by Daka Hermon
“Okay.”
“Mental hugs, too,” Nia adds. “And, Justin … thanks for keeping your promise.”
“Yeah, dude,” says Lyric. “You found us like you said you would.”
I nod because my throat is too tight to speak. They don’t get it. I had to find them. There was no other option.
We walk awhile in silence before Lyric asks, “You sure we can trust Duke and Mary?”
His voice is lowered so only Nia and I hear him.
I peek over my shoulder. Duke’s head is swiveling left and right as he takes in everything around him. It’s clear he’s uncomfortable being away from his woods.
“I think so. He wants to go home, too. He’s been here forever. I can’t even imagine what he’s seen and been through.”
“What about Mary?” Nia asks.
It hits me that I haven’t told them. “Mary is Hyde’s sister.”
Lyric’s eyes widen. “You’re lyin’!”
Nia trips over her feet. I have to weave to avoid running into her.
“Is she dangerous, too?” she asks.
“No. I don’t think so.” I glance back at Duke and Mary. They’re far enough away that they can’t hear us, but not too far that we’d lose them. “Hyde left her here.” I fill them in on everything Mary shared about Hyde and his dirty deeds. “And she’s actually been helping us. Even before we got here. She distracted him while we were at his house. Remember how he was acting strange and we thought he was talking to himself?”
“It was her?” asks Lyric.
“Yeah, he couldn’t see her but knew she was there.”
“Wow,” Lyric says with a shake of his head. “Man, this is all so unbelievable. I would pinch myself to make sure I’m awake, but I’ve already experienced too much pain. Side note.” He gestures over his shoulder. “Backpack, yay!”
My lips tilt into a little smile. “Yeah, something went as planned.”
“Moving too slow,” Duke says. “We need to hurry. Which way do we go now?”
“This way.” Through the mist, I recognize the strip mall. It’s the same one we stopped at when we were searching for Hyde. Thunder rumbles. We walk faster.
“Justin was updating us,” Lyric says to Duke. “We need to know what’s going on so we can help.”
“And I didn’t even get to this.” I hold up my wrist to show them the number branded on my skin.
Lyric extends his arm. “Yeah, I was wondering about that.” He’s number 398.
“I’m guessing this is a bad thing, huh?” Nia’s wrist is tagged with 397.
I trade glances with Duke and Mary. We were right about the count. I was the last to arrive so my number is the highest.
“You remember Zee’s creepy chant? He was counting and then he mentioned the number four hundred,” I say.
Nia nods. “What about it?”
Lyric runs a palm over his face. “Wait. Let me guess. Is it a countdown to some big, freakin’ evil apocalypse or something?”
“We believe if the Seeker captures four hundred kids, it might be able to leave Nowhere and go to the real world for good,” Duke says.
Lyric throws up his arms. “Are you serious? The worst keeps getting worser.”
“We’re the key to the monster’s escape,” Nia says. “Not happy about that.”
Mary lets out a whimper and skids to a halt.
“I knew it,” Duke says.
She trembles and stares at something in the distance.
“What—?” I ask.
Suddenly, she bolts across the street.
Duke takes off after her. Lyric, Nia, and I follow. We don’t move as fast because this is still new to us. We take time to dodge stuff even though there’s no reason to.
“Mary!” Duke yells.
Up ahead, in a grocery store parking lot, she falls to the ground. She screams and is dragged across the pavement. We skid to a stop a few feet away from her. She’s kicking and fighting her invisible foe, her fear.
“What’s happening?” asks Nia.
“Her fear,” I say, panting.
Lyric is out of breath and flushed. He makes a move like he’s going to help.
“Stay back,” says Duke.
Mary’s body is tossed around like she’s a rag doll.
“We wait until it’s over. You touch her and it’s your fear, too.” Duke watches her with haunted eyes. “Never touch.”
Mary’s cries make my skin crawl. Bite marks and scratches appear on her arms.
“Screw this,” says Lyric. “Friends don’t let friends face their fears alone.”
“She’s not your friend,” Duke says, but Lyric is already racing toward Mary. Nia is right on his heels. I hesitate. I want to help, but touching her means she’ll know about my mom.
Mary curls up in a ball, whimpering. Lyric pulls her back and tries to help her stand.
“Oh, c’mon! This is ridiculous!” Lyric yells.
“What?” I yell, taking a few steps closer, then back.
“Rat. Snakes. The body is a snake, but it has legs, too. It’s brown, with fur and scales, and like ten feet long,” he cries.
“There’s another one!” cries Nia.
I glance back at Duke. He’s frozen.
Suddenly, Lyric is yanked forward and hits the ground hard. Scratches appear on his arms as he covers his face.
“Justin!” Nia pulls at his legs while also trying to free Mary.
Gotta help! I frantically pull off my backpack and fumble to open it. Maybe there’s something inside that will stop the rodent-reptiles.
“Ahhh!” Lyric yells. He and Mary are tugged farther across the parking lot.
“No!” says Nia.
I don’t think. I jump up and race toward them. The moment I touch Mary, a bolt of energy zips through me. Mary’s pain is my pain. I blink and the rat snakes appear. I see them. Their furry heads rotate in my direction. And they see me.
The creatures let out a high-pitched noise, chittering and hissing. They’re excited. I stagger back. They’re communicating. The rodent-reptiles fix their fiery eyes on me. They have a new chew toy.
Lyric kicks free, scrambles to his feet, and tries to drag Mary to safety. “They’re gonna attack again.”
“Duke, grab my backpack. Look for something to help.”
He paces back and forth, clutching his head, mumbling to himself. “More power when you fight back. It feeds off your fear.”
“What?” Lyric yells. “Man, do something!”
The rat snakes move toward us in a slithering motion.
Nia moves so suddenly the loss of her grip on Mary causes us to stumble. She tugs something out of her pocket and stalks forward.
“Nia!”
She extends her arm and a mist envelops the rat snakes. Their pained squeaks make me wince. The rodent-reptiles crawl over each other in an attempt to escape. They stagger away chittering and hissing until they disappear.
Nia spins on her heels and holds up the canister triumphantly.
“What just happened?” Lyric says with wide eyes.
“I used the pepper spray from my keychain,” Nia says. She looks just as shocked as I feel.
“Did you know it’s not just for self-defense against humans? It can be used on attacking dogs, bears, and, apparently, giant, freaky rat snake things.”
My mouth falls open. “The water blaster!” There was so much going on before I didn’t even think about what it meant. I turn to Lyric. “You used the water blaster on Duke. And the pepper spray worked … We were right. The stuff we snuck in can help us!”
“Dude, we just leveled up,” says Lyric. “This is a total game changer.”
I was too busy running from my mom to even think about using something from my backpack to help me. I’m not sure what would work, but knowing we have weapons is amazing.
Lyric helps Mary stand. Wobbling, she tugs her arm away.
“You shouldn’t have done that. Touch me, I mean,” she whispers. “But than
ks.”
He rocks back on his heels. “Yeah, well … we couldn’t let those things take you, but now you have our fears to battle, too.” He winces. “Apologizing in advance.”
“Me too,” says Nia.
Since I touched Mary, she’ll see Not-Mom. She’ll know. The way things are going, everyone may know.
“Hey, Duke, thanks for all the help. Not.” Lyric wipes blood off his arms.
Duke flinches and drops his head. “Eighty years. So many fears,” he mumbles. “Too many. I don’t want any more. I can’t handle any more. You don’t understand. You don’t feel them all, see them all.”
I didn’t help at first. Did they notice? I reach into my pocket for the puzzle piece. I feel Nia’s gaze on me, but I refuse to look her way. Must breathe.
“We always have each other’s backs,” Lyric says.
“And now we have to have Duke’s, too.” Nia gestures at everyone. “Did you know a team is a group of people coming together for one common goal? That’s us now. We’re in this together.”
“No.” Duke backs away. “This was a bad idea. I’m going back to—”
“Hiding?” Lyric asks. “There’s no way I can do that forever, be trapped in this nightmare life.”
“It’s called survival. You could do it if you had to,” Mary says quietly.
“Yeah, but the thing is,” says Lyric with a quick glance at me and Nia, “I don’t think you have to anymore. We’re here now. We can help.”
“And what if you make things worse?” Mary asks. “Things can always get worse.”
“Or …” Nia says. “Things could get much, much better. Like ‘defeat the Seeker, destroy Nowhere, go home’ better.”
“We’re gonna either win or lose. I think our odds are fifty-fifty, probably a little less,” Lyric says, smiling like he’s gifted us with the best Christmas present ever.
Duke crosses his arms. “That doesn’t sound good.”
“Having two outcomes doesn’t mean it’s fifty-fifty. That’s not how odds work,” Nia says.
Lyric rolls his eyes. “Well, it’s not zero.”
“You in or not?” I ask Duke. “And I mean really in?” We need to get moving. Time is ticking and the Seeker is out there stalking its final victim. We’re gonna face some crazy stuff. I need him to be solid.
Duke’s weary eyes shift around, then land on me. “We have to stop the Seeker. For good. I’m in. There’s no turning back now.”
Lyric offers his fist for Duke to bump. “Go Team Terror.”
Duke gives Lyric an “are you serious?” look.
I turn to Mary. She’s staring in the direction where the rat snakes disappeared. Her eyes are troubled. “Mary, you’re still with us, too, right?”
She blinks. “Even after all this time it takes a while to shake it off.”
I get it. I don’t hear Not-Mom but her icky presence is stuck to me.
Mary stands up straighter, pushing her shoulders back. “I’m still in.”
Lyric claps his hands. “Okay, let’s do this.”
We’re back on the move. We’re determined, but still on edge. Anything could happen at any time. The dark sky grumbles, leaking more cold rain drops. The mist is thick and heavy, almost like a weight to slow us down. There’s a constant feeling that something is lurking, preparing to attack.
“I know you’re there,” Duke mumbles.
“Who!?” Nia spins around.
Duke holds a finger to his lips. “Shhhhh. You’re too loud. I spotted someone following us. Not too close. Not too far. Hidden, but there.”
My heart pumps faster. Inhale. Exhale. “Someone, like a kid? Or something scary?”
Lyric tightens the straps on his backpack. “There are a lot of kids here. Shouldn’t we run into more of them anyway?”
Duke mutters, gazing behind us. “Keep going for now,” Duke says, walking again. “Pretend you don’t know something is wrong.”
Lyric snorts. “Uh, not possible.”
I’m even more anxious now. We climb up the hill near the library and make our way back down, around the hospital. A siren blares in the distance. The sound echoes; it’s ominous.
“Cold.” Nia rubs her arms.
I stop and pull out the jacket I packed from my backpack. I’m chilly, but she’s trembling.
She hesitates, staring at it, then back to me.
“Here,” I say. “I know you’re cold.”
“Did I say that?” she asks.
I hesitate. “Yeah. And you’re rubbing your arms.”
She blinks, her gaze sort of confused. “Oh,” she mumbles.
“You okay?”
“Yeah.” She smiles, but it appears forced. She carefully takes the jacket, without touching, and walks away.
“Ahhhhhhh,” someone screams.
I spin around. A kid runs down the street toward us. He’s swinging his arms wildly. “Get off! Get off!”
“That’s the one that’s been following us,” Duke says, backing away.
“They’re biting me!” the kid yells. He dances around, brushing off his clothes.
He runs a little closer. Stops and stomps his feet. “Take that. And that. Stay away.”
“Is that … ?” Nia peers in the distance.
I gasp. “Quincy!”
I run in his direction, then skid to a halt when I get a good look at him. It’s like he’s wearing a horror movie mask. There are welts all over his face and his left ear is twice as swollen as his right.
“What the—” Lyric stops beside me.
Panting, Quincy jogs closer. I lift up my hands to hold him back. He stops and leans forward with his hands resting on his knees. His backpack slips sideways, almost falling off.
“Quincy?” asks Nia, who now stands at my side.
He raises his head, and I flinch. It’s painful to look at him.
“I didn’t know if it was really you.” He drops to the ground. “I—”
“Man, what happened?” Lyric asks as Duke and Mary approach us.
“Are you okay?” It’s a stupid question. Obviously, he is far from okay. He’s swelling up.
“B-b-bugs.” Quincy’s voice shakes and he breaks down. He’s crying and shaking so hard his entire body is vibrating.
My jaw drops. “What kind of bugs could do this?”
Lyric turns to me and lowers his voice. “I recognize this is not the best time, and I’m all kinds of wrong considering I was just all about being a team player and helping others, but I hope I don’t have to touch Quincy.”
I grimace. Me too.
“Lyric!” says Nia.
“I’m being honest. Of course, if he’s in danger I’ll step up.” Lyric peeks over his shoulder at Quincy and winces. “It’s just … look at him.”
“Do either of you have something in your backpacks that may help?” Nia asks.
“I brought a small first-aid kid. Maybe there’s something we can use.” I search inside the front pocket as Nia kneels next to Quincy. She’s close, but not too close.
I find a small tube of ointment for burns and cuts. This might help.
“Is this another one of your friends?” Duke tilts his head to the side and studies Quincy.
“Yeah,” I say.
Mary’s seen Quincy before.
“We just need to find Carla and Shae now,” says Nia.
Quincy cries out. I turn back to see him rubbing the ointment on his face. On his wrist, his mark is now the number 396. Just more confirmation we’re right about the numbering.
“Is it helping?” I ask.
“A little. The bites aren’t burning as bad. It felt like my face was on fire.”
“Burning?” Lyric mutters. “Man, how did this happen?”
Quincy’s hand freezes mid-motion, then slowly lowers to his side. “I, uh, there was a giant bee-nest-hive thing in a maze. It was full of different kinds of bugs. I finally got out, but they were chasing me. I thought I got away, but more bugs found me, and they were worse t
han the other ones—they were beetle-like with scorpion tails. And the buzzing sound they made hurt my ears.”
Lyric’s head jerks around as if he’s searching for a swarm that could descend upon us.
“Quincy, have you seen Carla?” I ask anxiously.
His shoulders droop. “No. I’ve been looking for her and Shae.”
“Where could they be?” Lyric asks.
Duke steps away, putting more distance between himself and the rest of the group. He crosses his arms tightly across his chest. “Something is changing. Do you feel it? We’re wasting time. We need to go.”
Quincy frowns, glancing from Duke to Mary.
“It’s okay. They’re with us,” says Nia. “They want to help.”
Quincy wipes more cream on his face. It leaves white streaks down his brown skin. “I was going to look at the park by my house. The one with the big tree fort.”
I know that one. It also has a small area where they put on outdoor concerts. Me, Zee, my mom, and Mrs. Murphy saw some bands play there.
“If something ever happens and we get separated, that’s where me and Carla meet up,” Quincy says.
“That’s not too far,” says Lyric.
Nia reaches to pull Quincy to his feet, then snatches her hand back.
“What is it?” he asks.
“We can’t touch.” She shifts from foot to foot. “If we do, we’ll share our fears. You’ll get mine, and I’ll get yours.”
His eyes widen. I think he might start crying again, but he pulls it together. He slowly stands and even with the welts and cream on his face I see his determination. “We’re gonna find Carla. She’ll know what to do. She’ll get us home.” He marches in the direction of the park, his backpack bouncing against his back.
“Carla’s gonna save us?” Lyric mumbles as we follow. “Maybe there was some kind of venom in those bug bites that is affecting his brain.”
I hold back a laugh. Thunder booms. My humor quickly fades away. A deep, growling sound echoes around us. Our gazes jump around, searching for incoming danger, but nothing emerges.
Quincy takes the lead, moving swiftly down the street. I catch some of Lyric and Mary’s conversation as they walk beside me. “So, I meant to ask before but more scary stuff happened. Why rat snakes?”
Mary is quiet for a long moment. “When I was five, I was visiting my grandpa on his farm,” she finally says softly. “I fell down an old well. It was dark and cold, half full from the rain. Rats and snakes were floating inside, some dead and some … not.”
