say about that as well,” Everett added.
“But if I can find the truth about what really happened that night, it might free up Baz and Derby so they can move on and leave Playland. That’ll give me a shot at getting the crystal ball and figuring out what’s going to happen to Theo tomorrow.”
“Simple as that?” Everett asked.
“Simple as that,” I replied.
“I do hope you’re right,” he said. “Do you have a plan for sleuthing out the truth?”
I pulled the sweater over my head and jammed on the floppy hat.
“Move the bookmark,” I said, gesturing to the black book. “Make it earlier that day, before the fire. I’ll stake out the Magic Castle. As soon as somebody does anything suspicious, I’ll have ’em.”
Everett took out the red bookmark and flipped through some pages, looking for the exact right spot in the story for me to enter.
“You’re a thinker, lad,” Everett said, chuckling. “Just like your father.”
I headed for the door on the far side of the Library, the one that would take me back into the story. Everett was right on my heels while flipping through the book.
“You need to be careful, Marcus,” he said. “If somebody has enough evil in their heart to murder Baz, they won’t think twice about hurting anyone who finds them out. The stories in the books may exist in their own dimension, but when you’re in it, you can still get hurt.”
“I’m not going to be a hero,” I said. “I just want the truth.”
“Which would make you a hero,” Everett said.
That made me smile. “Yeah, I guess it would.”
Everett closed the bookmark into the book and held it to his chest. “And that’s how you’ll finish the story,” he said with confidence.
I reached for the door and said, “No, the story won’t be finished until Theo is safe and we find Lu’s cousin.”
“Aye,” Everett said. “Good luck to you, lad. Keep your wits about you.”
“Always do,” I said, and opened the door that took me back into the workshop next to the carousel…in 1937.
* * *
—
The park was alive with people and excitement. I had gotten used to jumping back and forth in time, so I didn’t stop to gawk at the differences between Playland then and now. I just thought of it as two different places. When I stepped out of the carousel roundhouse, I saw that the sun was still up but shadows were growing long. If Everett had stuck the bookmark in the right spot, it was the afternoon of the big bad night. I had plenty of time before the fire would be set.
I wasn’t exactly sure what I should do, so I headed for the Magic Castle, thinking I would scout for any service doors that a killer could use to get inside and set a fire. On my way I passed a crowd of people gathered beneath a huge ladder that stretched straight into the sky. It had to be over a hundred feet high. At its base was a small pool of water that wasn’t much bigger than a backyard kiddie pool. On top of the ladder was a small platform, where a woman in a sparkly bright-red bathing suit stood. It made me dizzy just looking at her up there.
There was a drumroll coming from a guy standing near the base of the ladder. All eyes were on the woman. She was actually going to jump from that crazy-high perch into that little pool of water. If that wasn’t nuts enough, a guy walked up to the pool with a flaming torch and touched it to the rim. Fire spread quickly, forming a burning circle.
My mouth went dry. It was insane…and awesome.
The drumroll stopped. There was a long moment of silence as everybody held their breath, including me.
The woman jumped. She plummeted, picking up speed quickly. She did one twist, one somersault, and boom! She hit the water with a thunderous blast. Water erupted from inside the pool, dousing the flames.
I still hadn’t taken a breath. Was she okay? A couple of long seconds passed where I wasn’t so sure, but the woman suddenly popped up from beneath the surface, thrusting her arms to the sky in triumph.
An announcer called out, “Let’s hear it for the one, the only, Daring Donna!”
The place went nuts with applause. I clapped too. I wasn’t sure if it was out of respect for an incredible stunt or with relief that she hadn’t gone splat. A small band kicked in with an old-fashioned marching song as the woman climbed out of the pool and walked a victory lap around it while waving to the crowd. It wasn’t until then that I recognized her. I think it was more the bathing suit I remembered than the woman herself. It was the lady who Baz and the worker-guy in coveralls had been fighting over.
Daring Donna. The name fit. She was daring, all right. I kind of wished they still put on nutty stunts like this at Playland, but times were different then, I guess. It made me want to stick around to see what other death-defying shows they had going on, but I was on a mission and time was moving.
Looking past the crowd, I saw the familiar spires of the medieval-looking attraction that was the Magic Castle. The last time I had seen that building it was being destroyed by fire. But that wouldn’t happen until later that night. At the moment it was clean and intact. I couldn’t help but smile. Moving that bookmark around really did change where I entered a story. Amazing.
I had gotten halfway across the midway when I was shocked to see Baz headed my way. He wasn’t wearing his robes, but it was hard to miss him—he was so tall. His tight goatee was a dead giveaway too. The guy looked to be on a mission of his own. He strode quickly through the crowd with his head held high, as if he were operating on a more important level than the rest of us lowly peasants.
I followed him at a distance and had trouble keeping up with his long strides. People had to dodge out of his way or he would have walked right over them. I, on the other hand, had to snake in and out to avoid people.
Baz walked to the far end of the midway, opposite from where his show tent was set up. This was the Kiddie-Town section of Playland. He turned off the midway onto an intersecting sidewalk that led to a large wooden structure. It was a dome that covered an open-air dance floor. There were no shows going on, so the place was empty.
Almost empty. A woman sat alone on a bench outside the building.
It was Mrs. Simmons, the wife of the guy Baz had predicted would die. She still didn’t look so hot. Her eyes were red and puffy as if she’d been crying. Her hands were folded in her lap, where she nervously twisted a handkerchief.
Baz strode right up and stood over her, his long shadow throwing her into darkness.
I crept close and found a spot behind a tree that was close enough for me to hear what was going on, but not close enough to be spotted.
Baz glared down at her.
Mrs. Simmons kept her eyes on her hands, as if afraid to look up at him.
What was Baz doing? This poor woman had been through enough. She didn’t need any more grief from this ego-case.
“Dear Mrs. Simmons,” Baz said in a voice that was surprisingly gentle. “Thank you for meeting me.”
Mrs. Simmons lifted her chin, though she was too shy to make eye contact.
“What is it you want?” she asked in a meek voice.
“May I sit?” he asked politely.
She nodded, and Baz lowered himself onto the bench next to her. She sat there, stiff, as if the very presence of Baz was like sitting next to a disease.
“No words can tell you how sorry I am about the loss of your husband,” Baz said with what sounded like genuine sympathy. “I have no control over the visions I see. Oftentimes I learn of joyous news. Other times I receive warnings of grave danger. I regret that I was unable to convince your husband of the peril that awaited him.”
Huh? Baz actually sounded human.
Mrs. Simmons sniffed and said, “The things you see—are they images of a future that’s meant to be? Or does it create the future?”
Baz gave the question some thought and said, “No one can create someone else’s future. I certainly cannot. We all have choices. I simply see shadows of the way things might be.”
“So you had nothing to do with the accident?” she asked.
“Goodness, no!” Baz said, appalled. “I have no control over people’s lives.”
Mrs. Simmons nodded thoughtfully and said, “So if he had listened to you and gone home, would he have been saved?”
“I believe so,” Baz said. He looked to the ground. It was his turn to have trouble with eye contact. “Forgive me for not being more forceful with my warning. It is a regret I will forever carry with me.”
“That must be a burden,” she said. “Being able to see things like that.”
Baz shrugged, keeping his eyes down. Mrs. Simmons reached out and patted his hand. She was actually consoling him.
“It’s all right,” she
said bravely. “Wasn’t your doing. You tried to save him. Thank you for that.”
Baz gave her a weak smile and reached into his jacket to take out an envelope.
“This is for you,” he said. “It isn’t a lot of money, but hopefully it will help you to make ends meet during this difficult time.”
Wow! Could it be true? Was Baz actually a softy?
“I can’t take your money,” she said. “Times are tough for everyone.”
“It isn’t all from me,” Baz said. “Every employee here at Playland contributed what they could. We’re a family, and we’ve lost one of our own. Please, we all want you to have it.”
Mrs. Simmons looked at the envelope, then took it and immediately burst into tears. She leaned into Baz’s shoulder, and he offered her a consoling hug.
I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I thought Baz was an arrogant jerk, and maybe he was. Or maybe that whole superior thing was part of his act. But the guy went out of his way to take up a collection to help out the poor lady. It made me think that having the power to tell people’s futures might not be such a great skill. I wouldn’t want that kind of pressure.
So Baz was actually human. Go figure. More important, he said the words I was desperate to hear. The future that crystal ball shows, the future he sees, doesn’t have to come true. He used the magic word: might. I liked might. That meant things could be changed. There was hope for Theo. All we had to do was figure out what he had to be careful of.
Baz stood up, gave a respectful bow to Mrs. Simmons, and headed back the way he had come. I skirted the tree so he wouldn’t see me and then followed him again. I was feeling bad for the guy. He was going to die that night. Knowing he wasn’t a total jerk made his death seem that much more pointless. He might have had enemies, but he also had a heart. The Oracle Baz was a way more complicated guy than I had thought. More than ever, I wanted to solve the mystery of his death and free his spirit from the park. He deserved that.
He was almost back to the midway when a man leapt out from behind a concession stand. The guy grabbed Baz by the shirt and pulled him behind the small structure. Baz was caught totally by surprise. The guy started whaling on him, punching him in the stomach and ribs. Baz didn’t stand a chance. The guy threw four or five solid punches that made sickening thuds when they hit. He would have kept going if a woman hadn’t run up and pulled him away from Baz.
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