One whopper of a bizarre dream
His heart wanted to explode out of his chest, panic and anger and disappointment crushing his feelings like someone had injected a full-sized elephant into his bloodstream. It hurt, and tears flowed down his face as he pounded the pavement with his clumsy feet. He fell twice, only to get up and keep running.
How could Binta have done something so stupid? Everything had just fallen into place; everything was perfect. But now the message has been sent. Tom didn't know how, but he knew it had been sent.
Burn the letter, stop the madness.
Tom had been cut off. Even though he'd figured out all the clues and was ready to perform the silly ritual in three days—he'd been cut off. Somehow, Professor Atticus would know that the first letter had been burned, which meant he'd think that Tom had given up and was out of the game.
After everything, after all that work and sweat and danger, it was all over.