Tag’s phone alarm sounded at midnight. He’d set the sound effect to “Bell Tower.”
Alex and I made eye contact. He smirked and I smirked back. Tag was such a nerd.
But we were still missing our final crew member—our final fool.
“He has until 12:01,” Tag said, seemingly unconcerned. “I suspected he’d be last.”
“Oh, so it’s half-and-half, then?” Zoe said. “Three guys, three girls?”
Tag nodded. “You all bring something critical to the table.”
I suddenly wanted to shake him.What is on this freaking table?!
Alex sighed. “Just tell us what’s going on already, Jester.”
“Yeah—Jester! I’m here… I’m—ready!” a new but familiar voice said. Manik Patel was panting like he’d just run a marathon. More confused than ever, I watched him edge in between Alex and Zoe. He pointed at Tag and his ridiculous hat. “You were my third guess.” He turned to Alex. “You were my first.”
“Who was your second?” Zoe asked.
“Blair Greenberg.”
I couldn’t have rolled my eyes harder.
“Well, congratulations,” Alex said acerbically. “Two out of your top three are here.” He flicked one of Tag’s bells. “Jester, the floor is yours.”
“Thank you.” Tag took off his hat and stuffed it in his backpack. What happened to not wanting noise? “Alright, it’s simple,” he said. “Complex, but ultimately simple.”
His five fools leaned in, eager as ever. What were we doing that involved keys?
I held my breath as our Jester took a deep one, then said, “We’re going to steal the Almanacs.”
SIX
“What?!” everyone exclaimed before shushing one another. “Steal the Almanacs?” we said in lower voices. “You want us tostealthe Almanacs?”
Tag winked. “Yes.”
No one knew how to respond except Manik, who let out a legitimatesquawk…and for a fair reason. He was the yearbook’seditor in chief. If Tag wanted us to commit this crime, why had he invited one of the people it affected most?
“We don’t have time to fully unpack this,” Tag said quickly, “but think about it. The Jester’s previous pranks have always beenimmediate.” He subtly glanced at me. “We woke up, heard about the prank, had a good laugh, and then it was over.” He paused. “What if we were to draw things out more? Someone will notice that the Almanacs are gone when they unbox them tomorrow for distribution, but that doesn’t mean they’re going to get them back right away. It’ll spread that they’re missing, and campus will go wild.” He gave us a look. “We know how much Ames loves the Almanacs.”
Again, nobody spoke. It was true; we cherished the yearbooks, poring over their pages for days.
“I’m in,” Alex declared. “I’m totally in.”
Zoe and Maya giggled. “So we’re going to hide the Almanacs and hold them hostage?”
“In a sense,” Tag answered before explaining the second phase of his plan. Which, I had to admit, smirking a little, was mastermind-level genius. Even Alex had a dreamy grin on his face.
But again, Manik was here. Why was Manik here? “Tag, is that why you called FedEx and demanded to speak to their supervisor?” he asked. “Was it to ensure the Almanacs were delivered on time for this?”
“Youaskedmeto handle it, Manik,” Tag reminded him coolly as something twisted in my stomach. I remembered Daniel telling me about the recent delayed delivery and how assistant photo editor Tag had been the hero.
He got the yearbooks, I thought,just to steal them.
“I’m sorry,” Manik said, adjusting his glasses, “but I don’t know if I can condone this. The Almanac…”
“…is your pride and joy,” Tag said. “The yearbook is your baby, Patel.”
