39 clues (Ian Kabra x FemReader)

Chapter 19

CHAPTER 19

  Dan was thrilled that the second clue had been safely smuggled out of the church in his pants.

  "So, really, I saved the day," he decided.

  "Wait a minute," Lexi said.

  "I climbed onto the roof in the middle of a thunderstorm. "

  "Yeah, but the clue was in my pants. "

  Amy rolled her eyes. "You're right, Dan. You are the real hero. "

  Nellie cracked a smile. "You all did pretty good, if you ask me. "

  They were sitting together at a café on the Champs-élysées, watching the pedestrians and enjoying more pain au chocolat.

  It was the morning after the storm. The sky was blue. They'd already packed their bags and checked out of the Maison des Gordons. All things considered, Dan felt lucky.

  He still had some doubts about what they'd gone through. In particular, he didn't like that Ian and Natalie had gotten away. He'd hated being tied up, and he wanted to get back at Ian. But it couldve been worse. At least they hadn't gotten lost forever in the Catacombs or slammed in the face with a box of ice cream.

  "I still want to know what was in that vial, though," he said.

  Amy twirled her hair thoughtfully. "Whatever it is, its supposed to give one team an advantage freeing the truth -- that has to mean the final treasure of the contest. Since Ian and Natalie have the vial . . . well, I've got a bad feeling well find out what it does pretty quick. "

  "If these Lucian dudes created it," Nellie said, chewing on her croissant, "maybe its like some special kind of poison. They seem to love poisons. "

  "Maybe," Dan said, though the answer felt wrong. He still didn't like the idea that Ben Franklin was related to Ian and Natalie. He'd started to admire Franklin -- what with the fart essays and the lightning and all. Now he wasn't sure if old Ben was a good guy or a bad guy. "But what would poison have to do with a piece of sheet music?"

  Lexi took the parchment out of her backpack and spread it on the table. Dan had already studied it a dozen times. He knew it was an exact copy of the song they'd seen engraved on the stone pedestal in the secret room, but he didn't know why it was important. When he'd woken up that morning, Lexi had already been researching on his laptop and Amy was showering. Dan knew she must've been really desperate for information.

  "I found it online," Lexi said.

  "How?" Dan said.

  "I did a search for Benjamin Franklin plus music. It came up right away. That's an adagio for armonica. "

  "Ben Franklins instrument," Dan remembered. "The water on the glass rims thing. "

  "Yeah, but I have a feeling this is more than a musical score. " Lexi sat forward. Her eyes were bright, like she knew a secret. "We found the song and downloaded it. Listen. "

  Nellie handed over her iPod. "Not my kind of music. But whatever. "

  Dan listened. He felt like he was being filled with helium. The music was so familiar and beautiful it made him want to float across Paris, but it also confused him. Usually he had no trouble remembering things, but he could not recall where he'd heard this music before. "I know this song . . . "

  "Dad used to play it," Amy said. "In his study, when he was working. He played it all the time. "

  Dan wanted to remember what Amy was talking about. He wanted to listen to the song over and over until he could see their dad in his study. But Nellie took back the iPod. "Sorry, kiddo. Youve still got, like, mud in your ears. "