Tricky Traps & Naughty -

Finn looked up. Sure enough, a fishing net was rigged among the dusty chandelier crystals.

The Hall of Temptations looked like a normal living room. A plate of cookies sat on a low table. A remote control glowed invitingly next to an armchair. Finn’s hand twitched toward the remote. tricky traps & naughty

“Psychological warfare,” Morgause said approvingly. “But not enough. Add something tricky .” Finn looked up

“They trip,” Finn explained. “Bell rings. Marbles scatter. They step back to avoid the marbles, rug gives way, and they fall into the pit. But the pit is only two feet deep. So they don’t get hurt. They just get… embarrassed.” A plate of cookies sat on a low table

Leo froze. “What—”

The door swung open before he knocked. A woman with spectacles balanced on a nose like a crow’s beak peered out. “You’re late. The morning slot went to a man who tried to trap a leprechaun with a Pringles can. He failed. You’ll do better.”

The first customer came at 3 p.m. A boy named Leo, age ten, with a rap sheet of naughtiness that included hiding his teacher’s coffee mug, replacing the sugar with salt, and teaching the class hamster to flip its water bottle at substitute teachers.