Blood Brothers

by Ruth Fox

  “What’s wrong with him?” Monster-boy asked, as they practically carried him up the overgrown path.

  Zach was pretty sure he knew. Zach didn’t want to be going up to this house again, either. Even though Mr. Sanders had helped him that night, he still hadn’t managed to make his way onto Zach’s list of favourite people.

  This time, when he knocked at the door, it was answered almost immediately. Mr. Sanders stood there with a scowl on his face, and a tin of Jagermeyer’s Baked Beans clenched in his fist. “Whadderyer want?” he shouted. Then: “Oh. It’s you. Well?”

  “Mr. Sanders,” said Zach nervously. “We found your dog. He was lost in the tunnels. But don’t worry, he’s okay.”

  Mr. Sanders squinted down at the animal. “Tha’s not my dog.”

  “I—I think it is,” said Zach. “He’s been in the tunnels under the city ever since he went missing. But anyway, he’s back now. See?”

  “Not my dog,” said Mr. Sanders. “He was me wife’s dog, not mine.”

  “Oh,” said Zach, and for a moment there was silence. Then he took a deep breath and said, “Mr. Sanders, sir. I have to tell you. I stole something from you. I took one of your bulldozers. It’s, um, in South Silvershine. At a place called the Grotto Silver Works. Maybe I can . . . get it back . . .”

  “Those bulldozers aren’t bein’ used for nothin’ but rust and rat-homes. I’m buildin’ some grand new ones, by order o’ the mayor, aren’t I? For the purposes of his next Grand Gesture, to knock down the Wall completely. And these un’s’ll be better. Bigger. More blue!”

  “Oh, okay,” said Zach. He paused again. “Mr. Sanders, actually, I found something else when I went into the tunnels. I found your wife. I’m not sure if she’s still alive. But I spoke to her before she . . . vanished.”

  Mr. Sanders was staring at him.

  “Anyway, I just thought you’d better know. Um, just in case.”

  “Look,” said Mr. Sanders. “My wife died forty years ago.” He said this with finality. “Unlike that darned dog. Now get off me property an’ take that mutt with yer!”

  He slammed the door shut.

  Zach stood there staring at the flaking paint and rotted wood for a moment. He thought about what Mr. Sanders had said. The dog had lived for a very long time, and certainly didn’t seem to be showing any signs of getting old now. Zach wondered how long he’d been going into the tunnels, probably running up and down to the Grotto and the wounded Grelgoroth for all these years. Donovan had aged so quickly once the Grelgoroth had died, but then, she was human, and she’d been feeding him for many years. Maybe the power of extended life worked differently on animals? Zach wasn’t sure about any of it—except that there was something very special about this dog.

  And what about Donovan? Mr. Sanders’s wife was dead to him, Zach supposed. In all that time, she’d never let her husband know she was alive. Whether she had somehow survived the collapsing of the tunnels or not, Zach supposed no one would ever know.

  But it was a mystery Lex Eckles happily added to her collection.

  Lex had called Zach that morning. She was busy writing up the story. “It’s far too long to be a single article, so I’m going to publish it as a serial. I’m thinking of calling it The Amazing Adventures of Monster-boy: In the Lair of the Grelgoroth. What do you think?”

  She paused, and he could hear her breath catch, as if she was actually waiting for Zach’s response. “The Adventures of Monster-boy?” he said after a moment. He felt a familiar note of envy in his voice, one that he was ashamed of.

  “Well, yeah,” she said. “I think Morton deserves it. And this time, I asked him before-hand if it was okay.” She hesitated, suddenly sounding concerned. “It’s okay with you, too, isn’t it?”

  Zach closed his eyes for a second, knowing that she was right. Morton would be facing even more difficulties in the days ahead. He did deserve to be the hero. “Yeah. I think the title is perfect.”

  And in the days to come, Lex would be pleased to discover that everyone actually read the Middleview Hills Academy News before they used it to make paper aeroplanes.

  She was even more pleased, later that week, when Zach Morgenstern asked her—with a lot of stuttering and stammering—if she’d ever tried Lemon Date Delicious Crumble Pudding with Treacle, and if not, whether she’d like to. She replied that she would, which filled Zach with a mixture of excitement and nervousness.

  But that was a worry for another day. For now, Zach and Monster-boy walked back down the hill, with the dog wagging his tail happily.

  “He looks fine now,” said Monster-boy as they went through the gate.

  “He’s excited about going home,” Zach said.

  “Home?” Monster-boy echoed. “You mean he’s going to stay with us? Won’t Mum and Dad . . .?”

  “I think they’ll get used to the idea,” said Zach. “He wouldn’t be the first stray mutt we adopted!”

  Monster-boy punched him lightly in the shoulder, narrowly missing one of Zach’s many bruises. “Race you,” he said.

  Zach gave him a grin that wavered a little when he thought about the file lying, still unopened, under his pillow. The file that was all about Monster-boy, Bertram Highborn’s grandson who had lived in Avery House: an answer, perhaps, to the mystery that was Morton’s life before he’d come to live with them.

  But as Zach looked at his brother, he couldn’t help but notice the changes in him. He looked like a new Monster-boy—a happy, carefree one. Zach didn’t want to dredge up the past. Not yet.

  He told himself that it was because he wanted to protect Monster-boy . . . just a little bit longer.

  Zach pushed these dark thoughts from his mind. It was a cool, sunny Sunday, and they were two boys who’d just acquired a dog.

  “You’re on,” he called to Monster-boy, even though he was pretty sure he didn’t stand a chance of winning. Monster-boy was already well ahead of him, running full-pelt, in the direction of home.

  About the Author

  Ruth lives in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. She decided to be a writer when she was 12. She began to write her stories very neatly in a collection of notebooks. Over the next few years, she decided she probably wouldn’t make any money as a writer and should choose a more ‘sensible’ career. However, when it came time for University, she had to admit that she didn’t love anything else the way she loved telling stories. She enrolled in a Bachelor of Arts in Professional Writing and Editing, and switched the notebooks for a laptop.

  Since then, she has worked in a variety of ‘slightly more sensible’ jobs, including illustration and editing, but has always found they’re just a means to support her writing.

  Her first book, The City of Silver Light, was published in 2012. Ruth now lives with her husband, two cats, and a lot of books. She likes to cook vegetarian meals and desserts. She works very hard to raise awareness around environmental issues and climate change. She loves all creatures, except centipedes, which totally freak her out.

  You can visit her website at www.ruth-fox.com

  Acknowledgements

  First and foremost, my heartfelt thanks go out to Allie Maldonado and Shantell Booth, who cared about Monster-boy as much as I do. Allie plucked this manuscript out of the slush pile and was so enthusiastic about what she saw. Shantell’s patience and skill in editing this book have drastically improved Monster-boy, and have made it the book you now hold in your hands.

  My gratitude to the entire team at WiDo, who have been amazing to work with. You have made getting this book ready for publication such an enjoyable experience!

  I have friends and family to whom I owe absolutely everything. They’ve put up with my long hours at the computer. They’ve lifted me up along the way and offered encouragement—and chocolate—when I need it most. They’re amazing people.

&
nbsp; And finally: a writer is nothing without a reader. Thank you for reading this book. I hope to see you again soon for another adventure with Zach and Monster-boy!