Trying to pretend it wasn’t a childish thing to do, Charlotte huffed at her brother’s back and spun on her heel. She took off in the opposite direction, unwilling to watch as Jack and Ash muscled Grave into a cage while Birch took notes. Still hoping for a sympathetic ear, Charlotte went in search of Pip and Scoff.
Pip wasn’t in Birch’s workshop where she’d been standing, white-faced, after the incident with Grave and the mouse, so Charlotte headed for Scoff’s laboratory. As soon as he was old enough to leave the children’s quarters, Scoff had announced his plans to build a live-in laboratory. Given the volatility of Scoff’s experiments, it had been concluded that the best—nay, only—place for the laboratory was adjacent to the river, where there was an endless supply of water to extinguish inevitable flames. Charlotte thought Ash really should have insisted that Birch move his workshop down to the river’s edge as well.
“Are you sure this will work?” Charlotte heard Pip query.
Scoff was tugging at his wild lilac hair as Charlotte entered the laboratory. “It should work—”
He stopped talking when he caught sight of Charlotte. If she hadn’t known how dangerous Scoff’s lair could be, Charlotte would have considered it the most beautiful part of the Catacombs. The spacious cavern was bursting with shelves and tables, which in turn were crammed with beakers, bottles, vases, bowls, tubes, and measuring tools. The menagerie of objects was mostly glass, with a few metal and wooden pieces scattered throughout. Few of the containers were empty, and Charlotte could identify only a handful of their contents. The variety of powders, liquids, dried herbs, and preserved oddities filled the laboratory with a kaleidoscope of colors.
Jumping off the stool on which she’d been perched, Pip greeted Charlotte with a warm smile. “Hi, there!”
“Charlotte,” Scoff said more warily, “can I help you?”
“I’m just seeking asylum from my brother’s boorishness,” Charlotte told them.
Pip bobbed her head and giggled. “Ash can be a bit bossy, huh?”
“He is the boss,” Scoff chided. “I don’t think 'bossy' can be used as an insult when you’re supposed to be in charge.”
Charlotte let that slide, wanting to get her mind off Ash and knowing that Scoff would never miss an opportunity to expound on his latest discoveries. “What’s new in the laboratory?”
“Scoff’s a genius!” Pip replied, and Scoff went red behind the ears.
“A genius, eh?” Charlotte said.
Nodding a little too enthusiastically, Pip said to Scoff, “Go on, tell her.”
With a flourish, Scoff produced a stoppered bottle full of a dark, viscous substance. “It’s a formula I’ve been working on for an event just such as this.”
“Such as what?” Charlotte raised an eyebrow. She couldn’t think of any precedent that would make Scoff anticipate Grave’s arrival.
Scoff lowered his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “The capture of an enemy.”
“Grave is not an enemy!” Charlotte hadn’t meant to shout, but she had, and Scoff went pale.
Pip wedged herself between Charlotte and Scoff.
With her hands on her hips, Charlotte said, “Tell me what’s in that bottle.”
“I call it the Elixir of Intentions.” Scoff held up the mixture as if to admire its color, but Charlotte found nothing appealing to look at. The slimy concoction reminded her of congealing blood.
When Charlotte failed to appear impressed, Scoff added, “When Grave drinks this, he’ll be compelled to tell us the truth of his identity.”
“Have you tested it?” Charlotte asked.
Scoff let out an exasperated breath. “I haven’t had anyone to test it on!”
“Are you sure it won’t hurt him?” Charlotte looked meaningfully at Pip’s green locks.
Pip grinned and tugged at her pigtails. “This didn’t hurt at all . . . I suppose it itched for a day or two.”
Charlotte ignored Pip, who’d wrinkled her nose and was now scratching at her scalp, instead saying to Scoff, “And how can he be compelled to tell the truth when he remembers nothing?”
“He could be lying.” Scoff sounded hurt, but Charlotte was too frustrated to care.
“Has everyone gone mad?” Charlotte stomped her foot. “He’s just a boy. He’s like us. Grave needs our help, not cages and poisons.”
Scoff cradled the glass bottle against his chest. “It’s not poison.”
“I’m sure it wouldn’t kill him,” Pip said to Scoff. Her smile was reassuring at first but then faded. “Would it?”
Charlotte turned away from them just in time to hear the clang of a bell echo through the Catacombs. “Ugh.”
“Ooh! Dinner!” Pip exclaimed as Charlotte exited the laboratory.
Charlotte cursed under her breath and grabbed her skirts so she could move more quickly. Hurrying up the stairs and dashing to the mess hall, Charlotte tore off part of a round loaf of brown bread and grabbed some cloth-wrapped hard cheese from the larder before retreating to her room. She was too miffed to eat in a room crowded with jostling children and the constant buzz of conversation, and she wanted to be sure Ash knew. And Jack too, for that matter. As she ducked out of the mess hall, Charlotte wondered if she shouldn’t force herself to share a table with her brother just to be sure that Scoff didn’t persuade Ash to try out that elixir on Grave. She quickly pushed the thought away, telling herself that even if Ash gave in to Scoff’s assurances, Meg would never allow Scoff to experiment on Grave. At least there was one person in the Catacombs Charlotte could trust to act with some sense.
As she sat on the edge of her bed, Charlotte barely tasted the hunks of bread and cheese as she chewed and swallowed. She was already contemplating her next move. Ash might view Grave as a threat, but Charlotte could still show the boy some kindness. She’d visit him while the others were at dinner, reassure him that all would be well soon enough. Satisfied with her new plan, Charlotte returned to the winding corridors. She was careful to choose a route that would not take her past the mess hall.
Her mood buoyed by this new course of action, Charlotte stepped lightly through the passageway. Nearly smug with satisfaction, Charlotte pulled up with a start when she suddenly heard voices just around the bend in the hall before her. She quickly backtracked until she reached a side passage. Ducking around the corner, Charlotte pressed herself up against the wall and listened.