AN: Sorry it's not a very long chapter and that I didn't get it up sooner. I've had a pretty busy day today so this was the first chance to write, spellcheck, and post this chapter that I got today. I hope you like it.
The professor was more than a little surprised when the door swung open and Edmund and Lucy walked in half-dragging a terrified-face man of about forty. The professor had seen him around the city every now and then but didn't personally know him.
"He's hurt." Lucy explained, motioning to Edmund who gently lifted up one of the man's hands to show Digory.
"I see." The Professor's tone was almost always calm so it was hard to tell if he was anxious to speak to the man or not. He helped Edmund and Lucy get him to the couch and then shouted, "Polly!"
Polly entered the room carrying a basket of old clothing she was mending. When she saw the man, she placed the basket down on the floor and rushed over the hutch where she kept the bandages.
Peter, Susan, Lina, and Doon burst through the door just as Lucy lifted up the man's left hand and Polly started to wrap it in a long white gauze.
"Who's that?" Peter blurted out when he noticed the stranger.
"No one of importance." The man sighed, forcing a smile. "Just an injured man seeking help."
"We found him at the edge of the city." Edmund told Peter.
"He was searching the darkness?" Doon asked.
Lucy nodded and picked up the other hand for Polly to take care of. When it was done, they asked the man if he would be able to get home alright on his own; he assured them he would be just fine and thanked them for all of their help.
Once he was gone, Peter told everyone what he, Doon, and Lina had seen. Then Peter explained that he was going to have to search the office to find the key.
"Peter, be careful." Polly warned him. "The Mayor may be corrupt but he's also a very powerful man. In fact, I can't think of another man in all of Ember who has as much control of our lives."
"It's true, Peter." Professor Kirke sighed. "Sad, but true."
"He wont know anything until it's too late." Peter told them. "I'm going to search his office, find that key, and then...well, I haven't thought that far ahead, but I'm going to stop him somehow."
"This isn't Narnia, Peter." Edmund reminded him.
"I know." Peter spoke almost harshly but he wasn't really angry, just anxious.
"What's Narnia?" Doon asked, his thick brow crinkling in confusion.
"Oh that's Lucy's make-belief place." Lina blurted out. "She tells Poppy little stories about it."
Lucy wanted very badly to tell her the truth that it wasn't make-believe, that it was a real place they had ruled over, but felt she really couldn't. Lina wouldn't be able to understand it outside of the context of a fairy story. Neither would Doon. They couldn't understand blue skies and tall trees anymore than a person born blind can understand what colours are. Poppy could hear and not understand, it didn't matter because she was only two years old, but for older persons, it mattered. Kings and Queens were just nonsense words to people who had never left Ember in their lives and knew nothing of any rulers other than whomever the current Mayor was. Maybe someday they would find another blue sky somewhere beyond the city of Ember and maybe then they could tell them and make them understand; but not today.
Doon simply nodded. There didn't seem anything else to be said. Peter was determined to get the key and that was that. Honestly, Doon wasn't sure he wanted to talk him out of it anyway. He wanted to see the Mayor's thievery revealed to everyone. Maybe there would be a big announcement and everyone would know who'd discovered the truth and would always remember their names. They'd be heroes and Mayor Cole would be done for.
"Speaking of Poppy, I'd better get home." Lina said, remembering that her little sister would be wondering where she was. She had actually learned to say, "Where Lina?" whenever she missed her and was known to keep saying it over and over, unless Lina herself came and calmed her down.
"I've got to get home too." Doon started for the door. "My dad will wonder where I am."
After everyone had said their goodbyes for the evening, they left and headed down the lamp-lit streets towards their homes.
That night, shortly before lights out, Peter went into the room where Susan and Lucy slept to say goodnight. Lucy was still in the living room with Polly, Professor Kirke, and Edmund so Susan was the only one in there.
"So, I just wanted to say something...you know, about what happened with us this afternoon..." Peter stammered nervously.
Susan looked up and smiled at him. "You seemed pretty happy about it."
Peter turned a little red and looked away from her for a moment. "Yeah, it was really...something." He turned and looked back at her now. He opened his mouth to say something else but seemed to change his mind at the last minute. "Well, goodnight."
"Goodnight, Peter." Susan said as he quickly rushed out of the room and closed it behind him.
The door opened again and Peter stuck his head back in the room. "Just to be clear...what happened this afternoon...that means you like me right?"
"Well..." Susan teased.
His face dropped and he looked rather disappointed.
"Of course I like you," Susan rolled her eyes. "I don't just go around kissing people!"
"Right, right, of course." Peter left the room again.
A few seconds later he walked back in.
"What?" Susan asked.
"Like in what sense?" Peter double checked.
Susan shook her head trying not to laugh as she crawled into bed and pretended to be asleep. "Goodnight, Peter."
"Night, Susan." He said, closing the door very softly this time. He smiled to himself. Sure Ember was still in danger and the Mayor was still a jerk but life seemed pretty good right now in spite of all that.
The next day at Mayor Cole's office, Peter eagerly waited until the mayor left the room. Thankfully he didn't have long to wait before Mayor Cole decided that he must have a cup of tea in another part of the building. As soon as he was gone, Peter started rummaging through several draws and sticking his hands in any possible fake-cracks. He noticed the Mayor had also left his jacket on one of the chairs and pulled out the pockets to see if the maybe the key was hidden in there. No such luck. He hoped the Mayor didn't keep it on his person all the time. If that was the case, it would be nearly impossible to get. He tried to think positively as he opened the credenza on one side of the room; it could very well be in there.
"Looking for something?" Mayor Cole walked into the room just as Peter was feeling around the back wood of the credenza.
"No..." Peter quickly dropped to his knees. "I dropped a...thing..." He cursed himself for not thinking up a better excuse.
Mayor Cole shook his head. "Peter, Peter, Peter." He walked in and closed the door behind himself. "I know what you're looking for."
"No you don't." Peter said quickly.
"The key to the room down in the pipes works, right?" He raised an eyebrow at him.
Peter gulped and took a step back. How did he know? What was he going to do to him now that he had found out?
"I suppose you think you're going to make a big scene and tell everyone about it?" The Mayor said in an almost conversational tone.
Peter didn't answer him.
The mayor hadn't expected him to answer anyway and went on, "Well forget about it. We have ways of keeping you quiet."
"We?" Peter blurted out before he remembered. "Oh, you and Looper."
"That's right." The Mayor nodded. "You care about that little family of yours, don't you?"
"What does that have to do with-" Peter started.
"Your little brother and two stepsisters?" Mayor Cole's eyebrows rose so high that Peter thought they were going to fly off of his head. "You wouldn't want anything to happen to them, would you?"
"What are you saying?" Peter asked almost breathlessly feeling very frightened all of a sudden. "I tell anyone and you'll do something to my family?"
Mayor Cole clapped. "Aren't you a smart boy!"
"You're bluffing." Peter said boldly.
"No I'm not." Mayor Cole assured him. "Look, I don't want to have to hurt them. You just keep that mouth of yours shut tight and I wont lay a finger on them, I promise."
"And anyway, if you were to say anything and risk it..." The Mayor calmly lowered himself into his seat. "I would have to tell them that you were the one stealing all of the food and then lock you up." He shrugged his shoulders. "The choice is yours."
"This is blackmail." Peter growled.
"Deal with it." He stared at him blankly. "Oh and by the way, you don't work here anymore. You've been re-assigned as sidewalk sweeper. Goodbye." He picked up a pen and started writing something on a piece of paper.
Defeated for now, Peter stormed out of the office, slamming the door behind him. He couldn't let the Mayor hurt his family and he didn't want to risk the wrath of the people of Ember if the sneaky little jerk turned them on him. But he was still determined to do something. He couldn't just watch everyone he cared about wait for their deaths; there had to be something he could do, anything.
Meanwhile, Susan wasn't at her messenger job. She had taken the day off and for some reason, found herself looking through the contents of the wardrobe they'd traveled into Narnia through. Nothing but moth balls and a few coats as usual, but then pushing her hand deep into the side where she had never looked before, she found a pretty metal box which caught the light when she brushed away the end of one of the coats. Ever so carefully, Susan lifted the box out and examined it. There seemed to be an automatic latch of some sort and it was open. Inside was a slightly yellowed scrap of paper with words printed on it.
AN: So? what did you think of the chapter? good? not so good? Let me know! Please review!
