Family of Spies, page 16
Had anyone even come into the apartment? Ford looked over to the corner fireplace. Although spies would be extremely careful…
He sighed and limped past his desk and examined every inch of the fireplace, running his fingers along the mantle. Nothing here either. He scanned the room. Might as well search the desk next. Ford picked up the lamp, checked the bottom, the switch, and the shade and, finding nothing, he slid open the desk drawer. Empty. He closed it halfway and stopped. Time to think like a spy. Ford got onto his knees, opened the drawer all the way, and ran his hand along the top of the cavity. Smooth wood, smooth wood, smooth wood, and his fingers grazed over a small metal disc. Was it a listening device? Carefully, he slid his fingernail under one edge and pried off the object. It plunked into the drawer. Ford held his breath and opened the drawer as far as it could go.
It was a bug. Someone was listening to him this very moment.
Ford’s heartbeat pounded hard. Maybe he could fool whoever was listening in and make them think he hadn’t found it, that the plunking sound wasn’t the discovery of the disk, but something else like…like…like what?
Think Ford. Think.
That’s it!
Maybe they would think the plunking sound was just Ford losing his temper looking for something. He grabbed some pens from the desktop and threw them in the drawer.
“Where did I put my…” Ford said, hoping he sounded frustrated. “…my…” What could he be looking for? A picture of Ellie taking notes on her phone flashed in his mind, Aha! “…my…phone!”
He slammed the drawer closed, yanked it open, and rummaged around, pushing the pens in every direction. As they rolled, he gingerly picked up the bug and slammed the drawer closed.
“Not there,” he said loudly. “Guess it’s lost.”
He stared at the device in his palm. What should he do with it? Knowing people, strangers, were listening in on him was creepy and he fought hard to resist the urge to throw it to the floor and squash it under his foot.
His door opened and Ellie’s face appeared. Ford jumped.
“What’s taking so long?” she asked.
“I am looking for my phone.”
She frowned. “I didn’t think—”
“Yes, that’s right, my phone,” Ford interrupted Ellie as he held out his shaking hand. The bug sat right in the centre.
Ellie’s mouth fell open and a tiny, “Oh,” popped out. She closed the door and stepped closer, looking at it from every angle. Her eyes met Ford’s and she grinned. “Too bad about your phone,” she said with an exaggerated wink. “I’m sure it will turn up.”
He rolled his eyes and mouthed, “What about you?”
She shook her head.
Ford carefully placed the bug on his desk and pointed to his doorway. “Let’s see what Gavin’s up to.”
“What a great idea,” Ellie said, winking again.
“Just—let’s go.” Ford opened the door and she raced through pumping her fists high in the air.
By how excited Ellie was, you’d think they’d won a million dollars, not discovered a listening device planted by some unidentified secret service agency. Didn’t she ever get scared? Ford looked back into his room. He had to sleep in there, with someone listening to his every breath. He shivered. Maybe he could convince Ellie to switch rooms. He sighed. That would never work. Their parents would ask too many questions.
“Hurry up, Ford,” she called from Gavin’s room.
Ford closed his door. “I’m—” His words caught in his throat.
Something had clunked on the other side of the front door. He tiptoed to the peephole and looked out, half expecting an eyeball to be staring back at him. Ford could only see directly across the hall. Silently, he gripped the glass doorknob and twisted.
One, two, three!
He yanked open the door and darted into the hallway, just in time to see a man and a woman disappear down the staircase at the end of the hall. Were they the spies from the library?
Chapter 30
Ford stretched and slowly opened his eyes. Bright sunlight filled the room. He was on the floor of Gavin’s room. His back ached, but at least he had slept.
“Hey, Little Brother,” Gavin said, sliding to the end of his bed, his head hanging over the edge. “Why are you in my room?”
“I ah…didn’t want to sleep in my room. I ah—”
“The bug freaked you out that much, huh?”
“Yeah. I know Ellie thinks the whole thing is a colossally exciting, real-life action-adventure movie, but I don’t like being spied on.”
“I guess it doesn’t help that your room was the only one we found anything in either.”
“Exactly. It means they’re focused on me. Which is even creepier.”
“That actually has me concerned.”
Ford shuddered. “Me too. Do you think they know about my clairvoyance?”
“I don’t know how they could. The only people besides us three who know are Mme. Bellerose and Marie-Claire. Mme. Bellerose would never tell a soul. And Marie-Claire…” Gavin trailed off.
“She wouldn’t betray us.” Ford said.
But what if she’d been threatened and she had no choice? An image of Great-Granddad throwing Wilhelm to the ground entered his mind. It wasn’t the image of the gentle and loving man Mom always talked about. The secret service was serious business. Would they have roughed Marie-Claire up to make her talk?
Gavin’s door swooshed open. Ellie stepped inside the room.
“Hey lazy bones!” she said, then fixed her eyes on Ford. “What’s going on? You had a slumber party and you didn’t invite me?”
Ford blushed. “No, it’s—”
“Not important,” Gavin interrupted. “We need to talk about today’s visit to the Notre Dame Cathedral. According to The Sisters, we are going on a tour together. They want to spend more ‘quality family time’ with us. They were adamant about it.”
Ellie sat at the end of Gavin’s bed.
“How do you know that?” Ford asked.
“I heard them talking in the hall after we went to bed,” Gavin said.
“You eavesdropped? Well done, Professor,” Ellie said, high-fiving Gavin.
He smiled. “Thanks, but we still need to figure out how Ford is going to tap into Great-Grandfather’s memory if we are stuck with our parents the entire time.”
“I’m not sure, but once we get to the cathedral maybe something will come to us. I mean The Sisters are always taking breaks to eat pastries.”
Gavin laughed. “No kidding. I’ve never seen my mom eat so many tortes and croissants in my entire life.”
Ford walked over to the window and looked down to the street and the several cars parked along the curb. Were spies in any of them? He closed his eyes and thought about the agents from the library. His spine tingled. Yes. He couldn’t tell exactly where, but they were down there. Waiting. For him. No way was he going to be used as an agent of evil.
“Hey Ford,” Gavin said. “Did you hear us?”
Ford spun to face them. “Ah, no. Sorry.”
“We were discussing the next clue. It’s our second last one, so hopefully we’ll get some more answers. It’s the bookmark with that Bible verse: And you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.”
“Do you think it’s a code—some sort of message?” Ellie asked.
“Maybe,” Ford said, thinking about it. He closed his eyes, hoping he’d sense something that would help them. Nothing came to him. “I really don’t know about this one. Sorry.”
Ellie smiled. “We’ll find out soon enough. I have faith in you. I can’t deny what’s happening to you. And finding that bug in your room sealed it for me. Sorry it’s taken me so long to fully believe you.”
“That means a lot,” Ford said. He let out a slow breath. One step closer. Nervous anticipation and impatience fluttered in his stomach. “The truth shall set you free.”
Great-Granddad’s truth. Was that what they were searching for?
Chapter 31
Ford had never seen anything like the Notre Dame Cathedral. It was far older than any church in Winnipeg and it was at least twice the size of his entire school. He stared up at the arched stone ceiling and its faded murals.
“Mom and Dad are staring at you,” Gavin whispered to Ford. Across the sanctuary, Mom leaned in to Dad and spoke too quietly for them to hear her words, but the determined look on her face and her crossed arms told the cousins everything they needed to know. “She is going to be watching us like a—” Gavin began, but Ford interrupted him.
“Like a spy?”
“I was going to say hawk, but spy is more appropriate.”
Ellie waved a map in the air. “Mastermind to the rescue. I grabbed this from the kiosk at the entrance. Even though Notre Dame is huge, there aren’t a lot of places we can hide away. Except for the crypt.”
“The crypt? Geez, could that sound any more ominous?” Ford asked.
“Don’t get your undies in a knot, it’s now an archeological museum. Nothing to be scared about. Save your fear for our trip to the Catacombs tomorrow. Now that is going to be spine chilling,” Ellie said with a ghoulish grin. She laughed and returned to her pamphlet.
“We can’t just sneak away. Look at them,” Ford said and smiled at his parents. Dad smiled back. Mom held her two fingers to her eyes and then pointed them at Ford. Dad watched her then mouthed “sorry” to Ford.
“They really are watching your every move,” Gavin said. “At least Dad is on our side.”
“Yeah, but he’s under Mom’s control.”
“Well aren’t you two a pair of Gloomy Gusses. Listen, we need to create a distraction so we can get away. The place is pretty packed, so that will help. We may have to split up too. Ford may have to do this one alone.”
“What? No way. That is too dangerous. What if someone finds him? What if the undercover agents are watching us right now? What if they follow him and—” Gavin sputtered.
“Hey, Gavin,” Ford interrupted. “You’re kind of freaking me out.”
Ellie glanced over to the sanctuary. “We have to be ready for any opportunity to separate from the parents.”
Gavin’s eyebrows raised and he slowly shook his head. “I guess.”
Ellie shrugged. “No one said it would be easy.”
“No, but the one thing we were warned about was protecting Ford. Mme. Bellerose couldn’t have been clearer about that and I am not leaving my little brother to fend for himself. Not for a second. Especially not now.” Gavin lowered his voice and continued. “We have solid proof that he is under surveillance. This is not the time to let down our guard. I will not let Ford do this alone. Forget it.”
“Gee, Gav. Thanks,” Ford said. Gavin got passionate about a lot of things, physics, math, history, but never before was that intense emotion directed at him. It felt…brotherly. This must have been how Dad and Uncle Tom had been together.
“Good points, Gavin. At least one of us will stay with Ford at all times,” Ellie said. She slid her phone out of her back pocket and opened her notes. “There’s something that is still bugging me. What was such a big deal about their mission? I mean, there were lots of secret missions underway during the war, so why was Great-Granddad’s any different?”
Gavin nodded. “That is a valid question. The more we know, the further away we seem to be from discovering what they did that was so top secret.”
Ford shrugged. “Maybe this time we’ll get closer to the truth.”
“It that your clairvoyance at work or is it just wishful thinking?” Ellie asked.
“A little bit of both, actually.”
Gavin’s gaze darted to their parents. “They’re coming this way.”
“Our tickets are sorted,” Dad said. “Our tour begins in five minutes.”
Mom stared at Ford. “Yes, we wanted to spend the whole day together. See how our boys are enjoying Europe so far. Keep an eye on you and your…growth spurts.”
“Right. Great idea, Mom,” said Ford. “And we’re loving it here. Very…historic, wouldn’t you say Gavin?”
“For sure. There are important historical buildings on every single block, and so many significant moments in history happened in Paris: the French Revolution and the storming of the Bastille prison; Napoleon’s coronation; Charlemagne the Holy Roman Emperor; the building of the Eiffel Tower for the 1889 World Fair; and so many artists and writers came to find inspiration in Parisian cafés in the 1920s and 30s—Picasso, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Salvador Dali,” Gavin looked from face to face. “I could go on…”
Mom smiled. “If only there was time. I didn’t realize you had such an interest in history. Maybe if physics loses some of its appeal, you will follow in your old mom’s footsteps. History is chock-full of countless secrets buried deep in the past, just waiting to be uncovered.”
“Really? You’d be okay if Gavin suddenly decided he wanted to be a history teacher?” Ford asked.
She cocked her head and frowned. “Surely you know us better than that. Whatever you two boys decide to do is perfectly fine with me and your dad. As long as you are giving it your full effort and you find fulfillment, we will be happy. And to have another historian in the family…just think of the looooooooooong chats into the wee hours of the night we could have.” She turned to Dad. “Let’s get going. Come along, everyone. History waits for no Whitaker or MacKenzie!”
Chapter 32
Ford tried to pay attention to the tour guide, but he couldn’t concentrate. All he could think about was Scout and her safety. Did Radley betray Scout? Did she get captured or did she flee to England or Switzerland like Great-Granddad wanted? And who exactly was Radley? As they approached the nave, Ford’s attention was tugged to the enormous South Rose Windows on the other side of the church.
He pulled on Ellie’s arm. “There is something over there,” he looked across the church. “It’s calling to me. I need to check it out.”
Ellie followed Ford’s gaze. “First, do the next Great-Granddad vision. I’ll cover you. Take Gavin. He’ll kill us both if you go alone…and take my phone. Make sure he takes lots of notes. If your parents notice you’re gone, I’ll tell them you guys went to the washroom.”
Ellie pushed her way to the front of the tour group and stood directly behind Mom as Ford stepped quietly to Gavin’s side. Ford cleared his throat, thinking that would grab his brother’s attention. No response. Ford gently nudged Gavin’s foot with his own. Gavin jerked and looked at Ford. He seemed surprised to see his brother so close.
“Come with me,” Ford whispered as quietly as possible.
Gavin leaned in close. “What did you say?” he whispered back.
Ford’s eyes grew wide and he nodded over his shoulder mouthing, “Come. With. Me,” very slowly. Hopefully Gavin would get the message.
“Oh,” Gavin said, a little too loudly.
Dad looked over and shushed them. Thankfully, Mom was as captivated by the guide as Gavin had been and didn’t notice a thing. Aunt June had already wandered off, taking pictures of the pews and hymn books. Uncle Jim struggled to keep his eyes open. He was fighting his own personal battle with a serious case of the head bobs to see anything the cousins were up to. Perfect.
Ford inched back. Gavin followed. Dad glanced over and Ford pretended to be fascinated by the tour guide. Dad looked away and Ford let out a sigh of relief. The brothers stepped back as their tour group moved along to examine a bust of some long-dead statesman.
Gavin and Ford raced to the entranceway to the crypt and nearly tripped down the staircase. Ford led them to the furthest corner he could find, which still didn’t give them much of a cover. Spotlights were everywhere, meant to draw attention to the old ruins, but it also meant there were no dark corners to hide from prying eyes.
Ford popped in his earbuds. “This will have to do.” He turned his back on the milling crowds. “Let’s pretend we’re geeking out on history.”
“Good idea,” Gavin said, doing the same. He held the bookmark out to Ford.
“Then you will know the truth and the truth shall set you free,” Ford read Great-Granddad’s writing. “Let’s hope so and quickly.”
The moment Ford grasped the paper, the room around him paled. “The crypt is fading away and now…” Ford paused to see what replaced the crumbling ruins. “…I’m back in the cathedral upstairs, on the other side of the church from where we just were. It’s the spot that called to me when we first entered the cathedral. So far, I’m the only one here.”
It was dark in the church; no sunshine glowed through the stained-glass windows. Sparse candlelight sent spooky shadows across the pews and down the aisles. Hurried footsteps came rushing towards Ford. He spun, but moved too late. Great-Granddad barrelled through him. Bright light filled him, blinding Ford as ripples of heat raced outwards from his chest and across his body in every direction.
“Great-Granddad,” Ford said, choking out his words. “Another soul collision.”
As the light receded, he could see his great-grandfather kneeling by a floor grate directly underneath a stained-glass window of an apostle. He took a small, metal crow bar from inside his trench coat and pried open the grate. Ford ran to his side and knelt next to him.
“Scout, this is your last chance to get out,” he murmured as he stuffed a Swiss passport and a wad of money into a medium-sized manila envelope. A small fox head was sketched in the top right-hand corner.
“He has a package for Scout—money and a passport—and he’s tucking it under the floor, through the grate opening. It’s so dark in here, I can’t see exactly what he’s doing.”
Great-Granddad replaced the grate. He kissed his fingers then pressed them to the brass. “Safe travels, my friend.” He stood, straightened his tie and hat, and then without further pause, hurried down the aisle and out of the church.
He sighed and limped past his desk and examined every inch of the fireplace, running his fingers along the mantle. Nothing here either. He scanned the room. Might as well search the desk next. Ford picked up the lamp, checked the bottom, the switch, and the shade and, finding nothing, he slid open the desk drawer. Empty. He closed it halfway and stopped. Time to think like a spy. Ford got onto his knees, opened the drawer all the way, and ran his hand along the top of the cavity. Smooth wood, smooth wood, smooth wood, and his fingers grazed over a small metal disc. Was it a listening device? Carefully, he slid his fingernail under one edge and pried off the object. It plunked into the drawer. Ford held his breath and opened the drawer as far as it could go.
It was a bug. Someone was listening to him this very moment.
Ford’s heartbeat pounded hard. Maybe he could fool whoever was listening in and make them think he hadn’t found it, that the plunking sound wasn’t the discovery of the disk, but something else like…like…like what?
Think Ford. Think.
That’s it!
Maybe they would think the plunking sound was just Ford losing his temper looking for something. He grabbed some pens from the desktop and threw them in the drawer.
“Where did I put my…” Ford said, hoping he sounded frustrated. “…my…” What could he be looking for? A picture of Ellie taking notes on her phone flashed in his mind, Aha! “…my…phone!”
He slammed the drawer closed, yanked it open, and rummaged around, pushing the pens in every direction. As they rolled, he gingerly picked up the bug and slammed the drawer closed.
“Not there,” he said loudly. “Guess it’s lost.”
He stared at the device in his palm. What should he do with it? Knowing people, strangers, were listening in on him was creepy and he fought hard to resist the urge to throw it to the floor and squash it under his foot.
His door opened and Ellie’s face appeared. Ford jumped.
“What’s taking so long?” she asked.
“I am looking for my phone.”
She frowned. “I didn’t think—”
“Yes, that’s right, my phone,” Ford interrupted Ellie as he held out his shaking hand. The bug sat right in the centre.
Ellie’s mouth fell open and a tiny, “Oh,” popped out. She closed the door and stepped closer, looking at it from every angle. Her eyes met Ford’s and she grinned. “Too bad about your phone,” she said with an exaggerated wink. “I’m sure it will turn up.”
He rolled his eyes and mouthed, “What about you?”
She shook her head.
Ford carefully placed the bug on his desk and pointed to his doorway. “Let’s see what Gavin’s up to.”
“What a great idea,” Ellie said, winking again.
“Just—let’s go.” Ford opened the door and she raced through pumping her fists high in the air.
By how excited Ellie was, you’d think they’d won a million dollars, not discovered a listening device planted by some unidentified secret service agency. Didn’t she ever get scared? Ford looked back into his room. He had to sleep in there, with someone listening to his every breath. He shivered. Maybe he could convince Ellie to switch rooms. He sighed. That would never work. Their parents would ask too many questions.
“Hurry up, Ford,” she called from Gavin’s room.
Ford closed his door. “I’m—” His words caught in his throat.
Something had clunked on the other side of the front door. He tiptoed to the peephole and looked out, half expecting an eyeball to be staring back at him. Ford could only see directly across the hall. Silently, he gripped the glass doorknob and twisted.
One, two, three!
He yanked open the door and darted into the hallway, just in time to see a man and a woman disappear down the staircase at the end of the hall. Were they the spies from the library?
Chapter 30
Ford stretched and slowly opened his eyes. Bright sunlight filled the room. He was on the floor of Gavin’s room. His back ached, but at least he had slept.
“Hey, Little Brother,” Gavin said, sliding to the end of his bed, his head hanging over the edge. “Why are you in my room?”
“I ah…didn’t want to sleep in my room. I ah—”
“The bug freaked you out that much, huh?”
“Yeah. I know Ellie thinks the whole thing is a colossally exciting, real-life action-adventure movie, but I don’t like being spied on.”
“I guess it doesn’t help that your room was the only one we found anything in either.”
“Exactly. It means they’re focused on me. Which is even creepier.”
“That actually has me concerned.”
Ford shuddered. “Me too. Do you think they know about my clairvoyance?”
“I don’t know how they could. The only people besides us three who know are Mme. Bellerose and Marie-Claire. Mme. Bellerose would never tell a soul. And Marie-Claire…” Gavin trailed off.
“She wouldn’t betray us.” Ford said.
But what if she’d been threatened and she had no choice? An image of Great-Granddad throwing Wilhelm to the ground entered his mind. It wasn’t the image of the gentle and loving man Mom always talked about. The secret service was serious business. Would they have roughed Marie-Claire up to make her talk?
Gavin’s door swooshed open. Ellie stepped inside the room.
“Hey lazy bones!” she said, then fixed her eyes on Ford. “What’s going on? You had a slumber party and you didn’t invite me?”
Ford blushed. “No, it’s—”
“Not important,” Gavin interrupted. “We need to talk about today’s visit to the Notre Dame Cathedral. According to The Sisters, we are going on a tour together. They want to spend more ‘quality family time’ with us. They were adamant about it.”
Ellie sat at the end of Gavin’s bed.
“How do you know that?” Ford asked.
“I heard them talking in the hall after we went to bed,” Gavin said.
“You eavesdropped? Well done, Professor,” Ellie said, high-fiving Gavin.
He smiled. “Thanks, but we still need to figure out how Ford is going to tap into Great-Grandfather’s memory if we are stuck with our parents the entire time.”
“I’m not sure, but once we get to the cathedral maybe something will come to us. I mean The Sisters are always taking breaks to eat pastries.”
Gavin laughed. “No kidding. I’ve never seen my mom eat so many tortes and croissants in my entire life.”
Ford walked over to the window and looked down to the street and the several cars parked along the curb. Were spies in any of them? He closed his eyes and thought about the agents from the library. His spine tingled. Yes. He couldn’t tell exactly where, but they were down there. Waiting. For him. No way was he going to be used as an agent of evil.
“Hey Ford,” Gavin said. “Did you hear us?”
Ford spun to face them. “Ah, no. Sorry.”
“We were discussing the next clue. It’s our second last one, so hopefully we’ll get some more answers. It’s the bookmark with that Bible verse: And you shall know the truth and the truth shall set you free.”
“Do you think it’s a code—some sort of message?” Ellie asked.
“Maybe,” Ford said, thinking about it. He closed his eyes, hoping he’d sense something that would help them. Nothing came to him. “I really don’t know about this one. Sorry.”
Ellie smiled. “We’ll find out soon enough. I have faith in you. I can’t deny what’s happening to you. And finding that bug in your room sealed it for me. Sorry it’s taken me so long to fully believe you.”
“That means a lot,” Ford said. He let out a slow breath. One step closer. Nervous anticipation and impatience fluttered in his stomach. “The truth shall set you free.”
Great-Granddad’s truth. Was that what they were searching for?
Chapter 31
Ford had never seen anything like the Notre Dame Cathedral. It was far older than any church in Winnipeg and it was at least twice the size of his entire school. He stared up at the arched stone ceiling and its faded murals.
“Mom and Dad are staring at you,” Gavin whispered to Ford. Across the sanctuary, Mom leaned in to Dad and spoke too quietly for them to hear her words, but the determined look on her face and her crossed arms told the cousins everything they needed to know. “She is going to be watching us like a—” Gavin began, but Ford interrupted him.
“Like a spy?”
“I was going to say hawk, but spy is more appropriate.”
Ellie waved a map in the air. “Mastermind to the rescue. I grabbed this from the kiosk at the entrance. Even though Notre Dame is huge, there aren’t a lot of places we can hide away. Except for the crypt.”
“The crypt? Geez, could that sound any more ominous?” Ford asked.
“Don’t get your undies in a knot, it’s now an archeological museum. Nothing to be scared about. Save your fear for our trip to the Catacombs tomorrow. Now that is going to be spine chilling,” Ellie said with a ghoulish grin. She laughed and returned to her pamphlet.
“We can’t just sneak away. Look at them,” Ford said and smiled at his parents. Dad smiled back. Mom held her two fingers to her eyes and then pointed them at Ford. Dad watched her then mouthed “sorry” to Ford.
“They really are watching your every move,” Gavin said. “At least Dad is on our side.”
“Yeah, but he’s under Mom’s control.”
“Well aren’t you two a pair of Gloomy Gusses. Listen, we need to create a distraction so we can get away. The place is pretty packed, so that will help. We may have to split up too. Ford may have to do this one alone.”
“What? No way. That is too dangerous. What if someone finds him? What if the undercover agents are watching us right now? What if they follow him and—” Gavin sputtered.
“Hey, Gavin,” Ford interrupted. “You’re kind of freaking me out.”
Ellie glanced over to the sanctuary. “We have to be ready for any opportunity to separate from the parents.”
Gavin’s eyebrows raised and he slowly shook his head. “I guess.”
Ellie shrugged. “No one said it would be easy.”
“No, but the one thing we were warned about was protecting Ford. Mme. Bellerose couldn’t have been clearer about that and I am not leaving my little brother to fend for himself. Not for a second. Especially not now.” Gavin lowered his voice and continued. “We have solid proof that he is under surveillance. This is not the time to let down our guard. I will not let Ford do this alone. Forget it.”
“Gee, Gav. Thanks,” Ford said. Gavin got passionate about a lot of things, physics, math, history, but never before was that intense emotion directed at him. It felt…brotherly. This must have been how Dad and Uncle Tom had been together.
“Good points, Gavin. At least one of us will stay with Ford at all times,” Ellie said. She slid her phone out of her back pocket and opened her notes. “There’s something that is still bugging me. What was such a big deal about their mission? I mean, there were lots of secret missions underway during the war, so why was Great-Granddad’s any different?”
Gavin nodded. “That is a valid question. The more we know, the further away we seem to be from discovering what they did that was so top secret.”
Ford shrugged. “Maybe this time we’ll get closer to the truth.”
“It that your clairvoyance at work or is it just wishful thinking?” Ellie asked.
“A little bit of both, actually.”
Gavin’s gaze darted to their parents. “They’re coming this way.”
“Our tickets are sorted,” Dad said. “Our tour begins in five minutes.”
Mom stared at Ford. “Yes, we wanted to spend the whole day together. See how our boys are enjoying Europe so far. Keep an eye on you and your…growth spurts.”
“Right. Great idea, Mom,” said Ford. “And we’re loving it here. Very…historic, wouldn’t you say Gavin?”
“For sure. There are important historical buildings on every single block, and so many significant moments in history happened in Paris: the French Revolution and the storming of the Bastille prison; Napoleon’s coronation; Charlemagne the Holy Roman Emperor; the building of the Eiffel Tower for the 1889 World Fair; and so many artists and writers came to find inspiration in Parisian cafés in the 1920s and 30s—Picasso, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Salvador Dali,” Gavin looked from face to face. “I could go on…”
Mom smiled. “If only there was time. I didn’t realize you had such an interest in history. Maybe if physics loses some of its appeal, you will follow in your old mom’s footsteps. History is chock-full of countless secrets buried deep in the past, just waiting to be uncovered.”
“Really? You’d be okay if Gavin suddenly decided he wanted to be a history teacher?” Ford asked.
She cocked her head and frowned. “Surely you know us better than that. Whatever you two boys decide to do is perfectly fine with me and your dad. As long as you are giving it your full effort and you find fulfillment, we will be happy. And to have another historian in the family…just think of the looooooooooong chats into the wee hours of the night we could have.” She turned to Dad. “Let’s get going. Come along, everyone. History waits for no Whitaker or MacKenzie!”
Chapter 32
Ford tried to pay attention to the tour guide, but he couldn’t concentrate. All he could think about was Scout and her safety. Did Radley betray Scout? Did she get captured or did she flee to England or Switzerland like Great-Granddad wanted? And who exactly was Radley? As they approached the nave, Ford’s attention was tugged to the enormous South Rose Windows on the other side of the church.
He pulled on Ellie’s arm. “There is something over there,” he looked across the church. “It’s calling to me. I need to check it out.”
Ellie followed Ford’s gaze. “First, do the next Great-Granddad vision. I’ll cover you. Take Gavin. He’ll kill us both if you go alone…and take my phone. Make sure he takes lots of notes. If your parents notice you’re gone, I’ll tell them you guys went to the washroom.”
Ellie pushed her way to the front of the tour group and stood directly behind Mom as Ford stepped quietly to Gavin’s side. Ford cleared his throat, thinking that would grab his brother’s attention. No response. Ford gently nudged Gavin’s foot with his own. Gavin jerked and looked at Ford. He seemed surprised to see his brother so close.
“Come with me,” Ford whispered as quietly as possible.
Gavin leaned in close. “What did you say?” he whispered back.
Ford’s eyes grew wide and he nodded over his shoulder mouthing, “Come. With. Me,” very slowly. Hopefully Gavin would get the message.
“Oh,” Gavin said, a little too loudly.
Dad looked over and shushed them. Thankfully, Mom was as captivated by the guide as Gavin had been and didn’t notice a thing. Aunt June had already wandered off, taking pictures of the pews and hymn books. Uncle Jim struggled to keep his eyes open. He was fighting his own personal battle with a serious case of the head bobs to see anything the cousins were up to. Perfect.
Ford inched back. Gavin followed. Dad glanced over and Ford pretended to be fascinated by the tour guide. Dad looked away and Ford let out a sigh of relief. The brothers stepped back as their tour group moved along to examine a bust of some long-dead statesman.
Gavin and Ford raced to the entranceway to the crypt and nearly tripped down the staircase. Ford led them to the furthest corner he could find, which still didn’t give them much of a cover. Spotlights were everywhere, meant to draw attention to the old ruins, but it also meant there were no dark corners to hide from prying eyes.
Ford popped in his earbuds. “This will have to do.” He turned his back on the milling crowds. “Let’s pretend we’re geeking out on history.”
“Good idea,” Gavin said, doing the same. He held the bookmark out to Ford.
“Then you will know the truth and the truth shall set you free,” Ford read Great-Granddad’s writing. “Let’s hope so and quickly.”
The moment Ford grasped the paper, the room around him paled. “The crypt is fading away and now…” Ford paused to see what replaced the crumbling ruins. “…I’m back in the cathedral upstairs, on the other side of the church from where we just were. It’s the spot that called to me when we first entered the cathedral. So far, I’m the only one here.”
It was dark in the church; no sunshine glowed through the stained-glass windows. Sparse candlelight sent spooky shadows across the pews and down the aisles. Hurried footsteps came rushing towards Ford. He spun, but moved too late. Great-Granddad barrelled through him. Bright light filled him, blinding Ford as ripples of heat raced outwards from his chest and across his body in every direction.
“Great-Granddad,” Ford said, choking out his words. “Another soul collision.”
As the light receded, he could see his great-grandfather kneeling by a floor grate directly underneath a stained-glass window of an apostle. He took a small, metal crow bar from inside his trench coat and pried open the grate. Ford ran to his side and knelt next to him.
“Scout, this is your last chance to get out,” he murmured as he stuffed a Swiss passport and a wad of money into a medium-sized manila envelope. A small fox head was sketched in the top right-hand corner.
“He has a package for Scout—money and a passport—and he’s tucking it under the floor, through the grate opening. It’s so dark in here, I can’t see exactly what he’s doing.”
Great-Granddad replaced the grate. He kissed his fingers then pressed them to the brass. “Safe travels, my friend.” He stood, straightened his tie and hat, and then without further pause, hurried down the aisle and out of the church.
