“It’s like the house is trying to keep us afraid,” said Lou. “Keep us on our toes.”

“Yes!” said Cal, his eyes big and glassy. “Just like in a horror movie.”

“Make sure you take notes,” Sadie told him, wearing a disgusted half smile, “in case we ever get out of here. Cool detail for a script.”

A strange delight spread across Cal’s face. “I won’t forget any of this. Trust me.”

“Cal,” Lou said harshly, trying to capture his attention. “This isn’t fun for us. Please.”

“Oh, I know that. For real. No joke.” In the candlelight, Lou watched his pink cheeks turn pinker. He put his hands on his hips, as if that might make him look more serious. “Is there another fireplace nearby? Another chimney?”

“I think so,” Lou answered. She nodded at the door to the pool. “Back out that way. In a separate wing.”

“What are we waiting for?” Sadie barreled past Cal.

Once they were in the pool room again, the candlelight winked out behind them. The illumination from the balcony across the way led them forward.

“Look!” said Cal, pointing at the pool. The water had returned, blacker and shinier than before.

“Wasn’t this pool just empty?” Sadie asked. “Or am I going crazy?”

“If you’re crazy,” Lou said, “then we all are.”

Sadie’s jaw dropped. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”

Lou thought of creeping into Jason’s bedroom late at night, after a dream of the dollhouse. “Maybe? I tend to feel better when I know I’m not going through something all by myself.”

“Why can’t we find our way home?” Sadie’s lip quivered. “I wish … I wish I had my ukulele. I wish I could play it again.”

“We’ll get you home,” said Lou. “I promise.”

“Don’t promise anything,” Sadie answered, her face turned stony. “Not here.”

A splash came from the center of the pool.

They all scattered from the edge.

Small ripples spread out wider and wider. Lou scanned the surface but didn’t notice anything that could have caused the disturbance.

Below the balcony railing, an archway opened into a dim hall.

“In a horror movie,” Cal whispered, staring at the spreading ripples in the water, “this would be the part where we run.”

He nudged the girls forward, and they took off, racing across the slick tile floor toward the dark archway.

Movement churned the water beside them, as if something large were propelling itself alongside them. Lou’s eyes stung: She worried that if she didn’t push herself, something horrifying would emerge from the pool, reach out, and pull her under. Water splashed out, soaking her legs, and she released a shriek that echoed around the space.