When I Cast Your Shadow

by Sarah Porter

  I watched them press a drink into Josh’s hand; not the usual beer, some kind of moody, earth-smelling wine. He gulped it down. I had a full glass too, and I couldn’t remember taking it from anyone. Something in the scent of it bothered me. When I got a chance I set it down on a tree stump, and if anyone noticed they didn’t say anything. A girl wearing—what? Silver snail shells?—smiled at me sidelong and reached to run a nail along my cheek.

  The night started to feel like the continuation of a story I’d begun and then lost track of somehow. I could see how Josh had believed them, but why had they lied? He swooned backward supported by their crossed arms, his head upside down and his red bangs trailing over the stones. They spun him like that and he laughed.

  The boy in blue tugged me back against a tree and kissed me, hard, and the prickling in my mouth got louder, like something was singing in there. It should have been thrilling but I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. I thought dawn must be coming soon; I thought that then I would have an excuse to drag Josh away, though it was clear he’d never choose to leave on his own.

  I’d closed my eyes, but I opened them in time to see the pale boy in white and the dark girl streaming pink as they led Josh away into the shadows. He fired me a last round-mouthed oh my God face over his shoulder, like he couldn’t believe his luck. My muscles flinched with the urge to go after him, pull him back, though it wasn’t our way to interfere.

  The boy in blue pressed in harder and slid his hands up my shirt, at which point he should have realized that my name probably wasn’t Keyshaun. He didn’t seem to care.

  Because they’d given up on me for the moment, though I didn’t understand that then. They’d picked their first target and I just needed to be kept out of the way. The kiss slid down my throat like biting insects, like a prancing thing with too many needle-fine feet.

  I was getting dizzy, and I tried to push him off. And then my mind was one big black buzz and I was down on the grass and stones. I could feel the cold lumps digging into my shoulder blades. The ground seemed too chilly, and too unsteady, for June.

  There was a fading-away, where I had just enough of my mind to catch the trail of disappearances: voices dialing out in mid-sentence, the music shedding its notes. I remember trying to stand up, even thinking I was up, only to feel my body still sucking the cold from the sod. I remember trying to call out for him. It was up to me to keep Josh safe, so I couldn’t just pass out. That thought kept blaring at me in anxious bursts. I held onto it—get up, get up—and clawed at the ground.

  When I woke up, everyone was gone. My bowler hat had rolled away and come to rest in a patch of moss.

  ALSO BY SARAH PORTER

  Vassa in the Night

  THE LOST VOICES TRILOGY

  Lost Voices

  Waking Storms

  The Twice Lost

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  SARAH PORTER is a writer, artist, and freelance teacher who lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two cats. She is the author of several books for young adults, including Vassa in the Night. She has an M.F.A. in creative writing from City College. Look for her online at sarahporterbooks.com, facebook.com/sarahporterauthor, and on Twitter as @sarahporterbook. Or sign up for email updates here.

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  CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Copyright Notice

  Dedication

  Ruby

  Everett

  Ruby

  Everett

  Aloysius

  Ruby

  Everett

  Dashiell

  Ruby

  Everett

  Ruby

  Aloysius

  Everett

  Ruby

  Everett

  Dashiell

  Everett

  Ruby Slippers

  Never-Ever

  Ruby Slippers

  Never-Ever

  Ruby Slippers

  Mabel

  Never-Ever

  Ruby Slippers

  Never-Ever

  Dashiell

  Ruby Slippers

  Never-Ever

  Ruby Slippers

  Aloysius

  Never-Ever

  Ruby Slippers

  Everett

  Mabel

  Ruby Dashiell Slippers

  Everett

  Ruby Slippers

  Dashiell

  Everett

  Ruby Slippers

  Everett

  Ruby Slippers

  Aloysius

  Ruby Slippers

  Paige

  Ruby Slippers

  Everett

  Ruby Slippers

  Everett

  Mabel

  Everett

  Ruby Slippers

  Mabel

  Ruby

  Dashiell

  Never-Contented Things Excerpt

  Also by Sarah Porter

  About the Author

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  WHEN I CAST YOUR SHADOW

  Copyright © 2017 by Sarah Porter

  All rights reserved.

  Cover art by Daniel Cullen

  A Tor Teen Book

  Published by Tom Doherty Associates

  175 Fifth Avenue

  New York, NY 10010

  www.tor-forge.com

  Tor® is a registered trademark of Macmillan Publishing Group, LLC.

  The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

  ISBN 978-0-7653-8056-2 (hardcover)

  ISBN 978-0-7653-9756-0 (ebook)

  eISBN 9780765397560

  Our ebooks may be purchased in bulk for promotional, educational, or business use. Please contact the Macmillan Corporate and Premium Sales Department at 1-800-221-7945, extension 5442, or by email at MacmillanSpecialMarkets@macmillan.com.

  First Edition: September 2017