The white dog crawled onto my lap, curled up and began to snore. I watched him in fascination when he lifted one eyelid very carefully.
The Beast Hunter grinned. “We need to talk about that, Snoop.”
I tried my best pleading look on Mamá. “Can he stay? Please?”
She opened and closed her mouth a couple of times, and then she nodded. “But only until morning.”
“I am very pleased to make your acquaintance, Tom. Call me Jake.” The Beast Hunter took my hand again and shook it as in a real introduction. “As soon as I have settled in a bit, we will get together and talk a little about that rat, all right?”
He made a very short break before he said rat. My heart flipped. He was the first person ever who believed me. Even my parents put the weird things I sometimes saw down to my imagination.
Chapter Three
Sally: Here and Now
After Sally rose from the comfy chair and resumed her normal size, she drifted over to her brother. He looked so small and innocent as he lay with his head on the pile of paper he was scribbling on. His straight black hair spread around his head like a dark Halo. She regretted not being able to touch it. She scratched her neck. Should he sleep like this, half sitting, half lying on the writing desk?
She looked around. Near the wall was a flat thing with soft covers and cushions that looked far more comfortable than the table. What was it called again? Not important. She bent down, put her arms around her brother, and stood up. Tom remained where he was.
“Drat!” Sally frowned. She remembered holding him in her arms before. What was wrong with her?
“What?” His head shot up and he rubbed his eyes. “Oh, it's you, Sally.” He took his pen and smoothed the last page he had written on. Sally's heart went out to him. He looked so tired and so small.
“Stop writing.” She floated to the middle of his book, knowing he wouldn't write through her. “You need to sleep. Baby brothers always sleep. And they eat a lot. Shouldn't you eat?”
He sighed. “You know I don't have much time for that. Mr. Jake told me to hurry.”
“I don't care about Mr. Jake, whoever that is. I'm your older sister, and I tell you to get something to eat.” Sally folded her arms in front of her chest. “You will do that right now, or I will not let you write one more word.”
Tom yawned and stood up. He went to the window and looked out. “Do you know that the guests are already arriving?”
The word guests triggered a memory of her holding the baby beside a basin with water. Sally joined Tom at the window. “Guests? What guests?”
“There's Uncle Hernandez.” Tom pointed to a balding man in his forties who was accompanied by a bunch of children, and then to a skinny lady in a pink dress. “And there's Aunt Lil.”
“Are we related to them?” Sally couldn't remember having seen any of them before. “Why are they not coming to our house?”
Tom returned to his desk. “Because this isn't our house.”
“It isn't?” Sally looked around. The room seemed so familiar. Was Tom trying to make fun of her? No, he looked serious. “Why then aren't we in our house? Shouldn't we greet them?”
“We're safer here, believe me.” Tom ripped open a packet of nuts and popped a handful in his mouth. Sally turned away from the scene outside. Caring for her little brother was more important.
“That's fine, baby brother. Eat them all up. I can get you more any time.” She beamed and wondered why his lower lip trembled—as did his hand when he sat down to pick up his pen once more.
Tom: Diary
Early next morning, Sally bounced into my room to wake me. Snoop watched her with one eye but went on pretending to be asleep, and I did the same.
Sally shook me until I sat up. “He's still here, you know.”
I rubbed my eyes. “Who?”
“That freaky new neighbor. Dad said he'll take him into town after breakfast.” Sally hopped around my room. I wondered how she could be so happy with a stranger in our house. And why did Mamá allow him to stay? Then I remembered what had happened last night.
“He's a Beast Hunter, you know.” I picked up the card from my nightstand and held it out to her.
“No, he isn't, silly.” Sally sat beside me on the bed and began to bounce up and down. “He's from pest control.”
I looked at the card, and it said Pest Control under his name. Could I have been so wrong? What if he put a spell on the card and on my family?
Sally bounced a final time and stood beside my bed. “Get up, sleepyhead. I want to give you your birthday present.”
Suddenly I was wide awake. How could I have forgotten my tenth birthday? Especially since I hadn't been able to think about anything else the last few days. I slipped out of bed and pushed Sally out the door. “Go away. I want to get dressed.”
Usually we had to wait till the afternoon party for our presents, but today Dad wouldn't be home until very late at night. Mamá had decided we'd have the cake and presents in the morning. She had said, “Birthdays are family affairs.”
Five minutes later I sat at the breakfast table, clothed and with my hair tamed. Mamá placed the birthday cake in front of me and lit the candle.
I blushed a bit when they sang Las Mañanitas because Mr. Saint-Clare, I mean Mr. Jake, was watching, but I loved this ritual too much to complain. Snoop sat at my left foot, wagging his tail in time to the rhythm. It felt natural for them to be there, as if they belonged to the family. When the song was over, Snoop put his front paws on my knee and begged for a piece of my cake.
I glanced at Mr. Jake but he shook his head. “Sweets are not healthy for dogs, or have you ever seen one brush its teeth?”
I laughed. Sally was the first to hand me a small, brightly wrapped parcel. I examined it thoroughly and even listened to it. Last year she had given me a box of crickets for my Gargoyle Gecko, but they escaped. Mamá had been furious. This time, everything stayed quiet. I opened the wrapper and recognized the flat cardboard box. It was from the bracelet Nana had given her last Christmas. I sucked in my lower lip and lifted the cover slowly. A plain, golden oval with a delicate chain rested on the pillow of dark blue velvet. I took it out and the necklace followed. “What is it?” I asked Sally.
“It's a locket. Remember last summer when Nana told us about voodoo, and you wanted to have power over me? Now you can have it, in case you ever find out how it works.” She laughed and took the locket from my hand to show me how to open it. “I put in a picture of Mamá, Dad and me, and a lock of my hair.”
I liked the tiny photo inside but I wasn't too sure about the gift in total. Wasn't it a bit too girlish to wear a necklace? Still, I smiled and thanked her. Then I opened my other gifts, and they were much more to my liking. I got a new pair of Inliners with a set of protectors and cool headgear with graffiti on it. Now I could get rid of the Loony Toons helmet I had worn since kindergarten. And Nana had sent a card, promising she would come in time for Halloween.
When I unwrapped the last gift—a set of color pencils and writing paper from Granny and Grandpa—Mr. Jake stepped forward. For the first time this morning I realized that it was odd to have him here. Considering Mamá's fear of strangers and Dad's wariness of visitors, he must have drugged my parents—or he used magic on them.
Mr. Jake held out his hand. A very smooth black stone lay in his palm. “This is from me for your birthday. It will protect you from rats. Sorry I didn't wrap it.”
I picked it up and felt power tingle in my fingers. Was it magic? My eyebrows shot up and I looked at Mr. Jake. He winked. So he didn't want my parents to know this was for real. I bit back my question and smiled to show him I understood.
“If you come to my house after lunch to help me unpack, I'm sure we'll find a cookie or two,” he said.
“That's in no way necessary. Tom will enjoy helping you without a bribe. And now, breakfast.” Mamá shooed them to the table.
I ate as much as I could fit into my stomach. Mr. Jake left Sn
oop with me when Dad took him into town, and Sally and I helped Mamá clear the table. Then Sally helped me put on my new Inliners and raced me with her bike while Mamá weeded the front garden. Of course, we had to stay where she could see us; still, it was fun.
In the early afternoon, Mr. Jake returned with the right key, two strong men and a van full of furniture and boxes. Sally and I watched them unload. Snoop enjoyed getting in their way. I suspected he did it on purpose, but Mr. Jake never scolded him, and he was fast enough to evade the vicious kicks the men aimed at him.
When the men and the van had left, Mr. Jake took a black cardboard box under his arm and approached us. “We need to make this house rat-safe. Care to help?”
We nodded, but I wondered how he would prevent this special kind of rat from entering his house. It definitely wasn't a question of finding and filling holes in the walls. This rat had come into my room through a closed door, after all. Maybe he'd do some magic. I held my breath and wished with all my heart that he was a magician. Then I could be sure he had enchanted my parents and Sally. Wait a moment. Shouldn't it worry me if a stranger put spells on my family? I knew it should, but it didn't. Somehow, I trusted him.
Mr. Jake handed Sally a copper wire. “This needs to go all around the perimeter of my land. Try to braid it into the fence wherever possible. When you're done, I need both ends.”
“Will you connect them to a generator?” Sally's eyes sparkled. I could tell she thought she had figured out what Mr. Jake wanted to do with the wire.
“Sort of.” Again his smile made his wrinkles smooth out. When Sally was busy, he handed me a small box with glittering objects: crosses, five- and six-pointed stars, pyramids and many more. None of them was bigger than my thumbnail. “Stick as many of them to the fence, the bushes and trees as you can. They will become invisible when they're in place.”
Proud to be trusted with the truth, I probably grew an inch. “You can count on me.” I set to work. For hours and hours, I plastered every bit of fence, every bush, and every tree with the little blinkies. I even got a ladder to reach the branches of the trees. What really surprised me was that the blinkies didn't seem to get less. When I stuck the final two to the last branch of the last bush, the box was still as full as when Mr. Jake had handed it to me. Sally had finished long before me. I couldn't see her anywhere.
“Your mother called her, and she went home,” Mr. Jake said. Then he squatted and took both my hands. “Now listen, if you ever run into the Beast again, try to reach my land. The wards we put up just now will keep it out.”
“Was that the Beast last night?”
“Yes, Tom.” He let go of my hands and stood up. “Now, get Sally and we'll talk about it. Do you like hot chocolate?”
Chapter Four
Sally: Here and Now
“Are you coming, Tom?” The voice carried through the door.
Sally was sure she'd heard it before but she couldn't quite place it.
Tom put his pen down, stretched and yawned. He shouted back. “In a minute, Mamá.”
We are leaving? Finally? Sally shot up and raced around Tom like a mini-tornado. “Where are we going?”
“You can't come.” Tom flattened the papers of his story and put a heavy book on top of them.
Anger flushed through Sally. He doesn't even want me to read his darned story.
“But I want to come. It's boring in here. We've been in this room for ages.” She breathed in and felt her head swell to something bigger than its normal size.
Before she became a ghost, this would have terrified Tom. Now he just closed his eyes. “You wouldn't like the place. Believe me.”
Sally grew angrier every second.
“Tom, we're not waiting much longer.” A deeper voice boomed through the house.
“I'm on my way, Dad.”
“I won't let you go without me.” The skin on Sally's face felt hot, sparks flew from her eyes and she breathed fire at Tom's manuscript. It didn't catch. She tried to push the books away so she could rip the pages, but her fingers went through them. Drat. It's horrible to be a ghost. All her anger faded and she sank to the ground. If only she could become human again.
Tom sighed. “Mr. Jake said you can't hurt me, no matter how scary you look. You're not the Beast, you know.” He turned away and picked up the locket she had given him. His birthday felt like an eternity ago. How long had she been a ghost? She didn't know.
He showed her the locket. “Do you remember what you said when you gave it to me?”
“It doesn't matter. You will go without me.” Sally felt empty inside. Like a bucket without water.
Tom opened it and took out the lock of hair. It bounced when he tugged at it. “I wish everything would be the way it used to be.” A tear rolled down his cheek, and Sally felt the urge to wipe it away. Comforting her baby brother was more important than her own sorrow.
She tried to sound cheerful. “If only you'd let me out a bit more often. Then I wouldn't mind being a ghost so much.”
“Do you mind?” Tom looked at her and sucked in his lower lip.
Was he waiting for an answer? Sally searched her memories for something that would make him understand what she felt without making him unhappy again.
“I liked being your sister when I wasn't a ghost. Somehow, I felt the love in my bones. I don't have those bones any more but the love's still there. Weird, eh?” Sally somersaulted. “Can I come now? Please?”
“I can't allow you to leave this room just now. The Beast's waiting outside. It's too dangerous.” Tom stroked the lock of hair.
“If it's dangerous for me, it's dangerous for you.” Sally landed in front of him.
“I won't go alone. Mamá and Dad will be with me.” Tom lifted the hair until it dangled in front of his face.
Sally frowned. “Where are you going? Why can't I come?”
“Mamá and Dad are taking me to church. There'll be a memorial service for your soul.”
“I thought they had forgotten about me.”
“Not yet, but the memory is fading. Hide in your hair.” Tom kissed the lock and Sally felt herself being sucked into the dark. Although it was cozy inside her hair, the thud of the door closing behind Tom hurt.
Tom: Diary
I had some trouble convincing Sally to come with me. Her BFF had called and she just wouldn't stop talking. Finally I yelled into the phone, “It's my birthday, and I want my sister. Now!”
“You idiot.” Sally slammed the receiver on the table and ran after me, yelling with rage. I ran hard to be faster. Just before she caught me, I slipped through Mr. Jake's door, and before she realized it, she stumbled after me.
“Ah, there you are.” Mr. Jake greeted us with open arms. I could already smell the cocoa's sweet promise. It was a wonder how fast Mr. Jake had converted the jungle of boxes and furniture into something resembling living quarters. He led us to a table set with mismatched dishes, a steaming pitcher and a huge bowl of cookies.
Sally managed to snatch the only chair. I noticed that she slipped to the very front as if she wanted to jump up and run any second. I could tell she expected this to be like any other visit-the-neighbor ordeal we had lived through—the ones with uncomfortable questions about school and friends and awkward silences. But I was sure this would be different. Very different.
Mr. Jake helped me to climb a tower of three sturdy cardboard boxes before he sat on another tower like mine and filled our mugs with cocoa. “Help yourselves,” he said and pointed to the cookies.
Sally looked around. “Where is Snoop?”
“Hunting.” Mr. Jake held his mug with both hands, sipped his cocoa, and stared at Sally until she shifted in her seat. “I am not sure if I can trust you,” he said.
Sally pulled up one side of her mouth like she always did when something baffled her.
Mr. Jake explained. “I can't allow grown-ups to know about my work, and you are on the brink of becoming one. Will you promise not to tell anyone even if you do
not believe my words?” He set down the mug, bent forward, and eyed Sally with a gaze that made the hairs on my arms stand up.
Sally nodded but I knew she would blab to protect me if necessary. It felt good to know that she would break even the holiest vow for my sake. I just hoped Mr. Jake would believe her; I really wanted to hear more.
“Well then.” He picked up his mug and leaned back again. “Truth be told, I didn't get Snoop for company. Also, he's not really a dog, but that's unimportant.”
“What is he then?” It wasn't unimportant to Sally.
“He's half demon, half angel and three-quarters dog.”
“That's more than one.” Sally frowned. “How can he be more than one?”
“As I said, that's not important. I caught Snoop to hunt the Beast. He's the only one who can fight it, the only one who can hurt it, and the only one strong enough to keep it in one place or chase it away.” He smiled and sipped his cocoa.
Sally frowned some more. “You're not talking about the rat yesterday, are you? Dad says that it's impossible to kill all the rats in a place. They'll just breed more as long as they find food.”
Mr. Jake's eyes narrowed to slits. “Yesterday's attacker wasn't a rat. It just looked like that to you. Your brother saw something different. Right?”
I blushed when he and Sally looked at me. I stuffed another cookie in my mouth so I didn't have to answer. Sally hardly ever believed in anything I told her anyway. She always said it's my imagination.
Mr. Jake seemed to understand because he explained without pressing me for an answer. “Your brother saw the Beast. It can take any form it likes and only its victims recognize it for what it is.”
I wondered why the Beast hunted kids but didn't dare to interrupt Mr. Jake.
“I have hunted the Beast for nearly sixty years. Together with Snoop, I saved many a soul, but we could not kill it. We tried everything, from silver bullets to magical swords—nothing worked.” He gritted his teeth. “I can put up wards to keep it out of my house, and I create stones that protect children. But no matter how much I search, I haven't found anything that can be used effectively to kill the Beast.”
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