“I know,” said Max. And he had to admit to himself he knew that all too well.

“And do you see anything now?” asked Tess moving her eyes suggestively around the room.

“No,” said Max. He was puzzled because he didn’t see anything out of the ordinary at the moment.

“Me either,” said Tess. “Just checking.” And, slightly pleased with herself for pulling a joke on Max, she picked up her grilled cheese sandwich with her hands and took a big bite of it.

Max picked up his grilled cheese sandwich and took a bite out of it, too. And they couldn’t help it, they both started laughing.

But Tess’s mind was racing. Max had seen it, too.

After a moment, she said, “Did you see him leave?”

Max shook his head.

“Did you see the waiter clean the table? You were staring straight at it.”

Max shook his head again.

“Me either,” said Tess. And she had no idea what that could mean.

~ CHAPTER SEVEN ~

london graffiti & the skatepark

Tess and Max were just about to go out for a walk when they bumped into Aunt Evie getting out of a black cab and also carrying many shopping bags, full to the brim. It was impossible to conceal that they held presents gaily wrapped in festive paper adorned with curled ribbons and glitter and even a candy cane or two on top. She had gone holiday shopping. She turned her back on them at once and whispered to the doorman. She gestured to the children—she did still think of Max and Tess as children—as she squeezed a five-pound note into the doorman’s hand. “Just ask the bellman to put them in my room, please. They’re awfully heavy.”

She turned to Tess and Max and said, “And where were the two of you wanting to be going?” sounding a bit English for a second but excited, as if she was, as stated, up for an adventure.

Max had his camera with him. He wanted to take a few pictures for extra school credit in a photography class he was taking. At the moment he was interested in forms and shapes and he thought he might find some interesting sculpture, statues, or elaborate carvings or decorations on the face of a building. He was imagining lions or dinosaurs or birds or a modern architectural sphere in the middle of a square.

“That sounds fun,” said Aunt Evie. “Can I tag along?”

“Of course, Aunt Evie,” they said, almost in unison, like Tess was just a half a syllable behind Max but they used exactly the same words.