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stuff up on Thomas Jefferson. I have to write a report on him.”
    Seth grimaced. “Meh. I think I’ll just read up on programming instead.”
    Briar watched him walk toward the shelves on the other side of the library, then made to follow. I reached over and grabbed him by the vest.
    “You OK?” I asked.
    “Fine,” he said, adjusting his vest. “Never better. Why?”
    I raised an eyebrow. “You were visible outside? Seth just happened to be able to see you?”
    Briar’s ears lowered. “A slip-up and nothing more.”
    I raised my hands in surrender. “Fine. Any new research?”
    “I’ve been looking up some fairy tales to try and pinpoint whom you’re up against,” he whispered. “I do believe I found a potential Corrupted that fits perfectly into your dream about the concert of rocks.”
    “ Rock concert, Briar. It was a rock concert .” I glanced over his shoulder at the staircase. Still empty. Fran was really taking her time, thankfully. “Who?” I asked.
    “There is a fiddler in the story The Miser in the Bush who had a fiddle that caused everyone to dance when he played it.”
    “That’s perfect!” I whispered. “That has to be him. Now we just need to find him.”
    The rabbit clicked his tongue. “I think …”
    I shook my head vigorously as Fran made her way down the stairs. Briar promptly disappeared.
    “Alice,” Fran said in a quiet voice, “if you’d like to leave early today … you may do so.”
    “Really? Yeah! Yeah I would. Thanks, Fran!” I hurried and got Seth, nearly knocking over Invisible Briar in the process.
    Outside, it was cloudy and hot, and the air felt thick and heavy. It was the kind of weather that makes your clothes stick to your skin if you stay outside for too long. There was almost certainly a storm coming.
    “Crap, I hate this weather,” Seth muttered, sticking out his tongue. He tugged on his black t-shirt a few times. “Freakin’ Wisconsin.”
    I nodded. “The evening run tonight is going to be sticky and gross.”
    “I find it rather enjoyable,” said Briar, glancing up at the sky. “This heat reminds me of Georgia, which is always close to my heart.”
    Seth rolled his eyes. “You animals need a ride home or what?”
    “No, they don’t.”
    The sound of that voice sent a flood of adrenaline through my body. I turned toward the street where a black limo sat waiting at the curb, shiny as if it had just been washed and waxed. My hand reached for the fountain pen in my pocket.
    Sam Grayle stood beside the limo.

Chapter 3
     
    Then the miser said, “Bind me fast, bind me fast, for pity's sake.” But the countryman seized his fiddle, and struck up a tune, and at the first note judge, clerks, and jailer were in motion; all began capering, and no one could hold the miser. At the second note the hangman let his prisoner go, and danced also, and by the time he had played the first bar of the tune, all were dancing together—judge, court, and miser, and all the people who had followed to look on. [i]
     
     
     
    “I do hope you’ll relax,” Sam said once Briar and I were both seated across from him inside the spacious limo. I had one hand in the pocket of my jeans, the tips of my fingers clutching the fountain pen.
    “Please enjoy a canned beverage,” he added in his most cordial voice, waving a hand toward the small fridge that sat below the TV. On the TV, financial numbers from the stock market were rolling quickly across the screen. The numbers were green if the stock’s value was up, and red if the stock’s value was down. There were a lot of greens.
    “We don’t need your hospitality,” I said.
    There was the unmistakable sound of a soda can being opened. I turned and saw Briar bring a can of cola to his mouth.
    He shrugged. “I was thirsty. But I’ll have you know I shan’t thank him for it!”
    Sam smiled. It seemed forced, unnatural on his hardened face. He was wearing a gray suit coat—like always—and a dark red tie.
    “So what