When Annie returned to the hotel that evening, she looked very chic in a tight, short black skirt and jersey top, with a jaunty red-and-black scarf tied around her neck.

“Do I look okay?” Amy asked doubtfully. She suddenly felt like she might look a little babyish in her flowered skirt and pink twinset.

“You are perfect,” Annie assured her. And she was equally nice about the way Monica was dressed—in a vintage 1970s disco outfit, with huge bell-bottom pants and a glitter top. Amy was relieved. With Annie’s tendency to poke fun at people who looked different, Amy had been afraid she’d find Monica’s look embarrassing.

“Where is the party?” Monica asked as they went out into the Paris night.

“It is a little far from here,” Annie said. “We will take the Métro.”

They walked in silence toward the entrance to the Métro. Monica strolled slowly, lagging behind them. She was still looking a little depressed. Amy didn’t feel much like talking either.

In a whisper so soft only another clone could hear her, Annie asked, “Are you still thinking about Andy?”

“A little,” Amy admitted. “Actually, a lot.”

Annie didn’t scold her. “You will feel better soon.”

Amy tried to pull herself together. Annie was being incredibly nice.

“There’s something I’ve been meaning to ask you,” Amy said. “All the original Project Crescent girls were called Amy. I was Amy, Number Seven. What was your number?”

“I do not know,” Annie said. “My parents told me that my original name was Amy, but of course, they changed it.”

“Why?”

“Because Amy sounds like ami, which means ‘friend’ in French,” Annie explained. “It is not suitable as a first name.”

“It’s a nice word, though,” Amy commented.

“Yes,” Annie said, smiling. “Even though my name is not Amy, I am always your amie.”

That was really sweet, Amy thought. Andy had turned out to be a despicable Nazi, but at least Annie was proving herself to be a true friend. It cheered her up a little.

They rode the Métro for a while, and then Annie indicated it was time to get off. “We have to change to a different train here,” she told them.

This station was much bigger than any of the others Amy had been in so far. She was totally confused by all the possible directions to go in, and all the signs and arrows meant nothing to her. But Annie took charge.

“Eight different lines run through this station,” she told them. “Including trains that go out to the suburbs.”

There were certainly a lot of people around, and the three of them were constantly getting separated. “Keep your eyes on me,” Annie warned them. “It’s easy to get lost here.”

Amy had no intention of getting lost, and she held on to one of the tassels that hung from Monica’s blouse so she wouldn’t get lost either. It was funny, in a way—her mother had wanted Monica to come so she could chaperone Amy, but Amy felt like she was the one watching out for her baby-sitter.

The crowd thinned a little as Annie led them from one twisting corridor to another. Since Annie knew where she was going, Amy didn’t pay attention to the signs, but Monica noticed one.

“What does interdit mean?”

Amy knew the answer. “It means ‘forbidden.’ Why?”

“That’s what the last sign said.”

Amy suddenly realized that they were the only people in this corridor. “Uh-oh. Annie, I think we took a wrong turn.”

“No, we didn’t,” Annie said. “I have done this before. It is a shortcut to the other platform.”

Some shortcut. It seemed like they’d been wandering for ages. “We go down here,” Annie said, and made a sudden turn to the right. “It is a good shortcut, yes? No more crowds.”

There certainly weren’t any crowds. In fact, there didn’t seem to be a soul in sight. As the three of them went down another flight of stairs, Amy could hear the echo of their footsteps.

At the bottom of the steps, Annie turned. The lighting was getting very dim. With the next turn, it grew even dimmer. Finally Annie said, “We’re almost there,” and she motioned them to the left. But then they all stopped.

“Annie, this can’t be right,” Monica said. “There’s no light down here.”

“I don’t know what—”

But they weren’t going to find out what Annie didn’t know. From out of the pitch darkness, the figures of a man and a woman appeared. “You will come with us,” the woman said.

Amy squinted. “Who are you?” she asked.

The woman didn’t answer, but she didn’t need to. Amy could now see the black armbands that both she and the man were wearing. “Ohmigod, we’re in the Catacombs,” she said.

“You will come with us,” the woman repeated.

“No, I don’t think so,” Amy said coldly. “Come on, you guys. Let’s get out of here.” But the man grabbed her arm.

“Hey, what do you think you’re doing?” Monica cried in outrage.

“Don’t touch her!” Annie shouted.

The man was very strong. And although Amy had greater physical strength than any normal twelve-year-old girl, she had to struggle to free herself from this big man’s grip. She could hear Annie gasp, and Monica let out a shriek as Amy went into a martial arts stance and kicked the man in the head. He staggered backward. The woman moved toward Annie, but she wasn’t very big, and Amy knew Annie could handle her.

She couldn’t give the man a chance to recover. Grabbing Monica’s hand, she took off. Monica was shrieking all the way down the corridor, and she continued to wail as Amy dragged her around a corner. Amy wasn’t sure if this was the way they’d come, but she figured Annie would let out a yell if Amy made a wrong turn. She hoped Annie could run in that tight skirt.

She saw some steps and ran toward them. At the same time, a man appeared out of the shadows.

Amy stopped short as she realized she was once again face-to-face with Sébastien, the guide to the Catacombs.

“You again!” he exclaimed angrily.

“We got lost,” Amy said, expecting Annie to start explaining what happened. But Annie wasn’t with them.

“Ohmigod, they got Annie!” Monica cried out.

“What are you talking about?” Sébastien demanded.

Amy’s voice shook; she tried to get the words out as fast as she could. “There was another girl with us, Annie Perrault. She took the tour of the Catacombs with me. We look alike. Those neo-Nazis tried to grab us, and we started running. I thought Annie was right behind us.”

Sébastien didn’t look concerned. “I’m sure your friend will be fine.”

“But I’m telling you that neo-Nazis took her. They’re awful people.”

Sébastien still didn’t look anxious, just terribly annoyed. “I am taking you two out of here right now, and I never want to see you near the Catacombs again.”

“We’re not leaving without Annie,” Amy declared.

Just then they heard the sound of footsteps coming down the stairs. Two uniformed police officers appeared.

“What’s happening here?” one asked in French.

Sébastien reached into his pocket and produced an official-looking card. Amy figured the card had to do with his job as a guide. “Please take these women out,” he told the police. To Amy he said, “I will locate your friend.”

Amy tried to protest, but the police took her and Monica’s arms and led them out. They had no opportunity to go into a dumb tourist routine. The officers put them in a van and told them they were being taken to the police station on charges of trespassing.

Monica couldn’t understand them, but she figured out what was happening and started to wail. Amy tried to calm her down at the same time that she tried to reason with the officers. “But my friend, mon amie, she’s down there,” Amy shouted. “Please let us go.”

The police closed the van door in her face.