A second later, dozens more silent people appeared as if from nowhere and flooded into the room, trapping Lani between the wall and the head of Samheed’s table. She stood bravely facing them, gripping and pulling hard on Sam’s hair, hoping the pain would wake him. But it didn’t. Go, Meghan! she pleaded silently. Come on, Alex!

The man she’d fought now weaved his way through the crowd, most of whom were using a strange sort of sign language to communicate. Some stood on tiptoes trying to see what was happening. All of them wore scarves around their necks with symbols printed on them. Lani shrank back as the man with the rope approached. He signaled to another man, who roughly grabbed Lani by the shoulders and turned her around to face the wall, her cheek pressed up against the clammy coolness of it. The man took her wrists, pinning them at her sides. “Samheed!” she yelled once more, kicking backward and startling everyone, but not enough to allow her to escape.

The man with the rope pulled it around Lani’s neck and held it tight. Lani struggled, but it was no use. First she saw spots dance before her eyes as she struggled to breathe, and then a wall of blackness. She could hang on to consciousness no longer. She slumped forward against the wall.

» » « «

When Lani woke again, the screams she heard this time were her own. Her body was now tied to the same table she’d been on before. A different woman with strange, golden-orange eyes held Lani’s head still while another painstakingly threaded metal thorns through the skin of her neck.

The Search

Simber soared toward the sun, which was just beginning its descent for the day. Alex shivered and wished he’d brought a jacket’it was much cooler flying this high over the middle of the ocean. And really, he had other things to do. He wished his friends hadn’t chosen today of all days to mess around with Ms. Morning’s boat. He wished . . .

Alex pulled himself up closer to the stone cheetah’s neck, trying to hide his face from the wind that whipped his hair all around and stung his eyes. He had no idea how fast Simber was going, but it was much swifter than Alex had ever moved before, that was certain.

“Arrre you holding on all rrright?” Simber asked.

“Yes,” Alex said. His arms ached.

Just then a glowing dot of light appeared in the distance, growing bigger by the second. At first Alex thought his eyes had gone buggy from staring at the sun, but as seconds turned into minutes, it didn’t waver. Soon it reached Alex and Simber, and reversed its course to remain in a position just within Alex’s grasp.

Alex, not knowing what else to do, held out his hand and grabbed the sphere from the air. It exploded, and a lighted image of a drawing of Lani’his drawing’appeared, then broke into tiny pieces of light and fell away. Instantly he remembered the spell Lani had created for Mr. Appleblossom.

“We’re going the right way!” Alex cried out to Simber. “Lani sent a seek spell. So at least they’re all right,” he said, hope in his voice.

“Well,” growled Simber, “at least she is, orrr was, wheneverrr she sent it.”

The short blast of relief disappeared and fear returned to Alex’s belly. He didn’t know how long it took for a seeking ball of light to travel. And who knew how far away his friends were? He leaned forward again, searching all the harder.

Within an hour they were closing in on the nearest island. Alex strained his eyes toward the water below, looking for the boat, but was fooled over and over again from this height by foaming whitecaps’the sea below was getting choppy. But he didn’t need to worry. Simber’s keen eyes soon spotted the boat without a problem.

The giant stone cheetah dove down to get a closer look, making Alex’s stomach catch in his throat. They hovered over the boat for a moment. It was empty.

“Thrrree component vests on the seats, and no sign of theirrr ownerrrs,” Simber growled, highly displeased.

Alex’s eyes widened and his gaze darted from the boat to the shore to the lush green center and tall rocky points of the island. “Where are they?”

Simber flapped his powerful wings and headed for the island. “That’s what we’rrre going to find out.” His voice was gruffer than usual, and it made Alex feel like he should be worried.

They soared over the island, Simber flying swiftly and carefully over the beach and the landscape. Alex shielded his eyes and peered around Simber’s neck. He wasn’t cold now. He didn’t think about his discomfort or the annoying sun in his eyes. Simber was worried; therefore Alex was worried. Simber didn’t worry about things unless they were big.

“Do you see anything?” Alex ventured after they’d combed a quarter of the island.

“Some footprrrints on the beach,” Simber said. “I thought I saw a glint of metal orrr something else shiny a moment ago, but it was shorrrt-lived and I can’t find it now.” He went over the property again, but saw nothing.

Alex bit his lip and shifted on Simber’s back, leaning far off to one side now, determined to find something. “Is it safe to land?” he asked.

“I’d rrratherrr not,” Simber said gruffly. “Therrre’s something strrrange about this place. Therrre’s no noise at all. I don’t trrrust it.”

Alex swallowed hard. He tried not to let his panic overtake his senses. “Lani,” he whispered. “Come on, you guys. The joke’s over. Where are you?” But deep down, he had a feeling this wasn’t a joke at all.