The Dream Thief by Kari Kilgore (books for 10th graders txt) 📕

"She's fine," Loretta said. "She went home for the day already. Why do you ask? What did you dream?"

"Well, Bess is a perfectly capable guard," Gemma said. "The others are too. But they don't see the gas before it hits them. I'd like to speak to them about an improvement we need to make to the doors and windows."

Loretta sat back, all worries about cafei forgotten.

"The gas," was all she could manage.

"There's a perfectly awful man, one you've met before. He's a pilot, but he’s nothing like Bill. This one is cruel. He won't stop until he has whatever it is he wants."

"Rhysto," Loretta whispered.

"That sounds right, yes," Gemma said, beaming. "This Rhysto, he has a sort of gas. It's not like what you use for lights here. He carries it with him, with a long tube he can use to put it into a house. We never planned for anything like that in your defenses, bobbin. I think it must be new."

"What does the gas do, Gemma?"

"I saw your guard fall asleep, so she couldn't warn you. Then he used it to fill up my room too. He had knives, Loretta, and the most awful things in mind to do with them. We simply need to modify your doors and windows. He'll get the surprise of his life when he tries his little trick with the gas."

Loretta drank the whole cup of cafei, wondering how badly she'd just burned her mouth.

"We can't exactly do that here," she said. "Not in Waldron's Gate. Someone will notice if people start getting electrocuted." She pushed her chair back with a loud scrape. "I'm sorry. I'll be right back."

Loretta tapped the transmitter beside the front door, the short, rapid code that let her guards know she needed to speak with them. The system, like most of the others in her house, was simple in the extreme. That was a huge part of what kept them so effective.

A tiny hammer was tripped by the plate she tapped on, and the tones of the hammer striking a small pipe sounded inside her guard's hidden room. By the time she opened the door, her day guard was waiting.

"Good morning, ma'am."

"Good morning, David. Gemma and I are going to visit Karl for a few days, maybe a week or so, until we can figure out how to deal with Rhysto and anyone else he may be working with. Once we leave, I want you and the other guards to stay away until I return. It's not worth the risk. Do you understand?"

"I do," he said. "When will you be leaving, ma'am?"

Loretta took a deep breath, looking around the house and the yard, the morning sunlight coming through the wisteria along her fence. She hadn't planned to ever leave here, not permanently. Something about dumping Rhysto's body into the cellar and closing the door brought reality crashing around her.

The disappearance of the ringleader of the shaw pilots would bring too many questions and investigations for her to have any chance of keeping Gemma hidden or both of them safe. If Gemma decided to electrify the windows and doors without telling Loretta, the outcome would be just as bad.

They had to accept Karl's offer whether she liked it or not. Loretta had to make sure as few people as possible knew the truth.

"We're leaving tomorrow night," she said. "I'll keep up all of your pay, so please don't worry about that. But if he shows back up here with his sleeping gas or whatever else he digs up, he'll find no one to use it on."

Chapter 42

Karl slowed when he turned the corner toward Loretta's house. Bill's dark brown wagon was already parked out front. It seemed she'd patched things up with the shaw pilot after all.

Karl wondered if Bill had gotten the same sort of urgent letter he had. The purple envelope was in his jacket pocket, but he'd read it enough to commit it to memory.

Dear Karl,

I know you've only just settled in, and I'm so sorry to disturb you again. The illness has returned. You won't need the day off, but please do call on us this evening. Your trusted assistance is most important in our hour of need.

Love, Mother

He hadn't yet had a chance to investigate George's abandoned caretaker's cottage, but he had a feeling time had run out. Now he only had a few minutes to get ready for whatever was heading his way. Bill opened the door, looking as resigned and uncertain as Karl felt.

"Good evening, Karl. What a lovely surprise to see you again so soon." He rolled his eyes and winked. "The gang's all here, Loretta. Think you can tell us why now?"

She surprised Karl with a quick kiss on the mouth.

"Thank you both. We've had unexpected events here that I'm afraid have accelerated everything. Don't worry, Gemma is busy in her room. Working on a project for you, as a matter of fact, Karl."

Bill looked confused, but he didn't ask questions. Karl wouldn't have had any idea how to answer.

"What is it I won't need the day off for?" he said. "Taking more time won't be an option for at least a few months, no matter what it is."

Loretta stood and walked from one end of her living room to the other.

"Rhysto showed up here last night. He used gas to kill one of my guards and knock the other one out, and he knocked Gemma out too. He was going to attack her after he'd finished with me."

Karl's stomach turned to a cold rock inside of him, blocking his ability to breathe or move.

"What did you do?" Bill said, his own face pale.

"I distracted him until I could get to one of my hypodermics, but not before he cut me.” She lifted her sleeve, revealing a thick white bandage covering most of her forearm. “I meant to sedate him so I could get us away, but he must have had more to