"Bingo," Phineas breathed. "This has got to be it."
Chief sat on his haunches, panting, with his tongue hanging out.
"As soon as Phil catches up, there'll be five of us," Robby said. "We could attack right away."
It was tempting, so tempting to rush in and rescue Lara. But was it wise? "We can't be sure how many vampires are in there," Jack said. "We know Apollo has at least one accomplice. There could be more."
He walked slowly around the compound, keeping to the woods. The others followed. He wished he could send a psychic message to Lara that he had arrived, but he didn't dare. Vampire telepathy was like broadcasting on a radio. Every vampire in the vicinity would hear it.
Phil arrived. He set Chief's clothes behind a tree, and the wolf shifted back to human form.
Phil eyed the compound. "This looks like the right place. It's got to be, since one of the missing girls was found close by."
"Yes, but I want more information before we attack." Jack spotted two guards. "Mortals. Armed with swords."
"I bet they're heavily under vampire control," Robby said. "They may be programmed to kill the women and themselves if the compound is breached."
"Shit," Phineas muttered. "That's cold."
"You could be right." Chief rounded the tree, buttoning his shirt. "I doubt this guy will want to leave any witnesses. Come, I want to show you something."
Chief led them through the woods till they came upon a dirt road and a gate. "This leads to another town, a mortal one, about thirty miles from here. I think the town is delivering food supplies here."
"Really?" Jack turned to Phil. "How would you like a new job?" With vampire control, it would be easy enough to convince a store manager that Phil was their new delivery man.
Phil nodded. "Sounds good. But I would be here during the day when the vampires are in their death-sleep. I may not be able to find out much."
"I'll come here at night to find out more," Jack said.
"Ye're thinking of going under cover?" Robby frowned at him. "I doona like it, Jack. Ye've killed enough Malcontents that they know yer name. And Apollo saw you for just a second before he teleported away."
"That's all right." Jack smiled. "I can change my name and my looks. I know a really good hairdresser in Massachusetts."
The next day, when Lara was helping Cook clean up after lunch, she thought she heard the sound of an automobile engine. She grinned with relief.
Cook frowned in confusion. "This isn't delivery day. But I guess I'd better unlock the back door." She wandered into the back storeroom with a key.
Lara looked around frantically. She ripped a paper towel off the roll and grabbed a bottle of ketchup. She squeezed a small drop onto the tip of her finger, then wrote Help! Bring police on the paper towel.
She flapped the towel in the air, so it would dry quickly. Then she folded it and slipped it inside the bodice of her white gown.
She found Cook standing by the open back door. In the distance, she spotted a delivery van parked on the other side of the gate. The driver, a young man dressed in jeans and a flannel shirt, was opening the gate.
She ran toward him.
"Stop!" Cook yelled. "We're not supposed to be seen."
The driver moved toward her, watching her carefully with his light blue eyes. "Can I help you, miss?"
"Yes!" Lara slowed down and reached inside her bodice. "We need-"
"Maiden!" a guard's voice bellowed behind her.
She stopped short, six feet from the delivery man. Damn! She couldn't pass him the note without being seen.
"Maiden, return to the kitchen immediately!" the guard shouted.
She glanced back. It was the head guard with the squeaky sandal. He was followed by two more guards. She shot one last pleading look at the delivery man. "We're prisoners," she mouthed, hoping he would understand.
His blue eyes narrowed, and he nodded ever so slightly.
Lara ran back to the kitchen.
"Oh no," Cook muttered. "You're in big trouble now."
Squeaky Sandal marched up to the delivery man. "What's going on here? You're not the usual driver. And we're not expecting a delivery for two more days."
The delivery guy shrugged, apparently unfazed by the head guard's beefy muscles and belligerent attitude. Lara smiled to herself. The guard would be a lot more ominous if he didn't squeak with every other step.
"Look, buddy." The delivery man crossed his arms over his broad chest. "The regular guy quit, and I'm going on vacation tomorrow. So there won't be any more deliveries for two weeks. Take it or leave it."
Squeaky glared at the delivery man. "All right. Pull the van up closer to the kitchen."
The delivery guy jumped back into the van and drove closer to the kitchen. To Lara's dismay, there was no writing on the van. She had hoped to catch the name of a local town.
"Stop!" Squeaky yelled, and the van halted.
The two other guards opened the back of the van and began unloading. The driver grabbed a box and strode toward the kitchen.
"Stop." Squeaky held up a hand. "You cannot enter." He took the box and brought it into the storeroom.
Damn. Lara had hoped the driver would come in so she could pass him her note. She peeked out the door. The delivery guy nodded at her.
"You should not be seen." Squeaky pushed her aside as he exited. He glared at the driver. "Wait inside the van."
"Sure," the driver muttered. "Nice toga. Bet it gets a little chilly in the winter." He strode back to the van.
Lara hovered just inside the door. It looked like she wasn't going to be able to pass her note. Still, she had a feeling that the delivery man understood. Or was that just wishful thinking?
The last of the supplies were brought in, and the guards slammed the van doors shut.
The driver sauntered toward the kitchen with a box in his hand. He spotted Lara peeking from behind the door. With a grin, he shook the box. "How about a snack?"
"Give me that." Squeaky grabbed the box. "And you can leave now."
The driver cast one last look at Lara, then climbed into the van and drove through the gate.
Lara's heart sank. What if he hadn't understood? There wouldn't be another delivery for two weeks.
Meanwhile, the guards inspected the box from the driver.
"There might be a special decoder ring inside," one guard said.
"Yeah, that guy seemed a little suspicious to me," the second guard said.
Squeaky ripped the box apart, and caramel corn scattered all over the dirt road. "There's nothing here." He tossed the box on the ground, then glared at Lara. "Clean this up, maiden."
"Yes, master." Lara grabbed a garbage sack, then rushed outside. She scooped handfuls of sticky popcorn into the bag while the guards strolled away.
When it looked like they'd lost interest in her, she picked up the pieces of the torn box.
Her breath caught. Cracker Jack. A sound, halfway between a laugh and a sob escaped her mouth.
Jack had found her.
Chapter Twenty-four
Soon after the sun set, Vanessa ran into the kitchen. "Another god has come to visit. There'll be another Selecting Ceremony!"
Cook gasped and pressed a soapy hand to her chest. "This could be my night." She glanced down at her damp gown. "I need to change." She dashed from the kitchen.
Lara finished loading the dishwasher. Just what the world needed-another god. Miss Forbidden had returned to the dormitory this morning wearing a red scarf around her neck like a badge of honor. She claimed she couldn't remember anything, but the bruises on her arms spoke volumes. That Zeus had been an almighty abusive pig.
"What are you doing?" Vanessa asked. "You need to get ready."
"I'm coming." Lara trudged from the kitchen. "So which god is here tonight?"
"I don't know. The guards didn't say."
"Well, let me think." Lara glanced up at the clear, starry sky. Jack, this would be a good time to rescue me. "It might be Ares, the god of war."
"Oooh." Vanessa shivered. "He sounds hunky."
Lara snorted. "Or it could be Hermes or Poseidon."
"You're so smart to know their names," Vanessa said. "I wish I'd paid more attention in school. For some weird reason, I thought all that Greek god stuff was made up."
"Yeah. How could we be so wrong?"
"I know." Vanessa brushed her hair back over her shoulder. "It's just so cool that it's real I mean, people back on Earth don't know about it, but we get to know the secret. It makes me feel really special."
"You are special," Lara told her. "You don't need gods to tell you that."
"But it feels so good." Vanessa gasped. "Here we are talking, and you're not ready. Hurry!" She grabbed Lara's arm and dragged her through the dormitory to the bathroom.
While all the maidens were primping in front of the mirrors, Lara took a hot shower. Then she put on a fresh gown and towel-dried her hair.
"The first gong has sounded!" a maiden called from the dormitory, and the maidens rushed from the bathroom.
Miss Forbidden looked back at Lara and grimaced. "What are you doing? Your hair is still damp. You can't go before the gods looking like that."