The Narrator’s page-turning noise rushed into the scared silence.
They had seen what Tybalt was capable of. He was willing to kidnap an innocent dog and threaten a whole city just to be able to wear his favorite perfume again. If Tybalt became Verona’s ruler, no one would be safe. Not even Kyle and Halley in Hamlet’s Elsinore.
“What?!” Becca gasped. “Kyle and Halley are trapped in a bookworld, too?”
Oops. Forgot you were listening.
“Are they okay—”
A crashing thump interrupted their conversation. Becca whirled around to see that Juliet had jumped off the balcony and into the bush. She looked like a furious windstorm as she shook her finger at Romeo.
“Our family is built on that dough!” she said. “We’re on the verge of losing everything without it!”
“What do you think losing our cheese has done to us?” Romeo said. For once he didn’t look sad. He looked angry. “The Montague fortune is already melting away!”
“That’s not our problem!” Juliet shouted.
“Not your problem?” Romeo shouted back. “Your family stole our cheese!”
Juliet blinked in surprise. “We did not,” she said.
“Hang on,” Becca said, stepping between them. “Is that really true, Juliet? Did the Capulets not steal the Montague cheese?”
“Of course not,” Juliet snapped. “Our pizza’s better. We don’t need to cheat and steal to win.” She narrowed her eyes at Romeo. “I demand our dough recipe back.”
“I didn’t take it,” Romeo said. His eyes turned to the night sky in thought. “Now that I think of it, nobody in my family actually claimed credit for the theft.”
“Wait,” Becca said. “Are you saying the Montagues didn’t steal from the Capulets, either?”
“I’d just assumed it was us,” Romeo said, shrugging.
“You expect me to believe that?” Juliet said.
“Like I should believe you,” Romeo said.
The bickering started again.
“OKAY,” Sam suddenly burst out. He’d been quiet ever since Becca read the note aloud. “Juliet, Romeo, you can sort out your own problems later. Rufus is in danger!”
Becca knew he was right. Even if they could get Juliet to fall in love with Romeo, what was the point of going home if they’d lost Rufus? They couldn’t leave him behind in this pizza-less place.
“Sorry,” Romeo and Juliet both mumbled.
“That’s more like it.” Becca nodded. “Juliet, Tybalt’s your cousin. Do you have any idea where he might be hiding?”
Juliet shook out her dress, thinking. “He’s been renting a room in the apothecary’s shop. He’s been working on new perfumes and colognes ever since the Montagues took our dough recipe.”
“Except we didn’t,” Romeo said.
“Well, we didn’t take your cheese, either,” Juliet said.
“FOCUS,” Becca said, pushing them both toward the front gate.
They walked in silence, though Becca was pretty sure she still heard Juliet and Romeo muttering insults to each other.
Better to be a friend than to fight again! Stephen R. Danielson III’s voice popped into Becca’s head. It was what he’d told Becca and Sam during their most recent argument. She almost stopped walking.
Romeo and Juliet were annoying, but she and Sam fought just as much. Were they this awful to each other?
She snuck a glance at her stepbrother. His shoelaces had been quadruple-knotted and his head hung down. He really loved Rufus and always made sure the water in his bowl was fresh. He was actually kind of thoughtful, now that she stopped to think about it. He’d surprised her with his poetry, and she appreciated how much he liked words. Could it be that she and Sam were actually more similar than she had thought?
Becca reached out and tapped his shoulder. “It’s going to be all right.”
“It’s all my fault,” he said miserably. “I let Tybalt steal Rufus and the book. If I’d just tied my laces earlier, this wouldn’t have happened!”
“Tybalt has a sword,” Becca said. “He would have found a way to get them no matter what. But now we have a plan, and we’re going to save them! We’ve already survived tomato bombs and Instead-Stix. We can do this, too!”
Sam gave her a small smile. “Anything for Roo.”
Instead of rolling her eyes at his rhyme, Becca smiled. “For Roo,” she agreed, feeling lighter than she had in a while.
When they reached the gate, however, she felt her good mood disappear. She’d forgotten about the guards.
“What do we do?” Romeo whispered, eyeing their crossbows and spears, but Juliet kept walking with her head high. The guards snapped to attention, opened the gate, and let them all pass without a word.
She wore confidence like a suit of armor. The line drifted into Becca’s mind, and she made a mental note to include it in the next Mal & Cal Worthy comic book. With that kind of writing, she and Kyle could definitely win the trip to Hawaii! But maybe—just maybe—she and her mother didn’t have to stay there forever.
“Which way to the apothecary?” Sam whispered.
“North,” Juliet said.
“South,” Romeo said.
“Wrong!”
They all jumped at the sound of a fourth voice. As Juliet stepped back, she hit a tree root and tumbled to the ground.
“How long have you been there?” Becca asked.
“Long enough to know what’s happened.” Mercutio dropped down from a tree with a big smile. Tomato seeds dotted his hair. “The direction you’re looking for? It is the east. Juliet, pleasure to be sneaking around with you. But, er, I’m not sure I understand your costume. Are you a tangerine?”
“Juliet is the sun,” Romeo said.
“Oh!” Mercutio said. He helped Juliet to her feet. “Arise, fair sun. Let’s go stop Tybalt, for the sake of Verona and sensitive noses everywhere!”