The Escape Room by Alexa Land

Author:Alexa Land [Land, Alexa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: A Firsts & Forever Short Story
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 3

We both ended up dozing off for a while. I had no idea what time it was when we awoke, but it was still very dark, and the rain had slowed to a light patter on the window. After taking turns in the restroom and cleaning up a bit, we got dressed and returned to the sofa. Ryan leaned against my arm, and I asked, “Do you still feel like solving the puzzles?”

Instead of answering, he tumbled off the couch and darted across the room, returning a moment later with the manila envelope. He handed me a fake candle and cuddled up at my side, and I said, “You do the honors.”

You would have thought I’d just given him a lavish gift, judging by how excited he was. He tore open the envelope, and his eyes lit up as he read the letter. The first part set up the fictitious crime we had to solve, which was to locate a hidden chest of jewels before the thief left the country in two hours’ time. A bit hokey, but sure, why not?

He turned the paper over and read the first clue. “The mighty one who grasps the earth, swallowing wood and water, dreading wind but no man, and picking a fight with the sun.” Ryan clicked his tongue and said, “I hope they get harder. That’s way too easy.”

“Seriously? I have no idea what you just read.”

“It’s actually ancient Norse, one of Odin’s riddles.”

“Well, thank God I majored in ancient Norse in college. Oh wait, no. It was biology.”

Ryan grinned at me and said, “Don’t worry about where it’s from. Just focus on the riddle.”

I held up the candle and read it again, then shook my head. “Nope. I got nothing.”

“Well, then it’s a good thing I’m here. The answer is fog. It swallows up everything on earth and blocks out the sun, and the only thing it has to worry about is the wind.”

“Oh. Okay, now it seems obvious. But what does the answer refer to? There’s clearly no fog in here.”

There was that little grin again. “Read the plaque on the painting above the fireplace.”

I got up and did as he asked. It was a portrait of a man in a top hat standing in front of a hot air balloon, and I took a look at the brass plaque at the bottom of the ornate frame and told him, “It says Phileas F. Is that supposed to mean something to me?”

The grin graduated to a smile. “Phileas Fogg was the main character in Jules Verne’s novel Around the World in Eighty Days. Look behind the painting for a clue, and if there’s nothing there, we’ll study the canvas itself.”

I slid my hand behind the frame and felt around, and a moment later, I produced a sealed envelope. “Oh man, I totally suck at this, and you’re awesome,” I said, as I returned to Ryan’s side. “I was so sure I’d ace the entire escape room in record time.

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