Force of Nature ▸ House of Anubis [3]

chapter thirty-two. house of alarms

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            "The fire alarm," KT says fifteen minutes after it began, "it stopped."

            "And we're still here," I say bluntly, twirling my hair around my finger. God, what I wouldn't give to be in my room with my surprisingly oblivious roommate right about now. Also, Jerome owes me a flamingo balloon animal. And I probably owe him something for missing his likely-failed skit, like a date where the fact that Robert Frobisher-Smythe has been cursed by Anubis isn't on my mind at all.

            "I think it worked," Eddie says. "Victor and co. have cleared off."

            KT scoffs. "Yeah, or they could be on the other side of that door right now."

            "Yeah, they could be..." Fabian agrees, "listening to us."

            "Guys," Eddie says exasperated, "it'll be all right, okay? We'll get out of here in no time. Patricia will probably be here any minute."

            "And Alfie," I remind him pointedly. "I'd ask how you can forget about him but I already know."

            "Not the time, Ashley."

            Fabian looks around the crypt. "Well, maybe there's another way out," he says, jumping up from his seat. He walks through another arched pathway and I sigh, following him to see what he's going to come up with.

            "Yeah, the emergency, emergency exit," Eddie snarks. "All crypts have those."

            "Shut up, Eddie," I tell him, watching Fabian feel along the walls. "What do you need me to do?"

            "Look for a crack, a draft, anything," Fabian informs. I nod, getting to work on looking for another way out.

            Behind us, KT says, "I hope that was just a false alarm. I'd hate to think that any of the others got hurt. Wha—what if they did? Alfie and Patricia were the only ones who knew that we were down here! I don't know what I—"

            "Hey, hey," Eddie calms her as I spare a glance to them in the midst of digging my fingers into a corner, "enough of the 'what ifs,' okay?"

            "Okay."

            "Okay. Now let's help Fabian and Ashley look for a way out. There's gotta be a clue around here somewhere. There's always another clue. Right, Fabian?"

            "Yeah," Fabian agrees, but he doesn't sound like he believes himself. "Yeah, there's always a clue."

            I sigh, stepping back from my wall. I set my hands on my hips, looking up at the ceiling. I got nothing. We can't be locked in here all night. Not when everyone's probably looking for us if Eddie's theory of Patricia being the one to set off the fire alarm as a distraction is correct. At the least, Mara's wondering where I am if I haven't returned to our room. Jerome probably is, too. I wonder what excuse Patricia and Alfie gave everyone for our prolonged absence earlier today.