The Brindle house was fully lit when we paused near the corner to get our bearings. My attempts to reach Sassafras failed over and over. I knew better than to try, but couldn't seem to resist each attempt, hoping perhaps I'd break through somehow.

"The whole family is home, I presume." Vasek had recovered his air of arrogance if not fully his good humor by then. "How then do you propose extracting the boy?"

I hadn't thought that far ahead and didn't appreciate his ...