Obscure

fifty

THE HEADMASTER DIDN'T give her much time to think. He started to further explain her duties as his second in command. As time passed, Sophie grew more and more anxious. She wondered how long it would take before he allowed her to be in his office alone. It took a moment before Sophie realized that the Headmaster had stopped talking. His head was cocked to the side, expression inquisitive. He seemed to be listening to something that Sophie couldn't hear.

Then he climbed to his feet and started toward the door. "Please, pardon me. I will be back in a few moments," he said, his excitement visible. "There is something that needs my attention right now. Just stay here until I return."

He paused at the doorway and turned back to look at her. "I trust that you will not touch anything. As my new second in command, you will have free reign of the castle, including my office. I can trust you, correct?"

"I won't touch anything," Sophie promised. She did her best not to sound like a big fat liar. She watched the Headmaster move into the hallway. The door silently clicked shut behind him.

At first, she hesitated. Surely, it couldn't be that easy...

Sophie's attention zeroed in on the world outside the office. She heard the sound of the Headmaster walk down the hall, and then turn left toward the dining hall. She knew it was the dining hall because of low murmurs of chatter and crunch of food that seemed to echo throughout the room.

Once she couldn't hear the Headmaster walking anymore, she stood and started toward the filing cabinets. All of them were locked. With a quick flick of her fingernail, the lock unlatched and Sophie flicked through the files. Most were student files. There were a few about different events scheduled, like the Mating Games.

The label of a single file immediately caught her eye.

It read: Eli Jane.

Sophie swallowed hard and fought against another round of tears. She stifled the urge to snoop and closed the drawer. It clicked shut, the sound echoing in the silent room. She closed her eyes. When she regained her composure, she reopened them. Her gaze drifted around the room, her mind distracted. She focused on the book shelf and walked over to it. Her eyes scanned over the different titles. One book stood out. Its leather spine was weathered; it was lined with age and use.

She tugged it free. It was titled: Evacuation Plans. It looked like something that would hold a map of the castle, and possible escape routes even. She flipped it open. A small slip of paper fell free and it floated to the ground like a feather. Sophie bent and scooped it up. She unfolded it and her eyes widened.

It was a map.

The sound of shoes clicking against stone caught her attention. Sophie pocketed the slip of paper and shoved the book back into place. She locked the cabinet back up and then returned to her seat.

The door opened, and the Headmaster reentered the room. He smiled at her warmly, trustingly, and resumed his seat. He pulled open a drawer attached to the desk and rummaged through it. "Here my dear," he said as he produced a small brass key. "This is a universal key. It should open any door within the castle. I am trusting it with you."

Sophie took the key. It felt ice cold in her hand.

"I'm afraid I will have to cut our meeting to an end as well," the Headmaster chirped. He apologized and gestured toward the door. "There is a student issue that I must deal with. You are welcome to come back anytime you would like, dear."

"Thank you," she said, and stood. She opened the door and stepped out. It clicked shut behind her. Her hand immediately slipped into her pocket, her fingers curling around the crumpled paper. She mentally imagined the route to her bedroom and hurried along. Aubrey wouldn't believe that she had already found it.

When she reached her bedroom, Sophie almost plowed into the door. Aubrey sat on the bed, a book open in her hand. She glanced up as Sophie entered and slammed the door shut behind her. A moment of silence passed, as Sophie listened for footsteps in the hallway. Once she was sure that they were completely alone, she turned toward Aubrey.

Aubrey perked up when she noticed Sophie's excited expression. "How did it go?" she asked hesitantly.

Sophie sat down on the edge of the bed beside her and produced the piece of paper from her pocket. "It all went according to plan," she explained. "Headmaster wanted me to replace Eli and be his second in command. While he was trying to explain everything, something happened and he had to leave the room. I was able to look around."

"I found this!" she announced and held up the paper.

Aubrey plucked it from her hand and unfolded it. She examined it thoroughly, her brow furrowed. "What is this?" she asked, sounding genuinely confused.

Sophie leaned over her shoulder and pointed at the image printed across the page. "It's a map, obviously," she said.

But the more that she looked at it, the more confused Sophie became. It didn't look like a map at all now. When she had first glanced at it, the paper was filled with different lines, all connected like a bird's eye view of a set of underground tunnels. It looked like it could be a map of the castle. Now it looked different. The lines remained, and several other distinguishing figures stood out, like the trees of a forest and waves in a river. It also pictured a cottage built of wooden logs, which was circled with a bright red marker.

But it looked more like a landscape painting than a map.

"I thought..." Sophie trialed off, speechless. "It looked like a map, I swear."

Aubrey frowned at the paper. She folded it back up into a small square and looked at Sophie. Her gaze looked puzzled. "That image looks familiar, but I can't remember where I've seen it before," she whispered.

Sophie pursed her lips.

Then Aubrey shook her head. She stood and walked toward Sophie's knickknack shelf. She slipped the piece of paper beneath a cracked snow globe. "There will always be another opportunity to explore the Headmaster's office," she murmured distantly. She turned to Sophie. "Until then, we can make our own map."

Sophie nodded in agreement. She knew it had been too easy.