• The porch steps were wet with last night’s rain; I could see it from a couple steps away from the house. I could feel left over drops blot my shoes. As I walked up to the door, the wind breezed through; making me freeze down to the bone. I pulled my blue pea coat shut and did up the buttons.
    I was standing outside of the large home of the wealthy Mr. and Mrs. Karver McKinny. A couple of days ago, Mrs. McKinny called the Council’s New York Committee, or the UMCJC (Underground Magic Crime and Justice Committee; it’s not the true name, but my ‘team’ says it) that her daughter, Hannah, went missing. Hannah was a twelve year old girl known for her love of soccer; that’s what her mother told us. Her mother also informed us that she was half-blood (half human, half demon), the reason why my team was called.
    Before ringing the doorbell, I felt my fists clench and my breath quickening. This was my team’s first case, and I was expecting the worst. We really were just Warriors, a group of magical beings that protect other magical beings and mundane people (humans) from the evils of the world. The Warriors have been around since the ancient times.
    I shivered again, but at least there was no dripping water. The veranda was dry, and it was closed off most of the way, like an extra room added on to the front of the house. There were even windows, and they were cracked open. Having them a little bit open was kind of a strange idea, since it was so cold out. But, I was not going to shut the windows of a home I did not live in, that would be rude of me. So, I just stood there and shivered as the boy standing next stood perfectly comfortable.
    That boy was Will Snow, my team’s overly confident leader, and he glanced at me; a twinkle was in his eye and there was a cocky grin on his face. “Cold, I assume?” he stuck his slender hands in his coat pockets. Will truly thought he was hot stuff then; at least I saw that. “Poor little Archie, shivering in her shoes.”
    I glared at Will; he was talking to me like I was five or something. Sure, I was the youngest member of my team, but he wasn’t much older than me. I was sixteen and a sophomore at Hienrich Senior High School, while Will had just turned eighteen and was a senior at that same school.
    I remember when I first met Will. I was thirteen, short and skinny with a sharp sarcastic tongue, and Will was fifteen, tall and also skinny with the same habit of a sharp tongue, though he had more experience in the pocket of his ripped jeans. We clicked immediately. It was when I was starting off my Warrior training, and Will was doing his third year. Will and I found ourselves paired together a lot for tag team training and obstacle courses, stuff like that. He did have some experience, so Will sort of took me under his wing. In a way, Will had become my older brother/best friend. Our relationship was strange. Most of the time we tease each other and argue all the time, but deep in my heart I understood we were protective of each other. I mean, if there was a fire demon trying to kill one of us, neither Will nor myself would hesitate to make sure to stick a couple angel blades in its stomach.
    Right now Will was being annoying, so I decided to be immature and I stuck my tongue out at him, “Oh shut it Will,” I told him. My arms were crossed as a way to keep warm, and my eyes wandered to the door. “Is someone going to answer the door?” I asked impatiently; my ‘bad’ side that I work a lot to keep hidden was showing. When I realized how bratty I sounded, I scolded myself mentally. It was like those two little figures, the angel and the devil that you see on TV, were on my shoulders and the angel me, who was not too happy then, was beating the crap out of the devil me.
    I did realize how mental that sounded.
    I wasn’t the only one to notice my not-so-normal-brattiness, because I felt the cold stare of Percy Harrison upon me. I swear I felt his eyes were burning through my soul.
    Percy was the oldest member of our ‘team’, he was nineteen; a recent graduate from Hienrich. He came off as a cranky bitter person, but he was just extremely quiet. Percy also gave off an intimidation factor, with his dark crew cut, built muscles, and his deep red phoenix tattoo on his upper right arm. But, as hard and intimidating as Percy came across as, I knew he was truly a good, kind hearted person. Percy and I were really good friends; I knew all his secrets. Like how he had a pet kitten back at HQ, a little gray cutie with blue eyes named Misty. She’s a secret because Percy doesn’t want people to think different of his tough exterior, and most of the time pets at HQ are frowned upon.
    Still glaring at me, Percy cleared his throat, “Chill out, Arch,” he spoke calmly, letting the breeze brush against his arms that were left bare by the black tank top he wore. The dark color caused his phoenix tattoo to stand out against his skin. “Mr. McKinny is at a meeting, and I believe Mrs. McKinny is out shopping, or running errands.”
    I looked at Percy, agitated with the use of annoying nickname, “Why would she be out shopping with her daughter’s missing?” My agitation showed with my voice, and Percy clearly noticed when his eyes narrowed even more.
    “Well, Archer,” Percy nearly growled, “Maybe it distracts her, I don’t know, okay? Do you think I’ve ever had a missing child?”
    That’s when Percy and I had one of our stare downs. We had been doing them for a few years, and they just happen whenever we were mad at each other, or discovered something interesting. I could see and feel the coldness deep within his silvery blue eyes.
    Suddenly, a third voice twanged its way into the conversation, “C’mon guys! Let’s no fight at the victim’s house; it don’t seem right.” The twanginess of my best friend Bailey Cord seemed to suck the tension and agitation right out of the air.
    Bailey looked at me, then at Percy, her round green eyes wide open. Ever since I could remember, Percy scared the crap out of her. Really, who could blame her?
    Bailey and I met a couple years ago, when she was starting off her training and I thought my team could have used another member. Even though Bailey was a year older than me, she was so shy and skittish that she had clung to me as if I was an older sister or something. To be honest with myself, when I met Bailey, all I saw was a girl from Texas with fair skin, blonde curls, and a small frame.
    Though, as training continued, Bailey showed she was quick on her feet and was an extremely smart girl. The girl still had her skittish ways, but at the end of training, I requested to have Bailey put on my team. I did too, I went straight up to the head Warrior, Marseilles de Lucian, and asked him. That’s how a team comes together, when a couple Warriors want to work together, they just train together and that’s how it all ends up. It’s not like we’re the US Army or whatever, we do have different levels of teams and everything, but we’re not that organized.
    Suddenly, I snapped out of my rambling and saw Percy look straight at Bailey, and his expression grew softer. He understood how Bailey was, and he tried to be less harsh with her, even when his temper was about to explode. Percy knew how much his presence scared Bailey, and so to prevent her from having anxiety attack, he was overall gentler to her. If only he was like that with everyone, then more people would like him. But, I highly doubted Percy gave a crap what others thought of him, and that was one of his good qualities.
    Anyway, with no words, Percy had looked away and crossed his arms over his chest. I noticed the muscles in his arms ripple like the surface of a lake did when you threw a stone in it. Bailey also looked away, and she took a new interest in her purple Converse sneakers.
    I glanced at Will, and met his eyes. His eyes were gray, and they were very intense. They changed shades when his emotions changed. One moment, they could be light and look silver when he was happy, but then turn as dark as storm clouds or a tornado when he was angry. Right at this moment, his eyes were about normal. I tried my best to see if I could tell what his thoughts were; what was going on his head. But I knew that wouldn’t happen, figuring out Will was one thing I could never do. I could only tell if he was happy or pissed off.
    Will quickly broke the gaze, and cleared his throat; catching the attention of Bailey and Percy. “Maybe I’ll try knocking this time,” he said, running a hand through his bleach blonde hair as he walked up to the front doors. They were large and white; the color was pure like the first snow of winter. The handles were a shinning brass and were in the shape of half hearts.
    After knocking a couple times, Will stepped back and stuck his hand back in his pocket. I stood next to him, and starting tucking my strawberry blonde hair behind my ears. My patience was starting to thin down, and I really hoped someone answered the door soon.
    Anxiety was starting to set in for me. Meeting the McKinnys was something I had been worried about since Marseilles gave my team the case. Many questions were running through my mind, like what if they’re complete rude or skeptical? Or was Mrs. McKinny an emotional wreck about her daughter’s disappearance? I’ve seen CSI and NCIS plenty of times, and the family members of victims and people gone missing always seemed to have something wrong with them, and a couple of fellow Warrior members told me how it was like interrogating victims family or witnesses, and they said it was so awkward at times. Oh my goshness, being a Warrior was starting to set in for me.
    Finally, one of the front doors opened, and standing in the doorway was a girl. She looked to be in her twenties, and she had creamy tan skin, round dark eyes, and her dark hair was pulled off her face in a thick bun. She was wearing a maid’s outfit, not like a costume, a real maid’s outfit, and it showed off her figure. This was defiantly not Mrs. McKinny.
    “Yes?” the young woman asked, having a thick Spanish accent.
    I glanced at Will, expecting him to say something since he was the leader, and Will loved to show off his leadership power. But, when I looked at him, his eyes were wide open and he was looking straight at the maid; I think he was starting to drool. He was such a guy.
    I sighed and stepped in front of Will, “Yes, we’re Warriors, members from the Council’s New York City Magic Committee. My name is Archer Brooks, and Mrs. McKinny called about her daughter’s disappearance,” I was really appreciating how mature and professional I sounded, “It’s nice to meet you, but is Mrs. McKinny or Mr. McKinny home right now?” I asked.
    As I spoke, Will seemed to snap out of his little trance, and he suddenly took his place back standing next to me, he actually nudged me so I stepped back. He grinned, “Yes, we are here over Hannah’s disappearance, as my dear friend and partner just said. My name is Will Snow, it is such a pleasure to meet you, miss.”
    The maid smiled back at Will, “Cynthia. My name is Cynthia Soto-Rios,” she even rolled her ‘r’, “And nice to meet you. Please come inside, do not just stand there in the cold. Ms. Ginerva is running a couple of errands, but she shall be back soon. I believe she will not mind one bit to allow her guests inside while she is out,” Cynthia opened the door wider to let us in. She took a step back and out stretched her arm.
    Will was the first one to go inside, and his eyes never left Cynthia, “Oh no. The pleasure is all mine,” he took her hand a brought it to his lips. Besides from being a Warrior, you could add ‘flirt’ to his résumé.
    I rolled my eyes as I followed after him, and I sped up until I was next to him. I elbowed him in his ribs, “Cool it, Romeo wanna be,” I whispered, “We’re kind of busy right now. Could you please restrain yourself from flirting with the maid?”
    Having a cocky smirk that I would have loved to just smack off, Will looked at me, “Alright, I will keep my hands to myself. But, if she comes on to me, I cannot anything about that, and you know as well as I do that I’m irresistible.” He winked.
    All I could do was elbow Will and sigh. The boy was so full of himself, it was actually really funny instead of it being really annoying.
    Trying to just ignore Will, I looked around the house. The floors were marble, and so clean I could see my reflection when I looked down. I walked into a room I guessed to be the family/entertaining room. There was a large black couch with an L shaped seat, a dark oak coffee table in front of it. It even had a few matching chairs. There was a sleek black entertainment center with the ‘works’, and a large black flat screen TV hung on the wall.
    The walls were painted a warm red color that had a hint of orange. There was a large four panel window with thin white drapes. There was a bookshelf made of the same wood as the coffee table against the wall.
    That was one spruced up room. Someone has defiantly been to IKEA.
    I moved closer to the bookshelf, I noticed a few picture frames. As I reached the shelf, I noticed each frame had the same person in the pictures. Each picture had a girl with ivory skin, dark brown hair, and bright blue eyes. One picture was one of the school photos, and the girl looked around nine years old. She was lying on the ground, her arm on the ground to her torso up. The smile on her face was huge, bright, and genuine; which was odd since most school photos are so forced. This girl must be Hannah.
    I heard gentle footsteps, and turned around to find Bailey standing by the coffee table. The poor girl looked nervous and her body was tense. It had been awhile since she was in someone’s home, and sometimes she had horrible flashbacks of her past.
    Bailey came from an abusive family. Her mother, who was a faery, died when she was born, and her father was a mundane human that became an alcoholic after her death. He would always scream at Bailey, and hit her. Sometimes, he would even throw beer bottles at her; Bailey showed me a couple scars. After a few horrible years, she moved to New York when her aunt, a fellow faery, found out what was happening. Bailey was still a little bit traumatized from that, even though she says she was getting over it and moving past it, I could tell from how she reacted to certain things that some of it would never leave her.
    I saw Bailey sit down on the couch, examining something I must have brushed past. She seemed to have something, so I turned back around to look at the pictures of the girl I thought to be Hannah.
    All of the pictures showed Hannah with a big smile on her face. So she must have a happy life. In a few of the pictures, she wore a lime green and black soccer jersey, black shorts, and cleats. But, what really caught my attention was the last picture. Hannah was wearing a white dress with cap sleeves, and there was a white flower in her hair. She was smiling brightly next to a girl that I realized was Cynthia, and she was wearing a lavender dress that looked like a bridesmaid dress. That wasn’t what caught my attention, though both of them looked really pretty. What caught my attention was a corner of paper slightly sticking out of the picture frame. I carefully tugged on the paper and I pulled it out the rest of the way. I examined the paper, and it felt like it had some age to it, like it was taken a while back. I unfolded the paper, and it was actually another picture. It was a really old picture, like from the eighteen hundreds. It was of a girl look exactly like Hannah, but older, holding a baby.
    I was so confused. I knew this wasn’t Hannah, or her mother. Maybe it was of her great-great grandmother. If it was, why would it be hidden behind a picture of Hannah? I flipped the picture around to see if there was any writing. There was, but it was really faded, but it looked like it said ‘Penelope and Helena’.
    What could this picture mean? In a world like the one magical beings lived in, pictures like this always had another meaning. Who were the girls in the picture?
    “Hey, Arch,” Bailey called, and I turned my head, “look what I found.” I turned around and saw a wooden box on the coffee table. “Come check it out,” Bailey was looking straight at me, so I knew it must been important.
    I quickly tucked the picture in my pocket, not really thinking why. I headed towards Bailey, making sure the picture was secure in my pocket, “What is this?” I asked.
    Bailey shrugged, “I dunno, maybe we should look inside,” she looked nervous, but what else was new? Hopefully being a Warrior and continuing her training will help Bailey come out of her shell.
    I pondered for a moment, “Maybe…” I looked at the box. It seemed just like a plain wooden box, so I thought it would just hold more pictures. But would it be going through private property if Bailey and I looked inside? Hopefully not. The McKinnys did sign a form saying we could search their home, so…I took a risk and reached to open the lid.
    “What are you doing?!” Cynthia was standing far away, but I heard her clearly, her voice started to echo. She looked shocked and horrified all in one. I noticed Will and Percy behind her, trying to see what was going on.
    I jumped and Bailey gave a little cry and stumbled to the floor. I heard a strange noise, and it sounded like Bailey was whimpering. Poor girl. She freaked out anytime someone shouted at her.
    Cynthia darted towards the coffee table with lightning fast speed; she ignored Bailey’s terrified look and shaking body as she reached over and snatched the box. Percy was quick on his feet too, but he went to Bailey. He stuck out his hand, and Bailey took it and scrambled to her feet. She started to cling to him for a little bit, then she looked at him before stepping away from him, her eyes on the floor.
    “What were you doing with this box?” Cynthia demanded, her dark eyes filled with fire as she clutched the box to her chest.
    I was startled. The Cynthia that was standing in front of me was completely different from the Cynthia that opened the door not even ten minutes ago. She made a complete one-eighty. I didn’t say anything; I could tell Cynthia was wanting an answer from Bailey.
    Bailey finally managed to answer, “I-I w-was just looking,” she stuttered out nervously, “I-I’m sorry.” I saw her head drop, and I thought she was going to cry. Bailey really needed to grow a thick skin, but right now I wanted to just hug her.
    Cynthia looked down at the box, then she looked back at Bailey. I noticed her expression grew soft, as if she was starting to regret being so harsh on Bailey and was feeling bad. “No, Ms. Cord, I should be the one to apologize. It was out of place for me to shout at a guest like that. I did not mean to snap like that,” she said softly, “It is just that this box is very special to Master Karver, he does not wish to have a soul touch it; I am surprised it is such an open place…did you open it?”
    Bailey shook her head, “No.”
    “Good, good,” Cynthia gave a sigh, probably a sigh of relief. She glanced at the box for a moment, “When I first started working here a few years ago, I found this once while cleaning. I was very curious, I did not know much about this family, so I though one innocent peek would be that horrible. As I went to look, Master Karver saw me. He grew so angry with me, if it were not for Ms. Ginerva and Hannah, I would have been fired right then.”
    As Cynthia told us this, I felt the picture in my pocket. It felt like it was burning a hole. I adjusted my jeans awkwardly; I noticed Will shoot me a weird look. Embarrassed, I look down and decided to take a new interest in my lucky Old Navy slouchy cowboy boots.
    After what felt to be a few years, because I was having one of my stupid paranoid moments, Cynthia spoke again, “Okay, I am going to put this away,” she motioned towards the box. Then, she picked up the box, turned around, and started to strut away. The thick bun that held her hair back was bouncing. Something else was bouncing too, but I only knew that because Will was watching her and whatever was bouncing, and I knew he wasn’t watching her bun.
    I grabbed Will’s shoulder and forced him around, “Will, please stay focused,” I pleaded, squeezing his shoulders.
    Will smirked, that weird twinkle coming back in his eye, “I am focused, Arch.”
    “Focus on the case, not Cynthia.”
    Will laughed, and wriggled his brows, “Fine, I’ll focus more on the case. But, Archer, you need to not worry so much about me,” he gently placed his hand over mine and removed it from his shoulder, then squeezed it and held it, “You’ll worry so much that you’ll get sick, and get wrinkles. I don’t think you would want that.”
    I sighed, Will was now acting like the Will I knew and loved; the sweet, gentle side of him. Sure he was being annoying, but he did small stuff, like hold my hand, to let me know he was kidding around. But, right now wasn’t a time to kid around, “I wouldn’t worry if our team had a focused leader.” I tugged my hand away and turned away from him.
    I was facing Bailey and Percy (the two normal members). Bailey still had a terrified look on her face, and Percy looked like he was trying to comfort her. They were speaking to each other with low voices; I could hardly hear anything they were saying.
    They stopped talking when they saw me. So, I cleared my throat, “Okay, since Will is off in his own world fantasizing about Cynthia, I’ll just handle all of his ‘leader question’ stuff,” I said, wondering what was so fun about being in charge, “So, what did y’all find?”
    Bailey looked like she was about to say something, but Percy’s firm hand came upon her shoulder; it quickly silenced her, “I think we all know what you found, Bailey,” he said, trying to sound gentle.
    Quickly, Bailey looked down at the floor, and I noticed her cheeks flushed a dark scarlet.
    Percy looked away from Bailey and met my eyes, “Well, I didn’t find much,” he said, scratching the back of his head, “All I got is that Mr. McKinny has not been home in two weeks. That was what Cynthia told me and Will.”
    I gave an encouraging smile, “Well it’s still something,” I said, making a metal note of that, “Did she mention anything else extra, like why he’s gone or where he went?”
    Percy shook his head, “Nope, but I think we shouldn’t look that far into, Karver McKinny is a businessman, that’s what they do. Travel.” He crossed his arms and shivered suddenly, “Damn! Maybe I should’ve brought a coat. Maybe I should have listened to your nagging this morning.” At first I thought he was being mean, but I noticed a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. “Did anyone else feel that breeze?”
    Bailey’s arms were crossed, “I sure as heck did,” she spoke through chattering teeth, “Did someone open a door?”
    I shrugged, and looked at Percy, “Anyway, it’s still interesting that Mr. McKinny is away from his family while his daughter is missing. Wouldn’t he want to stay and make sure Hannah was found?”
    Percy didn’t respond at first, but he started to pop his knuckles, “Well he left two weeks ago; Hannah wasn’t reported missing until a few days ago.”
    “Well, it’s still interesting that he didn’t come straight home, right?” I placed my hands on my hips.
    This time, Percy didn’t respond, he just looked down at the floor.
    Realizing Will had been pretty quiet, I looked behind and noticed he was gone.
    A groan escaped from my lips. This really wasn't the best time for him to go all 'MIA' on the team. He was such a dumbass. Okay, I shouldn't say that, he's not that bad, plus that was just super rude on my part. But, the boy was definatly giving me a headache. I could probably bet money that he was doing the whole 'MIA' thing to annoy the heck outta me. I'd win that bet.
    Bailey must have noticed my exasperated look, "What's wrong, Arch?" she asked, her Southern twang making her voice sound sweeter and more innocent, like a little girl was asking me the question instead of my best friend that was almost 17.
    I sighed, "It's nothing, Bailey," my voice sounded flat, "I just can't seem to find Will. It's like he just vanished in a poof of smoke."
    Bailey's eyes widen as she looked behind me. I guess she just noticed his abstience. "Oh," she murmered, her voice hardly a whisper.
    Percy shrugged, "He's probably going after Cynthia, again. Man, that guy needs to chill out. He's like a horny dog trying to find a good leg to hump."
    Bailey and I started to giggled quietly, which interrupted Percy's monologue.
    Percy glanced at us, then continued, "Anyway, if I thought Cynthia was hot, I would just keep that to myself, not chase after her like some desperate guy trying to find a good time."
    I looked at Percy, astonished. That was a lot for him to say. On a good day, he normally spits out a few short fragments. This was like a whole freaking paragraph! (If you knew Percy for as long as I did, you'd understand).
    But, what really astonished me was Bailey. She stared straight at Percy (she had issues with eye contact, so that was the first surprise), "So," she said softly, then increased the volume of her voice, "Do you think Cynthia's hot?"
    That was pretty surprising to hear Bailey say, because normally the girl was too afraid to even ask Percy a question. Though, Percy's reactions killed me. His eyes went wide, and his entire head, scalp included, turned the brightest red I'd ever see. What in the world was going on with those two?!
    "Um, uh," Percy momentarily stumbled with his words, "She is pretty, I mean, Cynthia is attractive.... but not my type at all," Suddenly, his expression grew soft and serious at the same time as he stared straight at Bailey, "She's too much of an exotic flower for my liking, I'm more of a Texas rose man myself."
    Suddenly, I felt the 'heat' (if you catch my drift) and stepped forward, "Guys, whoa there. Settle down the hormones, we need to focus." I interrupted, looking at the two of them. I wasn't trying to be a nag or bossy or anything, but the last thing I needed was my two remaining team members flirting with each other. I tried to sound funny when I said that to them, so they woudn't get all defensive; I'd understand if they still did.
    Percy cleared his throat, shooting me a not so happy look, "Right, my bad," he said calmly, though I could tell he was not the biggest fan of that I had just said. "We need to do a bit more investigation."
    "Yeah," Bailey murmured in agreement, "Is anyone else home besides Cynthia?"
    "Well, there's always me."
    The mysterious fourth voice caused all three of us to turn. On the spiraling staircase stood a beautiful girl that I did not know. She looked to be around Percy's age, so she wasn't that much older than me. Dark chocolate colored locks cascaded past her shoulders and off-set her fair skin and red dress. The dress was also strapless and made of jersey, and it was draped like it was made for a Greek goddes. The golden glatiator sandals also added to the Greek goddess effect. I noticed a small silver chain around her neck, and a small ruby red ball at her throat.
    The girl was staring at us with deep blue eyes, and her curvy lips were pressed together. She was like the spitting image of Hannah, that was the first thought in mind, and so she must be an older sister or something.
    "Who are you?" Percy asked, finally breaking the silence that hung in the air like falling fireworks. He was staring at the mystery girl, but he didn't do the whole 'Imma check you out cuz I think you're hot' thing some guys did; Percy was looking straight at her face.
    I watched the girl. She did not answer, but yet she started down the steps, and she had her hand on the railing; she was acting as if she was a princess making a regal entrance to a ball. I did have to admit, she did look like a princess.
    "My name is Penelope," the girl finally answered, walking slowly down the steps with a grace that could most certainly be considered regal. "Now, may I ask who you three are and why you are in my home?"
    She was now on the floor in front of us, and I noticed she was looking at Percy. She did not have a terrified look like some people who first meet him did, but more of an intrigued look.
    Penelope smiled, and placed a delicate hand on Percy's arm, "It is quiet nice to meet you, what is your name?" she asked in a sweet and polite tone.
    I noticed Bailey, who was next to me, shift uncomfortably, and I shot her a look.
    Percy didn't even phase the hand on his arm, "My name is Percy Harrison." he nodded his head politly, "Pleasure to meet you, miss." He shrugged his shoulders and brushed off Penelope's hand.
    I couldn't help but smile. That was the great thing about Percy. Even when a girl is touching his arm in a affectionate way (as a way to be polite), Percy still managed to stay cool. I had to admit he was being a bit cold, like the way he brushed of Penelope hand, but I could tell he was uncomfortable. Most girls don't even aknowledge him, they mostly talk to Will, since he's Will and overly friendly. Not even my fellow female Warriors at HQ noticed him. So, Percy was not use to attention from the opposite sex.
    Penelope pressed her lips together, looking a bit upset, "Oh no," she smiled again, "It is all of my pleasure, since you seem to be guests in my home." she locked her slim fingered hands together and turned to Bailey and I, "What are your names?" she smiled.
    People would think she was faking the politness, since stereotypical rich girls are seen as snobs, but she was genuine. I could see that, so I already liked this girl, "My name is Archer Brooks, nice meetin' you, Penelope," I smiled back.
    Bailey stood next to her, "And I'm Bailey Cord," She didn't seem to have her normal chipper 'sweet Texas twang' self in check. Bailey wasn't even smiling. Wonder what had her shoelaces in a knot. (Nerdy a saying, I know it was. Get use to it, I have lots of them)
    "Pleased to meet both of you, Archer and Bailey," Penelope then gave a quick curtsy, which shocked me. I didn't know people were still taught to curtsy. I guess it was just Penelope and her family. That was actually pretty cool. I'd curtsy if I actually wore skirts and dresses.
    "Well, this is a nice surpirse," Percy chimed in, "We thought Cynthia was the only one home, we're the Warriors that are here to investigate Hannah's disappearence."
    Penelope's eyes widen, "You're the people that are going to find my little sister?" she gasped, sounding shocked and happy.
    I smiled, as suddenly everything seemed to be going smooth; despite the fact Bailey kept glaring at Penelope, which was so un-Bailey like. I would have to talk to her when we got home.
    Anyway, as all seemed well, that's when I heard the horrifying shriek coming from the distance. It sounded like it was coming from the direction I saw Cynthia disappear to. And Will was probably with her.
    Without a second thought, I looked at Bailey and Percy, nodded my head, then dashed in the direction of the shriek.