“Two exits! That reminds me of that passage I read last night,” said Fifer, turning to Florence. “Let’s have a look at those doors upstairs. I didn’t bring the book with me, but I memorized the clue.”

“What are you talking about?” Kaylee asked.

On the way up the broken-down staircase, with the sky overhead, Fifer explained to the others what she’d discovered the previous night. Then she recited the clue Mr. Today had written:

Right is left and wrong is right,

stoop low to find the perfect height.

Tiny eyes will serve you well

To read your way into this spell.

At the balcony, only Florence, Thisbe, and Fifer continued on, for they were the only ones who could see and enter the not-a-secret hallway. They did so without delay, leaving Kaylee, Ishibashi, and the people from Grimere on the balcony. While they waited, Ishibashi explained to the others how the secret hallway worked for those who possessed a certain level of magic. As they listened, Maiven, Rohan, and Kaylee kept watch, not forgetting that the person who had caused all of this devastation had reportedly escaped the mansion and could return at any moment.

“What else were the dissenters saying?” Kaylee asked the black-eyed children. “Did you hear anything?”

One of them spoke rapidly in her native language, and Rohan translated. “They didn’t understand all of the words being said, but from their tones and gestures, the people seemed annoyed by Frieda,” he reported. “Like they didn’t want to be in this war in the first place. And they were angry that Frieda had abandoned them.”

Just inside the secret hallway, Florence, who could see the Grimere fighters even though they couldn’t see her, overheard what Rohan was saying and told the twins. Fifer and Thisbe, who were kneeling in front of the door on the left to look for the clue, nodded and kept looking for whatever Mr. Today had put there. “That’s good that the people are angry at Frieda,” Thisbe said as she scanned the wood surface. “Maybe some of them are finally coming to their senses. I’m not sure how we’re going to figure out if the dissenters are safe now or not. And if not, what are we going to do with them? Do you have a plan?”

“Can’t we just keep them in the cage?” Florence muttered. She was still angry about how destroyed the mansion was.

Fifer shook her head. “I’ve been thinking we should interview them with the dragons present to see what percent good or evil they are, and keep the good ones.”

Thisbe looked alarmed. “Uh, I’m not sure I’d pass that test, so maybe step back from that a little.”

Fifer glanced at her sister. “What?”

“It’s a long story,” Thisbe said. She shifted uncomfortably. “Are you sure the left door is the right door?” She peered all around the doorknob, seeing nothing.

“Pretty sure. That’s the only sense I can make of ‘Right is left and wrong is right.’ But I’ll check the other just in case.”