Joey only got up to leave once his body had recovered enough to move.
It was already noon when he returned to town. He went straight to the schoolhouse, but no one was there.
Nome and Duke were still out collecting the potentially dangerous picture books. He had to act on his own for now, leaving a note to tell them where he was going.
On top of a tall building directly opposite 3 Levitt Street, Joey braced both hands on the railing and looked down at everything below.
"Strange. Am I not high enough?"
There was no black spire in sight. The building that should have stood where the head was supposed to be was nowhere to be seen.
This was already the tallest building in the area. From here, he could even see all of Levitt Street.
"That doesn't make sense."
He propped up his chin and began to question whether what he had seen before was real. Did none of it exist, or was it a matter of his viewing angle?
He looked up. The sun blazed directly overhead, and heat filled the air. A passing breeze offered only a little relief.
Joey found a chair and sat down. As time passed, the evening glow fell across the roof tiles, reflecting beautiful colors.
On the horizon, the sun sank little by little.
His eyes were half closed. The long wait had left him drowsy, almost nodding off. Only when the sun had fully set did he abruptly stand.
He stared intently into the distance. The fiery sunset was slowly fading, leaving only a patch of tinted clouds hanging at the edge of the sky.
Beyond those red clouds, there seemed to be a hazy, elusive world.
There, the outline of a black building was slowly taking shape.