by Kim Long
“That’s great, Hale,” Lexi finally squeaked. “Dr. Vogt, I mean—”
Haley clapped a hand over her mouth. “Oh, Lex. I’m sorry. I know you like her, too, but…” Haley softly shook her head and gave Lexi’s hand a small squeeze. “You weren’t thinking you had a shot, were you? You guys are so far behind. You might not even survive today’s elimination.”
Lexi pulled her hand away from Haley’s. Her friend had always been blunt, but this was too much to hear.
“It’s early,” Lexi stated with an edge to her voice. “We still have all day.”
Haley stepped back. “Oh, of course!” she said brightly. She nudged Lexi’s elbow and winked. “Hey, you know what might help? Working with another team.”
Lexi’s heart skipped. This was more like it. If Team RAM formed an alliance with Haley’s Comets, not only would they leap to the front of the pack, but she’d be racing with her best friend. It’d be like old times.
“Thanks,” Lexi said with a grin. “That’s a great idea. We—”
“Sure,” Haley interrupted. “We’re working with the Phenoms and Tesla’s Techies. For now, anyway. We agreed once we’re in the top five, it’s every team for themselves.” Haley adjusted her pack. “It was a good move, too. Kwame from our summer camp last year is on the Techies, and he’s got all these programs on his computer for translation, European museums, maps with transportation stuff.… With the way this year’s race isn’t focusing a lot on science, we’d be in serious trouble if it weren’t for him.”
Lexi pressed her lips together. Haley wasn’t interested in teaming up with her. She already had formed her alliance and, like the practice tournaments, had skipped asking Lexi. Lexi’s stomach roiled. It was like Haley had completely forgotten she existed since she wasn’t at the academy anymore.
“Oh, hey.” Haley pointed. “There’s Edison’s Excellencies. Arturo’s smart. Maybe you can ask him.”
Arturo and his Excellencies darted into the maze.
“Or how about Kacey and the Rambunctious Robots?”
Lexi gritted her teeth. Haley had never had a nice word to say about Kacey in her entire life. Now Haley was recommending her? Did Haley really think Lexi had forgotten that?
Rubbing her forehead, Lexi sidestepped Haley and knelt to straighten Ron’s swag. “Nah, that’s okay.”
Haley flecked loose specks of glitter off her T-shirt. “Just trying to help.”
Lexi stared at Haley. If her friend were really trying to help, she’d have offered to let Team RAM join her alliance. She swallowed hard. It couldn’t hurt to ask.
“Why don’t we join your alliance? We always said we wanted to race together. This would be the next best thing.”
Haley froze, then tapped her lips, and then let out a sigh. “Yeah, I know, but that was before. Emma and I have the physics covered, and Andre has been great with the teleport station locator programs. Besides, I’m not sure the other teams would go for it. We’re in the lead, and it’s not like you have anything to offer to help us, you know?”
Lexi frowned. She had hoped Haley would want to race together to be together, to hang out and have fun like they used to, not just to win. But with Emma and her other classmates around, Haley apparently wasn’t interested in keeping Lexi as a friend.
Breathe. Lexi’s mind told her as her heart walloped against her chest. She glanced at Haley, who had turned and was gazing into the plaza as if nothing had happened, as if she hadn’t just dumped all over her best friend. Scratch that. Former best friend.
Lexi stretched her fingers and blinked away tears. Team RAM had nothing to offer? She was a science whiz and teleport expert, Mal spoke a bunch of different languages, and Ron solved codes in his sleep.
Shaking her head, she opened her mouth to give her friend a good, hard dose of the truth, but stopped short. Let Haley think Team RAM couldn’t win. It didn’t matter what she thought about the internship. The only thing that mattered was what the scientists thought.
The scientists. Lexi’s lips curled into a smile as she remembered what Dr. Harrison had said. He had been encouraging. She’d almost forgotten.
She straightened. “Yeah, you’re right,” Lexi said. “Now that you mention it, it probably is better we race on our own. After all, Dr. Harrison said Dr. Vogt was impressed with me because I was leading a team that didn’t have a science background. If we joined you guys, that wouldn’t be the case anymore.”
Haley spun, narrowing her eyes. “What? He said that? When?”
Lexi hid a smirk. Haley’s sudden concern felt deliciously good. “Last night after we checked in.”
“Huh. And he mentioned Dr. Vogt specifically?”
“Yep. He said to keep racing and anything can happen.”
“Hm,” Haley murmured, fiddling with her necklace. “Well, that’s… that’s great, Lex. I, uh, I guess—”
Incoming hoots and hollers sounded from the plaza’s entrance. Lexi peered past Haley and smiled. “That must be my teammates. See ya.”
As Haley walked away, Ron ran toward Lexi, excitedly waving the map over his head.
“Got it!” he screamed.
“Shh!” Lexi said as she trotted to meet him. “What happened to playing it cool?”
“Sorry,” Ron replied. “But relax, no one’s around.”
Lexi whirled. Haley was making her way to the food tent, clearly out of earshot.
“I’m here!” Mal shouted, running to join them.
Team RAM huddled. “You won’t believe what I found!” Ron whispered excitedly. “One of the gardeners was at Mickey D’s. He spoke pretty good English and told me that the maze has, like, over seven miles of paths. Those teams that are running to all of the statues have a lot of ground to cover.”
“Good,” Lexi said, reaching for the map. “But all the more reason not to be running around screaming your head off. Now, what’s the route?”
Ron held out the map. “It’s actually better to use this entrance, grab most of the clues, and then head on down to the exit.” He tapped the exit on the far side of the map. “We can reenter the maze there and then visit the last few statues on that side.” He directed them to a spot in the top-middle portion of the maze. “This is the only statue that’s going to be a pain—number twenty. There’s no quick way of getting there, and it’s at one of the few dead ends.”
“Okay,” Lexi said. “Sounds good.”
Ron repacked his swag and heaved the backpack onto his shoulders. “Hey, it’s a little lighter.”
“Yep,” Lexi said. “I did pretty well. Money’s in the side pocket.”
“All right, but once we’re done with the maze, I want about ten minutes out front.”
Mal gave a small wave. “And I’d really like to get a pic of the Grotte des Bains d’Apollon. It’s a rock structure with water and statues. I’m figuring I can do a contrast/compare with the Venus Grotto we saw in Germany.”
Lexi scratched her nose, not sure how she could refuse when it was two against one. Plus, they should be able to make up time now with Ron’s secret route. “How about we do this part of the maze and then take a quick lunch break? Maybe you guys can sell or take photos while we eat?”
Mal and Ron looked at each other.
Ron nodded first. “Definitely doable.”
“Yeah,” Mal said. “That’ll work.”
Lexi pushed up her glasses and gave a firm nod. While she preferred they grab their food and continue straight away into the maze, this was probably the best compromise. Besides, given their bodies were still adjusting to the time change, taking a break would do them good.
Team RAM jogged through the maze’s entrance. Almost immediately, the gravel path forked to the left and right. Without hesitation, Ron veered right, and Lexi and Mal followed. Trotting down the trail, Lexi was more grateful than ever that Ron had plotted a course and was leading. The leafy hedge rows bordering the paths were over six feet tall and impeccably trimmed. No matter how many turns they made, t
heir surroundings didn’t change: gravel path lined with tall bushes. Lexi knew she’d have already gotten twisted around and lost.
“The first statue should be up here,” Ron eventually whispered. “Even though it’s not one of the ones we marked, let’s stop anyway in case someone’s watching.”
Lexi considered the path ahead. The trail extended at least fifty feet, and there wasn’t a soul in sight. She peeked over her shoulder. No one there, either. But, if this was the closest statue to the entrance, another team could come jogging down at any moment.
They traveled around another bend, and Ron halted. A five-foot statue of a coiled snake stood before them. Sitting atop a white stone column, the snake had its mouth open wide, fangs bared. The Viper and the File, the name of the first fable, was etched into the column’s side.
“Yikes,” Mal said. “Creepy.”
Lexi studied the snake, marveling at the intricate detail of the stone carving. Except for its white color, the snake looked lifelike, as if it had been frozen in time. As Mal turned away and shuddered, Ron stooped to the ground. A blue-and-gold framed plaque leaned against the column’s base. He pointed at the word etched into it: STREET.
“I’ll write it down,” Lexi said, grabbing her notebook. “But I’ll keep these clues on a separate page so we won’t get confused.”
As Lexi finished writing, another team raced through, pausing long enough to record the clue and move on. Team RAM faced each other. “Well, that’s good,” Mal said. “If everyone goes as fast as that, we won’t have to worry about being followed.”
“For sure,” Ron said. “Come on, the first real clue is up ahead.”
By the time Team RAM reached the next statue, the other team was on its way. This statue had two animals. A weasel on all fours faced a fat fox staring into a crack at the base of the column. A stream of water projected out of the crack, rainbowing over the column and into a small cement plate on the ground. The tournament plaque rested against the plate.
“A fountain,” Mal whispered.
“Hmm?” Ron said, swiveling to face her.
“A fountain,” she repeated, smiling. “Remember how the clue said that, in the original maze, there were thirty-nine fountains among the three hundred statues? One of the things I read was that, when the maze was first built, there was a sort-of challenge for people to run through the maze and cross all thirty-nine fountains as fast as they could.”
“Yeah? So?” Ron answered.
Mal exhaled deeply. “Think about it. I bet each of the statues we’re supposed to visit is going to have a fountain, kind of like how it was in the original maze—the fountains were important.”
“Wow, so this means we’re on the right track!” Lexi said.
“Yeah!” Ron agreed, giving Mal a high five.
Lexi stooped to record the clue.
FOR
Mal sneaked a look over Lexi’s shoulder. “That’s it?”
Lexi shrugged. “I guess. Come on, let’s keep moving.”
With Ron leading the charge, Team RAM navigated the maze. By the time they reached the eighth statue on their list, Lexi knew Mal had been right. So far, each statue with a swan, eagle, weasel, or mouse, also contained a fountain. Lexi wrote each fountain’s clue next to the fable’s number. Her list was taking shape.
Fable #3: FOR
Fable #6: YOUR
Fable #8: NEXT
Fable #11: LOCATION
Fable #15:
Fable #16: THE
Fable #20
Fable #22: OF
Fable #24: THE
Fable #25:
Fable #28:
Fable #31:
Fable #37: SCIENCE
“Jeez,” she muttered as they curved around a bend. “It’s a good start, but this can turn out to be anything.”
Ron stopped at an intersection and unshouldered his pack. He pointed to a grass path that darkened in the distance. “I’m thinking we rest a couple minutes and then head up there. It leads to that out-of-the-way statue—number twenty—that’s at the dead end at the top of the maze. This is the closest we’ll be to it.”
“Okay,” Mal said as she retied her ponytail. “Then we can eat.”
Lexi checked her watch. “Wow. It’s almost three p.m. We’ve been inside for a while.” She fumbled in her pack for a few granola bars to tide them over. The thud of footsteps off to her side made her pause. Trotting from the dead-end trail, the Comets and Phenoms approached, ultimately stopping at the intersection. Hands on their knees, the Phenoms leaned over to catch their breath. Haley stuck out her lip and blew her bangs out of her eyes while her teammates slumped against the hedgerow.
“Wow,” Ron said. “I guess it really is far, huh?”
Phenom Simon swigged from a water bottle. “Yeah. Dark, too. Lots of overhanging branches.”
“Kinda spooky,” Comet Emma added. “You guys going down?”
“Yeah,” Lexi answered. “We’re about to. Just resting for a sec.”
Simon took another drink and then replied, “Good idea.” He nodded to Haley. “Let’s meet up with the Techies and see how many they found. Maybe we can start solving while we eat.”
The Phenoms walked away, and Haley’s teammates followed. Haley stayed behind a second, patting her stomach.
“Hey, Lex,” Haley said, walking to her. “Can I talk to you for a sec?” Haley didn’t wait for a response. “I want to say that I’m sorry about before. I was way out of line.”
Lexi jerked her head. “Huh?”
Haley gave a half shrug. “I shouldn’t have said what I said. You’re smart and have as much chance as anyone to win.” She leaned in. “I also want you to know that I asked the others if you could join our alliance.”
Lexi’s shoulders eased. She studied her friend’s face and saw the person she had known forever staring back at her. “Really?”
Haley smiled. “Yeah. I had a chance to think about what you said. It would be good to race together.” She paused. “But they said no, that three teams were enough since the race was already half over.”
Lexi squeezed Haley’s hand. She didn’t really care about joining the alliance anymore. The important thing was her friend was back. “That’s okay, Hale. Thanks, anyway.”
Haley started to turn, but paused. Lightly tugging her necklace, she faced Lexi. “But that’s no reason we can’t hang out. Why don’t you guys take a break and come eat with us?”
Lexi’s heart nearly burst through her chest. This was the Haley she had been looking for. This was the Haley she had missed. But her stomach tightened as she realized the offer came at the worst possible time. They had to get to the statue.
“I’d love a break,” Mal said as she stretched out on the lawn in a yoga pose. “I’m really getting stiff.”
Ron picked up his backpack. “Not yet. We gotta get number twenty done while we’re in this section of the maze.”
Lexi tossed the granola bars to her teammates. “Here, these will help.”
Ron tore the wrapper off with his teeth. “Trust me. We’ll be taking a nice long rest with a nice long meal as soon as we finish this one.”
Haley winced. “Oh yikes. You do know that the food tent might be down by then?”
“What?” Lexi asked.
“Yeah,” Mal said, stepping toward Haley. “What do you mean?”
Haley fidgeted with her pack’s straps. “They can’t keep it up all day. I heard one of the officials say it was a temporary thing.”
“Still, I can’t see it closing before four,” Lexi said. “We’ll be quick.”
Haley stared down the path leading to the statue. “I don’t know. That statue’s pretty far, and then you still have to go all the way to the beginning to get out, remember?”
Ron and Mal looked longingly toward the maze’s entrance. “Shoot,” Ron said. He looked at Lexi. “We really need to eat, and how are we going to work in time for my swag?” He gestured to Mal. “And for Mal to visit that other grotto th
ing?”
Lexi set her hands on her hips. “But we’d waste too much time coming all the way back here. Like you said, it’s at a dead end.”
“Well,” Haley said. “I guess… I mean if you promise not to say anything…”
“What?” Lexi asked.
Haley bobbed her head as if considering her options. “It’s only one word. I don’t really see the harm.” She smiled at Lexi. “Besides, what are friends for, right?”
Lexi stayed quiet, not sure what to say.
“Last,” Haley said. “The word on that statue is ‘last.’”
Lexi exchanged glances with her teammates. Ron and Mal’s eyes were practically bulging out of their heads.
“Thanks,” Mal said first, followed a second later by Ron. They looked toward Lexi.
“Last?” Lexi repeated.
Haley backpedaled to the path. “Yep, but remember, you didn’t hear it from me! Come on, let’s eat!”
Haley disappeared into the maze. Within seconds, Mal skipped after her, and an instant later the Filipino Flyer bolted past both.
Lexi filled the blank in her notebook, not sure how to feel about Haley’s help. Haley no doubt felt bad about their earlier conversation and was trying to make it up to her, but a part of Lexi really wanted to prove to everyone that she could lead Ron and Mal on her own.
Lexi slid the notebook into her backpack and took the last sip of water from her bottle. Her head throbbed, and her stomach rumbled. Swinging her backpack over her shoulder, she headed down the trail. Accepting Haley’s help was the right thing to do. They could eat, Mal and Ron could do their stuff, and then they’d have more energy to finish the rest of the maze.
Smiling, Lexi sped her walk, anxious to catch up. Haley had definitely saved them a lot of time. She’d have to find a way to return the favor, and, at the very least, remember to thank her when the race was over.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Lexi and Mal waited at the maze’s exit as Ron stuffed another slice of pizza into his mouth.
“Where does he put it all?” Mal asked as Ron started toward them. “I’d weigh three hundred pounds if I ate what he did.”
