“Funny, I can’t picture that. If you say so.”
“Don’t let me forget to give you more in a few minutes,” Pigeon said.
They arrived at the top of the ramp to find Nate racing toward them. Nate stopped running and waved his arms.
Pigeon rushed over to greet Nate. “Am I glad to see you!” Pigeon gushed.
“Me too,” Nate said. “I was starting to worry I’d missed you. I’ve been searching all over.”
“Where are Summer and John?” Pigeon asked.
“They were captured,” Nate said. “Only I got away. I have a lot to explain. Where were you going to wait for the bad guys?”
“We were planning to set up a stakeout over by the Dumpster,” Diego said, making Nate jump.
“Forgot about the talking dog,” Nate said. “Okay, you two didn’t get caught there last time, so that sounds good.” They started walking across a playing field toward the front of the school.
“Last time?” Pigeon asked.
“I used the Grains of Time that Mr. Stott gave me,” Nate explained. “I’ve been to the past and the future. Remember that bum who bugged us when we were walking home that time? It really was me. My mind traveled back into his body.”
“No way,” Pigeon said.
“What bum?” Diego asked.
“Long story,” Nate said. “I also went to the future where Belinda had succeeded in drinking from the Fountain of Youth. Pigeon, in that future, you and Diego tried to stop her unaided. Diego got killed, and you were changed into an old man.”
“You weren’t here?” Pigeon said.
“The future I saw was the future without me in it. But I’m here this time, and I know what went wrong. Hopefully we can do things differently and make everything turn out better.”
“How’d I get killed?” Diego asked.
“Mauricio showed up with Denny, Eric, and Kyle. They went to the janitor’s office and used a hidden entrance to get into a secret basement. When you guys tried to follow, Wyatt ambushed you with giant black widow spiders. He captured Pigeon and later killed you, Diego.”
“Wyatt?” Pigeon asked.
“Wyatt is the Fuse, Mauricio is the jelly guy,” Nate said.
“What should we do differently?” Pigeon asked.
“First let’s run to the Dumpster,” Nate said, picking up the pace.
Pigeon ran along behind, slowly falling back. As they raced through the school, he noticed that there were still teachers in some of the classrooms. It was strange to think that for most people, this was just another ordinary day. When they reached the parking lot, several cars remained. Nate, Diego, and Pigeon all ducked into the chain-link cage that surrounded the Dumpster.
“Does this feel good?” Nate asked. “Is this where you would have stayed to spy on their arrival?”
“I think so,” Pigeon said.
“Once they arrive, we partly just need to lay low longer,” Nate said. “Instead of following them, we should set up an ambush. Turning the key to open the treasure room door will age Kyle. Entering the room will kill Mauricio. Then Eric will enter the room and end up an invalid. That was when they sent you, Pigeon, into the room to retrieve the goblet with the water from the Fountain of Youth. That was how you turned old. If we stay out of the way, Denny will have to retrieve it, and he’ll end up old also.”
“Then what?” Pigeon asked.
“If Denny fails, we’ll be ahead of the game. The others are too old to retrieve the goblet; entering the room would kill them like it killed Mauricio. If Denny succeeds, we’ll have to jump him and Wyatt and take back the goblet. Denny will be old and frail. We’ll have to shock Wyatt or something. Do you have any Shock Bits left?”
“One dose,” Pigeon said. “Do you have any?”
“I have one also. Remember, with Wyatt, we have to zap him quickly, or he’ll use his magic on us. Once we have the goblet, we can’t just pour out the water. A protective spell keeps the goblet full until somebody actually drinks it. I was hoping Diego might volunteer to down the water. Wouldn’t you like to be a puppy again?”
“I’m only what, six years old?” Diego said. “What if I get so young I cease to exist?”
“That could happen if any of us drink it,” Nate said. “But in dog years you’re like forty-two, making you the oldest by far.”
“What if the water doesn’t take dog years into account?” Diego asked. “Then I’d be the youngest.”
“We have to get rid of this water,” Nate said. “After Mrs. White turns young, everyone who has tasted the white fudge will fall under her control. And she’ll start preparing to distribute white fudge to the world.”
“How come the dog is more disposable than the human?” Diego complained.
“There has to be another way,” Pigeon said.
They stood in awkward silence for a moment.
“I’m kidding, Pidge,” Diego said reluctantly. “I know how much this matters to you. I’d do anything you asked of me, you know that. You want me to lap up the water?”
Pigeon dug more Brain Feed out of his pocket and fed it to Diego. He stroked the dog’s black fur. “Yeah, we need you to do this. Hopefully it will work out for the best.”
“Right,” Diego said, trying to sound brave. “It’ll be fun to be a puppy again.”
A black Hummer with one side of the front bashed in came zooming along Oak Grove Avenue and squealed into the parking lot. Nate crouched out of sight behind the Dumpster as Pigeon peeked out through the fence.
“It’s them,” Pigeon whispered. “Mauricio, Denny, Eric, and Kyle. Where’s the Fuse?”
“He didn’t arrive with them,” Nate replied quietly.
“They’re heading into the school,” Pigeon reported. “Going toward the cafeteria, just like you said.”
“We need to be patient,” Nate said. “They have to get into the janitor’s office, move some filing cabinets to find the hatch, climb down, get to the door, open it, and have a few of them get old.”
“Where do you want to ambush them?” Pigeon asked after a minute.
“Are they out of sight yet?” Nate asked.
“Yes.”
Nate came out from behind the Dumpster and surveyed the area. “We should hide behind the Hummer. That way Wyatt will come close enough for us to shock him. We’ll have to strike quickly.”