When the Stars Threw Down Their Spears: The Goblin Wars, Book Three (27 page)

The fan club gathered around Jing parted when he pushed himself away from the wall.

“Ab-i-gail,” he said, coming down the steps. He didn’t even look toward Teagan until Abby had given him a kiss on the cheek.

“Zia Sophia was really that impressed?” Donnie asked.

“Of course she was,” Rafe said. “She’s female, right? And he’s the Mighty Khan. Irresistible to all womankind.”

“All but Tea.” Jing glanced at her, did a double take, then pulled his Oakleys off and slid them on her face. He tipped her chin up as he adjusted them.

“Better?”

“Yes,” Teagan admitted. The halos were completely gone.

“Good. I don’t want you giving Abby a bad reputation. Everybody knows you two hang together. Where you go, she goes. And wherever you went, it looks bad.”

“Just point me toward class,” Teagan said. “I’ll try not to ruin any reputations.”

“Class? Don’t you have an appointment with the grief counselor?”

“Not if I can possibly avoid it.” Teagan headed for the door.

“How about you, Jing?” Abby asked. “Are you going to talk to them?”

“Already been. It was suggested I talk to her if I wanted to play in the game tomorrow. She said she’d be seeing you today, Tea.”

“She who?”

“One of the volunteers. Ms. Skinner. Said she knew your family.”

Teagan groaned. Seven hours. All she had to do was avoid the social worker for seven hours and she could go home, crawl out of this body, and let it sleep off whatever she had done to it.

She managed to avoid Skinner all morning, and took the extra precaution of skipping lunch, buying a bag of trail mix from the vending machine instead and eating it surreptitiously in the library.

There were plenty of rumors flying around about what had happened in the cafeteria. Half the student body had seen the Gaglianos taken from the building by the police. She saw Rafe walking down the hall with a fan club of his own. Apparently he was keeping his mouth shut with such flair that everyone knew he knew . . . something. And of course everyone knew he had been a person of interest in the lunch lady’s murder.

Sixth period was the most difficult to get through. Mr. Diaz was back, looking almost awake. The classroom had been scrubbed by professional cleaners to remove every trace of Cade’s blood, but Teagan could smell the chemicals. No one, including Mr. Diaz, talked about anything but what had happened to Cade and whether or not he would live. Class was almost over when an office aide showed up with a note.

“Ms. Wylltson”—Mr. Diaz held up the slip of paper—“your presence is requested.”

Teagan packed up her books, heaved the backpack onto her shoulder, and followed the aide down the hall to the classroom that had been repurposed for grief counseling. Ms. Skinner was sitting on the edge of the teacher’s desk with a smug look on her face.

“Teagan, I’m so glad to see you!” she said, as if this had been Teagan’s idea. “I was afraid you wouldn’t come by.”

Teagan took off her backpack and slid into one of the desks. Molly’s. This had been their calculus classroom last year. “You sent for me.”

“Could you take off your sunglasses?”

“No,” Teagan said. “My eyes hurt.”

“I want to help you, Teagan.” Ms. Skinner sounded almost sincere. “And your brother. I know you don’t believe me, but I do. Your family wasn’t like this before your cousin showed up. I know he was on school property during the incident. He had something to do with Cade’s injury, didn’t he?”

“No,” Teagan said.

“Several students said he was in the room, Tea.” She sat down at the desk beside Teagan’s, so that their eyes were level. “You know I was his social worker before he ran away? Things
happened
at the homes where I placed him. Terrible things. Did you know that he was implicated in the death of his own parents?” She tapped her pink-nailed fingers on the desktop. “What am I supposed to do? How can I convince you that I only want to help?”

Teagan looked past her out the window, then did a double take when she saw Seamus McGillahee’s coat. It was almost too bright to look at, even through the Oakleys, even with the dirt stains. Saoirse was wearing it. Lollan and Bairre weren’t with her. She held up a quart jar full of dark liquid.

Ms. Skinner must have seen Teagan tense, because she turned to look, too. “Who’s that? Is she a student here?”

The liquid was too viscous to be water or even oil. It stretched like a slug toward the sidewalk as Saoirse tipped the jar.
They’d put the melty shadow pieces in a jar and mixed them with a stick
. . .

The slug reached the sidewalk, puddled, then stood up the way Teagan had seen shadow men do in Mag Mell, only this one wasn’t man-shaped. It looked like three creatures had been fused together at the back. Three heads facing different directions, multiple limbs in the wrong places.

Saoirse dropped the jar to the sidewalk and watched it shatter. She blew Teagan a kiss through the window, then turned and walked away.

“Is that a friend of yours?” Ms. Skinner asked.

“No.” Teagan pulled her cell phone out of her pocket. The screen was blank. She’d had it in her pocket last night when the lightning struck; it was fried. The shadow was lurching toward the window.

“Loan me your phone,” Teagan said. “This is an emergency.”

“Broken glass is not an emergency.” Ms. Skinner had turned back to her. “Though we should let the janitors know.”

The shadow didn’t bother with the window. It stuck one head through the wall and turned a black featureless face toward Ms. Skinner. The two other heads came through after it, then one arm and a leg, apparently attached where the other arm should be. It put a hand and a foot against the flat of the wall and pulled itself into the room.

“You are acting very strangely, Teagan. I think”—Teagan grabbed her arm to pull her away from the thing—“I think that you should not touch me.”

Ms. Skinner shook her off and backed right into the shadow. Her face contorted, and for one instant Teagan could see the panic in her eyes. She made a couple of jerky movements and then smiled at Teagan. Only it wasn’t Ms. Skinner behind those eyes anymore. Her hands ran up and down her sides and groped her own breasts.

“Nice abode.” There were more than three voices speaking as one. Many more. Her face pulled up in a grotesque smile.

And then Ms. Skinner was back.

“Oh, my god.” She leaned against the desk. “My god. Help me.”

But it had her again, cavorting its abode around the room like a marionette, then pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and dialed, jabbing the keys like a zombie.

“This is Bernadette Skinner,” she said to whoever was on the line. “I need a child picked up immediately. He is in imminent peril.” A pause. “Yes, danger. What do you think peril is? They are going to do terrible things to him.” Her eyes opened wide, and her pink fingernails dug into the flesh of her cheek and raked down, leaving deep, bloody scratches. “Terrible things.” The multiple voices were back, just for a second, and then she coughed. “Excuse me. I had a frog in my throat.” Her eyes turned to Teagan. “Bring Aiden to my office. We’ll go from there.”

“No!” Teagan shouted.

“The address for the pickup is—”

Teagan picked up her backpack by the shoulder strap and swung it at Ms. Skinner’s head. No one was picking up Aiden. If they did, he would disappear like Oscar had.

Ms. Skinner staggered when it hit her, and the phone spun out of her hand. Teagan hit her again, and then dove for the phone. Ms. Skinner caught her from behind, but Teagan butted back with her head and felt the crunch of bone. The clawing hands loosened and Teagan jerked free, put a desk between them, grabbed the phone, and began pushing buttons frantically.

“Raynor’s Res—”

“Raynor, I need you!” Teagan shouted.

Air puffed as Raynor appeared, and Teagan could smell Mamieo’s muffins. If Mamieo was baking, then Aiden was home. He was safe.

“What’s the problem?” Raynor asked.

Ms. Skinner took one look at him and screamed, her mouth opening so wide that her lips split at the corners.

“Oh, I see.” Raynor stepped toward her, but the woman backed away.

The angel lunged, and this time she didn’t move fast enough.

“Come out of there,” he said.

“No,” the voices rasped.

He picked up Ms. Skinner and moved her sideways so fast she was nothing but a blur. It took the shadow a millisecond too long to follow. It trailed behind her like dark vapor, and the angel caught what looked like a foot. He set Ms. Skinner down and started reeling the shadow out of her like a spool of dark yarn, wadding it up as he went.

Ms. Skinner alternated between sobbing, clawing for Teagan, and babbling nonsense words.

It took fifteen minutes at least before Raynor pulled the last of it—the bit that had been in her head—out.

“I need to dispose of this,” he said. “It takes a little time to go where I’m going and get back. Call Seamus. Make sure everything is quiet before I leave.”

“What about Skinner?” Teagan asked as she dialed.

“She’ll be fine in a few minutes. Mentally, I mean. The broken nose and lacerations will need to be dealt with. I’d give it five minutes before I called 911, just to make sure her brain is back.”

“Nothing happening here,” Seamus said when he picked up.

Raynor nodded, and the air popped as he disappeared.

Ms. Skinner leaned over the teacher’s desk, blood dripping from her mouth and nose. She was still clearly dazed and confused. She was going to be in a lot of pain when the shock wore off.

Teagan opened her backpack. She hadn’t taken the medical supplies out after she’d ridden the bus with Grizabella, and she couldn’t just leave a person bleeding like this. Even if it was Ms. Skinner.

Awareness was dawning in the woman’s eyes. “Oh, my god,” she said. “Oh, my god.
The child is in imminent danger
.”

“Not anymore.” Teagan wiped the blood from Ms. Skinner’s mouth with a sterile gauze pad.

“Yes he is. That was
me
calling the office.” Ms. Skinner’s hand went to the scratches on her cheek where her own fingernails had dug gashes in her flesh. “It did
this
because I was trying to help. They are after Aiden right now. That
thing
told me what the Dogs are going to do to him. I fought so hard to dial that phone. Oh, god, I tried so hard!”

PART III: WARRIOR BARD

Twenty-five

L
OLLAN
and Bairre hadn’t been with Saoirse
.

Teagan punched redial. Finn, Mamieo, Thomas, and Roisin should be at home with Aiden, even though Raynor was gone. The Dump Dogs weren’t going to be able to get in the house. No one answered. She tried the phone her dad had given Mamieo. Still no pickup. She dialed Abby’s phone, just in case someone was upstairs and heard it ringing in the bathroom. “Ell-oh?” Teagan could have wept with relief. Roisin was laughing, so nothing bad had happened yet.

“I need to talk to Mamieo,” Teagan said. “Can you give her the phone?”

“Mac Cumhaill,”
Roisin said.
“No!”

“Yes, I need to talk to her.” This time Roisin spoke several sentences that Teagan didn’t understand.

“Dump Dogs,” Teagan said. “Tell her the Dump Dogs are coming.”

“Mocha latte!”
Roisin was giggling again when she hung up. Teagan punched the off button in frustration.
If Roisin wouldn’t pay attention, Seamus would
. She dialed his number again.

“I tried your home phone and no one answered. Something’s happening,” Seamus said when he picked up. Teagan could hear her dad’s voice in the background. He was singing the songs that had kept the shadows at bay when they’d tried to pour into the park.
The gate was open!
“Where’s the angel?” Seamus asked. “We need him.”

“He . . . stepped out for a little while.” Why hadn’t she asked how long it would take? “I’m not getting an answer at home, either, but I got a hold of Roisin. It sounds like they’re okay. Take care of my dad. We’ll be there soon.”

“Police,” Ms. Skinner gasped. “Call the police!”

“No,” Teagan said. “What could they do against the things the shadows told you about?”

Ms. Skinner just shook her head. “Call the police!”

Teagan took a step back. The social worker was going to call for help as soon as she had the strength. And when she did, Officer Fiorella would arrest Teagan.

“Ms. Skinner . . . I’m sorry I hurt you. But I was trying to save Aiden, too. And I’ve got to get to him now.” Teagan left the woman weeping and ran down the hall to the room where she knew Abby would be. She always took art during last period to wash everything else that had happened during the school day out of her brain.

“Excuse me?” the teacher said when Teagan burst into the room. “Do you have a pass?”

“No,” Teagan said.

“You can’t just come in here—”

Teagan ignored the woman. She’d just beaten up a social worker. That probably ruined any chance she had of graduating, much less getting a scholarship. Springing Abby from class early was not going to matter.

“Abby, I need you.”

Abby was already out of her desk and moving.

“I said you can’t just barge into my class!” the teacher shouted after them as they went out the door.

“I’m totally going to fail that class anyway,” Abby said. “She’s into cubism and avant-garde crap, so she hates my stuff.”

Teagan stopped at the corner of the hallway and peeked around.

“So, what’s happening?”

“I just beat up Ms. Skinner. She’s in pretty bad shape, and she’s going to call the police.” She couldn’t sit in the police station again, and Seamus was a little too busy at the moment to come and get her.

“You beat up the Skinner?”

“I shouldn’t have. She was trying to help. The Dump Dogs are after Aiden, and the gate at Rosehill is open. I need to get home, Abby, but first I have to get out of the school before Officer Fiorella catches me. Do you think Jing—?”

Abby was already punching the number into Rafe’s phone. “He’ll meet us by the Mustang,” she said before he’d even picked up. “Tea. Walk normal. You look like some kind of fugitive.”