Having reached her limits, Electra finally declared, “If you’re going to be following me around all night like a stray hoping to be adopted, the least you can do is help me instead of standing there smirking.”
I chuckled. “We’re in a hedge maze.”
“I know that, professor. I’m looking for the way out.”
“Well, there are two options. Number one, I could phase you, and then you could simply walk straight through the hedges until you’re out.”
I was silent for a moment, prompting her to ask, “What’s option two?”
“We work together to actually find our way out of the maze.”
*****
It took about ten minutes of concerted effort to find our way out of the maze. In truth, it was actually a lot of fun working together to solve what was effectively a giant puzzle, and a few times we bumped into other people who were also trying to locate the exit. By the time we made our way out, Electra was speaking to me again in something akin to her usual tone. Making a bold gamble, I reached out to take her hand, and this time she let me (and also rewarded me with a smile).
“We should probably head back,” I said, and immediately regretted it as I sensed tension and ire rising in Electra.
“Or not,” I quickly added.
Electra looked as though she wanted to make a comment, but before she could someone softly cleared their throat nearby. We both turned in the direction of the sound. Facing us, camera in hand and dressed in a tux, was the photographer we’d met the night before.
“Matt Kroner,” I said flatly, trying to hide my surprise. “If you’re trying to avoid being confused with paparazzi, crashing private parties is not how it’s done.”
He chuckled a little nervously. “Believe it or not, I actually have an invite.”
“Oh?” said Electra, sounding somewhat skeptical.
Kroner nodded. “Yes, Indigo asked me to come. They never lined up an official photographer, and she decided at the last minute that she’d really like some keepsakes.”
I kept my face passive, but internally I felt that what Kroner had said was reasonable. It actually sounded like something my grandmother would do. More to the point, from what I could sense of his emotions, Kroner was being truthful.
“So why are you out here wandering around instead of being inside where the party is?” Electra asked.
“There are folks partying outside, too,” Kroner countered, glancing around at others who were also taking the air. “Plus, I’ve been snapping pictures of people inside all night. But the real reason I’m out here is you.”
Electra’s eyebrows rose in surprise. “Me?”
“The two of you, actually,” Kroner answered. “Indigo told me to make sure that I got a picture of you and the quick-change artist” – he nodded at me – “so I tracked you down.”
Quick-change artist? I frowned for a moment, trying to make sense of his comment, but decided not to dwell on it as Kroner gave a quick rundown of how he’d found us. Essentially, my grandmother had told him to look for the famous teen model Vestibule, who in turn had pointed him in the direction where Electra and I had last been seen. (The rest was elementary, although he’d had to wait a few minutes for us to come out of the hedge maze.)
After he finished speaking, Kroner had us quickly strike a few poses – standing side-by-side, face-to-face, back-to-back, etc. – and then hurriedly bid us adieu.
“Well, that was fast,” Electra whispered as we watched Kroner walking away. “I guess there’s some bigwig inside whose picture will sell for more money than ours.”
“It’s more likely that he’s just trying to give us some privacy,” I said. “Remember how he announced himself by clearing his throat? He obviously realized he caught us at an awkward time.”
She nodded. “Good point.”
“Anyway,” I said, changing the subject, “where were we before Kroner captured us on camera?”
“You were about to apologize.”
“I was?” I droned, raising an eyebrow. “For what, exactly?”
“For what?” she repeated. “For being an a–”
She stopped in mid-sentence as a young couple appeared nearby. Holding hands and looking starry-eyed, they hurried past us towards the entrance to the hedge maze.
Electra was silent for a moment as the couple went around a hedgerow and vanished from our line of sight.
“Look, is there some place where we can talk in private?” she asked.
“Of course,” I assured her, and then teleported us.
Chapter 26
We popped up on a high veranda facing the rear of the mansion and enclosed by a decorative stone railing. It not only let us look down on the poolside terrace where our friends were, but also provided an epic view of the grounds and surrounding area. All in all, it was a stunning panorama that was difficult to absorb with a single glance.
“Wow,” Electra muttered, taking in the view. “Where are we?
“One of the upper balconies,” I replied. “But this wing is one of the few parts of the mansion closed off tonight, so we won’t be disturbed.”
“Balconies, wings, mansions,” she said teasingly. “Someone’s growing accustomed to haute living.”
“On the contrary, my lifestyle’s finally catching up to my taste,” I quipped.
She giggled merrily at that, the sound of her laughter making my heart race. Then, still smiling, she stepped close and kissed me, catching me a little unprepared but I quickly recovered.
She pulled back a few moments later, a coy grin on her face as she tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear. Then she took me by the hand and led me to a couch that was part of an outdoor furniture set, along with a couple of armchairs and an ottoman. She took a seat in the middle of the couch and drew me down next to her.
She didn’t say anything at first, just sat there with a thoughtful expression on her face. Knowing that she was working up to something, I simply stayed quiet, perfectly content to merely hold her hand.
After a minute or
