The Impossible Engineers (The Doorknob Society Saga Book 2)

by MJ Fletcher

  “Nothing,” Nightshade said and then threw a short punch that dropped Slade to the ground.

  “You attack a member of the Impossible Engineers in our own hall? Lock up this Guilder,” Mr. Slade ordered as he hurried over to help his son.

  “You better lock all of us up then.” I stepped in front of Nightshade and Jess and Faith came to stand on either side of me, creating a human shield in front of Nightshade.

  “You would take a Guilder’s side over my son?” Mr. Slade stared at me in disbelief.

  “It was my fault, Dad,” Slade chimed in as he wiped a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth.

  “What do you mean, Slade?” his dad once again demanded.

  “I started it.” Slade looked at me as he spoke. I don’t know if he was trying to make himself or I feel better. But at least he was making an attempt.

  “Fine, take them to the East Wing,” his dad yelled and the guards gave each of us a shove out of the great hall. The last thing I saw as we left the room was Slade being helped up by his father.

  “Thanks.” Nightshade walked next to me as we were escorted to our rooms.

  “No problem, Slade deserved it.”

  “Yeah, he did.” Nightshade grinned and tapped his arm against mine.

  “Chloe, here I grabbed your bag.” Faith smiled as she handed me my handbag. I had completely forgotten about it. I took it, unsnapped it and quickly snatched my phone. I hit the screen and saw that I had three missed calls from Val. Damn it, how was I going to explain blowing her off. I clicked her name figuring I was better off getting this over with now.

  “Chloe?” She answered her voice shaky.

  “Hi, Val. I’m sorry but the dance got a little crazy and I didn’t even see you called till just now. I know we were—”

  She cut me off. “Chloe, please, something is wrong.” The fear in her voice brought me to an abrupt stop and the others halted along with me. “What’s wrong?”

  “I’m sorry.” Val’s voice quivered and broke and I knew she was crying.

  “Val, tell me what happened.” I heard the phone move around and I could hear her quietly sobbing and then heard breathing over the phone.

  “Well, well, Chloe how was the dance?” Jasper’s voice sent chills up my spine.

  “What did you do to her?” I had all I could do to stop myself from screaming at him. If he had hurt Val I’d make him pay.

  “Nothing.”

  I could almost hear the smile on his face.

  “Yet.”

  “What the hell do you want?”

  “You’re not very smart are you? I want what your mother told you to give her. I want the Chronicle page... or Val dies.”

  Chapter 21

  Status: Time for a breakout.

  “How the hell are we going to get out of here and help Val?” Jess asked.

  After we had all been deposited in the same bedroom, I told them about Val and Jasper. Jess and I were sitting on the bed and Faith was in a sofa chair with her knees pulled up against her chest.

  Nightshade stood peering out the window and nixed it as a way to escape since he couldn’t even see the ground below.

  I wished I had an answer for Jess. “I’m not sure,”

  “The guards made sure to let us know that our portal generators wouldn’t work in here. So that stops us from opening a portal,” Jess said.

  “And there’s a dampening field around the room, which wouldn’t be easy to get around,” I informed them having felt it as soon as we had crossed the room’s threshold.

  “Did Slade tell them who had the Chronicle page?” Nightshade asked, looking at me.

  “If he had Slade’s dad wouldn’t have bothered asking me to turn it over to him. I think Slade hoped I’d tell his dad since I doubted he wanted his father to know that he had known all along where it was. But if he changes his mind...”

  “Val is screwed,” Nightshade said angrily. “That page is our only chance of rescuing her. We need to get to it before anyone else does.”

  He was right, but our chances of breaking out of here were near impossible. Our phones had stopped working when they left us in here so we couldn’t even call anyone for help.

  “Anyone got any bright ideas?” Jess sighed as if she had asked the impossible.

  I scanned the room trying to see if there was something that could help us or would spark at least an idea. I wished we could get a message out to someone to let them know that we needed help. Nothing seemed to come to mind until my eyes settled on Nightshade looking out the window, and then it struck me.

  “It’s the room that has a dampener around it, right?” I asked no one in particular.

  “It’s not like a lockdown where nothing is possible,” Jess explained. “It’s more like a wet blanket over a specific area. Why?”

  “The guards are at the door so we can’t step out there and open a small portal to get a message out, but there is one spot we might be able to use.” I smiled and looked at Nightshade.

  “What? Where?” Jess looked at Nightshade and then back to me, not getting it.

  “Oh crap,” Nightshade said as he looked out the window and realized what I had in mind. “And people say my ideas are crazy.”

  “That’s crazy.” Jess’ eyes went wide as she finally understood.

  “Am I missing something?” Faith chimed in.

  “The window,” I said pointing to it.

  “What about it?” Faith asked.

  I couldn’t stop myself from smiling, after all it was a brilliant idea and the only idea. “The dampener most likely doesn’t work out there.”

  “Oh!” Faith looked at me like I had ten heads.

  “Don’t worry only one of us needs to get out there to get a message out. Any volunteers?” I was greeted with blank stares.

  “It was your idea,” Nightshade said with his lopsided grin and for some dumb reason it made me feel good.

  “Yeah, and my ideas have such good track records, don’t they?” I sighed with resignation and walked to the window.

  Nightshade turned to check out the lock on the window. It was a simple one from what he could tell. I guess they assumed no one was stupid enough to try to escape out a window a gazillion stories up. Did that make me the stupid one?

  “Faith, you watch the door.” She nodded got up and disappeared down the short hallway that led to the door. You weren’t able to see the window from there so if someone walked in we would have a few moments at best to cover up what we were doing.

  “The lock is jammed, give me a minute.” Nightshade went to work on the lock and Jess came to stand beside me.

  “The plan?” Jess asked.

  “I doubt I can open a portal without them catching us, but I think I can get a message out through a small portal.”

  “To who?”

  “I can’t risk going to Dad since Slade’s father is contacting him. I’m going to try and reach Edgar. Maybe he can figure out a way around this dampener for us.”

  “How long do you think we have before something happens to Val?” Jess asked.

  “I’m not sure, but better we hurry than be late.”

  “What about her?” Jess jerked her thumb down the hall toward Faith.

  “We take her with us. She may be able to help us figure out where Jasper has taken Val.”

  “I don’t trust her,” Jess whispered.

  I nodded agreeing. I thought Jess’ suspicions might have been because of how much interest Faith had shown in Nightshade. But lately I had been feeling the same way as Jess about Faith. She always seemed to be hanging close around our group and now her ex had taken Val and was obviously working for my mom. It just didn’t sit right with me and I needed to keep my eye on her.

  I leaned close to Jess and whispered, “Watch her.”

  “No problem.”

  “I got it.” Nightshade flipped the latch and was able to swing the window open. He turned to me offering me his hand. “You don’t let go of me; you
understand.”

  “I promise I won’t let go,” I assured him and gripped his hand tighter. He helped me step onto the window sill about a quarter the way up the wall. A rush of cold air blasted me sending me tilting back against Nightshade.

  “Maybe we should rethink this lame-brain idea of yours,” he said adamantly.

  He had a point since I was wondering just how bad of an idea this really was. But we had no other choice so I said, “And miss the fun? Not on your life.”

  “It’s not my life I’m worried about, Masters,” he warned. “Hold on and no stupid moves. Now get this done.”

  He sounded concerned but then so was I. With my doorknob grasped firmly in my hand, I lifted it and leaned out the window ever so slightly and tried to activate it. Nothing happened.

  “Well?” Nightshade asked with even more concern. “I need to lean further out, keep hold of me.” I glanced back at him.

  “Always.”

  Damn, there was that look again and the way he said ‘always’ as if it was a promise he’d never break. Another blast of wind returned me to reality and reminded me where I was standing. I held onto Nightshade’s hand as tightly as I could and leaned my weight forward, hanging as far out the window as I could. I stretched my arm out and once again tried to activate my doorknob. Nothing happened, but I did feel the tiniest of twinges in my stomach. I pressed my feet hard against the sill and stretched myself out a bit further, my body stretching at a dangerous angle. I reached as far as I could and tried once again to open a small portal.

  Power began to flow from me and into the doorknob. Blue light surrounded it and then I felt it, the spin of space and time around me. I closed my eyes concentrating on my abilities and trying to shut out the howl of the wind or the thought that I was hanging who knows how far above the ground.

  I’d been contacted through my abilities once before by my father, but never had I attempted to do it. I thought only about Edgar and his crazy hair and goggles. I pictured him in my mind sitting somewhere working on one of his infernal maps. A small crack appeared beside my doorknob and I felt Edgar’s presence.

  “Edgar?” I asked quietly.

  “Chloe, what the hell is going on? Where are you?” I heard noise as if Edgar was moving around searching to see where I was.

  “Edgar, you need to listen, I don’t have much time. We’re being held by the Impossible Engineers.”

  “Why because of what happened at the dance?”

  I figured the news of the attack would spread pretty quickly and I was apparently right. “Yes, Slade’s dad is detaining us for our own protection and because he wants the Chronicle page.”

  “Oh boy, so are you going to give it to them?”

  “I can’t, we need it.”

  “I know your dad and the others wanted us to find the Artifact. But maybe we’re better off letting the Engineers handle it.” I could hear him sigh as if it was something he had been thinking about for a while but had been concerned about voicing.

  “Edgar, we need the page,” I repeated more firmly. “We can’t let them have it.” A rush of wind whipped around me and I had to concentrate hard to keep the small portal open.

  “Why? What happened? I thought everyone got out of the dance okay?” Edgar was too smart to let anything slip past him. He knew something was wrong and assumed it had to do with one of us.

  I had no time to waste, so I gave it to him straight. “They have Val.” Something crashed to the ground and I heard movement coming from the portal. “Edgar, what’s going on?”

  “Is she okay?” he asked, his voice strong, though it quivered.

  “They’ve threaten to hurt her if we don’t give them the page.”

  I waited, but he didn’t respond. I strained to hear the slightest noise over the sound of the rushing wind. I feared I may have lost the connection and so I said, “Edgar?”

  “I’m coming to get you guys.”

  “How?” I asked relief flooding me.

  “I don’t know, I’ll figure something out. I’m mapping the location of this portal, give me an hour and I will have you guys out of there, I promise.”

  “We’ll be waiting.”

  “Chloe, one more thing.”

  “What?”

  “I won’t let anything happen to Val. I don’t care what it takes. Understand?” His voice had gone from a quiver to a tremble.

  “Yes.” I realized that I was shaking from the cold. How long I’d been shaking I didn’t know. I couldn’t hold the portal open any longer, it snapped closed. I tugged on Nightshade’s hand letting him know to pull me back in. I was so cold I wasn’t able to offer much help, having used all my strength to hold still and keep the portal open.

  “Someone’s coming.” I heard Faith say as Nightshade struggled to pull me in. I shifted my weight trying to help, but instead lost my footing and slipped. My feet fell out underneath me and I dropped like a stone. Nightshade’s other hand shot out grabbing my wrist while his other hand never let go of mine as I plunged down. The force of my body weight caused him to lurch out the window almost completely, yanking him out with me. I don’t know how he did it, but he held on to me, steadying his balance and grunting as he pulled me up.

  I heard the sound of the door opening and feared we were about to get caught, or would I drop to me death first?

  “What the hell do you want?” Jess’ voice drifted down to me.

  “I want to talk with Chloe.” Great now Slade wants to talk to me.

  “Why the hell would she want to talk with you?”

  “Jess, please.”

  “Don’t please me you big jerk. You turn against my cousin and the rest of us when we trusted you.”

  “I’m trying to protect everyone."

  “Oh don’t give me the martyr routine, my cousin might buy it but not me. You didn’t do this for us; you did it for daddy, plain and simple.”

  “This is none of your business, Jess.” Slade snapped just as Nightshade got my chest over the sill and lifted me back into the room to lay crumpled on the floor

  He swung the window closed, slipped out of his jacket, wrapped it around me and then scooped me up. He hugged me tight against him and sat down on the bed resting me in his lap. His hands got busy rubbing up and down my arms trying to warm me up. And wow, did that ever feel good.

  “Anything to do with my cousin is my business,” Jess scolded like an irate parent.

  “I don’t have time for this.” Slade brushed past Jess and Faith and walked into the room. He stopped in his tracks when he saw me sitting on Nightshade’s lap, his jacket around me as well as his arms.

  “What?” Slade appeared perplexed as if he didn’t know what to do next.

  I stayed right where I was, in Nightshade’s arms. It was obvious that the cozy little scene bothered Slade, but at the moment I could care less.

  “Can we talk?” He looked from me to Nightshade, his eyes narrowing but he didn’t say anything. A bruise had formed on his jaw from where Nightshade had belted him and, okay, I felt a bit bad for him.

  “Go ahead and talk,” I said.

  “Alone, please” he pleaded.

  I may have felt a bit bad for him, but I wasn’t in a forgiving mood. “Whatever you have to say you can say in front of the people you betrayed.”

  Slade sighed and lowered his head. “I’m sorry everyone, I shouldn’t have gone to my father. I was worried about Chloe and I thought we were in over our heads. That really doesn’t matter now, my father needs to know where the page is and if you won’t tell him, I’ll have too... I have no choice.” He looked right into my eyes as he finished.

  Nightshade grumbled and it was a good thing that I was sitting in his lap, otherwise he might have gone after Slade again.

  He may have felt he didn’t have a choice, but neither did I. I had to tell him or risk him giving up the location of the page. “Jasper took Val, Slade. He’s working for my mom, if I don’t give them the page, they’ll kill her.”

&
nbsp; “Oh God, I should tell my dad.”

  “Do you really think he would trade a Chronicle page for an ordinary girl? Are you that clueless?” Nightshade asked shaking his head in disgust.

  “He can help us.” Slade was so earnest in his belief that his dad could help and I wished I could trust the Council as much as he did, but I didn’t dare.

  “Yeah, look how much your dad is helping us right now,” Nightshade said with a dismissive wave around the room.

  “He’s right, Slade. This is up to us and no one else. Val is my friend and I won’t let her get hurt, if you care about me at all you’ll help us.” In a sense I suppose I was asking him to choose between me and his dad and maybe that was wrong but I didn’t have any other choice.

  “You know how I feel about you,” Slade said as if expecting it to solve everything.

  “Do I?” I stared him down and he sighed once again lowering his head.

  “There is nothing I can do. I can’t get you past the guards and once I talk to my dad I’ll have to tell him that Brimstone has the Chronicle page. I’m sorry, I do care about you, Chloe, and I want us to work this out. But we’re backed into a corner here.”

  “A corner you put us in,” Nightshade said his arms still wrapped around me.

  “Slade, I guarantee you that we’re getting out of here one way or the other. You can help us or you can try to stop us. If there is any chance of us staying together, you’ll be on our side.”

  “Your powers won’t work under the dampener and there is no way to get past the guards. What do you think you’re going to do, fight your way out of here?”

  The air suddenly sizzled and the hair on my neck rose as a nearby portal activated. The door to the room burst open and the two burly guards rushed in.

  “What’s going on in here?” one of the guards shouted scanning the room.

  “We’re leaving.” I stood up and handed Nightshade his jacket.

  “What are you talking about? You’re not going anywhere.” One guard stepped toward me and reached out to grab my arm. I still had my doorknob in my hand and I swung it up smacking him right in the nose with it. I cringed when I heard the bone shatter. He screamed and fell to the ground holding his busted nose, blood dripping through his fingers. I hadn’t counted on the other guard to lurch toward me and I stumbled backward when suddenly I heard a loud crack and the guard fell over in front of me. Jess was standing in his place holding the bottom piece of a large vase all that was left of what she had used to hit him.