He stretched out the scroll. “Congratulations on solving this riddle. Your next mission is to find the one thing that has hands but cannot clap. Fail to locate it and your subject dies.”

She gasped, horrified. “Oh my God!”

“Taylor, you do realize this isn’t real, don’t you? No one is dying.”

She smacked him with the cylinder. “Get in the spirit of the game. We have to find the thing with hands.” She turned to one of the many cluttered shelves in the small room. “Do you see one of those creepy dolls? This seems like a place that would have a creepy doll in it. They have hands.”

“It’s not a doll,” he said.

“Are you looking for clues?”

He would have laughed at the panic in her voice if he wasn’t still wiping the sweat from his hands after that last riddle. But his heart rate was beginning to return to a safe level. He could think with a clearer head.

“What are we looking for again?” Jamar asked.

“It says to find the one thing that has hands but cannot clap. Oh, I know! It’s the clock,” Taylor said. She pointed to the loud, annoying clock above the door.

Jamar reached up and grabbed it, then flipped it over. There was an envelope taped to the back of it.

She took it from him and did a little dance as she removed the envelope and lifted the flap.

“‘Congratulations. You have saved your subject and earned your escape. Punch this code into the keypad to enjoy your freedom and a twenty percent discount on your next adventure to the Escape Room.’” She winced. “That’s a bit tacky, but whatever.”

She entered the code into the electronic keypad and stood back as the door opened to the lobby they’d first entered.

“Congratulations on escaping,” the attendant who’d checked them in called from the desk in a bored voice. “Do you want to schedule your next visit?”

“No thanks. We’re good,” Jamar replied before Taylor could say anything.

“Not even cool,” Taylor said, her eyes narrowed in annoyance. But she didn’t object, which told Jamar all he needed to know about her desire to return to the Escape Room.

They exited the automatic doors and walked out onto Blanco Street.

“You have to admit that was fun,” Taylor said as she buried her chin inside the collar on her jean jacket.

The night had been chilly when they left Jamar’s house, but not cold enough for a heavy coat. The temperature had dropped considerably while they were rescuing their subject. Jamar shrugged out of his brushed suede sport coat.

“I will admit that we have different ideas when it comes to fun. Take that trip to Whole Foods, for example.” He draped his coat over her shoulders. “But if you enjoyed yourself, that’s all that matters.”