Fear filled my voice. "Sophia is not here."

The other Forlot characters and Ash looked at me, and just like mine, their faces were filled with concern. Kathy had a theory that Sophia might not have remained in the restaurant because there was a back door. I thanked her for the helpful advice, and she and I hurried to the back of the restaurant.

You would never believe how relieved we were when we spotted Sophia. She was standing quite aways from the burning building and cradling something in her arms. More than one thing.

"Sophia!" my partner and I proclaimed in unison.

She lifted her head to us and jumped up and down like a child would. "Cassandra. Kathy. I was wondering where you went."

We ran until we were right in front of her and asked where she had been. She explained that she took note of the fire sooner than we all did and went through the back door that had one of those exit signs above it. But before she escaped, she wanted to rescue some fruits and vegetables from the kitchen.

Kathy gently slapped Sophia's arm. "What were you thinking?" she snapped. "You could have burned or died. Vegetables and fruits are replaceable. You are not."

Sophia seemed annoyed. "Have you forgotten that we are fictional characters? We cannot die, let alone in the real world."

"You still could have caught on fire," I commented, backing up my partner. "Your skin would have been crispy."

"Well, excuse me for trying to be helpful." She picked up an apple and licked her lips. "This apple needs help being eaten." She bit into it and chewed. "Tasty!"

Before we could take her back to the others, we heard a chopper. We tilted our heads towards the sky and realized that it was not a chopper. It was a drone. The drone was hovering above us and had a present wrapped in black and purple wrapping paper with a purple bow on top.

I was not at all taken aback by this drone, and neither was Kathy. We were used to the drone on our missions. It belonged to Libby. She would use it to bring devices to us whenever we needed them.

"What is that?" Sophia asked, pointing at the drone and present.

My partner and I looked at each other and knew that we were thinking the same thing. Kathy told Sophia that she would come with her and gently pushed her away from the scene. When the coast was clear, the drone released the gift and flew back to Forlot. I caught the present and ripped it open. It was a cardboard box with a lid. I took off the lid and peered inside. The only thing in there was a cellphone.

I picked up the cellphone and set the box and lid on the ground. It seemed to be in mint condition. Its cover was black with purple lines that slithered like a snake. I turned it on and already had a caller. I answered and put the phone on speaker.

"Hello?" I said.

"Cassandra? Is that you?"

"Yes. Is this Libby?"

She giggled softly. "The one and only. But enough of the introductions. Mary Sue called me a few minutes ago using one of those pay phones and told me that a restaurant that you, our beloved writer, and some others were dining at caught on fire. Please tell me that—"

"It is true," I interrupted. "The restaurant is on fire, but there are thankfully no injuries."

"Cassandra, they do not call me a scientist for nothing. I know that the restaurant is in flames. It is on the news as we speak. What I was about to say was if any real worlders died."

"What part of the phrase 'no injuries' do you not understand? There were no real worlders inside when the building caught on fire."

"Ah. I am relieved to hear that. I do not want the real worlders to discover that Mary Sue is trying to wipe them out. Mary Sue needs to finish what she started."

My bottom jaw dropped. Oh my gosh. I could not believe it. Libby was still on Mary Sue's side. She wanted Mary Sue to kill all the real worlders until there were none. I thought for a moment that she changed her mind and would agree that what Mary Sue was doing was wrong.

I wanted to argue with her. Yell at her. Call her names. But I did not want to cause more disturbance in the neighborhood than I already had. I just huffed and hung up. I put the phone in sleep mode and slid it into the pocket of my pants. I scooped up the box and lid and threw them in a nearby trash bin and only took a step.

Crunch!

I had accidentally stepped on something and broke it. I lifted my foot and picked up the object. It was a match. The stick had scratches and was bent, and the top was black. My eyes widened. Someone used this match to create a small amount of fire.

I examined the building from top to bottom. Was this match used to set the place on fire? If so, who was behind it? And why?

I decided to take this broken match to the police and dashed to the front. A fire truck had arrived, and firefighters were taking care of the fire. I hurried to an officer and tapped his shoulder.

The officer spun around. "You again."

I held up the match. "I found this behind the restaurant. It was used."

He took the match and examined it carefully. "Hmm. We will take this into evidence and see if there are any fingerprints on it besides yours and mine."

"Thank you, sir."

I finally returned to my group - and thought that I was seeing things.

Why did Sophia have a box of matches in her pocket?