《Christmas Noctis》 Prologue - Across the Snow The snow had crusted over, so every staggered step was accompanied by a brittle crunching sound. The hard edge of the snowpack scraped Anna¡¯s calf almost up to her knee. She grit her teeth so she wouldn¡¯t cry. The boys needed her. Jan had buried his face in her neck and hair. From the way he was shaking, Anna guessed he was weeping. She tried to hoist him higher on her back, but her arms were weak with fatigue. Jacob grabbed her sleeve. ¡°Our footprints.¡± If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. She shook her head. ¡°It can¡¯t be helped.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll find us.¡± She thought, bitterly, that it was going to find them anyway. Aloud, she said, ¡°We have to go somewhere safe.¡± Tears spilled onto Jacob¡¯s cheeks. ¡°Safe? There¡¯s nowhere. We have nowhere to go!¡± His tiny chest rose and fell with his sob. ¡°Anna, no one will take us in.¡± Anna stopped and looked around. The moonlight was shining off the snow. The forest was crowded with trees and shadows. Blue. Black. White. Everything was sharp: the snow, the smell of the pine, and the wind that snapped through her thin cape. It would get colder before the sun rose. She turned west. ¡°They might.¡± Jacob¡¯s hand tightened on her sleeve. ¡°We can¡¯t.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Dominie said not to go there without him. He said to be careful.¡± ¡°Dominie¡¯s dead. We will be too if we don¡¯t get inside.¡± ¡°Will they help us?¡± ¡°Maybe. They¡¯re powerful. If they want to help us, they can.¡± Chapter 1 - The First of December When I woke up that morning, I knew two beautiful things: it was December first, and it had snowed. You could smell the bite of the air and hear how the ancient radiators were struggling to keep out the chill. But there¡¯s no certain like supernatural-eyes-have-seen-it certain, so I threw off my covers and ran over to the window. When I pushed back the curtains, sure enough, that glorious, glorious white stuff was everywhere. There was only about six inches of it, but to my joy-addled heart, it looked like twelve. I grinned. It was December! And there was snow! At that moment, if you had told me it was the mindless coincidence of an unconcerned world, I would have called you a liar. It was obviously a gift to me. I spotted a bit of movement off to my left. Someone was out on the grounds, and judging by where they were, they were clearing the snow off the walks. There was snow! And I didn¡¯t have to shovel it! Then the person turned their head to glance back at their work, and I saw the shape of a long muzzle. Not a second had passed before my bare feet had pattered their way across the cold wooden floor, over to my closet. I don¡¯t know if you know this, but snowballs make a very satisfying noise when they hit a wolfman. Kind of like a bouff sound. It¡¯s good I got something from it because Conrad didn¡¯t even look up from his snow shoveling. ¡°Mera, why don¡¯t you go pick on someone your own size?¡± ¡°Iset probably doesn¡¯t like the snow, and Olivia would hex me.¡± Bouff. ¡°So you decided to take on someone who could remove your head if they threw the snowball right?¡± ¡°Big talk, wolf-boy. I bet the snow sticks to the fur on your paws.¡± Bouff. Conrad looked down at his hands. ¡°A little bit.¡± Then he glanced at me. ¡°But not as bad as it sticks to your mittens.¡± I held up my bright red, two-digit hands and waggled them. ¡°Pretty cool, huh? They¡¯re nice and warm.¡± Conrad went back to shoveling. ¡°No one will ever claim you were overly modest.¡± ¡°Want a pair? I can order you some.¡± He held up one fluffy hand while he continued shoveling with the other. ¡°Mine are built in.¡± Bouff. ¡°But they aren¡¯t red!¡± ¡°They match my outfit.¡± ¡°Matching is overrated.¡± ¡°Is that why you got that lime green hat?¡± ¡°Sorry, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯d fit over your ears.¡± Bouff. ¡°Are you going to keep throwing those at me until I play with you?¡± ¡°Awwww, poor little wolf-boy. Am I bullying you?¡± He stopped what he was doing, straightened up, and turned to face me. ¡°Nice jacket, zombie-girl.¡± ¡°Gray is a classic.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t think it¡¯s too subdued?¡± ¡°No way! I can wear any accessories I want with this.¡± I pretended to straighten it like I¡¯d seen Darius straighten his suit coats. ¡°It¡¯s sleek.¡± ¡°Is it good at keeping out the snow?¡± ¡°I guess? It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve worn it, but it¡¯s seems pretty warm. Why?¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re about to be buried in it.¡± For those who are curious, a lycanthrope can clear an obscene amount of distance when they leap at you. Take how far you think they¡¯d be able to jump, then double it. I had to beg for mercy twice. Conrad claimed he couldn¡¯t understand me because I was laughing too hard the first time. Then he finally let me up. ¡°Have we learned something from this?¡± he asked. ¡°Yeah,¡± I said as I hauled out gobs of snow from the neck of my jacket. ¡°You can¡¯t throw worth crap, so you have to tackle people.¡± ¡°You wanted to play. That¡¯s how lycanthropes play.¡± ¡°Okay. Watch me. First you pick up a handful of snow¡­¡± Have you ever seen an exasperated wolf? It was worth putting up with the snow down my shirt. Conrad was pretty lousy when it came to aiming¡ªthank god. Whenever he did manage to get a snowball to hit, those suckers hurt. Eventually, he declared me the winner in the most sarcastic and insulting way possible, then forced me to be magnanimous in victory and help him finish shoveling the walks. The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. When we were done, we went back into the mansion via the washroom. A wall of warm steam tried to escape when Conrad opened the door. ¡°Hurry,¡± he said, shoving me inside. He closed the door after himself and turned to tuck the door snake into place. A familiar voice squeaked out, ¡°Mera-mera!¡± It was Kappa. He¡¯d come out from his nest. I waited for him to jump on me, but he didn¡¯t. Instead he stared at me with wide-eyed distress. ¡°Mera!¡± he wailed. ¡°Good morning, Kappa.¡± ¡°It¡¯s cold!¡± Conrad came forward. ¡°It¡¯s all right, Kappa. She¡¯s fine.¡± As I shook off the snow from my hat and mittens, I glanced around, trying to figure out why the room was so warm. The old fire pit that had been used to heat the laundry water had been replaced with an iron stove over a hundred years ago, but as technology marched on, no one had bothered to replace the stove. That morning someone had lit a fire in its belly. I could feel the heat radiating from it. The steam was coming from the huge pot of water simmering on top. ¡°No fur, wolfman!¡± My eyes darted down to Kappa when I heard the fury in his voice. The tiny, adorable bog-creature was scowling at Conrad. I wished I had my phone so I could take a picture. Conrad was equally startled by Kappa¡¯s pint-sized rage. Judging from the wolfman¡¯s reaction, that might have been the first time Kappa had ever gotten mad at him. I took that as a good sign; Kappa wasn¡¯t afraid of him anymore. ¡°I¡¯m fine,¡± I insisted. ¡°I had a coat, and I¡¯m warm blooded.¡± Kappa turned his eyes to me without bothering to hide his skeptical expression. I put my coat over the edge of one of the porcelain basins and stooped to pick him up. ¡°See? I¡¯m warm.¡± He let out a screech when his skin touched my wet collar. ¡°Cold!¡± ¡°Well, there, yes.¡± He put a hand on my nose and scowled at me. ¡°Okay,¡± I said, ¡°and there too.¡± He continued scowling. Clearly, I was too stupid to be trusted with my own health. ¡°But my belly¡¯s warm.¡± He shoved one of his clammy, webbed feet under my shirt and put it on my stomach. The temperature difference made me gasp. That seemed to satisfy him. Mostly. ¡°No fur,¡± he grumbled. ¡°Yeah. I had better go change into something dry.¡± I squeezed him, put him back on the floor, and grabbed my winter gear. ¡°Boots off,¡± Conrad said. I stopped long enough to remove my footwear and put them by the door. ¡°I¡¯ll see you at breakfast,¡± I called as I left. I was still in hearing range when Conrad said, ¡°It¡¯s no use glaring at me, Kappa. I didn¡¯t make her go outside. Besides, she was bullying me.¡± When I walked into the kitchen, Conrad was already there, sipping a warm drink. There was another mug beside him. Igor was grumbling around the counter and working to get some food cooked. ¡°Is it cocoa?¡± I asked as I perched myself on the high stool. ¡°Coffee,¡± Conrad said. ¡°Can we add cocoa?¡± The volume of Igor¡¯s grumbling rose until we could make out a few words. ¡°Oh, cocoa she says. She needs cocoa.¡± He blew out his breath with a pfff. ¡°Childish.¡± ¡°Traditional!¡± I said. ¡°This is the first major snow of the year, and it¡¯s December. Besides, it tastes good.¡± Igor must not have had an answer for that; he only made a face. I smiled at him. ¡°Igor, would you like me to make you some cocoa?¡± ¡°You wouldn¡¯t know how¡± was his eventual answer. The man could grump. ¡°Dude, it¡¯s not that hard. All you do is add hot water.¡± I realized I had said something wrong when I felt Conrad¡¯s shoulders shaking from his silent laugh. Igor rolled his mismatched eyes so far back that I wondered if they would go in a complete circle. ¡°Oh, lord.¡± ¡°That¡¯s instant cocoa, Emerra,¡± Conrad explained. ¡°I doubt we have any of that on hand.¡± ¡°Is there any other kind?¡± Igor stopped everything and fixed his largest eye on me. ¡°Tell me you¡¯re joking.¡± I blinked at him. He started grumbling inarticulately again as he came toward me. He picked up my mug and casually dumped its contents into the sink. ¡°Hey!¡± Conrad put one of his massive hands on my arm to quiet me. Igor went back to the stove and pulled down a copper pot. ¡°Do you want any, Conrad?¡± ¡°Please. And if it¡¯s not too much trouble, could you make extra? Olivia and the count might like some.¡± It was a sign of respect that Igor only glared at Conrad with the smaller of his two eyes. ¡°Oh, why not, as we¡¯re all making fools of ourselves. The children must be indulged¡ªit is December, after all.¡± Iset wandered in. I had asked her once why she came into the kitchen since, as a mummy, she couldn¡¯t eat. ¡°There¡¯s always the company,¡± she¡¯d said, ¡°and it¡¯s still the heart of the home. It¡¯s nice to be in a warm place where people are being taken care of.¡± It seemed somehow fitting that Igor was at the heart of our home. He was always dependable, even if he did murmur a bit. ¡°Why are we making fools of ourselves today?¡± Iset asked. ¡°Apparently hot cocoa is childish,¡± I explained. ¡°Oh.¡± She turned to Igor. ¡°Would it make you feel better to know that hot chocolate was originally thought to be too expensive to waste on children? It was reserved for the adults. Especially members of the upper class.¡± Igor pulled the milk from the fridge. ¡°Was that before or after they added several pounds of sugar and the sprinkles?¡± Iset said to me, ¡°I take it this is your doing?¡± ¡°You have to have cocoa after playing in the snow,¡± I explained. ¡°It¡¯s traditional,¡± Igor said in a distinctly mocking tone. ¡°So when do we put up Christmas decorations?¡± I asked. ¡°Christmas?¡± Darius said as he entered the room. ¡°Emerra, are you a Christian?¡± ¡°Well¡­no. But I¡¯m an American.¡± The vampire offered me one of his faint, closed-lip smiles. ¡°I see. That¡¯s quite an exacting religion you have there, but I suspect your practice isn¡¯t too devout.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just saying, around here you don¡¯t have to be Christian to enjoy Christmas.¡± One of his dark eyebrows rose. ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°How many Christmas trees do you put up in a place like this? Is it one per floor? Does the biggest one go in the hall?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t put up any trees in this place,¡± Igor said. ¡°What?¡± ¡°Careful now, Igor,¡± Darius said. ¡°Don¡¯t kill the poor girl.¡± I put a hand on my chest to keep the agony contained. ¡°You don¡¯t celebrate Christmas?¡± I turned, hoping to find an ally. ¡°Conrad?¡± ¡°I celebrated it back home.¡± He shrugged. ¡°It wasn¡¯t a big deal, but there were a lot of humans in my town.¡± ¡°How can you all sound so blas¨¦?¡± The count said, ¡°Well, it¡¯s mostly for children, isn¡¯t it?¡± But I was done being called childish for that day. ¡°No,¡± I said, ¡°it¡¯s for people who aren¡¯t old and boring.¡± Darius blinked and turned to the mummy. ¡°We¡¯ve been called out.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t look at me,¡± Iset said. ¡°It¡¯s not my culture.¡± Igor stepped between them and put down two mugs, one in front of me and one in front of Conrad. ¡°Vasil?¡± Igor said. ¡°By the gods, is that real hot chocolate? I haven¡¯t had that in years.¡± Igor returned to the stove. ¡°Miss Cole insisted. She doesn¡¯t seem to realize the immaturity of the request. Would you like some?¡± ¡°I suppose it¡¯s better than being old and boring.¡± By then I had taken my first sip of real cocoa. I let out a groan of pure pleasure. ¡°Oh, Igor! This is so good! You¡¯re amazing.¡± He smirked. ¡°Would you teach me how to make this?¡± There was another delayed response: ¡°If I have the time.¡± Darius took the mug Igor offered him and leaned back on the counter. ¡°What do you think, Igor? Would you object to a few Christmas trees cluttering up the place?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t decorate, Vasil. That is not, and never will be, in my job description.¡± ¡°Never?¡± ¡°Not unless Mr. Noctis orders it.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it!¡± When I realized I was bouncing on my stool, I sat back and tried to look responsible. ¡°I enjoy decorating.¡± ¡°I think that Igor raises a very good point, Emerra,¡± Darius said. ¡°It¡¯s not really us you have to convince.¡± Chapter 2 - Convincing Death Big Jacky was sitting at his desk, staring at me with his empty eye-sockets. ¡°Explain this to me again. Slowly.¡± Beside me, I heard Darius let out a tiny sigh. I had asked him to come along to lend some gravitas to my request. ¡°It¡¯s a celebration,¡± Iset said with the kind of patience that only comes from having lived for a couple of millennia. She had come along to help explain. Jacky turned his skull toward her. ¡°But she says she¡¯s not a Christian.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not strictly a Christian holiday. Humans living in the colder regions have always had some kind of feast or celebration around the winter solstice.¡± ¡°Yeah!¡± I chimed in. ¡°Half of it¡¯s pagan anyway.¡± ¡°Pagan.¡± From the dark, flat tone of Jacky¡¯s voice, I figured I had made a mistake. ¡°Are you pagan, Emerra?¡± ¡°What do you guys have against religion?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like gods,¡± Jacky said. ¡°They think they¡¯re a bunch of big-shot celebrities, but they never do a lap of work.¡± ¡°A lick,¡± Darius muttered. ¡°This isn¡¯t about gods!¡± I said. ¡°You¡¯re the one that keeps bringing them up,¡± Jacky noted. ¡°It¡¯s an excuse! We celebrate because winter¡¯s dark and cold and we want to have some fun. We use gods as an excuse so that we don¡¯t get in trouble for it.¡± ¡°Why would you get into trouble for having fun?¡± ¡°Maybe the gods don¡¯t want people enjoying themselves unless they¡¯re invited,¡± Darius said. ¡°That does sound like a god,¡± Jacky admitted. ¡°But why a tree?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an evergreen,¡± I said. Iset added, ¡°Winter used to be a bleak time with very little color. Since all the other trees died during the winter, conifers were some of the last greenery available. People brought them inside to celebrate life.¡± ¡°Trees don¡¯t die in the winter.¡± ¡°Of course. You¡¯re right, Jacky. I meant that they went dormant.¡± ¡°I would know if they died. All the trees dying? Every year? Can you imagine?¡± ¡°Yes, Jacky.¡± ¡°No, the only trees that die in the winter are the ones that are cut down and dragged inside to celebrate life.¡± Darius and I glanced at each other. Iset hummed as she tried to think of a response. ¡°Oh, don¡¯t bother explaining,¡± Jacky said. ¡°Killing something to celebrate life sounds exactly like something a human would do.¡± ¡°We could get fake trees,¡± I offered. ¡°What? And take all the murder out of a perfectly good holiday?¡± ¡°They don¡¯t shed any needles.¡± If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°But they don¡¯t smell good either,¡± the count said. ¡°Darius,¡± Jacky sounded surprised, ¡°I never thought you would have an opinion.¡± The vampire stood up straighter. ¡°My opinion is that if you¡¯re going to do a thing, you should do it right.¡± ¡°An excellent sentiment.¡± Jacky turned to me. ¡°What else does this holiday involve?¡± ¡°Well, there¡¯s more decorations.¡± ¡°More than the trees?¡± ¡°Yeah. Quite a lot, actually. Garlands, mistletoe, holly¡ª¡± ¡°Parasites and thorns? I¡¯m confused again. What exactly are you celebrating?¡± I ignored him. ¡°There¡¯s Christmas songs and Christmas movies. You get treats, hot chocolate, and cookies¡­Oh! And on Christmas Day, there¡¯s usually a big feast where everyone gets together.¡± ¡°Difficult, in our situation,¡± Iset noted. ¡°Two of us don¡¯t eat.¡± ¡°There are games! People play games. People¡­people spend time together,¡± I finished rather lamely. After a second of silence, Darius said, ¡°You forgot the presents.¡± My nose wrinkled in distaste before I could stop it. Of course, Noctis latched on to that idea. ¡°Presents?¡± Darius must have seen my expression. When I looked at him, he only raised an eyebrow. I said to Jacky. ¡°Some people give presents to their children¡ª¡± ¡°To each other,¡± Iset corrected me gently. ¡°¡ªbut it¡¯s not a big deal. We don¡¯t have to.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± Jacky said. ¡°That¡¯s not the fun part of Christmas.¡± ¡°Then what is the fun part of Christmas?¡± ¡°The Christmas tree lights¡± was my instant answer. ¡°And the food.¡± ¡°Does this really matter to you, Emerra?¡± My stomach twisted, and I felt a hot flush rush up my neck and into my cheeks, but I forced myself to say yes in a firm voice. Jacky¡¯s finger bones flourished outward in an open-handed shrug. ¡°Then my house and means are at your disposal.¡± I bounced on my feet. ¡°Thank you, Jacky!¡± ¡°But if you¡¯re going to do it, I want it done right.¡± He stood up. ¡°Tell Igor to prepare a feast and nevermind his grumbling. I also want there to be presents.¡± My moan was cut short when he pointed a thin finger bone at my face. ¡°I think one per person will do nicely. I don¡¯t care who gives to whom.¡± He turned to Iset. ¡°Can I leave that for you to figure out?¡± The mummy nodded. ¡°Darius,¡± Jacky said. ¡°Sir?¡± ¡°Would you be kind enough to oversee Emerra¡¯s decorating?¡± ¡°Well¡ª¡± ¡°Do you have any assignments right now?¡± ¡°Not at the moment, but¡ª¡± ¡°I trust you to check her enthusiasm against your good taste.¡± ¡°I understand. I suppose I can act as the voice of reason in this fiasco.¡± I tried not to feel too insulted. Jacky straightened his tie, then walked toward the door. ¡°Now, if you¡¯ll excuse me, I¡¯m afraid I have an appointment.¡± He stopped short of the threshold. ¡°Emerra.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°No gods.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t invite any gods. We can enjoy ourselves without them.¡± I was about to correct him, but then I decided it wouldn¡¯t be worth the hassle. I saluted. ¡°Understood.¡± After he left, I turned to Darius and Iset. ¡°Some ground rules,¡± the vampire said. ¡°There will be no inflatable Santas or snowmen of any kind. In fact, if it has the word ¡®inflatable¡¯ associated with it, cross it off your wish list. We live in one of the most beautiful examples of Victorian architecture on this continent. Our decorations are going to be traditional.¡± I clapped my hands up by my face. It was that or explode from excitement. Vasil went on, ¡°No colored lights on the trees either. White or yellow will look much better.¡± I groaned. ¡°For goodness sake, Darius,¡± Iset said. ¡°Why not simply go with candles?¡± ¡°I said ¡®traditional,¡¯ not ¡®stupid.¡¯ We wouldn¡¯t want to see this lovely mansion go up in flames, now would we?¡± ¡°What? And take all the havoc out of a perfectly good holiday?¡± ¡°Can I trust you and Olivia to work on some proper wreaths while we¡¯re gone?¡± ¡°Proper ones?¡± ¡°Considering this house¡­¡± ¡°Oh. I see. I¡¯m afraid Olivia was up late, spelling. It might be a while before she wakes up, but I can do the research while she sleeps.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Where will you be going?¡± ¡°Emerra and I have to go out and get some trees. What do you think? One for each floor?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see.¡± Iset counted on her bandaged fingers. ¡°The front hall, the great landing, and the long gallery. Yes, I think three will be enough. I¡¯ll call Mrs. Park and have her bring in some tree stands and lights.¡± Darius called out, ¡°Conrad?¡± From outside the door, we heard Conrad¡¯s deep voice: ¡°Sir?¡± ¡°You were listening?¡± He stepped into view. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± ¡°Will you help us get the trees?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Do you think the snow is deep enough for the sledge?¡± Sledge? I thought. Isn¡¯t that a hammer? ¡°Easily. Especially if we¡¯re heading up into the forest.¡± Did he mean sled? But no. This was Darius, not Noctis. ¡°Excellent,¡± the vampire said. ¡°I¡¯ll get some snowshoes and meet you both at the garage in fifteen minutes.¡± We all left the study together. I walked beside Conrad all the way to the front stairs, but he didn¡¯t turn to go up. ¡°Don¡¯t you need to change into something warmer?¡± I asked. ¡°Nope.¡± ¡°Hey, what¡¯s a sledge?¡± He turned a very wolfish smile to me. ¡°Go get that nice warm coat of yours, Mera. You¡¯re going to need it.¡± Chapter 3 - Perfect Enough A sledge, it turned out, was a really big sled. Meant for hauling loads over snow. Conrad explained it to me when I arrived. Since the only coat he needed was permanently attached to his body, he was out there long before anyone else. He had already pulled the sledge out of the garage, and he lectured me as he checked to make sure everything was in order. It wasn¡¯t a sleigh because it didn¡¯t have comfy seats for people to sit on. And since it was meant to be pulled by something, it wasn¡¯t one of those toy sleds that children were so fond of. ¡°But don¡¯t most people use those words interchangeably?¡± I asked. I was standing on the foot boards, leaning over the frame. ¡°Yes,¡± he said, ¡°most people do.¡± He finished inspecting the sledge, straightened up, and reached for the tangle of padded webbing that had been sitting on the bed slats. ¡°But now you know better.¡± I motioned to the webbing. ¡°Is that for tying up the trees?¡± ¡°No. I have rope for that.¡± I looked down at the coils of rope lying beside the small gas-powered chainsaw. Something occurred to me. ¡°Conrad, you said that sledges were meant to be pulled.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going to be pulling us? Does Jacky have a horse?¡± I heard his quiet dog-laugh. ¡°Mera, if death has a horse, you will never catch me trying to harness it.¡± ¡°But¡ª¡± My question was interrupted by the arrival of the count. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I took so long,¡± Darius said. ¡°I had to get a few measurements. He tossed a bag onto the boards. Tucked under his arm was a pair of modern-looking snowshoes. After scooping my jaw off the ground, I managed to say, ¡°Count Vasil, is that a track suit?¡± He put a hand to his polyester covered chest. If I didn¡¯t already know it was impossible, I might have thought that, for a nanosecond, he felt discomposed. ¡°Is there something wrong with it?¡± It was one of those classy matching tracksuits that probably cost a hundred and fifty bucks. ¡°Well, no, but¡ª¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t think I was going to go running in one of my suits, did you?¡± ¡°I thought you slept in your suits!¡± He eyed me. ¡°Don¡¯t be ridiculous, Emerra. That would ruin them.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to be cold?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get cold.¡± He put the snowshoes down on a nearby bench, then turned to us. ¡°Are you ready, Conrad?¡± Conrad gathered the webbing into one hand. ¡°Would you mind looking away, Emerra?¡± My body jerked with indecision. Should I be polite, or should I be a complete Nosy Parker? I never saw much point in fighting my nature. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯m pulling us,¡± Conrad said. He made it sound completely normal, but I thought it sounded kind of wrong. ¡°Are you okay with that?¡± I asked. ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t I be?¡± ¡°Friends don¡¯t use friends as sled dogs. I¡¯m sure I read that somewhere.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I don¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°But¡ª¡± Darius took something out of his pocket. He walked up to Conrad, but he spoke to me. ¡°The days are getting shorter, Emerra. Can you save your questions for when we¡¯re sitting in front of a nice warm fire? Now, turn around.¡± I turned my back to them, but you had better believe my ears ached from straining to hear what was happening. Darius muttered, ¡°Do you want it on your wrist or your neck?¡± ¡°Neck,¡± Conrad said. ¡°I don¡¯t want it falling off as I run.¡± ¡°All right. Here we go.¡± The hushed conversation was followed by a series of strange noises. They were dull sounds, like the creak of a body in motion, only louder. Then Darius called to me. ¡°You can look now, Emerra.¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. I walked around the sledge so I could see better. Next to Conrad¡¯s empty clothes was a heart-stoppingly colossal wolf. Wolves are already bigger than you might think, and Conrad was a few inches bigger than biggest of them. But on the other hand¡­ He raised his wary eyes to me as I stood in front of him and crossed my arms. ¡°I¡¯m finally taller than you.¡± Conrad snorted and turned his head. Darius went over to the bench and sat down. ¡°He can still understand you, you know. He can¡¯t talk right now, but he¡¯s pretty good at getting his point across.¡± He put down the webbing he¡¯d taken from Conrad. ¡°Don¡¯t blame me if he decides to growl¡ªor bite you, depending on how lippy you are.¡± I squatted down so I could pat Conrad¡¯s neck and run my hands through his disgustingly thick coat. ¡°No, he would never bite me. Would you, buddy? He¡¯s a good boy¡ªman.¡± Not that my hurried correction sounded much better. Darius said in a very casual voice, ¡°And his memory¡¯s as good as ever. Even if he doesn¡¯t bite you, he might have a few things to say to you when we get home.¡± In case his warning had been too subtle, he added, ¡°He¡¯s not a dog, Emerra.¡± I was still pushing my hands through Conrad¡¯s mass of fur. There had to be a body in there somewhere. ¡°Sure. I know. Absolutely. But¡­geez!¡± I took a handful of fur on both sides of his face. ¡°He¡¯s so handsome.¡± There was a brief growl. Conrad put his forehead against my chest and, without any apparent effort, raised his muzzle, effectively launching me into the snow. When Darius was done laughing, he tossed me the webbing. ¡°If you¡¯re done embarrassing yourself, would you mind putting on his harness?¡± I had never put a pulling harness on a dog before, but Conrad was kind enough to coach me through the process with a few growls and woofs. When I was finished, I thought I saw something around his neck that didn¡¯t belong there. Ignoring his noise of irritation, I pushed his fur out of the way. There was a thick leather lace with several metal and stone charms tied to it. ¡°Is this what turned him into a wolf?¡± I asked. Darius finished securing his snowshoes and stood up. ¡°Yes. That¡¯s his rune wrap.¡± He made his way toward the back of the sledge. I twisted around to see him. ¡°Would it work for me?¡± ¡°I advise you not to try it.¡± The count bent down to secure what little equipment we had. ¡°That wrap was custom made for him. It leaves his intelligence intact while changing him into his wolf form. But he¡¯s a lycanthrope. You¡¯re not. Since you probably don¡¯t have a wolf form, there¡¯s no telling what it would change you into.¡± I looked back at the wrap. ¡°It¡¯s beautiful.¡± ¡°It is. It¡¯s also a tricky bit of magic.¡± ¡°Who made it?¡± ¡°Olivia did.¡± My head jerked around. ¡°Olivia?¡± ¡°She¡¯s a very talented witch. We¡¯re lucky to have her.¡± I didn¡¯t want to find myself on Santa¡¯s naughty list, so I decided to keep my mouth shut. ¡°Get his clothes for me, would you?¡± Darius said. I patted Conrad¡¯s fur back into place. Before standing up, I put my mouth close to his ear and whispered, ¡°You¡¯re still a handsome wolf.¡± He chuffed at me. I was the sole passenger on that sled ride. Darius ran beside us. Mile after mile, he managed to keep up. Apparently, a vampire¡¯s jog was my best sprint. The boards under my feet trembled as we sped over the snow. The relentless wind pressed against my icy cheeks, and the world flowed by in a smear of white, green, and brown. Whenever the exhilaration grew too intense, I would laugh or let out a whoop of joy. Once, while Darius was shaking his head at my idiocy, I caught a glimpse of his fangs peeking out from his smile. When we were deep in the forest, Conrad slowed and came to a halt. I stumbled from the sledge and unceremoniously dropped to my butt. I couldn¡¯t stop giggling. Or shaking. Darius stopped beside me. ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°Are you kidding me? That was fantastic!¡± ¡°Then let¡¯s get you on your feet.¡± He pulled me up. ¡°You start looking for trees. I¡¯ll help Conrad.¡± Before I could wander off too far, Darius added, ¡°And don¡¯t turn around for a few minutes.¡± After waving to show I understood, I walked toward a nearby grove. I was debating the merits of a rather tall fir tree when I felt a presence behind me. I looked up. Then up again. ¡°You¡¯re a lot taller than I remember,¡± I said. Conrad was back in his wolfman form. He was glaring at me. I returned my attention to the tree. ¡°If this is about that handsome comment, I stand by what I said. You¡¯re going to have to deal with it.¡± ¡°I could eat you alive, you know.¡± I sighed. ¡°Yeah. Probably.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what normal people would call ¡®a good boy.¡¯¡± My cheeks ached from blushing so hard. I¡¯d forgotten about that line. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, okay! I like dogs¡­and¡­dog-shaped things.¡± ¡°Emerra, other people like dogs. You are stupid about them.¡± ¡°Do you think this is big enough for the front hall?¡± I asked, pointing to the distraction. Darius came up behind us. ¡°If it was any bigger, we¡¯d need rigging.¡± He pulled a tape measure from his pocket. ¡°Conrad, would you mind? We need to find out how wide it is.¡± When it got the approval of the count, Conrad cut it down and trussed it while Darius and I went off to find the next one. ¡°What about this one?¡± I asked. Darius gazed upward. ¡°For the landing or the long gallery?¡± ¡°The long gallery.¡± He pulled out a green plastic rectangle that looked like someone had cut off an edge and installed a handle. ¡°We¡¯ll have to check its height.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not going to use the tape measure?¡± ¡°It¡¯s easier to use this.¡± ¡°What is that thing?¡± ¡°A tangent height gauge.¡± He held it up to his eye. ¡°And you can measure a tree with that?¡± ¡°I can, but that¡¯s the thing about being old¡ªI¡¯ve had plenty of time to learn a few skills.¡± He took a large step backward, sighted the tree, then bent his head around to glance at the bubble level. That done, he tossed me the tape measure. ¡°From my feet to the trunk of the tree, please.¡± It turned out it would fit. Barely. The third tree¡ªthe one for the second-floor landing¡ªgave us a bit more trouble. As we marched through the calf-deep snow, Darius felt compelled to say, ¡°Emerra, we¡¯ve passed five perfectly good trees.¡± I held up a finger inside my mitten. ¡°We¡¯ve passed five good trees. They weren¡¯t perfect.¡± ¡°Were the other two perfect?¡± Conrad asked. I¡¯d taken so long on my quest that he¡¯d had plenty of time to truss the second tree and join us. ¡°Perfect enough.¡± Darius grunted. He¡¯d once told me that inherent contradictions were an abuse of both language and logic; it pained him every time I used them. ¡°You know these are only going to be up for a month,¡± Conrad said. ¡°At most.¡± ¡°Yeah, but this is the tree we¡¯re going to see every morning when we go down to breakfast. And it¡¯ll be the last thing we see as we go to bed at night.¡± Darius glanced at his watch. ¡°I can give you another half hour.¡± ¡°What happens after that?¡± I asked. ¡°I get hungry,¡± Conrad said. Was it my imagination, or did his voice sound a little menacing? I thought I saw something out of the corner of my eye¡ªa flicker that might have been movement or the flutter of some white thing trying to blend into the snow. I stopped and leaned back. I didn¡¯t see the animal, or whatever it was, that had stalled my eyes, but there, behind a nearby fir and almost hidden by its massive neighbors, was a glorious little Christmas tree. I walked closer. ¡°That one.¡± My unwavering red mitten pointed right to it. Darius gazed at it. ¡°That thing isn¡¯t even as tall as Conrad.¡± The wolfman tilted his head. ¡°And it¡¯s kind of scraggly on one side.¡± ¡°Making it asymmetrical.¡± The way Darius said ¡°asymmetrical¡± made it sound like a moral problem. ¡°It¡¯s chubby and cute,¡± I said. ¡°And you think that makes it perfect?¡± ¡°Perfect enough,¡± Conrad said. He put the chainsaw down on a nearby fallen trunk, pressed a few buttons, then jerked the start cord until the saw roared to life. Chapter 4 - Preparations Begin Mrs. Park was there to open the front door for us. When she saw the tree intended for the long gallery, she let out an immense sigh of satisfaction. ¡°It¡¯s perfect,¡± she told Darius. ¡°I guess you were right,¡± he said over his shoulder. The comment was directed at me. I was still outside, waiting my turn to come in. When I entered with the tree for the landing, Mrs. Park seemed puzzled. ¡°Oh. Well, that¡¯s a mite smaller than I expected¡ªnot that it¡¯s bad. Just¡­different. But I think we¡¯ll have some extra lights.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± Conrad said from behind me. ¡°We¡¯ll need them.¡± When she saw the tree he was carrying, she let out a cry of joy that would have melted the heart of any ice queen. Igor was standing in the front hall. One eye was half shut in a world-weary glower. The other eye was manically roving over the three of us. ¡°Conrad! Emerra!¡± he said. ¡°You must be very hungry.¡± Oh. He¡¯d been looking for an escape. I loved Mrs. Park. I thought she was sweet and funny, and she always seemed delighted with my enthusiasm, like a grandma watching her grandchild play. I found that all-embracing attitude supportive. Or, as Olivia had said, ¡°You¡¯re both idiots. Of course you like each other.¡± Igor did not like Mrs. Park much. She kept calling him ¡°a sweet old thing¡± or ¡°that poor man.¡± It seemed like her sympathy for what she assumed were his deformities could gloss over any of his rougher personality traits. ¡°He¡¯s just lonely.¡± I was pretty certain she was driving him mad. She also had this way of bossing people around that was almost impossible to resist. She could oh-so-sweetly explain away or ignore any objections voiced within her hearing. Being overrun by her good intentions felt like being caught in a tsunami of honey. It was so sugary and slow, you wouldn¡¯t think there was anything dangerous about it¡ªbut its relentless nature was terrible to behold. She must have recruited Igor to help her prepare where the trees would go. I bit my lip so I wouldn¡¯t laugh. ¡°Very,¡± Conrad admitted. ¡°I¡¯ll get some hot chocolate started and put out the sandwich fixings.¡± To my embarrassment, I squeaked. Then I shouted to his rapidly retreating back, ¡°Thank you, Igor!¡± ¡°But, Ingvar!¡± Mrs. Park called. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Mrs. Park,¡± he yelled over his shoulder as he left. ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. Duty before decoration.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right,¡± Darius said. ¡°I can do all the heavy lifting. We¡¯ll let them go eat.¡± ¡°Are you sure you can handle it?¡± Mrs. Park asked. The sun set early in winter. Darius would be coming into his full strength soon¡ªif he didn¡¯t already have it. ¡°Oh, I think I can manage.¡± To me and Conrad he said, ¡°Go ahead and lay them down there.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll call us if you need us?¡± Conrad asked. ¡°Of course.¡± We put down our burdens and followed Igor to the kitchen. Kappa was sitting on my lap, quizzing me with a furrowed brow as to why we had decided to bring pokey-trees into the house, when Olivia peeked in from the back stairs. ¡°Is that woman gone?¡± she whispered. ¡°No,¡± Igor grumbled. ¡°Mrs. Park wouldn¡¯t dream of abandoning us in our time of need. It¡¯ll take a pike to get rid of her.¡± In her twenties, Mrs. Park had been a hippie. She¡¯d told me that herself. Ever since then, she¡¯d melded from one open-minded and peace-loving phase to another. Now she was a New-Age Wiccan, complete with crystals and flowing clothes. From the first moment she¡¯d seen Olivia, Mrs. Park had embraced her, metaphorically but enthusiastically, as a fellow witch. Olivia had some strong opinions about how accurate that comparison was, but Big Jacky had told her in no uncertain terms that she had to be polite to Mrs. Park. It was hard to find someone willing to clean such a large old mansion. It was harder to find someone who could keep a secret and didn¡¯t mind working with a wolfman, a bog-creature, and a mummy. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. Olivia had decided the easiest way to be polite would be to avoid Mrs. Park whenever possible. Olivia finished coming into the room. ¡°I have to hang up the wreaths! At least the ones for the front doors. We¡¯ve invited in outside forces.¡± ¡°How?¡± I asked. Olivia gave me a scathing glance. ¡°Trees can be powerful.¡± ¡°What does that have to do with a wreath?¡± Olivia passed me the greenery she¡¯d been carrying. ¡°What do you think?¡± She was not asking for supportive feedback; she was giving me a chance to figure out the obvious. If she¡¯d tagged ¡°stupid¡± onto the end of the question, it would have felt right at home. But after living with Olivia for almost two months, I had also learned a few tricks for getting along with difficult people. I decided to pretend she had asked for feedback. I looked down at the wreath. It was handwoven from fresh cuttings. There was evergreen in there, as well as a few other vines and berries. A white ribbon held it all together. It was smaller and more humble than any Christmas wreath I¡¯d seen before, but it also felt¡­real. I don¡¯t know how to explain it. It felt comfortable in my hands. It almost killed me to say it, but anything else would have been a lie. ¡°It¡¯s lovely.¡± Was that a blush? Did Olivia blush? She turned her head away before I could confirm what the corner of my eye had glimpsed. Kappa made an ooooohhhh noise and lifted his hands. I held the wreath out of reach. ¡°You made this?¡± I asked. Olivia rescued it when Kappa stood on my lap so he¡¯d be a few inches taller. ¡°It¡¯s a protective circle. You have to weave the spell into it. It wasn¡¯t easy.¡± ¡°Are all wreaths protective circles?¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± Some days, I must have been as trying to her as Mrs. Park. All right, most days. But at least she could be rude to me. Olivia went on, ¡°They¡¯re usually nothing but decoration, but this house has a tendency to attract attention.¡± I had finished my generous pre-dinner snack and wanted to get back to decorating. ¡°Would you like me to put it up for you?¡± ¡°Would you?¡± Olivia asked. ¡°Sure.¡± I stood up and put Kappa on my stool. ¡°Do we have any 3M hooks or nails?¡± ¡°Mrs. Park brought us over-the-door hooks, you vandal,¡± Igor said. ¡°Iset¡¯s already put them up.¡± I took the wreath from Olivia. ¡°Do I have to do anything special when I hang it?¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have to say an incantation or anything to make sure it does its thing?¡± She answered by rolling her eyes and leaving. I took that to mean it was ready as-is. She probably wouldn¡¯t have trusted me with it otherwise. When I got out to the front hall, Darius and Mrs. Park were laying out the huge strands of lights that were going to go on the ginormous tree behind them. Iset stood nearby, but far enough away that sap wouldn¡¯t get on her bandages. The other two trees had disappeared. They were probably already set up in their respective homes. I listened as I walked over to the front door. Mrs. Park was asking ¡°What kind of decorations do you have?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll have to ask Emerra,¡± Darius said as he untangled a loose knot of lights. ¡°She¡¯s the one in charge. I¡¯m nothing but quality control.¡± A cold breeze snuck around me as I opened the door. I put the wreath on the hook and made sure the bow was centered at the bottom. ¡°There,¡± I mumbled to myself, ¡°nice and symmetrical.¡± ¡°Emerra,¡± Mrs. Park called, ¡°you¡¯re the one behind this?¡± I shut the door and crossed the hall toward them. ¡°Yeah. It was me.¡± ¡°Good for you! This will be wonderful. I can¡¯t tell you how excited I am. It always felt a bit sad coming here in December and having everyone going on as usual. You¡¯ll see.¡± She turned to Iset. ¡°You¡¯ll see.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure I will,¡± Iset assured her. Mrs. Park looked back to me. ¡°So what were you going to do about decorations?¡± Uhhhhhhh. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. I was too focused on getting the trees.¡± ¡°Oh, dear. Are there any hiding up in the attic somewhere?¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid not,¡± Iset said. ¡°We took inventory when we moved in. There were no Christmas decorations.¡± ¡°Nevermind that. Emerra, I can take you into town once the lights are all up¡ª¡± Her proposal was interrupted by a hum from Darius. Darius had perfected an inoffensive hum that nonetheless managed to convey his complete disapproval. ¡°Oh?¡± was Mrs. Park¡¯s challenge. ¡°The only thing in town that might carry decorations is the mini-Walmart.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°And I doubt that a big box chain store will carry enough ornaments of a high enough caliber¡ª¡± ¡°¡ªto satisfy quality control?¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re not the one in charge, Mr. Vasil?¡± Darius pulled out his expression of wounded innocence. Beside me, I heard Iset chuckle. A thought popped into my head like a corn kernel bursting into popcorn. ¡°I could make them.¡± I tried not to sound excited. Excitement made quality control wary, and from the look on his face, I had a feeling he was already struggling with the concept. Mrs. Park, on the other hand, thought it was grand. ¡°Why, Emerra, that¡¯s perfect! I mean¡ªdo you¡­do you know how? A child your age¡ª¡± Forget wounded innocence¡ªI was straight-up offended. ¡°I¡¯m twenty!¡± ¡°A mere baby. I didn¡¯t know people from your generation knew how to make ornaments.¡± ¡°A sound objection,¡± Darius said. ¡°It might be too hard for her.¡± ¡°I know how to make most of them,¡± I said. ¡°Dried orange slices. Popcorn-cranberry garlands. Salt dough. If we have any colorful paper¡ª¡± ¡°We do have that,¡± Iset said, ¡°and some left over sewing supplies.¡± Darius glared at the mummy as if she was guilty of treason. I continued, ¡°And anything I don¡¯t know how to make, I can look up on the internet.¡± Mrs. Park laughed and laughed. ¡°I don¡¯t know why I wonder about you. As long as you know how to type, you can learn to do anything. How delightful.¡± ¡°But¡ª¡± The vampire¡¯s objection was interrupted by Iset: ¡°You have to admit, Darius, if you want ornaments that are traditional to the Victorian time period, it would be hard to do better than homemade.¡± If I had dipped some garlic in blessed silver and stuffed it in his mouth, it would have been less torturous. ¡°Fine,¡± he said. ¡°I won¡¯t rob you of the chance to have some fun.¡± I grinned. He added, ¡°But it sounds like a lot of those decorations are going to require the use of the kitchen. Have you considered what Igor might say?¡± ¡°Ingvar?¡± Mrs. Park said. ¡°Never mind him. I can talk to him. He¡¯s such a darling.¡± Vasil decided not to comment, probably because he didn¡¯t want to be at fault if anything happened. Instead, he said to me, ¡°Would you mind if I ordered some decorations to augment your efforts.¡± I put on a haughty face. ¡°I suppose. You do have pretty good taste.¡± He shook his head as I wandered back toward the kitchen. I would try to talk to Igor first. I doubted that he¡¯d object too loudly, especially if I could threaten him with Mrs. Park. Chapter 5 - When the Bell Tolls One I spent the next day making garlands. It took longer than I thought it would, but by that evening, I had finished enough of them to cover the tree in the front hall and the tree on the landing. When I asked Conrad for help putting them up on the tallest tree, he offered to do the smaller tree as well. I asked if he needed my help, but he sniffed at me, so I moved on to the long gallery. Olivia was already there, working on yet another wreath. She¡¯d already finished the wreaths for the front and back doors, but she wanted one for every door that led to the outside. I put my stuff on the large coffee table next to her supplies and sat down on the floor beside her. Darius was at the piano, playing an instrumental version of whatever Christmas song struck his fancy. You¡¯d think I would have been used to his talent by then, but I wasn¡¯t. ¡°How did you get so good, Darius?¡± ¡°A hundred years of practice, Emerra.¡± Anytime the song changed, I¡¯d stop to listen. Then, when I had enough sense, I¡¯d remind myself I had work to do¡ªa lot of work to do, since it looked like I¡¯d be creating most of the ornaments myself. Not that I was complaining about that. There¡¯s a blissful mindlessness that comes from simple work. Add some beautiful piano music and a few twinkling Christmas lights¡­well, I would have been content to stay there until January. Kappa seemed to like the lights almost as much as I did. He¡¯d insisted on following me up to the third floor. The moment we had entered the gallery, he sat down a few feet away from the Christmas tree and stared at it, mesmerized. He¡¯d fallen asleep there, still clutching a hot water bottle to his chest to keep himself warm. Iset came in from the west door. ¡°I have the last of the mistletoe,¡± she said. ¡°Do we need to have Mrs. Park bring in anymore?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so,¡± Olivia said. ¡°That should be enough, and this is the last wreath.¡± ¡°Did you save any to hang up for kissing?¡± Darius asked. ¡°Nope. If you want any kissing mistletoe, you¡¯ll have to call Mrs. Park. I¡¯m sure she¡¯ll be thrilled to bring you some.¡± Darius¡¯s fingers trailed onto a few wrong notes as he considered the idea. Olivia didn¡¯t look up, but when I glanced at Iset, I could sense her sly amusement. The count corrected his playing. ¡°Maybe I will. After all, she¡¯s kind enough to occasionally mention that I¡¯m good looking, and she¡¯s a nice young lady.¡± Olivia and I both paused to choke down the idea that a seventy-year-old woman could ever be considered young. This time, Iset got to share her amused glance with the vampire. She wandered over to the grand piano and leaned on the lid. ¡°Sing something for me, Darius.¡± ¡°Sing?¡± He shook his head, then raised his eyes. ¡°A Christmas song?¡± ¡°Please.¡± ¡°Oh, well. Since you asked nicely.¡± He cleared his throat as he transitioned to the proper key. I couldn¡¯t figure out why the tune sounded so familiar until he started singing. ¡°Stockings are hung with care, the children sleep with one eye open¡­ Now there¡¯s more than toys at stake, ¡®cause I¡¯m older now, but not done hoping¡­¡± The big faker. Christmas is for children? Ha! He didn¡¯t learn that song in his childhood. His voice was nice. Not great, but he hit all the notes, and when he looked at Iset while he was singing, I couldn¡¯t blame her for easing closer to him. It must have felt like he was singing just to her. ¡°So please just fall in love with me this Christmas. There¡¯s nothing else that I would need this Christmas¡­¡± The way he was singing was so gentle and heartfelt, it made my soul feel kind of gooey. Either that vampire was using some of his hypnotic powers on us, or he was one heck of a performer. ¡°¡­I want something that lasts forever, so kiss me on this cold December night¡­¡± Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. Or maybe he wasn¡¯t performing at all. Eventually the song wound down, and he finished with: ¡°¡­they call it the season of giving; I¡¯m here, I¡¯m yours.¡± The music rose, then faded with a final flourish. ¡°That was beautiful,¡± Iset said softly. ¡°Did you write it?¡± ¡°Sadly, no,¡± Darius said. ¡°That particular song is sung by a man named Michael Bubl¨¦.¡± His answer was quiet. As far as they were concerned, they were the only two people in the room. They didn¡¯t need to talk loud. The vampire went on, ¡°I think you¡¯d like his work.¡± ¡°I think I would.¡± Darius looked at her and raised an eyebrow. ¡°What do you say, Iset? Am I as good as that Sinatra fellow you¡¯re always going on about?¡± ¡°Almost.¡± ¡°Hmmmm. I¡¯ll have to keep practicing. What about that upstart Presley?¡± ¡°Easily.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad to hear it.¡± He took one of Iset¡¯s bandaged hands and raised it to his lips. Olivia elbowed me. Hard. When I turned to her, she mouthed stop staring and jerked her head toward the forgotten garland in my hands. I blushed and lowered my eyes to my work. When Conrad entered the room, the spell was broken. I could feel the moment disappearing and wanted to scream for it not to go. ¡°Is the next one ready, Emerra?¡± the wolfman asked. ¡°Getting there,¡± I said. Conrad came over and sat down on the couch I was leaning against. Olivia cursed under her breath. ¡°I¡¯m out of ribbon now.¡± Iset pushed away from the piano. ¡°I¡¯ll go grab some. Emerra, would you like me to bring out the rest of the sewing supplies? I think there are some beads in there.¡± ¡°Maybe not yet. I¡¯m getting pretty tired, and I want to finish these.¡± ¡°I can show you where they are tomorrow then.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± As Iset left, Darius stood up from the piano. ¡°No more music?¡± I asked. ¡°Sorry, Emerra. You¡¯ll have to pull out your phone.¡± He walked over and picked Kappa up from the floor. ¡°I need to get this guy back to his nest before that water bottle gets cold.¡± I watched him go. As soon as his back was out of view, I whipped my head around to stare at Olivia. ¡°Did you see?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not blind, Emerra.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°So what?¡± ¡°So how long?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. It was going on before I got here.¡± Conrad grunted his question. Olivia explained, ¡°Darius was singing to Iset.¡± There was a doggish huff behind me, then, ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°So you knew too?¡± I asked. ¡°Oh, yeah. You can see it sometimes in the way Darius smiles at her.¡± I put my hands, garland and all, to my chest. My crossed legs bounced a few times as I gushed, ¡°That was so, so sweet.¡± ¡°You think it¡¯s sweet?¡± Olivia paused to clip off a stubborn bit of twig. ¡°I think it¡¯s tragic.¡± Some people would use a bucket of ice water to douse a match. ¡°Tragic?¡± Conrad said. ¡°It¡¯s not like they can be together.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± I said. ¡°They¡¯re together almost every day.¡± Olivia paused what she was doing so she could give me a look. ¡°Do I have to spell it out for you?¡± I thought that was a little rich coming from someone that had spent the majority of her life in a girls-only school for witches. ¡°You¡¯re sixteen. Have you ever even had a boyfriend?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not the one that couldn¡¯t follow the conversation.¡± I was about to answer back, but Conrad said, ¡°I don¡¯t think that matters to them.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± At times, Olivia¡¯s voice was so full of smug off-handedness, it made me want to strangle her. She wasn¡¯t going to argue with you. There was no point. You were just wrong. ¡°Olivia,¡± Conrad barked. The witch looked up. ¡°Do you really believe that love only matters when you can have sex?¡± Olivia¡¯s cheeks went red, and she looked away. ¡°I¡¯m sure it¡¯s none of my business.¡± Maybe that was the best answer. It was none of our business. But I had enjoyed that sticky, sappy sweetness so much, now that it was gone, I felt hollow. Olivia Oliversen, thief of joy. You know the kind of idiot that always presses on their bruises to see if it hurts? Yeah. That¡¯s me. ¡°Olivia,¡± I asked,¡± do you like Christmas?¡± Iset came back into the room while Olivia held up the wreath for inspection. ¡°I think doing this is good practice,¡± Olivia said. Iset handed her a spool of velvet ribbon. I picked up a few more orange slices. ¡°But do you enjoy it? Do you enjoy the trees and cookies and stuff?¡± She shrugged. ¡°Some good old-fashioned paganism never hurt anyone.¡± Iset said from over Olivia¡¯s shoulder, ¡°I¡¯m not sure the self-proclaimed agnostic should be allowed to say that.¡± ¡°I believe in the gods! I just don¡¯t have much use for them.¡± ¡°You sound like Jacky,¡± I said. Olivia snipped off a length of ribbon. ¡°The solstice has always been an intensely magical time. I think everyone can feel that. There¡¯s power in the darkness. That¡¯s what I really like about it. And what do you do when there¡¯s darkness? You add some lights.¡± When she looked up, she caught me grinning at her. ¡°What?¡± she said. ¡°What¡¯s your favorite Christmas movie?¡± She rolled her eyes. ¡°It¡¯s the Grinch, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t mind A Christmas Carol.¡± ¡°Muppets or Mickey Mouse?¡± Olivia looked like she wanted to smack her forehead, but her hands were full. ¡°Oh my god, Emerra.¡± ¡°Let me guess,¡± Conrad said. ¡°Nineteen-ninety-nine. Patrick Stewart.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the one.¡± Iset said, ¡°Sir Patrick did a good job in that. It was very close to the book.¡± For a brief moment, Olivia¡¯s detached veneer thinned enough I could catch a glimpse of eagerness. ¡°Right? It¡¯s such a good story. Ghosts, horror, regret¡ªthe threat of death. Ignorance and want!¡± I hadn¡¯t really thought of it that way before. Possibly because I watched the cartoon version. ¡°Ho-ho-ho,¡± I muttered. ¡°The solstice is an intense time. Our stories should be intense.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a witch. You¡¯d like any story with ghosts in it.¡± ¡°And you deserve to be haunted for that stupid occult stereotype.¡± ¡°Says the witch that only wears black.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think the ghosts of Christmas would bother with Emerra,¡± Iset mused. ¡°She¡¯s neither rich, nor grumpy about the season.¡± ¡°Maybe they¡¯ll haunt Jacky,¡± I said. ¡°He¡¯s not particularly grumpy either.¡± ¡°But he is rich.¡± Conrad said, ¡°I don¡¯t think a few ghosts would scare him.¡± He scratched his neck fur. ¡°I don¡¯t know what would.¡± All of us paused to enjoy the image of a bunch of frustrated ghosts and a bemused Jacky trying to understand what they were doing. I tied off the last of the orange slices. ¡°That¡¯s it,¡± I announced as I stood up. I glanced at the clock. ¡°Geez, it¡¯s late.¡± Conrad got to his feet. ¡°I¡¯ll help you hang it.¡± We went over to the tree. When Olivia finished the wreath, she passed it off to Iset and stood up to stretch. ¡°Goodnight all.¡± Conrad and I said our goodnights to both her and Iset. They both left the room, but a moment later, Olivia put her head back through the door. ¡°Hey, Emerra.¡± I leaned around the tree so I could see her. ¡°Expect the first ghost when the bell tolls one!¡± With a whip of long red hair, she was gone. I smiled and shook my head. When Conrad and I were done, I went to bed while thinking about stereotypes and ghosts¡ªwhich is maybe not the best thing to be thinking about when going to bed in a creaky old mansion. While I was putting on my pajamas, my nerves started tingling, and I had to force myself to think about something else. Anyway, this was Christmas, not Halloween! What was I worried about? But I must have been worried about something, because when the grandfather clock on the landing chimed one, my eyes opened. Three ghosts were standing by my bed. I groaned and covered my face with a pillow. Chapter 6 - The Three Ghosts ¡°Olivia Oliversen, did you Marley me?¡± Olivia wiped her eyes and took a deep breath. ¡°Emerra,¡± her voice was rough with sleep, ¡°what the hell are you doing in my room?¡± ¡°Did you Marley me?¡± She rubbed her face. ¡°What time is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s one-thirty. I have ghosts. They¡¯re supposed to come one at a time, you know.¡± ¡°Ghosts.¡± The witch blinked. ¡°Are you sure it isn¡¯t a nightmare?¡± She didn¡¯t know what she was saying. Some part of me knew that. The rest of me was tired and scared, so my voice had an unusual bite to it. ¡°It isn¡¯t a nightmare. I know what those are like. Olivia, I have three ghosts to deal with, and I need to know if you brought them here.¡± She turned on her nearby lamp and stared at me. After a second, she grumbled, ¡°Okay, you¡¯re not joking.¡± She looked around the room. ¡°Where are they?¡± I glared at her but didn¡¯t bother answering. They were right beside me. Since I had woken up, they showed no desire to be anywhere else. The youngest, a little boy, kept swaying through my leg, which, by now, was so chilled it hurt. ¡°I take it they¡¯re here,¡± Olivia said dryly. ¡°Did you do it?¡± I demanded. Olivia threw off her covers and stood up. ¡°No, I didn¡¯t do it! I don¡¯t have that kind of power.¡± She walked over to her desk chair and grabbed the black sweatshirt that was hanging off it. ¡°I don¡¯t¡±¡ªshe paused as she pulled the sweatshirt over her head¡ª ¡°even know how they got in here. We have protections on this place.¡± ¡°The wreaths?¡± ¡°We have other protections too.¡± She opened her desk drawer and grabbed a long piece of chalk. ¡°Iset will be in the library, but I have to get a book anyway. Can you find Darius?¡± I nodded. I would never admit it, but I felt relieved as I watched Olivia gear up. I had told myself I was ready to deal with the ghosts, but I was glad I wouldn¡¯t have to deal with them alone. ¡°It¡¯ll be easiest to clear off the floor in the drawing room,¡± Olivia said. ¡°I¡¯ll meet you there.¡± When we left her room, I turned toward Darius¡¯s chambers. Conrad was standing in his open door. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he asked. I stopped beside him, trying to think of what to say. He must have smelled my unease; when he spoke again, he sounded more alert. ¡°Mera, what¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°There are ghosts.¡± I wondered if I would ever not feel stupid saying something like that. At least the wolfman wasn¡¯t going to make fun of me. ¡°How many?¡± ¡°Three.¡± ¡°Are they dangerous?¡± I looked down at the wispy figures by my side. ¡°I-I don¡¯t¡­think so?¡± I looked up at him. ¡°They¡¯re children, Conrad.¡± And my ever reliable voice choked up at the end. He reached out and pulled me in for a hug. The wave of relief I felt from that was powerful enough to make my eyes water. It was a wolf thing. Fur and a little body heat were better than anything he could have said anyway. When he let me go, I asked, ¡°Is the count in his room?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll find him. Where¡¯s Olivia going?¡± ¡°We¡¯re meeting in the drawing room, she¡¯s going to get Iset.¡± ¡°You head there.¡± I didn¡¯t argue. I had enough problems with the ghosts. Wrangling cats would have been easier. They wouldn¡¯t have listened to my begging either, but at least I could have touched them. Every other step, the ghosts stopped to stare at something. Pretending to leave without them only netted me an average of two out of the three, so I¡¯d have to go back for the other. But, eventually, I lured them down the stairs and into the drawing room. Everyone was already there. Even Igor had risen by some unknown instinct in order to make sure we had coffee. He had delivered the brew, then disappeared back into the kitchen, leaving only four mugs and the wafting smell of dark roast to prove he¡¯d been there. Olivia was putting the finishing touches on a magic circle. When she was done, she stood up and stared at me, expectantly. I stared back because I had no idea what she expected me to do. ¡°Well?¡± she said. ¡°Well what?¡± was my brilliant response. ¡°Get them in the circle.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Olivia was too busy sighing, so Iset had to explain. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°So we can see them.¡± I glanced down at the spell. I knew that magic circles could hold power, but I had no idea they could do something as practical as that. The white chalk glowed against the dark wood of the floor. Ignoring my bout with self-consciousness, I turned and knelt so I¡¯d be almost level with the ghosts. The girl ghost was older than the other two, so I picked her out as the leader. I looked in the white shadows of what had once been her eyes. ¡°I need you to stand in the circle.¡± When she opened her mouth, another murmur of inarticulate noise tumbled into my ears. I had already spent a frustrating half hour trying to understand what they were saying and had only managed to catch a few words. It felt like the ghosts and I were having a conversation over a bad cell-phone connection. The garbled sounds kept cutting in and out. I motioned to the circle and tried to use hand signs to help. ¡°Can you please stand in the circle?¡± The middle child, a boy, grabbed onto the girl¡¯s shirt and buried his face between her arm and her chest. The littlest boy closed his eyes and looked down. Only the girl was willing to meet my eyes. The look she gave me made me feel like a villain. ¡°Please?¡± She shook her head. ¡°Emerra,¡± Darius¡¯s voice was so loud and real, it came as a shock, ¡°what¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t¡­¡± I sighed. ¡°They don¡¯t want to go in the circle.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Iset asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. It¡¯s hard to understand them.¡± ¡°Can they understand you?¡± Conrad asked. ¡°I think so. But maybe they have a hard time hearing me. It might be easier to show them.¡± I turned away from my ghostly visitors and looked at Olivia. ¡°Will it ruin something if I stand in the circle with them?¡± She hesitated, then said, ¡°No. But be careful not to scuff the chalk.¡± I turned back to the ghosts. ¡°Please,¡± I said, ¡°come with me.¡± I reached out both my hands. None of them moved to take them. The youngest boy looked up at the girl. ¡°Please trust me,¡± I whispered. ¡°I want to help you.¡± I had never meant something more in my life. The girl reached out. She couldn¡¯t actually take my hand, but she rested the ghost of her fingers over mine. A moment later, the youngest boy mimicked the gesture. I eased myself to my feet while trying to keep my hands where they were, then I slowly backed up and coaxed them past the boarder of the spell. When I heard the faint gasp echo from person to person, I knew they had come far enough. I lowered my hands. I had warned Conrad that they were children, but even he wasn¡¯t prepared to see them. There was something so forlorn about them, it made your heart ache. Their shabby clothes and skinny faces showed they¡¯d lived in poverty, but that wasn¡¯t the worst of it. It was their eyes. And their expressions. And how they looked so ethereal. It was as if only a part of their souls had been left behind¡ªthe sad part. The ghosts must have heard the gasps as well; they looked around the room with startled gazes, taking in each figure. Which was probably¡­a lot¡­to take in. I stayed as still as possible and tried to sound relaxed: ¡°Could they see you before?¡± It took a few seconds before Darius found his voice. ¡°I doubt it. Not with how they¡¯re staring at Iset and Conrad.¡± ¡°Maybe they only saw us as shades,¡± Olivia said. ¡°You could ask them,¡± Darius pointed out. But that didn¡¯t seem important to me. ¡°It¡¯s all right,¡± I assured the ghosts. ¡°They¡¯re my friends. They aren¡¯t going to hurt you.¡± The girl moved her eyes from Conrad to me. ¡°Yeah, I know, but I promise, they aren¡¯t going to hurt you.¡± ¡°Not that we could,¡± Olivia murmured. ¡°The fear is real,¡± Iset said, ¡°even if the threat isn¡¯t.¡± She slid off her seat and knelt outside the circle. ¡°What do you think?¡± Darius asked her. She tilted her head as she regarded them. ¡°Their style of clothing is old. Very old. I remember something like it, but I can¡¯t remember the decade.¡± ¡°What about the century?¡± ¡°Sixteen, seventeen hundreds? The girl is probably around ten or eleven years old.¡± Iset pointed to the next oldest. ¡°He could be seven.¡± She lowered her finger. It was possible she felt uncomfortable pointing to the smallest boy. He looked frail enough, that kind of gesture might break him. He stared at Iset with wide eyes that reminded me of Kappa. ¡°And he¡¯s probably only five or six.¡± ¡°He looks too small,¡± Olivia said. ¡°Children were smaller back then. Especially if they were malnourished.¡± ¡°Are they siblings?¡± Darius asked. ¡°I can¡¯t tell.¡± ¡°Emerra?¡± I asked the little girl, ¡°Are these your brothers?¡± She hesitated, then shook her head. Olivia said, ¡°Are they brothers?¡± The little girl looked at her but didn¡¯t respond. I tried: ¡°Are they brothers?¡± This time, the girl nodded. Iset said, ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± The ghost said nothing. ¡°Emerra,¡± Iset prompted. ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± I repeated. In a voice that was only half there, the ghost of the little girl said, ¡°Anna.¡± ¡°Do they only understand Emerra?¡± Conrad asked. ¡°Or will they only answer her?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a very good question,¡± Darius muttered. ¡°Ask them where they come from,¡± Olivia said. I relayed the question. There was a wraithlike wash of sound, but I could pick out a few words: home, east, together, and town. ¡°What language are they speaking?¡± Olivia asked. I blinked and looked up. ¡°Is¡ªis it not English?¡± Everyone stared at me. A few long and uncomfortable seconds passed before Iset said in her beautifully mild voice, ¡°Emerra, can you understand them?¡± ¡°Well, not all of it. Sometimes it¡¯s too faint¡ª¡± ¡°But when you can hear them, it sounds like English?¡± Darius asked. I knew something was wrong; the answer was so obvious, it made the question sound crooked. ¡°Yeah.¡± Darius and Iset looked at each other. Olivia announced, ¡°That¡¯s not possible.¡± ¡°It seems it is possible,¡± Darius corrected her. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I asked. Olivia ignored me. ¡°Only Jacky can do that.¡± Iset said, ¡°Jacky was the only one we knew could do that, but apparently¡ª¡± ¡°No! That¡¯s not possible!¡± Olivia turned to Darius. ¡°Where¡¯s Mr. Noctis?¡± ¡°He¡¯s at the Vatican.¡± ¡°He¡¯s in Rome?¡± I cried. ¡°He told us he had a meeting!¡± ¡°He did. The meeting was at the Vatican.¡± Darius raised his hand in a shrug. ¡°A few thousand miles doesn¡¯t really matter to Jacky, so he wouldn¡¯t think to mention it. He might not be back for a week or more.¡± ¡°But we need him here!¡± Olivia said. ¡°Why?¡± Conrad¡¯s abrupt question drew everyone¡¯s attention. When no one answered him, he elaborated: ¡°What would he do that we¡¯re not?¡± ¡°He can understand them,¡± the witch said. ¡°So can Emerra.¡± Olivia threw me a glare laced with enough poison to kill an elephant, but I had a hard time feeling guilty since I wasn¡¯t sure what I had done wrong. Darius asked Iset, ¡°Can you recognize the language?¡± She sighed. ¡°Well, it has a Germanic root, but I¡¯m only guessing based on the sound. I can¡¯t understand the words.¡± I will never claim to be the swiftest spear in the armory, but even I had caught on by that point. I rubbed my eyes. ¡°Why can I understand them if they¡¯re not speaking English?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t know,¡± Darius said. ¡°As you may have guessed from Olivia¡¯s reaction, we¡¯re a little surprised that you can. The gift of understanding is¡­rare.¡± ¡°It might not be that though,¡± Iset said. ¡°Emerra might have some special connection with the ghosts that we don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter.¡± The vampire stood up from where he¡¯d been leaning against the couch and walked toward the three ghosts. He went down on one knee so he¡¯d be closer to their height. They couldn¡¯t understand him, but he made his voice as soothing as possible. ¡°What matters is finding out how they got in, and how we can help them.¡± Chapter 7 - Lost The next day, the others searched the house for how the ghosts got in. I would have been happy to help them, but I was under strict orders to stay inside and talk to the ghosts. My assignment wasn¡¯t all that difficult, so I decided to work on the decorations as well. Olivia found me in the front hall, laying out the ornaments I¡¯d made that morning. Of course, she didn¡¯t approve. ¡°Nice,¡± she said, looking down at my paper cranes. A one-word compliment, given enough sarcasm, feels a lot like a bee sting. She picked one up. ¡°But don¡¯t you think we have more important things to be worrying about?¡± ¡°I take it you didn¡¯t find the hole?¡± I said. She scowled and went over to hang the bird on the tree. ¡°No.¡± Iset came in behind her. ¡°I¡¯ve checked the last charm. It¡¯s intact and working.¡± She sounded resigned. Olivia¡¯s resignation sounded a bit darker. ¡°Good to know we wasted the whole morning.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that confirming our home is safe is a total waste of time.¡± Without being asked, both of them came over and started putting up the decorations. Maybe they were restless. I could sympathize. ¡°What about you, Emerra?¡± Iset asked. ¡°Did you get a chance to talk to them?¡± My eyes flicked to the side of the room. Kappa was playing with the rag ball I had made from my craft scraps. The three ghost children were staring at him with rapt attention. They had tried to approach him several times, but Kappa would unconsciously scoot away from their chilly auras, so they had to be content with watching him from a distance. As they did, their expressions wandered through a myriad of emotions, ranging from confusion, to wonder, to amusement. Despite the fact they weren¡¯t paying any attention to me, I lowered my voice. The others might be able to talk about the ghosts as though they weren¡¯t there, but they would understand me. ¡°I¡¯ve run into a few problems.¡± Iset sat down on the nearby stairs. ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°The good news is that I can see them better now. They look more solid. Is that normal?¡± ¡°Attention makes everything stronger, even spirits. The reason they were so faded was probably because they hadn¡¯t been seen or heard for a long time.¡± Olivia said, ¡°I wonder if they would have lasted this long if they hadn¡¯t had each other.¡± Her voice was soft¡ªalmost kind. Iset added, ¡°But since you can see and talk to them, it makes sense that they would become more substantial.¡± ¡°Will it help their memories?¡± I asked. Iset tilted her head. ¡°They don¡¯t remember much,¡± I explained. ¡°John says he doesn¡¯t remember anything¡ª¡± ¡°John?¡± ¡°The youngest.¡± ¡°He¡¯s only five, Emerra. I wouldn¡¯t expect his memory to be all that reliable anyway.¡± ¡°Anna remembers more, but it¡¯s all scattered. And¡­¡± I glanced at the ghosts again. They were still diverted by the bog-monster. ¡°And?¡± Olivia prompted me. I turned and handed her a decoration. ¡°I don¡¯t think they want to remember.¡± ¡°You think there¡¯s trauma there?¡± Iset asked. I nodded. I was good at recognizing trauma in children. I had an unfortunate amount of experience. ¡°And they won¡¯t talk about it?¡± ¡°Not yet,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s always easier to talk when you¡¯re doing something else. They couldn¡¯t help me make the ornaments, but I thought it might be a distraction.¡± ¡°And then they met Kappa.¡± Iset sounded amused. ¡°You can see them?¡± ¡°You keep glancing that direction.¡± ¡°Did you learn anything?¡± Olivia asked. Once again, her voice was kind. I tried not to openly marvel at it. I was sure that would be the fastest way to guarantee I would never hear it again. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. ¡°When I asked about their parents, Anna said she had a dad,¡± I said. ¡°Kind of.¡± ¡°How do you ¡®kind of¡¯ have a dad?¡± I had wondered about that myself. Ever since I had learned that I wasn¡¯t actually hearing English when my brain insisted I was, I found that, if I focused on the ambient sounds, I could sometimes also hear a murmur of foreign words. But hearing something twice at the same time gave me a massive headache, so I didn¡¯t try it often. I had tried it when Anna attempted to explain her home life. I don¡¯t know why I thought hearing a foreign word would make it any clearer. I guess I¡¯m just a genius like that. ¡°He wasn¡¯t a normal father figure,¡± I said. ¡°She talks like he¡¯s her dad, but when I ask if he is, she says no, and she always refers to him by his first name.¡± ¡°What was it?¡± Iset asked. ¡°I¡ªwhy?¡± ¡°I¡¯m still trying to figure out their language. It might help us learn who they are.¡± ¡°I think it was D-something. Like¡­Dominie? Dominus?¡± ¡°Domnus,¡± Iset muttered. ¡°Roman. I can look it up later, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll help.¡± ¡°Why not? It can¡¯t be a common name,¡± Olivia said. ¡°Not today, but back in their time period, it was much more common to name your children after saints.¡± To me, she said, ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°I tried talking to John and Jacob, but most of their memories seem to come from when they were ghosts.¡± ¡°What makes you think that?¡± ¡°Because they only talk about each other and Anna. They talk about being outside¡ªthe trees, the animals, winter, summer¡ªbut that¡¯s it.¡± ¡°Why are they with Anna if she¡¯s not their sister?¡± ¡°Anna says she takes care of them.¡± ¡°Does she say why?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t ask?¡± Olivia said. ¡°They wouldn¡¯t talk about it.¡± In the long silence that followed my statement, I took the chance to place a few more decorations on the tree. While I was on my tiptoes, Olivia said, ¡°I don¡¯t suppose they told you anything about how they died? Or why they got caught here?¡± ¡°No,¡± I said. Since I was staring at the tree instead of watching her, I found it easier to admit my weakness. ¡°I know it¡¯s important, but I didn¡¯t want to press the issue. John was getting upset.¡± ¡°I thought you said he didn¡¯t remember anything.¡± ¡°Pain makes a different kind of memory.¡± I hadn¡¯t been thinking when I mumbled that last line, so my ears had the honor of informing me how dumb I sounded. It was true, but that didn¡¯t mean most people would get it. I waited for Olivia to say something sarcastic or make fun of me, but she didn¡¯t. When I felt brave enough, I peered around the tree. Olivia was picking through the decorations with a thoughtful frown. ¡°What did Anna say about it?¡± Iset asked. ¡°She said she doesn¡¯t remember what happened, but she said something about bones.¡± ¡°Bones?¡± ¡°Yeah. Bones. She kept repeating it. They were watching the bones.¡± The string on the ornament I was holding finally settled between the needles. I lowered my arms. ¡°And that¡¯s when she got upset.¡± ¡°Any idea why?¡± I walked over and grabbed some more decorations. ¡°She thinks she needs to be somewhere.¡± ¡°That sounds like an echo,¡± Olivia noted. Iset saw my quizzical glance before Olivia did. She said, ¡°Sometimes a caught soul can become obsessed with the task they were focused on when they died.¡± ¡°Sometimes that¡¯s the reason they get caught,¡± Olivia added. ¡°So if we can figure out what she was trying to do, we can help them do it and release them?¡± I asked. ¡°It¡¯s not that easy. The tasks usually involve something in the past. How do you deliver a letter to a woman who¡¯s been dead for a hundred years? Sometimes, if you¡¯re lucky, you can create a convincing substitute, but most of the time, their only hope is to learn to let go.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if it is an echo,¡± Iset said. ¡°¡®Watching the bones¡¯ doesn¡¯t sound like the type of task a child would be given.¡± The front door opened. A cold rush of air came in, followed by Darius and Conrad. ¡°Nothing!¡± Darius announced. ¡°Not a damn thing.¡± He kicked the snow from his boots. ¡°I even had Conrad sniff around, in case something might turn up, but¡­¡± The vampire shook his head. He finished taking off his boots and turned to us. ¡°What about you ladies?¡± Iset said, ¡°Olivia and I went over the whole house. Everything looks fine. Emerra¡¯s been talking to the ghosts, but that hasn¡¯t been as enlightening as we might have hoped.¡± Darius came toward me. ¡°Can you hear them better now?¡± ¡°Kind of,¡± I said, ¡°but there¡¯s a lot they don¡¯t remember. And a lot they don¡¯t want to remember.¡± ¡°Are they here?¡± When I looked over, Anna was watching me with her blanched eyes. I shivered. ¡°They¡¯re over by Kappa.¡± Kappa glanced up when he heard his name, but then he went back to the wrestling match he was having with the ball. Despite the fact he had two webbed feet, two webbed hands, and fangs, he still seemed to be losing. ¡°Did you ask them how they got in?¡± ¡°They don¡¯t know.¡± Darius grumbled, ¡°So we have three intruders who had no way to get inside and don¡¯t remember how they did it.¡± ¡°They¡¯re not intruders,¡± Iset said. ¡°They¡¯re children, and they¡¯re lost.¡± At that moment, I knew exactly how Darius must have felt sometimes¡ªit killed me that I couldn¡¯t run over and kiss that mummy. The count accepted this chastisement with his usual grace. ¡°You¡¯re right. Thank you, Iset. But we still don¡¯t know who they are or what to do with them.¡± ¡°Do we have to do something with them?¡± I asked. Darius and Conrad both turned to me. ¡°Look at them.¡± Realizing my mistake, I changed it to, ¡°Take my word for it, they aren¡¯t hurting anything, and they seem¡ªI don¡¯t know¡ªhappier.¡± ¡°Anyone would be happy watching Kappa mess with that thing,¡± Olivia said. ¡°Exactly! Can¡¯t we leave them alone?¡± ¡°They need to be released, Emerra,¡± Conrad said. ¡°Do they need to be released right now?¡± Iset¡¯s bandaged head turned toward Darius. How she managed to exchange glances with anyone was one of the wonders of the Noctis mansion. Maybe the gesture was a habit. She said to me, ¡°Sooner would be better, but it doesn¡¯t seem like we can do anything right now, even if we wanted to.¡± ¡°If they¡¯re this much stronger after only one night, maybe in a few days they¡¯ll start to remember something,¡± I said. ¡°Or if they get the chance to relax, they might be able to open up.¡± ¡°That is a possibility,¡± Iset admitted. ¡°That¡¯s one possibility,¡± Conrad said. His tone was dark and there was way too much hint in it for my comfort. ¡°What do you mean?¡± I asked. ¡°You said they were following you around. If you went upstairs right now, do you think they¡¯d stay with Kappa, or do you think they¡¯d go with you?¡± A cold feeling crawled, one vertebrae at a time, from the base of my spine up to my neck. Conrad went on, ¡°And if they¡¯re hanging around with you that much, how long do you think it¡¯ll be before you start having dreams?¡± I didn¡¯t bother answering. Darius picked up an ornament. As he hung it on the tree, he said, ¡°I¡¯m going to call Jacky. He should at least know what¡¯s going on, and he might have a few ideas we haven¡¯t thought of.¡± He tapped the cloth covered Styrofoam ball. ¡°You know, these don¡¯t look half bad, Emerra.¡± ¡°Thanks,¡± I muttered. I was in for a series of nights almost as horrifying as what poor Scrooge had to go through, but at least my ornaments looked good. Chapter 8 - Better When Were Dancin I did dream that night, and I knew it was from Anna, but it was nothing but scattered pieces of random images. The fragments flashed by in near silence and a haze of emotions. I had planned on talking to Anna about any dreams I had, but everything was so insubstantial, I couldn¡¯t figure out where to start. All I could do was hope they¡¯d get clearer the more I was around the ghosts. I privately vowed to give them as much attention as possible. We spent the first part of the day wandering around the mansion. I reveled in my job as an emissary and a guide to modern life. The children were awed by everything¡ªwhich was delightful¡ªand curious¡ªwhich was a little more troublesome since I only knew so much. I mean, really, how does a lightbulb work? And how do you explain the concept of electricity to a seven-year-old ghost who doesn¡¯t know what a particle is? I bluffed my way through their questions the best I could, and, thankfully, they seemed satisfied with my answers. Once they understood all that fancy technology was life-as-usual to us, they accepted it as if they¡¯d been born to it. I marveled at their adaptability. The person who struggled the most with culture shock was, by far, me. That afternoon, I crashed through the private study door at a billion miles per hour. Olivia jumped and almost dropped the silver dagger she was holding. ¡°Oh my god! Emerra!¡± ¡°Sorry, Olivia, but I have a super-duper important question to ask you!¡± ¡°What?¡± I hesitated. ¡°What¡¯s that knife for?¡± ¡°It¡¯s for spelling rituals and stabbing people that come bursting into the room without knocking first!¡± I held up my hands and took a step back. ¡°Very sorry. Won¡¯t do it again.¡± ¡°What do you want?¡± ¡°Do you have a speaker? A loud one?¡± I held up my phone. ¡°Preferably one that works with this?¡± She stared at my phone, then her eyes slid over to me. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a goddess. Can I borrow it?¡± The newly promoted deity narrowed her eyes. ¡°Why?¡± There was no way I could over-dramatize the horror of the situation, so I let all the anguish come pouring out. ¡°The kids have never heard music!¡± Olivia paused, then put the dagger down. Without another word, she left the study. We crossed through Iset¡¯s room and went down the hall to the witch¡¯s room. The stereo was on her desk. She pulled the cord and brought it back to the door. ¡°I¡¯ll help you set it up,¡± she said. ¡°Where are the kids?¡± The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°They¡¯re in the front hall. I was telling them we needed some Christmas music while we hung up the garlands. Hymns, Olivia! They¡¯ve only heard hymns! No organ. No piano. Just a bunch of people chanting psalms.¡± When we reached the bottom of the front stairs, Anna and the boys were watching a rather lively pile of garlands. ¡°Kappa, get out of there,¡± I said as we passed by. ¡°No!¡± ¡°That sounds like a bog-creature that doesn¡¯t want dinner.¡± ¡°Then it couldn¡¯t have been Kappa,¡± Olivia said. ¡°Kappa likes dinner.¡± Neither of us looked around, but we heard the garlands rustle as Kappa crawled out of them. We went over to the hall table and moved the decorative vase to the side. While Olivia plugged in the speaker, I scrolled through my extensive collection of music. A bright yellow cover caught my eye, and I laughed. I handed my phone to Olivia. She glanced at it, then up at me. ¡°This isn¡¯t a Christmas song.¡± ¡°No, this is the best song.¡± She rolled her eyes, but there was a tiny smile hiding at the edge of her lips. I called the kids over. A melody that was half percussion and all ukulele came pouring out of the speaker. Olivia reached out to turn it down, but I stopped her. John took a step closer. I twisted the volume knob up until it felt right. Meghan Trainor started singing. Well, I had to translate, didn¡¯t I? The kids wouldn¡¯t understand the lyrics otherwise, and all I had to do was sing along¡ªwhich wasn¡¯t a problem. I had every note of that song memorized. ¡°Don¡¯t think about it. Just move your body¡­¡± It would have taken a much stronger will than mine to sing ¡°Better When I¡¯m Dancin¡¯¡± and not start dancing. Anna and Jacob laughed with delight as they watched my antics. John bounced on his toes. Kappa, who had a strangely good sense of rhythm, padded the floor with his hands. I started singing to him. He ate it up. Olivia¡¯s hint of a smile was now a smirk. I pointed at her and rolled my finger back toward me, summoning her to my makeshift dance floor. She shook her head. If it was only going to be me, I knew I¡¯d have to step it up. I tried to mimic a dance moved I¡¯d seen once, years ago. Olivia had to raise her voice to say, ¡°You¡¯re doing it wrong!¡± I grabbed her arm and pulled her out in front of the tree. ¡°Then show me how it¡¯s done!¡± Much to my irritation, the witch had the move mastered. During the next chorus, I swept Olivia up into a do-si-do. She was kind enough to join in. Thank god. Trying to swing around with someone who doesn¡¯t want to is painfully embarrassing for both parties. As we twirled, I caught sight of Conrad and Igor peering at us from the kitchen doorway. The moment I made eye-contact, Igor looked up at Conrad and said something. It was probably a warning to hide before they got drafted. The next time I swung around, they were gone. By then, John had caught the dance bug. Anna and Jacob were still happy to watch, but John started doing his own moves. He was such a natural. At the bridge, Kappa held up his arms and shouted, ¡°Me!¡± I couldn¡¯t disappoint my biggest fan. I danced over, turned up the volume a little more, then picked him up and twirled with him as he laughed. When I got dizzy, I put him down beside me, and, together, Olivia, John, and I finished dancing to the last few measures of the song while Kappa hopped around us. As soon as the last note faded, Darius¡¯s voice boomed down the stairs. ¡°Pop music is nothing but the moronic yowling of a vapid mob!¡± Olivia bit her lips to keep from laughing. I clapped a hand over my mouth. When I was sure I wouldn¡¯t giggle, I removed it and yelled up, ¡°Good afternoon, Darius! Sorry I woke you!¡± I stood on my toes. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll turn it down!¡± Iset and Mrs. Park were sitting beside each other in the library. The housekeeping list was up on the computer screen in front of them, but it was momentarily forgotten. The mummy¡¯s slim shoulders were shaking with quiet laughter. Mrs. Park smiled as she gazed toward the hall. When she turned back to Iset, she said, ¡°You know, this house has gotten a lot louder since Emerra moved in.¡± ¡°It has,¡± Iset agreed. Chapter 9 - The Windstorm A whole week had passed. I had gotten used to the routine of my new life. Nearly every waking moment was spent with the ghosts, but since they had no interest in watching me eat, I got some time to myself during meals. I had learned to treasure every last relaxing minute. Igor had a gift; no matter what time you walked into the kitchen, it always smelled amazing. Maybe the whole reason he acted as grumpy as he did was because it was the only way to keep people out of the kitchen long enough for him to work. It smelled even better when you walked in hungry. I sat down next to Conrad at the small table that served as our casual dining area. Igor came over and put a plate down in front of me. When the scent of that hot meatball sandwich hit my nostrils, I wanted to cry. Instead, I turned and told Igor that I loved him. He sniffed to remind me he was already in a committed relationship with his set of high-end copper pots and didn¡¯t have time to indulge a child like me. I didn¡¯t care. He had earned my love and admiration the moment he put that food in front of me. He didn¡¯t need to reciprocate. We were halfway through our sandwiches when Conrad spoke. ¡°Kappa was complaining to me today.¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°You.¡± I stopped with my sandwich halfway to my mouth. ¡°Me?¡± ¡°He thinks you¡¯re cheating at hide-and-seek.¡± ¡°I told him that I had other people helping me look for him. That¡¯s why I find him so quickly.¡± ¡°He gets that. What he wants to know is, if there are three other people playing, why can he only find you?¡± ¡°What did you tell him?¡± ¡°That he was right, you are a cheater.¡± ¡°You''re so good to me, Conrad.¡± ¡°Then he got mad at me for saying it.¡± I grinned. ¡°At least Kappa will stick up for me.¡± After a few more bites, I asked, ¡°Why did he go to you? Are you our referee now?¡± Conrad shrugged. ¡°What¡¯s the ruling on ghost assistants?¡± He finished swallowing the last of his sandwich before saying, ¡°I¡¯ll allow it. For now. As long as it¡¯s helping.¡± He tilted his head and peered down at me with his yellow eye. ¡°It is helping, right?¡± A hint of sadness snuck into my smile. ¡°I wish you could see them. They look so much better now. They look happy. Jacob and John aren¡¯t scared any more. You can hear them laughing¡ªI can hear them laughing all the time.¡± ¡°Are they stronger?¡± ¡°Their presence is solid, and I don¡¯t lose any of their words anymore.¡± ¡°What about the dreams?¡± I took my time wiping my mouth and hands with my napkin. I needed to think about how to answer. ¡°They¡¯re getting stronger too,¡± I said. But Conrad knew that. I had woken up from them three different times. They weren¡¯t exactly nightmares¡ªnot like I was used to¡ªbut sometimes a sense of dread would creep into me, digging its claws deeper and deeper into my psyche, until the sheer pressure was enough to make me wake up, gasping and confused. On those nights, I went out to the couch on the landing or down to the entertainment room to watch some shows. If Conrad wasn¡¯t already there, he would find me and let me lean on his arm or bury my face in his fur. I tried again. ¡°They¡¯re getting clearer, and I can hear sounds now. But they¡¯re still bits and pieces. Nothing cohesive.¡± ¡°Nothing useful?¡± I don¡¯t know why, but I felt a small pocket of indignation light up like a glow stick. ¡°The scenes are getting longer,¡± I said. ¡°Maybe they¡¯re remembering things. And I¡¯m learning about the town. I know a few buildings. I can recognize some people¡ª¡± ¡°Can you use it to help figure out who they are?¡± ¡°No. Not yet. Maybe if I watched less anime and more historical dramas.¡± I heard a chuff of laughter from Conrad. ¡°Yeah. Not likely.¡± The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°You just wait!¡± I prodded his ribs. Since my finger had to go through his two shirts and a yard of thick fur, he probably didn¡¯t even feel it. ¡°If we ever run into some kind of Japanese monster, I¡¯ll know exactly what kind it is, how to defeat it, and what time period it comes from.¡± ¡°Big lizard. That one¡¯s Godzilla. Call in King Kong.¡± From over by the stove, Igor said, ¡°You forgot the time period.¡± Conrad screwed up his face in thought. ¡°Nineteen-fifty? Sixty?¡± ¡°There. Now you¡¯re redundant, Emerra.¡± ¡°Oh,¡± I said, ¡°so you want to spend all your time talking and playing with ghosts?¡± Even across the room, I thought I saw Igor shudder. ¡°Sorry. Unlike some people, I have chores.¡± I picked up the orange Igor had included in my lunch and started peeling it. Conrad said, ¡°Do you have any idea what they¡¯re scared of?¡± ¡°No,¡± I said. ¡°I can feel it sometimes, when I dream, but it only happens when I¡¯m in the woods¡ªand that doesn¡¯t make any sense! I¡¯m in them all the time. They¡¯re important to Anna. Why do they only scare me sometimes?¡± ¡°Is it different when she gets scared? A different part of the woods?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the same woods, but I¡¯m all right when I¡¯m playing. The times I get upset¡­I feel like I¡¯m going somewhere.¡± As the silence stretched on, I looked up from the orange and realized that both Conrad and Igor were watching me. ¡°You mean Anna,¡± Conrad said. ¡°Anna is playing. She¡¯s the one going somewhere.¡± ¡°Well, yeah. But when I¡¯m dreaming, I usually am her.¡± Igor shook his head and turned back to his task. ¡°Be careful, Emerra. It¡¯s not wise to get too close to the dead.¡± ¡°You live with Jack Noctis!¡± Igor raised a finger without turning. ¡°That¡¯s death, not the dead. There¡¯s nothing wrong with getting close to death. It¡¯s the fate of every poor bastard on this planet.¡± ¡°What about me? I¡¯m dead.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not dead. You¡¯re something else. Eat your vegetables.¡± ¡°Or you¡¯ll tell my mother?¡± ¡°I am your mother. Eat your vegetables.¡± I laughed. Igor wasn¡¯t hugs and loves, and he wasn¡¯t bedtime stories, but I remembered one of my foster mothers, at the end of a long day, having to listen to one of the younger children call her name for the hundredth time in an hour. That look of irritated exhaustion was Igor¡¯s permanent expression. Yes. He could be a mom. ¡°Yes, Mother.¡± Conrad asked him, ¡°Is there any word on when Jacky¡¯s getting home?¡± At first Igor didn¡¯t answer. He had to pull his eyes away from the clock he¡¯d been staring at. When he finally looked at the wolfman, it took a second for the question to register. ¡°A few days,¡± Igor said. ¡°But it¡¯s always a few days with him.¡± He went back to staring at the clock. ¡°Igor?¡± I said. ¡°Mrs. Park is usually here by now.¡± Conrad and I glanced at each other. At any other time, I might have found it amusing¡ªmaybe the ol¡¯ grump cared a little after all¡ªbut his flat, matter-of-fact tone had an undercurrent that communicated exactly how odd her absence was. ¡°Should I call her?¡± I asked. Igor shrugged. ¡°Better you than me.¡± I pulled out my phone and called. All the tension that had been gathering disappeared when she answered on the fifth ring. ¡°Oh, Emerra!¡± she said. ¡°Perfect timing.¡± ¡°Are you all right?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes, yes. I¡¯m fine. I¡¯m actually here right now. I brought¡±¡ªI heard her grunt, and there was a soft noise¡ª¡°the supplies Ingvar asked for. I could use a few hands. Oh, and I have some more craft supplies for you.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be right out.¡± ¡°I¡¯m at the front of the house.¡± I hung up as I rose to my feet. ¡°She¡¯s here. I¡¯m going to go help her haul in some stuff.¡± Conrad stood up as well. He waited for me at the front door as I got my boots, then we went out together. Mrs. Park had pulled her car as close to the front door as she could. She was rooting around in her trunk when we arrived. ¡°Oh, good. Conrad.¡± Mrs. Park hung a few bags off his arms as she said, ¡°I¡¯m so sorry I¡¯m late. I hope I didn¡¯t make you all worry. That silly windstorm last night.¡± Her voice stalled with the effort of lifting the heaviest box, but once she¡¯d passed it off to the wolfman, she went on: ¡°Are all the trees still standing? Please tell me the back oak is all right. I¡¯d be so sad if it fell.¡± I struggled to catch up to her conversation. ¡°There was a windstorm?¡± Mrs. Park paused what she was doing. ¡°Surely you must know. It woke me out of a dead sleep and tore up half the town.¡± She waved her hand around for emphasis. ¡°Trees. Roofs. The whole place was a mess. That¡¯s why I¡¯m late. I had to help clean up, and when I finally started driving here, several of the main roads were closed because of debris.¡± Her eyes went from me to Conrad, searching for any hint we knew what she was talking about. ¡°You didn¡¯t feel it?¡± Conrad shook his head. When she looked at me, I said, ¡°Not here. Maybe it was only down in the town.¡± Mrs. Park gave me a look, then reached back into her trunk for another box. ¡°This place isn¡¯t that remote. How strange.¡± She handed me the box and picked up the last of the bags. ¡°Oh, well. As long as the old oak is still standing proud.¡± ¡°What about your house?¡± Conrad asked. Mrs. Park laughed as she shut her trunk. ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s a solid old lump, just like me. It¡¯ll outlast everything.¡± She led the way to the house. Anna was standing alone by the front door when we entered. My heart sank when I saw her. I purposefully fumbled to get my boots off so I could send Mrs. Park and Conrad on ahead. Once I was in my socks, I walked over to Anna. This was not the first time I had found her at the door. It seemed like whenever I had to go looking for her, she was always haunting that spot, staring out with milk-white eyes toward the woods, her face tight with worry. ¡°Anna?¡± I whispered. She slowly turned her head to look at me. ¡°Anna, where¡¯s Jacob and John?¡± ¡°Playing.¡± She returned her attention to the door. I got on my knees so I wouldn¡¯t have to bend down. ¡°Don¡¯t you want to play with them?¡± She shook her head, but it didn¡¯t look as if she was declining my suggestion. It looked like she was trying to clear it of fog. ¡°I have to do something.¡± My stomach sank. ¡°Do you remember what?¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s fading.¡± We had tried to figure out what task she had been fixated on, but that one memory seemed to grow weaker as all the others grew stronger. When we realized that, Iset recommended we allow it to fade. Maybe it would help Anna let go. I had agreed with her. The idea of a soul mourning for years over a task they could no longer complete felt so tragic that I wanted to help Anna forget. Whenever she mentioned watching the bones, I did my best to distract her. My efforts seemed to be working, but now that I saw how lost she looked, I wondered if we had made the right choice. ¡°Should we go find Jacob and John?¡± I asked. Anna nodded. I picked up the box and walked toward the kitchen. Anna reluctantly followed me away from the door. Chapter 10 - Dominie I was walking down a path. It was nothing but a dark strip of ground worn bare from the passing of horses and feet. On either side of me, I could see the ruts carved by wagon wheels. I followed them with my eyes as I walked toward the shadow of the large building in front of me. I was nervous. There was a man beside me. I knew him. I knew him from a dozen glimpses I¡¯d had in other dreams. I would be standing next to him in the street, and he¡¯d look down at me and smile. We¡¯d be outside, working on our hands and knees in our small garden. The first noise I had heard in the dreams had been his laugh. More than once, I had looked up and seen him sitting in a rickety chair, leaning into the light of our only window, silently reading from a book. He was in his early twenties. He had thoughtful eyes and an easy smile. That day, he wore his hair pulled back. If he was nervous, he didn¡¯t show it¡ªat least, not at first. As we moved into the shadow of the building, his steps slowed. ¡°Anna, you don¡¯t have to be worried.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not worried.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not in trouble, you know.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°But if you wouldn¡¯t mind¡­¡± I turned away from the dark wood doors leaning over me to look at my companion. ¡°Be careful what you say,¡± he said. ¡°Answer the elders¡¯ questions, but, otherwise, if you aren¡¯t sure of yourself, consider saying nothing.¡± I could feel the heat of my blush. He stopped and squatted down so our faces were almost level. ¡°You¡¯re mad at me.¡± ¡°You want me to be quiet.¡± ¡°Have I ever told you to be quiet? Have I ever chastised you for speaking your mind? No. But I want you to be open to the idea that, when the time is right, silence can serve better than words. Especially when you¡¯re talking to a bunch of old men.¡± ¡°So they can talk?¡± ¡°Well, yes. They¡¯ve earned our respect, Anna, and people feel respected when others listen to them. Is that such a bad thing?¡± ¡°Are you worried I¡¯ll say something wrong?¡± I saw the answer in his eyes and wondered if he¡¯d lie, but he surprised me and won my admiration. ¡°A little bit.¡± I turned away from him. ¡°I¡¯ll be careful.¡± He put his hand on my head. It was a familiar gesture. My heart lifted when I felt the reassuring weight. ¡°Come on,¡± he said. ¡°We¡¯d better not keep them waiting.¡± The building yawned like a gloomy mouth when he opened one of the double doors. I crept inside. He followed. Fear skewed the room until it was a mile long. At the end of it, four men were gathered around a table the size of a continent. The two sitting down looked like hunkered mountains. The two standing were giants. They grew even larger as I walked toward them. ¡°Ah! Miss Anna. You¡¯re here,¡± one of them said. ¡°Thank you for coming today.¡± My companion said, ¡°Thank you for being willing to make time for us, Elders.¡± ¡°Have you told her why we wanted to see you?¡± He hesitated. ¡°Not exactly, sir.¡± ¡°Is this about Mr. and Mrs. Van der Berg?¡± My voice was so high and light, it sounded as abrupt as birdsong. Four sets of eyes turned to me. I felt a tooth pinch my mouth. I was biting the inside of my bottom lip. ¡°It is,¡± one of the seated men said. When he spoke, I looked at him. Anna knew him¡ªI could sense that. His familiarity transformed him from a mountain to a man. He was still an imposing man, but at least he was only a man. He was about fifty years old and rather homely. What was left of his long steel-colored hair was tied back. His clothes looked like they were a higher quality than the other men¡¯s, but the fashions were so uniform and practical, it might have been nothing more than the newness of the material. He leaned toward me. ¡°Miss Anna, I heard that you made quite a scene.¡± I bit my lip until it hurt. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you want to go with them?¡± he asked. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to go, sir.¡± ¡°I know, child. I¡¯m asking why.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°Did you dislike them?¡± Confusion swirled into my mind. ¡°I didn¡¯t know them, sir.¡± Another elder said, ¡°Were you shy because they were strangers?¡± I glared at the giant who¡¯d spoken. ¡°I¡¯m not shy.¡± ¡°That is evident,¡± the familiar man said with a smile. ¡°I didn¡¯t know them, so how could I dislike them?¡± One or two of the elders raised their eyebrows. My companion quietly corrected me: ¡°Sir.¡± ¡°Sir,¡± I added The familiar man said, ¡°Anna, can you tell me why you didn¡¯t want to go?¡± If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°I want to stay with Dominie, sir.¡± ¡°You know the dominie was only ever supposed to be your temporary guardian. We never intended to leave you in his care for so long.¡± ¡°I know, sir.¡± ¡°You should have a mother and father¡ª¡± The rush of words poured out of me: ¡°He¡¯s a good father!¡± I clapped a hand over my mouth. As I lowered my hand, I muttered an apology. A giant said, ¡°At least he¡¯s a good enough father to teach you a few manners.¡± ¡°He tries to teach me all my manners, sir.¡± I studied the gray floor. ¡°I¡¯m just not a very quick student.¡± I felt the somber mood of the elders break. Four different smiles rained down, but since Anna¡¯s head was bowed, I didn¡¯t see them. The familiar man turned to the man beside me. ¡°Dominie.¡± ¡°Yes, Mayor?¡± ¡°What do you have to say to all of this?¡± ¡°She doesn¡¯t give herself enough credit, sir. I¡¯ve always found her to be a fine student.¡± ¡°I think you know that¡¯s not what I meant.¡± ¡°Yes, Mayor. What would you like to know?¡± ¡°Your thoughts and feelings on the matter.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure Mr. and Mrs. Van der Burg are fine people, and while I can understand the council¡¯s reasoning, I¡¯m afraid my heart is more in line with Miss Anna¡¯s. I don¡¯t want her to go.¡± One of the giants said, ¡°Dominie, you understand this is very irregular.¡± ¡°Yes, Mr. Mulder, but I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s the truth. I was willing to let her go into the care of a good family because I could see the sense in it, but if she wants to stay with me, I hope there wouldn¡¯t be any harm in it. She¡¯s a dear companion to me.¡± The last mountain spoke for the first time: ¡°You should seek companions of your own age.¡± ¡°Sir, considering my duties, I have many friends and acquaintances, both my age and older¡ªincluding your venerable selves¡ªbut Anna is the only person who reminds me daily of all the charms of childhood. I¡¯m very fond of her.¡± Mr. Mulder fidgeted with a paper on the table. He was still looking down when he spoke. ¡°You have a sister, I believe.¡± I sensed Dominie momentarily stiffen. Then he said, ¡°Had, sir. She died while I was away at college.¡± ¡°How old was she?¡± ¡°She was born two years before Anna. She died when she was nine.¡± ¡°Were you close?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Mr. Mulder raised his eyes. Among the elders, a silent conference of nods and shrugs took place. The mayor cleared his throat and inched forward on his chair. ¡°Dominie, if this is what you both want, we have no problem with allowing you to stay together.¡± Joy burst through my entire body. As I grabbed for the hand of my guardian, the mayor turned his attention to me. ¡°However, Miss Anna, we¡¯re concerned that you¡¯ll spend too much time in the company of men and fail to develop the skills and grace that a woman should possess.¡± ¡°And manners,¡± the giant said. ¡°Yes. And manners.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do my best, sir,¡± I said. ¡°I promise.¡± The mayor wagged his finger at me. ¡°Do so. We expect you to be a good influence on our dominie. He needs a woman in his life.¡± My eyes moved from the mayor to Dominie. His face was red. I could feel befuddlement clouding up my head. Warily, I said, ¡°Yes sir.¡± The mountain added, ¡°And Miss Anna needs a woman in hers, Dominie.¡± ¡°Mr. Peters,¡± Dominie said, ¡°I promise you, I¡¯m not single because of personal preference.¡± ¡°Then why are you single?¡± ¡°Because the only women who might be considered eligible and who¡¯re willing to stay in this area are the sisters.¡± The elders tossed their uncomfortable glances toward each other, the ceiling, and various corners of the room. ¡°Er, yes,¡± the mayor said. ¡°That¡¯s true. For now. Perhaps we can hope for a few more women to come across soon.¡± ¡°Until then¡ª¡± ¡°Yes, yes.¡± The mayor sighed. ¡°That will be all, Dominie, Miss Anna. I hope you¡¯re both blessed by this arrangement.¡± ¡°Thank you for your time,¡± Dominie said. I curtsied. ¡°Thank you, Elders.¡± The old men seem pleased by this. Mulder and the mayor both nodded to me as Dominie tugged on my hand. He led me back to the door. Outside, everything was light and colors. The air swirled around me, and I tried to inhale the whole force of the breeze. ¡°I get to stay?¡± I asked. ¡°You get to stay,¡± Dominie assured me. ¡°Did I talk too much?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± I skipped beside him for a few steps, but the tug on my arm warned me it would be a choice between dancing or holding his hand. I slowed down. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you had a sister.¡± Dominie frowned. ¡°Yes. I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t tell you sooner. I still find it painful to talk about her.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be. It isn¡¯t your fault, and you¡¯ve done nothing wrong.¡± ¡°Did Mr. Mulder know about her?¡± ¡°He knew my family back home.¡± I was confused. ¡°Then¡ª¡± ¡°I think he was trying to be kind, Anna. In his own way.¡± ¡°But it made you sad.¡± ¡°Only a little bit. Losing their little sister would make anyone sad¡ªbut that was that, and this is this. I¡¯m very glad we get to stay together. Now, you have to work hard to learn how to be a lovely young woman, or they¡¯ll give you away to someone much nicer, and I¡¯ll be alone again.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± I assured him. ¡°I¡¯ll be a perfect young woman.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll hold you to that.¡± ¡°Dominie, why did Mr. Peters want you to get married?¡± ¡°Probably to keep me out of trouble.¡± ¡°But you don¡¯t get into trouble!¡± ¡°That¡¯s because I have you to keep me on the straight and narrow.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll marry you.¡± ¡°You will not!¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°First, you¡¯re much too young. Second, you¡¯re much too bossy.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not bossy.¡± ¡°If I married you, you¡¯d take over everything by the end of the month.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°I¡¯m weak enough as it is, Anna. Don¡¯t make me any more useless.¡± ¡°Then who will I marry?¡± ¡°The man I pick out for you.¡± ¡°I will not!¡± My guardian laughed. ¡°What if I pick a very nice man? Someone who¡¯s strong and knows how to do real work?¡± ¡°Will he be handsome?¡± Dominie winced theatrically. ¡°I don¡¯t know. You can¡¯t be too picky around here. There are only so many men to choose from.¡± ¡°Will he be smart?¡± ¡°Would you prefer a smart man?¡± I bent my head and frowned in concentration. After a few seconds, I announced, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± My guardian laughed much louder this time. ¡°Dominie, why don¡¯t you marry one of the sisters?¡± His good humor disappeared. ¡°That wouldn¡¯t do, Anna.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°We have¡­too little in common for me to form an agreeable attachment to any of them. I¡¯m a god-fearing man¡ª¡± ¡°Are they not god-fearing?¡± ¡°I think, if you asked them, they would say that they don¡¯t have to fear anyone. Not even God. But never mind all this, that wretched meeting¡¯s made us late. We have work to do, and when we¡¯re done with our rounds, I¡¯ll have to drop you off with Mrs. Jansen to learn your needlework.¡± I groaned loudly. ¡°Oh, look at you now! A perfect young lady. You¡¯ll offer yourself as a bride when you can¡¯t even mend your own dress?¡± ¡°You said I was too young to be a bride.¡± He dropped his hand on my head. ¡°So you are. You have lots of time to learn.¡± I woke up. I was laying on my side, so I could see the pearly mist that made up the back of Anna¡¯s head. She, Jacob, and John were leaning back against my bedframe. The two boys were on either side of her. She had her arms around them. It seemed to be a natural posture for all of them. Anna¡¯s head turned slightly. She must have heard me moving. ¡°Anna,¡± I whispered. She hummed to show she was listening. ¡°Do you sleep?¡± ¡°Not much,¡± she whispered. Her voice was solid. The only hint I had that it wasn¡¯t coming from real vocal cords was a tiny quiver in my perception of the sound. She went on, ¡°But I like to rest.¡± John sighed. She pulled him closer. ¡°Do you dream?¡± I asked. ¡°Sometimes I remember things while I¡¯m resting. It feels like dreaming. Were you dreaming?¡± I wanted to reach out and touch her¡ªI wanted to put my hand on her head the way Dominie had¡ªbut as my hand neared her hair, I could feel the chill grow more intense. Did my body heat burn her, or was it the comfort I wanted it to be? I rested my hand above the cold. ¡°I was having your dream,¡± I said. When Anna turned to face me, she moved slowly so she wouldn¡¯t disturb the boys. ¡°I met your guardian, Dominie.¡± How old was she in that dream? How many years later did she die? I said, ¡°You were very fond of him, weren¡¯t you?¡± ¡°I was,¡± she said. ¡°I remember that. Did you see him?¡± I nodded. ¡°What did he look like?¡± My stomach lurched with sympathy, but I did my best to smile for her. ¡°He was young and handsome. He had long, dark blond hair and blue eyes. He smiled a lot.¡± ¡°Emerra, are you a witch?¡± ¡°No. Olivia¡¯s a witch. I¡¯m just a girl with weird eyes.¡± ¡°Is Olivia a good witch?¡± I had to think about that one. ¡°She¡¯s good at what she does.¡± ¡°I think I knew some witches once. I think I liked them.¡± Anna turned back around. Once she was settled with her arms around Jacob and John, she said, ¡°Will you tell me about what you dreamed?¡± I did my best. Chapter 11 - Introductions The room was tinted by the moonlight seeping through the window. Everything had settled into the blue-black shapes defined by the shadows. It was still. Each of the four occupants were resting or asleep, content in the company and the quiet. Then there were five occupants. Anna opened her eyes and looked up at the skeleton standing over her. ¡°Good morning,¡± he said. ¡°I apologize for neglecting my duties as your host, but you arrived while I was away, and I¡¯ve only now returned. I wanted to introduce myself.¡± Anna stood up. The boys woke. When they realized what was happening, they took their cue from Anna and stood beside her. Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. ¡°My name is Jack Noctis,¡± the skeleton said, ¡°though most people call me Big Jacky.¡± ¡°Good morning, sir. I¡¯m Anna. This is Jacob and Jan.¡± Jacky nodded to each of them. ¡°But he¡¯s dead,¡± Jan whispered to Anna. She tried to shush him, but Jacky interrupted. ¡°I¡¯m afraid that¡¯s not accurate, Master Jan. Or do you prefer Jan?¡± The boy was overcome with shyness and tried to hide behind Anna. ¡°Jan is fine, sir,¡± Anna said. ¡°I¡¯m not dead, Jan, I only look it. Besides, I wonder that it would bother you if I was dead. You don¡¯t seem to mind each other. Or Emerra.¡± ¡°Emerra¡¯s dead?¡± Jacob asked. Jacky looked at the sleeping figure in the bed. ¡°She was dead, but I don¡¯t think she is anymore. It¡¯s very disconcerting.¡± He turned his attention to the children. ¡°But, judging by the state of your souls, it seems she¡¯s been a good friend to you.¡± ¡°She has, sir,¡± Anna said. ¡°Good. Now, please tell me about yourselves.¡± Chapter 12 - Jackys Decision Olivia and I were in the kitchen, having a late breakfast, when Darius came in. ¡°Jacky wants to see us all in his study,¡± he said. ¡°Jacky¡¯s home?¡± I asked. ¡°He got home early this morning.¡± Olivia stood up. I cast a sad eye over my cooling omelet, but considering how rarely Jacky asked to talk to us, I wasn¡¯t going to try to put him off. Besides, it¡¯s not like trying to put off death ever worked. As Olivia and I walked toward the door, Darius said, ¡°You too, Igor.¡± Igor¡¯s misshapen eyebrows rose halfway up his forehead, but he took off his apron and laid it on the kitchen island. Jacky was coming down the front stairs with Conrad as we crossed through the front hall. Jacob was there too, standing by the Christmas tree. Sometimes, when John went off to entertain himself, Anna would follow him while Jacob waited for me to finish eating. I think he didn¡¯t want me to get lonely. When he saw me, he came over. I put out my hand. He couldn¡¯t actually take it, but it showed him he was welcome. As he came up to my side, Jacky stopped beside him. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Master Jacob,¡± Noctis said, ¡°but I¡¯d rather you didn¡¯t come with us.¡± Oh. I had gotten too used to the idea that I was the only person they could understand. The ghosts could hear the others, but the only thing they could follow was the tone. I didn¡¯t mind. It made things easier. The others never had to worry if the children were around. I was the only one who had to be careful if I didn¡¯t want them overhearing something. But Jacky could see the children, and they¡¯d be able to understand every word he said. Jacob shrank as he stared up at Noctis. I knew Jacky, and I knew he meant well, but when you¡¯re a six-foot skeleton in a suit, all you have to do is stand there and people think you¡¯re looming. I got down on one knee and held my hand over the chill of Jacob¡¯s shoulder. I put my face close to his so he¡¯d have to focus on me. ¡°Sorry, bub. I forgot he could see you.¡± ¡°Is something going on?¡± Jacob asked. ¡°Boring adult stuff. Where¡¯s Anna and John?¡± ¡°In the library.¡± ¡°Then can you go spy on Kappa for me?¡± ¡°Is he stealing ornaments again?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll have to check his nest.¡± Jacob let out his signature dramatic sigh. Never was a ghost so put-upon. ¡°Yes, ma¡¯am.¡± ¡°Thank you, Jacob,¡± I called as he left. When I stood up, I saw that Jacky had waited for me. He stared at me with his empty eye sockets. I stared back. ¡°What?¡± ¡°His name is Jan.¡± ¡°Uh¡­¡± ¡°The youngest boy. His name is Jan.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that what I said?¡± ¡°You said John, as most Americans would, with a hard ¡®j¡¯ sound. His name is Jan, with a softer ¡®y-j¡¯ sound and an ¡®h¡¯ undertone.¡± I tried it: ¡°Jan?¡± Jacky inclined his skull. ¡°Better.¡± He turned and continued toward his study. I trailed after him. ¡°If I¡¯ve been saying it wrong this whole time, why didn¡¯t they correct me?¡± ¡°They¡¯ve probably been hearing you say it as Jan, just as you heard them say it as John. It¡¯s clear you have the gift of understanding, but it may take some time for you to understand its subtleties.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying my brain interpreted it into John?¡± ¡°Something like that.¡± ¡°But if they heard me saying it correctly, does it matter if I¡¯m saying it wrong?¡± ¡°Names are important, Emerra. The simplest act of kindness is to say a person¡¯s name correctly.¡± ¡°How come you heard it correctly, but I didn¡¯t?¡± ¡°My guess is that you heard his name as a word, while I heard his name as a name.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve noticed that, most of the time, humans tend to see other humans as a group¡ªsome kind of nebulous mass¡ªwhile I see every creature as an individual. Names are never words to me. They¡¯re labels that apply to that specific person. You¡¯ll have to learn to listen carefully.¡± This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it ¡°I¡¯ve tried that,¡± I grumbled. ¡°It makes my head hurt.¡± Iset was waiting for us outside his study. As we got closer, I said, ¡°Jacky, if you have the gift of understanding, why do you keep messing up all your metaphors?¡± He stopped. ¡°My metaphors? There¡¯s nothing wrong with my metaphors.¡± Iset said, ¡°I think she means your idioms.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Jacky turned to me. ¡°Really, Emerra?¡± He sounded so disappointed. ¡°Look, the dude who doesn¡¯t know the difference between a ¡®pastry stroll¡¯ and a ¡®cake walk¡¯ doesn¡¯t get to make fun of my English.¡± ¡°It¡¯s probably because the gift doesn¡¯t come into effect when I¡¯m talking to you.¡± ¡°You¡¯re actually speaking English?¡± ¡°He¡¯s certainly trying to,¡± Iset said. Jacky said, ¡°When I made this home my primary residence, I decided to make English my primary language. In hindsight, that might have been a mistake.¡± As he turned the knob and pushed the door open, I heard him mutter, ¡°French was so much easier.¡± We all went into the room. Iset and I stood back with the others. As Jacky walked over to his desk, he said, ¡°I apologize for interrupting your morning, but I promise to make this quick.¡± He sat down in his chair, put his elbows on his desk, and interlaced his finger bones. ¡°I have met and talked with our guests.¡± My shoulders tightened, and I felt a flutter in my stomach. I don¡¯t think I was the only one feeling the tension. Darius leaned forward in his chair. Conrad crossed his arms. ¡°I¡¯ve decided to let them stay,¡± Jacky said. I let out my breath and smiled, but not everyone¡¯s reaction was so positive. ¡°Mr. Noctis¡ª¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard your objections, Darius, and I¡¯ve considered them, but there¡¯s no malice in those children.¡± ¡°Even so¡ª¡± ¡°You may remember, this isn¡¯t the first time I¡¯ve welcomed a being into my home against the advice of others.¡± The vampire clamped his mouth shut. ¡°What about Emerra?¡± Conrad said. I rounded on him. ¡°What about me? I don¡¯t want them to go!¡± I don¡¯t normally go around trying to stare down a wolfman that¡¯s more than twice my size, but I didn¡¯t think it was his place to object for me. He could flatten his ears all he wanted¡ªI was pissed. Before we could decide who won the staring contest, Jacky interrupted. ¡°As Emerra is their primary contact, I believe her opinion should carry the most weight. She wants to help them, and considering the decay of their memory, she may be the only one who can. There you have it.¡± He turned his eye sockets to me. ¡°I understand from Anna that you¡¯ve already started dreaming?¡± I nodded. ¡°Good. The sooner we can untangle them, the better.¡± ¡°Can you help?¡± Olivia asked. ¡°I¡¯m afraid not. The children aren¡¯t alive and haven¡¯t been alive for a very long time. I have no influence over them. You¡¯ve already been of more use to them than I will be.¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°The magic circle.¡± He paused, then said to Igor, ¡°Please tell Mrs. Park to leave it up until we¡¯ve solved this problem.¡± ¡°Yes, sir,¡± Igor said. Darius unglued his lips enough to say, ¡°We never learned how they got in.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve checked the wards and protections?¡± Jacky said. ¡°They¡¯re all intact?¡± ¡°Yes, but¡ª¡± ¡°Then it doesn¡¯t matter how they got in. This world is a big place full of very strange things. We may never find out how they did it. Every reasonable precaution has been taken to keep the house safe. That¡¯s enough. Besides, don¡¯t you have Christmas things to do? The trees are lovely, and I¡¯ve seen the slaughtered greenery along the stairs, but I thought there was more to it than that.¡± Iset said, ¡°We¡¯ve been a little preoccupied.¡± ¡°If life doesn¡¯t stop for death, then I don¡¯t think Christmas has any right to be stalled by a few ghosts.¡± ¡°All right, Jacky.¡± ¡°Is that everything, Mr. Noctis?¡± Igor asked. ¡°Yes. Thank you.¡± Igor turned to go. Olivia and I followed him. I didn¡¯t know about her, but I wanted to finish my breakfast. When we were in the hall, I checked to make sure no one was behind us, then said to Olivia, ¡°Hey, why are Darius and Conrad so against having the ghosts around?¡± Olivia scowled. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Well! One of the children could have used a single ghostly finger to knock me over. Olivia, my Olivia Lauren Sofie Emma Tara Grace Oliversen, didn¡¯t know something? Call the gods! It¡¯s an emergency. Igor sniffed out a pompous little ¡°ha.¡± ¡°You know something, Igor?¡± I asked. ¡°Well, they¡¯re ghosts, aren¡¯t they? They¡¯re not natural.¡± ¡°Nobody in this house is natural.¡± ¡°Ah, but we¡¯re supernatural, not unnatural.¡± ¡°And that makes a difference?¡± ¡°Certainly.¡± I looked over at Olivia, to see if she was following what he was saying any better than I was. When she saw my glance, she rolled her eyes. Mrs. Park was in the kitchen when we got there. ¡°Oh, there you all are,¡± she said. ¡°Good morning, Mrs. Park,¡± I said. Olivia and I sat down at the table. ¡°Where were you? I don¡¯t know that I¡¯ve ever seen the kitchen without you in it, Ingvar.¡± ¡°Mr. Noctis wanted to talk to us,¡± Igor said. ¡°Oh.¡± I could tell from her expression, there was a mighty battle raging between Mrs. Park¡¯s good manners and her curiosity. Good manners won the day. Instead of asking us what he¡¯d wanted to talk about, she said, ¡°Does he need to see me?¡± ¡°No,¡± Igor said, ¡°but he did want me to tell you to leave the chalk on the drawing room floor. For now.¡± She tutted and waved a hand at him. ¡°Please. I know better than to bother a magic circle when I see one.¡± As she walked over to the door, she said, ¡°Don¡¯t break a magic circle. Be careful when you stand between two mirrors. Never dance in a fairy ring.¡± When she was gone, Olivia leaned over and muttered to me, ¡°That¡¯s all she knows. Fairies aren¡¯t real.¡± Igor overheard her. ¡°No,¡± he said, ¡°I have to believe in fairies.¡± ¡°You believe in fairies?¡± Olivia said. ¡°Who else will take her away?¡± I grinned. ¡°Oh, she would love that.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± Olivia said, ¡°until they danced her to death.¡± ¡°Those are elves,¡± Igor said. ¡°You can¡¯t go mixing up nonexistent creatures all willy-nilly like that.¡± ¡°Igor, say ¡®willy-nilly¡¯ for me again.¡± I put my fork down. ¡°Wait! Let me get my phone out.¡± The only thing he said for my recording app was ¡°no.¡± Mrs. Park came back in the room. ¡°Emerra, have you watered the trees yet today? I¡¯d like to get started on the front hall.¡± I groaned as I stood up. I was never going to finish my omelet. ¡°I¡¯ll go get Kappa.¡± Kappa didn¡¯t mind crawling under the big tree to water it for us. The only problem was trying to coax him out again. Jacob was standing beside me, Mrs. Park was behind me, and I was on my belly, half under the tree, trying to negotiate down to a single can of tuna, when Darius walked by. ¡°Good morning, Mrs. Park.¡± ¡°Good morning, Darius.¡± ¡°Is Kappa giving you trouble, Emerra?¡± ¡°He¡¯s about to get a faceful of Swiffer juice if he doesn¡¯t get out of there,¡± I said. ¡°Two cans!¡± Kappa yelled. ¡°One! And that¡¯s only if you help me with the other trees.¡± ¡°Three trees, three cans!¡± ¡°Kappa, that number is not supposed to go back up.¡± Darius said, ¡°How are things in town, Mrs. Park. Did they get everything cleaned up?¡± I heard her sigh. ¡°Oh, you know. If it¡¯s not one thing, it¡¯s another. We barely finished cleaning up from the windstorm, and now someone¡¯s gone and ransacked the grocery store.¡± I turned to my side and moved out from under the tree so I could look up at Mrs. Park. The word that had caught my attention had also caught Darius¡¯s attention. ¡°Ransacked?¡± His brow furrowed. ¡°That seems a bit odd. What happened?¡± ¡°I went in this morning. Almost a third of the store had been destroyed. The shelves were knocked over, food was everywhere¡ªbut the worst hit was the meat department.¡± ¡°How so?¡± ¡°Most of it was gone.¡± ¡°As in?¡± ¡°Eaten, we think. I got a glimpse before they shooed me away. The deputy was there. All kinds of goo was on the floor, along with the plastic and foam the meat comes in, but the meat was gone. Mrs. Hicks says it was some big animal, but I¡¯ve never heard of an animal breaking in before.¡± ¡°You think it was a person?¡± I said. ¡°Well¡­now that you say it,¡± Mrs. Park mused, ¡°it doesn¡¯t sound like something a normal person would do.¡± ¡°No,¡± Darius muttered, ¡°it doesn¡¯t.¡± Chapter 13 - Quiet Suspicions Darius didn¡¯t come home until late. I had been listening for him, but he must have come in the backdoor. When I heard his footsteps moving through the hallway, I left the children in the TV room and went to find him. He had already disappeared from the front hall by the time I got there, but I heard the soft murmur of voices coming from the sitting room. As I got closer, I could tell it was Darius and Iset. I knocked on the side of the doorway because I wanted them to know I was there, but I also tucked my hand in my sleeve to muffle the sound because I¡¯m a big coward. Iset looked up. ¡°You can come in, Emerra.¡± I came in a few steps. Darius was slumped on the couch with a hand over his forehead to keep some of the dim light out of his eyes. He usually only looked that weary around noon. He tried to smile when he saw me. ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to be watching your Japanese cartoons about now?¡± I had long ago stopped trying to correct him about the whole anime-verses-cartoons thing. Considering how quick he was to pick up on most things, I was pretty sure he was doing it to tease me. ¡°Usually,¡± I said, ¡°but the kids do better with Pingu and Shaun the Sheep.¡± Darius¡¯s forced smile morphed into a real one. ¡°I can¡¯t imagine Conrad watching a kids¡¯ show.¡± ¡°He usually doesn¡¯t,¡± I mumbled. I felt bad about that. I knew I was basically driving Conrad away, so I tried to use the TV room only every other night. By rights, tonight should have been his night, but it had been a long day. ¡°Is everything okay?¡± I asked. ¡°No one¡¯s dead who isn¡¯t supposed to be,¡± Darius said. ¡°Is that what you mean?¡± ¡°You went into town, didn¡¯t you?¡± The count moved his hand away from his forehead to look at me. I stuttered out, ¡°After what Mrs. Park said¡ªdidn¡¯t you go to check it out? Was there¡­was something wrong?¡± ¡°I talked to the deputy. She said it was a bear.¡± ¡°Do you think it was a bear?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what to think. I¡¯ve never seen anything like it. On the other hand, I¡¯ve never seen a bear eat its way through a butcher department either.¡± He turned his head. ¡°Iset?¡± ¡°This is black bear territory. It would be rare for one to go into town, but if it¡¯s preparing to hibernate¡­¡± She shrugged. ¡°Didn¡¯t it leave tracks or something?¡± I asked. ¡°Smears,¡± Darius said. ¡°No good tracks.¡± ¡°Then what makes her think it was a bear?¡± ¡°As far as I can tell, she was desperate for an explanation.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± I didn¡¯t think that was much of an answer, and I was willing to bet that Darius agreed with me. Judging by how tired he looked and the fact it had taken him hours to get home, he had probably spent some time looking into the matter himself. ¡°Emerra, were you worried about something?¡± Iset asked. I squirmed. ¡°Nobody likes it when weird things are going on in their town.¡± There was a short silence, then Iset, with her unfailing ability to drive the dart right to the point, said, ¡°Are you worried it has something to do with the children?¡± Bullseye. After groping my way over to the nearest armchair, I sat down and squeezed my fingers with my other hand. ¡°They¡¯ve never left the house.¡± ¡°We know.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t them.¡± ¡°A ghost wouldn¡¯t do something like that anyway,¡± Darius said. ¡°The strongest might be able to throw things around, but a ghost couldn¡¯t eat a mass of food.¡± You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. ¡°So you don¡¯t think it has to do with them?¡± The count hesitated. ¡°I never said that.¡± ¡°Does it?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ve lived with Jacky for a long time. I¡¯ve learned to be wary of coincidences. One strange thing?¡± He shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s practically normal. But two strange things? At the same time?¡± He shook his head. I stared down at my hands. ¡°But there¡¯s no proof?¡± ¡°Not yet. And there may never be. I don¡¯t like coincidences, but they do exist.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± It felt good to say, so I repeated it, with an emphatic nod. ¡°Okay. Thank you.¡± I stood up to go. ¡°Emerra,¡± Iset said, ¡°you¡¯ll tell us if you learn anything, won¡¯t you?¡± ¡°You mean from my dreams? Of course I will.¡± ¡°Is that a promise?¡± Darius said. I glitched. For a sliver of a moment, my body and brain locked up. When the moment passed, my stomach was still tight. Darius¡¯s voice had been gentle, but that only made me feel more uneasy, and my unease grew as my gaze moved between them. Darius¡¯s face was grave, and the way Iset leaned forward, her rigid arm pushing into the couch, made me realize how closely she was watching me. ¡°Why would I hide something from you?¡± I said. ¡°Emerra¡ª¡± Iset started to say. ¡°Have I ever done anything that would make you not trust me?¡± ¡°You¡¯re very close to those children,¡± Darius said. My voice rose. ¡°So? They haven¡¯t done anything wrong. I haven¡¯t done anything wrong!¡± I turned my back on them. ¡°I promise I¡¯ll tell you if I learn anything¡ªnot that my word means much to you.¡± I left. It was probably a good thing there was no door to slam. When I was out in the hall, I leaned against the wall, and took a moment to compose myself. I felt stupid after my outburst, but what I mostly felt was tired. If I had spent the day walking around with bones made of cast iron, I couldn¡¯t have been more weary. I blamed it on the fact I wasn¡¯t prepared to suddenly become the nanny for three children. They were a lot of work, even though I was only playing with them. I spent every hour trying to split myself three ways¡ªtrying to give the best of my time and my attention to each of them so they would stay strong. I took a deep breath, pushed myself upright, and walked back to the TV room. The three ghosts were still there, still mesmerized by the antics of Shaun and his flock. Only Anna looked up as I came in the room. ¡°Emerra?¡± I sat down on the couch behind them and pulled my blanket over me. It helped mitigate some of the ghost chill. ¡°Hey, sweetie,¡± I whispered. ¡°Is everything all right?¡± ¡°Everything¡¯s fine. I¡¯m just tired.¡± Jan crawled up onto the couch so he could sit beside me and tell me everything I had missed in a garbled list of details. I nodded and said ¡°oh¡± and ¡°wow¡± in all the right places. Then, at the first opportunity, I directed his attention back to the screen where similarly exciting things were still happening. Once he was distracted, I was able to lean back and relax. I didn¡¯t fight it when my eyelids drifted closed. I don¡¯t know how long I dozed for, but when I woke up, there was a familiar smell and the soft sensation of fur brushing over my arm. ¡°Conrad?¡± I muttered. I was vaguely aware that I didn¡¯t expect him to be there. ¡°It¡¯s late,¡± he said. ¡°You should be in bed.¡± My blanket lifted away. ¡°You woke me up to tell me to go to bed?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll sleep better in bed.¡± Geez, I was groggy. ¡°I don¡¯t sleep very well.¡± ¡°I know. Can you walk, or am I carrying you?¡± ¡°I can walk.¡± He helped me to my feet. When I saw Anna and the boys watching us, I glanced at the TV. It was dark. The whole room was dark. The light was coming from the hall. ¡°Did you turn it off?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Conrad said. ¡°They were watching.¡± ¡°You need sleep. If they¡¯re going to stay here, I¡¯ll turn it back on.¡± I looked at Anna. ¡°Do you want to keep watching shows?¡± She shook her head. ¡°Jan¡¯s tired.¡± I should have noticed that. Jan was leaning against her, eyes half closed and swaying on his feet. We could have been fatigue twins. Jacob shrugged. ¡°The show was over. Another came on, but we couldn¡¯t understand it.¡± I took a breath. ¡°Okay, guys. Let¡¯s get some rest.¡± Jacob led the way upstairs. Whenever he got too far ahead, he¡¯d stop to wait. Anna held Jan¡¯s hand so she could guide him up, step by step. I couldn¡¯t do anything to help, but I hung back in a pointless gesture of solidarity. Every time he stumbled over his own feet, I wanted to hug him. Me too, little buddy. Me too. We were halfway up when Conrad said, ¡°Darius and Iset are worried about you.¡± I felt a pang of guilt and mumbled something about apologizing to them. His ears twitched back. ¡°They¡¯re worried, Mera. They¡¯re not angry.¡± I pressed my lips together. The wolfman said, ¡°You¡¯re sad?¡± Every once in a while, I felt the terrible urge to buy a jar of Mentholatum and shove the whole thing up his stupid nose. ¡°They don¡¯t trust me,¡± I said. He rubbed my bald head with his massive, furry hand. ¡°You idiot.¡± ¡°And you think I¡¯m an idiot.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I call anyone whose heart is bigger than their head. You could be as smart as Iset, you¡¯d still be an idiot.¡± ¡°Maybe you¡¯re just a big meanie.¡± ¡°Darius and Iset don¡¯t think you¡¯re a liar, Emerra. We¡¯re worried you¡¯re getting too close to the situation.¡± ¡°It¡¯s ¡®we¡¯ now?¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t been taking care of yourself.¡± ¡°Where¡¯s Olivia? At least she doesn¡¯t give a crap about me.¡± ¡°You can take some time off. Those ghosts have existed for hundreds of years without you. They can survive a little longer.¡± Tears rushed up to my eyeballs, because¡­why not? I sniffed and blinked with brutal determination not to shed them. Screw you, traitorous body, I decide when I¡¯m going to cry. Conrad added, ¡°And you seem more tired than usual.¡± ¡°I have to dream.¡± I don¡¯t know why I said it. It came out as an involuntary whine. ¡°All I want to do is sleep, but I have to dream too.¡± ¡°Then sleep in late or something. Just take care of yourself, okay?¡± I nodded. We made it to the top of the stairs and stepped onto the great landing. The small tree glowed, bright and beautiful. The ghosts and I paused to admire it. Jacob muttered, ¡°It looks so pretty this way.¡± I smiled. I had done my best to explain Christmas to them. They had accepted most of it, but the trees had baffled them. Maybe I had tried too hard to explain it¡ªmaybe we did things simply because it looked pretty that way. ¡°Come on.¡± I waved my hand to summon him. ¡°Let¡¯s get some rest.¡± Chapter 14 - The Sisters I was in the woods. A restless fear pressed between my minds like a wedge. It took me a few seconds to realize it was mine alone; Anna was excited. My heart bubbled with it. Sunlight was seeping through the thick branches, creating blotchy patterns on the forest floor. I hopped from one patch of sunlight to another. Anna wasn¡¯t afraid. I didn¡¯t need to be afraid. The dread quieted. I glanced behind me as I twirled in the light. Dominie was there, carrying a basket full of vegetables and a few cuts of preserved meat. It looked heavy. ¡°Can we stay today?¡± I asked. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Can I stay today?¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid not. Maybe another day.¡± I stopped in a puddle of sun and turned to him. ¡°It¡¯s always another day. I want to play with them.¡± ¡°Anna, I know you like them, but they¡¯re adults, not children. They have work to do. They can¡¯t play whenever you want.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll help them.¡± Dominie caught up to me. I fell in step beside him. ¡°I help you with your work.¡± ¡°And don¡¯t think I don¡¯t appreciate you.¡± ¡°They listen to me, like you do. And they laugh and talk with each other. They talk to me like I¡¯m one of them, and they¡¯re always doing something. When they were hanging herbs, Mercy told me everything about them. She told me that next time I came over, they would teach me to mix tea.¡± ¡°What kind of tea?¡± ¡°Medicine tea. Tea for a cold. Tea for a cough. Tea for pain. They can cure everything but old age.¡± ¡°Did they say that?¡± ¡°Tace said it. She¡¯s pretty old, so she would know.¡± Dominie didn¡¯t answer. I looked up and saw he was smiling, but then it faded. ¡°Did they offer to teach you anything else?¡± ¡°Not yet. They say herbs are always useful.¡± ¡°Good.¡± The word dropped soft, like a thick raindrop. I wondered at it. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Dominie went on, ¡°Anna, I¡¯m glad you¡¯re friendly with them, but¡­¡± The hesitation was a long one. ¡°But I also want you to be careful.¡± My mood darkened. ¡°You don¡¯t like them.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say that.¡± ¡°Do you like them?¡± ¡°You¡¯re still young, and this is very hard to explain. Can I trust you to listen?¡± I nodded. ¡°Can I trust you not to repeat it to anyone else?¡± ¡°If I can¡¯t repeat it, should you be saying it?¡± Dominie laughed, then thumped a finger on my head. ¡°How dare you use my words against me.¡± I rubbed my head. He went on, ¡°I hope I¡¯m not saying anything cruel or unfair, but these are my private impressions, and I know how much they¡¯re worth. I wouldn¡¯t want anyone in the village to hear them and think they¡¯re more valuable than they are. The sisters have a hard enough time here as it is. And I don¡¯t want what I say to get to them. It¡¯d be too easy to misunderstand, and I wouldn¡¯t want to cause needless pain. Do you understand?¡± Not everything, but I nodded anyway. ¡°I¡¯m grateful the sisters are willing to help teach you such a useful skill, but all the same¡­they make me wary.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because they¡¯re witches.¡± Dominie raised both eyebrows. ¡°Did you know they were witches?¡± I asked. ¡°I knew they were witches. I¡¯m surprised you knew.¡± ¡°They told me that¡¯s why the villagers don¡¯t like them. Is that true?¡± ¡°I suspect it is. I¡¯m glad they¡¯ve found a home with us. We¡¯ve always taught it¡¯s important to tolerate people who have different beliefs, but I¡¯m afraid many of our neighbors don¡¯t tolerate them gracefully.¡± ¡°Is that why you don¡¯t like them?¡± ¡°Please stop saying that. There¡¯s a difference between being wary of someone and disliking them. And, no. That¡¯s not the reason why. I¡¯ve known witches before, and I¡¯ll probably know others, and while I disagree with many of their views, I¡¯ve never found that to be a good reason to dislike someone.¡± ¡°Gerrit says they work with devils.¡± ¡°I doubt it. Devils aren¡¯t all that easy to work with. Still, why don¡¯t you ask them?¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t mind they¡¯re witches, why are you uneasy?¡± Dominie stopped walking, set down the basket, and sat down on the path. A half-minute passed before he spoke. ¡°Anna, I¡¯ve gone many places, met many people, and I¡¯ve made and lost many friends. People aren¡¯t always kind.¡± ¡°Like Mr. Ruis?¡± Dominie tried to hide his smile behind his hand. When he lowered it, he said, ¡°Now, I like Mr. Ruis. It¡¯s true he¡¯s very grumpy and particular, but I can absolutely trust him to tell me what he¡¯s thinking. It makes things easy. The people I struggle with are the ones who have a¡­a kind of a pall behind their eyes. They keep things back. It¡¯s hard to know what they¡¯re thinking. Once you¡¯ve been hurt a time or two, you begin to sense the pall.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°Small things they say, patterns you¡¯ve seen before¡ªit¡¯s very hard to put into words. All I know is that some people make me nervous, and I don¡¯t always know why. But I¡¯ve learned to be careful.¡± ¡°And the sisters make you nervous?¡± He held up his hand, with his thumb and forefinger no more than a quarter inch apart. ¡°A little.¡± He looked up to the sunny branches. ¡°But maybe I¡¯m only prejudice because I know they¡¯re witches. It¡¯s hard to tell.¡± He turned his eyes to me. ¡°That, Anna, is why it¡¯s so important to be kind to everyone.¡± He stood up and picked up the basket. ¡°Don¡¯t worry,¡± I assured him. ¡°They like you.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°They say you¡¯re nice.¡± ¡°Do they? That¡¯s gratifying.¡± ¡°But they also say you¡¯re long-winded.¡± ¡°Well, they¡¯re not wrong, are they?¡± He continued down the path. As I turned to join him, a sudden voice, as loud as a bell the size of the moon, cleaved my mind. Don¡¯t go. When I woke up, my hands were trembling. Chapter 15 - Two Missing The next morning, I had come down the front stairs and was crossing the hall when Darius called out to me. ¡°Emerra, I was looking for you.¡± My soul cringed, but I turned to him with dauntless courage and perfect confidence. ¡°Uhhhh¡­yeah. Hey. Soyouseeaboutyesterday¡ª¡± He waved his hand. ¡°Forget it. I have something more important to talk to you about.¡± I couldn¡¯t decide if I felt relieved or threatened. I followed him back to the sitting room. Since it wasn¡¯t often used for sitting and visiting, Darius had claimed one corner of it, bought a lovely antique writing desk, and used it as his office for the rare times he didn¡¯t want to work in his room or the library. His laptop was already open. I could see the glow of his screen from the door. He pulled up a chair for me before sitting down. I joined him. Together, we looked at the website he had open. I grinned when I saw it. It was Christmas ornaments. My eyes flicked down to the price listed under the images. Expensive Christmas ornaments. These were not the cheap plastic balls I had known. They might have been made with the blood of saints. I checked myself. You didn¡¯t joke about something like that in this house; there was a chance it might be true. Darius said, ¡°Since you¡¯ve done such a good job setting up a theme for each of the trees, I thought a few simple ball ornaments, to help compliment them, might be good.¡± He pointed. ¡°These greens for the gallery. Blue. Purple. This red and pink for the landing.¡± He lowered his hand. ¡°I found a few specialty ornaments as well, but I thought we could pick them up one or two at a time, to build into a collection.¡± I wasn¡¯t sure if this was a peace offering, but it felt like one. I wanted to shed a tear or two and hug him. I refrained, but I think my gratitude might have leaked out of my voice. ¡°Count Vasil, they¡¯re perfect.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad you agree.¡± ¡°How long did it take you to find them?¡± ¡°A while. But it was worth it.¡± ¡°They¡¯re all glass, right? They have to be.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t waste money on anything else¡ª¡± He stopped. In the sudden silence, he turned in his chair and slowly scanned every inch of the room. I¡¯d been told my eyes were special, but I had always privately assumed that Darius¡¯s were more special. They could see in the dark and take in amazing details at ridiculous distances. They could sense movement in a range that made him seem superhuman¡­which, as I thought about it, he actually was. But they also had this weight to them¡ªa profound sense of resolution. I doubted Darius was even aware of it. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it. As his gaze passed over me, all my pity was reserved for those unlucky criminals who annoyed the FBI enough they sent Darius to find them. After slowly taking in the room, those eyes came to rest on me. ¡°They¡¯re here, aren¡¯t they?¡± I glanced down at the children beside me. Anna was holding Jan¡¯s hand as he stood on his toes to get a better look. Jacob was peering over the desk. His four small fingers were less than six inches from where Darius¡¯s hand was resting on his wireless mouse. ¡°Yes,¡± I said. Jacob said in the swelling silence, ¡°Kappa¡¯s going to love those.¡± An unwilling smile appeared on my lips. Darius¡¯s eyes were still on me, so I subdued it. ¡°They followed me in here,¡± I said. ¡°Is that okay?¡± Darius looked away. ¡°How did you know they were here?¡± I asked. He was staring at the screen now. ¡°It got colder.¡± There were a lot of things Darius wasn¡¯t saying. I could feel the unspoken words straining our unofficial truce. Before it could break, Mrs. Park came into the room. She said, ¡°Oh, good. Darius. I was hoping to talk to you.¡± ¡°Good morning.¡± He stood up from his chair and turned to her. ¡°Is there anything I can do for you?¡± She came further into the room. ¡°I was rather hoping that you¡¯d ask me how things were in town.¡± ¡°Why?¡± She pulled out her phone, unlocked it, and searched through her apps. ¡°Because two people are missing. Given the two people, I might not have said anything, but¡­¡± She turned her phone around and passed it to him. He stared at it while she said, ¡°I also found this, this morning, on the outskirts of town.¡± Really, what was the point of supernatural eyes if I couldn¡¯t see the screen at that angle? Even when I strained my neck to sit taller, I couldn¡¯t make anything out. A second passed, then Darius said, ¡°Does Crook know?¡± ¡°I called her right after I took the picture.¡± ¡°How big was it?¡± Mrs. Park held her hands almost a foot apart. Darius didn¡¯t seem to like that answer. He frowned as he handed Mrs. Park her phone. ¡°Send that to me please,¡± Darius said. ¡°Highest resolution you can.¡± He turned and put his laptop to sleep. ¡°Are you going back into town?¡± I asked. ¡°I want to see it for myself if I can.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± He shut the lid and straightened up. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it, Emerra.¡± I stood. ¡°Do you want me to come with you?¡± He stopped. The anticipation made the tips of my fingers feel twitchy, but, eventually, he shook his head. ¡°No. I don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡°Why? I might be able to help you!¡± ¡°Emerra, have you ever had any visions, right there, at the scene?¡± I felt my cheeks get hot. ¡°Not yet. I usually come home and dream about it later. You know that.¡± ¡°I do, and you¡¯re already supposed to be dreaming about our other concern.¡± ¡°But¡ª¡± He put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Emerra, trust me. If I think I need your help, I won¡¯t hesitate to call you, but for now, I want you to focus. I respect Jacky¡¯s decision, but just because something has no malice, that doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s harmless.¡± With that, he left the room. Mrs. Park, the children, and I all stared at the empty doorway. When I felt a chill sweep through my hand, I didn¡¯t bother looking down. It was probably Jacob. Every once in a while, one of the children would unconsciously try to take my hand. I was used to it by then, and even though it never worked, I always thought it was sweet. Mrs. Park said, ¡°Emerra, is everything okay?¡± ¡°Ehhh,¡± I groaned. ¡°I don¡¯t even know any more.¡± She took a step closer and put her arm around my shoulders, but then she jerked back. ¡°Goodness! You¡¯re so cold!¡± ¡°Yeah. I need some breakfast.¡± ¡°You need a sweater!¡± ¡°Mrs. Park, what was in that photo?¡± Her loyalty to Darius made her hesitate, but we were allies in enthusiasm, and that trumps every time. ¡°A footprint.¡± Chapter 16 - The Footprint Everything about the footprint was wrong. It was round, and given how much it compressed the snow, whatever had left the track should have been enormous. But in spite of its weight, the outline was indistinct. ¡°Fur?¡± Darius muttered to himself. It was possible. The blurred edges could have been caused by a muss of hair interfering with the imprint, but Darius knew the tracks of most common animals, mundane and supernatural, hairy or otherwise, and none of them created that effect. He couldn¡¯t even tell which way the creature had been facing. He squatted down to get closer. There were three ridges, maybe four¡ªthey might have been something like toes¡ªbut they blended into the pad of the foot. And the edges of the footprint¡­ Darius had assumed it was a trick of the light or some fault of the camera when he¡¯d seen it in the photo. Reluctantly, he removed his sunglasses. Wincing against the glare of the sun, he stared down at the edges of the print. There was a hazy red tinge around the entire rim of the print. The outside of the tinge glowed almost crimson, but toward the inside, it faded into a cold black. It wasn¡¯t blood. Darius knew that. He would have been able to smell blood, and the only thing he could smell was a faint trace of some sickly sweet scent. He reached out to touch the hazy line of red. Before his fingers could make contact, he heard footsteps behind him. ¡°Rot in hell, Vasil.¡± Darius put his sunglasses back on as he stood up and turned. ¡°Good morning, Deputy.¡± Jaylen Crook was slightly shorter than average. She wasn¡¯t fat, but she was stocky. The browns and greens of her uniform didn¡¯t suit her, but Darius couldn¡¯t imagine her wearing anything else. Her dark hair was often in a ponytail, but that day, it was braided back and tucked under her hat. As usual, she was frowning. Darius wondered if she always frowned, or if it was because they usually met under less than pleasant circumstances. She advanced on him. ¡°Get away from the big city, they said. It¡¯ll be relaxing, they said. Low crime rate. Beautiful country. Friendly people. That help-wanted ad never said anything about this kind of bullshit.¡± ¡°If I recall correctly,¡± Darius said, ¡°that particular ad recommended that applicants should have a good sense of humor.¡± ¡°Everyone lies in their interviews, all right! I¡¯m a good cop. I just want to do my job and serve my people. So why is it that, every other day, I run into some weirdness, and whenever I call the Sheriff, his only advice is to take it to you!¡± The count shrugged. ¡°Maybe Deen thinks I¡¯m good at my job.¡± ¡°And what exactly is your job, Vasil? And don¡¯t bother flashing your badge at me. I¡¯ve seen it. I¡¯ve also called the agency about you once or twice, to see if I could learn something.¡± ¡°What did they tell you?¡± ¡°That you¡¯re a consulting agent in good standing. What the hell is a ¡®consulting agent?¡¯ Is that even a real position?¡± ¡°I hope so. If it isn¡¯t, I don¡¯t know what I¡¯m going to write on my resume.¡± ¡°Do you have an area of expertise that they call you in for when they need to consult with someone?¡± ¡°You could say that.¡± ¡°So what is it?¡± ¡°Weirdness.¡± Crook¡¯s eyes narrowed until they were nothing more than slits. ¡°So,¡± Darius said, ¡°were you eventually going to call me?¡± ¡°I was thinking about it. I have this line.¡± The deputy slashed her hand in front of herself, about eyebrow level. ¡°I can stand this much crazy before I feel humble enough to call on someone who regularly wears an Armani suit.¡± The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°I didn¡¯t know your tolerance was that high.¡± ¡°It¡¯s been growing. Living in this town will do that to you. This current collection of bullshit was pushing the limit, but it hadn¡¯t crossed the line.¡± The count¡¯s hearing was much too good for him to miss the quaver in the word ¡°hadn¡¯t.¡± ¡°Who were the two people?¡± he said. ¡°Amy Levinar and Mario Russo.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know them.¡± ¡°No, you wouldn¡¯t. That¡¯s my job.¡± She stared past the square of yellow police tape to the impossible footprint. ¡°I know people in the town have been talking, but I know Amy. She wouldn¡¯t have run away. Not with Russo. He was only her latest project, and the girl already had presents wrapped under the tree. She wouldn¡¯t have left this close to Christmas.¡± ¡°They were a couple?¡± ¡°He was nineteen. She was seventeen.¡± Crook shrugged. ¡°That kind of an age gap wouldn¡¯t mean a thing if her father hadn¡¯t disapproved, but he did¡ªhe always does¡ªso I¡¯ve had to talk to both of them. Their best winter coats are gone. My guess is that they snuck out to spend some time together, then something happened to them.¡± ¡°Could you follow their footprints?¡± ¡°No. All the sidewalks were swept and shoveled. I¡¯m going to talk to her friends, to try to figure out where they might have gone. Maybe there¡¯ll be more evidence there.¡± ¡°If they took their coats, they probably went somewhere outside.¡± ¡°If it was that cold, they probably went somewhere inside, but brought their coats because they had to walk since Daddy would be listening for a car.¡± Darius nodded to the snowy impression behind the police tape. ¡°What do you make of this?¡± ¡°Weird shit.¡± ¡°Huh. It looked more like an animal track to me, but I trust your scatological expertise¡ª¡± ¡°You¡¯re hilarious, Vasil. It is some kind of an animal track. I tried to find others.¡± The deputy pointed toward the town. ¡°There were some more back there. It¡¯s almost a perfectly straight line. They disappear for a while, then they come back.¡± ¡°Have you marked the others?¡± Crook hesitated, then shook her head. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like them, and I don¡¯t know what to make of them.¡± She raised her head, but she didn¡¯t seem to be able to meet his eyes. Her gaze hovered near his shoulder. ¡°My grandfather was a hunter. He taught me everything he knew about tracking animals.¡± ¡°I thought you were from California.¡± ¡°There¡¯s more to California than L.A. and Disneyland, dimwit. My great-great-grandfather was a goddamn Native American. We¡¯re from the Sierra Mountains.¡± Darius held up his hands. ¡°I apologize. Did you learn anything from the tracks?¡± ¡°If I tell you, you¡¯re either going to think I¡¯m incompetent or insane.¡± ¡°Deputy Crook, I promise you that will not happen.¡± Crook glared at him, but it was a considering glare. She turned and started back toward town. ¡°Follow me.¡± Darius trailed behind her. She explained as they walked. ¡°The creature, or whatever the hell it was, appears to walk on two legs. I found mirrored tracks for a right and left foot, but no indication of front feet touching the ground.¡± ¡°And the mirrored footprint¡ªit looked like the one back there?¡± ¡°For the most part. There were minor differences, but that¡¯s how I knew they were from different feet.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the stride length?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t tell.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t tell?¡± Crook stopped and turned to face him. ¡°It changes. It grows longer with every step.¡± There was a brief silence, then Darius said, ¡°Are you sure?¡± The deputy pointed at his face. ¡°There! There it is! Which do you think it is, Vasil? To me, that sounded like you think I¡¯m incompetent, but maybe you skipped right over that and landed on ¡®she¡¯s crazy.¡¯¡± ¡°Crook, I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m trying to process the facts.¡± ¡°Uh-huh.¡± ¡°Are you going to tell me you didn¡¯t have to look at everything twice to make sure you weren¡¯t insane?¡± The deputy turned around and continued down the street. ¡°I looked at them three times. On my break, all I did was stare at the pictures. I¡¯m not wrong, Vasil. I don¡¯t know what it means or what made those marks¡ªmaybe some punk kid? An artist type? Is this the new generation of crop circles?¡± ¡°I doubt it,¡± Darius said. ¡°If the prints were forged by a person, we would have found their tracks as well, or some sign that their tracks had been erased. Did you find anything like that?¡± Crook trudged on for several steps before she said, ¡°No.¡± She turned her head enough to glare at him over her shoulder. ¡°I liked that theory.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll let you look into it.¡± She faced forward again. After a second, she went on, ¡°When a creature¡¯s running, the stride normally gets longer, but this is¡­something else. You know that footprint you were looking at? The one Mrs. Park found?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°You know why it¡¯s the only one in the area?¡± Darius had a strange feeling he wasn¡¯t going to like the answer, but he felt compelled to follow the script. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because, if my calculations are correct, the next closest print would have been ten feet back.¡± She jerked a thumb over her shoulder. ¡°On that clear patch of asphalt we passed.¡± This time, the count kept his mouth shut as he processed that idea and all its implications. ¡°Are we talking about something with wings?¡± he asked. ¡°Sure. All right. Wings. That¡¯s what I thought. Never mind the feet. Maybe it flies.¡± Crook stopped beside a telephone pole and pointed at a massive set of gouges in the wood. ¡°But then, what are those?¡± There were three of them, two longer and one shorter. They were almost six feet off the ground. Splinters were sticking up all along the marks, but most of them were gathered at the end, pointing back the way Darius and the deputy had come¡ªpresumably in the direction the creature had been going. Darius took a step forward. ¡°Those look like¡­¡± ¡°Claw marks?¡± The vampire turned. Crook was standing with her arms folded. She tilted her head to the side. ¡°Yeah,¡± she said. ¡°That¡¯s what I thought too. This is some hard-core weirdness, and I need your expertise. So tell me, Agent Vasil, what walks on two round feet, has claws on their hands, but also seems to be able to fly?¡± Darius stared at the damaged pole. ¡°I may have to get back to you on that one, Deputy.¡± Chapter 17 - Games I spent most of that evening in the drawing room. That gave Conrad a chance to watch some shows while the ghosts and I played Connect Four. We put the game on a small end table after pulling it into the center of the magic circle. I had claimed a cushion to sit on. Iset and Olivia were in the room with us. Olivia had lit a fire in the fireplace and wrapped up in a few blankets. As I played, I tried to divide my attention between our spectators and the children. It didn¡¯t help my playing. ¡°Here?¡± ¡°No,¡± Jacob said. He pointed, emphatically, at the space to the side of the one I had pointed to. ¡°You can¡¯t want to go there,¡± I said. ¡°That¡¯d mean you won.¡± ¡°I¡¯m next,¡± Anna said. ¡°I¡¯m next!¡± Jan insisted. ¡°You play me, Emerra.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you play with Anna?¡± I asked. ¡°I want to win.¡± ¡°Maybe I¡¯ll win.¡± Jan laughed at the absurdity of the idea. That¡¯s what I get for being a good sport and throwing a game or two. Off to the side, Olivia asked, ¡°Any luck on the language?¡± ¡°We¡¯re not certain, but we think it might be Dutch,¡± the mummy murmured. ¡°Why can¡¯t you be certain?¡± ¡°It¡¯s difficult. No audio device can pick up their words, and I can¡¯t seem to get the accent right when I repeat them.¡± ¡°Have you had Emerra ask them what they¡¯re speaking?¡± ¡°They didn¡¯t understand the question, but when I tried speaking to them in Dutch, they seemed to recognize a few words.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound encouraging.¡± ¡°I know, but there would be a difference between the modern Dutch I¡¯m learning and what they¡¯re speaking.¡± I finished setting up the board again. ¡°All right, Jan. You start, but you have to play against Anna.¡± He pointed to a red piece on the tabletop, then to the middle column. Olivia said to Iset, ¡°Why did you think it was Dutch?¡± ¡°Because there were Dutch settlers in this area back in the seventeenth century. Emerra pointed that out to me, and the more I listen to them, the more I think she¡¯s right.¡± Olivia looked at me. ¡°You thought of it?¡± I confirmed Anna¡¯s next move, then looked up. ¡°Middle school history. If they¡¯re from around here and they aren¡¯t speaking English, it was probably Dutch.¡± Anna¡¯s soft voice interrupted me: ¡°Middle school?¡± ¡°Oh.¡± After ten days, you¡¯d think I would be used to dealing with their endless questions, but sometimes it was hard to know how to frame the answers. ¡°You know about school?¡± ¡°Dominie went to school. You didn¡¯t go to school.¡± ¡°I did.¡± ¡°What¡¯s she saying?¡± Iset asked. ¡°She¡¯s saying I didn¡¯t go to school.¡± Olivia snorted. ¡°Maybe she thinks a twenty-year-old losing to a five-year-old seems suspicious.¡± ¡°She says her dad went to school.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if girls weren¡¯t allowed to go to school back then,¡± Iset said. ¡°Anna,¡± I said, ¡°how did you learn to read and write?¡± I knew she could; I had done it in my dreams, in that painful way where my mind feels like it¡¯s receiving words but refuses to see them. ¡°Dominie taught me.¡± ¡°What did she say?¡± Iset asked. ¡°She¡¯s homeschooled,¡± I related. Iset shook her head. ¡°That¡¯s no good.¡± For days we¡¯d done something like this, hoping to get a clue as to who the children were and why they were stuck. At first it had been difficult getting them to stay in the circle with me since standing around talking was boring for all of us, but then Anna had found the strategy games laid out in Jacky¡¯s study. She wanted to learn chess, but I thought that would be a little much for Jan, so I had Mrs. Park buy us Connect Four. The children loved it, and we got hours more each day where we could try to draw out detail after detail, none of which seemed to get us any closer to the answers we needed. ¡°Emerra,¡± Olivia said, ¡°why did you think the ghosts were from this area?¡± I motioned to the children. ¡°They¡¯re here, aren¡¯t they? Don¡¯t they have to generally stay where they are?¡± ¡°That¡¯s only if they¡¯re haunting a place. Ghosts don¡¯t have to be stationary. Some of them roam. Some of them haunt objects and move around with them.¡± ¡°But they are speaking Dutch, aren¡¯t they?¡± I looked at Iset. ¡°Most likely,¡± she said. Jan tried to nudge me. I shivered as his hand moved into my shoulder. ¡°Emerra!¡± He pointed to the board. ¡°Right.¡± I was busy hunting down a red piece, so I couldn¡¯t see Olivia, but I heard her let out a groan. ¡°Okay, so let¡¯s say it¡¯s Dutch,¡± she said. ¡°That means they might be haunting the area¡ªbut if they are haunting this area, how come we haven¡¯t seen them before?¡± ¡°You and I never would have seen them at all,¡± Iset reminded her. ¡°What about Jacky?¡± ¡°That is rather strange.¡± With the ruthlessness of a child, Anna insisted I place her winning piece. Jan pouted over his loss until I reminded him that we didn¡¯t have to play. ¡°I can beat her,¡± Jacob assured his brother. A smile appeared on Anna¡¯s face. There was, maybe, a hint of condescension in it. Jan showed similar skepticism. ¡°Anna was always good at these games.¡± Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. My heart skipped, but I tried not to show any excitement as I set up the next match. That was the first detail I¡¯d ever heard from Jan. ¡°Did you and Anna play games like this?¡± I asked. ¡°Not this game,¡± Jan said. ¡°Was it a board game?¡± The children all stared at me like I was crazy. I heard Iset slide off the couch. She came and crouched close to us. ¡°Don¡¯t use that phrase,¡± she said. ¡°I don¡¯t think they have an equivalent concept.¡± I knew Iset was a lot smarter than I was, so I didn¡¯t bother asking what that meant. I tried another question: ¡°What did you play that was like this?¡± Anna answered, but it sounded completely unintelligible to me. Olivia laughed when she saw the look on my face. ¡°And now you don¡¯t have the equivalent concept.¡± Iset reached out and put her bandaged hand on the table. The children had long ago gotten used to her strange appearance, if only because her voice was so mild. ¡°Anna, will you teach me how to play?¡± I translated. Anna nodded to Iset, then turned to me. ¡°Paper?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Olivia asked. ¡°We need paper,¡± I said. ¡°And small dark and light stones,¡± Anna added. Olivia was already standing up, shedding her blankets. ¡°Can you bring some go pieces too?¡± I asked. ¡°Sure.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± Olivia returned with a piece of paper large enough to cover the small tabletop. I thought that was kind of her, considering it was from the stash normally reserved for drawing out spells. She handed me a pencil, set the go pieces beside us, then went back to her blankets while I tried to follow Anna¡¯s instructions on how to draw the board. A small square, a medium square, and a big square, all nested inside each other. I had barely started drawing the biggest square when Iset laughed. Anna smiled when she heard it. ¡°This is Nine Men¡¯s Morris,¡± Iset said. ¡°You know this game?¡± I asked. ¡°Of course.¡± Iset took the pencil from me and finished drawing the board. ¡°I hope you¡¯re good, Anna,¡± she said while I translated, ¡°because I used to be wonderful at it.¡± She handed me Anna¡¯s set of stones and took the black ones for herself. We played¡ªwell, they played. I put the stones down where Anna pointed while trying to puzzle out what they were doing. ¡°Can we learn anything from the fact they know the game?¡± Olivia asked. Iset placed a stone, then picked up one of Anna¡¯s. ¡°It does seem unusual that Anna knows it, but if her father was educated, it¡¯s possible he picked it up from his time at school.¡± ¡°So it can¡¯t tell us who her father was?¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid not. It was universal.¡± Olivia sighed. The fidgeting at my side told me I was losing Jan and Jacob. They would have been glad to play Connect Four, but I wasn¡¯t there to move the pieces for them. This was usually when they ran off to try to find Kappa. A few days ago, I had hauled Kappa into the drawing room to meet them. He¡¯d stared at them in wonder and gotten upset when he couldn¡¯t touch them. I took that to mean he didn¡¯t mind them, in theory, but he didn¡¯t like the cold, so he tended to shy away from them if they got too close. This led to some interesting games of chase. Kappa had already called on me to save him that day, so I knew he was at his limit. I tried to distract them. ¡°What about you, Jacob? Jan? Have you played this with Anna?¡± Jan shook his head, but Jacob said, ¡°A few times.¡± ¡°I played Jacob,¡± Jan said. ¡°He cheated.¡± ¡°I did not.¡± I doubted either of them could remember, but they always seemed ready to argue on principle. ¡°What else did you play?¡± I asked. They looked at each other. Whenever their memories were hazy, they would look at each other, as if trying to find support in their uncertainty. ¡°Tag,¡± Jan said. ¡°And hide-and-seek,¡± Jacob added. I got out another stone, but Anna explained to me we weren¡¯t placing them anymore, now we were sliding them. Okay. Whatever. I slid her stone where she told me to, then I looked back up at the boys. ¡°That was in the forest, right?¡± Most of their memories seemed to come from after they had died. The years and the seasons all slid together in an always-changing, never-changing collection of days, and each day took place in the forest. It was all they knew. ¡°What about in town,¡± I said, ¡°when you lived with Anna?¡± They stared at me. ¡°Back when she lived with Dominie. Do you remember?¡± It was clear they didn¡¯t. ¡°Have you dreamed about us?¡± Jacob asked. I tapped the edge of a spare go piece and watched the stone wobble as I tried to decide what to say. ¡°A few times,¡± I muttered. ¡°What was it¡ª¡± ¡°Tell us!¡± they said over each other. I told them what I could. I told them about the yard game I¡¯d seen¡ªnine-pin, they informed me¡ªand about how Jan thought the goal was to knock them down before the other person could finish putting them back up. Jacob grinned. ¡°We had to put them all around the grass so he¡¯d bowl them one at a time.¡± ¡°Did I win?¡± Jan asked. ¡°Sometimes.¡± I told them about the day when fresh supplies had arrived in the village. Two men had busted the bands off an old barrel and given the hoops to the children. Jan clapped and bounced on his ghostly feet. ¡°I remember.¡± He laughed. ¡°I remember we didn¡¯t do any chores. Nobody cared. We played all day.¡± Anna and Iset had both stopped to listen. I smiled at their enthusiasm. Jan and Jacob were young enough, they probably didn¡¯t see the sorrow hiding in it. ¡°Yeah. Then it got dark, and when you went home, Dominie had to put them up in the rafters so you¡¯d go to sleep.¡± Jacob and Jan were both delighted by this. For a while they chatted with each other, talking about whose fault it was that the hoops had to be put away and describing fragments of the scene as they came back to them. ¡°Anything else?¡± Jacob asked me. ¡°There were these¡­rocks? Big white beads?¡± I pointed to the back of my hand where I¡¯d seen the strange objects sitting in my dream. The boys seemed puzzled. I mimicked the game as I explained. ¡°You toss one up in the air, and you pick up the ones on the ground.¡± ¡°They were bones,¡± Iset said. I turned to her. ¡°Bones?¡± ¡°Those things you thought were rocks¡ªthose were knucklebones. They were a precursor to jacks.¡± ¡°Are you serious?¡± I looked at the boys. ¡°You played with bones? That¡¯s so gross.¡± They laughed again at my astonishment. Beside me, I heard Anna murmur, ¡°Bones.¡± Whoops. ¡°Come on, Anna,¡± I said. ¡°Whose turn is it?¡± Anna lost, but Iset was full of compliments for her playing. ¡°I think you and I are both a bit rusty,¡± the mummy said, ¡°but you did amazingly well.¡± I translated. Anna glowed with pride. ¡°Your father must have been a very good player if you learned so quickly,¡± Iset added. When Anna heard my translation, she corrected me: ¡°Dominie was no good at it. Not like the mayor.¡± ¡°Did the mayor teach you to play?¡± I asked. Iset suddenly raised her head. ¡°What did she say?¡± ¡°She said Dominie was no good at it. Apparently, the mayor was the one to beat.¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t say ¡®mayor.¡¯¡± Olivia sat up. Iset moved the table aside and knelt in front of Anna. ¡°Emerra, see if you can get her to repeat herself. Word for word, if possible.¡± I explained the request to Anna¡ª¡°So I said, ¡®Your father must have been a good player if you learned so quickly,¡¯ and you said¡­¡± Anna¡¯s face was crinkled up in confusion, but she obediently repeated, ¡°Dominie was no good at it.¡± I prompted her: ¡°Not like¡­¡± ¡°Not like the mayor.¡± Iset¡¯s bandaged hand reached up, as if she wanted to take Anna¡¯s shoulder or touch her face, but she let it fall back to her lap. ¡°Emerra,¡± she said, ¡°I have to do some research, but I think I might have a lead as to who these children are.¡± When I heard that, my heart took a running leap that forced a laugh out of my mouth. Even Olivia smiled. Iset stood up. ¡°And there¡¯s no time like the present.¡± She took two steps toward the door but then stopped with a jerk. ¡°Oh! That reminds me.¡± She went to the side table and picked up a tin. As she pulled off the lid, she said, ¡°You two are the last.¡± ¡°The last what?¡± Olivia asked. ¡°The last to draw your names. These are who you¡¯ll be giving your gifts to.¡± She held the tin out to Olivia. ¡°If you get your own name, let me know, and I can trade with you.¡± ¡°Is it supposed to be a secret?¡± I asked. Olivia rolled her eyes. ¡°The gifts are supposed to be a secret. Not the names.¡± ¡°She¡¯s right,¡± Iset said. ¡°This was only a way to randomize it.¡± Olivia opened her slip of paper. A thoughtful frown appeared on her face. Iset walked over to me. ¡°Emerra, could you help Kappa get his present? I¡¯m not sure he quite understands what¡¯s going on.¡± ¡°I¡¯d love to.¡± Iset held out the tin. There was one scrap of paper left. I pulled it out, read the name, and laughed. It was late, and I was probably giddy, so the laugh did come out kind of¡­well, maniacal. You know¡ªthe solid laugh you¡¯d hear from a well-established villain. ¡°Oh, god,¡± Olivia said. ¡°Did she draw my name?¡± ¡°Come on, kids!¡± When I stood up, my feet tingled with pins and needles from sitting with my legs crossed for too long. ¡°We have to go buy a present and go to bed.¡± ¡°You already know what you¡¯re buying?¡± Olivia said. I winked at her. It took less than ten minutes on the internet to find and purchase the gifts. I grinned the whole time I was ordering them, and, sure, some people might have described my grin as diabolical. Christmas presents are a lot more fun when you¡¯re being sinister about them. As I led the kids up to my bedroom, Jacob said, ¡°Are you going to dream tonight?¡± ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°Will it be about us?¡± Jan asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I usually dream Anna¡¯s dreams¡ªAnna?¡± I stopped and looked around. ¡°Anna?¡± She was at the bottom of the stairs. When I went back for her, she was staring at the front door. I called her name again. She slowly turned away from the door and started climbing. When we reached the boys, Jan fell in step beside me. ¡°Emerra, will you dream one of my dreams tonight? Please?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I get to pick.¡± ¡°But if you do dream, you¡¯ll tell us, right?¡± Jacob said. ¡°We¡¯ll see,¡± I said. Ten days as a parent-type, and I was already whipping out the phrases I swore I¡¯d never use. But I understood now; it was a useful phrase. It was easy to see why using it could become a habit. It satisfied the boys but didn¡¯t stick me with a bunch of promises I couldn¡¯t keep. No matter how enthusiastic they were, I wasn¡¯t sure I wanted to tell them about their dreams. They had smiled and laughed when I had talked about the few memories I could offer them. The delightful sound had been so bittersweet, remembering it hurt. How could they sound so happy when, in the dreams, all I could feel was an all-consuming grief, tainting everything? Chapter 18 - Jacob and Jan ¡°Who are they?¡± ¡°Where did they come from?¡± There was a strange crowd, not gathered together like an assembly, but hidden away at the edges of the buildings, or standing in small groups around the perimeter of the yard. ¡°That¡¯s Old Man Moses, isn¡¯t it? Why would he have them?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t think¡ª¡± ¡°No.¡± I¡¯d lost track of Dominie. It didn¡¯t matter. I wandered from one building to another, one group to another. None of the adults bothered looking at me, even if I brushed their skirts or breeches. Even I barely noticed. All I cared about was getting a better look at the figures in the middle of the yard. The two small boys were nothing but a collection of filthy clothes, pale skin, and skinny limbs. The area around them was empty. Even the native who¡¯d brought them in didn¡¯t seem to want to get too close. He stood a few yards to the side, talking to one of the elders. Old Man Moses. A shiver worked its way through my body. Dominie had said Old Man Moses was a friend. Dominie had said that he was kind and funny¡­ But all I saw was a tall man, as broad and sturdy as the biggest tree. His face was smooth, wide, and dark. His hair was black and long. He wore a shirt he might have traded from us, but the pants were strange. Despite the painful cold, he didn¡¯t wear a jacket. ¡°Anna.¡± I jumped. Dominie put his hand on my shoulder to settle me. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he asked. I shook my head. We both turned back to the yard. ¡°Is he a madman?¡± a voice whispered. Dominie turned. ¡°He¡¯s not mad! Moses is a good man.¡± The person he rebuked fell silent. Dominie had meant for only them to hear, but his voice had carried. The elder standing next to Moses looked up. ¡°Dominie! Your help, please?¡± Dominie put his hand on my head. ¡°Stay here, Anna.¡± Neither Anna nor I thought much of that instruction. When Dominie stepped out from the crowd, I dogged his footsteps. He glanced back at me when he heard my shoes crunching over the frozen mud and snow. He looked annoyed, but then he sighed and went on. As we passed the two boys, the oldest raised his sunken eyes to look at me. My emotions surged, and my realization echoed through Anna¡¯s oblivious head: That¡¯s Jacob. The smaller boy sank back on his heels and grabbed his brother¡¯s leg for support. Jacob¡¯s eyes followed me the whole way across the yard. I watched him watching me, and it wasn¡¯t until Dominie spoke that I was able to pull my attention away. ¡°Good evening, Moses.¡± ¡°Dominie.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on? Who are the boys?¡± The elder let out a loud sigh and put a hand to his forehead. ¡°It¡¯s pretty ugly, Dominie. If I¡¯m understanding right, Moses says they¡¯re orphans from the east.¡± The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°How far east?¡± ¡°He says he crossed the river.¡± ¡°The river?¡± Dominie glanced over his shoulder at the two boys. ¡°That¡¯s a long trip in this weather. Why didn¡¯t he stop at one of the other settlements?¡± ¡°He says he tried.¡± Dominie turned to Moses. ¡°What happened?¡± Moses¡¯s voice rolled out, deep and simple. ¡°It¡¯s dangerous.¡± ¡°Dangerous?¡± ¡°Their parents were eaten.¡± ¡°By what?¡± ¡°A person.¡± Dominie and the elder stared. Moses pointed to his mouth and opened and closed it several times. His large white teeth made gruesome clicks. Dominie moved so his body blocked the crowd¡¯s view of Moses. ¡°Who?¡± Moses shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s why it¡¯s dangerous.¡± The elder said, ¡°Surely, you¡¯re not saying the boys¡ª¡± But Moses was already shaking his head. ¡°The boys didn¡¯t do it. I found them, so I will take them north and leave them. May we stay the night? Somewhere warm?¡± ¡°Where are you going to leave them?¡± I demanded. Old Man Moses looked down from his impressive height. ¡°Hello, Little Anna.¡± ¡°Where are you going to leave them?¡± I repeated. ¡°Miss Anna,¡± the elder chided. But Dominie spoke up: ¡°It¡¯s a fair question.¡± Moses looked at Dominie with his dark, solemn eyes. ¡°I warned you it would be a hard winter. I¡¯ve told you about what happens when it stays too cold and too dark. Do you want me to answer that question?¡± ¡°Wherever you¡¯re going, they won¡¯t make it,¡± I said. ¡°Look at them!¡± Moses didn¡¯t turn his head, but Dominie and the elder did. Jacob was watching us through his eyelashes. His feverish pink lips stood out against his white face. The only way to know Jan was alive was by how he was clutching his brother¡¯s leg. ¡°Do you want them to die?¡± I asked. ¡°No one wants them to die, Anna,¡± Dominie said. ¡°None of us like this.¡± I raised my voice. ¡°Then who¡¯s going to take them in?¡± The elder and Dominie glanced at each other. Neither spoke. I looked from them to the stony crowd around us. Only Jacob would look at me. Everyone else turned their face away. Angry tears chilled the edges of my eyes. I turned to the elder. ¡°We¡¯ll take them.¡± The elder said, ¡°Miss Anna, it is not your place¡ª¡± ¡°Their parents are dead. They¡¯re sad, tired, and cold, and no one will look at me!¡± ¡°Miss Anna, calm down.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t tell fire to be calm,¡± Moses said. ¡°I¡¯m not a fire!¡± Dominie said, ¡°Anna.¡± His quiet word was all it took. My shoulders curled, and I stepped closer to him. The elder said, ¡°You shouldn¡¯t let the child speak for you.¡± ¡°Why not? She does it so much better than I do. Anna and I would be glad to take in those two boys, but I¡¯m afraid I only kept enough in my larder for myself and Anna. Is there a chance the town could see its way to helping?¡± The elder nodded. ¡°I can talk to Mr. Alst. It¡¯ll be tight, but we should have enough set by.¡± ¡°Dominie¡ª¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right, Moses¡­¡± The quiet whispers of the adults faded as I walked back to the two boys. ¡°Hello,¡± I said, suddenly nervous. ¡°Hello,¡± Jacob said. His voice was as tenuous as when I¡¯d first met his ghost. ¡°You¡¯ll like Dominie. He¡¯s nice.¡± Jacob stared at me with a numb expression. I took off my cape and tried not to gasp when the wind blasted through my clothes. I squatted down so I could throw the cape over Jan. He didn¡¯t look up, but his small white fist closed over the edge of the cape. His fingers flexed, but he was too weak to pull it closer. ¡°Come on,¡± I said. ¡°We should get you inside somewhere.¡± Jacob said, ¡°We have to stay with him.¡± I glanced behind me. ¡°You mean Moses?¡± ¡°He wouldn¡¯t tell us his name.¡± ¡°Do you want to stay with him?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have anywhere else to go.¡± I hesitated. ¡°But¡­we¡¯re taking you in. You¡¯re going to stay with us.¡± Jan finally moved. He looked up at me. ¡°You¡¯re going to keep us?¡± Jacob asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Jan¡¯s small mouth opened to let out a long cry. The noise carried all the pain a soul could contain. It was wounding to hear. Two hearts: mine, that wanted so much to cry with him, and Anna¡¯s, scared and confused. With tears running down his cold cheeks, Jacob grabbed onto his brother and alternately tried to comfort and chastise him. It didn¡¯t help. The cry grew weaker on its own. ¡°He¡¯s not sad,¡± Jacob said. Both my hearts rebelled at this lie. ¡°He¡¯s not sad,¡± Jacob insisted. ¡°Thank you. We want to stay. Please let us stay. We¡¯re not sad. It¡¯s just¡­they wouldn¡¯t keep us.¡± ¡°Who wouldn¡¯t?¡± ¡°Anyone. All of them. They all turned away. No one would keep us.¡± I put my small arms over both boys. ¡°I¡¯ll keep you.¡± When I woke up, the children were standing by the side of my bed, watching me. ¡°You were crying,¡± Jacob said. I wiped my face and laughed. ¡°Sorry. I have leaky eyes. Did I wake you up?¡± ¡°A little,¡± Anna admitted. Of course. By then I knew why Anna called it resting¡ªit was only a shallow imitation of real sleep. I couldn¡¯t roll over without waking them up. I picked up my phone and glanced at the time. With a groan, I put it back on my nightstand. No matter how familiar I was with it, three in the morning always felt like a cursed hour to me. ¡°Come on,¡± I whispered. ¡°Let¡¯s see if we can get some more rest.¡± Chapter 19 - Cold ¡°Where¡¯s Emerra this morning?¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t seen her.¡± ¡°She¡¯s usually up earlier than this.¡± ¡°She might be sleeping in.¡± Kappa wound his way through the forest of legs. Chair legs. Table legs. People legs. He tried to home in on the deep voice that had just spoken. The cold floor made his feet ache. ¡°Oh, dear. I sent Kappa to her. Do you think he¡¯ll wake her up?¡± That was Iset. ¡°Kappa¡¯s in here,¡± the deep voice said. ¡°He¡¯s under the table.¡± Kappa hopped over. Furry feet. It was him. Kappa emerged from under the table and looked up the impossible distance. ¡°Wolfman,¡± he whined. ¡°Igor, are you holding breakfast for her?¡± That was Darius. ¡°For what little good it will do.¡± ¡°How do you mean?¡± ¡°She¡¯s eating less than usual these days. But she¡¯s drinking twice as much coffee.¡± Igor shrugged. ¡°Wolfman, it¡¯s cold,¡± Kappa said. Conrad looked down. ¡°Umm.¡± ¡°I already lit the fire in his stove,¡± Igor said. ¡°It should be plenty warm in there.¡± Kappa shook his head so hard, his fins flapped. ¡°Mera-mera. No fur, wolfman!¡± Conrad lifted his head. ¡°Did Emerra go outside?¡± ¡°Are you kidding? It¡¯s freezing out there,¡± Olivia said. ¡°There¡¯s almost three inches of new snow.¡± ¡°No, no, no,¡± Kappa muttered. Darius said, ¡°That¡¯s probably why she went outside.¡± Igor sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll start some cocoa.¡± ¡°Wolfman, no fur. It¡¯s cold.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right, Kappa,¡± Iset assured him. ¡°She has a coat.¡± ¡°Only lunatics like snow,¡± Olivia grumbled. ¡°I take it you¡¯re not a fan of winter sports?¡± Darius asked. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Conrad!¡± Kappa shouted. The bark of his voice reached every corner of the kitchen. Everyone fell silent. ¡°Conrad, come!¡± Conrad Bauer warily stood up. Kappa, who hadn¡¯t stopped glaring at him since he yelled his name, slapped the floor in front of him, then turned and crawled out of the kitchen. Conrad followed. Kappa led him to the front stairs and hopped up them so fast Conrad had to work to keep up. The wolfman¡¯s sense of unease grew with every step. Kappa turned down the hall. When Conrad saw that Emerra¡¯s door was open, he stepped over the bog-creature in order to get there first. He didn¡¯t bother knocking. He went in while calling out, ¡°Emerra?¡± She was still in bed. For a half-second, Conrad felt relieved, but then he saw her pallor. As he crossed toward her, new details pattered into his consciousness. Her stillness. The slight blue in her lips. The cold of the room. ¡°Mera?¡± He knelt down by her bed. ¡°Mera!¡± When he grabbed her shoulder, it felt like clay. Conrad felt a sudden chill at his left side. Fangs bared, he half yelled, half snarled, ¡°Get away from her!¡± The chill receded. Conrad looked back at Emerra. She was alive. He could smell that. ¡°Kappa, go into her bathroom. You know a bathtub?¡± ¡°Hot bath!¡± ¡°No! Warm. Start the water running warm.¡± ¡°Warm!¡± Kappa was gone. Conrad checked Emerra¡¯s breathing, her heartbeat, and the color of her fingertips, then he stripped the blankets off her and picked her up. She lolled in his arms. He went into the bathroom and lowered her into the tub, clothes and all. ¡°Kappa, go get Darius.¡± ¡°Yessir!¡± Kappa padded away. Conrad put a hand to Emerra¡¯s cheek, then put his other hand in the water. It was still too warm. Raising the temperature of her limbs too fast could be dangerous. He¡¯d have to raise it slowly. He knew that¡ª But he had to force himself to turn the knobs until the water was barely tepid. The shock was wearing off; he wasn¡¯t running off instinct and training anymore, and some part of him kept insisting that she wouldn¡¯t like it that cold. No one would ever want a bath that cold. I remember the haze¡ªthe dullness of the whole scene. The first thing that offered me any clarity was the prick of a million needles dancing around my body. Or maybe they were sparks because fire followed wherever they went. It should have hurt. It did hurt, but I wanted it. The warmth was glorious. I was so tired, I could barely move. I wouldn¡¯t have even opened my eyes if I hadn¡¯t felt the wet sleeve of my over-sized T-shirt float into my arm. I forced myself to look then, to figure out where I was and what was happening. The first thing I saw was a copper faucet, so I knew I was in my bathroom. I loved that silly, old-timey tap, with its telephone-shaped sprayer (that I may or may not have pretended to take a call from¡­once or twice¡­not more than three times, anyway). I was in my tub. Still in my pajamas. Then I saw Conrad. His muzzle was resting on the edge of the tub. He was watching me with sad eyes and his ears back. When he saw I was awake, he raised his head and said in a loud, almost desperate voice, ¡°This, Emerra! This is why we don¡¯t like ghosts!¡± The ghosts were standing behind him, barely inside the door. If Conrad had looked worried, it was nothing compared to the children. When I saw Jan crying, it broke my heart. I reached out my arm. ¡°No! Anna, Jacob, it¡¯s not your fault. Jan, listen to me, sweetie¡ªit¡¯s not your fault. I didn¡¯t know.¡± But they wouldn¡¯t come any closer. Jacky was standing in the door behind them. I felt the weight of his empty eye-sockets resting on me, then he looked down at the children. ¡°If you three could please come with me. I would like to have a word with you.¡± They all filed away. I let out a cry. It sounded like a noise Kappa might make. I closed my eyes and curled into the warm water. I didn¡¯t have any tears. Why was it, when I finally wanted them, they wouldn¡¯t come? Conrad put his hand on my head. Chapter 20 - Packmates It must have been around one in the morning, when I gave up on sleep. After checking on the children, I went into the hall and headed for the front stairs. I don¡¯t know. Maybe I was going for a warm drink. Or maybe I wanted to watch a show. As I approached the landing, I saw a pair of large triangle ears obscuring the Christmas lights. Conrad was on the couch, staring at the tree. I stopped where I was. Not that it would do any good. If I could see him, he already knew I was there. He didn¡¯t even turn his head. ¡°Where are the ghosts?¡± ¡°They¡¯re resting.¡± ¡°In your bed?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± His ears flattened. As I came out from the hall and around the couch, I said, ¡°But I have a cot now. I¡¯m further away from them and closer to the radiator.¡± His ears relaxed. ¡°You could have added that a little sooner.¡± ¡°Maybe I like knowing someone¡¯s worried about me.¡± I sat down next to him. For a few minutes, all we did was stare at the tree together. Hundreds of little white stars were perched on the branches like fairy birds. I could live a million years and never find anything as beautiful as a Christmas tree. But as time went on, I felt the cool air of the landing more and more. When I brought my knees up to my chest, Conrad put his arm around me and pulled me closer¡ªliterately, scooting my butt several inches, until I was up against his side. ¡°You think I¡¯m cold?¡± I said. ¡°After what you said, I¡¯m not giving you the satisfaction of asking.¡± ¡°Maybe I was only getting comfortable.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re not comfortable, you¡¯re welcome to move.¡± Fat chance of that. I¡¯d neglected to bring a blanket, and not only was his arm fur cozy, but even through his T-shirt, I could feel his body heat. Conrad Bauer, the walking furnace. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about yelling at you earlier,¡± he grumbled. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I understand.¡± The hand that wasn¡¯t on my shoulder went over his eyes. ¡°God, I must have scared those kids so bad.¡± Or maybe I didn¡¯t understand. That didn¡¯t sound like something a ghost-hater would say. I grinned. ¡°Anna called you my guard dog.¡± ¡°Your guard dog?¡± He moved his hand enough to look at me. He didn¡¯t seem to think it was as hilarious as I had. I said, ¡°She was trying to explain it to Jan. You were only doing it to protect me.¡± He huffed and put his arm down. ¡°They understand, Conrad. They understand, and they don¡¯t mind.¡± For a second, he squeezed me tighter. I figured it was some kind of an answer, but I was too lazy to force him to say it in English. The closer we got, the more he seemed to forget I couldn¡¯t smell what he was thinking. ¡°Do you feel better now?¡± he asked. I took a breath. ¡°I¡¯m still really tired¡ªlike, weary¡ªbut after sleeping most of the day, I can¡¯t fall asleep.¡± This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°What did Dr. Belliston say?¡± ¡°That I¡¯m stupid.¡± ¡°Hmmm. The man¡¯s very knowledgeable.¡± I pushed away so I could glare at him better. ¡°Why are we friends again?¡± ¡°Because I¡¯m the only one willing to listen to you talk about anime for hours.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a pretty good reason.¡± I leaned against him again. ¡°He says I¡¯ll be fine, but I have to be less stupid from now on.¡± ¡°Good advice. You should try to follow it.¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah.¡± ¡°Emerra, I¡¯m not joking. That was a close call¡ªwe¡¯re lucky we found you in time!¡± ¡°I know,¡± I assured him. ¡°It¡¯s okay. I¡¯ll be careful.¡± My placating tone must have made him realize he¡¯d become a little too emphatic. He relaxed into the couch, and when he spoke again, his voice was quieter. ¡°What was Kappa doing up there anyway?¡± ¡°Iset sent him up. He needed help with his gift.¡± ¡°Why couldn¡¯t she help him?¡± ¡°He drew her name.¡± Conrad smiled, but he also shook his head. ¡°That¡¯s rough.¡± ¡°For who? Him or her?¡± ¡°Could you think of anything to get her?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t have to. Kappa already knew what he wanted to get her.¡± ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Promise you won¡¯t tell?¡± He gave me a wry look. ¡°He wanted to get her a rock,¡± I said. ¡°A rock?¡± ¡°Yup. He was adamant.¡± ¡°Please tell me you did not go outside, hours after nearly dying from hypothermia, to help him find a rock.¡± ¡°Nope! We went to the ever-reliable internet.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know you could buy rocks online.¡± ¡°It depends entirely on the type of rock you want to buy.¡± ¡°I take it you helped him find a nice one?¡± ¡°A very nice one. I hope she likes it.¡± ¡°This is Iset we¡¯re talking about. Kappa could have pulled a rock from a river, and she would have treasured it.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± I smiled. ¡°She¡¯s sweet. I¡¯m glad he got her name.¡± Conrad returned his attention to the tree. ¡°Kappa¡¯s been having a lot of fun with this whole Christmas thing.¡± ¡°Yeah, he has! The little twerp. I¡¯m about to start stapling the ornaments to the trees.¡± ¡°That might ruin the aesthetic.¡± ¡°Darius can get over himself.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t put too much money on that bet.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll do it when he¡¯s not at home.¡± The wolfman tipped his head to the side. ¡°You might be able to do that.¡± ¡°Did he go into town again?¡± ¡°Not today.¡± Conrad shifted. ¡°None of us really got much done today.¡± The way he said it, all easy and matter of fact, made me think that the hiatus might have had something to do with me. I fidgeted with my fingers as I mumbled, ¡°Conrad, thank you for saving me.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to thank me for that.¡± He put his muzzle on top of my head. ¡°Are you sure?¡° ¡°It¡¯s a given.¡± The glowy feeling from his off-handed assurance fizzled into confusion when I felt the air move over my scalp. Conrad was taking a long, slow breath in. ¡°Ohhhkay,¡± I said. ¡°I know it¡¯s not my hair.¡± He pulled back and said through a quiet laugh, ¡°What?¡± ¡°Are you sniffing me? Do I smell funny?¡± ¡°No, you weirdo. I¡¯m getting your scent.¡± ¡°You¡¯re sniffing me, but I¡¯m the weirdo?¡± ¡°It¡¯s perfectly normal behavior.¡± ¡°Maybe for a wolfman.¡± ¡°Who did you think you were sitting next to?¡± ¡°It¡¯s still weird.¡± ¡°You always know the scent of your pack.¡± I grinned. ¡°Your pack?¡± Grinning wasn¡¯t enough, so I laughed. Conrad rubbed his brow ridge. ¡°That¡­uh¡­that sounded less stupid before I said it.¡± ¡°No,¡± I meeped in a sad little voice. ¡°I want to be in your pack. I¡¯ve never been in anybody¡¯s pack.¡± He looked at me out of the corner of his eye, then turned to me. ¡°Are you crying?¡± I wiped the edges of my eyes, but I couldn¡¯t stop smiling. ¡°I¡¯m just tired. You¡¯ll let me be in your pack, right?¡± ¡°Sure,¡± he said softly. ¡°Yes!¡± I fist pumped. ¡°My canine transformation has begun.¡± He rubbed the top of my head. ¡°You¡¯ll be there in no time.¡± When his arm was back over my shoulders, he said, ¡°Mera, since you were willing to help Kappa with his gift, do you think you could see your way to helping me?¡± ¡°Oh, now I get it.¡± I prodded his side. ¡°You only wanted help with your gift.¡± ¡°That must be it. Will you help?¡± ¡°It depends. Who do you have to give your gift to?¡± ¡°Kappa.¡± I made a pffft sound. ¡°Easy-peasy. Get him a rock.¡± ¡°I¡¯m being serious. I have no idea what he likes.¡± ¡°I¡¯m serious too! Has he never shown you his collection?¡± ¡°The only reason he even talks to me now is because of you. Until today, I wasn¡¯t sure he knew my name.¡± ¡°Look, there¡¯s a reason he was convinced Iset would want a rock. He¡¯s obsessed with them. He¡¯s got this weird collection he picked up from who-knows-where. They¡¯re his favorite things in the whole world¡ªaside from tuna.¡± ¡°Tuna?¡± ¡°Sorry, not an option. Iset says it¡¯s not healthy for him to have too much.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t considering it, but thank you for the warning.¡± ¡°If you get him a cool looking rock to add to his collection, you¡¯ll be his favorite person.¡± ¡°Except for the pushover that gives him so much tuna it¡¯s become a health hazard?¡± I grinned. ¡°Well¡­yeah. But you can be his second favorite person.¡± ¡°Sounds good. What kind of a rock do I get him?¡± ¡°That¡¯s something we¡¯ll have to find out tomorrow.¡± ¡°Why tomorrow?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to wake him up now. That¡¯d be rude. Oh!¡± I sat up. ¡°I have an idea! This is going to be fun.¡± ¡°Mera, is whatever you¡¯re planning going to be unnecessary and ridiculous?¡± ¡°Of course! It¡¯s Christmas! Everything¡¯s unnecessary and ridiculous. And you have to help me because we¡¯re packmates.¡± ¡°I¡¯m reconsidering your admission.¡± ¡°Watch it, buddy. I¡¯m only one fight away from being alpha around here.¡± Judging from how loud Conrad laughed, he didn¡¯t think I was much of a threat. Chapter 21 - Mission: Christmas Jacob leaned his head around the corner. A second later, he turned to me, ultra-serious, and nodded. ¡°All right, Jan,¡± I whispered to the little ghost in front of me. ¡°Go secure the hall!¡± Jan went down the hall toward the outer door, then came back. ¡°All clear,¡± he whispered. ¡°Perfect. Everyone in place. All lights green. Prepare to engage.¡± Behind me I heard Jacob say, ¡°What¡¯s she talking about?¡± Jan shrugged. ¡°Are you going to go watch Kappa with Anna, or do you want to watch the door?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯ll watch the door,¡± Jan said. ¡°Good boy. Let¡¯s move out.¡± I crept out of my hiding spot and slunk down the hall in the most ninja-like manner possible. I had to use extra sneak because Conrad was right behind me, and he refused to sneak at all. We¡¯d almost made it to the washroom when Jacky appeared in front of me so suddenly that I smacked into him with an oof. I had long ago stopped trying to figure out how Jack Noctis moved around. You could call it walking, but sometimes it was unaccountable. He might have come out of the washroom, or he might have appeared there by some wacky spatial magic¡ªI didn¡¯t know. My only consolation was that he seemed almost as surprised to see me as I was to see him. He straightened us out by putting his skeletal hands on my shoulders and pushing me back a step. ¡°Emerra, what are you doing?¡± I saluted. ¡°Covert Christmas mission, sir.¡± ¡°A covert¡­mission?¡± ¡°This is me being all espionage-ly.¡± His skull rose so he could take in the other figures in the hall. ¡°Is Jan with you?¡± ¡°He offered to monitor position three. He¡¯s my door guard.¡± ¡°And Jacob?¡± ¡°Position two¡ªsecuring the hall.¡± ¡°Conrad, what¡¯s your role in all of this?¡± ¡°Bemused spectator,¡± the wolfman said. ¡°He says that,¡± I said, ¡°but he¡¯s actually the client. We¡¯re here to get him vital Christmas information. I also needed someone to help me with the photos.¡± ¡°And that information requires you to invade the washroom?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been assured by my client that none of this is required, and I¡¯m probably being ridiculous. We want to look at Kappa¡¯s rock collection so we can figure out what to get him for his present.¡± In my impatience to get past Jacky, I started fidgeting. ¡°Ah,¡± he said. ¡°I suppose that makes some sense. Where¡¯s Anna?¡± ¡°She¡¯s watching Kappa at the moment, but since she¡¯s a ghost she¡¯s going to have a hard time stopping him if he decides to come back.¡± I swept both hands in the direction of the main house, hoping to encourage Jacky to stop blocking the doorway. He stepped aside. ¡°Don¡¯t let me detain you.¡± ¡°Your cooperation is appreciated, sir.¡± I put Jan just inside the door and told him to give me a shout if he saw Kappa coming. Then I pulled out my phone, opened the camera app, and handed it to Conrad. ¡°Pull back one of those curtains, will you? We¡¯re going to need some more light.¡± While he went to do that, I crawled under the antique wash table where Kappa hid his nest. I turned on my flashlight (I might have been ridiculous, but I was not unprepared) and pointed it toward the wall. There, laying along the top of the stretcher, was his rock collection. I put the flashlight at the end of the line and pointed it along the stretcher so I could see what I was doing. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. ¡°Are you ready, Conrad? I¡¯m going to take them out one at a time and put them back in their place so he won¡¯t know we¡¯ve been here.¡± ¡°Ready whenever you are.¡± It didn¡¯t take long. Kappa only had seven rocks. When we had photographed and returned each one, I skulked over to Jan and put my back to the wall. ¡°Still clear?¡± I whispered. ¡°Still clear.¡± He winked at me. At least Jan was enjoying the game. I turned to Conrad, ¡°Agent Jan says we¡¯re good to go.¡± As the wolfman closed the curtain, he said, ¡°Ghost agents would really be something. It¡¯s a shame Darius can¡¯t use them.¡± ¡°No!¡± I was still whispering, but it was an appalled whisper. ¡°They¡¯re Christmas agents only. To be used for the benefit of¡­bog-creature-kind.¡± And Jan, god bless him, went, ¡°Yeah!¡± I smiled down at him. ¡°Okay, let¡¯s go.¡± I pivoted around the doorway and sauntered through the hall, looking as casual as the coolest kid in class. Jan walked beside me, doing his best to act nonchalant. Conrad came up behind us. He always looked casual. He didn¡¯t have to try. ¡°Does Madam Spy want her phone back yet?¡± he asked. ¡°If you please.¡± He passed it to me. As I tucked it in my pocket, I said, ¡°If anybody asks, we were¡­uh¡­¡± ¡°Doing our laundry?¡± ¡°You¡¯re pretty good at this, Agent Conrad.¡± ¡°I thought I was your client.¡± ¡°You¡¯re so good at it, I didn¡¯t realize you were an agent until we were almost done with the mission.¡± ¡°Remind me to ask M for a raise.¡± When we got to Jacob, I told him to inform Anna that we were all clear and that she could find us in the library. Conrad and I knew exactly nothing about rocks, so we had decided to ask Iset for help. She lingered over each of the seven photos. ¡°Well, I can tell you what kind they are.¡± She tilted my phone as she stared at the last picture. ¡°And I can tell you how they were made, geologically speaking, but as for why he might have chosen them over another rock¡ªthat¡¯ll be more difficult.¡± ¡°Is there some kind of pattern? They weren¡¯t one color. Were they all one type?¡± ¡°No. There¡¯s quite a variety here. Some of them look like they could have been chosen for texture, but these others¡­¡± She shook her head, then looked up at me, ¡°Emerra, how did you know about this collection?¡± ¡°He showed it to me once. He was trying to cheer me up.¡± ¡°He thought that would cheer you up?¡± Conrad said. ¡°Rocks make him happy.¡± ¡°Did he say anything about them?¡± Iset asked. ¡°Yeah. He said one was pretty, one was colorful¡ª¡± ¡°Which one?¡± ¡°Uh¡­let me see if I can figure it out.¡± I held out my hand for my phone. Iset handed it over. ¡°You don¡¯t remember?¡± I sat down on the couch beside her. ¡°It was dark, so I couldn¡¯t really see what he was showing me, but I might be able to remember what they felt like.¡± I paused at the third photo and leaned over so Iset could see it. ¡°This one. He said this one was pretty. That¡¯s the right shape.¡± Two pictures later, I said, ¡°And this one¡¯s his favorite. I remember that edge.¡± I flipped through the last photos, then went backward. When I was back at the beginning of the series, I frowned and started to flip through them again. ¡°What is it?¡± Iset asked. ¡°I can¡¯t find the colorful one¡ªalthough¡­this one looks like it¡¯s the right size. It was smaller. But it¡¯s not very colorful, is it?¡± Conrad leaned over the back of the couch so he could look at the photo. ¡°No,¡± Iset sounded puzzled, ¡°it isn¡¯t.¡± ¡°Maybe he likes gray,¡± Conrad said. Suddenly Iset laughed. ¡°We¡¯re all so blind, aren¡¯t we?¡± Conrad and I stared at her. ¡°Can you see it, Emerra?¡± She tapped the phone. ¡°No?¡± ¡°I guess your eyes only see into the spirit realm.¡± ¡°As opposed to?¡± Conrad said. ¡°The ultraviolet spectrum.¡± Iset stood up, walked over to her desk, and opened her laptop. ¡°If I¡¯m right, then Kappa sees a very different world than we do. Give me an hour or two and I¡¯ll have a few recommendations for rocks he should enjoy.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± I said. She stopped and looked at me. ¡°Emerra, how are you feeling?¡± I blushed. ¡°I¡¯m fine. I promise.¡± I wondered if it¡¯d be presumptuous of me to apologize. ¡°You¡¯re not tired?¡± ¡°No.¡± That was mostly true. I wasn¡¯t tired, per se, although I had less energy than I was normally gifted with. ¡°Then I¡¯d like to ask you for a favor.¡± ¡°Me?¡± I blurted out. ¡°You mean, me? Oh, yes!¡± ¡°You seem excited.¡± ¡°You¡¯re always helping with everything. This is the first time I can be useful to you.¡± She shook her bandaged head. ¡°Oh, Emerra.¡± ¡°What can I do for you?¡± ¡°I¡¯d like you to go into town with Darius. He¡¯s leaving after lunch. I should warn you, he¡¯s probably going to be there for a while, so bring a book in case you get bored.¡± ¡°No problem.¡± My brain corrected me, and my heart sank. ¡°Slight problem. I¡¯m afraid I don¡¯t have any money, so I won¡¯t be able to pick up anything for you.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have any¡ªoh. That¡¯s right.¡± Iset picked up a pen and pulled over a small block of post-it notes. ¡°We¡¯ll have to get you some paperwork. But this time, at least, you won¡¯t need any money.¡± ¡°Cool! I¡¯m going to the library.¡± Iset stopped writing. ¡°What makes you say that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s one of the few places you can hang out without spending any money. Am I wrong? Does our town not have a library?¡± Iset finished writing her note. ¡°You¡¯re almost right. Our town does have a library¡ªnot a big one, mind you, but it¡¯s respectable. However, that¡¯s not where I¡¯m sending you.¡± ¡°Then where am I going?¡± ¡°The Westcott Historical Museum. There you will find the world¡¯s most worthless fossil, and all the archives he refuses to upload to the internet.¡± ¡°I¡¯m picking up on a little frustration there, Iset.¡± The mummy threw down her pen and turned to me, one hand on her hip. ¡°You would think, in this day and age, that the historical society would be able to find someone who knows how to use a computer.¡± ¡°Well, by the time someone¡¯s joining a historical society, they¡¯re probably pretty old. Lots of old people aren¡¯t comfortable with technology.¡± ¡°If I can do it, they have no excuse.¡± I decided it wasn¡¯t my place to argue about ageism with a three-thousand-year-old mummy. ¡°All right, Iset, what would you like me to look up for you?¡± ¡°Anything and everything about the Krusen Patroonship.¡± ¡°The what?¡± She picked up her phone and typed something. A moment later, my phone dinged; she¡¯d messaged me the proper spelling of the words. I stared at them as she spoke. ¡°It was a small Dutch colony that used to be in this area. I think it might be where the children are from.¡± Chapter 22 - Westcott Historical Museum When we got into town, I was pleased to see that the whole place had been decked out for the holidays. There were wreaths on all the lampposts, every store had put up their decorations, and the trees lining Center Street were covered with lights. It was a shame it was daytime, so I couldn¡¯t see what they looked like when they were on. Darius parked next to the Center Street playground. As soon as we stepped out of the SUV, someone called his name. I turned and saw a stocky woman with dark hair wearing a uniform. ¡°Glad you could join us today.¡± She glared at the vampire. ¡°Good afternoon, Deputy,¡± Darius said. Oh. The deputy. I was looking at the sole representative of law and order for the whole town of Quicholt¡ªwell, normal law and order, anyway¡ªso I looked at her with a little more respect. She jerked her head toward me. ¡°Who¡¯s this?¡± ¡°Deputy Crook, this is Miss Emerra Cole.¡± Trust the count to use a title. ¡°Emerra,¡± he went on, ¡°this is Deputy Jaylen Crook.¡± I stepped forward and put out my hand. ¡°Hi.¡± As we shook, Darius said, ¡°Emerra, also lives up at the Noctis Mansion.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t seen you around before,¡± the deputy said. ¡°It¡¯s a combination of I don¡¯t get out much and I¡¯m still a little new here,¡± I said. I watched as her suspicious eyes moved over me then, inevitably, came to rest for a fraction of a second too long on my head. ¡°Your hair,¡± she noted. I adopted what I hoped was a dignified air. ¡°I woke up this morning and just couldn¡¯t do a thing with it.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± She turned from me to Darius. ¡°What¡¯s she doing here?¡± Oop. That was my cue. ¡°Oh, he was just my ride. I have something to do, so I¡¯ll make myself scarce. It was nice to meet you.¡± She nodded but didn¡¯t say anything. I said, ¡°And I¡¯ll text you later, Darius.¡± ¡°You know the way?¡± he called to my retreating back. I already had my phone out to look up the address, so all I did was raise it above my head and wave it around. The count might not have been a complete fossil when it came to technology, but he was old enough it wasn¡¯t his first thought. As I walked down the street, I had to battle the temptation to go exploring all the shops and side streets. I hoped there¡¯d be time for that later, but Iset had warned me that the museum closed early, so I went there first. The museum turned out to be in an old Victorian mansion. Really, what was it with this town and old Victorian mansions? On the other hand, it was more reasonably sized than the one I lived in, and turning it into a nonprofit museum was probably a good way to deal with property taxes. I hopped up the front stairs and checked the vinyl on the door¡¯s glass. The name was there, along with a list of hours. I caught myself looking for a doorbell to ring and laughed. ¡°Because you always knock before going into a museum, Emerra,¡± I whispered. It still felt weird to just open the door and go in, so I compromised with my conscience by calling out while I did it. ¡°Hello?¡± The door pushed through a small set of wind-chimes as I opened it further. The bright notes jangled through the front hall. It did have a front hall, but my guess about the relative size of the house was correct¡ªit wasn¡¯t going to match the near-castle proportions of Jacky¡¯s home. I finished coming in and shut the door behind me. Without even thinking, I took off my boots. They had snow and mud on them, and Igor was enough of a mother to me that I wasn¡¯t going to risk his disapproval. Even if he wasn¡¯t there. A woman came in while I was putting them on the boot tray by the door. ¡°Oh, thank goodness.¡± Her voice sounded relatively young. Since I had been expecting an ancient Grumposaurus rex, that wasn¡¯t saying much, but I was surprised when I stood up and found myself facing a lovely woman who could have been anywhere from fifty to sixty years old. She had cropped white hair and thick-rimmed round glasses that looked much too fashionable for a dinosaur to wear. Actually, everything about her looked too fashionable to belong in a historical society, and she radiated power, even though she was only standing there. She smiled. It didn¡¯t turn the ends of her mouth up, but it did make her cheeks stand out. ¡°Thank you for thinking to remove your shoes,¡± she said. ¡°It¡¯s impossible to get mud out of these wood floors.¡± ¡°I know,¡± I said with a grin. ¡°Is this the Westcott¡ª¡± ¡°Yes, yes. The Westcott Historical Museum. You¡¯ve come to the right place. Have you been here before?¡± ¡°Uh, no. No, I have not.¡± She gave me a firm handshake. ¡°Well, I¡¯m always glad to see someone new in here.¡± She motioned toward what was probably the sitting room. I followed her. ¡°Where are you from? Are you visiting someone, or are you here for the town?¡± My brain must have stalled in the presence of such a dynamo. ¡°Um¡­¡± She looked over her shoulder. ¡°You¡¯re not here just to see us, are you? No. That¡¯d be too much to ask.¡± ¡°I¡¯m from here.¡± She stopped and turned. ¡°You¡¯re a resident?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± She took off her glasses and looked me over. ¡°Forgive me for assuming, but I think I would have remembered someone like you. Have we met?¡± I also felt confident I would have remembered her, so I assured her we had not. She replaced her glasses. ¡°Well, I¡¯m Stella Baker. I have the honor of looking after the museum.¡± We continued into the sitting room. The edges of the room were crowded with glass display cases, and the walls were hung with antique swords, pistols, old fashioned paintings, and a framed copy of the mansion¡¯s floor plans. In the middle of the room was a set of armchairs. ¡°Have you been here long?¡± I asked. ¡°Oh, no,¡± she said. ¡°A few months, that¡¯s all.¡± She sat down in one chair and waved me toward the other. ¡°I hope you weren¡¯t expecting to find Mr. Ulfric?¡± ¡°Was he the last curator?¡± ¡°He was. He¡¯d been in for over fifty years, so compared to that, you can imagine, I¡¯m seen as quite the neophyte.¡± ¡°I take it he was a bit of a dinosaur?¡± ¡°Oh, yes. And like all the other dinosaurs, he¡¯s now extinct.¡± She paused. ¡°I suppose I should have waited to find out if you knew him before saying something like that.¡± ¡°Tell me, Ms. Baker, how do you feel about computers?¡± ¡°I love them. Any sane human would. I¡¯ve fought the board, won my first battle, and now we have internet in the museum.¡± She jerked her fist in triumph. ¡°Can you believe I had to fight for that?¡± I grinned. ¡°I think you¡¯ll do fine here.¡± ¡°Well, thank you. I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t catch your name.¡± ¡°Emerra.¡± ¡°Emerra. What a beautiful name. So, what can I do for you? Are you here to browse the museum, or are you doing a project?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here to learn about the Krusen Patroonship.¡± She put a hand to her chest and gazed up at the ceiling for a moment, then returned her eyes to me. ¡°You have to stop. You¡¯re making this day too good.¡± ¡°I take it you¡¯ve heard of it?¡± ¡°Heard of it? Emerra, I have lived and breathed it. That¡¯s how I found out about this position. I was researching the original six patents, so of course I had to call here whenever I needed information about Krusen. That¡¯s how I heard Mr. Ulfric had died.¡± ¡°Wow, small world.¡± ¡°The coincidence becomes much less miraculous when you consider the fact that anyone wanting original source material on Krusen has to call or come here. If it wasn¡¯t me, it would have been someone else.¡± ¡°Can you tell me about it?¡± ¡°Certainly. How much do you know?¡± ¡°Um. Nothing.¡± She smiled again. ¡°Then how much time do you have?¡± ¡°Can we start with the basics?¡± Baker let out a short sigh. ¡°Well, it would be a shame to scare you away. Let¡¯s see¡­¡± She took a second to gather her thoughts. ¡°Do you know about the patroonships?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Back in 1629, the Dutch West India Company decided they wanted to move into their territory up here, so they created the Charter of Freedoms and Exemptions which allowed them to offer land and manorial rights to any investors willing to try to create a settlement.¡± I interrupted: ¡°Manorial rights?¡± Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ¡°Ah, yes. You¡¯ve heard of manor houses? In Britain? Those huge houses where the lord and lady live, where they oversee the area.¡± I nodded. ¡°It helps to think of it like that. The patroons¡ªthe investors¡ªwould have been something like a mayor or a governor, only much more powerful. They gathered taxes, created the courts, and appointed all the officials. In return for this power, they had to foot the bill for establishing the settlement and find a way to con fifty families into moving there within four years.¡± ¡°And Krusen was one of these patroonships?¡± ¡°The last one of the original six. The strange one.¡± ¡°Strange how?¡± ¡°Strange in many ways. They were the furthest north, the furthest out, and not on any major body of water. Frankly, they were outside their territory, and they never should have been here.¡± ¡°Where was the settlement?¡± She opened her hands wide. ¡°Here.¡± ¡°Wait¡ªhere, here?¡± ¡°Well, honesty forces me to admit that our best guess puts it roughly twelve miles away from town, but I think that¡¯s quibbling.¡± ¡°Why did they settle here?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I was researching. My pet theory is that it was a strategic choice¡ªan attempt to expand the territory of the New Netherlands by testing to see who, if anyone, would object.¡± She took off her glasses and tapped them on her knee. ¡°Krusen was an interesting man. He had money, ideals, and strong opinions about how he wanted his town to run. There¡¯s no doubt he shaped that settlement more than most leaders would have been able to.¡± And to relax I bet he liked to play Nine Men¡¯s Morris. As Baker put her glasses back on, I said, ¡°Do you have any documents from the settlement?¡± ¡°Oh, yes. Quite a few. That¡¯s one of the things Krusen had opinions about. He wanted everything documented and recorded. He believed his settlement would be a marvelous success, and he wanted others to be able to imitate his methods. He hired both a personal secretary and a public secretary for the town. Not all of the documents survived, of course¡ª¡± ¡°What about a list of names?¡± She cocked her head. ¡°A list of the people who lived in the town?¡± I clarified. ¡°Ah! We have several of those. Would you like to see them?¡± ¡°Can I?¡± She stood up and motioned for me to follow her. My heart fluttered with excitement as she led me up the stairs. Our first stop was a bathroom. When she opened the door, she kicked the door stop into place so it wouldn¡¯t close behind us. We washed our hands all the way up to our elbows, then we grabbed our own towel from a pile to dry them. ¡°Try not to touch anything on the way in,¡± she said. I followed her over to the next room. The door had been altered to swing either way. She backed through it and held it open for me with her foot. The room was full of high windows that let in the sunlight. It might have once been a parlor or a music room (or an excessively generous bedroom), but whatever furniture had been in there, it had been removed to make room for the bookshelves and file cabinets. There were rows and rows of them, all precisely arranged and labeled. Stella said, ¡°I¡¯ll give Mr. Ulfric this¡ªthe man was organized.¡± She had me wait by one of two desks while she went back through the narrow walkways. She returned with a box and laid it on the desk. It opened like a book. Before that moment, all the precautions¡ªwashing our hands, not touching anything¡ªhad seemed needlessly dramatic. Then I saw the documents. They were faded, their worn edges were browning, and they looked frail enough to fall apart with a breath. I said, while trying not to breathe too much, ¡°Should¡­uh¡­we be wearing gloves?¡± ¡°No,¡± Baker said. ¡°Gloves carry a shocking amount of dirt, and you¡¯re more likely to rip the pages. Gloves are for photographs, but they didn¡¯t have photographs back then.¡± She carefully lifted paper after paper and laid them gently into the other side of the box. Then she stopped, stood back, and motioned for me to look closer. I stepped in and leaned over the list. I was so drunk from its age and beauty that it took me a minute to realize something. ¡°I can¡¯t read this,¡± I muttered. ¡°That¡¯s normal,¡± Baker said from behind me. ¡°Seventeenth century script is hard to read when it¡¯s in your own language¡ªnever mind Dutch.¡± I turned to her. ¡°Can you read it?¡± ¡°Most of it. The fact they¡¯re names helps. I don¡¯t actually read Dutch from any century.¡± She pointed to the top of the page. ¡°Here¡¯s our hero, Patroon Krusen. Underneath him is a list of the men he appointed as elders.¡± I thought I spotted a capital M. Could that be Mulder? ¡°Where¡¯s Dominie?¡± I whispered. ¡°The dominie¡¯s name is under theirs. He was too young to be appointed as an elder.¡± She moved her finger. ¡°Evert Arts.¡± ¡°I thought his name was Dominie.¡± ¡°No, that was his position. He was a minister of the Dutch Reformed Church. Krusen personally sent for him to come over.¡± I looked at where she pointed. Under the nearly indecipherable name, I saw four letters followed by a dash. A wash of feelings rushed over me, as if I¡¯d been dropped into a pool of awe and sadness. My hand went up to my mouth, but I caught myself before I touched my lips. ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± Words failed me. I pointed. ¡°Yes,¡± Baker mused, ¡°Little Anna.¡± I could barely think. That might explain why my next words were ¡°You know her?¡± ¡°I do. There isn¡¯t much left of her.¡± My breath caught. Someone must have locked up my chest in an attempt to contain whatever chimeric monstrosity of emotion my heart was burping out. Since I wouldn¡¯t be able to explain the reason why her words had such an effect on me, all I could do was try to hide my reaction. I managed to say, ¡°Tell me about her.¡± ¡°Well, we know she was a young child, an orphan, and there must have been some question about her parentage.¡± ¡°What makes you say that?¡± ¡°The dash.¡± Baker picked up a plastic bookmark with a rounded end that had been lying on the desk. She used the tip to point to the long line that stood in for Anna¡¯s last name. ¡°At first people assumed she was Arts¡¯ wife. Her name was often coupled with his, and Krusen was careful to keep family names together, but everywhere else, you can see, the last names were included, even with wives and children. Then someone drew a connection between this Anna, and the Anna mentioned in one of Krusen¡¯s letters.¡± ¡°What did it say?¡± Baker shrugged. ¡°I¡¯ve forgotten most of it, but the most relevant line was ¡®Little Anna, whom you might remember, has found a home¡¯¡ªI¡¯m sorry, are you all right?¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I choked out. ¡°This is just pretty amazing.¡± ¡°History will do that to you.¡± I caught a glimpse of her knowing smile before she turned back to the document and carefully flipped it over to get to the next one. ¡°But I believe the real breakthrough came when someone was examining the last census.¡± She flipped another paper, then pointed with the bookmark. ¡°There are two names at the bottom. They only appear this once, and they aren¡¯t associated with any family.¡± I didn¡¯t even have to look, but I obediently bowed my head. ¡°Jacob and Jan.¡± ¡°I¡¯m impressed you can read that, Emerra. Yes, Jacob and Jan, followed by a dash, then an odd note about their ages. Six and four. Two very young boys who appear suddenly at the end of a list. They¡¯re too old to have been born there, so it¡¯s likely they¡¯re orphans from somewhere else. If the father¡¯s last name is unknown, the first name is followed by a line to prevent someone from accidentally writing in that space. Taking all that into consideration, it seems more likely that Anna was an orphan that lived with the dominie.¡± ¡°Can I take a picture of this?¡± ¡°Of course! Take as many pictures as you want. You¡¯re welcome to handle the documents, as long as you¡¯re careful. Please don¡¯t get them out of order, and don¡¯t remove the tags. And if you want any help managing a particularly obnoxious or damaged document, you can call me, and I¡¯ll help.¡± She motioned to one of the tiny rows between the shelves. ¡°I was working down there when I heard you come in. I hate to leave the documents out for too long, so if you don¡¯t mind?¡± I shook my head. ¡°Call me if you need me.¡± And I was left alone with the last evidence of my beautiful little friends. I took all the pictures I could, taking extra care to zoom in on the names that meant so much to me. When I was done photographing that box, I asked if there were any other documents about the Krusen Patroonship¡ªany, in particular, that dealt with the three children. Stella Baker gave me a long, quiet look. I tried to formulate a lie about why I would care, but to my relief, I didn¡¯t need it. ¡°There¡¯s at least the letter,¡± she said. ¡°Let me go get that box.¡± She brought it over and helped me put away the other documents so I would have room for the new batch. As she opened the new box, she said, ¡°These contain all the letters to and from Krusen.¡± Once again, she confidently, carefully, started flipping through the papers. ¡°You seem to know exactly where it all is,¡± I said. ¡°Lived and breathed it, Emerra. I lived and breathed it for months.¡± ¡°Did you write a book?¡± ¡°I did. You have to if you¡¯re a historian. We read old documents, drink coffee, and write new books which eventually become old documents. Thus, the cycle continues.¡± ¡°You weren¡¯t always a curator?¡± ¡°Oh, no. This is my retirement.¡± ¡°Stella Baker.¡± She stopped and looked up. ¡°You¡¯re really cool.¡± She blushed. ¡°You¡¯re flattering me.¡± Then she went back to flipping through her old documents. ¡°This is it,¡± she said standing up. ¡°I know you can¡¯t read it, but if you photograph it, you can usually find help deciphering it online.¡± She used the bookmark to indicate a particular place. ¡°There she is. Little Anna.¡± ¡°Can you leave that there while I take the shot?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a wise idea.¡± As I was taking pictures, we heard the sound of footsteps coming from the hall. Baker left to go see who it was. I tried to return my attention to the letters, but the woman who had come in had a loud, hysterical voice that made it impossible. ¡°He fired me!¡± I heard the murmur of Bakers more moderate tones¡ªand it still amazes me I would ever call her bold voice moderate. The stranger said, ¡°I don¡¯t know! He came in this morning, and he simply fired us! Yes, both of us! Stella, what on earth am I going to do?¡± More murmuring. ¡°I don¡¯t care. What¡¯s happening to this town? I don¡¯t understand!¡± I had been attempting, and completely failing, to politely ignore the poor woman¡¯s ranting, but with that line, I abandoned all my manners and the documents. I was instantly Madam Spy. I snuck over and put my ear by the slit of the swinging door. Baker said, ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°You should have seen him! He was all twitchy and limping. He could barely stand.¡± ¡°Was he hurt?¡± ¡°He stared at us! He stared at us and said he was fine! And his face.¡± ¡°What was wrong with his face?¡± The woman¡¯s voice sounded strangled. ¡°I don¡¯t know. He was never handsome, but I¡¯d never seen him like that.¡± Baker must have been struggling to understand¡ªI know I was. ¡°Because he was angry?¡± ¡°No,¡± the woman sniffed. ¡°I¡¯ve seen him angry. He wasn¡¯t angry. If I didn¡¯t know better¡ªStella, I¡¯d swear it wasn¡¯t him!¡± ¡°But it was him?¡± There was a short silence. I don¡¯t know what her answer was, but I thought I could hear some weeping. Baker spoke in a bracing manner, ¡°Come on, Sky. This is¡ªwell, I don¡¯t know what this is. Things have been¡­strange recently. Worrying. Maybe Bhaird is doing this because he¡¯s afraid.¡± ¡°Both of us have put up with him for over ten years! Now he¡¯s afraid we¡¯re a bunch of ax murderers?¡± ¡°We¡¯re all afraid, Sky. Give him some space. Do you have a little set by? Good. That¡¯ll buy you some time to come out of your shock and decide what to do next.¡± ¡°This is my home! I don¡¯t want to leave my home!¡± ¡°Maybe you won¡¯t have to. You might be able to find another place around here.¡± ¡°With who? Who else could afford a private cook?¡± There was a long pause. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but it¡¯s a big wide world out there. There are bound to be lots of options. And all of them, all of them, will be better considered after we sit down and have a cup of something.¡± ¡°Not coffee. I can¡¯t. I¡¯m still shaking. I was so scared.¡± ¡°Scared?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. But not coffee.¡± ¡°I have some peppermint tea.¡± ¡°That¡±¡ªthere was another sniff¡ª¡°that sounds good. Ohhh, I¡¯ve made a fool of myself.¡± And the world¡¯s coolest curator reinforced her position by saying, ¡°Not at all. I don¡¯t blame you for feeling this way. No one would.¡± When I heard them going down the stairs, I returned to the letters. A nebulous something churned around in my head. I wish I could say I was thoughtful¡ªI certainly felt thoughtful¡ªbut I don¡¯t know if it counted. I didn¡¯t have any thoughts. There was nothing but confusion and a growing sense of unease. I had barely finished photographing the letters when Baker returned. ¡°Do you need anything else?¡± she asked. I closed the box and turned to her. ¡°What happened to everyone?¡± ¡°Everyone? That¡¯s a rather big question. But if you¡¯re asking what happened to the town, that¡¯s still a mystery.¡± ¡°A mystery?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a reason we call it the strange one. The list with the two boys was the last census taken. One year later, the town was gone.¡± ¡°And you don¡¯t know what happened?¡± Baker crossed her arms. ¡°Well, we¡¯re fairly sure the town wasn¡¯t completely wiped out since the names of Krusen residents began appearing in other nearby town documents. The most likely theory is that it was abandoned after trouble with the indigenous people, but even that seems unlikely to me.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because something like that would have been written down. Someone would have warned the surrounding settlements.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t Krusen take any notes? I mean, if he was such a paperwork nut, wouldn¡¯t he have written down what happened?¡± Baker nodded slowly. ¡°Which is why I always wondered if something happened to him, and that¡¯s why the town fell apart.¡± ¡°Um¡­?¡± ¡°One day, all the writing stopped. No more letters. No more lists. No more notes. We have fragments all the way up through December of that year, then¡ªnothing.¡± I shivered. ¡°You think he died?¡± ¡°Something happened to that town, and it was bad enough to cause it to fall apart. If Krusen had been alive and well, I think we would have records.¡± ¡°Do you have any idea what happened to Dominie and Anna?¡± ¡°Anna, no. We¡¯ve only found her in those four references. But the dominie¡­¡± She pulled out the other box, the one I had been looking through before. At the very bottom of the pile was a piece of paper with a mash of writing along the top, followed by a list. ¡°This is one of the last documents. It might be the very last document from the town, but it was a running list, so it¡¯s hard to gauge when the last note was made.¡± ¡°A running list of what?¡± ¡°The winter casualties for that year.¡± Almost breathless, I muttered, ¡°Did they always do that?¡± ¡°No, but we have good reason to believe it was an unusually hard winter. Evert Arts wrote this himself.¡± My body jerked. A sudden sense of possessiveness made me want to snatch the paper. This was his writing. Something Dominie had touched. I wanted to take it and give it to Anna. Fortunately, Baker had been looking at the document. She hadn¡¯t seen my rather obvious reaction. She continued, ¡°He wrote that he¡¯s taken it on himself to keep a record of everyone who was lost that winter in case they need it to supplement the official records.¡± ¡°Why would he need to do that?¡± ¡°It might have something to do with the fact that the very first name he recorded was the public secretary¡¯s.¡± She pointed down to the bottom of the list. ¡°And then there¡¯s this. It might be hard for you to tell, but this isn¡¯t his handwriting. Someone else found this list and added to it.¡± ¡°What does it say?¡± ¡°Dominie Evert Arts. Missing, presumed dead.¡± Chapter 23 - New Nemesis Most of the drive home was quiet. Darius¡¯s face had looked so solemn that I didn¡¯t want to interrupt his thoughts. Besides, I had my own thoughts to deal with. It wasn¡¯t until we could see snatches of the mansion lights peeking in and out of view as we drove through the winding road that the count finally decided to break the silence. ¡°You found them?¡± ¡°I did,¡± I admitted. A short silence later, he said, ¡°That¡¯s good work. It wasn¡¯t an easy task, but you and Iset did it.¡± ¡°Can we talk about something else?¡± His eyes flicked over to me, then returned to the road. ¡°Did you learn something bad?¡± ¡°No¡ªwell, yes, but nothing I didn¡¯t expect. This was all the way back in 1632. The town failed, and everyone¡¯s dead.¡± Darius¡¯s eyebrow rose. ¡°Probably.¡± I looked at him. ¡°Statistically speaking, everyone¡¯s probably dead. If you think about it, you and I only know one person who was alive back then¡ª¡± I grinned. ¡°Two!¡± ¡°Does Jacky count as a person?¡± ¡°Does Iset?¡± ¡°Touch¨¦. So, between the two of us and all the people we know, only two were alive back then, therefore it¡¯s unlikely any of them would be alive today.¡± ¡°And I knew that Anna and the boys were dead, because that¡¯s how I met them. I shouldn¡¯t be upset¡­but it¡¯s still hard.¡± ¡°How so?¡± ¡°All that¡¯s left of Anna is four references. Her little name, lost in those big, long lists, and she¡¯s mentioned in one letter. Jan and Jacob don¡¯t even get that.¡± I turned to him. ¡°And you don¡¯t get to give me crap about how much they mean to me because they matter. They¡¯re damn sweet, and I love them!¡± ¡°Emerra, that¡¯s the first time I think I¡¯ve ever heard you swear.¡± ¡°Well?¡± ¡°Well nothing. I¡¯d wondered how a child of the modern age could live so long without learning to curse.¡± I leaned back in my seat. ¡°It was Ms. Elstein. She didn¡¯t like swearing.¡± ¡°Ms. Elstein? The friend you had back in the hospital?¡± ¡°The hospice. She¡¯d always clutch her heart and moan about how I was going to kill her with my shocking language.¡± The memory was enough to make me smile. ¡°How old was she?¡± ¡°Ninety. Ninety and fighting.¡± ¡°Is she still alive?¡± I shook my head. ¡°She died a week before I did. She said I had to outlast her because it¡¯d be a stupid world if a nineteen-year-old died before a ninety-year-old.¡± ¡°It sounds like she was an interesting woman.¡± ¡°Yeah. And now she¡¯s gone. I wonder how much is left of her. Are there any letters? Or just her name on a death certificate that no one will bother to print out?¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t have a family?¡± ¡°None of us had families. It wasn¡¯t that kind of hospice.¡± I played with the plastic around the window button. ¡°Darius, what¡¯s the point?¡± ¡°Of what?¡± I shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Everything. Life. What¡¯s the point if these three beautiful lives wind up as nothing but a few notes in a museum?¡± ¡°No, you¡¯re going to have to do better than that.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t follow. Just because something isn¡¯t remembered doesn¡¯t mean it was pointless. Anna had, what? Four references? Do you want to guess how many people have lived and died that had none? Are you going to tell me that all those lives didn¡¯t matter?¡± ¡°Did they matter?¡± ¡°It mattered to them! And they mattered to the people they knew¡ªlike those kids matter to you. You try to avoid swearing because of a delightful old lady who isn¡¯t known to almost anyone else on this planet. That woman made a difference. They don¡¯t have to be remembered by people living centuries later to be important.¡± We pulled up to the front gate of the mansion and had to wait as it opened. Darius looked at me and said, ¡°I think the greatest crime of this generation is mistaking fame for value.¡± ¡°I thought our greatest crime was pop music.¡± Darius shook his finger. ¡°No. That¡¯s the third greatest crime.¡± I knew he was waiting for me to ask, and I was happy to oblige. ¡°What¡¯s the second?¡± ¡°Reality television.¡± I laughed. The gate was open, so we drove on. The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Emerra,¡± Darius said, ¡°I¡¯m not going to give you any crap about how much you like those ghosts¡ªI might lecture you about having enough common sense that we don¡¯t have to call in Dr. Belliston again¡ª¡± ¡°Yeah, yeah.¡± ¡°¡ªbut I appreciate your capacity to care about other people. I would never change that about you. I¡¯m just worried that you¡¯ll keep things back.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t keep things back.¡± ¡°You do! You absolutely do.¡± ¡°I talk all the time!¡± ¡°You chat all the time, but that doesn¡¯t mean you share what¡¯s important.¡± I felt uncomfortable enough with that statement, I had to admit, at least to myself, it was probably true. ¡°You can¡¯t protect the dead,¡± Darius added. ¡°The worst has already happened. Right now, the people that need protecting are down in that town.¡± I thought of Mrs. Park and Stella Baker. ¡°I know.¡± As he pulled into the garage, he said, ¡°We should head to the library. I suspect Iset is waiting for us, and I¡¯m looking forward to hearing what you found.¡± ¡°What about dinner?¡± ¡°You can eat later.¡± He got out of the car. I got out, shut the door, and called over the hood, ¡°You can eat later, vampire. My stomach has opinions.¡± My stomach did have opinions, and they were all overruled by Igor. ¡°It¡¯s not ready yet.¡± ¡°But, Igor!¡± I was sitting on one of the stools at the kitchen island. He was fiddling around with something on the stove that smelled amazing. ¡°You can whine like a dying chimp all you want. Dinner will be ready in a half hour.¡± I proceeded to whine like a dying chimp and drop my head onto the counter. I heard Olivia¡¯s kind and dulcet tones off to my side. ¡°Oh my god, Emerra. Could you be more impossible?¡± ¡°Please don¡¯t challenge her,¡± Igor said. Olivia prodded me with a granola bar until I sat up. I took the offering and thanked her. She leaned back on the counter. ¡°What¡¯s your favorite movie?¡± I spoke around my mouthful of food: ¡°What?¡± ¡°I need to know your favorite movie.¡± That was¡­highly suspicious. Olivia wasn¡¯t fond of me, and I knew it. My instinct said if she was asking for personal information, she was looking for a weakness, but I couldn¡¯t see how she could use that particular piece of information against me. Asking for a lock of hair? Dangerous. Asking about a favorite movie? I turned my eyes to Igor. ¡°She asked me too,¡± he assured me. I leaned forward on my stool. ¡°Igor, what¡¯s your favorite movie?¡± ¡°The Godfather.¡± He raised both eyes to the ceiling and sighed. ¡°It was a masterpiece.¡± I grinned. Olivia snapped her fingers in front of my face. ¡°Hello! Focus here.¡± I turned back to her. ¡°Your favorite movie?¡± she said. I pressed down on the granola wrapper lying on the counter, making a small crease in the shiny silver plastic. ¡°It¡¯s called Spirited Away.¡± There was a drop of silence, then Olivia said, ¡°By Hayao Miyazaki?¡± I looked up. ¡°You¡¯ve heard of it?¡± ¡°I watched it. It was really good.¡± ¡°I know, right! That¡¯s what got me into anime.¡± ¡°Yeah. Some people will go overboard.¡± She pushed off from the counter. ¡°Don¡¯t talk about it too much, will you? It¡¯s Christmas stuff.¡± Oh. That explained it. I gave her an exaggerated wink. She rolled her eyes and walked away. I forced myself to stand up. ¡°Igor, I look forward to seeing you in a half hour.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll throw away that wrapper or you¡¯re getting air soup for dinner.¡± I grabbed the wrapper. ¡°Of course!¡± After stopping by the garbage can, I headed toward the library, but when I saw the lights on in the drawing room, I had to glance in. Conrad was sitting on the floor in the magic circle, playing with the ghosts. I suddenly had to deal with a big mush of sappy emotions, so I watched them in silence for a while. Anna and the boys were trying to teach Conrad Dutch, which sounded really weird to me because my brain would insist on trying to interpret. She¡¯d say ¡°book¡± in perfectly good English, then Conrad would say something so indecipherable my brain couldn¡¯t do a thing with it, then Jan and Jacob would laugh. Conrad must have heard me giggle; he said, ¡°Sure, it¡¯s all right for you.¡± His comment made the children look up. When they saw me, Jacob and Jan yelled my name and ran out of the circle to greet me. I knelt down so we could do the whole try-to-touch-but-not-touch routine we¡¯d established in lieu of actual hugs. This went on for half a minute, all while Jan tried to update me on everything they had done while I was gone. Then Anna called out, ¡°Jacob, Jan, be careful.¡± The boys both made a face and stepped away. When I walked further into the room, they followed me. ¡°How¡¯s the language lesson going?¡± I asked Conrad. ¡°Not well, but at least Kappa¡¯s getting a break.¡± I ran my fingers through the fur on the top of his head. ¡°Yeah, and I¡¯ll bet their chill doesn¡¯t bother you much.¡± ¡°Jacky wants to see you. He¡¯s in his study.¡± ¡°Am I in trouble?¡± Conrad shrugged. ¡°Huh. Iset and Darius are waiting for me in the library. Ha! I¡¯m so popular.¡± I looked at Anna. ¡°What do you think? Is he a good student?¡± She glanced at Conrad, then said with perfect diplomacy, ¡°He¡¯s trying very hard.¡± ¡°Good for him. I have to talk to a few people, but after dinner I should be able to play with you guys.¡± ¡°Can you read to us?¡± Jacob asked. ¡°Oh! There¡¯s an idea. I wonder if we have any Christmas books. I¡¯ll ask Iset.¡± I flattened my wolf-boy¡¯s ear a bit as I said, ¡°Thank you, Conrad.¡± His ear twitched out from under my palm. ¡°No problem.¡± When I stepped out into the hall, I hesitated, but not for long. As I turned toward Jacky¡¯s study, I murmured, ¡°You can¡¯t keep death waiting.¡± Jacky called for me to enter the moment I knocked on the study door. I went in. He was sitting behind his desk, looking at some papers, but he put them down as I approached. ¡°Emerra, I¡¯m glad you¡¯re home.¡± ¡°Conrad said you wanted to see me?¡± He motioned to the chair across from him. ¡°Yes.¡± As I sat down, I said, ¡°Is this about this morning? With the whole spy thing?¡± ¡°In a way.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think Kappa would mind, Jacky¡ª¡± He raised his skeleton hand to stop me. ¡°Iset explained it to me. Apparently, the spirit of the season requires subterfuge, which is not something I excel at.¡± That was true. ¡°You, on the other hand¡­¡± he said. I glanced up, but there was no point in trying to read his expression. He didn¡¯t have one. He went on, ¡°I understand that you¡¯ve helped both Kappa and Conrad with their gifts to other people.¡± ¡°Yeeaaah.¡± ¡°Could you see your way to helping me?¡± I put a hand to my forehead. I didn¡¯t even like presents! But you pretend you¡¯re a spy one time and suddenly you¡¯re the foremost consulting expert. ¡°Jacky¡­¡± I stopped myself. It¡¯s true that I was unqualified for the job, but sitting across the desk from me was the one person I could say, without hesitation, was more clueless than I was. Not to mention, it was my fault that any of this was happening. Maybe this was the price I had to pay for all those lovely Christmas lights. I sighed. ¡°Who are you supposed to give your gift to?¡± ¡°Darius.¡± ¡°Darius?¡± I gaped. ¡°But I have no idea what to get Darius!¡± ¡°Neither do I. He¡¯s a very private man.¡± ¡°I mean, what does he even do¡ªbesides work and wear suits?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve considered that angle, but I would hesitate before buying a man a suit. It might not fit with his sense of fashion.¡± My eyes narrowed. ¡°Iset said she had to stop you from buying my entire wardrobe.¡± ¡°Ah, but you see, Darius has taste.¡± And he stared at me with his gormless, empty eye-sockets. Yup. The only person more clueless than I was. ¡°I¡¯ll see what I can do for you,¡± I growled. ¡°Thank you.¡± I stood up and walked toward the door. Before I got there, Jacky said, ¡°Have you learned anything more about the children?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve learned who they are, but not how they died.¡± ¡°And they don¡¯t remember yet?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t asked recently. I thought they¡¯d tell me.¡± Which, I realized, was a major assumption on my part. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Emerra, I suspect they¡¯ll remember when you do.¡± I looked back at him, but he was already focused on his work. What kind of paperwork did death have? Maybe I didn¡¯t want to know. I stepped out into the hall and went over to the library. As I entered, I observed the vampire with heightened interest. Count Vasil, my new nemesis. Iset stood up and came over to me. ¡°Darius says you found them.¡± I pulled out my phone and started bringing up the photos. ¡°So, good news first. I met this fantastic woman today who loves computers, the museum takes donations, and she said she¡¯d kiss me if I could help her get a book scanner.¡± Chapter 24 - The Shepherd I was watching Dominie. He was sitting at his chair by the window, even though the sun was long gone. A candle burned beside him on the small table. It¡¯s flickering flame woke me up to how much my heart was trembling. He looked cold. The whole room, cast in shadows, looked cold, but I was too numb to feel it. I walked further away from the fire. ¡°Dominie.¡± He took a breath. ¡°Anna.¡± ¡°What are you reading?¡± He flipped the sheet over so I couldn¡¯t see it. ¡°I was writing.¡± ¡°What were you writing?¡± ¡°Writing? At this hour of night?¡± He cupped his hand around the candle flame and blew it out. ¡°That would be a dreadful waste. It can wait.¡± He was avoiding my question. That meant he wouldn¡¯t answer. ¡°You should come eat,¡± I said. Dominie stood up and went over to the hook where his still-wet cloak was hanging by the fire. ¡°I¡¯m going out, Anna.¡± He stopped in front of the hearth and looked at the two small figures huddle together on the bed in the corner. ¡°Look after Jacob and Jan for me.¡± ¡°But you haven¡¯t eaten!¡± He put the cloak over his arm and came back to me. After kneeling down, he put his hand on my shoulder. ¡°You¡¯ll do me a favor, won¡¯t you? I¡¯ve wasted enough supplies this evening, but I¡¯m not hungry. Could you share out my food between you and the boys?¡± ¡°You tried this last week. You couldn¡¯t sleep, remember?¡± ¡°And when I don¡¯t do it, I can¡¯t sleep over the rumbling of three bellies.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t do it.¡± He shrugged. ¡°Ah well, throw it out in the yard then. Some hungry animal will be grateful, I¡¯m sure.¡± My cheeks grew a shade hotter, but then I was too tired to stand. I sat on the bare floor. ¡°Anna?¡± ¡°You won¡¯t argue with me.¡± ¡°And you won¡¯t do as I say. It seems like a fair trade.¡± ¡°Dominie, please don¡¯t go.¡± He sat down on the floor beside me. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Anna, I have to go.¡± ¡°I think something¡¯s out there.¡± He was silent a long time, then he said, ¡°Why do you think that?¡± ¡°Jacob and Jan won¡¯t go outside. They say it smells. Yesterday, when I was taking Jan to the bathroom, he started shaking and threw up.¡± ¡°Can you smell it too?¡± ¡°Sometimes. Mr. Mulder says it¡¯s the wind, carrying the smell in from a huge lake that¡¯s far away. Can it really do that?¡± If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Dominie stood up. ¡°Anna, I want you to stay inside. If one of you has to use the bathroom, go together. Stay by the fire. Stay warm. Don¡¯t¡­don¡¯t listen to the wind. It¡¯s nothing but wind.¡± He threw his cloak on. ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°I have to go talk to the mayor.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you stay here?¡± ¡°I¡¯m his shepherd, Anna. Someone has to talk to him, and he might listen to me.¡± ¡°Mr. Peters said he would talk to him.¡± ¡°The other elders say he won¡¯t listen to them.¡± ¡°But Mr. Peters¡ª¡± ¡°Mr. Peters is missing, Anna. He¡¯s gone. His wife stopped me in the street to ask if I had seen him.¡± My heart bawled. Even that little pain was enough to leave me empty. I curled up on the floor. ¡°Another one?¡± I felt Dominie¡¯s hands on my arm and back. He helped me to my feet, then knelt there, staring me in the eyes, his face only a few inches from mine. ¡°Anna, I know I¡¯m asking a lot of you, and I¡¯m sorry that I have to leave an adult¡¯s burden on a child, but please, look after Jacob and Jan. They need you. Promise me you¡¯ll take care of them. Then, when I get back, I¡¯ll be the strong one.¡± ¡°I promise.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± He left. I had to do my duty immediately. If I sat down, it would only be harder to get back up. I went over to the plate I¡¯d left in the chair by the fire, picked it up, and took it over to the bed. ¡°Jacob, Jan, wake up. There¡¯s some food we have to eat.¡± It was a slow process¡ªrising to consciousness, then finding the energy to move the blankets. I waited. When they were sitting up, I sat down on the floor by the bed. ¡°Come down. We shouldn¡¯t eat in bed.¡± ¡°It¡¯s cold,¡± Jan said. ¡°Bring the blanket.¡± We huddle together, leaning against the bed frame, eating the morsels of food I had done my best to rip into three even parts. ¡°Where¡¯s Dominie?¡± ¡°He had to go talk to the mayor.¡± Jacob stopped with his hand half raised to his mouth. ¡°It¡¯s dark. He shouldn¡¯t be out after dark.¡± ¡°Eat, Jacob.¡± He finished bringing the food to his mouth, but then he put it down again. ¡°I don¡¯t feel good.¡± ¡°Please eat, Jacob.¡± Weak tears only dewed up the corners of my eyes. ¡°What if he doesn¡¯t come back?¡± ¡°He¡¯ll come back.¡± Jan wrapped his tiny arms around me. ¡°I¡¯m scared,¡± he whispered. I put the plate down in front of me and put one arm around each of them. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. He¡¯ll come back.¡± I woke up, still feeling the painful fear closing in around my lungs. Fear, fear, fear! I could write an encyclopedia about all the flavors of dread. The kind that wakes you up in a panic. The kind that drives you to your knees. Or, like tonight, the kind that leaves you sitting there with a low-key ache in your chest. When the anxiety finally let go, there was no relief. It went from fear to sadness. Missing. Presumed dead. Oh, Dominie. I swung my legs over the edge of my cot. When I looked up, I noticed Anna¡¯s eyes were open. I stood up and walked over to the bed. ¡°Hi, sweetie,¡± I whispered. ¡°Did you dream?¡± ¡°I did.¡± ¡°Was it one of ours?¡± Darius thought I couldn¡¯t protect the dead, huh? Just watch me. I put a hand to my chest. ¡°What? I can¡¯t even have my own dreams anymore? Maybe I want to dream about ponies and puppies, and warm woolen mittens all tied up with string.¡± Anna smiled. ¡°You¡¯re very strange.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been told that.¡± ¡°I like you, Emerra.¡± I had to blink back a little bit of sentiment that got caught in my eyes. ¡°And I like you guys, you know that? I¡¯m glad I got to meet you.¡± Beside her, Jan curled up and murmured something in his sleep. Anna glared at me. ¡°Shhhh.¡± ¡°Right!¡± I whispered. ¡°I¡¯m going downstairs for a while. Will you be okay?¡± She nodded. I left the door slightly open, rather than risk the noise of it clunking shut in its old wood frame. Then I made my way over to the front stairs. The great landing was empty, and the Christmas lights were off. For a second I thought about turning them on and stopping there, but the lofted ceiling over the stairs made it colder than the rest of the house, and I didn¡¯t have my Conrad with me that night. Rats. I went downstairs and over to the kitchen. Igor had made me his own blend of instant hot cocoa because, ¡°I¡¯m not getting up in the middle of the night for you.¡± Not that I had asked him to. But it was impossible for him to admit he¡¯d done something nice for someone else. I told him I appreciated his selfishness. I was waiting by the electric kettle, to stop it before it beeped too much, when I heard a voice behind me. ¡°Is that a two-cup minimum?¡± It was Conrad. ¡°Yeah,¡± I said. ¡°That means I¡¯ll have some extra water. Do you want in on this?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll need it. Knowing you, we¡¯ll be bingeing all those episodes you¡¯ve been missing over the past few weeks.¡± I pulled out a second mug and added the powder. ¡°The anime can wait.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound like you.¡± ¡°I was thinking of watching some Christmas cartoons.¡± He grunted. ¡°But that does.¡± I poured the hot water into the mugs. ¡°Too late! I¡¯ve made you cocoa. You have to stick around long enough to drink it.¡± He eyed me as I handed him his mug. I waited. ¡°All right. Let¡¯s go watch some Christmas shows.¡± ¡°Thank you, Conrad.¡± Chapter 25 - Operation Darius The next morning, I pried myself out of bed early, and boy, did it hurt. But I knew my duty, and I knew my nemesis. After rushing through a bath, I threw on some clothes. By the time I crossed the hall and knocked on Conrad¡¯s door, I felt almost human. Not surprisingly, he didn¡¯t answer. I knocked again, and when he still didn¡¯t answer, I opened it and stuck my head in. ¡°Hello?¡± Conrad was lying in bed, but I saw a slit of yellow eye. He shut it again and groaned, so I knew he was awake. ¡°Good morning!¡± I finished coming in the room and closed the door behind me. ¡°Mera, you smell fine, and you sound fine. Why are you here?¡± ¡°I need your help.¡± He grabbed his phone from the nightstand, glanced at it, then dropped it. ¡°At seven in the morning? On a Saturday?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Christmas stuff.¡± He took his second pillow and crammed it over his face. His voice was muffled, but I still heard him growl, ¡°If you try pulling the ¡®we¡¯re packmates¡¯ card, you¡¯ll have an instant alpha fight on your hands.¡± Huh. There went plan A. ¡°Can I pull the white-knight card?¡± I asked. He moved his pillow enough to glare at me with one eye. ¡°I¡¯m up against a powerful and fearsome opponent.¡± He removed the pillow. ¡°Who?¡± ¡°Darius.¡± He let out a bark of laughter. ¡°No. Hell no. Not a chance. You want to try picking a fight with a vampire? While it¡¯s still dark out? Leave me out of it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not picking a fight with him! It¡¯s reconnaissance. And I have to do it now because he¡¯ll probably go to sleep once the sun rises.¡± ¡°Are you actually going to try to invade his room?¡± ¡°Well, not invade¡ª¡± ¡°It was nice knowing you.¡± I moaned as I walked over to his bed. ¡°Come on, Conrad. What can I do to bribe you?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you use those three Christmas agents you trained so well?¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t like them, and I don¡¯t know if he could sense they¡¯d been there. But he likes you!¡± ¡°And I would like to keep it that way.¡± ¡°The man sings Michael Bubl¨¦! He¡¯s a blood-sucking softy who knows the true meaning of Christmas. He¡¯ll understand.¡± ¡°What do you want me to do?¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying you¡¯ll help?¡± My voice squeaked with excitement. ¡°I¡¯m asking what you want me to do.¡± A less squeaky me said, ¡°I want you to go sniff his door and tell me if he¡¯s in there, then watch my back. Let me know if you smell him coming. You don¡¯t even have to go in the room.¡± ¡°If he¡¯s close enough I can smell him, he¡¯ll hear you, Emerra.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll pretend I was playing around in the back hall.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve thought of everything. Have you picked what you want on your gravestone?¡± ¡°Meh. They can use the old one.¡± He thought about that for a second. ¡°I don¡¯t think you had one.¡± ¡°Pretty please, Conrad?¡± He muttered a word that would have stopped Ms. Elstein¡¯s heart cold, then followed it up with, ¡°I have to get dressed.¡± Since he was mostly covered by his blanket, I hadn¡¯t realized it before¡ªnot only were his arms bare, but I couldn¡¯t see any tank straps over his shoulders. ¡°Are you naked?¡± ¡°Wha¡ª? No. I¡¯m just not wearing a shirt.¡± ¡°Oh. Then what¡¯s the big deal? Lots of guys don¡¯t like sleeping in a shirt. And with all your fur, it¡¯s not like you¡¯re actually naked.¡± ¡°Mera.¡± ¡°Right, right. Body shy wolfman. I¡¯ll wait outside.¡± I dinked around in the hall for a minute. Then the door opened, and Conrad emerged, dressed in his usual jeans, T-shirt, and solid flannel shirt cuffed up to the elbows. ¡°You owe me,¡± he said as we walked down the hall. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± I bounced up to his side. ¡°What do I owe you?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll figure that out later.¡± We both naturally slowed as we approached Darius¡¯s door. Me, because I was nervous about the mission. Conrad, I assumed, because he wanted to give himself time to smell anything out. The hall leading from our rooms to Darius¡¯s was not long¡ªnot as long as I would have liked, anyway¡ªand we got there too soon for my comfort. I glanced at the back stairs, but there was no sound or movement. ¡°Conrad?¡± I whispered. ¡°Something¡¯s off,¡± Conrad said. I stared at him in concern. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°I smell peppermint,¡± he said. ¡°Pep¡ªpeppermint? Is he hoarding candy canes or something? Is it the kind you¡¯d put in cocoa?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s the kind that¡¯s an oil you¡¯d put around a room when you didn¡¯t want a lycanthrope to smell what¡¯s inside.¡± We both immediately turned around. We weren¡¯t fast enough. Darius went from not-there to right-there before we could blink. Vampires were fast, but that kind of speed must have required magic. He was standing six inches in front of me, and he was smiling so that I could see both of his fangs. Until that moment, I had no idea they could extend so far. ¡°Emerra, Conrad, good morning,¡± he said softly. ¡°You¡¯re both up early.¡± And my hero, the fluffy white knight, took one giant step backward while putting a hand on my back to prevent me from doing the same. I laughed awkwardly. ¡°Ah ha. Ha. Yeeaaah. Good morning, Darius!¡± I chirped the last bit, based on the idea that excessive cheer helped with bluffing. I had no evidence of this, and it had never worked before, but that never stopped me from trying. I went on, ¡°Is breakfast ready yet? That¡¯s¡­uh¡­that¡¯s why we¡¯re here. We were going down the backstairs.¡± ¡°You weren¡¯t facing the backstairs.¡± ¡°I¡­forgot¡­something.¡± ¡°Like the fact I can tell when you¡¯re lying?¡± ¡°Yeah. I left it in my room.¡± From behind me, Conrad let out a grunt. Darius didn¡¯t even twitch. ¡°I appreciate the fact that you¡¯re acting on behalf of Jacky¡ª¡± ¡°How did you know?¡± ¡°I was in the library while the two of you were talking. You should really learn to moderate your voice. But whether you¡¯re doing this to help Jacky or not, I do not take kindly to people who enter my rooms without permission.¡± ¡°Fine. May I go in your room?¡± That threw him. After he blinked, he said, ¡°No.¡± ¡°Pretty please?¡± It turned out that vampires were harder to persuade than wolfmen. ¡°No.¡± ¡°A tie! That¡¯s what men get when people don¡¯t know what to get them. A big, ugly, tacky Christmas tie!¡± ¡°There are worse things in this world.¡± He started to turn away, but I blurted out, ¡°You just don¡¯t want us to see that you leave your dirty socks all over the floor.¡± He turned back. His eyes were narrowed, but there might have been a hint of a smile at the edge of his lips. ¡°Don¡¯t go into my rooms,¡± he said. ¡°I will know if you¡¯ve been there.¡± ¡°Yes, Darius,¡± I grumbled. He nodded to us, then turned and walked down the hall. As he passed my room, I saw that my three ghosts were awake and watching us. Behind me, Conrad let out a sigh. ¡°That went about as well as I expected. I¡¯m going down for some coffee. Mera?¡± ¡°Anna and the boys are up. I¡¯m going to get them set up somewhere, then I¡¯ll come and join you.¡± Conrad waved to me and went back along the hall. I went over to Anna. As I got closer, Jan said, ¡°He leaves his socks on the floor?¡± I knelt down. ¡°Well, it¡¯s got to be something, right? Why else would he be embarrassed about letting someone see his room?¡± Jacob said, ¡°Maybe you should¡¯ve asked permission first.¡± ¡°You could understand him?¡± Anna laughed. It¡¯s disconcerting when a child laughs at your screw-ups. ¡°It¡¯s kind of obvious what happened,¡± she said. ¡°Oh, because you¡¯ve never been naughty.¡± ¡°I was a good girl!¡± ¡°Yeah. You probably were.¡± I stood up. ¡°Come on guys. What would you like to do while I eat breakfast?¡± ¡°Can I go find Kappa?¡± Jan asked. ¡°Let¡¯s start with something that doesn¡¯t involve chasing Kappa.¡± ¡°Can we watch the computer?¡± Jacob asked. ¡°You mean YouTube?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± I groaned as I thought about it. Jacob was swiftly on his way to becoming an addict, but his favorite things to watch were instrumental music videos, especially street musicians. That seemed pretty harmless. ¡°All right. But only until I¡¯m finished with breakfast.¡± In his excitement, Jacob broke away and ran toward the front stairs, but, like always, he stopped in front of the Christmas tree on the great landing. When we got there, Jan said, ¡°The lights.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll get them.¡± I went over and pressed the large button with my socked foot. Mrs. Park was right; foot-tap switches were the greatest thing since peppermint mochas. I stepped back and gazed at the tree with the children. ¡°It looks so different,¡± Anna said. ¡°Kind of magical, right?¡± I said. She nodded. We went downstairs and over to the library. Iset was more than happy to set them up on the spare computer. She¡¯d even built Jacob a playlist in her spare time. While she did all the work, I crashed into one of the armchairs and put my arm over my eyes. I felt movement beside me, then heard Iset¡¯s beautiful voice. ¡°How are you feeling, Emerra?¡± I moved my arm. ¡°I¡¯m just tired. I had trouble sleeping last night, and I had to get up early this morning.¡± Iset sat down on the armchair beside me. ¡°Ah, yes. How did ¡®Operation Darius¡¯ go?¡± ¡°You knew about it?¡± ¡°He had to prepare for it last night, and he left me rather abruptly this morning.¡± ¡°Geez. Did you know his fangs get, like, this long?¡± I held my hands a foot apart. ¡°I think you¡¯re exaggerating.¡± ¡°Barely! And I would remember, since they were right in my face.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll have to forgive him. I don¡¯t think he was actually angry, but he¡¯s been under a lot of stress lately, and he wanted to get his point across.¡± ¡°Stress?¡± ¡°With everything that¡¯s been happening down in town, it¡¯s hard to blame him. Darius takes his responsibilities seriously.¡± ¡°How is it his responsibility?¡± ¡°Wherever Jacky goes, strange things follow. Part of Darius¡¯s job is making sure that the people around Jacky stay safe. Now we have ghosts and monsters. We don¡¯t know what we¡¯re up against, and we don¡¯t know if they¡¯re related. There¡¯s been little he can do. He doesn¡¯t talk about it, but I think it¡¯s been weighing on him.¡± A gentle smile crossed my face. ¡°He spends a lot of time with you, doesn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°He does. Since it¡¯s rare for me to rest, I¡¯m usually awake during his most active hours, and it¡¯s nice to have someone else around.¡± Which meant that she was likely to know more about him than anyone else. Cue evil laughter. ¡°Iset, have you ever been in Darius¡¯s room?¡± ¡°You mean since he¡¯s moved here?¡± Once again, I felt the surreal sensation of having to adjust to a timeline that was completely foreign to me. Darius had been there forever, but so had Iset, and the mummy¡¯s forever had a little more ¡°ever¡± than the vampire¡¯s. ¡°Yeah.¡± She rested her bandaged head on her knuckles. ¡°At least once. Maybe twice.¡± ¡°Can you tell me about it?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯ll help you. It was simple, tasteful¡­meticulously clean¡ª¡± ¡°No dirty socks?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Ugh.¡± ¡°He left almost nothing out, but I do remember he¡¯d brought in some of his own art.¡± ¡°Posters?¡± ¡°Fine art.¡± ¡°Oh, right. He has taste. Did he have a DVD collection or anything? Figurines?¡± ¡°This was around the nineteen-twenties, Emerra. And while he enjoys a movie every now and then, I don¡¯t think he¡¯s a big fan of television.¡± I groaned. ¡°Then what does he do with his spare time?¡± ¡°Music.¡± I looked up at Iset. ¡°He doesn¡¯t have a lot of spare time, but when he does, he spends it either practicing the piano or listening to his collection of music.¡± ¡°What kind of music?¡± ¡°Mostly classical.¡± ¡°Do you know anything about his collection?¡± ¡°I know it¡¯s extensive.¡± ¡°Does he have any favorite artists?¡± ¡°Many. Beethoven, Vivaldi, Williams, The Piano Guys¡ªbut I don¡¯t think¡ª¡± ¡°But you don¡¯t know specifically which albums he has?¡± ¡°Emerra, you¡¯re getting a conniving look on your face. Before you go planning another foray into forbidden territory, perhaps I should warn you, it won¡¯t do any good.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Because Darius is a man of independent means. He doesn¡¯t pay rent, he¡¯s been saving and investing for decades, and he¡¯s still getting fees from the FBI. If there¡¯s an album he wants, he buys it. He owns the best noise-canceling headphones there are. When it comes to his hobby, there¡¯ll be nothing he wants that he doesn¡¯t already own.¡± For a while I gazed at nothing while tapping on the arm of the armchair. ¡°Emerra?¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± I said. ¡°Did you have an idea?¡± she asked. ¡°I did, but even if it falls through, at least now I know his favorite hobby. Instead of a tacky Christmas tie, Jacky can buy him a tacky piano key tie.¡± Iset laughed and stood up. As she passed my chair, she put her hand on my shoulder. ¡°Go get some breakfast, child. Plotting against anyone usually goes better on a full stomach.¡± She had a point. I thanked her and left. As I passed the sitting room, I heard Darius¡¯s phone ring. ¡°Hello?¡± he said. ¡°Yes. Good morning, Deputy.¡± I stopped by the archway. There was a long silence, then Darius said in a weary voice, ¡°Another one?¡± My chest seized up, and I had to close my eyes to stop the hall from swaying. He had sounded so much like Anna¡­ ¡°No. Thank you for telling me. I¡¯ll be in later if I can. I¡¯ll text you if anything comes up. Look after yourself, Crook.¡± I heard him place his phone down on his desk. I was leaning against the wall, and I didn¡¯t bother stepping into the room when I said, ¡°Someone else is missing, aren¡¯t they?¡± There was a pause. ¡°Yes.¡± I pushed away from the wall and walked into the sitting room. ¡°I have to tell you about my dream.¡± Chapter 26 - Meeting with Noctis Darius stood in front of Jacky¡¯s desk while Noctis stood at the window, staring out at his snow-covered yard. ¡°Five people in five days.¡± ¡°Jacky,¡± Darius said, ¡°are they dead?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You know for certain?¡± ¡°I would need their names to know for certain, but I can tell you more people have died in the past five days than can reasonably be expected for a town our size.¡± He flourished a skeletal hand in a shrug. ¡°The exact numbers? Who they were? For that, I would need to know who I¡¯m looking for.¡± ¡°Have any of their deaths gone wrong?¡± ¡°No. They passed without incident.¡± Jacky turned away from the window. ¡°At least there will be no more ghosts.¡± ¡°At this point I might welcome a ghost,¡± Darius said. ¡°Three aren¡¯t enough for you?¡± ¡°A more recently dead ghost might be able to tell us what¡¯s going on.¡± ¡°Is there any more evidence?¡± ¡°We have the footprints that appeared on Wednesday morning. That¡¯s all.¡± ¡°There are no other clues?¡± ¡°Only what we¡¯ve learned from Emerra¡¯s dreams.¡± Jack Noctis pulled out his chair and sat down behind his desk. He said, ¡°I agree with you. Considering the similarities between what¡¯s happening now and what Emerra¡¯s dreamed, it¡¯s reasonable to assume the presence of our ghosts and the presence of the monster are somehow related. It¡¯s important for us to learn how they came here. I¡¯ll begin working on that immediately. I have to meet with the Torr anyway¡ªthat will give me a chance to talk to Father Thorburn.¡± Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°You think he can help?¡± ¡°I respect his experience with ghosts. At a minimum, he should be able to point out some possibility we might have missed. While I¡¯m gone, I would like you to take measures to protect Mrs. Park.¡± ¡°I called her earlier. She prefers to stay at her house.¡± ¡°Then we must protect her house.¡± ¡°The best way to do that would be to find and destroy whatever¡¯s killing those people.¡± ¡°That is our end goal, but since we don¡¯t even know what we¡¯re fighting yet, it might be worth our time to take a few intermediate measures.¡± ¡°Then we should do something to protect the town,¡± Darius said. ¡°The greatest form of protection we have is warding. Warding the entire town would be time consuming, and the ward would be weak. We can¡¯t protect an area that size with the resources we have. Besides, it would probably be useless to ward the town since we suspect the monster¡¯s already in it. However, we can protect Mrs. Park.¡± ¡°What about everyone else?¡± ¡°I¡¯m under no obligation to protect anyone, but I will protect my household.¡± The vampire scowled at the carpet. ¡°Your empathy is natural but impractical,¡± Jacky said. ¡°If you can think of any reasonable measure we can take without undue cost to ourselves, I would be happy to listen.¡± ¡°We can start by protecting Mrs. Park.¡± ¡°Good. Inform Olivia immediately. She¡¯ll need time to prepare before she goes out tonight.¡± ¡°Tonight?¡± Jacky stopped and looked up. ¡°Five people in five days, Darius. It¡¯s a small town. I don¡¯t think we can afford any delay.¡± ¡°But I¡¯ve been called in! I have to leave in ten minutes.¡± ¡°That¡¯s unfortunate. Is it important?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°Can you take her instead?¡± ¡°The Torr meeting is tonight.¡± Jacky tapped his finger bone on his desk several times. ¡°If I recall correctly, Emerra knows how to drive.¡± ¡°She doesn¡¯t have a license!¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Iset mentioned that we needed to get her paperwork. No matter. I¡¯ll pay any fines she might incur.¡± ¡°You¡¯re thinking of sending Olivia and Emerra out alone?¡± ¡°From your tone, I assume you find something about that disagreeable.¡± ¡°Given how long it will take Olivia to get ready, it¡¯ll be dark by the time they start out.¡± ¡°I doubt either of them are scared of the dark.¡± ¡°Who¡¯s going to protect them, Jacky?¡± Noctis tilted his skull. ¡°What makes you think either of us could protect them?¡± The count¡¯s head jerked back. Jacky continued, ¡°We don¡¯t know the nature of the beast. If it doesn¡¯t have a physical body, there¡¯d be nothing we could do. Emerra, at least, will be able to see it, no matter what it is.¡± ¡°Mr. Noctis, it left tracks. It slashed up a pole! If we¡¯re going to send those girls into town, I would feel much better if there was someone with them that could fight.¡± ¡°Then what are our options, Mr. Vasil?¡± Chapter 27 - Not a Person The lovely Google lady assured me I had arrived at my destination as I pulled into the parking lot a few blocks away from Mrs. Park¡¯s house. ¡°Whew,¡± I said. ¡°That was an adventure.¡± I looked over my shoulder. ¡°Everyone still alive?¡± Olivia had both hands over her eyes. ¡°Are we there yet?¡± ¡°Yes, drama queen.¡± I faced forward and put the car into park. ¡°You know, I think I did pretty good. That¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve ever driven a tank in the snow.¡± ¡°This is a truck.¡± ¡°And the roads weren¡¯t even plowed!¡± I heard a noise from the front seat beside me. ¡°What are you whining about?¡± I said to Conrad. ¡°Didn¡¯t you do enough of that on the way here?¡± He whined-growled, then let out a loud chuff. That was about all the commentary he could manage since he was in his wolf form. ¡°Olivia, can you pass me that backpack?¡± As she handed it over, she said, ¡°What¡¯s in there anyway? I brought everything I need.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Conrad¡¯s clothes, in case he needs to change.¡± ¡°He better not change! My god! I still don¡¯t think you can sell the world on the idea he¡¯s a dog, but it¡¯s going to be a lot harder if he¡¯s walking around in jeans and a shirt.¡± ¡°I know that, but it¡¯s better safe than sorry. He¡¯s body shy.¡± Conrad growled and woofed at me. ¡°You don¡¯t get to bark at me. You are.¡± I turned to Olivia. ¡°And if he has to answer questions about why he looks like a wolfman, he¡¯ll probably want to do it dressed.¡± ¡°This is already a disaster. What¡¯s he even doing here?¡± ¡°He can understand you, you know. You can talk to him.¡± For a moment, Olivia looked uncomfortable, then she muttered, ¡°Sorry, Conrad.¡± I went on, ¡°And, frankly, I¡¯m surprised you have to ask that question.¡± I put my arm over his shoulders and ruffled the fur at the back of his neck. ¡°He¡¯s our muscle! Nobody¡¯s going to mess with someone that has a wolf.¡± Olivia glanced at him. ¡°Okay. I won¡¯t argue with that.¡± ¡°All right, let¡¯s go!¡± I got out of the truck and went around to open the door for Conrad. Olivia gathered up her messenger bag, put on her hat and gloves, then opened the extended-cab door beside me. Once everyone was out, I locked up. When I turned around, Conrad was tensed and poised with his nose slightly in the air. I sniffed, then covered my nose. ¡°Geez! What is that¡ª¡± I stopped mid-question and let my hand drop back to my side. I remembered Anna, in my dream, had talked about a smell that had covered the town. My stomach sank. ¡°Conrad,¡± I said, ¡°are you okay?¡± It took him a second to nod. Olivia put her nose in the air. ¡°Oof. That is¡­that is weird. Is it an animal?¡± I hesitated, but Olivia was capable and mature beyond her years. She was my ally, not a child. ¡°I think it¡¯s whatever¡¯s been taking those people.¡± Instinctively, I reached out for Conrad. He bumped against me and let me hold his ear. ¡°Come on,¡± Olivia said. ¡°Let¡¯s get this done.¡± As we walked to Mrs. Park¡¯s house, I asked Olivia why we hadn¡¯t pulled up in front. She said it was because Mrs. Park would have been able to hear the truck. ¡°And that¡¯s a problem?¡± ¡°We¡¯re putting the ward down without her knowledge.¡± ¡°Huh. That seems¡­morally dubious.¡± ¡°The woman¡¯s obsessed with magic. I don¡¯t want her fiddling around with it. She won¡¯t be able to sense if she breaks it. Then she¡¯ll be defenseless, and there goes all my work.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Mrs. Park. She knows better than to bother a magic circle.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a magic circle.¡± ¡°She¡¯d still know better.¡± ¡°Jacky told me not to ask her because she might say no.¡± ¡°And you didn¡¯t argue with him because you didn¡¯t want to deal with her hanging over your shoulder while you worked.¡± ¡°Fine! You caught me! But I have to focus, Emerra.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. If she sees us and comes out, I promise I¡¯ll distract her.¡± Mrs. Park¡¯s house was exactly like I¡¯d imagined it: small, squat, sturdy, and colorful. I could see dimples in the snow where her yard ornaments were waiting for spring to come again. All her window blinds were down and closed, but at the back of the house, I could see some light bleeding around the edges. ¡°I kind of want to see inside,¡± I said. ¡°Should I go knock? Do you think she¡¯d make us tea?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you dare,¡± Olivia said. She opened her bag and pulled out a stick. Considering the nothing I knew about magic, it might have been a wand, but to me it looked like a stick. There were leaves still attached to it. ¡°Is there anything you need me to do?¡± I asked. ¡°No. Try to stay out of my way¡­and keep watch.¡± She¡¯d said the last three words in a quiet, serious voice. Maybe she saw me as an ally too. If so, I would not disappoint her. When I saluted, she rolled her eyes. Conrad stayed beside me as I walked around the property. I stopped at each corner and scanned everything in sight. The clouds that had followed us into town had dropped an extra inch of snow on the roads, but here they were only crowding the sky. They hung low over the bare trees and buildings. Out on the main street, in front of Mrs. Park¡¯s house, there was a long line of streetlights, casting sharp shadows that disappeared into the rest of the darkness. At the back of the house, there was only a mess of black shapes. ¡°Can you see better in the dark than I can?¡± I asked Conrad. He looked up at me as if I was an idiot for expecting him to know something like that. ¡°Right. Can you see better than a normal human?¡± He nodded. ¡°Good.¡± We paced while Olivia worked. I glanced at her every time we got close. The first five times we passed, she was walking around the yard, staring hard at the ground, sometimes pointing the stick downward, sometimes mumbling something. I couldn¡¯t hear anything, but I could see her lips shaping the white cloud of her breath. On the sixth pass, my cheeks were nearly frozen, and Olivia was kneeling by the front left corner of the house, drawing on the siding with a white marker. My eyes followed her snow tracks from the muddle at the front of the house, all the way to where she was kneeling. So much for Mrs. Park not knowing. Olivia saw me watching her. ¡°I¡¯m almost done.¡± ¡°How much longer?¡± ¡°Two minutes. Maybe three.¡± I continued my surveillance, content in the knowledge that our work was nearly finished and I was probably a better spy than Olivia. When I reached the corner of the property and turned to look down the street, a shiver ran through my body. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. The scene looked exactly like it had on every other pass¡ªthe undisturbed light from the streetlights, the motionless shadows. But I didn¡¯t like it. I stood there, watching for a few seconds, then slowly turned away. Conrad didn¡¯t. When I finally noticed his absence, I turned back. He was still at the corner, staring at the empty road. The hair on his neck rose, and his ears sank toward his head. I went over and knelt beside him so it¡¯d be easier for me to follow the direction of his eyes. About the time Conrad started to growl, I saw the figure. At first it was so far away that all I could make out was movement. As it drew closer, I saw its shifting form. Dark shapes collapsed and spread as it walked. I couldn¡¯t tell where the thing ended and the shadows around it began. Then it passed under a lamp. It was still too far away to make out anything clearly, but I knew one thing for certain¡ªI hated it. ¡°Come on.¡± I stood up. ¡°We have to get Olivia.¡± I ran back to the house. Conrad followed me. When I stopped next to Olivia, Conrad turned to face the way we¡¯d come. ¡°Olivia,¡± I whispered urgently. ¡°Tell me your done.¡± ¡°I already told you,¡± she said, ¡°I need another minute.¡± I glanced at Conrad. His ears were flat out to the sides, and his bared fangs looked almost as big as a vampire¡¯s. ¡°I can give you ten seconds¡± was my counteroffer. Olivia didn¡¯t even look up. ¡°That¡¯s not how this works.¡± ¡°Something¡¯s coming.¡± That made her pause. ¡°Is it a person?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I don¡¯t like it. We have to get back to the truck.¡± I heard a woof behind me. Conrad shoved his muzzle hard against my leg. When I looked at him, he tossed his nose in the direction of the figure. I stared at him in confusion. He repeated the motion. Oh, geez. He wasn¡¯t motioning back to the figure, he was motioning to the truck. I turned to Olivia. ¡°New plan! Do a really good job on that ward, but please do it as fast as you can.¡± I noticed her hands were shaking. Since she¡¯d taken off her gloves, it could have been from the cold¡ªbut I doubted it. ¡°If you want me to hurry,¡± she said, ¡°you need to back off so I can focus.¡± I went out to the street. The coy, sickly, rancid-sweet smell was more noticeable now. Conrad put himself between me and whatever was coming. We stared down the road, looking for any movement. Nothing. Then it appeared¡ªa blink of shadows skirting around a patch of light. It had halved the distance between us. No human or animal should have been able to move that fast. Despite the fact I couldn¡¯t see its face, I knew it was watching me. I ran back to Olivia. ¡°It¡¯s time to go!¡± ¡°One second.¡± The witch¡¯s voice sounded like she was restraining it with chains. ¡°My desire to live says now.¡± I looked around. Where was Conrad? Olivia put her hand on the mark she¡¯d finished drawing and closed her eyes. There was a bright flash of light under her palm, and the invisible boundary around the building briefly glowed white. ¡°You¡¯re done?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯m done,¡± Olivia said. She reached for her bag, but before she could get it, I grabbed her arm and hauled her to the front of the house. I pounded on the door while Olivia tried to get steady on her feet. ¡°Mrs. Park!¡± I cried, doing my best not to sound hysterical. ¡°Mrs. Park, it¡¯s me! Emerra!¡± I turned my head to see if I could spot Conrad. He was standing in the middle of the street. Everything about his posture said he was ready to fight. Nope! I thought. Nope-ity, nope, nope! This is not happening. I slammed my fist against the door and decided that hysterical might be the better option. It was certainly the honest one. ¡°Mrs. Park! Please let us in!¡± Olivia grabbed the sleeve of my coat. I heard a noise behind the door, then it opened to reveal Mrs. Park¡¯s startled face. ¡°Emerra!¡± Her surprise was understandable. My appearance was probably a little off-putting, what with the terrified tears crawling down my cheeks and the redheaded witch clinging to me. ¡°I¡¯ll explain later!¡± I cried. ¡°May we come in?¡± Mrs. Park opened her door wide. ¡°Of course!¡± I grabbed Olivia, shoved her inside, and ran back to the road. The smell was pungent now, and I could see the thing moving out of the corner of my eye. I didn¡¯t dare look directly at it. I was afraid I¡¯d lose my nerve. I crouched next to Conrad. ¡°Come on. We have to get inside.¡± I put my arm over his shoulders and pulled, but I couldn¡¯t budge him. ¡°Conrad, please! I don¡¯t think you can fight this thing!¡± I wrapped both arms around his neck. Despite my coat and his fur, I could feel the growl rumbling through his throat. I braced myself and hauled. If only I could get him to look away! I might have moved him half an inch. I let go, made a fist, and punched his flank as hard as I could. There was a snarl, a flash of teeth¡ªthen a sudden stillness. I had winced when he snapped at me, but now I peeled my eyes open and glared as I spoke very fast: ¡°Your job is to protect us. We¡¯re in Mrs. Park¡¯s house, not out here. Get your fuzzy butt inside right now!¡± I scrambled to my feet and ran to the house. Conrad ran beside me. As soon as we crossed the threshold, Olivia slammed the door and threw the lock. Conrad and I dropped to the floor in a tangle. I felt him pushing his head under and around my arm, and I heard him whining, but I was too busy trying to catch my breath to do more than put my hand on his head. ¡°Are we safe?¡± I gasped at Olivia. ¡°If anything¡¯s out there, it can¡¯t cross the ward unless it¡¯s invited in.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t see it?¡± Olivia pulled down one of the slats of the front window¡¯s blinds and looked out at the street. ¡°Not yet.¡± ¡°Emerra,¡± Mrs. Park said, ¡°what¡¯s going on?¡± She was standing behind us, staring down at me and Conrad. She hadn¡¯t bothered turning on the overhead light. I could only see her expression by the dim light coming from the lamp on the end table beside her, but it was enough to see she was frightened. I untangled myself and sat up. ¡°Sorry, Mrs. Park. We didn¡¯t want to scare you like this.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ve failed.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I mumbled. ¡°Is this about all those people disappearing?¡± I nodded. A scowl crossed her face, but then she drew herself up. ¡°I suppose I should be grateful that Mr. Noctis was at least willing to accept my decision to stay here. I understand that, thanks to Olivia, I have a ward now?¡± ¡°The mansion would be safer,¡± Olivia said. ¡°This is my home. I¡¯ve been here a long time, and my roots are deep. I¡¯ll take my chances.¡± Olivia didn¡¯t respond. At first I thought she hadn¡¯t heard Mrs. Park, but then the witch said, ¡°I see something.¡± I stood up. She said, ¡°The wind¡¯s picked up, but I think I can hear something.¡± ¡°No!¡± I walked over to her. ¡°Don¡¯t listen to it!¡± When I touched Olivia¡¯s arm, she turned to me. ¡°It¡¯s nothing but the wind.¡± We both looked through the gap in the blinds at the sliver of the street beyond the window. A misshapen figure hovered outside the edge of the light coming from the porch. ¡°It¡¯s a person,¡± Olivia said. ¡°That¡¯s not a person.¡± ¡°They¡¯re limping! What if they need help?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not a person!¡± ¡°I¡¯m going out there.¡± Mrs. Park spoke up: ¡°You said it¡¯s dangerous to go out there.¡± Olivia moved toward the door. ¡°I¡¯ll stay in the ward, but I need to get a better look. I¡¯m not going to leave someone limping around in the dark, in the middle of winter, when there might be a monster out there!¡± I grabbed her wrist and jerked her back. ¡°Olivia Oliversen, you will stay here. If you go outside, you will die.¡± Silence fell. The whole room paused. Olivia stared at me. ¡°Okay,¡± she whispered. ¡°I¡¯ll stay here.¡± I let go of her. The awkward silence broke when Mrs. Park clapped her hands and rubbed them together. ¡°So, we have to wait until that thing goes away? That may take a while. Who¡¯d like a cup of tea? I have some excellent herbal blends, perfect for an evening drink.¡± ¡°Tea sounds lovely,¡± Olivia murmured. ¡°Emerra?¡± My smile felt shaky, but it was still a relief. ¡°I thought you might be a tea person, Mrs. Park. Can I help you make it?¡± ¡°Oh, no.¡± She waved a hand at me. ¡°I don¡¯t need help.¡± ¡°But I want to see your kitchen! You have sun catchers, don¡¯t you?¡± She clicked her tongue, but she smiled as well. ¡°Why don¡¯t you follow me in, and you can introduce me to your new pet.¡± My new pet? I stepped away from the window. Mrs. Park motioned to the wolf in her living room. ¡°I knew you liked big dogs, Emerra, but I have to admit, that specimen is even bigger than I would have expected.¡± My cheeks grew warm. ¡°He¡¯s¡­uh¡­he¡¯s not my pet.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t pick a stray up off the street, did you? He looks too healthy.¡± ¡°This is Conrad, Mrs. Park.¡± Then that marvelous old woman won my eternal devotion by immediately turning to him and saying, ¡°Oh. I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t recognize you, Conrad.¡± After a microscopic pause, she added, ¡°You look very handsome like that.¡± I leaned close to him. ¡°Told you so.¡± It was almost ten¡ªlong after the figure had left¡ªbefore we felt safe enough to try to get to the truck. We thanked Mrs. Park for her impromptu hospitality and warned her not to go out when it was dark. She assured us she would be careful. We picked up Olivia¡¯s bag and the backpack with Conrad¡¯s clothes, then, with only modest reluctance, the three of us stepped out of the ward and into the empty road. The smell was much fainter, and everything was still. A quarter inch of snow had fallen while we were drinking tea, but it had already soaked into the asphalt and pavement. Water drops flew off our shoes and paws as we walked. Conrad moved around me and Olivia, trying to see everywhere at once. I cast nervous glances at the shadows we passed, but I wasn¡¯t constantly scanning the area the way I should have been. I was too afraid of what I might see. Halfway to the truck, we found a round print in the snow off the sidewalk. ¡°It looked like a person to you?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Olivia said. I pulled out my phone and took a picture. We hurried on. We arrived at the truck without incident. I used the key fob to unlock the doors while we were still ten feet away. ¡°Who¡¯s taking back seat?¡± There was a bark from Conrad. I looked at Olivia. She shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s only fair. He had to ride up front on the way in.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t people usually eager to call shotgun?¡± I opened my door and the extended-cab door so Conrad could jump in. Olivia got in the passenger side. ¡°I guess that depends on who¡¯s driving.¡± Conrad didn¡¯t whine at all on the way home. He sprawled across the back seat, and he was so quiet, I had to use the rearview mirror to assure myself he was still breathing. Olivia was also quiet. After glancing at her a few times, I said, ¡°See? All I needed was a bit of practice.¡± She turned away from her window. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°There are no gasps or moaning about my terrible driving and your eminent death. I must be doing better.¡± ¡°Or our perception of danger is relative.¡± ¡°Yeah,¡± I grumbled. ¡°That could be it.¡± In a louder voice, I added, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, by the way.¡± Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her look at me. I went on, ¡°About ordering you around. Back at Mrs. Park¡¯s house. I know it wasn¡¯t my place¡ª¡± ¡°Just tell me how you did that thing with your eyes.¡± I turned my head enough to look at her before returning my attention to the road. ¡°My eyes?¡± ¡°How did you do that thing with your eyes?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything with my eyes.¡± ¡°They flashed golden.¡± I smiled because¡­well, it had to be a joke. Right? ¡°They did not.¡± ¡°I was staring right at them, Emerra. You told me not to go outside, and they flashed this bright shade of gold. And not a little bit either. All of them¡ªall the black, anyway.¡± Her tone was enough to convince me she wasn¡¯t kidding. ¡°Weird,¡± I mumbled. ¡°It was freaky¡ªthat¡¯s what it was.¡± I had to force myself to shrug since my shoulders suddenly felt heavy. ¡°I don¡¯t know what to tell you. I didn¡¯t do it on purpose. Can we chalk it up to me being a freak?¡± ¡°I guess we¡¯ll have to.¡± We rode in silence for a while. ¡°Olivia, can I ask you a few questions about magic?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know anything about what kind of a freak you are.¡± ¡°Nah, I want to know about something else. See, I have this idea for a Christmas gift for Darius.¡± ¡°I thought you already bought your victim their present.¡± ¡°Oh, it¡¯s not for my person. Jacky asked for help.¡± ¡°And you want to use magic?¡± ¡°I want to know if something¡¯s possible, and what it would take to make it happen.¡± Chapter 28 - One Hell of a Dream Darkness and haze. It cleared as I forced my eyes to focus. The fire was low, but not dead. I must have fallen asleep waiting for Dominie. I was sitting with my back against the wall next to the bed, cocooned in a blanket. There was someone in the room. They were standing over the bed, right by my legs, so the fire could only illuminate their back. As I watched, the tall figure leaned over Jacob and Jan. The motion looked stiff and artificial, like someone shutting a rusted trapdoor. Firelight shone off its teeth when the thing smiled. It whispered, ¡°There you are.¡± I kicked out hard with both feet. The thing let out an abrupt shout and staggered back until I could see its face in the fire light. It was Dominie. He limped toward me and smiled. ¡°Hello, Anna.¡± It wasn¡¯t Dominie. I was still trembling when I left my bedroom. There was no one on the landing, no one in the kitchen, and the TV room was dark. I stalked back to the front stairs, feeling miserable and strangely angry, but then I spied a flicker of orange light coming from the sitting room. I went over. Conrad, still in his day clothes, was sitting with his legs up on the couch, staring at the fire he¡¯d lit in the fireplace. He was so distracted that he didn¡¯t even look up. Being the sensitive soul I am, I ignored his thoughtful mood and stormed into the room. ¡°Sit up.¡± He looked surprised but moved his legs off the couch. I sat down beside him. ¡°Put your arm over me.¡± When he didn¡¯t immediately comply, I remembered that manners were a thing. ¡°Please put your stupid arm over me.¡± He did as I asked. ¡°Now tell me everything¡¯s going to be okay. Please.¡± He rested his muzzle on my bald head. ¡°That must have been one hell of a bad dream.¡± I let out a gasping laugh. ¡°What? Do I smell scared or something?¡± This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°There¡¯s a lot of emotions there. None of them happy.¡± He squeezed me. ¡°Everything will be okay, Mera.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I allowed myself a few minutes to unwind before I spoke again. ¡°What time is it?¡± ¡°The clock struck one a few minutes before you came down,¡± Conrad said. ¡°Do wolfmen ever sleep?¡± ¡°You woke me up this morning. At seven, remember?¡± I grinned sheepishly, but there was a lot more grin in it than there was sheep. ¡°Oh, yeah. That¡¯s right. Sorry about that. But you always seem to be awake when I get up in the middle of the night.¡± I felt him shrug. ¡°I¡¯ve always been kind of a night owl. I was having a hard time sleeping tonight.¡± ¡°Were you worried about something?¡± ¡°A bit. What was your dream about?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Conrad. I don¡¯t want to talk about it yet.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. I don¡¯t mind.¡± We watched the fire dance around the hearth. To me, the flames looked like a bunch of excited, irrational people, arguing with each other in what must have been the world¡¯s most ridiculous and destructive town meeting. I was trying to decide what they were arguing about when Conrad said, ¡°You don¡¯t seem to mind the fact I snapped at you back at Mrs. Park¡¯s house.¡± ¡°Huh? Dude, I punched you! I got what I deserved¡ªless than what I deserved, since you didn¡¯t even hurt me.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t hurt me,¡± he said. ¡°I was startled, that¡¯s all.¡± I pushed away and turned so I could look at him. ¡°I hit you as hard as I could!¡± He shrugged again. ¡°Could you at least act like it hurt? Pretend I broke a rib or something.¡± All he did was watch me with a faint smile tugging on the edge of his dark lips. ¡°Well, great,¡± I turned back and leaned against him, ¡°now I feel weak.¡± After a minute, I asked, ¡°Conrad, why were you staring so hard at that thing? Why didn¡¯t you come in when I asked you to?¡± ¡°I did.¡± ¡°Only after I punched you. Why didn¡¯t you listen to me the first two times?¡± ¡°I could barely hear you. Whatever that thing was, it did something. It clouded up my senses. And that god-awful smell.¡± I felt him take a breath. ¡°I don¡¯t usually mind smells¡ªnot like humans do¡ªbut that one made me sick. The whole ride home, I was trying not to puke.¡± I groaned. ¡°Which probably wasn¡¯t helped by all those winding roads. Or my driving.¡± He rubbed my head. ¡°Your driving wasn¡¯t¡­well, you could use some practice. But we made it home alive.¡± ¡°Yeah. That¡¯s how I like to brag about my driving skills¡ªI haven¡¯t killed anyone yet.¡± ¡°How long has it been since you drove? You probably got your license at sixteen or seventeen, giving you a maximum of one year where you got to drive¡ª¡± ¡°A few times.¡± ¡°¡ªonly a few times, and then there was a three-year break?¡± ¡°Whatever. It was a lifetime ago.¡± ¡°It makes sense you¡¯d need some practice.¡± ¡°I still say I did a pretty good job.¡± When he didn¡¯t answer, I tilted my head so I could look at him over my shoulder. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°People say all kinds of things.¡± I laughed and relaxed into his shoulder. We both lapsed into an easy silence. The gentle, smoky smell of the fire blended with the familiar scent of Conrad¡¯s fur. It was warm and earthy. Under my back, I could feel his ribs rising and falling with his steady breathing. The quiet rustling and popping of the fire filled the room. As time went on, the soothing scene worked its magic. All those not-happy emotions settled down and crawled back into whatever dark hole they¡¯d come from. All I wanted to do was stay there. If I could put off a bad dream by staying up until I was nodding with sleep, maybe I could ignore the weight of all the pain and trouble around me, just for one more moment of peace. But that wouldn¡¯t help anyone. ¡°When does Darius get home?¡± I asked. ¡°Tomorrow, but he¡¯s probably going to stop in town first,¡± Conrad said. ¡°How do you know?¡± ¡°I called him and told him what happened.¡± ¡°You called him in the middle of the night?¡± There was a nice long pause for me to fully realize my stupidity, then Conrad said, ¡°I assure you, he didn¡¯t mind.¡± Welp! If you¡¯re going to be an idiot, you might as well go all the way. ¡°You know it¡¯s rude to call people before ten in the morning and after ten at night, right?¡± ¡°Humans are so cute. Did you need to tell him about your dream?¡± ¡°Yeah, but I think it can wait.¡± I shivered from head to toe. ¡°Probably.¡± Chapter 29 - The Hunting Shack Jaylen Crook was leaning back on her truck with her arms crossed, staring up at the highway. She could see where she¡¯d plowed through the snowbank to get to the clearing, and she was sure that anyone driving down the highway would be able to see it as well. An SUV, following her tracks, pulled off the road and dove into the snowy underbrush without slowing down. That was enough to convince her that she knew the driver. Sure enough, Darius Vasil pulled up next to her truck, parked, and stepped out. As always, he was wearing an impossibly neat suit and designer sunglasses, despite the fact it wasn¡¯t all that sunny. Jaylen discovered she wasn¡¯t as annoyed as usual. It probably had something to do with the gratitude she grudgingly owed him since it was his resources that had gotten them this far, this fast. ¡°Good afternoon, Deputy,¡± he said. ¡°Vasil.¡± With that, the pleasantries were over. Crook turned and started walking further away from the road. ¡°We traced the boy¡¯s cell phone,¡± she said as she walked. ¡°It didn¡¯t get us all the way there, but it showed us where to start looking. This morning one of the searchers called in about a shack. He said it smelled suspicious.¡± ¡°Smelled suspicious?¡± ¡°Those were his words.¡± ¡°Did he go inside?¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t his shack.¡± ¡°Whose shack is it?¡± ¡°Nobody¡¯s. It¡¯s an illegal structure. Probably something a group of hunters or fishermen built a long time ago. It looks about that old.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve seen it?¡± ¡°I went out to look at it when we got the call.¡± ¡°Did you go inside?¡± Crook stopped and turned. ¡°Nobody¡¯s gone inside, Vasil. We¡¯re talking about missing people and major weirdness. I called for backup from Deen, but I¡¯ll bet you can guess what he told me.¡± ¡°To wait for me.¡± ¡°Why does that man have such a crush on you?¡± ¡°I saved his life once or twice.¡± Crook tried to read Darius¡¯s expression, but his face was placid, and the sunglasses hid his eyes. ¡°He said that,¡± she said. ¡°Told me he¡¯d tell me the story someday over a pint of beer. I told him I didn¡¯t drink.¡± That got a reaction: Darius¡¯s eyebrows shot up. ¡°You don¡¯t drink?¡± ¡°Not with my boss.¡± Crook turned and kept walking. As they went deeper into the woods, Darius grew more and more tense. His tightening nerves stirred his senses to their peak. He used them to try to figure out what was putting him on edge. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. He paused to take off his sunglasses and scan the surrounding woods. Everything looked normal. But all of his other senses insisted something was wrong. He couldn¡¯t hear any animals or birds. The air felt artificially still, as if someone had trapped the forest in a closed room for a hundred years. The lack of any breeze made it hard to smell much, but Darius thought he recognized the faint scent hanging over everything. He put his sunglasses back on. ¡°Deputy, do you smell that?¡± Crook didn¡¯t stop walking, but she threw a curious glance over her shoulder. ¡°You have a good nose, Agent. I couldn¡¯t smell it until I was next to the shack.¡± They mounted the next hill, and the shack came into view. It was a small square one-room building covered by a low roof. It hadn¡¯t been well-built in the first place, and time had not been kind to it. The wood was so weathered, it was splitting away from the structure. There were two small windows, one on each side of the door. One was broken. ¡°Did you see anything when you looked in?¡± Darius asked. ¡°It was hard to see in. There was no light,¡± Crook said. ¡°Then¡ªdo you mind?¡± The deputy peered at him. Darius had always gone out of his way to be respectful of the fact that they were, supposedly, her cases. He rarely made requests. The fact he was doing so now seemed ominous. She nodded to the shack. Darius stepped in front of her, but when she tried to follow, he held up his hand to stop her. In a low voice, he said, ¡°I would prefer if you stayed further behind me. Gun out, please.¡± Crook tried to ignore the hairs rising on the back of her neck. ¡°There was no one there.¡± ¡°It might have looked that way, but things have been weird lately.¡± Crook drew her gun and didn¡¯t start toward the shack until Darius was three yards in front of her. Darius walked as quietly as he could, up to the broken window of the shack. The smell grew more noticeable as he approached, but it never became choking. Not like Conrad had described. The vampire knew his nose wasn¡¯t as good as Conrad¡¯s, but he found it more convenient to assume the thing wasn¡¯t home. He listened and heard nothing. As he took off his sunglasses, he caught himself wishing Emerra was there. Relying on someone else¡¯s eyes? You¡¯re getting weak, Darius. Besides, she¡¯d make a terrible agent. That was true, but mostly he was glad that she was safe at home. He peeked over the edge of the window, into the gloom. His night vision allowed him to see everything Crook had missed. The room was mostly empty. Leaves and dirt had come in through the broken window and drifted to the edge of the walls. Darius spotted a broken mug, an odd bit of metal, and other scraps poking out from the debris, but what commanded his attention were the jumbled piles at the far end of the building. The vampire¡¯s sense of smell informed him there was blood throughout each one. He sighed, turned away from the scene, and walked back to Crook. ¡°You have your flashlight?¡± he asked. ¡°Yes. Did you see something?¡± ¡°Nothing alive. Do you get cell signal out here?¡± ¡°Spotty, but I have the radio in the truck if I need it. Why?¡± Darius didn¡¯t bother answering. She¡¯d figure it out soon enough. She said, ¡°Does Simon say I can go in now?¡± Vasil was impressed with how little bitterness made it into that question. Crook must have been nervous. ¡°Let¡¯s go in.¡± The vampire led the way. There was no lock on the door. Most of its weight hung on the lower hinge, so it groaned as he pushed it open and stepped inside. He scanned every inch of the room but saw nothing. There was always a chance the thing was invisible, but he hoped it was a small chance. He motioned for the deputy to join him. She didn¡¯t think to warn him when she turned on her flashlight. Darius winced away from the sudden glare. The beam moved along the darkest corners of the room, then stopped on the mounds at the far wall. ¡°Our missing people?¡± she said. ¡°I think so.¡± Darius walked toward the remains. ¡°They¡¯re definitely human.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± Without touching it, Darius pointed to a scrap of clothing hanging like a tattered flag off a protruding bone. ¡°What happened to them?¡± Crook asked. Darius scooted over so he could inspect the next pile. ¡°I think they were torn apart. Then eaten.¡± ¡°Are we talking about an animal?¡± Darius didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Vasil?¡± He stood up and turned. ¡°Some of it looks like it could have been eaten by an animal.¡± ¡°And the rest?¡± ¡°You better call a few people. We have a lot to process.¡± Crook watched him for a while, then nodded. ¡°All right.¡± She half turned to the door, but then she looked back. ¡°Are you going to stay here while I call?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯ll look after the scene.¡± ¡°Is that¡ªis it safe?¡± ¡°Safe enough. The freshest body is over two days old.¡± Crooks eyes darted over to the mess. ¡°You can tell that by looking?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s just say I¡¯m an expert on blood and leave it at that.¡± Chapter 30 - Bones ¡°Cannibalism?¡± I muttered. We were in the drawing room. Since Kappa and I were wrapping his present to Iset, Olivia had pigeonholed the mummy in the library. Jacky had taken the children off to his study to give me a chance to warm up, and Conrad was sitting on the couch behind me, presumably to make sure I actually took my break from being a ghost nanny. The worrywart. Kappa was down on the floor with me. He insisted on helping wrap the present, but the water he secreted was making things difficult. I told him he could put his finger down on the knot of the ribbon as I tied it. Hopefully that wouldn¡¯t warp the wrapping paper too badly. Darius, who had been pacing around the furniture behind me, dropped into one of the armchairs. ¡°Yes,¡± he said. ¡°Raw too, which is unusual. But three of our missing people are now murder victims. Only the housekeeper and Mr. Bessly are still missing.¡± ¡°Only their bodies are missing,¡± Conrad muttered. The count sighed. ¡°I suspect you¡¯re right.¡± ¡°Mera,¡± Kappa moaned. ¡°Oh! Right.¡± I turned to him. ¡°Which ribbon?¡± He pointed to the bright blue spool of ribbon that clashed horribly with the paper he¡¯d chosen. Darius must have been really tired; he didn¡¯t even comment. As I pulled out a long length of the ribbon, I tried to figure out how to phrase the weird almost-question that was burbling around my skull. ¡°What did it look like?¡± I asked. ¡°The shack.¡± Darius stared at me. ¡°You want me to describe it?¡± ¡°Not¡ªno. Not exactly. But¡­what did it look like?¡± He continued staring at me. Conrad said, ¡°You¡¯re going to have to be a little clearer than that, Emerra.¡± ¡°Was it like a nest? Were the bones¡­thrown around everywhere? What was that place to the monster? Was it his home, or just a place he hid his dinner scraps?¡± I paled at the sound of my own question. Because I¡¯m tough like that. Darius said, ¡®It wasn¡¯t a nest, and it wasn¡¯t careless about it. Each body was given its own pile on the edge of the room. It¡¯s possible it stayed in the shack with the bodies, but I don¡¯t know. There¡¯s also some evidence that he might have kept the humans alive for a while before eating them¡ªbut not for longer than a day.¡± ¡°How can you tell?¡± ¡°Would you take my word for it that you don¡¯t want to know?¡± ¡°You know, I would.¡± I turned my attention to the ribbon. ¡°Why did you want to know?¡± Conrad asked. I mustered a shrug. ¡°I guess I¡¯m trying to figure out what kind of a creature it is,¡± I tied the first part of the knot, then coached Kappa on where to put his bulbed fingertip. As he held the knot down, I said, as casually as anyone can say, ¡°Jan and Jacob¡¯s parents were eaten by a human.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± Darius said. ¡°I don¡¯t know how accurate it is. Old Moses said it when he brought them into town.¡± Kappa let out a screech as I tied the knot over his finger. When he moved it, I finished tightening the bow. I handed the present to Kappa and told him to put it under the tree in the front hall. As my little buddy pattered off to do exactly that, I yelled after him to leave the other presents alone. Then, without turning around, I told Darius and Conrad about my latest dream. The silence that followed was longer than the story. ¡°It¡¯s some kind of possession, isn¡¯t it?¡± I said. ¡°That, or shapeshifting,¡± Conrad said. ¡°For real? There are monsters out there that can shapeshift?¡± He shrugged. ¡°There are some shapeshifters out there that you might not even call monsters.¡± Too late, I remembered Conrad had a wolf form. ¡°But I mean, like, natural shapeshifters. Not people who use magic.¡± Darius muttered, in a distracted kind of way, ¡°All shapeshifters use magic. Even the natural ones.¡± He leaned forward. ¡°Emerra, when you and Olivia saw the creature, she said it looked human?¡± I nodded. ¡°We have to talk to Anna,¡± he said. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°She saw the creature. She was right next to it. She might know something.¡± ¡°What could she know? She¡¯s a child! Besides, she doesn¡¯t remember anything.¡± ¡°Try again, Mera,¡± Conrad said. I looked at him. ¡°You smell scared,¡± he said softly. ¡°Why are you scared?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not scared!¡± I protested. ¡°I just don¡¯t think it will help anything if we drag all this back up.¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t told her about the dream, have you?¡± Darius said. ¡°What do you think a ten-year-old girl is going to know about a supernatural monster that we don¡¯t?¡± ¡°She might know what happened to it.¡± ¡°She was killed by it. Why would she know what happened to it?¡± Darius leaned back in his chair. ¡°I don¡¯t think she was.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think the monster killed her. Jacky said that all of the monster¡¯s victims passed on without difficulty. Why would Anna and the boys be any different?¡± I was infuriated by the fact he had a point. ¡°We can at least ask her,¡± Darius said. I¡¯m usually a wad of pride when it comes to some things, but since I was choking up anyway, and it was on behalf of someone I cared about, I didn¡¯t bother hiding how shaky my voice was. ¡°Please don¡¯t.¡± Darius looked away, so I knew my shot had hit home. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. I went on, ¡°She¡¯s happy now. Why would you make her remember something so painful? Do you even know what it¡¯s like¡ª¡± ¡°I was a soldier, Emerra.¡± Darius¡¯s voice was cold and abrupt. ¡°I know what it¡¯s like.¡± My mind drifted back over history, trying to orient itself. Conrad must have seen my blank expression. ¡°Both world wars,¡± he supplied. I stared at Darius with a sense of horrified awe. ¡°I know it¡¯s awful,¡± the vampire said, ¡°and I know you don¡¯t want to do it, so I want you to decide, here and now, what¡¯s more important¡ªprotecting Anna from her painful memories or possibly saving lives.¡± I fumbled around with the wrapping paper as I put it in the pile with the others. I stacked the rolls of ribbon back in the basket and laid the scissors on top. That gave me enough time to gather myself up. ¡°I¡¯ll go get Anna,¡± I muttered as I got to my feet. I went over to Jacky¡¯s study, opened the door, and beckoned to Anna. Big Jacky was lecturing Jacob and Jan on the game theory of Connect Four. He waved me away when I asked if he would keep an eye on the boys for a while longer. After I shut the door, Anna said, ¡°Are you all right?¡± I knelt down in front of her. ¡°Anna, something terrible is happening in my town. We wondered if it might have something to do with what happened to you and Jacob and Jan.¡± She bounced up on her translucent feet. ¡°How can I help?¡± I wanted to laugh and cry at the same time. Either this child didn¡¯t remember enough to know how bad it would be, or she was the bravest soul alive. I mean¡ªdead. The bravest soul¡­dead. Whatever. I stood up. ¡°Come on.¡± I took her into the drawing room and led her into the magic circle. Darius wished her a good evening, which I relayed to her. She nodded to him. The way she looked at the count reminded me of the awe I had felt staring up at Patroon Krusen in my dream. When she looked at Conrad, she offered him a wave. Apparently, students didn¡¯t get the same respect as manner-obsessed vampires. Conrad waved back. Then I went through one of the most uncomfortable half hours of my second life. At first, when I told Anna about what was happening in town, I had to draw the parallels for her, reminding her what had happened in her own time, but when I mentioned the smell, she nodded and took over describing it. As I went on, she started to add details to the stories that I couldn¡¯t remember from the dreams, so I knew at least some of her memories had returned. She grew more and more somber. Her face lost all character, and she wouldn¡¯t look at any of us. ¡°Anna, do you remember the night Dominie went to talk to the mayor?¡± I asked. She didn¡¯t move. She might as well have been a statue made of mist. ¡°Anna¡ª¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember,¡± she said. ¡°There¡¯s something there, but¡­I don¡¯t remember.¡± I glanced over at Darius. He was leaning forward in the armchair with his elbows on his knees. He didn¡¯t twitch. He wouldn¡¯t even raise one of his stupid eyebrows¡ªafter all, he¡¯d left the choice to me. When I looked back at Anna, I¡¯m sure my face looked just as scared and sad as hers. ¡°It was cold,¡± I said. ¡°There was a fire in the fireplace. The boys were asleep in their bed, and Dominie was at his desk by the window, writing by candlelight.¡± She listened to the story in silence. When I got to the part when she divided up the food, she suddenly broke in. ¡°I told them!¡± she cried. ¡°I told them he would come back.¡± She seemed so upset, I groped for a way to reassure her. ¡°He did come back.¡± She violently shook her head. ¡°It wasn¡¯t him.¡± I turned to Darius and Conrad. ¡°I think she remembers now.¡± ¡°Anna,¡± Darius said, ¡°what happened to Dominie?¡± I relayed the question. ¡°He was dead,¡± she said. ¡°It wasn¡¯t him.¡± ¡°Then what was it?¡± ¡°The monster.¡± ¡°What monster?¡± ¡°Jacob and Jan knew it. They woke up, and they smelled it. We had to pretend we didn¡¯t know.¡± I burbled out a rough translation as she spoke. ¡°I lied,¡± she said. ¡°I took them out to go to the privy, but instead we ran. We ran out into the woods, away from town.¡± She hesitated, then fell silent. ¡°Do you remember where you were going?¡± I asked. There was a long silence, then Anna said, ¡°We shouldn¡¯t have gone.¡± The moment she muttered those words, I remembered the voice from my dream¡ªthe panicked command, ¡°Don¡¯t go.¡± The tone had been completely different from Anna¡¯s sad, quiet whisper, but the anguish in the voice was the same. I had been kneeling beside her, but now I dropped onto my butt. If I hadn¡¯t put my arms behind me, I might have fallen to the floor. ¡°The sisters,¡± I said. ¡°You went to the sisters, didn¡¯t you?¡± She shook her head. ¡°You did. You weren¡¯t supposed to go, but you did.¡± ¡°We had nowhere else to go! The villagers wouldn¡¯t let Jacob and Jan near them. The children threw rocks.¡± My heart burned with indignation. It¡¯s a good thing those villagers were already dead, or I would have found some seventeenth-century butts and given them a hard kicking. ¡°Why would they do that?¡± ¡°They said it was their fault¡ªthat the boys were cursed.¡± ¡°Mera,¡± Conrad said, ¡°what¡¯s going on?¡± In my shock, I had stopped translating. I took a second to fill them in, then turned back to Anna. ¡°Do you remember going to the four sisters?¡± I asked. ¡°I remember the woods. The snow was hard.¡± ¡°Nothing else?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Do you know if you arrived there?¡± By now she looked so miserable, I would have asked someone to kill me again if it meant I could hug her. ¡°It was my fault,¡± she said. ¡°None of this was your fault!¡± I yelled. Now I knew how my therapists had felt. Wow, kids try to take a lot on themselves. ¡°Anna,¡± I said, ¡°please try to remember. Did you make it to the sisters¡¯ house?¡± ¡°I think so.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°Something bad.¡± ¡°Do you remember what?¡± She shook her head again. I told Conrad and Darius what she¡¯d said. ¡°If she doesn¡¯t remember, how does she know it¡¯s bad?¡± Conrad asked. I knew the answer, so didn¡¯t bother asking. ¡°Because she¡¯s scared to remember.¡± Darius said, ¡°Ask her if she remembers what happened to the real Dominie.¡± I relayed the question. ¡°He¡¯s dead,¡± she repeated. ¡°How did he die?¡± She stared at me for so long, I repeated the question, thinking she hadn¡¯t heard me. She continued staring at me, as if I might have the answers. ¡°What happened to him?¡± I said. Her gaze drifted away. As my eyes followed hers, I realized she was staring in the direction she always fixated on whenever she haunted the front door. Bones. A horrible suspicion stole over me. ¡°Anna, were you watching Dominie¡¯s bones?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± She sounded happy and sad at the same time, like someone had been kind enough to return her treasured box of grief. ¡°We watched over him.¡± I turned to Darius and Conrad. I couldn¡¯t think how to explain it, so all I did was repeat her answer, word for word. ¡°Is that what¡¯s tethering them here?¡± I asked. ¡°Are they stuck watching over his body until it¡¯s properly buried?¡± Darius shook his head, then forced himself to sit up. ¡°The dominie was a respected religious figure. When he died, the townspeople would have made sure he was properly buried¡ª¡± ¡°But they didn¡¯t know. They said he was missing, presumed dead.¡± ¡°Emerra, even if the children knew where his body was, they couldn¡¯t be tethered to the bones themselves. Bones don¡¯t last that long. As the body deteriorated, their tie to this world would have deteriorated as well.¡± Conrad said, ¡°Could their intention be what tied them here?¡± ¡°Then it would have faded as their memories did.¡± ¡°But Anna remembered,¡± I said. ¡°She was obsessed with it¡­¡± My voice trailed off. She had been obsessed with it, but her memory had also been confused. She knew she had to watch the bones, but until I had told her, she didn¡¯t even know whose bones she was watching. Darius raised his hand in a shrug. ¡°We don¡¯t know enough yet to know what¡¯s going on. Something is binding them to this world, and it¡¯s more powerful than anything I¡¯ve encountered before¡ªpowerful enough to keep three souls captive for almost four hundred years. Whatever¡¯s binding them must have lasted that whole time.¡± He paused, then said in a quiet voice, ¡°And we need to be asking more about the monster.¡± Reluctantly, I turned back to Anna. She had been watching us talk with a troubled look on her face. I asked her about the monster, but we learned nothing new. Jacob and Jan had never told her about how their parents died. Anna knew the thing in the house wasn¡¯t Dominie because its face had been wrong. Even though every feature was undoubtedly his, a kind of eerie strangeness was visible from every angle. The way he moved was unnatural, and he limped when he had never limped before. She had very few memories after they left to go to the sisters¡¯ house. There were snippets of images and sensations, but the only thing she remembered well were the emotions. We could see the sorrow and horror on her face as she relived them. When it was obvious that Anna wasn¡¯t going to remember any more, Darius got down from the armchair and came over to us. ¡°Miss Anna,¡± he said, ¡°I¡¯m very sorry we had to ask you all these questions.¡± I translated. He said, ¡°Thank you for your help.¡± She nodded when I repeated it. ¡°I hope, that if you remember anything else, you¡¯ll please tell Emerra¡ªanything at all, no matter how unimportant you think it might be.¡± ¡°Yes, sir,¡± she said. Darius gave her an appraising look, then said, ¡°Emerra, ask her if she knows what she¡¯s bound to.¡± I asked. It was obvious she didn¡¯t understand, so I tried to explain. Anna was still confused. I said to Darius, ¡°It¡¯s no good. She doesn¡¯t know.¡± He sighed. ¡°Keep an eye out for it tonight, Emerra.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°In your dreams.¡± My feet and legs tingled as I stood up. ¡°What makes you think I¡¯ll see it?¡± ¡°You mean you haven¡¯t noticed?¡± Conrad said. ¡°Noticed what?¡± ¡°You learned that Dominie went missing, then you dreamed about the night he went missing. You saw the monster, that night you dreamed about when Anna saw the monster.¡± ¡°You think my dreams are¡­what? Following my life?¡± The wolfman shrugged, but Darius said, ¡°Why not? Dreams are the brain¡¯s way of sifting and working through our daily lives. Maybe that¡¯s what your brain is doing, but your poor brain has some extra information to sift through.¡± ¡°Okay, you didn¡¯t have to add that ¡®poor brain¡¯ bit. It¡¯s doing the best it can. It doesn¡¯t need your pity.¡± Darius smirked. ¡°You don¡¯t think it¡¯s a trifle overburdened?¡± ¡°See, I knew that¡¯s what you were thinking.¡± He patted my shoulder. ¡°Let¡¯s hope we¡¯re right. Then maybe we¡¯ll be able to figure out what¡¯s going on.¡± Chapter 31 - One Small Tree I was in the woods, but it was peaceful. There was no winter. No ice to bite my ankles. Dappled sunshine was spread over the ground. Jacob and Jan were jumping from one patch of light to another, like I had, back when I was alive¡­ Back when I was alive. In that moment, I saw myself as a ghost. Once, the seasons had mattered¡ªI would grow and change with them¡ªbut now it was an endless flow of days that could never touch me. Summer had come to the woods. We would play and watch the animals. At night we would watch the stars. Then it would be another autumn. Another winter where we never felt the cold. Another spring. I watched time drift by. The animals were nothing but specks of movement. The trees grew up around us, towering with upraised arms, reaching higher for the sky¡ªuntil the day they fell with a boom that shook the forest. Then we watched the wood soften and rot away. New trees, almost too tiny to be believed, peeked out from the ground. Jacob and Jan laughed and stood beside them, measuring their height with them, day by day, until those trees also reached far above their heads. The world moaned with the effort of its sustained state of flux. It never rested. The forest floor looked like a crawling patchwork where a tide of snow, then moss, then dirt, came and went, replacing each other as they saw fit. Even the rocks would sometimes crack and break apart. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. Through it all, only four things remained unchanged: us, and one small evergreen tree. Too often, I forgot about the strangeness of it¡ªhow odd it was that it should be locked outside of time with us. Its there-ness was accepted with the same indifference as one year succeeding the last. Until one night, I opened my eyes and gazed at it from where I was resting with my back against the thick trunk of one of the neighboring trees I had watched grow up from a seedling. The little tree had always been there. It would probably always be there. To me, it stopped being an unremarked monument; it started to feel like home. ¡°Emerra?¡­Emerra¡­¡± My eyes fluttered as I moved between sleep and awareness. There was light¡ªsunlight¡ªslicing across my blankets, barely missing my pillow. I rubbed my face. ¡°Good morning, Emerra.¡± It was Jacky. He stood over my cot with his skeletal hands tucked behind his back. I muttered something that was supposed to be ¡°good morning,¡± but it came out more as a ¡°muffwhufmm.¡± ¡°Forgive my intrusion, but Miss Anna was nervous. Understandable, considering how rarely you sleep in.¡± I opened one of my eyes. Anna was standing beside him. ¡°I assume you didn¡¯t have a nightmare?¡± he said. I shook my groggy head. It didn¡¯t help with the grogginess. ¡°It wasn¡¯t a nightmare.¡± My mind kept slogging through its procession of thoughts. It wasn¡¯t a nightmare. But I had dreamed. It was one of Anna¡¯s dreams. I sat up and threw off my blankets. ¡°Jacky, I know how the ghosts got in.¡± Chapter 32 - The Monster Specks of ice sprayed the air when the sledge burst through a small ridge of drifted snow. The sun made them sparkle like diamonds. The children were riding on the bed. Every once in a while, Jan would let out a peel of laughter that would make me smile, but then I¡¯d go back to thinking about the conversation that morning. Olivia and Conrad had been eating, so we¡¯d gathered in the kitchen. Igor hadn¡¯t been happy about that since everyone, even the children, had decided they needed to be in on the meeting. ¡°A tree?¡± Olivia said. She looked upset. ¡°That would explain how they got in,¡± Iset said. ¡°We welcomed them.¡± ¡°But Emerra should have seen them that day,¡± Darius said. ¡°They didn¡¯t appear until the next night.¡± ¡°You¡¯re forgetting how weak they were when they first appeared, and Emerra¡¯s talents are still developing. It¡¯s possible she missed them or didn¡¯t realize what they were.¡± Darius said to me, ¡°And you say this tree didn¡¯t age or change?¡± ¡°Not that I could tell,¡± I said. ¡°So you could be wrong?¡± Olivia asked. I felt nettled by her tone. ¡°It was a long dream. I saw three generations of trees grow and die. If it changed, it didn¡¯t change much.¡± The witch went back to looking upset. ¡°Do they remember coming in with the trees?¡± Iset asked. I relayed the question to Anna, but she shook her head. ¡°Jacob? Jan?¡± They were equally baffled. Jacky spoke up: ¡°The weakest ghosts can¡¯t retain new memories.¡± ¡°If they were that weak, why did they appear at all?¡± Darius asked. ¡°I believe the more interesting question is why were they drawn to Emerra. There are many beds in this mansion, but when she woke up, they were next to hers.¡± Yeah. I felt more than a little interested in that myself. I said, ¡°And do you have an answer for that question?¡± Jacky turned his skull to me and said with bright, unbothered simplicity, ¡°No.¡± It was Conrad who decided to ask the really important question. ¡°Why would the children be bound to a tree?¡± No one seemed to have an answer. To my surprise, it was Olivia who broke the long silence. ¡°Could you find the place again?¡± ¡°I know the general way,¡± Conrad said. ¡°Finding the exact place might be harder.¡± I stammered out with all the certainty of a bad student taking a pop quiz, ¡°I think¡­Anna¡­might be able to help us.¡± Anna¡¯s head whipped around when she heard me say her name. I went on, ¡°She¡¯s always looking that direction. I think she might be able to sense where it was.¡± ¡°I think you should go out there,¡± Olivia announced. All right. This was getting weird. Olivia tended to be a little pompous and her voice had the perfect timbre for being in charge, but I couldn¡¯t remember her ever actually pushing anyone to do anything. She took her role as the apprentice seriously. ¡°Are you coming?¡± Darius asked. ¡°No. I have some research to do, but Emerra should be able to see any magic that might be there.¡± ¡°Are you talking about the glowing lines and stuff?¡± I said. ¡°I can see it, easy-peasy, but I can¡¯t sense it. Will that be good enough? Do we need you there?¡± Olivia gave me a withering glare and left. After she was gone, I put my hand to my forehead and let out a sigh. Darius and Conrad were busy talking details, so they didn¡¯t notice. Iset did. She put her hand on my shoulder. ¡°Are you all right, Emerra?¡± I muttered in a voice meant only for her to hear, ¡°I¡¯m getting tired of Olivia hating me because I¡¯m stupid. It¡¯s not like I chose to be this way.¡± ¡°Ignorance is not stupidity,¡± Iset insisted, ¡°and that¡¯s not why she¡¯s upset.¡± ¡°Then what is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the effortlessness of your talents. You could say you have an unfair advantage. Olivia struggled all her life to get where she is. You¡¯ll never have to do that.¡± ¡°Also not something I got to choose.¡± ¡°I know. It must be frustrating. Hopefully, someday her jealousy will fade. And, Emerra, so you know, being able to see magic is supposed to be superior to sensing it.¡± Oh. As we rode through the woods, my attention kept shifting between the eye-achingly white scene going by in a blur, and the sense of unease I had about a certain red-headed witch. If it was simple jealousy, I could understand why she¡¯d be frustrated. Once or twice, during my sickest days, when I¡¯d met someone who was effortlessly healthy, I felt the same. But I wasn¡¯t sure that was the only reason Olivia had been so caustic. Anna extended her arm with one finger pointing slightly to our right. We¡¯d drifted off course again. I called out, and Conrad turned. Beside us, Darius adjusted his pace to catch up. Jacob and Jan had begged me to allow them to come. When I had offered them one of my finest looks of helplessness, they had shown the pure wisdom of youth by turning to Jacky, who never looked helpless and was in charge anyway. ¡°I have no reason to refuse your request,¡± he said, ¡°but whether or not any of you can leave, and how far you might be allowed to go, remains to be seen.¡± ¡°You¡¯re wondering if they¡¯re still bound to the tree?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes. But it is odd that Anna can sense where the tree used to be. There¡¯s no telling what they were bound to, or if they¡¯re still bound to anything.¡± I wondered if looking like an animated skeleton meant you were contractually obligated to be mysterious and ominous from time to time. I would have tried to extract a clearer explanation¡ªor any kind of explanation, really¡ªbut Conrad took my arm and pulled me toward the back stairs. ¡°Time to get your coat, Mera.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the rush?¡± I asked. ¡°You want to be out there after dark?¡± ¡°Are we going to be out there that long?¡± Who¡¯s afraid? Me? No. My grandmother was a squeaky toy¡ªthat¡¯s why I sound like that sometimes. ¡°I hope not,¡± Conrad said. Jacky had advised me to watch the children as we left the mansion, but nothing happened. They never faded, grew weak, or disappeared. Jacob and Jan¡¯s laughter made them sound more alive than ever, but Anna stayed quiet. Her only reaction was to occasionally lift her hand to point the way. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. About an hour later, Conrad slowed and stopped. Since I hadn¡¯t called for him to stop, I wasn¡¯t sure what was going on. I stepped off the foot boards. As I walked toward the front of the sledge, I saw Anna and the boys start to stand. ¡°Stay there,¡± I said. The boys obeyed, but Anna ignored the order and continued extracting herself. I don¡¯t know why I bothered trying to order her around. If she wouldn¡¯t listen to Dominie, I¡¯d have to be an idiot to expect she¡¯d listen to me. I went over to Conrad and knelt down. Darius came up behind me. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± the count asked while gazing around the woods. ¡°I don¡¯t know. That¡¯s what I¡¯m trying to figure out.¡± I took Conrad¡¯s muzzle in hand so he would look at me. When he jerked it out of my grip, I remembered that grabbing his nose wasn¡¯t proper etiquette when dealing with a fully sentient wolfman. Cringe. ¡°Sorry,¡± I said, ¡°but I can¡¯t understand you unless I can look at your face.¡± He did a quick shake-off, then glared at me. ¡°Well?¡± Darius asked. ¡°He¡¯s upset about something.¡± I skipped over the second where Conrad had looked pissed. I didn¡¯t think it would be relevant. ¡°Scared?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± To Conrad, I said, ¡°Is the smell here?¡± He paused, then nodded. Darius lifted his nose to the wind. ¡°But it isn¡¯t strong?¡± I asked. Conrad nodded again. Strong or not, Darius drew his gun. ¡°We should be getting close by now,¡± he said. ¡°Emerra, do you recognize this place?¡± I looked around. ¡°I thought I recognized a few places on the way in, but none of this looks right.¡± I nodded to a nearby toppled tree. ¡°I would remember wanting to use that thing as a balance beam.¡± Conrad let out a woof. I turned to him. ¡°Did you stop because you were confused?¡± He nodded. Beside me, Anna said, ¡°We¡¯re close.¡± She turned and walked to the fallen tree. She put her hand over it, tracing the trunk, as she wandered toward its roots. ¡°Anna!¡± I stood up and ran toward her. ¡°Anna, wait!¡± It was like she didn¡¯t even hear me. ¡°Whatever the monster is, it can¡¯t hurt her,¡± Darius reminded me. He knelt down to release Conrad¡¯s harness from the towline, then stood up. ¡°Which way?¡± I pointed. He and Conrad started walking. I called out to Jacob and Jan. The boys came to me, but their pace was a crawl. When they finally reached my side, we all stood facing the way Anna had gone. ¡°You can sense it too, can¡¯t you?¡± I asked. ¡°Yes,¡± Jacob said. ¡°You don¡¯t have to come.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll come! Why wouldn¡¯t we come?¡± ¡°Okay. Let¡¯s go.¡± They walked slightly faster after Jacob¡¯s bold statement, but it was still slow enough you could tell they were reluctant. I stopped. ¡°Jacob. Jan.¡± Darius and Conrad, as well as the two boys, turned to me. I took a few steps and knelt down in the snow. Again. I should have ordered snow pants. As I spoke, I made sure to take turns looking in their eyes. ¡°I love you guys, and I wish I could protect you, but I¡¯m not going to lie to you. You went through some bad things when you were alive. Right now, you don¡¯t remember, but if you keep following Anna, you might. If you do, it could get very sad and very scary.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right, Emerra,¡± Jan assured me in voice as sweet as honey. ¡°We know.¡± ¡°You¡­know?¡± ¡°Anna told us about what happened,¡± Jacob said. ¡°About the monster.¡± That little traitor! ¡°And you didn¡¯t say anything to me?¡± I said. ¡°She said she didn¡¯t want you to worry,¡± Jacob said. I sighed and swore to myself that I would talk to Anna about who was in charge. That would at least give her the chance to tell me, to my face, it was her. ¡°And you¡¯re still willing to go?¡± I asked. ¡°Anna needs us,¡± Jacob said. I had a few doubts about that, but before I could say anything, he added, ¡°We always go together.¡± I couldn¡¯t argue with that. Together, we walked on. Darius went ahead, but Conrad waited for me to catch up. Other trees were laid out along the side of our path. They all pointed away from where we were heading, as if we were walking between the rays of a crudely drawn sun. Or like we were walking along the debris laid out by an explosion. The count and Anna were waiting for us at the edge of the epicenter. There was a grotesque hole in front of them, surrounded by mounds of snow-covered dirt and the tangle of an upended root system attached to a small stump. I hung back. ¡°The stump?¡± ¡°It¡¯s ours,¡± Darius said. ¡°It¡¯s the right size, and it was cut off by a chainsaw.¡± ¡°Then all those trees¡­¡± ¡°They were upright the last time we were here.¡± I didn¡¯t bother asking what had happened. I thought I had a pretty good guess. ¡°Anna,¡± I said, ¡°is this the place?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Conrad,¡± Darius said, ¡°is the scent still faint?¡± Conrad nodded. ¡°Then let¡¯s see what we can find.¡± The count turned to the wolfman. ¡°Your clothes are back at the sledge. Do you want to change?¡± While they talked, I edged forward, easing myself toward the gaping, misshapen hole. As I got closer, the ground became less stable. I felt the loose clods shift under my boot and grabbed onto the largest root of the stump to support myself. The moment my hand touched the root, my vision snapped into a two-layered image. I could see it all. I could feel both worlds. The superimposed reality was translucent¡ªI could sense the edges and shapes of the world around my body, but it was all vague. I felt nearly blind even though my mind was filled with more vision than I should have been able to see. With shaky hands and shakier legs, I lowered myself to my knees so I wouldn¡¯t stumble while the kaleidoscope of colors and movement assaulted my eyes. ¡°A pencil,¡± I said. ¡°Get me a pencil and some paper. Hurry!¡± A shape came up to my side. I grabbed Darius¡¯s leg and only knew it was Darius because I could feel his clothes. When he spoke, I had to hear him through the noises of the other scene. ¡°Emerra, what¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°I can see it!¡± ¡°Should we be running?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not like that. Please, I need something to write with!¡± ¡°We¡ª¡± He turned toward the sledge. I lost my grip on his leg and immediately dropped my hand to the ground. ¡°We don¡¯t¡­have anything,¡± he said. ¡°Then get me a stick! Something! Anything!¡± I crawled away from the hole and used my arms to sweep the snow away from the ground. I didn¡¯t stop until I felt Darius grab my shoulder. He forced a stick into my hand. By then I had cleared off a square yard of black earth to use as a canvas. I tried to draw what I saw, but the creature was moving. A general shape and suggestion of form were all I could manage. The struggling stopped once it emerged from the hole. It stood upright, facing the wind. The air moving around it seemed to define its body. I could see the face. The antlers. The ribs. The hands. The claws. The feet. When it peeled back its tattered lips from its long face, I could see its teeth. I scrawled the details into the hard mud¡ªas many as I could, as fast as I could. It was all fading. I watched it jump on top of one of the trees flattened by its awful resurrection, then up onto the trunk of one of the trees that had managed to remain standing. It hung there, thirty feet in the air, one hand around the tree, one foot at the base of a branch, the rest of its body leaning out into the wind. Then it jumped again, and it was gone. As the last of the scene faded, the details of the ground beneath me returned. I could see the tiny globs of dirt dislodged from the ground where I had dragged my stick through the mud. They added a fuzzy aura to the whole picture. The picture itself was a mess. No one else would be able to tell what it was, but I could. Each line was attached to a glimpse of a memory. I could use it as a guide. With luck, I would be able to redraw the creature I¡¯d seen. I felt better. Less panicked. I hadn¡¯t lost the vision. As the adrenaline leaked out of my system, it gave me a chance to notice other things¡ªlike the fact my legs were quivering. I looked down, then threw my head back and laughed. Darius stepped up beside me. ¡°Emerra?¡± ¡°And I was worried about my pants before. Little did I know.¡± My pants were coated in mud. I was soaked from my ankles to the top of my thighs. I moaned. ¡°Igor¡¯s going to be so grumpy at me.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about Igor! Are you okay?¡± I sniffed to keep the snot from leaking out of my nose. ¡°Yeah.¡± I tried to tug off one of my mittens, but my hands weren¡¯t working well, so I used my teeth. My mitten tasted like dirt. I pulled my phone from my pocket and took a picture of the sketch. ¡°You had a vision,¡± Darius said. ¡°I know!¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m finally earning my keep around here. Hey, did you happen to see what color my eyes were?¡± ¡°What color your eyes¡­no, I¡¯m afraid not.¡± ¡°Rats. I was hoping for silver or something. That would have been awesome.¡± I tried to get to my feet, but I wasn¡¯t bright enough to put my mitten back on first. I winced when my hand touched the frozen ground. Darius helped me to my feet and used his handkerchief to dry off my hand. A handkerchief. He still carried around a handkerchief. I refrained from mentioning that his age was showing. He grabbed my mitten and helped me put it on. ¡°Thank you,¡± I said. ¡°Darius, I¡¯m sorry. I know you probably want to look around, but can we go home? I need to redraw it before I forget what it looks like.¡± The vampire said, ¡°Considering how wet you are, I think it¡¯s either go home or light a fire, and I didn¡¯t bring any matches. Conrad, can you take her home safely?¡± Conrad, still in his wolf form, trotted up to join us. ¡°Are you thinking of staying behind?¡± I asked Darius. ¡°For a while.¡± Conrad made one of those dog-wolf noises that¡¯s not quite a whine or a whistle because it was too close to being a growl. ¡°Conrad doesn¡¯t like that idea,¡± I said. ¡°How do you know? You¡¯re not looking at him.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have to look at him for this one. Are you crazy? Darius, there be monsters here!¡± ¡°Right now?¡± I crossed my arms and squeezed them against my chest, trying to keep in the heat. ¡°Well, no.¡± ¡°And when it got closer, even you could smell it?¡± ¡°Yeah, I guess, but¡ª¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have time to debate this. It¡¯s a long ride home. I¡¯ll be ten minutes behind you, but I don¡¯t want to risk missing anything.¡± I watched him for a while. ¡°Ten minutes?¡± ¡°I give you my word.¡± I checked the sun. ¡°Please be careful.¡± ¡°I will.¡± I looked around for the children. Jacob was standing beside me, his eyes moving between me and Darius as he tried to follow a conversation he could only half understand¡ªif that. Anna and Jan were standing over the hole, staring into the empty black cradle. I called to them. When they looked up, I said, ¡°We have to go.¡± Jan came first. A few seconds passed before Anna turned away. As Anna got close to me, I saw her face. Her beautiful, fierce, amazing, little face was filled with a quiet anguish. She looked at me. ¡°We¡¯re a long time from home.¡± ¡°Not that long,¡± Jacob assured her, ¡°but she¡¯s cold, and Mr. Noctis said to be careful.¡± I thought I had a better idea what Anna had meant. I didn¡¯t know if the answer would comfort or hurt her, but there was only one answer: ¡°Yes, you are.¡± She nodded. When Jan took her hand, she squeezed it tight. Conrad led us back to the sledge. The kids sat down on the bed while I fumbled around with his harness and the toggle. I looked up when I heard his soft whine. ¡°Oh, shush, you,¡± I said. ¡°I got colder than this when I used to go sledding.¡± I finished securing the line, then put one of my muddy mittens up to the side of his face. ¡°Just get me home quick, okay? I¡¯m counting on you.¡± His whole body dipped in a nod. I went back to the foot boards, grabbed the handle, and called out to let Conrad know I was ready. I gasped when the cold air slapped into my wet clothes. Chapter 33 - The Expert We were in the drawing room. I had claimed the seat closest to the fire. It went well with my blanket and thermos of cocoa-spiked coffee. The coffee had cooled considerably since Igor had made it over an hour ago, but it was still warm enough I cuddled it to my chest. Jacob and Jan had been set up on YouTube in the library, but Anna was with us, standing in the magic circle so everyone could see her. Darius, Iset, Olivia, and Conrad were also there. We all listened as Jacky stood at the small desk on the far side of the room and talked on his phone. ¡°One of my residents saw it,¡± he said. Then: ¡°No, you misunderstand me. She saw it, but it wasn¡¯t¡ªArif, does it matter? Look, do you know what the thing is or not?¡± There was a brief pause. ¡°Good. Hold on. I¡¯m putting you on speaker.¡± Arif didn¡¯t bother holding on. He was still talking when Jacky pressed the button so we could all hear him. Arif¡¯s voice was full of excitement. ¡°¡ªsurprised that you found one! These things are rare. And the last known rumor of one being down that far south is hundreds of years ago.¡± ¡°Since the early sixteen-hundreds, perhaps?¡± Jacky said. ¡°Around then, sure! Oh, I wish I could see it¡­maybe¡ª¡± ¡°Is it possible for you to see it?¡± ¡°Anyone can see it¡ªbut, you should know that. Your resident saw it.¡± ¡°Under interesting circumstances which aren¡¯t relevant to this conversation. Does the creature have a name?¡± ¡°It¡¯s called a wendigo. Most of what we know about them comes from the tribes that lived around Nova Scotia. Wendigo territory is primarily north of that, but they¡¯ve been known to come further south during hard winters. I¡¯m still trying to figure out what it¡¯s doing in your neighborhood. You¡¯ve had a lot of snow, but it hasn¡¯t been that bad, has it?¡± ¡°And I¡¯m trying to figure out why I haven¡¯t heard of these creatures,¡± Jacky said. ¡°Because they aren¡¯t under your jurisdiction. They¡¯re not alive.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± I had tried to capture the impression it gave me in my sketch: the gauntness of the thing, how far back its eyes had sunk into its long skull, how you could see all its bones through its ash-gray skin, and how the matted scraps of hair swayed in the wind or got tangled in its small rack of antlers. It had looked dead, so I had tried to draw it that way. Maybe I¡¯d done too good of a job. I called out from the couch, ¡°Look, I know my sketch made it look dead, but I promise you, it was alive. It was moving around.¡± ¡°Ah-ha! Hello, mysterious resident. I take it you¡¯re the one that saw it?¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad to meet you. I¡¯m Arif, the local expert on all supernatural, non-humanoid creatures. By local, I mean, we¡¯re both living on this quarter of the globe, and I¡¯d claim to be an expert on humanoid supernaturals too, but they get testy about that. Speaking of which¡ªhey, Darius!¡± ¡°Good evening, Mr. Tremblay.¡± ¡°Have you reconsidered my proposal?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t wasted a single second reconsidering it. My answer is no.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t blame a man for trying. Hey, mysterious resident, do you have a name?¡± ¡°Emerra,¡± I said. ¡°Emerra, you did a fine job with that sketch. It gave me the creeps just looking at it. In their native forms, wendigos always look like they¡¯re the rotting skeleton of something that died of hunger. It¡¯s the western version of a starving ghost. You know¡ªif insatiable greed could walk and talk. How tall was it?¡± I thought back. Knowing Conrad gave me a new standard to measure things by, so I felt pretty confident I knew the answer. ¡°Seven or eight feet.¡± ¡°Wow. Big boy. Still not alive.¡± ¡°But¡ª¡± ¡°This is one of those annoying technicalities experts make up so we can correct people. Don¡¯t take it personally. If something¡¯s moving around of its own volition and I tell you it¡¯s not alive, it¡¯s usually because the thing doesn¡¯t have a physical body. It wasn¡¯t born, therefore it isn¡¯t alive, and it can¡¯t die.¡± ¡°That thing uprooted a tree! How does it not have a body?¡± ¡°Congratulations! You¡¯ve put your thumb on one of the big mysteries of our world. This won¡¯t answer your question, but it might help to think of it as being kind of like Big Jacky.¡± I glanced at Noctis. He was sitting back in the desk chair with his elbows propped up and his finger bones interlaced. Arif continued, ¡°It¡¯s more than a spirit, but it¡¯s less than alive. It doesn¡¯t have a body in the normal sense of the word, but the form it has is real enough it can act on physical matter.¡± ¡°It can kill us, but we can¡¯t kill it?¡± There was a slight pause. ¡°Harsh and to the point. Yes.¡± Iset said, ¡°What do you mean by ¡®their native form?¡¯¡± ¡°Well, the thing about not having a physical body¡ªit means that it can possess other bodies. Can, and usually does.¡± Jacky said, ¡°If it can possess other bodies, then it¡¯s less real¡ªas you would say¡ªthan I am.¡± ¡°That sounds about right.¡± Anna said, ¡°What happens to the people it possesses?¡± Jacky and I both looked at her. After a second, Jacky translated. Arif said, ¡°Things don¡¯t end well for them.¡± ¡°Do they die?¡± Jacky asked. ¡°Not all the time, but none of them recover.¡± I translated what Arif had said for Anna. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. For a moment, she looked sad, but then she reached into some pile of inner fortitude I was pretty sure I lacked, and her face cleared. ¡°Why do the people they possess all limp?¡± Darius asked. ¡°Ah! Did you see any footprints?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°From its natural form, or from a possessed person?¡± ¡°Both, we think.¡± Arif laughed. It was the mad laugh of an obsessed and delighted mind. ¡°Do you have pictures? Can you send them to me?¡± ¡°That depends on whether or not we ever get through this conversation, Mr. Tremblay.¡± ¡°Right. The footprints are another mystery. We know the feet of the people they possess change somehow, but we aren¡¯t sure at what level or how they¡¯re changing. There¡¯s one theory¡ªit has a few problems¡ªbut there¡¯s one theory that says that the wendigo still travels as fast as possible, even when it¡¯s possessing a body, and the friction from the speed rips the feet off, leaving nothing but red-hot stumps.¡± Arif couldn¡¯t see how most of us recoiled. He blathered on, ignorant. ¡°I think that theory ignores too much of the transmutation evidence¡ª¡± ¡°Arif,¡± Darius said, ¡°how does it travel that fast?¡± ¡°It runs on the wind. They have some kind of a relationship with it. To a limited degree, they can control it, and it lets them run incredibly fast.¡± ¡°When you say ¡®it runs on the wind¡ª¡¯¡± Iset said. ¡°I mean on it. There are accounts where they¡¯ve been seen running across the treetops, then they mount into the sky higher than any tree could grow.¡± ¡°How fast are we talking here?¡± Darius asked. ¡°You want more specific than ¡®fast enough it can rip off limbs?¡¯¡± ¡°You said that was only a theory.¡± ¡°Good point. We don¡¯t know exactly how fast, and it appears to vary. A good estimate would be to take a very fast-moving animal¡ªlike a reindeer or a horse¡ªthen add the speed of the wind on top of that, but it does move slower when it¡¯s possessing someone.¡± ¡°How do we get rid of it?¡± There was silence over the line. ¡°You¡¯ve got a man-eater, don¡¯t you?¡± Arif said. ¡°Is that unusual?¡± Jacky asked. The expert sighed. ¡°No. About half the reports involve them eating people. I¡¯m sorry, Darius, but there¡¯s no way to kill it. If it¡¯s possessing someone, you can kill the host, but that won¡¯t stop it. It¡¯ll just leave and go find another host¡ªprobably after killing and eating you.¡± ¡°Then how did other people deal with it?¡± ¡°They didn¡¯t. They died a lot. Some people tried to coax it north¡ªthe idea was that once it returned to its native territory, it wouldn¡¯t wander south again.¡± ¡°Coax it how?¡± ¡°Not sure. My guess would be with food. Wendigos are always hungry, so that¡¯d be the easiest way to get their attention. But they¡¯ll eat almost anything, so I don¡¯t know how people thought they could force it to focus on them¡ªand before you get excited, I should warn you, there¡¯s no confirmation this worked. Most people had to wait until it went away.¡± ¡°But it can be sealed,¡± Olivia said suddenly. ¡°It¡¯s a spirit, so it can be sealed.¡± ¡°Well¡­yes¡­theoretically.¡± ¡°No one tried it?¡± ¡°The Algonquin mages didn¡¯t have sealing magic, and the European settlers weren¡¯t exactly friendly to witches and sorcerers.¡± Everyone fell silent as they considered this. Jacky asked, ¡°Arif, is there anything else we should know?¡± ¡°Not that I can think of. Not much is known about them, and you got all the general information. If you want, I could send you some of the more detailed accounts and the papers that have been written about them.¡± ¡°Send them to me please, Mr. Tremblay,¡± Darius said. ¡°If you send me those footprint photos.¡± ¡°Done.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll email those papers to you as soon as we get off the phone.¡± ¡°Which will be now,¡± Jacky added. ¡°Thank you for your help, Arif, but we have a lot to discuss.¡± ¡°I hope you¡¯ll call me later. I¡¯ll need an account of what¡¯s been¡ª¡± ¡°Goodbye, Arif.¡± Jacky pressed the button to end the call. We all sat in silence, until Anna quietly called my name. ¡°Oh!¡± I said. ¡°Right. Sorry.¡± I filled her in. The rest of the room listened without interruption. Then I said, ¡°Anna, we could be here for a long time. Do you want to stay, or do you want to go play with Jacob and Jan?¡± ¡°Do you want me to go?¡± she asked. I was forced into a little honesty. ¡°I want you to look after the boys. Please.¡± After a second, she nodded and left. I wondered if anyone was going to say anything to me, but it seemed like we were all a part of the conspiracy. When she was gone, Darius spoke first. ¡°At least now we know what we¡¯re dealing with and roughly what we can do.¡± ¡°Darius,¡± I said, ¡°do you know most of the people in town?¡± ¡°If I don¡¯t, Mrs. Park certainly does. We can ask her when she arrives tomorrow.¡± ¡°There was a woman at the Historical Museum. Her name was Sky.¡± He sat forward in his armchair. ¡°Sky Johnson.¡± ¡°You know her?¡± ¡°I know of her. Why do you ask?¡± ¡°Because she said her boss¡ªor the guy who used to be her boss, he fired her¡ªshe said he was acting strange and limping. She said she would have sworn it wasn¡¯t him.¡± ¡°She worked with Jane McNabb,¡± Darius muttered. ¡°The missing housekeeper?¡± Iset asked. ¡°Yes. So we also have a reasonable guess who the wendigo might be possessing.¡± ¡°Can we seal it?¡± I asked. ¡°Iset can do sealing magic,¡± Olivia said. As I looked over at the mummy, Darius added, ¡°And ancient Egyptian sealing magic is the most powerful sealing magic there is.¡± ¡°I thought you weren¡¯t a witch,¡± I said. ¡°I¡¯m not,¡± Iset explained. ¡°It¡¯s a religious rite. All I need is a suitable container, but before that, there¡¯s a problem we have to deal with¡ªI can only seal a spirit.¡± ¡°The expert said it was a spirit.¡± ¡°It¡¯s inhabiting a physical body. We¡¯ll have to remove it.¡± There was a moment of silence. ¡°You mean kill the host?¡± Conrad asked. ¡°No,¡± Jacky and Darius said at the same time. Jacky elaborated: ¡°Mr. Bhaird is an innocent man, however unpleasant he may be.¡± ¡°And we can¡¯t go around killing innocent people,¡± Darius said. ¡°That creature is killing a person each night,¡± Olivia pointed out. ¡°It needs to be stopped. Arif said the hosts never recover¡ª¡± ¡°That does not change the fact he¡¯s innocent,¡± Jacky said. ¡°Tell me, Olivia, how many innocent people are you willing to kill to stop the wendigo?¡± Olivia shut her mouth so tight that I could see her jaw clench. She turned and stared at the floor. ¡°Can you help, Jacky?¡± Iset asked. ¡°I won¡¯t kill him either.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant. If the wendigo has the same kind of body you do, could you touch it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid not. Our forms are too different for us to interact.¡± ¡°It killed and ate a person while in its native form,¡± Darius said. ¡°And if I strangled you, you would die. Simply because we can both act on the same physical matter does not mean that we can act on each other. I can¡¯t touch the children any more than you can.¡± Still gazing at the chalked-up floor, Olivia said, ¡°There might be something I can do.¡± Everyone stared. She turned to Iset. ¡°If we can lure it into a magic circle, I might be able to draw it out.¡± Iset didn¡¯t respond, but Jacky did. ¡°You¡¯re talking about an exorcism. That magic isn¡¯t normally associated with witchcraft.¡± ¡°An exorcism banishes a spirit,¡± Olivia said. ¡°I¡¯m talking about drawing it to myself.¡± I said, ¡°Now hold on¡ª¡± But I could only start my objection before Olivia interrupted. ¡°Not all the way! But if I¡¯m drawing it to me, that¡¯ll pull it out from the body.¡± ¡°Have you ever tried to manipulate a spiritual form before?¡± Jacky asked. ¡°Once it¡¯s in the circle, I can change the rules of the space. I think I can do it.¡± ¡°But that means we¡¯d have to lure it,¡± Conrad said. We all fell silent. Conrad didn¡¯t often speak when we were gathered together, but when he did, everyone listened. He stretched out in his chair. ¡°Considering how dangerous it is, and the fact that we¡¯re talking about using experimental magic, we won¡¯t be able to do this anywhere near town. We¡¯ll have to lure it for several miles. We don¡¯t know how to do that.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying you don¡¯t think we can do it?¡± Olivia said. ¡°I¡¯m saying that until we figure out a reliable way to get its attention, we won¡¯t even be able to try.¡± ¡°Conrad¡¯s right,¡± Darius said. ¡°We¡¯ll have to make researching that a priority.¡± He stood up. ¡°Since the matter is urgent, I think we should divide our efforts. Olivia, you research the magic. Iset can find a container. Conrad, Emerra, can I ask for your help going through Arif¡¯s papers? I have no doubt they¡¯re already clogging my inbox.¡± Conrad immediately agreed, but my response started with a very promising, ¡°Uhhhhhhh.¡± ¡°No?¡± Darius said. ¡°I have to start some laundry, but I can come after that.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll be in the sitting room.¡± We all stood up to go to our various tasks. Since Olivia was already standing, she should have been the first out the door, but she hung back, letting the others leave before her. I had to untangle myself from my blanket, throw it over my arm, and fetch my thermos before I was ready to go. I wandered toward the door, my head full of the advice I¡¯d looked up about how to get ground-in mud out of clothing, but then Olivia called my name. I turned to her. She seemed agitated. ¡°I thought a patroonship would be religious,¡± she said. ¡°It was,¡± I said. ¡°The whole town was pretty religious. Krusen paid for Dominie to come over from the Netherlands.¡± ¡°In your dreams, did you hear about any witches?¡± ¡°Yes. The four sisters.¡± ¡°Are you sure they were witches?¡± I paused for a second. When I answered, I kept my voice quiet. ¡°I only heard it from Anna, but considering everything, I tend to think she was right.¡± Olivia¡¯s eyes flew up to meet mine. After a silent consultation, she looked away. ¡°I have to go study.¡± ¡°Olivia.¡± When she turned back to me, I said, ¡°Thank you for helping.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not helping you. I¡¯m helping those kids.¡± ¡°I know. Thank you.¡± She dismissed my gratitude with a quick ¡°of course,¡± then left. Chapter 34 - Hungry I heard their voices first. ¡°They didn¡¯t mean to. How could they know any better?¡± ¡°That won¡¯t change anything. We have to do something. If it followed them this far, it will follow them here.¡± ¡°But there¡¯s no way to kill it.¡± I opened my eyes but stayed silent. I was laying on the floor. All I could see was the edge of my blanket, the orange firelight, shadows, and the feet of the four sisters. They moved only a little as they spoke. ¡°We can hide.¡± ¡°Not all winter. And the ward can only protect us while we¡¯re inside.¡± My ears strained in the short silence, pulling me further away from sleep. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. ¡°We¡¯ll have to tell them to leave.¡± My heart beat faster. The sound of it in my ears almost drowned out what was being said. ¡°How far do you think they¡¯d get before they¡¯re caught? And once they are, what happens then? It will still be hungry.¡± My body jerked with fear. The sisters fell silent. Mercy came over. ¡°Anna?¡± she whispered. I realized she had been the one who¡¯d said we would have to leave. Mercy, who I thought was the nicest of them all. I sat up and looked at her. She offered me a sad smile that never reached her eyes. ¡°Did our talking wake you up?¡± I opened my mouth, but my fear was more desperate than my answer. ¡°Will it find us?¡± The fire cracked loud in the silence. Tace answered, ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because it¡¯s hungry.¡± A sliver of blue-purple light shone through the crack between my curtains. I sat up in my cot and scooted closer to the window. The light grew as I eased the curtain aside. As far as I could see, the mansion was surrounded with a glowing indigo line. The wendigo was pacing outside it. Chapter 35 - The Late-Night Visitor I jumped out of my cot. When Anna and Jacob raised their heads, I told them, in a voice that belonged to my inner doom-bringer, to stay there. I sounded menacing enough even Anna decided it¡¯d be a good idea to obey. I wasn¡¯t trying to be quiet when I left my room, so I wasn¡¯t surprised when I heard Conrad¡¯s door open behind me as I stormed down the hall. He caught up to me at the top of the stairs. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± he asked. ¡°It¡¯s the wendigo,¡± I said. ¡°It¡¯s outside.¡± ¡°I thought it hunted in town. Why would it come all the way out here?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m going to ask it.¡± When we were at the bottom of the stairs, I yelled toward the library, ¡°Darius! We have a visitor!¡± The count appeared beside me one second later. I didn¡¯t even have time to reach the front door where my boots and coat were waiting. ¡°Is the ward holding?¡± he asked. He didn¡¯t bother asking who or what I meant. He must have guessed based on the quaver in my voice. So much for sounding brave. ¡°Yes.¡± I threw on my boots without bothering to lace them. ¡°You¡¯re going out there?¡± Darius asked. ¡°She wants to talk to it,¡± Conrad said. ¡°In your pajamas?¡± I gave the vampire a look while I put on my coat. ¡°I¡¯m not trying to impress it.¡± After opening the door, I said, ¡°Besides, what does one wear when confronting a man-eating evil?¡± Darius and Conrad were only a step behind me. The count said, ¡°I¡¯ve found a suit usually works well.¡± ¡°Fangs,¡± Conrad said. ¡°And fangs.¡± A well-dressed vampire on my left flank, a massive wolfman on my right flank, untied boots and paper-thin pajama pants¡ªeven without fangs, I was ready to take on the world. The wendigo stopped pacing when it saw us come out on the porch. As we approached, Darius muttered under his breath, ¡°Don¡¯t mention that we think we know who it¡¯s possessing.¡± If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. ¡°Why?¡± I whispered back. I hadn¡¯t been planning on it, but now I was curious. ¡°Because if we¡¯re right, it¡¯ll change bodies.¡± That seemed like a good reason. I knew between Conrad¡¯s sense of smell and my eyes, we¡¯d be able to find it again, but I didn¡¯t want to lose any more people than we already had. I stood a yard away from the glowing indigo line and stared at the thing in front of me. Its shape rippled like silent black flames, but I could see both of them were there¡ªthe human husk, and the horned beast. The wind started to pick up. ¡°Don¡¯t bother,¡± I yelled. ¡°I know what you are. I won¡¯t listen.¡± The thing swung its leg around, as casual as you please, and limped a step closer to me. The line glowed brighter near where it stood. It pulled at its hood, trying to hide its human face from me. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to bother you, ma¡¯am. I was lost in the woods, and I came across a gate in your wall. I didn¡¯t think anyone would be awake¡ª¡± ¡°Not a bad lie, but I told you, we know what you are. We¡¯re not going to invite you in.¡± I couldn¡¯t see its face, but I could see its displeasure. Don¡¯t ask me how. ¡°Here¡¯s a hint,¡± I said, ¡°a real person would have stared at the wolfman for longer.¡± I jerked a thumb over my shoulder. Conrad crossed his huge arms in front of his enormous chest. His fur hid all the muscle definition, but nothing could hide his size. ¡°Are you the witch?¡± the wendigo asked. I pressed my lips shut. ¡°This place reeks of witchcraft.¡± It eyed me. It could stare at me until its eyes popped out of its skull and ran down its cheeks for all I cared. I was not going to tell it about Olivia. ¡°How did you find them?¡± I said. Its human head tilted one way. Its desiccated beast skull tilted the other. I raised my voice. ¡°I know you followed them. How?¡± ¡°You know that much, but you don¡¯t know the answer?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you leave them alone? What have they ever done to you?¡± The indigo light flared to a blinding blue when it lunged at me. Darius and Conrad both stepped forward. The vampire stood in front of me, with one arm back to keep me at a distance. Conrad¡¯s teeth were glinting. It didn¡¯t matter. The ward held. The wendigo pressed against the invisible field, its flickering form fixed on me. The wind said with it, ¡°How many centuries did I have to wait for them to fade?¡ªgrowing emptier with every endless season! Then I learned they weren¡¯t gone at all! Witch, I will find them, and I will end their miserable existence.¡± The magic of the ward screeched as he scraped his faces across it. ¡°And what will you do then?¡± The wendigo turned into the wind, stepped onto the air, and melted into the distance, disappearing as fast as a sliver of ice thrown in a fire. A few seconds passed before Darius lowered his arm. Conrad stopped snarling. And I¡­well, I started shaking. Hard. I had to try twice to take a deep breath before I could actually do it. ¡°Huh,¡± I mumbled. ¡°That was¡­uh¡­that was¡±¡ªI wanted to say ¡°something¡± because I believe in the power of nonchalance, but the truth slipped out instead¡ª¡°scary.¡± Darius nodded, but he didn¡¯t look at me. He was staring in the direction the wendigo had gone. ¡°Could you catch him?¡± Conrad asked. ¡°With the wind like that?¡± the vampire said. ¡°Only during the witching hour. And only if I caught him in the first minute.¡± He turned to the mansion. ¡°Let¡¯s get inside. I¡¯ll wake up Olivia and have her come out to check the wards.¡± As soon as his words registered with my adrenaline-addled brain, I whipped around. ¡°No!¡± I took a step toward him and almost tripped on my laces. ¡°You can¡¯t send Olivia out here.¡± ¡°Emerra, that ward took a beating tonight¡ª¡± ¡°Not Olivia!¡± I tried to think how to explain as I stumbled toward Darius. ¡°It would find a way. It would break itself¡ªbeat itself, again and again¡ªthrough the smallest crack to get to her.¡± We¡¯d made it to the three stairs that led up to the front porch. ¡°Why?¡± Conrad said. A voice from the porch said, ¡°Because it hates witches.¡± Olivia was standing there in her pajamas, black sweatshirt, and bare feet, shivering. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Darius asked. ¡°I felt the ward buckling.¡± She said to me, ¡°I¡¯m right, aren¡¯t I? It hates witches. For good reason.¡± Chapter 36 - Bait I was sitting in the drawing room, wrapped in a blanket and staring at the fire, with my untouched cup of coffee beside me. It was five in the morning, but I was so jittery, I thought caffeine would be a bad idea. Darius and Conrad had stayed outside with Olivia as she repaired the ward. The only company I had was Iset. We had talked over what had happened, but when the topic was almost as exhausted as I was, I fell silent. Iset was sweet enough to sit beside me and share it. We both raised our heads when we heard voices coming down the hall toward us. ¡°How did it get here?¡± That was Olivia. She sounded pissier than normal. I didn¡¯t blame her; it had been a long night. ¡°It ran,¡± Conrad said. ¡°No shit¡ª¡± Definitely pissier than normal. ¡°¡ªbut how did it find the house?¡± As they came through the doorway, Darius said, ¡°From what Emerra was saying, she believes it followed the children.¡± The witch switched her glare over to me. I was too tired to mind, but I was able to muster a small yet cheerful wave to annoy her. ¡°How?¡± Olivia demanded. ¡°How should I know?¡± I said. ¡°But the thing can smell witchcraft.¡± Olivia turned to Conrad. ¡°Can you smell magic?¡± The wolfman shook his head as he sat down on the couch across from me. I added, ¡°Sniffing out spirits doesn¡¯t sound much harder than smelling witchcraft.¡± ¡°If it could follow the children this whole time,¡± Olivia said, ¡°why haven¡¯t we seen it before now?¡± Iset said, ¡°Possibly because yesterday was the first time they¡¯ve been outside the ward since they¡¯ve regained their strength.¡± ¡°Emerra, why did you think it was following the children?¡± Darius asked. ¡°It followed them before.¡± I told them about my dream¡ªabout how the four sisters were sure the wendigo would find them. ¡°These were the witches?¡± Olivia asked. ¡°Yeah.¡± She frowned. Darius had been settling into one of the armchairs, but when he heard that, he looked up. ¡°Witches?¡± I nodded. Conrad said, ¡°I¡¯m curious why it would follow a bunch of ghosts it can¡¯t eat.¡± ¡°It probably thinks they¡¯re a threat,¡± Darius said. ¡°How so?¡± Olivia asked. Darius raised his eyes to Olivia¡¯s face. I usually only saw his gaze look that sharp when he was interrogating a suspect. ¡°It made it sound like they were its wardens.¡± It was a waste of his inquisition eyes. Olivia couldn¡¯t hide the scowl that spasmed over her face. The count sat forward on his chair and steepled his fingers. ¡°Olivia, I thought witches didn¡¯t have sealing magic.¡± ¡°They don¡¯t. They have contract magic.¡± I felt Iset stiffen beside me. For some reason, that understated reaction made me nervous. ¡°What¡¯s contract magic?¡± I asked. Olivia didn¡¯t seem to want to answer, so Iset did. ¡°Contract magic binds two parties to an outcome.¡± ¡°Two willing parties?¡± Conrad asked. ¡°Not necessarily. It only requires the balance of the two parties, not their consent. The principle magic is focused on the binding.¡± ¡°That sounds a lot like sealing something to me,¡± I said. ¡°They¡¯re closely related. That¡¯s why you¡¯ll hear people talk about sealing a contract, but ¡®sealing¡¯ specifically means to hold something to or in something else. A contract only ties two things together, so it can be almost anything.¡± ¡°Could those witches have created a contract between the ghosts and the wendigo?¡± Darius asked. Iset spoke slowly: ¡°I think they did. That¡¯s the only way it would all makes sense.¡± A slight strain had entered Iset¡¯s already subdued voice, and if I could hear it, there was no way Darius would miss it. ¡°Iset?¡± Darius said. Olivia spoke up. Her voice was as stark and matter-of-fact as she could make it. ¡°The most powerful contracts are sealed with blood.¡± The silence that followed that statement was a long one. ¡°What do you think happened?¡± Conrad asked. ¡°The sisters must have known they couldn¡¯t kill the wendigo,¡± Olivia said, ¡°so they had to bind it to something.¡± This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°To the tree?¡± ¡°I think they killed Dominie and bound the wendigo to his body. That would have been the easiest thing to do since it was already possessing it. But that kind of binding would require a lot of fresh blood.¡± ¡°You think they murdered the children,¡± I muttered. ¡°Yes.¡± Olivia was still trying to sound natural, but when she crossed her arms, I could see her fingers pressing into her bicep. I had suspected something like that, but hearing it said out loud robbed me of the tenuous cover I had laid over the hole in my heart. Now exposed, I could appreciate how it gaped, and how my breath moving over it felt like a moan. She went on, ¡°They would have finished the contract by anchoring the children¡¯s souls to the tree. Even with the power of four witches, the wendigo¡¯s binding would¡¯ve only lasted until the dominie¡¯s body decomposed, but with the contract, the wendigo wouldn¡¯t have been able to escape as long as the children were bound to the tree.¡± And then I cut it down because it was cute and chubby. I put my face in my hands. ¡°But the ghosts were fading,¡± Conrad pointed out. ¡°That was inevitable,¡± Big Jacky said. We all looked around. Noctis was standing by the window. I had no idea when he had appeared, but it must have been long enough for him to follow the conversation. He turned. ¡°But it bought them three hundred and eighty years. They probably believed it would be worth it.¡± He took a step toward us, but when he spoke, he spoke to the empty doorway. ¡°Anna, if you¡¯re going to listen, you might as well join us.¡± My breath caught in my chest. How long had she been there? There was a flicker of white at the edge of the door, then Anna came into the room and walked into the magic circle. ¡°Have you heard enough to understand what they¡¯ve been talking about?¡± Jacky asked. ¡°Yes, sir.¡± Her voice was a tiny tremor of sound. Hearing it made me feel small and helpless. I clenched my hands to keep from running over and trying to stand like a martyr between her and the truth. And Jack Noctis, the ruthless incarnation of death itself, said, ¡°Do you remember?¡± ¡°They used us as bait.¡± I saw another flicker of white by the door. Please, I thought, not Jacob and Jan. Anna went on, ¡°Dominie¡ªthe monster¡ªcame after us. When he came into the circle, the sisters used magic to hold him down. Then they¡­they told us¡­to run out of the circle. Like they showed us.¡± When Jacob and Jan heard the crack in Anna¡¯s voice, they came into the room. Jacob stood beside her while Jan took her hand and leaned his head on her chest. Anna swallowed, then continued, ¡°Each of us to one of them. They had us practice. When Tace killed the monster, they cut our necks.¡± Iset put a hand on my shoulder. She couldn¡¯t have understood what Anna was saying, but she saw me shudder. ¡°Do you remember anything else?¡± Jacky asked. ¡°A bowl.¡± ¡°A bowl?¡± I couldn¡¯t stand it anymore, but I didn¡¯t know how to strangle a skeleton either, so I yelled, ¡°A bowl to catch the blood, Jacky!¡± My face must have been eloquent; he took one look at me, then turned away and let out a quiet, ¡°Ah.¡± Anna said, ¡°The next day, Felice came to see us. She said they were sorry, but that we had to guard the bones so that the monster wouldn¡¯t get out and hurt anyone. Then she left.¡± When Anna finished the story, Jacob put his arm around her. The three children held each other like they had been holding each other for over three hundred years¡ªtheir sole comfort in a world where no one else could touch them. Jacob was right. Anna did need them. ¡°Would you be willing to do it again?¡± Jacky asked. My ears must have been muffled. I was sure I hadn¡¯t heard that right. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I asked them if they¡¯d be willing to do it again.¡± I was on my feet and in front of the skeleton so fast that I impressed even the vampire. ¡°Listen, you¡­you¡­bonehead! They¡¯re dead. We can¡¯t kill them again! What were you hoping they would do? They¡¯ve guarded those bones long enough¡ªit¡¯s our turn to deal with the problem!¡± ¡°I was hoping they¡¯d be willing to serve as bait.¡± My fury had to squiggle its way between mounds of incredulous shock. It took at least two full seconds for my blank mind to hit the reset button so I could speak. ¡°Coal would be too good for you!¡± I turned to Iset. ¡°Isn¡¯t there some kind of anti-Santa that eats bad people?¡± ¡°Krampus was maligned,¡± Jacky said. I whipped back around. ¡°Then which mythic figure do I appeal to if I need someone to beat some brains into you?¡± A wisp of fur brushed my cheek. Conrad had come up behind me and put a hand on my shoulder. ¡°Mera,¡± he said, ¡°it¡¯s okay. You¡¯re angry. That¡¯s fair. But try to take a breath or two.¡± I didn¡¯t want to do it, but I wasn¡¯t mad at Conrad, and a small part of me knew it was good advice. I forced myself to stop and breathe. The wolfman went on, ¡°You don¡¯t like it. That¡¯s completely reasonable. But try to remember that Jacky hasn¡¯t ordered them to do anything. He asked them.¡± ¡°They shouldn¡¯t have to do it,¡± I insisted. ¡°They don¡¯t have to,¡± Darius said. ¡°That¡¯s why Jacky asked.¡± I glanced over at the children. Anna and Jacob both look troubled, but Jan¡¯s eyes were wide and bright. He moved the hand that had been hiding his grin and whispered, ¡°You called him a bonehead!¡± It was a shame he was five years old and three hundred years dead¡ªI would have married that kid. I went and sat down on the edge of the circle. The ghosts gathered around me. ¡°You should respect your elders,¡± Anna told me. ¡°No promises.¡± I glared at Jacky for a second, then gave all my attention to them. ¡°They¡¯re all going to say I have to ask.¡± ¡°But you don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°No, I don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°Do you think it won¡¯t work?¡± The question grabbed my stomach and wrenched, but I tried to stay composed. ¡°I think it would work. That wendigo, he really wants to find you. I think he¡¯s scared that you can still trap him. But I like you guys, and I think you¡¯ve been through enough scary stuff, so I don¡¯t want to ask.¡± ¡°We¡¯re ghosts,¡± Jacob pointed out. ¡°It can¡¯t hurt us.¡± Jacky said, ¡°It can, Master Jacob.¡± The children looked up at him. ¡°At least, it¡¯s very likely it can,¡± he said. ¡°You¡¯re all spirit-forms, more closely related to each other than to anything else in this world. If the wendigo caught you, it would probably be able to destroy you.¡± After a short pause, Jacky added, ¡°I won¡¯t lie to you. There will be no secrets. No hiding. If you choose to help, you should know, it would be as dangerous for you as it would be for everyone else.¡± ¡°Would it hurt if it destroyed us?¡± Anna asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Who are you going to kill?¡± I said, ¡°No one.¡± I pointed to Iset. ¡°That beautiful mummy over there can do sealing magic. No one has to die this time.¡± ¡°Will it catch us?¡± Jan asked. ¡°We would do everything possible to make sure that doesn¡¯t happen.¡± ¡°Are you going to help?¡± Anna asked. ¡°Yes.¡± Jan said, ¡°But what can you do?¡± Before I could answer, Anna chided him. ¡°Jan, that¡¯s rude.¡± ¡°Besides, you saw her.¡± Jacob lowered his voice. ¡°She¡¯s scary.¡± As I rubbed my forehead, I couldn¡¯t help feeling grateful that the only other person who could understand them was Jacky. When I lowered my hand, I gazed at my precious friends. ¡°Remember, you can say no.¡± The three of them looked at each other. ¡°Can we talk about it?¡± Anna asked ¡°Of course.¡± Anna took Jan¡¯s hand and led the boys from the room. ¡°What happened?¡± Darius asked. ¡°They¡¯re going to discuss whether or not they¡¯re willing to act as bait,¡± Jacky explained. Olivia let out an angry hiss. ¡°This is stupid! It hates witches, right? I¡¯ll be the bait.¡± ¡°If the children refuse to help, we may have to try that,¡± Darius said, ¡°but it would be better if we could avoid it.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The wendigo doesn¡¯t know you, so we don¡¯t know if it can track you. You also have one of the most crucial roles in this plan. If you¡¯re focused on not getting caught, you won¡¯t be able to focus on your magic. And if it knows you¡¯re a witch, it¡¯s going to be more cautious when you¡¯re around, making it that much harder to spring the trap. It has no fear of the children.¡± ¡°Emerra,¡± Iset said, ¡°will you be all right if the children say yes?¡± ¡°I guess we¡¯ll find out,¡± I grumbled. Two minutes passed in silence. I finally got around to drinking the cup of coffee Igor had brought me. It was cold and bitter despite the sugar. The children came back into the room and crossed over to the magic circle. Anna said to Jacky, ¡°We¡¯ll help.¡± Jacob added, ¡°You¡¯ll try to make sure we don¡¯t get caught, right?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Jacky assured him. Jacob nodded. I tried not to react, but despite all my mature intentions, Jan felt compelled to come over and mimic patting my shoulder. You know you¡¯re a wuss when the five-year-old decides you need reassurance. ¡°It¡¯s all right, Emerra. We¡¯ll protect you.¡± That only made me love him more¡ªwhich only made it worse. Chapter 37 - Talking to Death It was late evening. Outside, it was so dark, the windows of the drawing room looked like black panes of glass, hiding the small sanctuary from the rest of the world. Anna had prevailed at last; Jacky was teaching her how to play chess. She was a slow and thoughtful player. Jan and Jacob tried to pay attention to what she was doing, but if she took too long to decide her move, they went off to the side of the room to play with each other. While Jacky had nearly endless patience, Anna was a beginner, and he found that he didn¡¯t always have to focus on the board. Occasionally, he would allow his attention to wander. ¡°Why socks?¡± Jacob and Jan stopped what they were doing when they heard Jacky¡¯s question. Anna looked up. Noctis pointed to the fireplace mantle. Below the twisted evergreen boughs and homemade garland, there was a row of socks, hanging from heavy brass holders. ¡°And why are they so large?¡± Jacky asked. Jacob came over. ¡°Emerra said they were stockings.¡± ¡°She says that¡¯s what Sinterklaas fills with toys and candy,¡± Jan explained. ¡°That¡¯s why they have to be big. So you can get more toys.¡± ¡°People pretend to have larger feet than they do?¡± Jacky puzzled over this. ¡°I thought such duplicitous behavior would relegate you to the naughty list.¡± Anna pointed to her knight, then to the square she wanted it moved to. As Jacky moved the piece, Anna said, ¡°I told Emerra it was the wrong time, but she said it was for decoration.¡± Noctis watched Anna for a moment, then used his bishop to take the newly placed knight. He set the horse beside the rest of her fallen army. ¡°Traditions change,¡± Jacky noted. ¡°If I remember right, the man of the north used to come early in December, but now he comes on Christmas Eve.¡± This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Why did it change?¡± Jacob asked. Noctis shrugged. ¡°A man who fails to question the excessive nature of seasonal footwear probably isn¡¯t all that reliable.¡± Jan giggled. ¡°Maybe he likes giving children more presents,¡± Jacob said. ¡°If that¡¯s the case, he probably doesn¡¯t care so much when he gives them¡ªonly that he¡¯s allowed to.¡± Anna bit her lip and pointed from one of her pawns to a space near the middle of the board. ¡°Only two spaces on their first move, Miss Anna,¡± Noctis reminded her. She retreated her finger by an inch, and Jacky executed the move. ¡°Is he going to come?¡± Jacob asked. ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Jacky said. ¡°Emerra doesn¡¯t seem to think so.¡± ¡°That surprises me. She hasn¡¯t been unusually naughty.¡± The game forgotten, Anna laughed and looked up at Jacky. ¡°He doesn¡¯t come for adults! He only comes for children.¡± ¡°Are you sure? If he¡¯s lived long enough that you know him, I wonder if he would find it so easy to differentiate between a child and an adult.¡± The ghosts found this idea so confusing that they assumed Jacky was teasing them the way Emerra teased them. They smiled, but Jan still felt compelled to correct him. ¡°No, he can tell.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± The bare simplicity of Jacky¡¯s statement made the children realize he was serious. ¡°I think it¡¯s because I¡¯m timeless,¡± Noctis said. ¡°I don¡¯t see the days and the months. They mean nothing to me. Every person is only a person¡ªthere, in the moment I meet them¡ªwhether they have only a few hours, or¡­three hundred and eighty years.¡± Jacky looked at the ghosts. ¡°Yet Emerra still treats you like children. So it can¡¯t be time. It must be something else.¡± ¡°We never grew up,¡± Anna said. ¡°No, but you know enough to make your own choices and do what you feel is right.¡± ¡°But we don¡¯t know much,¡± Jacob said. ¡°Neither does Emerra. Take my word for it.¡± Jan wasn¡¯t going to allow that kind of traitorous talk. ¡°Emerra¡¯s smart!¡± ¡°She is. And she¡¯s very kind. She loves you, you know. I think everyone in this house has grown fond of you, but Emerra, especially, loves you. She would do almost anything to protect you.¡± ¡°We know,¡± Anna said. ¡°Do you love her?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± Jacob said. ¡°I wonder how much you love her,¡± Jacky mused. ¡°That¡¯s the only way I know to mark the difference between a morally accountable soul and a child too young to know better¡ªdo they know enough about love to know about the sacrifice that isn¡¯t a sacrifice?¡± The children fell silent. They loved Emerra with a fierce loyalty, and each of them sensed that this was not a conversation she would want them to be having. But they also liked Jacky because he didn¡¯t treat them like children. Noctis took Anna¡¯s pawn with his knight. ¡°Tomorrow,¡± he said, ¡°they may need your help, and they will not even think to ask for it because of how much they love you, so I will ask for it now.¡± ¡°Because you don¡¯t love us?¡± Jan said. Jacky leaned back in his chair. His elbows went to the side, and he interlaced his finger bones. ¡°I¡¯m asking because I love them, and I won¡¯t be able to help them. And because I believe you know everything there is to know about sacrifice.¡± Chapter 38 - Well Stay We were alone, sitting beside the fresh dug grave marked by a small evergreen tree. The sun had set, and the world was taking on the gray hue of a frozen twilight. The ground beneath us was icy, but the cold I felt came from the unfamiliar emptiness of being a ghost. ¡°What are we going to do?¡± Jacob asked. I didn¡¯t have an answer. Jan said, ¡°But we¡¯re dead.¡± I knew what he meant. We were dead. There was nothing we could do. I pulled both of them closer to me. ¡°We¡¯ll stay,¡± I said. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°We have to stay,¡± Jacob grumbled. ¡°Felice said¡ª¡± ¡°No. I want to stay.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because¡­it¡¯s what Dominie would have done. We can¡¯t do anything else, but if we guard him, we can keep the monster inside.¡± ¡°Guard him?¡± Jan said. ¡°Like a sentry?¡± ¡°Like a sentry. Or a soldier.¡± Jan sat up taller. ¡°If it would protect people,¡± I said, ¡°Dominie would have chosen to stay.¡± ¡°How do you know?¡± Jacob muttered. ¡°Because he protected us. He always tried to help people. Even in little ways. Even¡­the sisters.¡± ¡°Is this a little way?¡± Jan asked. ¡°It¡¯s a big-little. It keeps people safe, but all we have to do is watch.¡± ¡°I can do that.¡± Jan¡¯s unconscious confidence beamed out from him, and it felt like a ray of sunshine. All it was, was watching¡ªstaying with my beloved Dominie and watching the bones where the monster was sleeping. I realized Dominie was keeping people safe too. He didn¡¯t have a choice either, but I thought he would be glad if he knew¡­now that it was all he could do. ¡°Jacob, Jan, will you stay with me?¡± Chapter 39 - Race The air was dead still, like an airtight tomb. No. That was a¡­bad¡­example. It was like that, but the idea of comparing the entire town and its surrounding area to a tomb seemed too ominous for what we were doing. I tried to think of anything happy, cheerful, and alive that would also include the eerie atmosphere of a twilight rotting into an early night where the air was too scared to move. Then I decided maybe I didn¡¯t need to have exactly the right poetic image for a time like this. My grip tightened on the sledge handle, making the leather creak. That tiny noise seemed loud to me, even though there was no breeze to carry it further. Olivia had managed to rustle up some kind of a magical tool, and Noctis had paid an insane amount to have it shipped in pronto because ¡°overnight¡± was absolutely, positively not good enough. When the thing arrived, I was not allowed to stand within five feet of it for fear I might feel compelled to touch it and ruin everything. I would have felt insulted by that, but I was too busy wrestling with Kappa, who wanted to know what all the fuss was about. He wasn¡¯t even allowed to see it. Olivia said it would stop the wind. Conrad, the ghosts, and I had been approaching the edge of town when Noctis set it off. The choking stillness descended in an instant. We had no proof that witchcraft could trump wendigo magic, but we had to try. Twenty minutes had passed. That was more than enough time for me to learn to envy the children¡¯s patience. They sat on the bed of the sledge, never moving, never speaking. I had tried to talk Jacob and Jan into staying back where it was safe¡ªAnna, alone, should have been enough to tempt the monster¡ªbut the boys insisted that they stayed together. Much to my frustration, Anna agreed with them, and when I had appealed to Jacky, he said that the wendigo would be more likely to take the bait if all three children were there, even if it suspected a trap. ¡°We have to make it worth it. We may not get another chance.¡± The chance was already waning. A large-area spell doesn¡¯t last for long. The witch who¡¯d created the tool told us we could hope for a wind-free hour, but she could only guarantee us forty-five minutes. Under normal circumstances. And now twenty-five minutes of it were gone. My nervous anticipation had simmered down to a low-level tension, but my senses were still on high alert, so when Conrad twitched, I saw it out of the corner of my eye. My head whipped around to look at him. He raised his nose. I turned. The town was far enough away, all I could see were the shapes of light and shadow. A part of one of those shadows looked thicker than the rest. As I stared, the black figure moved. It was running toward us and coming fast. I let out a panicked ¡°Ulp!¡± that should have been a more articulate ¡°Go!¡± but Conrad got the message. While Conrad heaved on the line, I tried to push from the back. The runners broke out from the snow and started moving. I ran behind the sledge, pushing for as long as I could, then, when it started to pull away, I jumped on the foot boards. Our course was made of level or downhill runs, so we were able to keep ahead of the wendigo, in spite of its head start. That was no lucky accident. We had spent all of yesterday and most of that day going over every last detail of our plan, trying to manipulate everything to our best advantage. The biggest debate had been about using the sledge. A car would have been faster, but we wanted the confrontation to happen away from the roads, and there was too much risk that the SUV might get caught in a drift somewhere. The sledge wouldn¡¯t have that problem. We raced away from the town¡ªaway from all those innocent people. Every minute I would glance behind us to see if the wendigo was still there. It was catching up, but I didn¡¯t bother telling Conrad to hurry. He was already running for all his worth. The sledge shuddered from the speed. The next time I glanced back, the creature was gone. A cold sense of foreboding clenched around my stomach. I scanned the shadows of the trees around us, looking for any movement. Come on, eyes, don¡¯t let me down now! When I saw the whip of darkness moving to my left, I yelled for Conrad to turn. He shifted our course to the right so fast that I had to lean so the sledge wouldn¡¯t tip. I should have had a year¡¯s worth of experience before attempting that ride, but desperation made me brave things I never would have tried otherwise¡ªdodging across the landscape, threading our way between the trees, taking jumps that made the sledge shake when it landed. My eyes only faced forward one second at a time. The rest of the time, I was watching our sides, hoping to catch any hint of where the wendigo might be. I glimpsed another flutter in the darkness and yelled for Conrad to go right, but he didn¡¯t change course. That meant we were too close to our destination. We couldn¡¯t let the wendigo drive us to where he wanted to go; we had to force him to follow us to where the others were waiting. This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it Our straight-line path was decided. The last leg of the race would go only to the swift. Conrad¡¯s wolf form verses the windless wendigo. I looked behind me. It was there. The blur of forms surged toward us. It was close enough I could see the leak of its warm breath curl around its horns. I faced forward, praying I might see the end of our run¡ªan end that didn¡¯t involve claws raking down my back. There it was! The green shimmer of waiting magic. The circle was huge¡ªeasily fifteen feet across. Olivia and Iset stood on the other side of it, watching as we sped toward them. The magic circle rippled like water as we sped into it, then past it. I hauled on the break as Conrad slowed. Before the sledge had completely stopped moving, I jumped off and stumbled toward Conrad. I had two jobs. Only two jobs. First, get Conrad free. I bit both mittens and ripped my hands out so I could get the toggle out of his tug line as fast as possible. Once he was loose, we turned and ran back to the circle. The ghosts were right behind us. The children and I stopped by Olivia. Conrad sprinted to where Darius was struggling with the wendigo. My second job was to watch. Had it smelled witchcraft? Or was it like me, and it could see the magic circle? For whatever reason, it had stopped before charging into the trap. We had wondered if it would, so Darius had decided to be there, in case it needed encouragement. The count¡¯s encouragement was terrifying. He was using all his vampire strength to force the monster into the circle. The two brutes wrestled and pulled on each other with enough power to shift boulders. The wendigo had kept its strength and speed even in its human body, but the longer it fought with Darius, the more I could see it was missing its claws and teeth. Its beast form tried to bite and slash, but the weapons made no mark. When Darius wrapped his arms around the creature¡¯s chest, pinning its arms to its side, I saw the wendigo start to lift away from the human husk. ¡°Darius, it¡¯s trying to leave!¡± Conrad rushed in, crunched his jaws around the man¡¯s thigh, and jerked him toward the circle. The pain of the bite robbed the wendigo of its power, and it was dragged past the glowing line. The circle turned a vivid blue, and the spell smashed the wendigo to the ground. The force holding it there was so powerful that its chest couldn¡¯t flex as it panted. Conrad and Darius ran out of the circle. Olivia walked forward. She didn¡¯t speak. She only held out her hand and stared at the thing. The human husk didn¡¯t move, but the wendigo started thrashing. Beside me, Iset said, ¡°Is it working?¡± ¡°It¡¯s doing something,¡± I said. Iset took a step toward Olivia. ¡°Keep going.¡± Darius and Conrad stayed at the edge of the circle, watching for any hint of who was winning or losing the invisible struggle. I could see nothing between Olivia and the monster, but a faint aura started to gather around her, and the creature¡¯s thrashing, which had been scattered in all directions, became focused away from the witch, like it was yanking against a leash. I ran forward. ¡°I think it¡¯s working!¡± Iset removed the lid from the time capsule. Olivia wasn¡¯t even trembling. She was as rigid as a wire stretched to its breaking point. The wendigo had stopped thrashing, but it was still resisting. Its head and shoulders had been pulled free from its borrowed body, but the rest of it strained to stay where it was. Its claws dug through the body, into the ground below it. Olivia whispered, ¡°Come.¡± The strain between them was strong enough that I thought the air might rip apart, but the wendigo didn¡¯t move. Olivia¡¯s face was pale. The sheen of sweat on her face shimmered in the blue light. I moaned. ¡°What is it?¡± Iset said. ¡°I¡­don¡¯t think she¡¯s strong enough.¡± Then, beside me, around me, like the fleeting spirits of three winter hares, the children dashed into the circle. ¡°No!¡± I screamed Iset dropped the capsule and grabbed my arm as I lunged after them. ¡°You can¡¯t,¡± she yelled in my ear. ¡°They¡¯re spirits! There¡¯s nothing you can do!¡± ¡°My ghosts,¡± I cried. The children danced around the creature. Their translucent forms looked like flashes of moonlight against the shadows. When the wendigo lifted its claws to swipe at Jan, it lurched further from the human body pinned to the ground. It drove its claws back into the earth. Iset squeezed my arm when she saw the mounds of dirt and snow bubble up, seemingly from nowhere. It couldn¡¯t lift its claws. With an abrupt laugh, the children rushed in. Jacob and Jan each grabbed one of its shoulders. When the thing tried to bite Anna, she grabbed its horns and pulled, forcing its long face into the ground. Anna called the commands. They all heaved together. ¡°Emerra?¡± Olivia yelled. ¡°It¡¯s coming!¡± I felt a breeze chill the tears on my cheeks. ¡°We have to get it now¡ªthe wind¡¯s waking up.¡± Iset and I dropped to the ground to pick up the container. I passed her the lid. She walked to the edge of the circle and knelt down while I stood over her. ¡°Get ready,¡± I said. The human husk was pulled so hard, it was bent like a longbow. The wendigo was holding on by nothing but the tips of its claws. Then it was suddenly free. The human body slammed back to the earth while the wendigo tumbled into the wind that rose to catch it. ¡°Now!¡± I yelled. The children skipped out of reach, like they were playing¡ªlike it was nothing but one of our hopeless games of tag where I could never touch them. The wendigo¡¯s claws and teeth found only air as it was dragged into the small time capsule, despite the storm-force wind rushing the other way. Iset slammed the lid on. The wind died. The light from the circle faded, and all I could hear was Iset chanting as she locked and sealed the container. Darius, Olivia and I gathered around her. Olivia took out a hunk of clay from her coat pocket and handed to Iset. Iset pressed it over the lip and body of the capsule. The clay was thick enough to create a flat surface. From the other pocket, Olivia took out a worn stone. I recognized it from the library. The first time I saw it, I¡¯d asked Iset what it was. She¡¯d said it was her seal. Her voice had been casual, but when all the hairs on my arms stood up, I decided to put it back and never touch it again. Olivia handed Iset the seal. The mummy pressed the stamp into the clay, and for a moment, the color of the world waned. The gray tone was gone before my brain had even registered it was there. As I stared at the capsule, I thought I heard a whisper. ¡°Iset?¡± Darius said. She looked up at me for confirmation. When I nodded, she said to the vampire, ¡°It¡¯s done.¡± Olivia collapsed. No grace. No dignity. She went from standing to sitting on the ground in one flop. ¡°I¡¯m tired,¡± she groaned. I stood over her. ¡°You¡¯re amazing¡ªthat¡¯s what you are, Olivia Oliversen. You¡¯re more stubborn than a monster!¡± She blushed. ¡°And thank god for it,¡± Darius said. Darius and I turned. He walked over to the ruined figure still lying on the ground. I ran over to Anna, Jacob, and Jan. ¡°And you!¡± I cried. I dropped to my knees and tried to gather them to me. It was as useless as trying to hug fog, but they came and sat down with me so we could at least be close. ¡°You guys scared me so bad!¡± Jacob tried to sooth me. ¡°But we did it, Emerra!¡± His voice was tight with repressed excitement. My laugh sounded a bit like a sob. ¡°Yes. You did it. You¡¯re so brave. Now promise me you¡¯ll never be brave again!¡± Jan looked confused. ¡°But¡ª¡± ¡°Never ever!¡± Anna promised they would never be brave again. Unless they had to. Chapter 40 - Christmas Eve I was in the sitting room, relaxing in the armchair in front of the fire, when I felt a presence sitting in the other chair. ¡°Merry Christmas Eve, Emerra.¡± I smiled. ¡°Merry Christmas Eve, Jacky.¡± ¡°Did I say that right?¡± ¡°Close enough. What matters is that you made it back before tomorrow morning.¡± ¡°That matters?¡± I rubbed my forehead. ¡°Yes, Jacky. Come and go all you want¡ªI¡¯d never tell death what to do¡ªbut you¡¯re still an important member of this house. It¡¯s good to have everyone home on Christmas.¡± He hummed, then said, ¡°Are the ghosts still here?¡± ¡°I put them to bed early.¡± ¡°But you didn¡¯t go to sleep? I thought that the earlier you went to sleep, the faster Christmas came.¡± ¡°You do know that¡¯s a joke, right? Most humans don¡¯t actually have the ability to change temporal reality.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± I gazed at the flames. ¡°I wasn¡¯t sleepy.¡± ¡°Are you still having nightmares?¡± ¡°Sometimes. They remember almost everything now, so¡­yeah.¡± I looked at him. The firelight reflected oddly off the matte bone of his skull. ¡°What will happen to them?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. They exist in a state that¡¯s outside of life¡¯s normal process. I had wondered if they would disappear once their contract with the wendigo was dismantled, but apparently, your attention was enough to give them an extended existence.¡± ¡°Is that a good thing?¡± ¡°Good for whom? Them? Or you?¡± When Jacky heard my quiet laugh, he shifted and grumbled, ¡°I¡¯m afraid the universe in general is indifferent, but they seem to be enjoying their time here.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good then. I¡¯m glad they¡¯re here.¡± I took a deep breath. ¡°Do you think we could keep them forever?¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid not. You¡¯ve been a good friend to them. I don¡¯t think they¡¯d be willing to harm you like that, and their presence would wear you out. ¡°Then what do we do?¡± ¡°If a solution doesn¡¯t present itself, we¡¯ll have to go find one.¡± ¡°Can we wait? At least a day?¡± Jacky regarded me with the pits of his eye sockets. ¡°You want everyone here on Christmas?¡± I nodded. ¡°I promise I¡¯ll do nothing, but I can¡¯t promise anything more than that.¡± ¡°Thank you, Jacky!¡± ¡°You sound so happy about having them here. And yet, because of them, you¡¯re delaying Christmas by sitting up to avoid a nightmare.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m not going to have a nightmare tonight. Tonight I have to dream about dancing sugar plums. Those are the rules.¡± ¡°What¡¯s a sugar plum?¡± ¡°I have no idea.¡± The mansion sighed as the wind pressed on it from outside, but the cold was held at bay by the walls, the register, and the fire. The storm only made the house feel cozier. Jacky said, ¡°Do you know how Mr. Bhaird is doing?¡± My frown was there and gone in a second, but I knew the thought of Mr. Bhaird would always bother me. ¡°It¡¯s probably a good thing his mind is gone,¡± I said. ¡°They found the other two bodies in his house, and there¡¯s no way he could explain he didn¡¯t do it.¡± ¡°He has no memories?¡± ¡°No memories. He can¡¯t talk. It¡¯s like he¡¯s empty.¡± ¡°So the victim who can¡¯t defend himself becomes the scapegoat,¡± Jacky said. Darius had said something similar two nights ago, but at least he¡¯d had the decency to look upset as he said it. Noctis went on, ¡°I¡¯ll talk to the Torr. I think he¡¯ll receive more sympathetic treatment with them than he would in a normal facility.¡± ¡°Thank you, Jacky. That would mean a lot to me.¡± ¡°Why?¡± I blinked and looked up at him. ¡°Did you know Mr. Bhaird?¡± he asked. ¡°I have to say, I¡¯m surprised you¡¯re fond of him. I¡¯ve had to work with him before¡ªhe was a rather difficult man.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know him, but I know he didn¡¯t deserve what happened to him.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but I fail to see why it would matter so much to you.¡± My mouth opened and closed several times as my brain churned over what I should and shouldn¡¯t say. ¡°Ah,¡± Jacky said, turning back to watch the fire. ¡°You feel guilty.¡± Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. My face flushed, but my embarrassment had to share space with my amusement and disbelief. ¡°And how do you know that, Mr. Noctis?¡± ¡°From long association with Darius Vasil¡ªthough, he¡¯s gotten better about that. I believe the usurpation of godhood is a folly reserved mostly for the young.¡± ¡°Excuse me?¡± ¡°What else would you call the assumption that a person would have both the power and responsibility to make everything perfect and just?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that.¡± ¡°Then what does your sense of guilt indicate?¡± ¡°It means I wish I could make everything perfect and just, and I know it¡¯s my fault this happened.¡± ¡°Because you cut down the tree?¡± I nodded. ¡°Even though it was a perfectly innocent action and you knew no better?¡± ¡°Yup! I guess I¡¯m still young enough to be disappointed that I¡¯m not a god.¡± He stared at me for a moment, then looked away. ¡°As long as it pleases you.¡± ¡°Jacky, what did you do with the wendigo?¡± ¡°The Canadian Torr didn¡¯t want to take responsibility for it, and Mr. Tremblay¡¯s enthusiasm over being its custodian made me feel wary, so I decided to take it up north and leave it there.¡± ¡°You just¡­buried it?¡± ¡°Killing it would have been impossible as well as immoral. It was a creature, killing and eating to survive. I understand why you would abhor its particular methods more than most, but it had done nothing wrong.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not the issue! Please tell me you at least took it far away from any town before you buried it.¡± There was a microscopic pause that poured an extra dose of concern on my already humming nerves. ¡°I didn¡¯t bury it,¡± he said, ¡°and I¡¯m under no obligation to protect people. You need to learn that. My role is different. It¡¯s natural that you and the others would have different goals than I do.¡± ¡°What did you do with the container, Jacky?¡± I hadn¡¯t meant to use my mom-voice¡ªI wasn¡¯t even supposed to have a mom-voice¡ªbut there was a particular tone I had learned to rely on whenever Jacob was evading my questions. I had honed it to the point I could make death squirm. ¡°I dropped it,¡± Jacky said. ¡°Where did you drop it?¡± He waved his skeletal hand. ¡°Somewhere north of the Queen Elizabeth Islands. In the Canada Basin, I think.¡± ¡°You dropped it in the Arctic Ocean?¡± ¡°¡­Yes.¡± I grinned. ¡°I take it that meets with your approval?¡± he said. ¡°No wonder it took you four days to get home.¡± I wagged my finger at him. ¡°But I thought you weren¡¯t obligated to protect people.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not, but I will protect my household.¡± ¡°I do feel safer.¡± I sighed, then said, ¡°The box we put the container in was rated to handle those kinds of conditions, right?¡± ¡°Iset made sure of it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m glad.¡± After a short silence, Noctis said, ¡°You know it¡¯ll get out one day. That¡¯s inevitable.¡± ¡°I know.¡± I looked over at him. ¡°This mean old man I know recently told me I¡¯m not omnipotent, so I guess I¡¯ll have to accept that. We did the best we could.¡± ¡°You did. And you did well.¡± He looked at the carriage clock sitting on the mantle, almost hidden by all the garlands and decorations I had put around it. ¡°It¡¯s getting late,¡± he observed. ¡°You should go to bed.¡± ¡°Maybe I should look up what a sugar plum is first.¡± ¡°Emerra, Santa Claus doesn¡¯t come until you¡¯re asleep. There are rules.¡± I managed to keep from laughing, but I rolled my eyes as I got off my chair. ¡°Well, if it¡¯s for Santa, I guess I could go to bed.¡± I figured that would be easier than trying to explain to Jacky why I kept talking about a nonexistent person as if he was real. ¡°Good night, Emerra.¡± ¡°Good night, Jacky.¡± Jack Noctis remained in his armchair for an hour that he couldn¡¯t perceive. It was marked by the darkness and warmed by the light of the lamps and the fire. A strange stillness stole over the house. Even Iset and Darius, who were usually active at night, fell silent, and the few mice that Jacky indulged paused in their cracks and holes. And, for a fraction of a second, the flames held still. Anyone else would have assumed it was a trick of their eyes, but Jacky didn¡¯t have eyes, and he didn¡¯t know what a second was or what a fraction of one might feel like. The flames had stopped moving, and he had seen it. There was a quiet clack off to his side, then a rustle. He didn¡¯t even turn his skull. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve had a raven in my house,¡± Jacky said. A man¡¯s voice, low but cheerful, answered: ¡°I know. They¡¯re not supposed to follow me these days, but when he heard it was your house¡ªwell, there was no stopping him.¡± ¡°I think we¡¯ve always gotten along well.¡± There was a flutter of black, and a raven perched on the arm of the chair next to Jacky¡¯s hand. Noctis raised one of his skeletal fingers. The bird pushed his face against it. ¡°He agrees,¡± the man said. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect it to be you.¡± The man shrugged his broad shoulders. ¡°There are some who say I shouldn¡¯t be here.¡± ¡°I¡¯m one of them. How did you get in?¡± ¡°I was invited.¡± The man pointed with a large, rough finger to the decorations on the mantle. Jacky sighed. ¡°I specifically told her, no gods.¡± ¡°Not even me, old friend?¡± At last, Jacky looked around. The man was tall, and every inch of his skin was as rough as his hands. His hair and beard were a shaggy mat of white and gray. He wore a fur-lined cloak that might have once been a deep red, but it had been dulled by time. A shadow fell across his face, hiding his right eye. He stood there, waiting, with a smile lurking at the edge of his lips. ¡°You may come in.¡± Jacky turned back to the fire. ¡°Have a seat.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± The man sighed loudly as he sat in the armchair next to Jacky. ¡°A long night?¡± Jacky asked. ¡°For me, the longest.¡± ¡°You answer to exaggerated socks now?¡± ¡°Times change. A wise god is glad whenever he¡¯s invited. Besides, I like my new role.¡± ¡°How have you been?¡± ¡°Oh, adapting. Enjoying myself. I¡¯ve become fashionable again¡ªwe¡¯ll see what happens with that.¡± ¡°Which you?¡± The man laughed. ¡°Have you found wisdom yet?¡± Jacky asked. ¡°A little bit every day. And how are you doing?¡± ¡°Busier than I could have imagined. I lost my freedom when I agreed to help them.¡± ¡°Did you gain anything?¡± Jacky put his elbows on the arms of his chair and interlaced his finger bones. ¡°I think I gained everything.¡± The edge of the man¡¯s mustache bent up. He watched the fire as he said, ¡°Sacrifice is a strange thing, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°It is.¡± The raven made a quiet noise and fluffed his wings. Jacky unlaced his hands to pet the bird¡¯s head and neck. ¡°Why are you here?¡± Jacky asked. ¡°If you came here as invited, I was under the impression you¡¯d at least have a sack.¡± The man shook his head. ¡°Not for this stop. I¡¯m here for the children.¡± ¡°The children?¡± The man put one of his rough hands to his face for a moment, then he moved it. ¡°It¡¯s been a long time since I¡¯ve been able to surprise you.¡± He sat up. ¡°But you remember, I¡¯ve been a courier before.¡± ¡°That was ages ago.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t forget the way.¡± ¡°What claim do you have over them? They aren¡¯t yours.¡± ¡°They are. They know several of my names, old and new. They¡¯re born from the lines of my people¡ª¡± ¡°You took warriors.¡± The man¡¯s voice boomed: ¡°They are warriors! They¡¯re brave and loyal, and they¡¯ve proven their worth for over three hundred years.¡± In a quieter voice, he added, ¡°Besides, they¡¯ve been very good children.¡± In the pause, the only sound that could be heard was the rippling flames. Even the raven was careful to be silent as he gazed with his shining black eyes between the two figures. ¡°And this is your gift to them?¡± Jacky said. ¡°The last and best I can give them¡ªsafe passage.¡± Noctis sighed. ¡°Emerra will be sad. She wanted to celebrate Christmas with them.¡± He tilted his skull. ¡°Can you wait?¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid not. I have more power tonight than any other. It has to be done before the sun rises.¡± ¡°She¡¯ll want to say goodbye.¡± ¡°That can¡¯t be. There are rules.¡± ¡°Yes. She knows.¡± Jacky tapped his finger bone on the arm rest. The raven bobbed his head to mimic the motion. ¡°Is there nothing we can do?¡± The old man rubbed his beard. ¡°There might be something. There was no letter, but she did invite me here¡­and she¡¯s generally been a good girl.¡± Chapter 41 - The Last Dream They were laughing. Jacob and Jan were laughing. I felt my heart fly in my ribs. It was the first time I¡¯d heard them laugh. Then I was watching Anna. She was sitting next to Jan, bent over his little body, teaching him how to put on his shoes. She moved his small hands for him at first, then she waited as he tried to do it himself. Off again. On again. She talked to him the whole time. She talked like she knew everything. Sometimes it drove me crazy. Sometimes it was comforting. Then I was in the garden, proudly gazing at the shoes I¡¯d put on myself. I heard Anna call my name. I looked up. She and Jacob were waiting for me. He was carrying the weeds. She was carrying the basket with a few early vegetables laying in the bottom. I jumped to my feet and ran over to them. I grabbed their hands, one from each of them, even though the door to the house was only a few feet away. Then I was there with all three of them. If I wasn¡¯t them, who was I? I blinked and looked around to orient myself. We were on the great landing. The small Christmas tree in front of us glowed with hundreds of tiny lights. My favorite quilt was wrapped around my body. Jan sat beside me. Anna was next to him. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. Jacob sat on the floor in front of the couch. ¡°I like it,¡± Jacob said. ¡°Yes,¡± Jan said. I couldn¡¯t turn my head to look, but I heard Anna¡¯s voice: Thank you, Emerra. For everything. I thought I felt someone beside my cot. I groaned and twisted in my sleep. My eyes opened only a crack. It was enough for me to see white and black. There was something in his hand. ¡°Jacky?¡± I muttered. ¡°Go back to sleep, Emerra.¡± His whisper carried an undertone that rang through the words. It wasn¡¯t a suggestion¡ªit was a statement of what would be. I couldn¡¯t fight it. I didn¡¯t want to. My eyes closed. They flew open hours later. I jerked upright, then got to my feet long before I was ready. I stumbled over to my bed and stood there, one hand on the frame, swaying as my groggy body got used to being upright. The bed was empty. I ran into the hall and over to the great landing. It was empty. The tree was dark. Everything was empty. The whole house felt empty. I ran down the front stairs. I didn¡¯t call their names. I didn¡¯t want to wake anyone, and some part of me knew it would be useless. When I went into the sitting room, I found Noctis standing by the fireplace. ¡°Jacky, where are my ghosts?¡± There was a long silence. Then he said, ¡°A solution presented itself.¡± Before he could say anything else, I bit both my lips and fled. The crawl back up the stairs took much longer than the descent. Conrad found me a few minutes later on the couch in front of the small tree. The Christmas lights were bright enough he could easily see the tear tracks on my face¡ªif he needed to see them. He probably knew I was crying because of the ugly, blubbering sniffles I let out every other second. ¡°Mera?¡± ¡°They¡¯re gone.¡± He sighed and sat down on the couch next to me. I put my head on his arm and blubbered into his fur. Chapter 42 - Christmas Morning After crying myself to the point of exhaustion, I fell asleep on poor Conrad. He was too kind to object. At eight in the morning, the chiming of the clock roused me partway to consciousness. Conrad put his arm around my shoulders and squeezed. ¡°Come on. It¡¯s Christmas morning, Mera. Time to wake up.¡± I rubbed my face in the fur of his upper arm. Then, realizing what I was doing, I pulled away. Too late. It was all mussed and matted. ¡°Geez.¡± I tried to pat it back into some kind of order. ¡°Sorry about that.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t bother. You got too much snot in it. I¡¯ll have to shower before we go downstairs.¡± I blushed. ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯re paid enough to put up with me.¡± ¡°You¡¯re my pack.¡± And that was that. The only answer he needed. ¡°Are you going to be all right?¡± he asked. I forced a smile. It was weak and felt strained, but I managed it. ¡°I have to be. It¡¯s Christmas, and I know you guys are mostly doing this for me. What kind of an ungrateful wretch would I be if I couldn¡¯t make with the cheer and the ¡®ho-ho-ho?¡¯¡± Conrad tilted his head. ¡°You know, I didn¡¯t realize how much I¡¯d missed Christmas trees until I saw them up this year. It might have started out for you, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s like that anymore.¡± He stood and helped me to my feet. ¡°You could use a shower too,¡± he said. I laughed. ¡°Tactless.¡± ¡°Honest,¡± he rejoined. ¡°Well, you¡¯re not wrong. I¡¯ll meet you downstairs. But first we¡¯ll have to get the others. Oh! Can I wake up Olivia?¡± ¡°Shower first.¡± I planned on waking up Olivia with a magnificent, off-key rendition of ¡°Jingle Bells,¡± but my performance was canceled. She was already awake and downstairs by the time I got out of my bath¡ªwhich I thought was really rude of her. She was waiting in the entrance hall with everyone else. Someone had gathered up a few chairs and put them around the Christmas tree. Jacky sat on one. Iset was on another. Darius, Olivia, and Conrad were all standing. The hall¡¯s side table was pulled away from the wall. It held oranges, apples, unshelled peanuts, and a selection of coffee and cocoa. Kappa was hiding under the table, staring at the presents with rapt attention. At first I wondered why he was there, but then I realized that might be as close as he was allowed to get. I paused halfway down the stairs so I could watch the scene and take a moment to feel like the luckiest person on the planet. I would miss my three little friends, but at least I wasn¡¯t alone. My sentimental moment ended when Darius glanced up from his cup of coffee and noticed me standing there. ¡°Good morning, Emerra,¡± he said. I grinned. ¡°Merry Christmas, all!¡± When I finished bounding down the stairs, Conrad handed me a mug. Inside was a half cocoa, half coffee, just the way I liked it. ¡°What took you so long?¡± he asked. I sipped the drink, then muttered to him, ¡°I couldn¡¯t find my phone.¡± ¡°You lost it?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll find it later.¡± We both looked around when Darius clapped his hands. ¡°All right, let¡¯s get this Christmas started. Now, before Kappa explodes from excitement, could someone please hand him his present.¡± I¡¯m pretty sure Kappa liked the rock Conrad gave him. He didn¡¯t say he did¡ªhe was too busy staring at it to say anything. To me it looked gray and boring, but he reverently lifted it out of the box and glommed onto it with both hands and both feet. The way he gazed at it made me wonder if the answers to all the great mysteries of the universe were hidden there. Olivia got a brand-new set of the highest quality potion-making equipment possible. It was from Igor. The man knew the importance of good tools, and when you thought about it, there wasn¡¯t much difference between cooking a fine soup and brewing a potion. I got unreasonably excited when Jacky opened his present from Darius. It was Pente¡ªone of the few two-player strategy games Jack Noctis didn¡¯t already own, and my personal favorite. Jacky held up the box. ¡°You know this game?¡± ¡°There was a copy in the hospital,¡± I explained. ¡°And you like it?¡± ¡°Sure! It¡¯s fast, and the rules are easy. Even I can play it.¡± Jacky hummed. ¡°Hey! Just because the rules are easy doesn¡¯t mean the game is easy.¡± ¡°But if even you can play it¡ª¡± ¡°That¡¯s it! You and me! After breakfast! I hope you like the taste of humble pie.¡± ¡°Emerra, you know I can¡¯t eat.¡± Iset loved the amethyst geode Kappa gave her. When she was able to drag his attention away from his own rock long enough to thank him for it, he padded over and sat in front of her chair to inspect it. ¡°Kappa,¡± I said, ¡°remember that¡¯s hers. You gave it to her.¡± ¡°Rock with teeth.¡± He gnashed his own teeth. Iset laughed and hauled him up onto her lap so they could look at their rocks together. My package was big, awkward, and seemed to be several boxes wrapped together. It was from Iset, and when I opened it, I let out an involuntary gasp. Her voice floated over my shoulders as I gawked at the array of paper, brushes, and art supplies. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I didn¡¯t know your favorite medium. I wasn¡¯t even sure if you knew. If you find something you like, I hope you¡¯ll tell me so we can get you better supplies. And if you run out of anything, let me know.¡± The count leaned over my precious hoard. ¡°That¡¯s not a bad idea. You can carry around a sketchbook and pencil in case you have another vision.¡± ¡°Darius,¡± Iset chided, ¡°this isn¡¯t about her visions. She likes art.¡± ¡°Right. Right. I mean¡±¡ªhe motioned to the Christmas tree and all my homemade ornaments¡ª¡°she¡¯s got a talent for creativity. But still.¡± Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. I opened the biggest box. There were charcoal pencils, colored pencils, pastels, markers, and crayons. The overwhelming amount of colors made me feel richer than a queen. All I could manage to say was ¡°Thank you, Iset!¡± but I made it nice and loud. Maybe that would get my feelings across. Conrad opened his gift while we all looked on. ¡°Movies.¡± He sounded puzzled. I didn¡¯t blame him. It was quite the eclectic collection. There was Winged Migration, The Illusionist, and Inception, as well as The Godfather and Spirited Away. ¡°Look inside,¡± I said. ¡°You have to open them again.¡± He gave me an odd look, but he opened one of the cases. On the inner left side was a note. Since he¡¯d opened Spirited Away, it happened to be my note. My name was on the outside of the neatly folded paper. On the inside was the letter I had written while Olivia stood over me, glaring, since I had put the job off until Christmas Eve. ¡°I know you¡¯re a movie buff,¡± Olivia explained, ¡°so I got you a copy of our favorite movies and had everyone write about why they liked them so much.¡± ¡°That¡¯s really thoughtful, Olivia.¡± You could hear the sincerity in Conrad¡¯s voice. The guy was touched. ¡°Thank you. I look forward to watching them.¡± Darius motioned to the remaining box under the tree. ¡°Is that last one mine then?¡± Noctis stood up. ¡°Uh, no. I¡¯m afraid I didn¡¯t know how to wrap your gift¡ªmore than it was already wrapped.¡± He reached into his suit coat, pulled out an envelope, and passed it over to the count. Darius raised an eyebrow as he examined the blank envelope. Then he opened it. When he saw the contents, he laughed. That ratcheted my self-satisfaction up a notch or two. And the fun was only beginning. ¡°What is it?¡± Iset asked. ¡°It¡¯s a ticket for an upcoming Philharmonic show,¡± Darius said. When he went to pull out the ticket, his smile wavered, so I knew he¡¯d caught his mistake even before Jacky corrected him. ¡°There are two tickets,¡± Noctis said. ¡°I¡¯ve been informed that two tickets are the traditional gift. In case you want to bring a companion.¡± The count cleared his throat, let out a quiet ¡°ah,¡± then raised his eyes. The first thing he saw was my evil grin. Who was he going to take? That was the million-dollar question. With perverse joy, I watched the vampire consider his options. Conrad sat back, secure in the knowledge that he was exempt. Jacky clearly had no idea what was going on, and a man that obtuse probably wouldn¡¯t know how to enjoy a concert. I didn¡¯t think Darius would waste the ticket. Sure enough, his eyes glided right over Noctis. There wasn¡¯t a good answer, so Vasil settled for an easy one. After all, he knew I had been the one behind the tickets in the first place. ¡°Emerra?¡± If he thought I was going to let him get away without asking me directly, he had another think coming. I was ready to yank those words out with pliers if I had to. I hummed politely to show I was listening. ¡°Would you¡­would you like to come?¡± I raised my nose high in the air and announced, ¡°Classical music is a snoozefest for people that have no sense of rhythm.¡± He knew he deserved that. You could tell by his smirk. He turned to the witch. ¡°Olivia?¡± She took a breath in through her teeth. ¡°Gosh. A whole evening listening to a bunch of strings squeak out a melody that¡¯s older than dirt. Tempting, but I¡¯m going to be busy that night.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t suppose it matters which night it is?¡± ¡°Nope!¡± He started looking around again. Before he thought about inviting Igor, I decided to nudge him in the proper direction. ¡°You should take Iset!¡± ¡°That¡¯s a great idea!¡± Olivia said. ¡°She likes music.¡± ¡°And I could do a charm so she could go out in public.¡± Olivia said to the mummy, ¡°That would be really good practice, don¡¯t you think?¡± Despite the bandages, I could sense the amusement and embarrassment pouring off her. ¡°I don¡¯t usually go out,¡± she said. ¡°Which can¡¯t be healthy,¡± I said. Olivia and I stared at Darius. The count knew he¡¯d been had. He gave both of us a look before turning to the mummy. ¡°What do you say, Iset? Would you be kind enough to accompany me?¡± That was the longest second of at least three lives: the count¡¯s, Olivia¡¯s, and mine. As it stretched on, I began to wonder if Iset might say no. That possibility had never occurred to me. To my intense relief, she said, ¡°Yes, Darius. I would enjoy that.¡± I was going to treasure the memory of that vampire¡¯s smile for the rest of my second life. When he finally managed to subdue it, he turned back to the tree. ¡°Then that last present?¡± ¡°It¡¯s for Igor,¡± I said. ¡°Why isn¡¯t he out here?¡± ¡°I invited him, but he claimed he was too busy,¡± Noctis said. ¡°He couldn¡¯t pause for five minutes?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what he said. I didn¡¯t want to argue with him.¡± Did Igor really think he could get out of it that easily? Ha! I picked up the package. ¡°Then I¡¯ll take it to him.¡± Not surprisingly, Igor was in the kitchen, grumbling away as he worked. What was surprising was the number of pots and cutting boards scattered over the counters. ¡°Igor,¡± I said, ¡°you didn¡¯t come out to open presents.¡± ¡°No, I didn¡¯t,¡± he said. ¡°I have work to do. Didn¡¯t you hear? I have to do a feast! I was up at five this morning.¡± ¡°You¡¯re a king, Igor! Master of your craft and beloved by all the peasants.¡± He sniffed at me. ¡°What are you doing here? If you want breakfast, it¡¯s going to be cold cereal. You can manage that, can¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Not a problem. I can fix it however you want. Milk first. Cereal first. I¡¯m well trained.¡± ¡°Then shoo.¡± ¡°But I have your present!¡± ¡°Who¡¯s it from?¡± ¡°Me!¡± ¡°Oh, lord.¡± I bounced over and prodded him with the box. ¡°Please, Igor! I want to see your face when you open it.¡± ¡°I¡¯m busy, Emerra.¡± I gazed around at the neat stacks of ingredients. Each pile was waiting its turn while he moved from project to project¡ªnever hurrying, but never pausing. ¡°I can open if for you,¡± I suggested. He glanced at me. I finished with, ¡°Then all you¡¯ll have to do is look up.¡± There was a thoughtful pause, then he scoffed. ¡°You just want to tear open another present.¡± I tried my puppy-dog eyes on him. ¡°Oh, fine,¡± he said. ¡°Thank you, Igor!¡± I moved over to the dining table, where I wouldn¡¯t be in his way, stripped the ribbon, tore off the wrapping paper and lifted the lid away from the box. Then I turned and held up the gift for the admiration of my audience. Igor raised his eyes for the agreed millisecond. He froze in the middle of his double-take and stared. ¡°Is that¡­¡± ¡°Yup!¡± I chirped. ¡°I noticed your old apron was getting pretty worn, so I got you a new one!¡± He stared some more. I grinned. ¡°Do you hate it?¡± His strangled answer was ¡°You know¡­I really, really do.¡± I laughed. It was a high-quality apron, but across the chest, in bold letters, it read, KISS THE COOK. Beside that was a lurid red lip print. ¡°Come on!¡± I motioned to him with it. ¡°Let¡¯s try it on.¡± I made him take off his old apron, then dropped the new one over his head. As he put the other one down, I went around behind him to tie the bow. Then I turned him around so I could look at it. ¡°Oh, wow,¡± I said, ¡°that is awful.¡± He looked down at himself with a lopsided smile. ¡°Ghastly.¡± ¡°See! Now, if you ever want something to complain about, you can wear this and talk about how hideous it is!¡± He eyed me with the larger of his two eyes. ¡°You¡¯re a strange creature, Emerra Cole.¡± I leaned in and kissed his cheek. ¡°Thank you for all your hard work, Igor.¡± ¡°Back, imp!¡± He fended me off with a wooden spoon. ¡°Out!¡± I stole his old apron so he couldn¡¯t put it back on and yelled Merry Christmas as I went. I didn¡¯t bother telling him about the apron I¡¯d left in the package. I figured he¡¯d see it when he went to throw the box away. It was nothing but a boring copy of his old apron¡ªyou know, for the days he already had enough to complain about. Jacky was waiting for me by the dining room. ¡°Emerra, there¡¯s one last gift for you.¡± ¡°Under the tree?¡± ¡°No.¡± He beckoned me with his skeletal finger. I followed him into the sitting room. We stood in front of the fireplace. From the way he was watching me, I figured I was missing something. I glanced around, trying to clue in to what that might be. ¡°The stockings,¡± he said. ¡°I thought that was traditional.¡± Maybe Jacky was getting the hang of Christmas. ¡°Did Santa leave it for me?¡± I asked. ¡°No, I did.¡± Or not. I went over to the middle stocking. Something in it was tugging the fabric of the toe into a right angle. I reached in and pulled out my cell. As I stared at the phone in my hand, Jacky went on, ¡°However, our visitor last night was the author and constructor of the gift, so he deserves the credit.¡± ¡°You were by my bed last night.¡± ¡°Yes. I hope you don¡¯t mind the intrusion.¡± I turned to him, more puzzled than ever. ¡°Jacky, you gave me this phone months ago.¡± ¡°You misunderstand. The gift isn¡¯t the phone, it¡¯s on your phone. Check the photos.¡± My heartbeat started to speed up. By the time I opened my gallery app, my fingers were shaking. Jacky came up behind me and looked over my shoulder. ¡°He said that he had to be in the shot or they wouldn¡¯t show up.¡± Noctis shrugged. ¡°But it¡¯s possible he just likes publicity.¡± It was Jacob, Jan, and Anna. All of them were smiling, or, in Jan¡¯s case, laughing. An old man in a red fur-lined cloak had his arms around them. His smiling face was close to theirs. A tiny ¡°how?¡± managed to squeeze around the lump in my throat. I had tried. The gods knew, we had tried to photograph them, tried to record them, tried to get any form of digital evidence that they were real. It never worked. Not even when they were standing in the magic circle. Jacky said, ¡°My understanding is that this season has a special kind of magic. It makes things possible.¡± I covered my mouth with my other hand. ¡°I don¡¯t normally take photographs,¡± Jacky said, ¡°but Jacob coached me on how to do it, and they insisted we keep trying until we got one that he and Anna approved of. Do you like it?¡± He sounded nervous. What must have been the last two tears in my entire body squeezed out and ran down my cheeks. I swallowed and looked up at Jacky. ¡°It¡¯s perfect.¡± Epilogue - Two Weeks Later Almost two weeks later, Darius, Conrad, and I were hanging out in the entrance hall. Well¡­Darius was hanging out. It was the night of the concert, and he was waiting for Iset. To keep himself busy, he fidgeted with everything from his cufflinks to his collar. Every three seconds, he glanced at the hall¡¯s mirror to check out how he looked. I was there because Darius didn¡¯t have enough money to pay me to go away. There probably wasn¡¯t enough money in the world. I¡¯m not sure why Conrad was there, but I assumed he didn¡¯t want to miss it either. ¡°Are you nervous?¡± I asked. ¡°I¡¯m not nervous,¡± Darius said. I glanced over at Conrad. The wolfman gave me a knowing look and nodded. I grinned. The count really must have been on edge because he somehow heard that. Or maybe he saw it in the mirror. He turned. ¡°I¡¯m not nervous. It¡¯s just¡­it¡¯s going to be different.¡± I walked over to him. ¡°What are you doing?¡± he asked. ¡°I¡¯m fixing your tie.¡± ¡°Emerra, I think I know how to tie a tie better than you.¡± I tugged on the thing at his neck. ¡°Is this even a tie? Geez! How¡ª? Okay, so you tied it like a tie. Is this a cravat?¡± He jerked the cloth out of my hands. ¡°It¡¯s not a cravat.¡± He grumbled, ¡°A vampire in a cravat. A little clich¨¦, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°A lot clich¨¦, but that¡¯s not a normal tie. It¡¯s all loose and silky.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a ruche tie¡ªa more fashionable tie for semi-formal occasions.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, Count Vasil. It does look better than a normal tie. Very fashionable.¡± I reached out and grabbed it. ¡°And now I¡¯m going to fix it.¡± Darius sighed and dropped his hands. ¡°It was straight.¡± ¡°I know. I¡¯m un-straightening it.¡± He almost took it from me again, but I slapped his hand away. ¡°Look, Darius, when was the last time you went on a date?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have to answer that question.¡± ¡°So, like, a hundred years ago? You may know everything there is to know about fashionable clothes and how to tie a tie, but I¡¯m the expert on dating around here.¡± ¡°God help us,¡± Conrad muttered behind me. After shooting the wolfman a glare, I returned my attention to the no-I-swear-it¡¯s-not-a-cravat. ¡°Whenever you go on a date, you make sure your tie is a little loose and off-center, so when the lovely lady of your choice sees it, she has to come in nice and close to fix it for you. Everybody wins! This is, literately, the only purpose of a tie.¡± ¡°I always wondered what they were for,¡± Conrad said. When I let go, Darius went to fix it, until I yelled, ¡°Hands down!¡± He gave me an exasperated look but obeyed. ¡°And you¡¯ll remember to compliment her,¡± I said. ¡°This is a requirement.¡± If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°I know,¡± Darius grumbled. ¡°Okay. Iset should be down any minute, so we¡¯ll make ourselves scarce. Have fun.¡± I¡¯d only gone a few steps before Darius called my name. When I turned back, he said, ¡°Thank you.¡± I gave him a thumbs up. After turning down the hall, I dodged behind the arched doorway of the sitting room. Conrad leaned around so he could see me. ¡°Are you really going to hang around here and spy on them?¡± ¡°Of course, I am!¡± I whispered. I laid my finger over my lips. Conrad shook his head and kept walking. It was roughly two minutes later when I heard Olivia and Iset descending the front stairs. I peeked around the corner. Olivia was saying, ¡°It¡¯s going to be a bit like Cinderella, except you have way past midnight until it wears off, and please don¡¯t lose those shoes¡ªthat would be a crime.¡± They stopped at the bottom of the stairs. ¡°All right, Olivia. I understand.¡± Iset put her hands on Olivia¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Thank you.¡± Olivia nodded, then turned and came down the hallway toward me. I was not surprised when she turned into the sitting room, just like I had, and she did not seem surprised to see me. We nodded to each other and scurried over to the arch that opened onto the front hall. I crouched while Olivia peered over me. Iset was dressed in a slim purple gown. She had on high black boots I recognized from Olivia¡¯s closet. They were dressy enough for the occasion, and they would keep out the snow. Over her shoulders was a dark, faux-fur cape that looked luxurious enough I wanted to pet it. The outfit was amazing, but to me, Iset looked about the same as always¡ªan emaciated body wrapped in bandages. From the way Darius reacted, he was seeing something different. ¡°Good evening, Darius,¡± Iset said. Darius had to clear his throat before he could answer her. ¡°Iset. You look¡­beautiful¡­this evening.¡± She stepped closer. ¡°Silly. You know this isn¡¯t what I really look like. You should be complementing Olivia and all the hard work she put into the charm.¡± ¡°True, but you wear it so well.¡± He took her hand and kissed it. Iset laughed. My misty eyes were making it hard for me to see, so I whispered to Olivia, ¡°What does she look like to you?¡± Olivia glanced down at me, then looked back up. ¡°Long curly black hair. Darker, sepia-colored skin. Dark brown eyes. She described what she used to look like. I did my best to copy that.¡± She looked at me. ¡°What does she look like to you?¡± I shrugged in a helpless kind of way. ¡°Happy.¡± When Iset stepped in close to Vasil to straighten his tie, Olivia put her hand on my shoulder. ¡°That¡¯s better,¡± Iset said. ¡°Shall we go?¡± Darius offered her his arm. They left. Once the door was closed, Olivia and I straightened up and stepped out into the front hall. ¡°They grow up so fast,¡± I said with a sigh. ¡°I know.¡± ¡°Hey, Olivia, thanks. I couldn¡¯t have done it without you.¡± Since I was barely out of spy mode, I jumped when the front door opened. It was only Conrad. He came in, brushed the light drift of snow out of his fur, and started taking off his boots. ¡°Olivia,¡± he said, ¡°that charm is amazing work. She looks wonderful.¡± I saw the tiny tell-tale blush Olivia got whenever she received an unexpected compliment. ¡°Iset deserves it,¡± she said. ¡°I hope she has fun tonight. But now I have to go clean up the private study.¡± She turned and raised her hand. ¡°Good night, you two.¡± We called out goodnight, then I walked over to Conrad. ¡°You acted awful snooty for a man who decided to spy on them from a different location.¡± ¡°Darius asked me to warm up the car and bring it around for him. I didn¡¯t have to spy.¡± ¡°I always forget you can drive.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because you don¡¯t see it often. I¡¯m not supposed to do it in town.¡± He put his boots on the mats by the door. ¡°Except maybe on Halloween.¡± ¡°Hey, do you want to watch some anime tonight?¡± His head tilted to the side as he thought about it. ¡°Have we finished all the movies Olivia gave me?¡± ¡°Yes. And I¡¯m never watching The Godfather again.¡± ¡°Understandable.¡± He smiled. ¡°But it was a good movie.¡± I shuddered. ¡°I¡¯m going to change into some dry pants,¡± Conrad said. ¡°I could be a few minutes. You want to make some popcorn or something?¡± ¡°Nah. I¡¯ll meet you in there.¡± When Conrad came down, he found me in the TV room, staring at the show. ¡°You started it without me?¡± he demanded. I was too enraptured to answer the accusation. ¡°Conrad.¡± When he heard my horse whisper, his ears twitched into alertness. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you see?¡± ¡°See what?¡± ¡°Look at the screen! Look!¡± His eyes moved between me and the screen once or twice, but then they focused on the TV. A few seconds later, his brow furrowed. ¡°Where are the subtitles?¡± he asked. ¡°I don¡¯t need subtitles!¡± I laughed. Loud. Glorious. Triumphant. Three nights after that, Conrad threatened to stop watching anime with me unless I promised I wouldn''t pause the shows anymore to tell him how the subtitles got it wrong. For information about the release for the next book in the series (working title: Blind as a Witch) see below, in the post-chapter author notes. Prologue to Blind As A Witch The brass bell above the shop door let out a bright chime. A soft breeze followed a second later, as if it¡¯d been summoned by the noise. The cool air wrapped around Nolan Kirby before disappearing when the door shut. He smiled and put down the jar he was holding. ¡°Good morning.¡± The person who¡¯d come in didn¡¯t answer. As Kirby walked over to the stool beside the checkout counter, he said, ¡°Is there anything I can help you find?¡± ¡°No. Thank you.¡± Whoever she was, she was young. He guessed around ten or eleven years old. Certainly no older than twelve. ¡°You haven¡¯t been in here before, have you?¡± he said. ¡°No.¡± Young, and not much for conversation. Kirby sat down facing the front of the store. He¡¯d be out of the way now. ¡°Are you a student?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The girl moved with light, hesitating steps, but she forced her voice to be loud and definite. A strange combination, Kirby thought. ¡°Thomas or Saufgrove?¡± Kirby grabbed his long cane from where it was leaning up against the counter. ¡°You know about Saufgrove?¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. There was both surprise and suspicion in her question. Kirby bit back his laugh; he didn¡¯t want to offend the girl with the nervous walk but a bold voice. ¡°I know most of my customers come from there,¡± he explained. ¡°Oh.¡± The ¡°oh¡± had sounded quiet and thoughtful. Kirby suspected the girl¡¯s assumptions had been shaken and she was undergoing some mental adjustment. Kirby moved his cane so it was in front of him. ¡°Do you like your school?¡± ¡°Do you always talk this much?¡± ¡°Usually I talk a lot more, but you¡¯re making conversation a little difficult for me.¡± She didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Don¡¯t worry though,¡± Kirby assured her. ¡°It¡¯s only a little difficult. I talk to plants all day long. I can carry the whole conversation by myself if I have to.¡± ¡°Why would you talk to plants?¡± That question was equal parts incredulity and scorn. Kirby smiled. Oh, to be young enough to know everything. He said, ¡°They grow better that way. Plants are just like people¡ªthey do better when you give them attention.¡± ¡°Do they talk back to you?¡± Kirby laughed out loud. Another girl might have asked that in a voice full of curiosity and wonder. Not this one. He was dealing with a pint-sized cynic who didn¡¯t believe in fairy tales. It sounded like she was checking his sanity. ¡°Not yet,¡± he said, ¡°but maybe someday. I¡¯m always listening, just in case.¡± She hesitated; the boards under her feet let out a soft groan as she shifted her weight, there was a moment of silence¡ªthen she moved further away, toward the shelves. He let her browse for a few seconds before trying again. ¡°May I ask your name?¡± he said. ¡°Olivia.¡± ¡°It¡¯s good to meet you, Olivia. My name¡¯s Nolan Kirby. If you have any questions at all, let me know.¡± ¡°How much are those?¡± ¡°That depends entirely on what you¡¯re pointing at. Do you know its name?¡± ¡°This one! Right here. Can¡¯t you see it?¡± She sounded irritated, as if he was being difficult on purpose. I probably shouldn¡¯t have teased her. ¡°No,¡± Kirby said. Her voice grew louder when she turned to face him. ¡°What? Are you blind or some¡ª¡± The question choked off with a guttural sound. Kirby grinned and tapped the end of his long cane on the floor in front of him. ¡°Oh, sure¡ªyou¡¯re just noticing, but I¡¯m the blind one?¡± For a link to the new novel, see the author note below.