Luthier's Apprentice, The Read Online Free PDF Page B

Emma whispered. She glanced over her shoulder at Van Ketts. “We were just looking at these magazines. We’re leaving now.”
    “No problem, girls,” he said.
    Emma rolled her eyes. The meddling... why didn’t he mind his own business?
    “Let’s go,” Emma murmured. “Remember not to let Madame Dupriez out of your sight. I’ll need at least half an hour—minimum.”
    “Got it.”
    They walked out of Van Ketts’ Kiosk and into the street. Annika went straight to Madame Dupriez’s front door. Emma hastened across the front yard and hid behind the rhododendron bushes right under the study windows, several feet away from the door. Peering from between the branches, she saw Annika ring the doorbell.
    The door opened, but from her position, Emma couldn’t see Madame Dupriez.
    “ Oui ?” Madame Dupriez asked.
    “ Bonjour , Madame,” Annika said. “I’m sorry to bother you, but I was wondering if you saw what happened to your roses.”
    “What did you say? What’s wrong with my roses? I was just getting ready to leave.”
    “Can I show you?” Annika beckoned. “It’s something very strange. I mean, really, really far out. You see, some of them have turned…orange.”
    But even before Annika finished her sentence Madame Dupriez was running toward her roses. Emma could see both of them clearly now.
    “ Mon Dieu! ” Madame Dupriez said. “They are orange!  Orange ! Who did this? These roses have been painted with spray paint! See here? Some of the leaves are orange, too.” The woman switched to French and went on and on.
    “That’s terrible,” Annika said, shaking her head. Her tone was disapproving and wise. “What some deranged people will do in the spirit of Halloween.”
    Madame Dupriez looked hard at Annika. “Aren’t you Emma’s redheaded friend, Annika?”
    “Actually, um, yes, yes I am.”
    Emma didn’t waste more time. While Madame Dupriez vented her frustration on Annika, she ran to the front door and sneaked inside. Her pulse raced as she tried to find a safe place to hide. The sitting room? The kitchen? The bathroom? Where? Madame Dupriez could be back any second. Luckily, having been a student of Monsieur Dupriez for so long, she was familiar with the house.
    Emma decided to hide inside the pantry. She ran to the kitchen and opened the pantry door.
    To her horror, someone was already hiding in there. Her gasp was muffled as a strong hand closed over her mouth. Another hand yanked her inside and closed the pantry door.
    “Shhh… quiet!” the stranger whispered.
    She struggled to free herself, but the hands held her like a grizzly bear.
    “Don’t be a fool! Do you want her to find us?” the stranger said.
    Emma’s heart thudded and her mind whirled.

Chapter Eight
    E MMA HEARD VOICES COMING FROM THE front of the house, but they didn’t last very long. A moment later a door shut, leaving behind total silence. The hands holding her now loosened their grip.
    Emma jammed her elbow into the stranger’s torso, pushed open the pantry door, and spun around.
    “Who are you?” she demanded.
    “Who are you ?” he asked back, stepping out of the pantry. He held the side of his stomach. “Did you have to do that?”
    “What did you expect? And you still haven’t answered my question.”
    “Neither have you,” he said.
    The stranger looked about her age, but he was taller—a lot taller. He had alert, brilliant green eyes to die for, raven black hair and an arrogant, way too good-looking face that instantly annoyed her. He was dressed in a dark green hoodie and jeans, and had a slight accent she couldn’t quite place.
    “Monsieur Dupriez was—is—my teacher,” Emma said.
    “Well, we have one thing in common. He’s my teacher, too. What are you doing here?”
    “That’s not any of your business.”
    “You sneaked in here for a reason. You don’t look like a thief, so my guess is you’re here for the same reason as I am.”
    Emma crossed her arms against her chest.