herb.â
âI donât get it.â
âSuperb! The soup is superb!â
âOh,â said Jo Bell. âListen, Buster, I have something serious to say.â
âIâm all ears,â Buster said, then started giggling again. âThereâs a good one about ears, too.â
âSpare me. Now get this! Felix just reported that a map was cut out from a book about the Battle of Antietam.â
Buster grew still. âWhat! That was the single most important battle of the Civil War! Eldridge is obviously getting bolder, and so is Agnes. We have to stop them!â
âWe have to make Tom realize what is happening. If he only spoke spider!â Jo Bell sighed. And even though she was still standing on all of her eight legs, her whole body seemed to slump.
T wo days later, the library reopened after a long holiday weekend. As was Tomâs habit since the Deadlies had arrived in the Rare Books Department, he came over to the display case to greet them and check up on their catch.
âI hope you enjoyed the Fourth of July, kids!â Tom said, leaning over the display case. âOh! My goodness, you had a busy weekend. Look at those silverfish.â
If only he spoke spider , Jo Bell thought for the hundredth time.
âAnd goodness, that web looks rather festive with all those silvery critters dangling.â
Tom understands so much. What other human being would appreciate us the way Tom does! Jo Beth thought. It was all very frustrating.
The phone at the main desk began to ring, and Tom walked away to answer it.
âYes, this is Tom Parker, conservator of rare books. Indeed we do have the Wurmach Encyclopedia of Hieroglyphs â¦. Yesâ¦. Itâs one of three existing first editions from 1825. As you know, Wurmach was a cryptologist â an expert in code breaking.â
Codes! Cryptology! Egyptians! Hieroglyphs! Of course! thought Jo Bell. Thatâs how we have to do it!
Tom turned to his assistant, Rosemary. âTomorrow someoneâs coming in early for the Wurmach Encyclopedia . Itâs call number 932.W4.â
âRight-o, Tom,â Rosemary answered.
Jo Bell skittled over to Busterâs favorite bookshelf in the Rare Books Department.
âBUSTER!â she screeched.
âWhoa! Are you trying to start an earthquake here?â Buster said.
âListen, Buster, I just had a brainstorm. Guess how we can get Tomâs attention.â
âHow?â He crawled out of the folio.
âForget spider speak.â Jo Bell waved four of her legs wildly about in all directions. âWe need to write him a message. One that only Tom can understand. Not Smoot or Montague. Donât you see the answer, Buster?â
âWhat? What are you saying?â
âCodes, cryptology, and Tomâs favorite â hieroglyphics!â
Buster staggered slightly. âJo Bell, youâre a genius!â He paused, then added in a rather tentative voice, âBut how do we do it? How do we write the code?â
âIn silk and silverfish. Think of it as a kind of dragnet â because it is, in a sense.â
âYes, of course!â
She told him how Tom had admired the silverfish strung up in the family web. âHe said it was festive, Buster. I mean he really appreciated the design.â
âBut we donât know hieroglyphics.â
âWe can learn enough. Julep has been hanging out in that pop-up pyramid book for the last three days. Weâll ask her.â
âBut you didnât want to tell your family.â
âThe time has come,â Jo Bell answered solemnly. âWe need all the help we can get.â
The nineteenth-century pop-up books were on a mezzanine of the Rare Books Department of the library. The quickest way to get to them was through air-conditioning vents. So Jo Bell and Buster let themselves get sucked up in a cool draft.
âIâm not sure where the pop-up books are, actually,â Jo
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