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

by Alisse Lee Goldenberg

  “What is with you?” Lindsay asked as they trudged through the forest. She looked worried as she peered at Carrie in the dim light.

  Carrie ran her fingers angrily through her hair. Several of the short strands stood straight up, but she didn’t seem to notice or care. “I feel so stupid,” she said. She ruefully wrinkled her nose and continued. “You guys warned me, and I still didn’t listen to you. I had a feeling that coming here would be dangerous, but I wanted to do it anyway. And I dragged you guys along with me.” She shrugged helplessly and wrapped her arms around her torso in a self-hug. “On top of that, I failed the first test we encountered. I feel like such a dork. I’m so sorry. I—I guess I never truly realized that we might actually get hurt.” She chewed her bottom lip as she looked anywhere but at her friends.

  Rebecca and Lindsay exchanged glances. Rebecca walked closer to Carrie, put her arm around her friend, and smiled encouragingly. Lindsay reached over and tousled Carrie’s hair. Her grey eyes were warm and friendly.

  “You may not have thought of the danger, but I did,” Rebecca told Carrie. “I knew the trip would be potentially dangerous. If I didn’t want to take the risk, I would’ve stayed home.”

  Lindsay nodded in agreement. “You didn’t drag us anywhere we didn’t want to go,” she told Carrie. “We came because we wanted to. Come on. I would’ve thought that you knew us better than that.” She pouted. “I mean, you’ve known us for how long? A million years, right?”

  “Oh, longer. Much longer,” Rebecca said in mock seriousness.

  “You can’t force us to do anything we don’t want to do,” Lindsay said, poking her friend in the side. “We can be very stubborn.”

  “You can?” Carrie said with a small smile. “That’s news to me. So you’re not mad at me?”

  “No!” Lindsay and Rebecca both shouted at her.

  The three girls dissolved into laughter, all tension having drained away. They trekked on. As they walked, they saw that the forest began to grow closer, the path disappearing as the trees grew wilder. Vines and brambles appeared to reach out to grab at them as they walked. The noises of birds, before a constant background chattering, disappeared completely, replaced by an eerie silence that deafened the ears. The joyous mood of the three friends vanished and was replaced by a deep foreboding as the endless night unfolded around them. The forest was still and quiet. No breeze stirred the trees, and the very air seemed to be lying in wait for something. The girls walked on, feeling as if they were being watched from all directions by hundreds of unseen eyes. They stood close to one another, shoulders touching, taking small comfort from whatever human contact they could get. None of them wanted to speak, afraid of shattering the air around them, yet the silence was unnerving, and they soon feared going mad.

  Eventually, the sound of moving water reached them. It was as if a spell had been broken. The girls walked faster, their ears drinking in the sound. As they approached the source, it became louder with each step they took, as if they were nearing a stream or river. The trees began to thin out, and they saw bushes and shrubs, all still dotted with the glowing mushrooms that, even with their flashlights, remained their main source of light. Soon they came to the bank of a wide river. It looked deep, as they could not see the bottom, the water running clear and fast. Carrie’s eyes scanned the scene, looking for a safe way to cross.

  “There must be a bridge or something somewhere,” she said to Rebecca and Lindsay.

  Lindsay looked a little ways upstream and pointed. “There,” she said. Her friends looked and saw a wooden bridge spanning the expanse of the river.

  Together, Carrie, Lindsay, and Rebecca approached the bridge. As they came closer, they saw a rock jutting out of the middle of the water close to where the bridge was, like a small island. To their dismay, perched upon this rock was a girl who appeared to be their age. She was pale, with fiery red hair that tumbled down her back in unruly waves. Her long blue dress was sopping wet, and she sat with her slender arms wrapped tightly around her knees. Her bare feet poked out from under the hem of her dress, and she was shaking with cold. Carrie, Lindsay, and Rebecca could see that unless she swam, there was no way the girl could get to the shore.

  The girl looked up and spotted them. She rose and stood precariously on her rock. “Can you help me?” she called out. “I am trapped here and cannot swim! There must be some way you can help me get to shore!”

  Carrie gave the situation a critical look. “Do you guys have any ideas?” she asked her friends. “We can’t leave her like this.”

  “We need to get closer to her,” Rebecca said.

  Carrie, Rebecca, and Lindsay walked quickly to the bridge and crossed until they were as close to the girl as they could get, but they still could not reach her. They stood and thought. The red-headed girl stared at them beseechingly.

  “Please,” she begged. “Get me to shore.”

  Lindsay examined the situation, knelt down, and began searching through her things. She pulled a length of rope from her suitcase. “Maybe if we toss one end of this to her she can climb up onto the bridge,” she said. “We can secure the other end to the railing.”

  “It’s worth a try,” Rebecca said as she went to help Lindsay tie the rope.

  “How are you at climbing?” Carrie called out to the girl.

  “I am willing to try anything to get out of this situation,” the girl answered.

  Lindsay and Rebecca finished tying the rope to the bridge. They tested it to make sure the knot was as secure as they could possibly make it. Carrie explained their plan to the girl on the rock. Then they threw the other end of the rope to her, and she grabbed on as tightly as she could. She swung out over the river, but slipped, soaking her dress even more in the icy water. Lindsay cried out in fear as the girl slipped farther. Carrie leaned over the bridge’s handrails.

  “Pull yourself up and reach for my hand!” Carrie called out, reaching as far as she could.

  Rebecca and Lindsay tugged hard on the rope, trying to pull the girl as far up as they could to help her reach Carrie. Below them, the girl laboriously climbed the rope, inching toward Carrie’s waiting hand. It was clear she was unused to such activity. She cautiously let go of the rope with one hand and reached up, her trembling fingers brushing Carrie’s. Lindsay and Rebecca pulled harder on the rope. The girl tried harder, her face straining with the effort. She stretched farther, finally grabbing Carrie’s hand in a firm grip. She let go of the rope with her other hand and grabbed hold of Carrie with that one as well. Rebecca and Lindsay felt the rope go slack and ran to the handrail to help pull her onto the bridge. They all grabbed her, and soon she was over the handrail. She stood on the sturdy planks of the bridge, dripping wet and shaking with relief and cold.

  “I am Emilia,” she said once she had composed herself. “I thank you most sincerely.” Up close, they could see that she was quite a bit taller than they were. They could see her mournful, dark eyes and guessed she was at least a couple of years older than they were.

  Lindsay retrieved her rope and put it back in her suitcase. She pulled out one of her blankets and wrapped it around Emilia. “What on Earth were you doing out there?” she asked her.

  Rebecca and Carrie looked at Emilia curiously; they very much wanted to hear her answer, especially since she was the first person they had encountered on their journey.

  Emilia looked confused. “I do not understand,” she said. “I am not on Earth. This land is Hadariah.”

  Lindsay laughed. “It’s just an expression. I just wanted to know why you were stuck out on that rock. We all do.”

  Emilia looked chagrined. “Oh. My apologies,” she said. “My father trapped me out there as a punishment.”

  Rebecca was horrified. “Why would he do that?” she asked.

  Carrie looked at Emilia in shock. “Are all fathers here like that?” she asked. If so, she was not sure this world was worth saving.

  Emilia held up her hands to quiet them. “Please,” she
said. “Do not be so upset. My father did this because he is a rash and angry man. I have no intention of returning to him. He is thought of in this land as a great king. As a princess, I had a duty to marry the man he chose for me. I was betrothed to a prince from a neighbouring kingdom, but I fell in love with the palace blacksmith and pledged to marry my love. My father discovered this and set me out on this rock to starve until I changed my mind or perished. But you have saved me, and now I am free. I am free to go and find my love and marry him as we planned!” She turned to her rescuers, studying Rebecca’s jeans and T-shirt and Lindsay’s skirt and top, which read I Confess it, I’m Shy in pink sparkles. “Why are you dressed so oddly? What kingdom are you from?” she asked them.

  “Um, we’re not from around here,” Carrie answered. “I’m Carrie, and this is Rebecca and Lindsay.” She gestured to each of her friends, who waved back.

  “What brings you here?” Emilia asked. Her eyes widened. “Are you the mortals who have come to stop Asmodeus? I had heard people such as yourselves had come.”

  Carrie, Lindsay, and Rebecca looked at each other as if asking whether or not Emilia could be trusted. Rebecca quickly made up her mind.

  “Yes,” she said. “That’s us.”

  Emilia flashed them a wide smile. “Let me aid you on your quest,” she said to them. “I would be ever so helpful. I could show you which way is safest, which plants and trees can be trusted. May I come with you as repayment for saving me?”

  The three friends exchanged looks and nodded in agreement.

  “We don’t need to be repaid for saving you,” Carrie said. “We did that because it was the right thing to do. But we would love to have your company and your help on our quest.”

  Emilia looked happy to be included. She turned and began to lead the way. Lindsay and Rebecca walked on either side of her, asking her all sorts of questions. Carrie bent down to pick up her flashlight from where she had placed it on the bridge. As she turned to follow the girls, Emilia got caught in her beam. Carrie stared in confusion at what she saw. Emilia walked forward, but cast no shadow in the light of Carrie’s flashlight. Neither Rebecca nor Lindsay seemed to notice anything wrong. Carrie started to call out but thought better of it. She would keep an eye on this new girl. She would have to be watched carefully.

  Chapter Eleven

  Chaverot Chadashot

  Upon arriving in a clearing, Lindsay suggested to the group that they take a much needed break. Emilia offered to go in search of something to eat and set off to do so. Before she sat down to speak to her friends, Carrie waited until she was certain the princess was far enough away that she would not hear them.

  “Hey, um,” she began. “Did either of you guys notice anything odd about our new friend?”

  “You mean besides her ever so formal way of speaking?” Rebecca answered with a smile.

  “Well, she thinks we’re the strange ones, if that’s what you mean,” Lindsay added.

  “Everyone thinks we’re the strange ones, even at home,” Rebecca informed her. “I don’t think that’s what Carrie meant.”

  Carrie pursed her lips. Maybe she had imagined what she had seen on the bridge. Maybe what she had seen had been a trick of the light. Maybe…no. Carrie shook her head. She knew what she had seen had been real. She was certain of it. She knew she had looked long and hard. It had definitely been real. Her eyes had not been tricking her. She took a breath.

  “Guys,” Carrie said. “Emilia doesn’t have a shadow.” She looked at her friends, trying to see if they believed her or even if they were taking her seriously. She knew what she said sounded odd.

  “What are you talking about?” Rebecca asked, narrowing her eyes.

  “I caught her in the beam of my flashlight on the bridge,” Carrie explained. “You and Lindsay cast shadows, and she…well, she just didn’t.” She shrugged. “I know it sounds weird.”

  “Are you sure it wasn’t a trick of the light?” Lindsay asked. “It’s pretty dim out here.”

  Carrie nodded adamantly. “I’m sure. I caught all three of you in the same beam, at the same angle. Where she should’ve had one, she just didn’t.”

  “But that makes no sense,” Rebecca said, frowning. “How is that even possible?”

  “Well, I say it’s as possible as talking trees and animals,” Lindsay answered. “Was there ever a character in one of your bubbie’s stories who didn’t have a shadow? An enchanted princess maybe?”

  Rebecca thought for a moment. “There were many enchanted princesses. Some who flew, others who turned into animals, some who were cursed…standard fairy tale stuff. But I can’t remember anything about shadows,” she admitted.

  “Okay,” Carrie said, relieved that they believed her. “We’ll just have to keep an eye on her. Agreed?”

  Rebecca and Lindsay nodded in agreement.

  A noise behind them made all three of them turn to see Emilia entering the clearing. She had turned the skirt of her dress into a makeshift basket and had filled it with a vast assortment of nuts, berries, and fruits. She proudly put her bounty on a blanket that had been spread upon the ground. She then sat back on her heels and smiled up at Carrie, Rebecca, and Lindsay, proud of all she had gathered for them.

  “I found quite a bit of food for us to eat,” she told them. “This part of the forest is ever so full of good things. Come and sit by me.”

  None of them made a move to get any closer. Emilia appeared mildly hurt.

  “What is the matter?” she asked. “Are none of you hungry?”

  Lindsay’s stomach growled loudly, and she blushed in the dim light. She couldn’t speak for her friends, but she was starving. The food Emilia had gathered looked so inviting, she could feel her mouth-watering at the sight of it.

  “Well,” she said, “we had an awkward experience with the fruit in this world.” She threw an apologetic glance at Carrie. “Are you sure none of this food is enchanted?”

  “Oh,” Emilia answered. “I am sorry. I understand your caution.”

  “Don’t apologize,” Lindsay said to her. She went and joined the princess on the ground.

  “We are taught at a very young age how to recognize food that is safe for us to eat,” Emilia explained. “I am quite skilled at knowing which trees are under an enchantment and which are not.” She punctuated this statement by picking up an apple and taking a big bite out of it.

  Lindsay seemed to accept this explanation and followed suit, grabbing a handful of what appeared to be blueberries and popping them, one by one, into her mouth. She grinned at her friends.

  “Come join us!” she called. “This stuff’s awesome!”

  Shrugging their shoulders, Rebecca and Carrie joined in the feast. Rebecca grabbed a large handful of nuts, while Carrie took hold of a peach, carefully avoiding the apples. She did not think she would ever have an appetite for them again.

  The peach felt warm and firm in her hand, sitting in her palm like a perfect sunset-coloured sphere. The soft, fuzzy skin tickled her fingers. She lifted it to her nose and breathed in its scent. It smelled like peaches back home but seemed more real, more there. She looked at her friends, each eating with contented looks on their faces. She bit into her fruit, its skin yielding easily to her teeth. Nothing at home compared to this! Its flavour was so much more natural, sweet and tart all at once. She could taste the earth, the air, the essence of the fruit. She felt the juice dribble down her chin but did not care. This peach was more immediate, more full-bodied than anything Carrie had ever tried back home. How could something she had eaten so many times at home taste so different here? She felt she could get drunk from eating it.

  Carrie next reached for grapes, nuts, berries—each one’s own unique taste exploding on her tongue. She did not think she would ever be able to eat anything again back home. It would all pale in comparison to the true taste of its primeval counterpart. She could tell by the looks on her friends’ faces that they felt the same as her.

  When all the food
had gone, with their stomachs full and appetites sated, Carrie, Lindsay, and Rebecca lay down to rest beneath the shelter of the trees. Carrie heard Emilia as she too settled down to join them for what had to be a much-needed rest.

  Chapter Twelve

  Chalom Shavor

  Rebecca awoke to find Emilia sitting in the exact same position as when she and her friends had fallen asleep. She saw Carrie and Lindsay still snoring away on either side of her and smiled to herself. Those two could sleep through a hurricane. Rebecca looked up, caught Emilia’s eye, and walked toward her.

  “You know,” Rebecca began, “I was practically raised on stories from your land.”

  Emilia looked pleasantly surprised. “I had thought all knowledge of our world died in the hearts of mortals long ago,” she said, regarding Rebecca carefully. “I wonder how much knowledge of us has survived.”

  “I’m not sure,” Rebecca replied. She looked down at her feet, embarrassed by what she was about to say. “I’ll confess that I didn’t pay as close attention as I should have. There must be other people who know way more than I do.”

  “Was the storyteller not good enough to capture your heart?” Emilia asked.

  “No!” Rebecca exclaimed. “I mean, of course she was wonderful! My bubbie was an amazing storyteller. I was just so young, and I always wanted to go out and play with my friends or watch television. I didn’t have the patience to sit around inside and listen to stories. I honestly couldn’t have cared less how good the stories were, or how good the teller was. Growing up, you did not blow off your friends to hang out with a grandparent. I would much rather have gone to the mall or the movies. I really regret it now though.” Rebecca frowned. “I was such a stupid kid.”

  Emilia smiled. “I do not understand all of your words,” she said. “But I do understand the sentiment. Children are impatient creatures. They do not always wish to listen when the elders desire to impart wisdom to them.”