A Tangle of Knots

When Cady joins Toby in his truck, she hears “an odd sort of clatter” (160) in the truck bed. Toby dismisses the noise as a squirrel and says that he wants to leave for the bakeoff early to avoid traffic. Cady senses that there is something off about his smile but can’t identify the cause.

Toby leaves with Cady before the Owner can stop him. He feels “frustrated, but not worried” (161) about this development because he is certain that he will obtain her Talent eventually. The Owner’s phone rings, and a “meek, kind” (162) voice introduces herself as Jennifer Mallory and asks if Toby and Cady have left for the convention center.

Will boards a train to New York because he hears a distinctive “click-click-clack!” (164) that reminds him of his ferret. By the time he realizes that the sound is coming from the conductor’s hole punch, it’s too late for him to get off the train. Will curls into a ball in the luggage rack, feeling lost “[f]or the first time in his life” (165).