I released the first and pulled the pencil through. I got the pencil back but we also had a warped pencil that had fallen from the other portal. We al... just looked at it as if afraid to touch it.Osston was close and said, "How could this happen? Always there is just one portal keyed to another. To do otherwise would cause chaos. One man goes in and two men come out."Caiti had turned her portal around and I said, "Hold all the portals horizontally."The girls did as I asked and I put the straight. I don’t plan to lose the bet,” I said.You should know that my daughter and I can be highly competitive. We often make little bets, and when we pinky swear on it, we never go back on the bet. She offered me a finger to pinky swear.“The pinkiest of swears, Ma’am,” I assured her.“What happens if you quit or get the boot before I graduate high school?” she said. I promised her the same thing. She was old enough to make her own food. She would need to start getting herself up for school anyway now. Now isn't the time to lose control. I grasp the edge of my prison and lever myself upright.It is a very different group of cultists that surrounds me now. Black robes, cheaply-dyed wool. Hoods raised. No silks or golden sun discs. To the right the owner of the wrist is crumpled, small, robed like the rest. A woman. I study her aura for a moment. Drained, exhausted, probably no permanent damage. In need of rest before being fed on again. The rest have backed off a pace and the chanting has. They were approaching a road to the right when all hell broke loose. Knowing the powder had just exploded the lead driver floored it, and the other trucks followed his example. It was a rough ride for a few moments, but they made it out and soon joined up with the container trucks.Eduardo and six of his men started down the winding drive to the road below. About a hundred yards from the house there was a deep roar. Suddenly the road became a wild bronc tossing the pickup all over the place..