How it Ends ▸ House of Anubis [4]

chapter seven. house of digs

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            So about our class photograph—that's the only one we managed to be able to take, because when Willow went to fix the camera, she accidentally sent it toppling off the cushions and onto the floor and it broke. As far as we know, the photo of us all screaming when the camera toppled over is going to be the official photo for the Class of 2013, which means future generations are gonna make fun of us.

            I mean, it's not like we haven't spent our entire education here making fun of Victor (who literally was a co-founder of the school), so I assume it'll be in good jest. But anyway, the photo and our complete fail wound up being our Sibuna topic of conversation. Laughter fills Eddie and Fabian's room as the six of us enter together, currently imitating what our faces would look like in the photo.

            Eddie, still laughing while I hit KT's arm and make a silly face, kneels to get the locked metal box from beneath his bed.

            "She's an artist," Alfie remarks, his tone all in good jest as he speaks of his girlfriend and her pictures. Walfie got past the whole Sinner-Alfie-dumping-her thing with the help of an adopted hedgehog, immortalized through a certificate. At least there's no more fleas running throughout Anubis.

            I look over at Eddie, expecting to see the touchstone in his hand, but he isn't facing us. "Eddie?" I ask. The box is open and he's rifling through it loudly. It's empty of the one thing we needed most—the Touchstone of Ra is missing!

            Eddie picks the box up and stands, facing us. "The touchstone's gone. It's gone." This is probably the worst thing that could've happened to us when we have less than forty-eight hours to figure this thing out. He sets the box down. "Okay, who took it?"

            "Victor?" KT suggests.

            "Yeah," there's a knock at the door, "maybe." Whoever it is opens the door without waiting for an invitation to come in, and we find our most likely culprit coming in the room. Dexter, so far the only male newbie in Anubis House and the one most interested in the story of Ra's gold. Eddie turns on him. "You. You were the only one alone with the stone at the museum. You weren't napping, you were about to steal it."

            "No!" Dexter denies.

            "You must have gone back for it when we left the room."

            "Listen—you need to talk to Sophia—"

            "She has an alibi: me." Eddie retorts sharply. "You can't blame this on her."

            With every step an accusatory Eddie takes toward Dexter, the boy backs himself up until he knocks into Fabian. Patricia, ever suspicious of girls she thinks have a crush on Eddie (just look at how she treated KT when she first came), plays devil's advocate and backs Eddie away from him. "Look," she says, "I think we should hear Dexter out."