Finders Keepers (13 page)

“You didn’t abandon me.
 
You came for me.”

“Of course.
 
I promised you I would keep you safe.”

“No, you promised that if I came with you my parents would be safe.”

“Hmm…details.”
 
He kissed her again.
 
Ellie closed her eyes again, content.
 
She would worry about all the reasons this was not a good idea later.
 
For now, she was safe and warm.
 
He’d come for her.
    

When she woke up again, she was no longer in the cave with Gibbs.
 
She sat up and swung her legs over the side of a cot.
 
From the looks of it, she was in one of the little goblin houses.
   
Her thoughts felt muzzy.
 
Maybe there never was a cave and she’d been here the whole time.
 
A short angular girl with black pigtails walked in from another room holding a steaming cup.
 
Gibbs followed right behind her.
 
Ellie stopped breathing.
 

           
“Oh good you’re awake.
 
I made this for Gibbs, but if you are up, I’ll make you one too.”
 
She set the mug down on a narrow windowsill.
 
“It’s my famous eye of newt tea.
 
It’s perfect with a little bit of cinnamon, which…”
 
She did a little jig. “...I managed to snag last night.”

           
Ellie checked Gibb’s face before she reacted.
 
The corners of his eyes crinkled but she couldn’t tell if it was because he knew the girl was in earnest, or just making fun of her.

           
“Um, sounds great.”

           
The girl’s round face split into a huge grin.
 
“I can spot a sucker a mile away.”
 
She started back toward where the kitchen, all the while laughing.
 
“As if I would put cinnamon in my tea.
 
Ha!”

           
Ellie placed a hand on her stomach but it did little to dampen its objections.

           
Sarah was one of the gang members she hadn’t met the previous night.
 
She was a sharp eyed, quick witted fireball of littleness.
 
The three of them sipped tea and talked (mostly Sarah) about absolutely nothing, ignoring what Ellie considered the giant gorilla in the room so to speak, until finally Gibbs announced that they needed to leave.
 

           
“Well she can’t exactly go out like that.
 
Come on Ellie, let me steal you from your lover-boy here for a few minutes and we’ll see if there isn’t something in my closet you can borrow.
 
You aren’t that much bigger than me.”

           
Ellie quickly jumped up and followed, hoping Gibbs hadn’t seen her face flush
fuschia
.
 
Had last night really happened the way she thought it did?
 

           
Sarah’s home was a little bit of anomaly.
 
Except for a single bed, there was almost no furniture in the house.
 
But when Sarah opened up a cabinet it was the equivalent of the entire inventory of
Macey’s
avalanching out.
 
Her closet, which was in another room, was no exception.
 
Ellie would have been happy with a pair of jeans and a warm sweatshirt, but Sarah’s taste lent itself from retro to futuristic all under designer names.
 

           
While tossing out “possibilities,” Sarah talked.
 
“When Gibbs told me what happened, I could not believe it!
 
I’ve been to that old geezer’s house a million times.
 
To think he liked you so much he was going to kill you and add you to his collection.
 
Sick.”

           
Ellie didn’t remember telling Gibbs any of that.
 
How much of the night had she missed?

           
“Who is he?”

           
“He’s the oldest goblin in these parts.
 
He used to teach at the school, but that was ages ago.
 
I wasn’t even born then.”

           
“There was a school?”

           
“Oh yeah.
 
This used to be a real city.
 
Looooong
time ago.”

           
Tweed trousers and a white tank went flying by Ellie’s head.
 
Sarah continued to dig through her closet until she finally emerged, a triumphant grin on her face.
 
She held up a long sleeved black mini dress.
 
Ellie’s eyebrows shot up.

           
“Don’t look so worried!
 
I am pairing it with these.”
 
From behind her back she brought out and held up black skinny jeans.
 
“Black is a must around here, in case you hadn’t noticed.”
 

           
The mini dress was made of knit sweater material and was longer on Ellie than she thought.
 
It hit her mid-thigh.
 
The skinny jeans took both of the girls jumping up and down for Ellie to get them over her heel.
 

           
“What’s his collection like?”

           
“
Xaneth’s
?
 
Um… there was lots of stuff in a locked up room.
 
Why?”

           
Sarah pushed Ellie into a chair and then commenced brushing her hair.
 
“Don’t shriek when I
comb
out this snarl or Gibbs might break down the door and try to take me out.
 
He’d lose, of course.”
 

The knot must have been big because Ellie nearly bit her lip off trying not to squeal.
 
Sarah continued talking without missing a beat.
 
“Just curious.
 
It’s in our nature to horde treasure.
 
Everyone does it a little bit differently based on what they view as valuable, as you can see.”
 
Her brush pointed at her overflowing closet.

           
A lot of what she experienced was hazy.
 
Ellie had to really think about what she’d seen.
 
“Mostly junk, I think.
 
Bottles, necklaces, broken toys, mismatched dinnerware.
 
It was like one of a hundred yard sales I went to with my mom over the summer, except he actually wanted to keep it all.
 
The animals were definitely the weirdest part.”

           
Sarah’s fingers were twisting Ellie’s hair into a knot at the back of her head and she paused.
 
“What kind of animals?”

           
“Some rats, a cat, a dog…and a coyote.”
 
Her mind remembered and ordered them according to the food chain.
 
“They were dead.
 
Stuffed.”

           
When there was no response from Sarah, she turned in the chair and saw Sarah.
 
Sarah’s eyes were on an invisible spot on the wall.
 
She chewed on the corner of her lip.
 
Then she said, “Naturally it’s impossible.
 
I’ve been to his house a bazillion times, and that would make him a cold-blooded murderer.”
 
She glanced down at Ellie then.

           
“Because he kills animals?”
 
The disbelief must have been evident in her voice.
 
What were animals compared to what he’d try to do to her?

“Oh.
 
Well.
 
You know it’s one thing when it’s humans, it’s entirely different when it’s your own kind, no offense.”

           
“They were goblins?”

           
“No.
 
I mean I don’t know!
 
It’s true some goblins can turn into animals.
 
Well that’s actually debatable.
 
Some goblins don’t believe it was ever possible.
 
It’s supposed to be caused by a rare recessive gene, but no one has ever seen it.
  
I wouldn’t even be thinking what I am thinking except that those animals are so peculiar.”
 
She turned away from Ellie.
 
“The only one he’s missing is the bird.”

           
Gibbs knocked on the door at the same time there was a quiet tap on the bedroom window.
 
Ellie glanced from one to the other.
   

           
Sarah gave Ellie a lopsided smile and called out, “Just a few more minutes.
 
I am working a masterpiece here!”
 
She turned to Ellie, her face suddenly hard.
 
There was no trace of the cute and giggly Sarah.
 
“Gibbs is
kinda
into you which puts you are in a heap of danger.
 
I, for one, have never understood the goblin fetish for human girls.”
 
She lowered her voice.
 
“Sky is outside the window.
 
He will take you back to your friends and then, Ellie,
stay away
.”

           
The smile Sarah flashed her should have reassured her.
 
When Ellie hesitated, Sarah grabbed onto her arm with a fearsome grip for such a tiny hand and pulled her toward the window.
 
Low enough for just Ellie to hear she said, “It’s not like he could keep you forever.
 
You have a family.
 
A life.
 
Go!”

9

As Sky pulled her in and out of small tunnels all her attention was on the hand he’d unconsciously slipped into her own.
 
A few days ago, heck, even a few hours ago she would have smiled about it.
 
But instead of butterflies, her stomach felt like knots.
 
She just had to keep telling herself that she was doing the right thing.
 
If it’d been as simple as choosing who she trusted…but it wasn’t.
 
She belonged aboveground with her parents.
 

 
Sky stopped abruptly and she bumped into his shoulder.
 
“Easy there.
 
You’re not afraid of the dark, are you?”
 

The words sounded so much like his brother.
 
Ellie flinched.
 
What would Gibbs do when he found out Sarah had freed her?
 
Would he come after her again?
 
What if he didn’t?
   
What would happen to Sarah?
 

A small slit of light shone down from a vertical shaft which rose above them.
 
A rope ladder hung down the side of the tunnel.
 
The excess puddled on the ground near their feet.
     

           
“Taylor and Manny will be at the top.”
 

Ellie looked up as far as she could see.
 
What appeared to be weathered planks boarded up the opening.
 
A gentle tug on her hand brought her eyes back down into the cave.
 
Sky untwined his fingers from hers.
 
He touched her face, being ever so gentle where the edge of her eyebrow turned bluish-purple.
 
Everything about him felt normal, even familiar.
 
His fingers traced the outline of her face, down her cheek and jaw, and then he tilted her chin ever so slightly up toward his.
 
“I won’t forget you, Ellie Brown.”
 
There was no hot or cold when he touched her, but it felt good.
 
Comfortable at least.
 
And he was her knight, her hero.
 
If that helps you sleep at night,
a traitorous little voice said in the back of her mind.

In the dark, Sky’s eyes were dark pools of blue that were now closer to lapis than turquoise.
 
They were incredible and mesmerizing, but they weren’t green
.
 
She pulled away before his lips touched hers.
 
He responded by retracting his hands as if she’d burned him.
 

Ellie swiped her bangs out of her face.
 
“I…”
 
She faltered.
 
She couldn’t explain to him why.
 
There were no words to say that she wanted to like him so badly, but where he made her feel safe and warm and cared about, his brother ignited a fire inside of her that made her crave heat as if she were freezing to death.
 
That Gibbs filled a place inside of her she hadn’t even known existed.
 
No, she couldn’t tell him.
 
Not here.
 
Not like this.
  

“This feels like goodbye.
 
Aren’t you coming with me?”
 
    

The tension around his eyes and mouth softened.
 
He took both her hands into his “You have to forget about me.
 
Forget this place.
 
You’re not safe down here, and I don’t belong aboveground.
 
You understand now what I meant.”
 

“But you used to, once.
 
Your mom still wants you to.”
 
She bit her lip hard and blinked back the tears that were forming in her eyes.
 
If he couldn’t or wouldn’t, neither would Gibbs.
 
There was obviously something bigger going on here but no one was owning up to the truth.
 
Neither of them had mentioned Pinstripe since her abduction, which somehow she knew was integral as to why she’d been attacked and abducted in the first place.
 
And now it was over.
 
She would never know.
 

He leaned his forehead against hers and closed his eyes.
 
“You’re in danger when I am with you.
 
Let me keep you safe.”

Safe?
 
She shook her head against his, as frustrated as a stubborn child.
 
I felt safe in Gibbs’ arms
.
 
Ellie inhaled sharply, her throat and chest burning.
 
She’d made a mistake.
 
Pulling away, she said, “Why did Gibbs take me and what does it have to do with you?
 
Why does it feel like I know you?
 
Just tell me the truth.”

Sky stepped back, looked down at her hands he still held, and then slowly released them from his grip.
 
“It has to be this way, for your own safety.”
 
Then he turned and slipped into the shadows.
 
Ellie blinked and he had disappeared completely.

 
“Fine.”
 
She grabbed onto the rope and started to climb.
 
Her anger helped her ignore her stomach which bucked against this as much as it had when she’d been forced to do it in gym class two years ago.
 
She wasn’t angry at Sky for being so ridiculously noble (
much
), or Gibbs
for everything else
, or even at the universe for making this situation possible.
 
There was only one person to blame and that person was stuck holding the rope, so to speak.
 
Ellie reached one hand over the other and boosted herself up another few inches.
 

Her tears were falling freely now.
 
Nearing the top she could hear Taylor’s voice.
 
Banging her fist on the splintered wood, she hollered.
 
“It’s me.
 
I’m here.”
       

***

It was like that poem by Robert Frost where the dude had to pick one path over the other.
 
Even though her teacher had stressed that for Frost there was no “right” path, the fact was he chose the path less traveled and if she remembered correctly, “it made all the difference.”
 
Well, she was feeling that difference right now.
 
Because she chose the other one—the conventional, more traveled,
safer
path.
 
And it made her chest feel like a huge hole had been cut out of it.
 
Her parents were fine, by the way, just as Gibbs’ had said—just a near miss with a deer and one ridiculously long ER visit.
 
What had seemed like days underground had all taken place in one night.
 
Monday morning rolled around, and here she was back at school discussing things as normal and mundane as the Harvest Dance.
 
Ellie felt like she was trapped in some black and white silent movie.
 
She opened her mouth to speak, but what she said and what the subtitles read never matched up.
 
Her head was in one place, her body in another.
 

           
“I thought I wasn’t going to be able to find anything decent to wear tonight, but then, last week my mom surprised me with a dress she brought back from a boutique in St. Louis.
 
It is gorgeous!
 
Green with straps that cross in the back like this and
rouched
up the sides.
 
What about you?
 
Did you find a dress?” A chubby blonde dropped books from her locker into her backpack.
 
She glanced at Ellie expectantly.
 

           
“No date.”
 
That wasn’t exactly a lie.
 
After refusing three offers (all of which she suspected were facilitated by Taylor), she most definitely did not have a date.

           
The girl zipped up her backpack.
 
“No big deal.
 
A lot of us are going stag.
 
You could probably borrow something from Taylor.
 
I am sure her closet is filled with designer labels.”

           
The girl on the other side of Ellie jumped into the conversation.
 
Her red pony tail swung from side to side as she chattered.
 
“Did you hear the theme is Blue Moon again?”

           
The books Ellie needed to take home over break all blended together.
 
Due to an electrical failure complicated by a water pipe breaking (and flooding the entire west end of the school), the students were being sent home early and school was canceled until Friday.
   

           
“No way!
 
Is that official?”

           
“Yup, Manny announced it this morning at our student council meeting.
 
We’re reusing all of last year’s Winter Formal decorations in order to rent the civic center, so that the dance won’t be postponed.”

           
Ahhh
, priorities
.

           
A familiar long, arm reached over Ellie’s shoulder.
 
“I told him his dad should just donate the money for the dance and write it off as a charitable contribution.”
 
Taylor pulled the magnetic mirror off the door of Ellie’s locker and fussed with her hair.
 
Maintaining perfect locks did not take precedence over kicking tail in gym class, and as a result, curls were escaping all around her face.
 

           
“What about you, Taylor?
 
Where did you get your dress?”

           
“Ellie and I both got ours in Chicago.”

           
The word Chicago exacted two envious squeals.
 
The lights turned on for Ellie and she dumped a shelf full of books into her bag.
 
There was homework in all of them.

           
“See you guys.
 
Have a nice break.”
 
With a half-hearted wave Ellie turned on her heel and headed for the parking lot.
 
Taylor walked alongside her.
 
Taylor had her thumbs tucked under the front straps of her backpack.
 
She only had to wave three of her fingers and half the hallway was wishing her a happy Thanksgiving.
 

           
“When did we go to Chicago?”

           
“Never, but they don’t need to know that.”

           
Ellie adjusted the straps on her book bag.
 
“I turned down Hansen too, just so you know, and even if I hadn’t, I don’t have a dress, from Chicago or otherwise.”
 
Cold air fingered its way down Ellie’s collar as soon she and Taylor pushed the east end doors open and trudged toward Taylor’s cherry red Honda Civic.
 
The sensation reminded her of cold, knobby hands and she stopped abruptly.
 
A car crossing parking spots in order to exit faster screeched to a halt to avoid hitting her.
 
Instead of waiting for her to move, the car revved into reverse and then squealed away.

           
“Why don’t you just call him?”

           
Taylor didn’t have to say his name for Ellie to know exactly who she was talking about.
 
“You know I lost my phone.”