Arbogast held the gun loosely in his right hand and motioned toward the hatch with his left. \u201cYou two just go on ahead,\u201d he said in what struck Mabel as a remarkably casual tone. \u201cI\u2019ll bring up the rear.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tMabel followed Van into the plane\u2019s hold. Behind them, Arbogast paused and eyed Norton critically.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI think I remember you,\u201d he said with a slight grimace. \u201cThe years have not been kind.\u201d He returned his gaze to Mabel and almost smiled. \u201cYou kids know nothing about the perils of aging.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tNorton seemed barely to have noticed Arbogast at all. He had fitted Peter Crockett\u2019s pilot cap onto his head, and was exploring the Star\u2019s controls with reverence and obvious delight.<\/p>\n
\n\tSparkle, nesting with Sig at Ivy\u2019s feet in the passenger hold, thumped her tail in acknowledgement as the kids entered the hold. But as Arbogast climbed down behind Mabel, the fur on Sparkle\u2019s back bristled and she emitted a low growl.<\/p>\n
\n\tArbogast glanced at her distastefully. \u201cThrow them out,\u201d he said, waving his weapon toward the dogs.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cWe can\u2019t\u201d said Mabel. \u201cYou\u2019re just going to have to believe me. If you want to go where we\u2019re going, we need the dogs.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tArbogast sneered, but dropped the subject to Mabel\u2019s surprise and relief, since she knew she could offer no better explanation.<\/p>\n
\n\tVan sat down next to Ivy and patted a spot between them where Mabel could just squeeze in. \u201cI told you there\u2019s no room for you,\u201d Van said, glaring at Arbogast.<\/p>\n
\n\tMabel wished he would hush. She couldn\u2019t see any point in antagonizing an armed lunatic, but Arbogast merely raised his eyebrows and smiled.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cDon\u2019t worry, I won\u2019t be sitting,\u201d said Arbogast. \u201cI don\u2019t care for that strapped in feeling. But you, Miss Crockett…\u201d he said motioning toward the empty seat.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI need to turn on the computer,\u201d said Mabel. \u201cIt will help us navigate.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cCharming,\u201d exclaimed Arbogast. \u201cI should have known. You Crockett\u2019s are always thinking up new ways to solve problems. Go right ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tAfter a minute of humming and whirring, Bailey\u2019s eager voice piped up. \u201cGood morning, Peter, where to today?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cBailey, it\u2019s not Peter, it\u2019s Mabel,\u201d said Mabel, hoping the computer\u2019s voice recognition software was programmed to know her.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cOne moment please,\u201d said Bailey. Mabel could hear the computer\u2019s hard drive spinning, first fast, then settling to a low hum.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cMabel Crockett,\u201d said Bailey, \u201cyes, you\u2019ve been voice-printed as a safety precaution. I\u2019ll rephrase my question. Good morning Mabel, where to today?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tArbogast crouched against the plane\u2019s wall, fixing Mabel with a questioning gaze. \u201cIndeed, Miss Crockett,\u201d he asked, \u201cwhere to?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cNorth,\u201d replied Mabel.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cThat\u2019s a rather non-specific directive,\u201d said Bailey. \u201cI hope you\u2019ll narrow that selection down once we\u2019re airborne.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cBailey,\u201d said Mabel, trying to sound more confident than she felt, \u201cwe\u2019re going to be relying on the way things look from up there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cWell,\u201d responded Bailey, \u201cit\u2019s not my place to protest, but I trust you\u2019ll give me more information when it becomes available.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cOkay then,\u201d said Van impatiently, \u201clet\u2019s go.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cMr. Halfslip?\u201d said Mabel to Norton. \u201cNorth.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tNorton turned and looked down at the kids. He grinned again, gave another enthusiastic thumbs up, and turned back to the controls.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI hope,\u201d whispered Van, \u201che knows what he\u2019s doing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIt sounds okay,\u201d said Mabel as the Star began to vibrate with the rattle of its engine. \u201cAnd he looks okay.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tIndeed, from the rear, Norton appeared to be handling the controls with the same ease that he repotted ferns. He began to taxi, then turn, and it still felt quite normal to Mabel. The Star now faced the length of the field which served as a runway.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cHere we go,\u201d said Mabel quietly, in anticipation of rapid acceleration.<\/p>\n
\n\tRapid was a completely inadequate word to describe what happened next. No sooner had the Star gained an inch of ground when the kids were pinned to their seat backs with the force of speed.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cCripes,\u201d said Van growing slightly pale, \u201cdoes…it always…feel…like this?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tBy the time Mabel could even formulate a response, the nose lifted, and she could feel the Star gaining altitude at a rate she\u2019d never experienced flying with her father. She looked at Norton. His wrinkled head was bobbing with obvious glee. The engine\u2019s roar kicked up a notch as the Star gained yet more speed.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cHe thinks,\u201d said Van, looking a bit ill, \u201che\u2019s in Billy Limpit\u2019s Flying Circus!\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tMabel winced. \u201cLet\u2019s just hope he doesn\u2019t try a loop-de-loop.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cMiss Crockett,\u201d broke in the voice of Verdon Arbogast.<\/p>\n
\n\tOh gosh, yeah, he\u2019s<\/strong> here,<\/em> thought Mabel. She looked behind her and saw Arbogast, struggling not to tumble into a stack of life-vests and parachutes.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cMay I suggest you attend to the business of navigating,\u201d he said with clipped impatience.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIf you don\u2019t know where we\u2019re going,\u201d said Van, turning around, \u201cthen why are you so hot to get there?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tArbogast gave Van a condescending smirk. \u201cYes,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s unfortunate that I\u2019m not privy to the information I\u2019d need to find Jonah Crockett myself. There\u2019s only one person whom Crockett is that anxious to see. Only one whom the forces that he must have befriended have seen fit to supply with two and two.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cTwo and two?\u201d asked Mabel.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYes, Miss Crockett,\u201d said Arbogast. \u201cAnd if you\u2019re a bright enough girl to put two and two together, you\u2019ll find that they make four…and that\u2019s,\u201d he continued, \u201cwhy we\u2019ve become such good friends.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cRight,\u201d said Mabel.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYou have seemed pretty sure about getting us this far,\u201d said Van to Mabel. \u201cNow what?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tMabel leaned over Ivy\u2019s lap and looked out the window. The landscape below was solid green, with subtle frostings of red and gold. Forests, north of Logjam, stretched as far as one could see, the treetops broken only by the snaking crack of the Willibunk River. But Mabel\u2019s head felt vacant. There was something she was supposed to know, and it just wasn\u2019t there.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWhat do you need Jonah Crockett for?\u201d Mabel asked Arbogast, to change the subject.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWe\u2019re old friends, your father and I,\u201d replied Arbogast. He chuckled darkly. \u201cEmphasis on old.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tIt sounded too strange. Mabel could not envision a father apart from the one she knew.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cSchool chums,\u201d continued Arbogast, in a vaguely distant voice, \u201cclass mates, study partners…and he was smart, too. Knew his sciences cold.\u201d Arbogast settled onto a pile of life vests as Norton eased the Star to a slower cruising speed.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYes, and Jonah was discreet. I wouldn\u2019t have had anyone else to my house…didn\u2019t want anyone else to know.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tMabel had to ask. \u201cWhat didn\u2019t you want them to know?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tArbogast let out a bitter laugh. \u201cThat my father was a doddering, drooling, helplessly infantile pile of ancient bones. But mother would not institutionalize him, oh no. She dressed, bathed, and spoon-fed him, for anyone who walked in the house to see. It mortified me.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tThere was silence, then Bailey\u2019s voice. \u201cMabel Crockett, I await further instructions when you are ready.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tMabel leaned over Ivy, who had fallen asleep, and again peered out the window. The curving line of the Willibunk had begun to sprout occasional branches as tributaries from the east and west fed into it. Her mind was still blank. \u201cI\u2019ll let you know, Bailey,\u201d she said, hoping fervently that something about this trip would start to make sense.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYou got something against old people?\u201d asked Van.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThe helpless indignity of it all,\u201c replied Arbogast with a shudder. \u201cI could not envision ever finding myself in that condition. I studied for years, quite hopeful that somewhere in my studies I would uncover a secret to maintaining indefinite health. And Jonah…forgot…\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tSig maneuvered himself into a cozy position under Mabel\u2019s hand, and she scratched his back absentmindedly. <\/p>\n \n\t\u201cHey, Mr. Arbogast,\u201d began Van in a tactless tone which Mabel knew well. \u201cHelp us out here. Are you a lot older than you look, or are you just totally wigged out?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cMy chronological age,\u201d answered Arbogast, \u201cis 105.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tMabel gasped slightly. She\u2019d seen the yearbook photo, but how could this be?<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cSo,\u201d continued Van, \u201cas you\u2019ve so obviously found the scientific key to youthfulness, why haven\u2019t you shared it with the world?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYes…\u201d replied Arbogast thoughtfully, \u201cthe scientific key. We were just teenagers, but we agreed,\u201d<\/em> he said glaring accusingly at Mabel. \u201cWe agreed that we would share our findings with each other!\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYou mean you and Jonah?\u201d asked Mabel, cringing slightly. <\/p>\n \n\tArbogast raised his eyebrows and nodded.<\/p>\n \n\tMabel continued. \u201cWhat happened to Jonah?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cMany unfortunate things,\u201d replied Arbogast, rearranging his bench of life vests. \u201cFirst,\u201d he continued, raising an index finger dramatically, \u201che became obsessed with pretty little Laura, and no longer needed his old friends. Then the two of them became equally obsessed with that teacher…that Wickers woman, and Jonah lost his grasp of scientific rationality. All he would talk about was plants and healing, and other airy-fairy mumbo-jumbo. Nonsense.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAnd then the fire,\u201d said Mabel. \u201cWhat about the fire?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tArbogast rolled his eyes and snorted slightly. \u201cAh yes, the fire. Picture this if you will. My friend, who undeniably made a pact with me, dumps me, fakes his own death…and then, when he finally discovers a key to longevity, conveniently forgets that he ever knew a Verdon Arbogast…\u2019Verdon…who\u2019s he…can\u2019t say I know anyone by that name…\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cMr. Arbogast,\u201d said Van impatiently, \u201cPardon me if I\u2019m overstepping my bounds here, but your story has some major loose ends.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tArbogast folded his arms across his chest and turned his head toward Van. \u201cI\u2019ll pardon you. Ask away.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIf you haven\u2019t discovered the secret to youth and beauty,\u201d asked Van, \u201chow is it that you\u2019re even still alive?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAnd,\u201d continued Mabel, \u201cwhat makes you so sure that Jonah Crockett is still alive?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cFair enough,\u201d replied Arbogast. \u201cI\u2019ll take Mr. Peale\u2019s query first.\u201d He resettled himself on the life vests and leaned forward. \u201cI scarcely learned a useful thing. People are born, people get old, people die. It was quite depressing. The future, to my way of thinking, looked bleak…I used to sit by the river. Found it pacifying, you know, the noise the water makes. Well, one day, as I sat there, I met a…a woman.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOoh,\u201d said Van, \u201ca woman…let me guess…your fairy godmother?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYou\u2019re too cute for your own good,\u201d replied Arbogast. \u201cAnd a lot closer to the truth than you meant to be. Jenny does have special ways about her…\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tArbogast leaned back against the wall of the plane and, momentarily, a dreamy look relaxed his face so his expression was almost pleasant. But it was a fleeting change. Just as suddenly the tension and sarcasm returned.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cTypical female,\u201d Arbogast continued. \u201cDisturbingly possessive…wants everything her way. So, yes…I\u2019ve borrowed a few tricks from her. But my abilities fade if I\u2019m apart from her for long, which is why…\u201d Arbogast said with a sudden directness Mabel felt was aimed her way, \u201cI was so interested to learn that Jonah Crockett had not burnt to a crisp so many years before, but in fact had fathered a daughter…a mere thirteen and a half years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tMabel was again almost painfully aware of Arbogast\u2019s gaze, boring into her, but now she was tired of avoiding it. \u201cOkay, fine,\u201d she said with mild exasperation. \u201cHow do you know Jonah has a daughter, and what makes you so sure it\u2019s me?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIt seems,\u201d replied Arbogast, \u201cthat your father and my lady friend have some mutual acquaintances. Now, I\u2019d be the first to admit that it sounds like utter nonsense, but it has something to do with trees…\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cDryads,\u201d said Mabel.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYes,\u201d responded Arbogast. \u201cAnd I happened to overhear a conversation between Jenny and a particularly annoying little creature called Lida referring to how Jonah and Laura were so anxious to see their daughter, who lived in Logjam, and how they were making efforts to summon her.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cSo what are you bugging Mabel for?\u201d asked Van. \u201cWhy didn\u2019t you just ask Lida how to find Jonah?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThose things won\u2019t talk to me,\u201d Arbogast said curtly.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThen you should have asked your girlfriend,\u201d replied Mabel.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI did discreetly inquire,\u201d said Arbogast looking pained. \u201cPerhaps I\u2019ve neglected to mention…Jenny has a bit of a temper problem.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cShe got mad?\u201d asked Mabel.<\/p>\n \n\tArbogast grimaced. \u201cTo put it mildly.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWhy?\u201d asked Mabel.<\/p>\n \n\tArbogast sighed and stretched his legs out. \u201cJenny is, unfortunately, extraordinarily perceptive about certain things. She correctly surmised that if I got what I wanted from Jonah Crockett, then I might no longer feel committed to our…relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cSo she wouldn\u2019t tell you,\u201d concluded Van.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cNo,\u201d replied Arbogast. \u201cWhich left me with one means to find Jonah. Locate the daughter and follow her. And believe me Miss Crockett, in a town the size of Logjam it was not a difficult task to pick you out.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tMabel repositioned Sig on her lap and gently ran her fingers along the white streaks on his back. \u201cWhat do you think Jonah is going to do for you?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cLet\u2019s do some math,\u201d replied Arbogast. \u201cIf my old friend Crockett is now 105 years old, and his daughter is 13, then how old was Crockett when his daughter was born?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cHe was 92,\u201d answered Mabel.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWith a wife of 91,\u201d continued Arbogast, \u201cAnd how many nonagenarians do you think become parents on a routine basis?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIt can happen,\u201d said Van, \u201cat least with the dad.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cTo be technical, yes,\u201d acknowledged Arbogast, \u201cbut to be fathering children at such an advanced age would seem to suggest that a man had retained more than the usual amount of sprightliness, wouldn\u2019t you say?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOkay,\u201d said Mabel.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cAnd given Crockett\u2019s interest in such subjects as health and longevity, I would conclude that he\u2019s learned some tricks that he has neglected to share with his old school mate.\u201d Arbogast smiled, and continued. \u201cTricks that might prove very useful to someone like myself who hopes to free himself from the confines of a rather suffocating relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tVan peered over the seat back. \u201cSo once Jonah \u2018fesses up about how you too can maintain your youthful good looks, you can dump Jenny.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cSo to speak,\u201d replied Arbogast.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThat sounds really dumb,\u201d said Mabel.<\/p>\n \n\tArbogast sniffed. \u201cEasy to say when you\u2019ve barely broken the decade mark.\u201d His gaze hardened a bit. \u201cBut let\u2019s not neglect the task at hand, Miss Crockett. Have you yet any clue where we\u2019re going?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tAgain Mabel felt a sinking sensation that she was responsible for directing this plane-load of people, currently flying aimlessly north over the Willibunk forest. Still feeling nothing but blankness and confusion, she looked at the ground below. The only change in the landscape was an increase in the number of tributaries feeding into to Willibunk. As the river zig-zagged north to south, many more cracks broke the treetops creating the appearance of a lightning bolt turned upside-down. Rather, she noticed, like the pattern she was stroking on Sig\u2019s fluffy back.<\/p>\n \n\tSparkle edged her soft muzzle under Mabel\u2019s other hand. \u201cHandsome, isn\u2019t he?\u201d came her silent words.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYes…\u201d said Mabel, tracing her finger along Sig\u2019s central white stripe. The streak veered from straight along his backbone, to a sharp left, then a gentle right leading back to a straight bit. She abruptly shifted her gaze to the river below. The line of the Willibunk headed due north, shifting acutely to the left, then gently back to the right, where it continued for a piece in a north-south line. \u201cNo…\u201d said Mabel quietly.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cNo what?\u201d asked Van.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWait,\u201d she replied. On the puppy\u2019s back, diagonal streaks shot out from the central stripe, a crooked one on the right just below a straight one on the left.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cNo way…\u201d she said as she returned her gaze to the river. On the east bank of the Willibunk a crooked creek fed into the river, while just to the north, on the west bank, a ramrod straight creek joined the river\u2019s flow. \u201cAnd next,\u201d Mabel said, still tracing her finger along Sig\u2019s back, \u201can even wider creek will flow in at a right angle, from the west.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWell, yeah,\u201d said Van, pointing out the window, it\u2019s right down there for anybody to see.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cI\u2019m going to tell you the next one without looking, Van,\u201d said Mabel. \u201cOn the east bank you\u2019ll see a skinny little stream wiggling east, then making a right angle and heading north before it disappears.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cDid you memorize this stuff?\u201d asked Van.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cNo, Van, it\u2019s right here,\u201d Mabel replied stroking Sig\u2019s back.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOn the dog?\u201d he asked incredulously.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cSee this star?\u201d said Mabel pointing to the marking on Sig\u2019s left shoulder. \u201cThat\u2019s where we\u2019re going.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tVan looked at the puppy\u2019s back. \u201cYeah,\u201d he said before rolling his eyes, and putting his head in his hands. \u201cYou better tell Norton.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tMabel put Sig gently down on her seat and leaned over Norton\u2019s shoulder. \u201cMr. Halfslip,\u201d she said. \u201cWe need to begin going down. See the creek coming in up there from the northwest?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tNorton nodded excitedly.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cJust where it veers to the west and becomes too small to see…that\u2019s where we\u2019re landing.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cIn the trees, Miss Crockett?\u201d interrupted the sharp voice of Verdon Arbogast.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cYeah,\u201d replied Mabel, her confidence growing.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cMabel, there\u2019s no landing strip,\u201d protested Van.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWe have to,\u201d insisted Mabel, and already Norton had edged the Star into a descent. <\/p>\n \n\tArbogast hoisted himself off his life-vest pile and pushed Van out of the way to get a better look out the window. \u201cWhat kind of fool would attempt to land an airplane there?\u201d he asked agitatedly.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cA stunt pilot from Billy Limpit\u2019s Flying Circus,\u201d replied Van, as if the answer were obvious, \u201cand if you don\u2019t mind, I\u2019m a little squashed here.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cLet\u2019s hope that\u2019s the most squashing you\u2019ll get today,\u201d said Arbogast. He paled slightly and edged himself wobbily back onto the life-vest stack. <\/p>\n \n\tThe Star jostled its passengers as it descended through turbulent air toward the point Mabel had indicated.<\/p>\n \n\tBailey whirred for a few seconds. \u201cI\u2019m sorry my programming was not of use in navigating this flight,\u201d the computer voice said. \u201cBut I can, at this point in our descent, strongly recommend the use of seat belts.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThanks Bailey, in a minute,\u201d said Mabel, still looking over Norton\u2019s shoulder at the forest into which they were now rapidly descending. Just where the creek bent in a westerly direction, she noticed a difference in the appearance of the tree canopies. In contrast to being packed in randomly, as the trees grew in the rest of the forest, the treetops on the south bank of the creek resembled a swirl. Concentric swirls, in fact, creating the appearance of a large green fingerprint. <\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThat\u2019s where we\u2019re going, Mr. Halfslip,\u201d she said. Norton nodded enthusiastically, and vigorously made some equipment adjustments. <\/p>\n \n\tMabel returned to her seat and strapped on the belt. \u201cThe dogs, Van,\u201d said Mabel, scooping up Sparkle and placing her in Van\u2019s arms. Then she did her best to secure Sig. <\/p>\n \n\t\u201cOkay, everybody, hang on,\u201d she said before experiencing an unexpected pang of guilt. \u201cMr. Arbogast,\u201d said Mabel, \u201cgrab onto something and hold tight.\u201d <\/p>\n \n\tMabel took a brief glance out the window, noting that the treetops were frighteningly close. She cradled Sig with her arms and lap and shut her eyes tight.<\/p>\n \n\tThe Star hummed as Norton activated the landing gear. Mabel\u2019s stomach did a somersault when the plane dropped several sudden feet. Then she heard nothing but the rush of a thousand branches whipping the sides of the Star, and earth and plane collided, sending the Star into a lurching, spinning cartwheel which ended in an abrupt, but surprisingly soft dismount as if the plane had come to rest against an embankment of springs.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Arbogast held the gun loosely in his right hand and motioned toward the hatch with his left. \u201cYou two just go on ahead,\u201d he said in what struck Mabel as a remarkably casual tone. \u201cI\u2019ll bring up the rear.\u201d Mabel followed Van into the plane\u2019s hold. Behind them, Arbogast paused and eyed Norton critically. \u201cI […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[8],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=294"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":295,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/294\/revisions\/295"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=294"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=294"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=294"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}