The Song of Hadariah: Dybbuk Scrolls Trilogy: Book 1 (Dybbuk Scrolls Trillogy)

by Alisse Lee Goldenberg

“Says who?” Lindsay asked. Carrie could see her mounting frustration. “You? Are you the boss of when we have to do this growing up? Well, I won’t grow up!”

  Carrie had to put a stop to this. “I’m not crazy, I’m not a baby, and I’m not making this up. Lindsay, you’re with me, aren’t you? I know you are. Rebecca, you have always been one of my very best friends. You know I don’t go around making up crazy stories. I never have. You know that. All I’m asking is for you to come over to my house and see. If something happens, cool. We’ll deal with it. Like we always used to. If nothing happens, fine then. We’ll just hang out and have a good laugh over silly Carrie and some weird dream she had or something. I’ll let you both tease me about this for the rest of my life. Okay?” She looked at her two friends, uncertainty in her eyes. “Do we have a deal?” She waited for a response. “Guys?”

  “I’m in,” Lindsay told her with a grin. “Let’s see what Foxy Loxy has in store for us. It might just be astonishing.”

  “Becca?” Carrie asked.

  Rebecca sat and thought for a moment. “I get to tease you for life?” she asked.

  Carrie nodded, a small smile on her face. She knew her friend would be there for her.

  “I’m in,” Rebecca said finally. “Though I’m going on the record with the fact that I think you are both totally nuts. Although I really should’ve already known that.”

  “We always were,” Lindsay replied. “You were too. Remember when we met?”

  Carrie laughed, feeling the tension drain from her body. She released a breath she didn’t even realize she had been holding. She felt happy and light knowing her friends would be by her side. “We were the best damn wolves ever!”

  “It was good practice for talking to foxes!” Lindsay exclaimed.

  “They are not exactly the same thing, you know,” Rebecca replied.

  “Close enough,” Lindsay said.

  “Not really, no. But if you ask me, we’ve come full circle. First we meet pretending to be talking animals, now we’re going off to maybe actually meet with one. Madness must be contagious.” Rebecca smiled. “Okay, we may as well have fun with this. Though I do have one question: assuming this fox does show up—and I’m not saying he will—but assuming he does, and we go on this quest—what do we tell our parents? We can’t just drop off the face of the Earth for a few days or a week or whatever.”

  Lindsay pursed her lips. “You’re right. I didn’t think of that. We need to come up with a good excuse, some cover story or something. I highly doubt we can just tell our parents that we’re going on some magical quest.”

  Rebecca gave a short chuckle. “They might actually think it’s just us being ridiculous again,” she said. “They have heard some wild stories from us over the years. But they won’t believe any of it is the truth.”

  Carrie twisted her necklace around, lost in thought. She hadn’t thought about this aspect of her plan at all. She had just come to terms with the fact that some animals really did speak. She didn’t realize that if that were true, then she might actually get to go on this quest as well.

  Lindsay slapped her hand down on the railing. “Road trip!” she cried out. “And I totally get to pick the music!”

  “What?” Carrie asked, confused.

  “We tell our parents we’re going on a road trip for a few days. We’ll take Carrie’s car. If this fox guy shows up, we go with him. If not, we’ll drive to Montreal or somewhere else and still have a fun few days out of town full of shopping, crepes, and maybe even some boys.” Lindsay grinned at them.

  Carrie’s eyes lit up. “Lindsay, that’s brilliant!” She clapped her hands together in excitement. This could actually work!

  Rebecca looked thoughtful. “Road trips are fun,” she said. Carrie could see a spark of enthusiasm for the idea in her friend’s eyes. “But I will not spend several hours in a car listening to show tunes.”

  Lindsay smiled at her. “You are so in. Admit it. And you totally love my music.”

  “I admit nothing,” Rebecca said, though the expression on her face told a different story.

  “Woo-hoo!” Carrie exclaimed. “It’s a plan!”

  Lindsay jumped off the railing. “Okay! Everybody out! I have to pack.” She ushered Carrie and Rebecca to the door.

  “You realize we’ll have to travel light. Right, Lindsay?” Carrie asked.

  “Of course!” Lindsay said. “I’ll just bring the essentials.”

  Carrie and Rebecca both groaned. Lindsay was a notorious pack rat. With their luck, she would probably show up with at least six suitcases jam-packed not only with her entire wardrobe, but with all seventy-three pairs of shoes, her parents’ camping equipment, rations for at least a week, and emergency supplies. Yet, despite this, she was still able to forget the essentials such as her wallet, or keys. Because of this, Lindsay had developed the uncanny ability to pick locks with anything she had handy. Carrie mentally told herself that Lindsay’s idea of “essentials” could be a good thing, yet the thought of lugging around Lindsay’s idea of traveling light terrified her.

  * * *

  Carrie arrived at home with a considerably lighter heart. She sat down to dinner and smiled at her father who grinned back, his blue eyes twinkling. She was glad to see him in a good mood. This would make things easier.

  “I’m going on a road trip with Rebecca and Lindsay for a few days, if that’s all right with you guys,” Carrie told them. “We’ll probably end up in Montreal.” She felt a little bit bad lying to her parents, but it was sort of the truth. If Adom returned, they would be going away. If he didn’t, then they would be driving to Montreal.

  Her parents exchanged glances over the dinner table and nodded. Carrie often found herself wondering how they seemed to communicate without having to speak a single word.

  She grinned at them both. Now all she had to do was wait.

  Chapter Five

  Yom Shlishi

  The morning of the third day dawned unusually cool and damp. The trees seemed to shiver in the wind in anticipation of something, yet of what, they knew not. The blades of grass on the lawn lay heavy with dew and waited impatiently for the sun to dry them off, so that they could once again stand tall and proud, stretching toward the sky.

  Carrie was up and about by six. She seemed possessed by a restless energy which left her with an inability to sit still and accomplish anything. She felt as if she were a coiled spring, tight and ready to snap. Her body thrummed with some unknown power. She fluttered around the house from one room to the next before buckling down and fixing bagged lunches for herself and her friends. She unpacked all she had packed the night before, repacked it, unpacked, and repacked again. She groomed Finnigan and fed him. When her parents finally woke up, she took her car to the nearest gas station and filled her tank in preparation of her big “drive to Montreal.”

  By noon, Carrie had repacked her bag for the fifth time that day. Her mother knocked on her door and poked her head into her daughter’s room.

  “Honey, your father and I are going out for the day. If you leave before we get back, I just want you to know that we wish you a safe and fun trip. Call us when you get there. Okay?”

  Carrie smiled at her mother. “I will.” For the second time, she felt a pang of guilt. She did her best to brush it aside. She hated having to lie to them but felt they just wouldn’t understand. She felt a bit of worry knowing the trouble she would be in when she returned. She wondered just how bad her punishment would be.

  “You had better call.” The warning tone was evident in her mother’s voice.

  “I promise. Okay?” Carrie said, belatedly realizing it was not going to happen. Her mother could be so overprotective sometimes, yet Carrie knew that for once her mother was right to worry. She highly doubted that there was cell service where they were going.

  On a whim, Carrie walked over to her mother and gave her a tight hug. Just as quickly, she released her and walked back to her bag.

  “What was that
for?” Mrs. Eisen asked, bewildered. She had thought her daughter had outgrown the hugs and kisses she loved as a little girl.

  “In case I don’t see you before I leave.” Carrie’s face turned beet-red.

  “Oh,” her mother replied. She walked over to Carrie and absently tucked an errant strand of hair behind her daughter’s ear. “Have a lovely trip, sweetheart,” she said and bent to kiss her daughter on the cheek.

  “I love you, Mom,” Carrie said. She looked down at the floor, hesitating to look her mother in the eye.

  “I love you, too,” Mrs. Eisen replied. She turned to leave the room and paused at the doorway to look at her daughter one more time. “Goodbye, Carrie. Have fun with your friends, and please be careful on your drive.”

  Carrie sat down on the edge of her bed and listened for the sound of her parents’ car driving away. She hated having to lie to them. She felt guilt gnawing at her stomach. She hoped she would not be gone long enough to cause them any undue worry. She stayed seated for a long while after the sound of the car’s engine had faded, lost in thought.

  * * *

  Lindsay and Rebecca arrived right on time. It was probably the only time in their lives that either of them had ever been punctual for anything. Rebecca was toting a large hiker’s backpack, which seemed modestly full, while Lindsay dragged two of the biggest wheeled suitcases Carrie had ever seen. Both Carrie and Rebecca stared flabbergasted as Lindsay struggled to pull them into the backyard.

  “What the hell were you thinking?” Carrie asked, looking at the suitcases.

  “Well,” Lindsay answered, “one is for if this fox guy shows up and we go on the quest.” She gestured toward the suitcase on the left. It looked full to bursting. “The other one is if we go on our road trip. I can’t possibly need the same stuff for both places, can I? I mean, this quest will probably mean hiking of some sort, and I don’t know what the weather’s like over there. Montreal is more restaurants and shopping. Right?” Coming from her, it almost seemed logical.

  Rebecca looked pointedly at the suitcase designated for the quest. “As you just said, we don’t know where we’re going. That could mean roads, forest, rough terrain… How do you expect to drag that thing around with us? I doubt there will be a hotel where you can check it at the desk.”

  Lindsay stared back at Rebecca. “But it’s because we don’t know where we’re going that I packed all this stuff. I thought that we’d best be prepared for any-and-all circumstances. This way, even though it’ll be hard to carry, I’ll be ready for just about anything.” She crossed her arms and glared at Rebecca. “You, however, will not.”

  “Fine,” Rebecca answered. “But I swear that I will not help you lug that thing around.”

  Carrie smiled at her friends. They always fought like this, yet somehow they were always there for each other no matter what.

  “That’s fine. I never asked you to. Carrie will help me with it,” Lindsay said.

  “Hey!” Carrie said, throwing her hands up in self-defence. “Oh no I won’t! I have my own bag to carry.” She gestured to where her own backpack lay on the ground.

  “But we’ll swap for a bit,” Lindsay said, a pleading look on her face. “Please? Pretty, pretty please?”

  Carrie giggled. Her friend always looked so silly when she got like this. Rebecca looked thoroughly amused by her friend’s performance as well.

  “Fine,” Lindsay said in a huff. “I’ll manage it by myself.” She then smiled. “While we wait, why don’t we get something to eat?”

  Some time later, the three girls rested outside, their stomachs full of pizza. The sun had set, and the sky was swiftly darkening; the first few stars were visible over the top of Carrie’s fence.

  “I don’t think he’s coming,” Carrie whispered. For the first time that day, tiny tendrils of doubt began to wind their way through her mind. Had she possibly imagined it all? A hand reached out and gave hers a squeeze.

  “Let’s wait a little while longer,” Lindsay whispered back.

  “We’ll give you all the time you need,” Rebecca agreed.

  Carrie was grateful both of her friends were being so supportive and understanding. She didn’t know what she would have done if she had had to wait alone. She looked at her watch for what felt like the tenth time that hour. She began to think Adom would not appear. Had she gotten the time wrong? Had he changed his mind? Suddenly, an eerie feeling overcame her. Her skin prickled as if the air around had been charged with an electrical current.

  “Oh my god!” Lindsay let out a small gasp. “Do you feel that?” She tightened her grip on Carrie’s hand.

  “What is this? What’s going on?” Rebecca asked. She reached out and took hold of Carrie’s other hand.

  Without letting go, the three girls sat up and peered around. As though through a fog, Carrie heard Finnigan barking from inside the house. Then, as he had before, the fox stepped out lithely from the bush in the corner of the yard. Lindsay and Rebecca stared openmouthed as the fearless creature approached them.

  Her heart pounding, Carrie swallowed nervously. “Hello,” she said quietly.

  Adom bowed low. “You have brought friends.”

  Rebecca squeaked in shock. “You talk?”

  Adom nodded. “Indeed,” he replied.

  “I’m Lindsay, and this is Rebecca. We heard Carrie would be going somewhere with you.” Lindsay gazed at Adom in wonder. “Just so you know, she doesn’t go anywhere without us. Where she goes, we go.”

  Rebecca nodded in agreement. “Definitely.”

  “I hope you don’t mind,” Carrie said.

  Adom shook his head. “Of course I do not mind. We will greatly appreciate all of your help,” he said to the girls. “Carrie will probably need you both on her journey.”

  “All right!” Lindsay exclaimed. “Let’s go then!”

  “Wait,” Rebecca said. She placed her hands on her knees and leaned forward to look Adom in the eyes. His ears twitched as he peered back at her curiously.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  “I don’t mean to be a total buzzkill here,” Rebecca said. “But before we go anywhere, what exactly is this quest you want us to go on? Carrie said something about your land being in peril, but what do you want us to do about it? I don’t want to sound mean or cruel. I just want to know what it is I’m getting myself into before, you know, getting myself into it.”

  She paused. “I mean, is this quest dangerous? Will we be risking our lives? Will we have to hurt anyone? Or even kill someone to save your world? I may be speaking for myself here—” She looked at her two friends. “But I highly doubt I am. I would really rather not become a killer.”

  Carrie looked down at the ground. Rebecca was right. She had just run headfirst into the idea of a magical quest without even finding out all the facts. She didn’t even know if it would be dangerous. Suddenly, she felt a little bit foolish. She looked up to see Lindsay nodding in agreement.

  “This is not an unreasonable request,” Adom replied. “I was in such haste to fetch help from your world that I neglected to explain what is required of you. I hope you will accept my apologies for this.”

  The three girls nodded.

  “I shall tell you everything.” With that, Adom settled himself comfortably upon the ground and began to tell his story.

  Chapter Six

  Megilat ha Shual

  It was dark outside. The lights in the backyard eventually flickered on, having been set on a timer earlier that summer. Carrie, Lindsay, and Rebecca sat in a ring on the grass in silence, listening to Adom tell his tale.

  “When my world was first formed,” he began, “it was beautiful, vibrant, full of light and song. Until quite recently, none of this had changed. Of course, we have built cities and towns. Forests have been cut down, and others have since been planted. We have grown in numbers, and many things have evolved. Through all the changes, however, one thing has remained constant: the music that we played. Oh, how the music filled o
ur days! It filled the land and our very souls. We were happy then. Every day was filled with joy and laughter.

  “Maybe it is merely my desire to only remember the good in those times. Do not mistake me, for I know we were no utopia. We did have our problems. We did commit our share of mistakes, have our faults. Not everybody in my world strove for the betterment of society. I know it is so in your world as well. There were some in our world that strove to do wicked deeds. Some were even worse. I know of some…well, far be it for me to speak wickedly against another.” Adom shook his head sadly and continued to speak. “I do not know what possessed him to do what he has done. In my world, there are two kings. One who is regarded as a king of light. He rules all with his beloved queen by his side. All love him. All respect him. The other is the king of what you may call demons. It is he whom I speak of now. We know him by the name of Asmodeus.”

  Rebecca’s eyes went wide. “Asmodeus?” she asked incredulously. “I know that name! My bubbie told me stories about him. She said he was a… a…” she struggled to find the word. Carrie could see her go through it in her head. “She called him a dybbuk!” Rebecca exclaimed.

  Carrie thought the word sounded somewhat familiar. She remembered her own bubbie warning her of something like that when she was younger. The way Rebecca pronounced it as ‘di-book’ was slightly different than how she remembered her bubbie saying it in her Polish accent, so she was not certain it was the same thing.

  Adom nodded. “I had not thought anyone here would remember such stories. Yes, Rebecca, dybbuks are a form of demon. Long ago, your world and mine were more like one. There was magic here. Fantastic creatures roamed these very lands.” Adom paused, looking around in disappointment. “But people stopped believing in such things. It became impractical to spend time on magic, on speaking to animals, to plants, to magical beings. It became odd to spend any time on anything that was not deemed common sense. Now our two worlds exist almost as two entirely separate entities. My world is now in peril. Asmodeus has done something that threatens our very existence. I and others know this to be true, yet I do not know of any reason for him to do so.