Lori coughed, blood bubbling up from her mouth; confusion and panic showed in her wide-open eyes.
Lizzie began to cry. “Oh Lori...no.”
Chapter 33 — The Helper
Manuel felt sick. He had thrown the rock, and he’d hit the sorcerer, and the girl—Miss Long—had finished the job with her kicks. But not before Akers had stabbed the little girl Lori and that was what Manuel was trying to stop.
He stood up. Manuel didn’t know what to do. He wanted to help, but there wasn’t anything he could do.
Miss Long crouched over her sister, and the creature with the pointed hat leaned over them both. Behind them, on silent wings, the crow came circling back. Manuel followed its trajectory and he spotted the chain of sigils.
Without hesitation Manuel stepped out into the clearing. A somewhat round and baseball sized rock lay on the ground and he scooped it up.
The crow landed, hopping toward the sigils.
Miss Long and the man with the pointed hat were talking and leaning over the girl Lori, their backs to the bird and to Manuel.
Manuel’s stone hit the crow at the base of its wings. The bird rolled and several black feathers floated in the air. Any ordinary bird would have been dead; but this wasn’t an ordinary bird. When it regained its feet it scanned around with its beady black eyes looking for who had thrown the stone. When it saw Manuel, it shot into the air toward him.
The last time they had met, the demon had left marks on his neck that had lasted for days. Manuel hadn’t even been able to put up a fight. The remembrance of that moment, the demon holding him in a death grip in the sewage tunnel, filled Manuel with fear. And Manuel remembered the demon’s name: Raum.
Manuel turned and ran. The bushes and vines scraped at his bare legs and caught his ankles so that he nearly fell several times. The demon would fly above these difficulties he knew, and Manuel headed toward the densest trees where a bird could not easily fly.
The wings of the crow beat close behind; any second now Raum would pounce on him. Before him the underbrush formed a wall of green and brown; in desperation Manuel dove into a small opening in the thicket as if jumping through a window.
The crash through the branches and leaves seemed like the tumult of a storm in his ears; a hundred sharp branches dug their fingernails into his skin; thorny vines wrapped around him and spun him wildly; a hard landing on roots and rocks forced his breath from his lungs.
Manuel found himself lying on his back looking up into the endless weave of branches and into the midnight black beyond. Then the face of Raum appeared above him, light from nowhere glinting from those shiny onyx eyes. He had changed into his humanoid form.
Manuel tried to move but vines held one of his arms and both of his legs, and as he fought against his bonds the thorns dug into his skin. “Argh,” he cried.
The demon cackled, sounding every bit the crow. “I could end you now. But I am in a hurry, and your end should be slow and painful I think. I will be back shortly.” His mouth cracked open into something like a smile, but Raum had no teeth, just hard bone like a turtle or a bird.
Raum jumped into the air, his arms and legs and torso shrunk up toward his head. His head shrunk and now his arms were wings and his legs matched the size of his body. It sounded, as Manuel had noticed before, like a wet dog shaking.
The crow was now gone, leaving only a solitary feather floating gently down to land on Manuel’s stomach.
Chapter 34 — The Crow
“I can help your sister, Lizzie Long, but the time to do so grows short.”
Lizzie turned to see Nick standing close behind her. “Take the knife,” he said, kneeling beside her.
With both hands, Lizzie pulled out the knife and tossed it with disgust behind her. Blood gurgled out from the wound like a black fountain.
Nick put his hand on the wound. Closing his eyes, he began to chant low and deep. The hand—outlined in a silver halo—glowed red with the power of the magic. For several minutes he did this, his eyes closed in concentration.
With a start, Lori sat up. She stared at Nick. “Who are you?”
“A friend,” he replied. He looked at Lizzie. “A friend, yah?”
Lizzie nodded. Yes...he was a friend after all.
“I thought that awful man had stabbed me,” Lori said. With her bound hands, she touched herself where the knife had been, then lifted her wet fingers to her face. “Is this blood?”
“You're going to be alright,” Lizzie assured her. She hugged her sister, wiped the blood from her lips, and kissed her on the forehead.
“I want to go home,” Lori said. She started to cry.
“Of course.” Lizzie nodded. She took Lori's hands and tried to untie the rope, but the knot was too tight. She needed the knife.
When she turned to find the knife, she saw the crow hopping along the ground in her direction. It stopped and eyed her suspiciously.
“What do you want?” she asked it.
“He wants ze sigils,” Nick said. “Don't let him haf zem!”
The crow jumped off the ground and flew like a dart.
Lizzie dove. She reached the chain of pendants an instant before the crow, and the claws of the crow dug deep into the skin on the back of her hand.
“Ow,” Lizzie yelped. She chanced a look up at the crow, though she feared it would try to peck at her eyes. Instead, it continued to claw and peck at her hands, and a thrill of fear and grief struck her as her hands began to look like ground beef. The crow was determined to have the sigils if it had to dig through the back of her hands.
“Get get,” Nick said. He kicked at the crow and it fluttered away.
“You’ll pay,” it croaked at him. “You’ll pay.”
Now Lizzie saw that the rifle bag lay just a few feet away.
“Okay,” she said, “Have your stupid pendants.” And she took the pendants and threw them toward the woods.
The crow darted toward the pendants, and Lizzie sprung for the bag. Akers had already partially unzipped it, so it took Lizzie only a moment to pull out the Spear.
She whirled toward where she’d thrown the pendants. Never would she have seen the crow without the Spear—it darted low over the ground, a blur of a black in a sea of shadows. But the Spear guided her eyes right to it. Aiming the Spear at the bird she yelled, “Damnari inter manes.”
“Caw,” the crow shrieked one last time before disappearing into the darkness that reached out from the Spear.
Lizzie sighed. She wanted to collapse onto the ground and just cry. But she was a Spear Bearer, an heir of Longinus. She stood up and looked for the dagger.
“Stop, Lizzie Long,” Nick said. “Let me haf your hands.”
Lizzie held out her hands and Nick held them, and though he wasn’t any taller than she, his hands covered and hid hers completely. She saw the red glow and the silver halo around his hands, and the intense pain turned to a warm tingling feeling. When Nick released her hands, Lizzie saw that her hands, while wet with blood still, were whole again.
“Thank you Nick,” she said.
“We are friends, yah?”
“Yes,” she said.
She found the dagger and cut the ropes that bound Lori and helped her to her feet. She wasn't wearing any shoes.
Lizzie sat down and started taking off her boots.
“What are you doing?” Lori asked. She had stopped crying.
“You can't walk in the woods barefoot.”
“What are you gonna wear?”
“Oh...my socks are pretty thick. And I'm bigger than you—my feet are tougher.”
“You are a credit to your kind, Lizzie Long,” Nick said.
Lizzie shrugged. It was true; she felt proud. But it wouldn't do to be too proud.
Lizzie walked to where she had thrown the chain of pendants, and Lori and Nick followed. She brought out her flashlight and probed the ground.
“Here they are,” Lori said. She picked them up and handed them to Lizzie.
/> Lizzie stuffed them into a vest pocket.
Nick pointed at the pocket. “You must destroy zat. It is nothing but trouble. Understand?”
Lizzie nodded weakly. She wasn't so sure. The sigils could be useful for a Spear Bearer. “I could summon you,” she said. “I might...” she hesitated. She was going to say ‘need you’. But that didn’t seem like something a friend would say. “I might want to see you.”
Nick nodded. “Yah. Or you might want to use ze Spear on me.”
“No,” Lizzie protested. “You’re my friend.”
“And your Fahzer?”
“He wouldn’t,” Lori interjected.
“I promise,” Lizzie said. “Cross my heart and hope to die. I won’t let that happen.”
Nick nodded. He patted Lizzie on the shoulder. “Farewell, Lizzie Long.” Then he leaned over, pinched Lori’s cheek, and said, “Farewell, little one.”
“Bye,” Lori answered, her eyes sparkling with confusion and wonder.
“Bye Nick,” Lizzie said, feeling a little sad.
With a whisper of motion, Nick shrunk into a spot in the air and became a cicada. Chattering and buzzing, he flew away. She watched him as only one holding the Spear could, seeing him weaving through the dense woods far into the distance, and wondering if she would ever see him again.
Chapter 35 — Rescue
Manuel fought frantically and with all his strength to free himself. Though the thorns scratched his skin and dug in tenaciously, Manuel pulled against them anyway. Raum would surely be back any second. He wondered if the demon had somehow enchanted the vines. The pain they caused seemed unnatural.
After several fruitless minutes, Manuel stopped struggling and panted with exhaustion. He looked at his bloody arms and legs, and looked at the vines wrapped around them. He had one arm free, and he delicately began to unwind the vine from his other arm. It took time, but it wasn’t hard. And the vines didn’t seem to be enchanted in any case. The problem, he now saw, had been caused by his panic.
He was down to working on his last leg when the cicada buzzed down and landed on a fallen tree a few feet away.
People talk about the feeling of being watched, but for Manuel it was more than just a sensation. If he felt like he was being watched, he would inevitably turn his head to find someone staring at him, or maybe find them quickly looking away if they were shy. He felt like he was being watched now. And it was the bug he felt staring at him.
“Are you a good or evil spirit?” he asked it.
With a snap the cicada transformed, the pointed cap rising up, arms and legs sprouting from nowhere. He stood only a couple feet high, still standing on the log, a perfect little gnome. Somewhere under the white curtain of a beard he spoke. “I am goot.”
“Were you back there? With the girls?”
“Yah.”
“Are they okay?”
“Yah.”
“And the demon, the crow...”
“Gone,” the gnome said. “Did you srow ze rock at ze Sorcerer?”
Manuel nodded.
“Zat was brave,” the gnome said, nodding.
Manuel finished untangling himself from the thorn bushes and stood up. “What happened to that chain of sigils? They were stolen from my friend...” He paused and felt guilty for not thinking of Gordon first. “My friend is in trouble. A wood witch met us at a creek. She made him sink into the mud. Can you...can you make her stop?”
“She is gone,” the gnome answered. “She only did what ze Sorcerer made her do.”
“Please,” Manuel said, “Will you help me find him?”
The gnome hopped off the log and began walking. The bushes and the vines swayed away from him as he approached, and Manuel found it easy following in his wake. Before long they stood at the bank of the creek.
Gordon wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Not a ripple disturbed the dark water.
“It must be further down,” Manuel said.
“No, here,” the gnome said, and he pointed a wrinkled finger down at the water.
Manuel followed where he pointed, and there he saw a stick rising out of the water. “Is he...alive?”
“Ze stick is hollow,” the gnome answered. “Your friend is clever.”
“Can you help me get him out?”
“Will you make me a promise?” the gnome asked.
Manuel nodded.
“Ze girl has ze chain of sigils,” the gnome said. He pointed at Manuel. “You will not try to take ze sigils back. You will go home now.”
“Why?”
“Because ze girl is my friend.” The gnome looked at Manuel solemnly.
“Okay,” Manuel said. “I promise. I guess they’ll be safe with her?”
The gnome shrugged. “She means goot, in any case.” Then he looked upward and thick vine swung free from a branch and slapped into the mud near where Gordon’s stick straw jutted out of the water. Manuel grabbed the vine and guided it toward Gordon. The stick straw disappeared, and a minute later Gordon’s bald head crested the water, then his big white eyes. When his mouth came out he took a deep breath, and he said, “How did you manage to find me?”
“I didn’t,” Manuel said. “The gnome did.” He looked to where the gnome had stood, and then looked around. “He’s gone,” he said when he couldn’t find him.
“A gnome? Really?” Gordon said. “I guess you have a story to tell.”
“Yes...the girl is safe. Raum is...gone...and the Sorcerer too. And...”
“Hold on,” Gordon said. “Sorry to interrupt. But you might want to plug your ears.” His smile seemed to glow in the darkness. “The shrunken head is still tied to my belt. When he comes up I doubt you’re going to want to hear what he has to say.”
Chapter 36 — Home
As Lizzie and Lori approached Crawdad Creek, Birdie came trotting down to the back gate.
“Hi Birdie,” Lizzie said. Good old Birdie. Good old house. It felt great to be home.
As soon as they went through the gate, Birdie began sniff at Lori, nuzzling her hard with her nose. Lizzie had to grab her by the collar and hold her down as they walked to the back door.
Lizzie looked in through the sliding glass door. Mom was still on the couch, lying down.
“Shh,” Lizzie said, putting her index finger to her lips. “Mom's asleep.”
She opened the door slowly, just wide enough for them to pass through. Birdie tried to sneak in, but Lizzie blocked the way.
“No, girl,” Lizzie said, shutting the door quickly. Thunk.
“Huh?” her mom said groggily. “Who's there?”
“Just us,” Lizzie answered in a quiet voice.
Her mom sat up and looked over the couch. Her face was red and indented with the couch's crisscross pattern. She blinked hard. “Lori?” she whispered.
“Mama,” Lori cried.
“Lori!” Mrs. Long shouted, and she dove over the couch and pulled Lori into her arms. “My baby, my baby,” she cried. She hugged her so tight Lizzie wondered if Lori could breathe.
Then she looked at Lori again.
“What is this?” she asked, touching the blood soaked nightgown. “Blood? Is this blood? Are you hurt?”
“I'm okay, mama. Lizzie's friend fixed it.”
“Lizzie's friend?” She looked to Lizzie for an answer.
“It's a long story mom.”
“You're bleeding too,” Mrs. Long said. She took Lizzie's hands into her soft hands.
“It's okay, mom,” she said. Nick had fixed her too.
“I don’t understand, Lizzie. There is blood everywhere, but no wounds,” she looked into Lizzie’s eyes intensely. “Your friend? What did Lori mean?”
“His name is Nick, and he’s...I...” Lizzie would tell her, but it wasn’t going to be easy. The fear, the pain, and the un-Spear Bearer type friend.
“That’s okay,” her mom said. “It can wait. Come on girls, upstairs. We need to get you cleaned up. And you,” she said, cupping Lizzie's cheek in her hand, “can
tell me what you can when you are ready.”
Lizzie nodded. There wouldn’t be any secrets now. Even if she wanted to keep Nick a secret she couldn’t because of Lori. But surely she didn’t have anything to hide now. Nick had saved Lori’s life, and it couldn’t matter that he was one of the Fallen. And she really couldn’t be in trouble for not telling her parents about Nick, because she had made a promise. Still, she worried.
Even though it was three in the morning, they got dressed and went down to the police station. The man at the desk said he didn't have the authority to release Mr. Long, but after listening to Mrs. Long's tirade for half an hour, the officer gave in and called someone who did.
Detective Cole came into the station disheveled and angry. “So then,” he said, raising his eyebrows, staring hard at Lori, “where have you been?”
“On the advice of legal counsel,” Mrs. Long jumped in, “we cannot answer any questions.”
Detective Cole sighed and shook his head.
“There is no kidnapping,” Mrs. Long said, “There is no crime. You have to let my husband go.”
He turned his back to her and slammed his fist down on the counter. “No crime?” he asked sardonically, “Really? What about the hundreds of police hours wasted? Did you know that filing a false report is a crime?”
“Isn’t holding a person against their will a crime?” Mrs. Long asked, her face and stance rigid.
“Bob,” Mr. Cole said to the officer behind the counter, “get Mr. Long out of here.”
When he spun back around, he was red in the face. “What is your game?” he asked through clenched teeth. “Trying to make us look like fools?”
Lizzie shook her head. Compared to Gaap, Detective Cole looked like a circus clown. “You don’t need our help to look like a fool,” she said.
“I'm keeping an eye on you,” the detective said, jabbing his finger at Lizzie's chest. “There's something strange going on here. You haven't seen the last of me.”
Lizzie saw him again sooner than she would have guessed. Later that night on the evening news, he was the lead detective in a new case. Congressman Madison Akers, businessman turned politician, had disappeared under mysterious circumstances.