Chapter 15

“What’s so funny?”

The bear of a janitor glanced around the bathroom and then snorted. Marv didn’t see the three kids and the baby doll balancing silently on the cold rim of the toilet, holding on to each other and bracing themselves against the wall. The stall door was shut and latched, but Marv didn’t seem to notice details.

Spencer could barely glimpse the burly figure through the space between the hinges. Marv approached slowly until he stood only inches from the bathroom stall. On the other side of the thin wall, Spencer, Daisy, and Dez held their breath. Marv checked for the bronze nail, grunted unintelligibly, and then turned away.

The kids heard the bathroom door open, then bang closed. They heard the muffled sound of keys in the lock. Marv snorted once more, apparently trying to dislodge something from his sinuses. Then there was silence.

Of course, Dez was the first one to move. He jumped down from the toilet seat, chuckling to himself. “Good thing I told you guys to hide. We’d have been busted. That dude looked like he wanted to eat someone.”

“Quiet,” Daisy whispered. “He might still be out there.”

“Relax,” Dez said. “He didn’t see us.”

Daisy and Spencer stepped off the toilet seat as Dez unlatched the stall door. “We’ve got to get back to class,” Spencer said. “Mrs. Natcher’s going to freak when she sees that three of us are gone.”

“You’re not going anywhere,” Dez said, stepping in front of them. “I’ve still got to clean out some toilets with your heads.”

“Get out of the way,” Spencer said, brushing his hand at Dez like he was a pesky fly. A few days ago, Dez had been the most intimidating foe. But ever since the milk incident, ever since Spencer had discovered the courage to stand up for the truth, Dez seemed smaller. Indeed, compared to the wicked janitors and demented creatures that Daisy and Spencer were up against now, Dez looked about as frightening as Baybee.

“Hold it,” Dez said, unaccustomed to people ignoring his threats. Spencer and Daisy stepped past him and Spencer pulled on the bathroom door.

Locked.

Marv had locked the deadbolt, making sure to keep everyone out while unintentionally trapping Spencer, Daisy, and Dez in. Unwilling to believe, Spencer pulled again . . . and again. But the door was secure. They weren’t going anywhere.

Dez began to laugh.

“What’s so funny?” Daisy said.

“It’s perfect,” answered Dez. “It’s the perfect excuse not to go back to class . . . and to give you lovebirds endless swirlies.”

Ignoring Dez, Spencer and Daisy began brainstorming. Hitting the door and shouting for help was out of the question. Picking the lock was impossible. Daisy got on her hands and knees, putting her cheek dangerously close to the bathroom floor, and tried to peek under the door.

“Hey.” She carefully reached forward. A tiny bit of paper was visible under the door. Daisy trapped it with her fingernail and dragged it into the bathroom. It was the card that Garth Hadley had used to stop the lock. Daisy flipped it over. It was Hadley’s business card, the same kind that the BEM rep had given Spencer.

“Yes!” Spencer said, taking the card from her hand. “That’s got Hadley’s phone number on it. He told me to call if we get in trouble.”

Daisy smiled, showing her teeth in all their glory. “Hurry up,” she said, “call him. I want to get out of here.”

Spencer’s shoulders slumped. “You don’t have a cell phone?”

The girl shook her head, long braid swinging.

“Me neither.”

Behind them, Dez emitted an obnoxious, look-at-me sigh. Daisy and Spencer turned to find the boy operating a cell phone with both hands.

“All right, Dez!” Spencer said. For the first time, he was actually pleased with the bully. “If you let me borrow that for a minute, I can get us out of here.”

“Hang on,” Dez said. “I’m busy texting the sewer police. Got to tell them to expect two newcomers from toilet number one.” He grinned maliciously and snapped the phone shut. “You think I want to go back to Mrs. Natcher’s class?” Dez faked a yawn. “Yeah, right.”

Spencer and Daisy exchanged a glance. They had to get the phone from Dez before the janitors found out that they were missing from Mrs. Natcher’s class. If Marv’s threats carried any weight, he would already have figured out Spencer’s name and classroom.

“Why are you here, anyway?” Daisy asked, hands on her hips.

Dez tucked the cell phone into the pocket of his shorts and began to chant, “Spencer and Daisy, sitting in a tree, K-I-S-I-N-N . . . K-I-S-I-N-G . . .” he trailed away. “You guys came into class together this morning—late. Then, when the power went out, I figured Spencer went to find you. I usually don’t like to watch kissing, but I wanted to know where you were going.”

“So you followed us in here,” Spencer said.

Dez nodded. “Not a very romantic place for your first date, Doofus. But I thought it might be fun to crash the party. Besides, I’ve been looking for a way to get back at you.”

“For what?” Spencer asked.

“Yesterday’s little speech to the class. You can lie to them about seeing monsters, but I know you’re a fake.”

Spencer swallowed and ignored the taunt. Just like Garth Hadley had advised, he focused on their secret mission. “Give me the phone, Dez.”

“No way!” Dez pulled out the phone to tempt them again. “Minutes aren’t free, you know.”

“I’ll pay you back,” Daisy promised.

“You’ll pay me now,” Dez stated, pointing at the toilet aggressively. “Two swirlies for every minute on the phone. Deal?”

“You’re disgusting,” Spencer said, wondering if Dez actually had the guts to stick someone’s head in the toilet and flush it. He wondered for only a moment.

Dez leaped clumsily at Daisy. She spun aside, and the bully turned quickly. He tripped on an untied shoelace and went down, grabbing Daisy’s leg as he fell. Both kids tumbled to the hard floor, Dez struggling to get a controlling grip on Daisy.

Without thinking, Spencer plunged in. He’d never punched anyone before and it ended up hurting his hand a lot worse than he thought. Spencer’s fist pounded into Dez’s shoulder. The bully released his grip on Daisy and the girl crawled toward the stall. Dez’s cell phone spun across the yellow-brown tile and stopped under the sink. Spencer went for it, but Dez’s big foot kicked out, catching Spencer in the knee and sending him to the floor.

Dez grabbed the phone and jumped to his feet. His face was twisted in anger like Spencer had never seen before. One punch from those meaty hands would probably put Spencer out cold on the floor—the dingy, germy bathroom floor.

Losing his courage, Spencer retreated to the stall, where Daisy quickly shut the door and latched it tightly. The walls of the stall didn’t reach all the way to the ground, so there was still room for Dez to crawl under. But Spencer was prepared to stomp on any part of Dez that appeared.

“You’re dead, Doofus. Sooner or later you’ll have to come out—and I’ll be waiting.”

“Sooner or later, you’ll give us that phone so we can all get out of here,” Spencer said.

“Whatever! I’ll wait a week if I have to.”

“Without food? Yeah, right.”

Dez fell silent. Apparently he hadn’t thought about long-term food storage for his siege on the bathroom stall. Spencer and Daisy watched him pace for a while, then slump down against the wall. He pulled out his phone and, judging by the sound effects, started playing Pac-Man.

Spencer pulled Daisy aside and whispered in her ear. “I’m going to get the phone. Stay here.”

“What?” Daisy shrieked.

“I hear you,” Dez said, ending his game. But before he could slip the phone into his pocket, before Daisy could protest any further, Spencer threw open the door and lunged at Dez.

Spencer’s right hand closed around the cell phone, jerking it free of Dez’s grip. Instantly the bully had a heavy hand on Spencer’s arm, twisting it painfully. Then Spencer stretched and slipped free, passing through Dez’s grasp like his arm was made of Jell-O.

Spencer’s left hand was sweaty inside the oversized latex glove. He had the phone and was only a few steps from the safety of the stall.

Dez sprang, grabbing both of Spencer’s legs. But it was useless. Spencer’s feet kept moving, his legs tearing free of Dez’s hands without effort. Dez was left facedown on the dirty tile as Spencer flung himself into the stall, Daisy pushing the door shut.

“Here!” she shouted, thrusting the BEM business card at Spencer. He tore off the glove, flipped open the phone, and rapidly started punching in the numbers. Just as he hit the green send button, Dez’s head appeared under the stall door. Daisy screamed and swung Baybee like a sledgehammer. The plastic doll smashed into Dez’s face.

“Mr. Hadley?” Spencer asked. “We need help—quick!” he paused. “Yes, we found it. But we’re locked in the bathroom with the nail!”

Daisy was going wild with Baybee. Dez’s hands protected his face and he struggled to retreat. With one swing, Dez managed to grab onto the doll, and the two kids played tug-of-war with the hall pass. Dez came out with Baybee’s torn diaper and Daisy fell onto the toilet with the unclothed doll.

“Thanks,” Spencer said into the phone. “Okay, we will. ’Bye!” As soon as the conversation was over, Spencer closed the cell phone, bent down, and slid it along the floor. Dez turned like a dog going for a ball.

“You all right?” Spencer asked, helping Daisy to her feet. The girl nodded, hefting the nude hall pass like a club. “Good job,” Spencer praised her combat skills.

“What’d Hadley say?”

“He’s sending someone to get us out.”

“When?”

Dez suddenly punched the stall door, causing both kids inside to jump. “Not before I’m done with you!”