by Jim Hines
“But you can keep it,” Tamora finished.
Mac continued to rock as he typed. “Tell us more about the privy?”
“Privy?” Gulk flinched. “Couldn’t find privy. Used back of doghouse instead.”
“Not privy. Privy! Stupid autocorrect. Tell me more about the prophecy.”
Karina began to speak in a low, steady tone.
“The hands of human children three shall end the Dead King’s reign.
Against the monsters they defend our world, while evil fights in vain.
To break a thousand years of war, the kings and queen of Earth
Will unite elves forevermore, to raise their spears and venture forth.
And on that day the signs portend a land that’s cleansed of evil’s stain.”
“How do you know that?” asked Mac.
Karina blinked, then flushed. “I’m not even sure what I said.”
“Against the monsters,” Gulk muttered, twisting his fingers into the bottom of his T-shirt. “Monsters like Gulk. All cleansed. Cleansed to death!”
“Nobody’s going to kill you,” Tamora promised. Though a cleansing wasn’t a bad idea. Gulk had wiped the dog poop off his foot, but he still stank.
“The prophecy mentioned Earth,” Mac said, his hands shaking from excitement. “That means gulch’s world and ours must have been in contact before.” He frowned and slowed his typing. “Gulk’s world. We have so many stories about elves and goblins and fairies, and mortals who circle fairy hills and find themselves in magical lands.”
“Aren’t elves the good guys?” asked Karina.
“Ha!” Gulk snorted so hard that a glob of snot shot out of his nose onto the front of the T-shirt. The goblin was as bad as Smoosh.
“You’re saying goblins are the good guys?” asked Tamora.
He snorted again. Thankfully, this one was snot-free. “No. But stupid elves not, either.”
“He’s right,” said Mac. “In some of the older stories, elves were vicious, spiteful, nasty, selfish creatures. They treated mortals as playthings, and they weren’t gentle with their toys. The ballad of Thomas the Rhymer mentions the Queen of Elfland, and talks about a tithe the elves pay to the devil. A tithe of human beings. The Grimm brothers had a tale, ‘The Servant Girl Who Stood In as Godmother for Them,’ about a girl who agreed to serve the elves for three days, but they tricked her into seven years of slavery. If you assume elf is a broader term for fairies in general, there are even more examples—”
“If that’s true,” Tamora interrupted, “how will they treat three kids from our world?”
Nobody answered.
“We’ve got to find them,” she continued. “To do that, we need to find the portal and the key to open it.”
“Can’t Gulk take us?” asked Mac.
“He won’t say where it is,” said Tamora.
“Couldn’t find it anyway,” Gulk muttered. “Human roads all look same.”
Tamora turned to Karina. “Where was your brother last seen? If we can figure out where he, Andre, and Lizzy disappeared, maybe we can make a map of where the portal might be.”
“He was home.”
“Where exactly is home?” Tamora pressed.
Karina ducked her head so her blonde hair curtained her face. “We live at the end of Coolridge Road, on the north part of town.”
Tamora’s jaw dropped. “You mean you live in that mansion?”
“My father inherited a lot of money from his parents,” Karina mumbled. “He had that place built before Kevin and I were born. It’s not really a mansion. It’s just, you know, big. Too big, really.”
Tamora and Andre had skated up Coolridge together a few times to gawk at the huge house at the end of the road. “Well, it looked like a mansion to me.” She looked over at Gulk, excitement boiling in her chest. “And if you were a goblin, it probably looked like a palace.”
* * *
Tamora and Karina watched through the living room window as Dad walked down the driveway to meet a tall woman wearing a blue blazer and white-rimmed sunglasses. He’d been reluctant to let Tamora and her brother visit the home of a family he didn’t know, so Karina had called her nanny.
“Don’t worry,” said Karina. “Ms. Anna’s great. She can charm honey out of a stone.”
“That’s not what I’m worried about.” Lying to Dad about skating home after practice was one thing. Lying about goblins and kidnapped children felt wrong. It felt dangerous. With Gulk, they had proof of magic and other strangeness. But Karina had insisted on keeping the goblin a secret, saying, “If you tell your Dad, he’ll tell mine. My father would send Gulk to a lab to be dissected.”
Mac sat on the floor, seemingly uninterested as he disassembled his Lego mermaid one brick at a time. But he squeezed each brick in his hand before putting it away, using the pressure to help his own anxiety.
“As long as Gulk keeps his hood up, Mac’s plan should work,” said Karina, misunderstanding Tamora’s unhappiness.
Tamora turned her attention back to the window. She’d been imagining a stretch limousine driven by someone who looked like a Secret Service agent. Instead, Anna Sterling had shown up in a silver minivan, and she looked more like a middle-aged schoolteacher than a bodyguard.
She and Dad chatted for several more minutes, after which they shook hands and the nanny handed him what looked like a business card. Dad came inside a short time later. “Have fun. I want both of you home by six.” He kissed Tamora on the forehead, hugged Mac, and smiled at Karina. “It’s good to meet you, Karina.”
“You too, Mr. Carter.” Karina extended her hand, a model of manners and propriety.
Dad gripped her hand and smiled. “I know it’s been a rough summer. You’re welcome here any time.”
“Thanks.” As they walked to the van, Karina beamed at Ms. Anna and raised a hand. “And thank you for picking us up.”
With a bemused smile, Ms. Anna exchanged a high five with Karina. “You seem rather chipper.”
Karina glanced over her shoulder. “Mac and Tamora have a nice house. I like their pets.”
“Be thankful Smoosh didn’t sneeze on you,” said Tamora.
The minivan was immaculate, and smelled like vanilla and lavender. Karina climbed into one of the middle seats, while Tamora and Mac took the back. There were fold-up video screens in the ceiling and a built-in rack of movies. On the other side of the van she saw a gaming console and a basket full of games and controllers. Andre would have loved it.
They’d driven less than a block when Karina perked up and pointed out the window at a hunched figure standing on the corner. “That’s my friend Greg. Can we pick him up too?”
“Do I look like your chauffeur?” asked Ms. Anna.
Karina grinned. “Yep.”
“Well, all right then.” Ms. Anna chuckled and pulled to a stop.
Tamora held her breath. “Greg” stood with his hands stuffed into his pockets, his shoulders hunched so high they touched the sides of his head. In addition to the owl T-shirt and zebra-striped pants, they’d dressed him in an oversized green hoodie and a pair of fur-lined Ugg boots.
The goblin backed away, looking ready to bolt. The sliding door slid open, and Karina beckoned him inside.
“Come on, Greg,” called Tamora.
Gulk dropped to all fours to peer beneath the van, then jumped up and poked it with one finger. A finger covered in cheap foundation to make it appear human. The make-up was Mac’s idea. Karina had taken the dusty make-up kit Tamora had gotten from her grandmother last Christmas and done a surprisingly good job of transforming Gulk into a skinny goth boy with black lipstick and eyeliner. Gulk had refused to let Karina do his nails, though.
The goblin cocked his head, sniffed, and sneezed three times, sounding like a train chugging out of the station.
“Are you all right?” asked Ms. Anna.
“He really likes cars, that’s all.” Tamora unbuckled her seat belt and climbed out to haul Gulk to his feet.
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“Lips taste like candles.”
“Next time we’ll use the pink watermelon-flavored lipstick.” She dragged him inside and shut the door.
Ms. Anna adjusted the rear-view mirror. Tamora couldn’t see her eyes behind those sunglasses, but it looked like she was studying them. Tamora pulled Gulk into the seat between her and Mac. He kept his head down while Tamora fastened his seat belt.
“Do your parents know where you’re going, Greg?” asked Ms. Anna.
Tamora elbowed him and whispered, “Say yes.”
“Yes!” Gulk squealed.
Mac bounced in his seat as they pulled away from the curb. Tamora was tempted to do the same. It had worked! They were off to the mansion—to the palace—and hopefully to the portal that would help her find Andre, Kevin, and Lizzy.
Mac was typing as he squirmed. He’d muted the app, and showed the screen to Tamora so she could read what he’d written.
“The prophecy said the humans would end a thousand years of war. If we bring them home, does that mean the war continues?”
“I don’t know.”
He cleared the screen. “Prophecies in stories are tricky. There’s a chance interfering could make things worse.”
“We have to help them.”
“Even if it means condemning another world to war?”
Tamora had no answer to that.
Chapter 7: The Palace and the Portal
Coolridge Road ended at a gated driveway at the base of a broad, tree-covered hill. The gate slid open automatically as the van approached. Precisely manicured bushes edged the drive, which looped into a tight circle in front of the house. A connected four-car garage stood to the right, but Ms. Anna pulled around to the front door.
“Thanks, Ms. A!” Karina hopped out of the van and waited—impatiently, it seemed to Tamora—for the rest of them to join her.
Tamora unbuckled Gulk’s seat belt and half-helped, half-dragged him out. Mac followed, and Ms. Anna backed into the garage, which was almost as big as Tamora’s whole house.
The front steps led to wooden double doors inset with large crescents of stained glass that came together to form a shape vaguely like an eye. Karina pushed them open and walked into a large, open foyer. Sunlight shone through skylights in the high, slanted ceiling. An open staircase curved up one wall. The furniture was all dark-stained wood and leather cushions.
“Big palace.” Gulk dropped to his hands and knees to touch the plush, off-white carpet. “Soft fur. Who killed it?”
“It’s not fur,” said Tamora. “It’s a rug. People made it.”
The goblin pressed his face into the carpet and inhaled. When he looked up, he’d left a smear of foundation behind. “Fake fur? Humans weird.”
Tamora knelt and used the bottom of her shirt to wipe the makeup the best she could. To Karina, she asked, “Is anyone else home?”
Karina led them toward a doorway near the back of the foyer. “My parents split up four years ago. My mother lives in California now. Father’s working, and Kevin…” She shrugged. “We have people come to clean and take care of the lawn and things. They’ll get that stain out of the carpet. But today it’s just me and Ms. Anna.”
Suddenly the house felt less luxurious and more empty. All that room for so few people. “Do you have any pets?” Tamora asked.
“Just the tropical fish downstairs.”
Gulk tugged Tamora’s arm. “House smells like magic. So does human woman.”
Human woman. “You mean Ms. Anna?”
“Magic,” Gulk repeated.
“Maybe it’s an effect of the portal.” Mac stood with his body hunched, staring at his iPad. “The magic might be leaking through, affecting nearby people and places, like Karina and her nanny. Has Ms. Anna had any visions?”
“She wouldn’t tell me if she did,” said Karina.
“Gulk, do you remember exactly where you came through to this world?” asked Tamora.
Gulk shook his head and scratched his nose, leaving faint blue lines behind. Tamora gently tugged his hand away from his face.
They passed through a pastel green room that made Tamora think of mint chocolate chip ice cream. White, curved couches provided enough space for at least eight people to sit together to watch the enormous wall-mounted television.
Karina led them down wide stairs into an open room with blue carpet. A red-felted pool table stood next to a full-sized air hockey game. On the other end of the room were shelves full of games and toys. Paintings of horses trotting through flower-strewn fields hung on the wall.
Gulk bit his lip and began hopping back and forth.
“What is it?” Tamora asked. “Did you remember something?”
“Yes! Remembered I have to pee!”
“This way.” Karina brought Gulk to a bathroom furnished in rose-colored marble and polished brass. Gulk started fumbling with his pants. Karina quickly shut the door and turned away. “Kevin’s room is upstairs. The police searched the house twice. Father hired a private investigator to do the same.”
“Did they find anything?” asked Tamora.
“Nothing was missing except the clothes he’d been wearing. There was no sign of a struggle. He just got up that night and left without waking anyone up. We didn’t realize he was gone until the next morning. The police questioned my parents, Ms. Anna and the rest of the staff, and all his friends and teachers.”
“The police said the same thing about Andre. Lizzy too.” Tamora closed her eyes, seeing the articles in her mind. “No evidence of a break-in. Nothing missing.”
Tamora examined a display cabinet full of small gold and silver trophies. Most were participation awards, the kind everyone got for playing sports when they were young, but she also saw a plaque for Kevin, who’d set a running record in the sixth grade, and a set of medals from Karina’s cheerleading competitions.
“Why these three people?” she asked. “The prophecy talked about three human children. Why them?”
“I don’t know,” said Karina. “What makes Andre special?”
Tamora turned away from the display. “His imagination. He was always daydreaming about things he’d read or watched, or games he’d played. We were walking home from school once last year, and he was telling me his theory that the Super Mario Brothers were aliens from another world, conquering and destroying the native inhabitants. He got so caught up in the story that he walked into a mailbox.”
Karina smiled. “Kevin was always quiet. Determined and focused. I think he’s scared of letting people down. Especially our parents. He smiles a lot, but he doesn’t laugh much.”
“Maybe hanging out with Andre will help with that,” said Tamora. “Andre acted like he never took anything seriously. There were things he cared about, but he tried not to let it show. No matter where he went or what he did, he looked like he belonged there.”
“Do you know anything about Lizzy O’Neil?”
“Not much,” Tamora admitted. “She’s supposed to be super-smart. I think she won some statewide violin competition last year.”
“Kevin likes classical music. He says it helps him concentrate. Lyrics are too distracting.”
Tamora approached a large bay window that looked out on the back of the hill. A wooden fence enclosed much of the yard. Beyond, bright green grass sloped into a grove of trees. The roots of the palace. Or the tree roots at the base of the hill where the palace stood? “Mac, can you check on Gulk? I think I know where we should look.”
Mac made a face like he’d bitten something rotten. “Why me?”
“Because you’re a boy.”
“I don’t think goblins care about that.” But he headed to the bathroom, knocked, then cracked the door. He quickly pulled it shut again. “Tamora, did you ever teach him how to use a bathroom?”
“No.” Her stomach sank. “Why?”
“He’s washing his face in the toilet, and you don’t want to know what he did to the tub.”
* * *
They c
leaned the tub the best they could, then sprayed half a bottle of air freshener. It wasn’t enough. Tamora felt bad for the Lords’ cleaning staff. She shut the bathroom door and turned to Gulk. “When you came into this world, did you come through a tree?”
The goblin’s eyes grew larger. “Yes!” He snickered. “Pukwuk got feet splinters. And hand splinters. And butt splinters.”
“How did she get splinters in—” Tamora began. “Never mind, I don’t want to know.”
Karina led them out onto a large back patio. Within the fence was a covered swimming pool and an array of plastic-cushioned furniture. Karina headed for a gate at the back of the fence.
Gulk tightened the strings of his hood until little more than his nose was visible. With the rest of his face covered, he immediately bumped into Mac and fell over backward. Tamora rolled her eyes, grabbed his hand, and hauled him upright.
“The path untraveled,” Karina murmured as she opened the gate.
Whoever mowed the lawn hadn’t been here in a while. The grass beyond the fence came halfway to Tamora’s knees. She searched the trees for movement as they approached. There should have been squirrels and birds, and maybe ducks on the river further back, but everything was still. “Gulk, did the goblins leave anyone to guard the portal?”
“Goblins all ran away. And fell down. But mostly ran.”
“Which tree is it?” Karina asked.
Gulk cupped his hands to his eyes and studied them one by one. “Had leaves. Also branches.”
Tamora snorted. “Thanks.” The air tickled her neck, like something standing close enough she could feel its breath.
“Where did you run away to?” asked Mac.
Gulk crept closer to the trees. “Followed river to smelly place full of broken human machines.”
“The junkyard,” said Mac. “It’s next to the river. I have to hold my breath whenever we drive past.”
Tamora picked up a fallen branch and gripped it like a club. It was crooked and too thin to do much damage, but holding it made her feel a little better as she crossed the line between grass and trees.
Gulk whimpered.
