It was sunset by the time they left the house. Humphrey, against his better judgement, had agreed to go with them, and after extensive planning, they stopped at his apartment to pick up a few of the Kerical tools he would need, as well as an invention he had been working on.
Mrs Higgins came into the hall as they were clambering down the stairs and demanded to know why he and Johnathan hadn’t told her they’d had visitors, but Humphrey distracted her by saying he’d just seen a rat dart behind her and into her apartment. She fled as fast as her stiff joints would carry her, fetching a broom and beating every rug and carpet in sight to see where it was hiding. While she was occupied, they slipped from the building and made for the city centre, heading to the back of the research facility.
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