“What?” asked Ben as he joined Stephen at the drawing. “Incredible.”
“Here — look,” said Stephen.
When Jack caught up with his friends the were looking at a quarter-inch hole in the wall. Just below the surface of the painted drywall, they could see a glass lens filled the hole.
“Looks like a peep-hole,” said Stephen. “Like in an apartment door.”
Stephen pressed his face to the wall and looked into the drawing of a heart.
“No way,” he exhaled.
“What? Let someone else see.” Ben pushed Stephen aside and looked into the hole.
“There’s a room in there, with three doors at the end,” Stephen told Jack. “The one on the right has light behind it.”
“How can you tell — about the light?” Jack asked.
“You can see it coming out from underneath,” Ben answered. “It’s the only light, but you can see the whole room.”
Ben backed up and let Jack have a look. The room through the peephole appeared narrow, with just enough space on the far wall for the three doors. Jack saw black walls and ceiling, and a floor covered in a grid of alternating black and white tiles.
When he pulled his eye away from the hole, Jack was confused — “I think it’s small — like a dollhouse or something.”
“No way — what makes you think that?” asked Stephen.
“I don’t know,” said Jack. “It just does. Hey — is that his ‘deepest vulnerability?’”
“Oh yeah — his heart,” Ben answered. “That makes sense, but what does it tell us.”
“That’s the line about the ‘Truth,’ right?” Stephen asked.
“Yeah,” said Jack. “So, do you think the truth is the light?”
“Is that one of the good sentences, or the lies?” asked Stephen.
Jack pulled out the letter and reviewed his highlighting. “Yeah, that’s one of the good ones.”
“We haven’t proved that yet,” said Ben. “It’s just a theory.”
“Easy enough,” said Jack as he moved towards the ladder. “Stand back.”
“Shouldn’t you just not grab that rung?” said Ben.
“No, we have to prove that the letter is giving us clues,” Jack replied.
Stephen had gone back to looking through the hole in the drawing’s heart. “I think maybe it is a model,” he said.
“Okay — ready?” asked Jack. His head was even with the ceiling and he was about to grab the next rung.
“Sure, we’re ready — you’re the one who needs to be ready,” said Ben.
He moved with confidence until his hand was about an inch from the shocking rung. For a microsecond his hand touched and then he drew it back.
“Did it get you?” asked Ben. “Is it on?”
“I don’t think so,” said Jack. He brushed the rung twice more and then actually grabbed it for a split-second before letting it go. “Nope, I don’t think it’s on.”
“Cool — so what’s up there?” asked Stephen.
Jack pointed his flashlight to reveal that the rungs continued for another six feet or so. He pulled himself up, looking back at the hatch that had closed automatically the day before.
“Hey, this panel is back open — I didn’t even think of that,” said Jack.
“Oh yeah, that probably reset or something,” said Stephen.
“Where was it?” asked Ben.
“Right above the ceiling there — Jack’s probably clearing it now,” Stephen answered.
“Hope it doesn’t close now,” said Ben.
Moving fast, Jack descended back through the hole in the ceiling, jumping the last few feet. “Hey — I think I just figured out the next piece,” he had a broad smile.
“What, the letter?” asked Ben.
Unfolding the letter, Jack trained his flashlight on the writing. “Look here, it says ‘Only the first King’s Bishop treads without fear.’ right? Stephen, you said the white King’s Bishop only touches the white squares?”
“Yeah,” said Stephen.
“That room up there has a black and white floor, like a chess board,” said Jack.
“Like the model?” asked Ben.
“Huh?” Jack was surprised.
Ben pointed his light to the anatomical drawing of the body. “The model.”
“Yeah, yeah — like the floor on the model,” said Jack.
“I want to go see,” said Stephen.
“Only step on the white!” ordered Jack. Stephen was already halfway up the ladder.
Gingerly, Stephen climbed through the hole in the ceiling and when his feet disappeared, Jack climbed up after him. Alone in the drawing room, Ben watched Jack disappear. He was about to move towards the ladder when Jack’s face reappeared.
“Come on!” said Jack.
Ben emerged on the next floor to find Jack and Stephen with their feet spread and planted on white tiles. He followed suit and stepped off the ladder onto white, not letting his feet hit the black tiles. Each tile was twelve inches square, so it was easy for the boys to fit a foot on a single tile, but they had to spread their feet awkwardly to plant both feet. The tiles were laid out in an alternating pattern, like a chess board.
Stephen shone his light at the opposite end where they saw three doors. “This is the model,” he said.
“There’s no light,” said Ben.
“That makes sense,” said Jack. “He wanted us to know the correct door from the model. We were supposed to figure out that clue.”
“You really want that to be true, don’t you?” asked Ben.
“It is true,” replied Jack.
“Well I don’t think we should try either of the other doors, just to prove the point,” said Stephen. He began to walk towards the doors, only touching the white tiles.
Jack looked at Ben and then followed Stephen.
“We really ought to figure out a way to jam this panel, in case it decides to close again,” said Ben.
“I think it’s off because the switch is off,” Jack said as he stepped from tile to tile.
Bending down as much as he could, Ben examined the panel. It was metal and enclosed in a metal shell, bolted to the floor. Ben looked around, but didn’t see anything he could use to block the panel from closing, so he followed his friends over to the door.
“It opens in,” said Stephen. “Should I try it?” he asked.
“Go ahead,” said Jack.
With no hesitation, Stephen turned the knob. The door swung inward forcefully and pushed back on Stephen’s tense arm. He lost his balance and stumbled, placing a foot directly on one of the black tiles.
“Watch out!” said Jack.
The three froze and exhaled relief after a few seconds with no apparent repercussions from Stephen’s errant footfall.
“So much for…” Ben was cut off by a grinding sound behind him.
The boys spun around to see the panel sliding shut, blocking them from the ladder.
“Shit!” exclaimed Ben — he ran back over the white tiles to the ladder just as it was traversing the last six inches to the wall.
“I don’t think you need to worry about the white tiles now, Ben,” said Jack.
“I think we do,” said Ben. “Seriously, get back on white,” he pointed his flashlight at Stephen’s feet. When Stephen had retreated, Ben looked at his watch — “We were here almost fifteen minutes before we totally screwed that up.”
“Well I think we need to be worried about what’s past this door — it’s our only option now.”
“Just stand still for a second,” said Ben. “Jack, what else does the letter say?”
“Hold up,” Jack dug out the letter again. “Uh, well there’s some junk and then it eventually says ‘take solace in the fact that at first, level heads have patience while their hands part and meet again.’”