Falcon Quinn and the Black Mirror
Page 33
“I don’t know,” said Falcon. The bird looked him in the eye, and for a moment Falcon felt as if the expression in the mockingbird’s glance was one he had seen before.
From inside came the voices of the students and their teachers raised in celebration.
Back to back, belly to belly
We don’t give a darn ’cause we’re all dead already
Oh, back to back, belly to belly
At the Zombie Jamboree.
“Hey, guys,” said Max. “What do you say we all go in and dance? We should party! And stuff!”
“Okay, Max,” said Falcon. “I’m with you.”
“Let us dance together, we three,” said Pearl. “Come, Señor Falcon. It would be an honor to be the partner of Falcon Quinn—he who has risked so much to find his wings!”
Falcon smiled. “I found a lot more than wings,” he said.
They turned toward the gym. Max and Pearl entered the dance hall ahead of him. He was just about to follow them when he thought he heard, on a passing breeze, one last time, the distant voice. Falcon…I’m here….
He looked up and saw, in the Tower of Souls, a figure standing there alone, looking down on the grounds of the Academy. Moonlight slanted through the arches above the enormous clock, casting just enough light on the figure’s face for Falcon to recognize the dark, distant silhouette of his father.
Falcon froze for a moment as he realized that the man had been standing there all this time, watching him. Falcon felt his dark eye throb softly, and the fire within him smoldered.
The Crow raised one hand gently and waved. Falcon looked at the shadow in the tower for another long moment, then waved back.
Then he turned and walked toward the loud, happy music of monsters, and the joyful voices of his friends.
The mockingbird watched as the door closed softly. It hopped to the end of the branch, flapped its wings, and then flew off in the darkness. And was gone.
About the Author
JENNIFER FINNEY BOYLAN is the author of eleven books, including a bestselling memoir, a collection of short stories entitled REMIND ME TO MURDER YOU LATER, and three novels for adults. Her novel GETTING IN won the Alex Award from the American Library Association in 1998 for an adult novel with special appeal to young adult readers. Since 1988 she has been a professor of English at Colby College.
Jenny Boylan lives at the end of a dirt road in Maine with a Sasquatch, a wind elemental, two were-dogs, and a leprechaun. To learn more about Jenny and Falcon and to find a wide range of bonus material associated with this story, visit www.falconquinn.com.
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Credits
Jacket art © 2010 by Brandon Dorman
Jacket design by Amy Ryan
Copyright
FALCON QUINN AND THE BLACK MIRROR. Copyright © 2010 by Jennifer Finney Boylan. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.
ISBN 978-0-06-172832-7 (trade bdg.)
ISBN 978-0-06-172833-4 (lib. bdg.)
EPub Edition © March 2010 ISBN: 978-0-06-199838-6
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