Sleepwalker

Chapter Twenty-Three: The Return of the Valiant Villains

Instead of spitting ‘I told you so,’ as I would’ve liked, I sprang up. “Did they recognize you?” I pushed in the chair while a woman behind a counter eyed me.

“I’m not sure. I had a moment of eye contact with Ace. He could be headed into the library right now. I think I saw Lister right beside him.” He cursed under his breath.

“We need to leave Dunver as quickly as possible,” I murmured to him.

He rolled his eyes. “You say that as if I should be surprised.” After scooping up his bag, he lifted up the crutches. “How do you suppose we leave the library first?”

“The building is so large that in case of a fire, there would need to be more than one exit, probably the back for accessibility purposes. Could you hand me my crutches?”

He placed them in my hand, squinting to see in the shadowy back of the library.

Impulsively, I took his hand in mine. “I think I see one between the shelves. Come on.” I tucked the crutches under one of my arms, cupping them in my hand.

He released my hand. “Jenny, stop walking on your foot. You’re going to hurt it again. Actually, hang on a moment.” He dug through his bag. “Ah, there we go.” He yanked my boot from his knapsack and laced it up on my foot. “Perfect fit.”

“Right,” I said softly, still imagining the feel his warm rough hand on mine. Hastily, I moved to the back of the library, Armadillo right behind me.

Lurking in the shadows, sure enough, was a tall wooden door with an oxidizing brass handle, tinted with a hint of a blue-green. Armadillo opened it. “No time for stairs,” he murmured. Before I could realize what his intentions were, he scooted me down the handrail. “Stay balanced,” he called down to me.

Clumsily wobbling down the rail, I clutched the crutches tightly. I fell into a heap on the wet cobblestone. I peered up to see if the rain had stopped. Only clouds remained.

Armadillo slid down with ease and picked me up. “Of all the times to be…so utterly your—hang on. Into here,” he whispered. He shoved me into a deep nook in the building. After smashing in next to me, he shushed my protests to being thrown around.

A husky and familiar voice stated, “I saw him. I swear. Glasses, mop head. Suppose he’s still with the girl. Her hair alone is enough to give her away in a crowd.”

He laughed, “Two-timing squirrel. I wonder what Varick’ll do to him.” Armadillo caught his breath. “Maybe, we’ll have a go at him. I want a rematch,” Lister snarled.

Ace chuckled, “Calm yourself, Lister. I’m sure you’ll make your mark on Felix. He seemed like such a good guy, didn’t he? And that girl of his.” He groaned in pleasure.

I shuddered against the cold wall and his chilling words. “Dill, what if….”

“Shh,” He placed a hand over my mouth. “Stay still.” Ace and Lister passed by us, caught in conversation; I held my breath, as did Dill. He poked his head out. Once he was sure that no one was there, Dill carefully stepped out from the dark area.

“It’s a big city. There’s a chance they won’t find us,” I said, hopeful.

Armadillo gnawed his lip. “It’s too slim. You heard what he said about your hair. It’s too conspicuous. And they’ll probably recognize your dress too.”

The back of the library beyond the cobblestone alley was merely a muddy patch of earth strewn in with fallen leaves. The pathetic trees only matched Armadillo’s height. I pulled Abby’s sweater off, and hung it from a branch of a small tree.