Up your sleeve

What came to mind at first was making sure Grace knew you were safe, even if it was only temporary. Just to show her that she didn’t need to come and rush back in and make your escape plan even more complicated.

Max: We are safe and hiding in Jack’s room at the moment. Izzy is working on a plan to get us out so stay in the car for the moment.

You double checked that you had your phone on silent and turned back to Emma, getting the both of you further away from the door before you started to talk. You did move closer to Jack’s crib just to check on him but seeing as how he looked like he was still enjoying a nap, you decided to keep your voice down and make sure you didn’t wake him up.

Emma caught your attention and she pointed towards a closet on the other side of the room which looked big enough for the both of you to hide in if the situation got even more dire.

It was only then that you felt more relaxed and sat yourself down on the carpeted floor, getting Emma to huddle up next to you so that you could talk quietly amongst yourselves.

“What now?” you asked, hoping Emma would have an answer.

“I think waiting for Izzy is the best bet but there must be something we can do while we wait… except that” Emma replied, both of you briefly having the same idea and smiling at one another.

“That got us in this mess in the first place so… I agree with holding off.” you said, going back to thinking of ideas.

“We can use the Beholder effect again right? It was once a day and I think it’s been 24 hours since we used it on your father? I don’t think it helps us actually leave but it gives us an idea of what’s going on down there” Emma suggested, giving you something to do when nothing else came to mind.

You had only ended up watching Mom and Sarah this morning using the beholder effect so you could view the rest of your subjects however you wished, including both your father and now Izzy thanks to the progress you had made this weekend.

You switched between their profiles and decided it was best to try it on your father first. You were still trying to be optimistic and there was a chance you might want to see how she was doing later in the day once you got back home, or when you were using her KDK active effect on her.

Just in case, you positioned yourself so you were sat near the closet before you used the effect, wanting to have an easy hiding place if you were still looking through someone else's eyes.

Would you like to activate ‘Eye of the Beholder’?
Yes

Your vision swapped to the now familiar kitchen where your father was sitting opposite Izzy, hearing them speak as you had jumped in mid-conversation.

“Have I met them before?” he asked, startling you that he thought someone had been here.

“Not that I know of. We recently met when I was out with Jack at the park, her daughter was a similar age to Jack so we ended up talking. Can’t I have guests in the house?” Izzy replied, not looking fazed from her lie.

“I’d just like to know who’s been in my house and not have to find out when I see glasses on the table” he responded, seeing the glass that Grace must have been drinking out of.

“It’s my house as well, you know. I might not have bought it but I sure spend a lot more time here than you” Izzy shot back, starting to look annoyed.

“I don’t want to argue. I was just suspicious” your father said, trying to back pedal.

“Suspicious? Of what?” Izzy asked, knowing his line of thinking.

“Just… drop it okay?” he asked, briefly holding up his hands as he tried to stop her.

“No. If you think I even have time to be doing what you're insinuating, then think again. Jack, our son, is my only concern at the moment and I…”

“Right, okay, I get it. I was only coming back for a few things anyway so I’ll just…” your father replied, giving up completely in the conversation and getting up from his seat.

You were hoping he would just grab a coat that was on the kitchen wall nearby but he turned away from Izzy and headed towards the stairs. She tried to dissuade him but he just lifted his hand ignoring her and headed for the direction of the stairs.

“He’s coming up. Quick get in” you urged Emma, keeping the beholder effect active while trying to get Emma in the closet next to you.

“She stayed on the floor with you and crawled inside, sitting with her back to the side of the closet while you did the same opposite her. You closed the door and you sat facing each other with little light to see, knowing that was probably a good thing in this situation.

Emma had her hands resting on her knees so you reached out to just hold them, calming her down before you focused back in on what your father was seeing.

In the back of your mind you had seen him climbing the stairs but now with your full focus you watched him on the landing. He had a quick look towards his office to see the door shut before walking into the only room you hadn’t actually been in, the one you assumed was his and Izzy’s room.

You were expecting him to start looking for something but he just sat on the side of the bed, briefly bringing a hand up to rub his forehead before getting back up. You were confused at what he was doing but he left the room and headed back down the stairs.

“Right I’ve got what I needed, I’m heading back out” he lied, turning to the front door and heading outside.

From what you could tell, he had only gone upstairs as an excuse to leave the conversation and he actually didn’t need anything in the first place, not even turning to look at Izzy as he went to leave the house in case it started another argument.

On the way to the front door, you spotted Izzy’s keys lying on the ground which John didn’t spot, telling you that whatever he had done to get inside, had been enough to dislodge them from the door. That did give you some comfort in knowing that Grace had been able to leave like you did yesterday, escaping through the backdoor without any suspicions.

He left through the front door and made it to the end of the yard, letting you tell Emma that he had left the house so that you were both safe to talk freely. You didn’t want to cut the connection until you were certain he was gone but you watched him pause before getting in his car, scanning the area as if looking for something that stuck out.