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“What’s happening?” Skyla asked loudly.

Alex turned to shush her, but the damage was already done.

“Who said that?” the man demanded, looking around the room. “You there, Dillon, what’s that you’re holding?”

The man reached out to snatch the Device from Declan’s hand and Alex abruptly ended the call, not wanting to give him time to activate the visual setting on his end and see them.

“Skyla, I need you to wait here,” Alex said urgently. “You need to be very quiet, understand?”

“Where are you going?”

“I have to go and find out what’s happening,” Alex told her. “I won’t be long—I promise I’ll be back soon. But you have to stay here, okay?”

“I will,” Skyla agreed. “I won’t move until you get back.”

Alex swapped her heels for her hiking shoes, lifted her gown, and took off down the hill at a sprint, only slowing once she entered the manicured gardens. Very carefully, she snuck around the various hedges until she was adjacent with the side of the building. Just as she was about to step out of her hiding place and enter the front doors, two burly security guards walked outside and took up positions by the entrance. Alex had to jump behind a peacock statue to avoid being seen.

What now?she wondered, thinking fast.

She dashed from statue to statue, hiding behind large caricature topiaries until she was at the back of the mansion. Moving quickly, she hurried over the lawn and pressed herself against the building, sliding along it until she found a balcony with light streaming through a double-door opening. She couldhear the sounds of the party inside; the only problem was that it was two floors above her.

“Good thing I changed my shoes,” Alex muttered, as she reached out to grab the vines that decorated the side of the mansion. Her gown made the climb difficult, but after tucking the hem into her underwear—and hoping no one was around to watch the show—she pulled herself up the side of the mansion and over the balustrade onto the balcony. She made sure she was concealed in the shadows before she peered through the doorway.

“Honoured guests,” called an impeccably dressed older man from the far side of the grand ballroom. He stood at the top of an elegant staircase that led down from the floor above. “Forgive the interruption, but it seems we have some party crashers amongst us. Your safety is my highest priority, so please assist my security personnel as they scan your ID tags to check for forgeries. Feel free to continue the festivities whilst we ensure all the intruders are accounted for.”

Alex watched as the security teams spread out across the room and ran small, glowing devices across the top of everyone’s ID tags. Pip was the first of her classmates to be escorted from the room, followed by Jordan, then Kaiden. Tom almost remained unnoticed, but one of the security guards called out for another to scan the musicians.

“Well, this sucks,” Alex whispered, as the man on the stairs—Sir Oswald Graham, she presumed—apologised for the inconvenience and told his guests to relax and enjoy the party once more.

Having no idea what to do, Alex scrambled back down to the ground and ran up the hill to Skyla.

“What’s going on?” Skyla asked.

Alex told her everything she’d seen, while racking her mind for a solution.

“We need to assume they’re all together,” Alex said. “Hopefully they’ll be locked up in the same area as the performer we’re supposed to retrieve.”

“Why do we want them locked up?” Skyla asked, confused.

“Because if they’re in the same place, it’ll be easier for us to get them all out at once,” Alex said.

Skyla’s voice was surprised when she said, “We’re going to rescue them?”

“What else can we do?” Alex said. “Leave them there? No way.”

Skyla’s silence was enough to show that she agreed, and Alex began to pace while she thought about what to do. Finally she stopped and turned to the other girl.

“I have an idea. But I’m going to need your help.” Alex outlined her vague plan, giving as many details as she could before she asked, “Do you think you can do that?”

“You can count on me,” Skyla promised.

Alex hoped they weren’t going to end up imprisoned with the rest of their classmates. “Okay, then,” she said. “Can you grab me Pip’s pillow?”

While Skyla was rustling around in the dark for Pipsqueak’s pack, Alex dug through the bag closest to her and retrieved the relaxant spray from the medical kit since her own was lost somewhere in the Durungan Ranges. Skyla handed her the pillow and Alex sprayed a liberal amount of the medication onto the fluffy material, being careful not to inhale any of it. She then stuffed the fuming object into her own backpack along with her heels and Skyla’s makeup case, securing her bag on her back.

“Ready?” she asked, and at Skyla’s nod, the two descended the hill and stealthily made their way to the place where Alex had climbed up to the balcony.

“We’re aiming for that room up there,” Alex said, pointing to an open window about four floors above them. “Do you see that ledge? That’s where we want to go.”