Page 79 of The Dreidl Disaster

Not to mention, he desperately needed to find a way to get a message to Liv without telling her. He had to show her he trusted her.

He picked up his phone and went through his contacts, making notes, and a game plan. There were a bunch of calls he needed to make before the sculpture arrived and Hanukkah started in Briarwood.

The next morning, he left Abe’s place, having arranged with Emily Gould-Smythe to borrow some office space in one of the buildings the Empires owned in Hollowville.

“I have to make a few calls,” he’d said. “I need a space behind closed doors to arrange for the contingencies.”

“Go ahead,” she’d told him. “You have free rein of some empty offices.”

Once he’d settled in the building, he got to work, the list he’d made in front of him. The first call he needed to make was to Jacob. “Do you mind if I crash at your place?”

His friend, the ridiculous man, laughed. “Which one?”

“Briarwood.”

“Go right ahead,” he said. “I’ve got this ridiculously massive house and way too many guest rooms for my own good. That one’s closer to the event, hmm?”

Artur nodded. “Yep. That’s the only reason I’m asking you. That and you’re the only person I know in Briarwood who might have access to the kind of space I might need.”

“Really?” Jacob said, sounding intrigued. “Talk to me.”

“Well,” Artur replied, “I might need a private space where some kind of…repair can take place.”

Jacob nodded. “Yep. I think the garage at the Briarwood house might do you some good. Repair of…?”

“A contingency plan,” he said. “Don’t want to speak it aloud because I don’t want to speak it into existence.”

“Yes. Superstitions. Okay. You’ve got access to any and all the things you’ll need. The one I’m thinking of has a separate entrance. So do with it what you will.”

“Thank you,” Artur said. “Very much appreciated. Again. And I owe you.”

“No, you don’t. Those words make no sense coming out of your mouth. I know what’s riding on this.”

Artur did too. But he wasn’t done with his calls. When he ended that call, he searched in his wallet for Sarah’s card. She answered the phone right away. “Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Artur” he said. “Listen. I need a favor.”

“Sure,” Sarah said. “You know me. Anything within reason.”

“Great,” Artur replied. “It’s probably not that big. Because what I need is to talk to Isaac and I don’t have his number.”

“That’s not big at all.” And suddenly the phone sounded like it was moving, whispers in the background.

And then…

“Hello?”

“Isaac,” he said. “This is…”

“Yes, Artur. Hello. Did you have a question for me?”

“Yes,” Artur said, really glad he remembered. “I’m wondering how you feel about working with wooden pieces.”

There was a long pause, where Artur felt he was going to be completely sunk. Except…

“I’ve actually been dabbling,” Isaac said when he came back to the phone. “But it’s not something I talk about much unless people want special wooden chuppah holders for their weddings. Why?”

“Would you be able to help reinforce a sculpture in the event that it’s refusing to hold its shape?”

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