"Would your clan ever let a spiderling have a human boyfriend?"
Cobweb shook her head vigorously, her glowing hair swaying. "Oh n-no. Spidewwings hate humans, at weast ouw cwan ewdews d-do."
"But you like me, right? I mean, umm... us humans." His face burned. Stupid, stupid!
"You'we nice," she said, reached out her foot, and patted his foot.
Do you mean me or humans in general? Scruff wanted to ask, but dared not. The touch of her foot sent bolts of lightning through him; he had never felt anything better.
He was about to caress her foot in return when, with a bang and shower of dust, the door burst open.
Three grobblers rushed into the room, screeching. Scruff started and tugged at his chains, fear wrenching his gut. The creatures—half nymphs, half warty crones—grabbed Cobweb. With inhuman strength, they tore her shackles from the wall.
"Scwuff!" she cried.
"Let her go!" Scruff shouted. The grobblers were pulling Cobweb to her feet, gagging her mouth with their palms. Cobweb's hands were still shackled behind her back, and she kicked wildly, but could not free herself. Scruff yanked his chains. "Let go!"
One grobbler looked at him. It walked toward him, smirking. It slapped his face, hard, with its right hand, the soft hand of a maiden, then with its left hand, the withered and clawed hand of a beast. The blows shot white light across Scruff's eyes, and for a moment he could not speak, breathe, or see.
He blinked, clearing his head. When he could see again, the grobblers were dragging Cobweb out of the dungeon, up the staircase. Within a few seconds, they were gone.
"Cobweb!" Scruff screamed at the top of his lungs, but the grobblers only cackled. They slammed the door shut behind them, scattering dust, leaving Scruff alone in the dark.
Why have they taken Cobweb? Are they bringing her to Dry Bones?
In the silence of the dungeon, shadows and dust blinding him, Scruff lowered his chin to his chest, despair overflowing him.
Chapter Eighteen
Stormy Weather
"Well, this'll do," Neev said, examining the litter he and Romy had built. It was a makeshift thing, consisting of Jamie's cape attached to two sturdy branches.
"I don't want to go on there," Jamie said, lying on the road with her leg bandaged. "Give me two minutes and I'll be ready to walk."
"You're not going to be walking for two days," Neev said, "let alone two minutes. Romy, help me lift her onto the litter."
"Okee dokee," Romy said.
Jamie groaned.
Neev slung his hands under Jamie's arms, while Romy grabbed her legs, and they lifted the girl.
"God, you weigh a ton!" Romy said. They placed Jamie on the litter, then straightened and brushed their hands.
"Shut up, Romy, you weight a lot more than me," Jamie said from the litter.
"No way."
"Way."
"Nuh uh."
"Uh huh."
"You're both equally fat," Neev said, lifting one side of the litter, "especially your fat mouths." That seemed to shut them up.
Romy lifted the other side of the litter, and they began to walk, carrying Jamie through the forest. Romy occasionally moaned about how heavy Jamie was, incurring a string of insults that would make a sailor blush, until Neev cast Sandoory's Silencing Spell on both their mouths. The feathers on his head fell off, replaced with a unicorn horn, but Neev didn't care. The girls tried to shout, but no sound left their lips, and finally Neev could think.
What about Scruff and Cobweb? Had Dry Bones found them? There were so many unknowns that it made Neev dizzy. He was not used to this, wandering the wilderness, hunted, not knowing what was going on. What should they do now?
"We have to find Scruff and Cobweb," he said. "That's the first thing to do. We have to make sure they're okay."
Romy and Jamie, still under the silence spell, nodded. Neev snapped his fingers, releasing the spell, but for once the girls had nothing to say.
It was midnight when they finally returned to Queenpool and entered the Cantankerous Clam. The tavern was dark, only one lamp lighting the common room, casting dancing shadows. Carrying Jamie's litter, Neev and Romy stepped over several barflies who lay, drooling, upon the floor. Moving gingerly in the darkness, they carried Jamie upstairs. The stairs creaked. Neev did not normally pray, but as he walked up these creaking stairs, he prayed to find Scruff and Cobweb waiting there, safe and whole, Scruff with his mace and Cobweb with her arrows. Please, God, just let them be there.
But they were not. When Neev opened the door, he found the room in tatters. The beds were stabbed with swords, the sheets torn, the tables overturned, and the drawers emptied.
"What the—?" Romy said. "Who made this mess? The maid service in this place stinks."
"Somebody was looking for us," Neev said, frowning. He stared at moldy flecks that covered the floor. "Moldmen were here. Dry Bones' moldmen."
Lying on her litter, clutching her sword to her chest, Jamie moaned. "Where are Scruff and Cobweb?"
"I don't know," Neev said, and Romy whimpered. Neev himself felt like whimpering. He was scared. He was not used to being scared—not he, the warlock wunderkind—but lately he seemed scared all the time. With all his magic and wits, he couldn't see a way out of this one. His stomach ached and his hands felt clammy.
"What do we do?" Romy whispered, shivering, and began to suck her thumb.
"We have to get out of here," Neev said. "Now. We're leaving. This place is dangerous."
He began pulling Jamie's litter out of the room, but Romy, who held the other side, would not budge. "We can't leave," the demon said, her flaming eyes haunted. "What if Scruff and Cobweb come back? How will we find them?"
"I don't know!" Neev said, and hated that his voice betrayed his fear. "But Dry Bones knows we're staying here, so we're leaving. Let's go, quick!"
Romy whimpering, they carried Jamie downstairs and out into the night. They stood on the dark street. A wind blew, rain began to fall again, and Neev shivered. This was a poor neighborhood, and the streets were dark, dirty, and dangerous. Any shadows could be hiding a moldman, roog, or grobbler. Any moment could spring an assassin at them. Worst of all was not knowing what happened to Scruff and Cobweb; had Dry Bones killed them?
"Where should we go?" Jamie whispered on her litter. She sounded weak, and the rain streamed down her face. Neev knew she needed rest, water, and food, but they had only a few drops of ale and a few crackers.
"First," Neev said, thinking as he spoke, "we need to find a place for tonight. We need rest. We need food. We need to change your bandages, Jamie. Let's find a dry place, then we'll decide what next."
Romy shivered and nearly dropped the litter. "I'm scared," she said, and a tear flowed down her cheek.
Jamie grunted. "Stop shaking the litter, Romy."
"I can't help it!" Romy began to sob, tears streaming. The rain sizzled against her hair of flame, raising steam.
Neev sighed, the rain soaking his hair and seeping through his clothes. His very bones felt wet, and he felt like crying too. "Let's go," he said. "This way." He began pulling the litter down the alley, and reluctantly, Romy followed.
"Do you know where you're going?" Romy asked, sounding miserable.
"No idea," Neev confessed. "I just know we have to run."
They moved through the alleys of Queenpool's slums. They passed several beggars asleep on the streets, and Neev wondered if anyone would leap up, revealing himself to be Dry Bones. There were few lamps along these streets, merely crooked old lanterns with stubby candles, most of them snuffed. It was so dark, that at times Neev had to walk blindly, hoping he didn't fall into a gutter. He wished he had a lamp. He wished he could at least summon a small fireball to hold in his hands, to light their way, but he dared not spend any more magic. He still felt tired from casting the fireball at Dry Bones that afternoon, then the silencing spell on the bickering girls. Had truly only several hours passed? It seemed a lifetime.
Thunder boomed, the rain intensified, and Romy whimpered. Water flowed around their feet. After what seemed like hours of wandering through the dark, Neev spotted an inn, two stories tall, with stone walls and a tiled roof. The iron sign above its door named it "The Rose's Thorn". A fitting name for Thistles of Burrfield, Neev thought. It looked more pricey than their old inn, and they were low on funds. I hope we can afford this place.
"Let's see if they have a room," he said.
Jamie, soaking wet upon her litter, her bandages red, spoke softly. "Maybe we should leave town. Dry Bones might decide to search every tavern around." The rain pattered upon her face.
Neev kept moving toward the inn, Romy following at the other end of the litter. "I won't leave town without Scruff and Cobweb. How else will we find them? And you're hurt, Jamie. You need a dry place, a change of bandages, some food and drink in you. Let's find shelter first, then decide what to do next. Romy, pull your hood over your head! Nobody will let us in if they see you."
The inn door was locked for the night, and Neev pounded on the knocker, waited a moment, then pounded again. The thunder kept booming, and the rain kept pattering. Some summer this turned out to be. Finally the door creaked open, revealing an old, whiskered man in a sleeping cap.
"What is it?" the old man demanded. "Who knocks at this hour?"
Neev bowed his head, feeling rather conscious of the unicorn horn that still grew from his forehead. "I apologize for the late knocking, innkeeper, but my sister is hurt. Would you have a room to spare, even this late?"
The innkeeper looked at Jamie, who lay wet upon the litter, and his eyes softened. "Come in," he said, a hint of compassion seeping beneath his cranky rasp. "I have a single room to spare, with a single small bed. It's all I can offer."
From the shadows of her hood, Romy breathed out a shaky sob of relief. "Thank you! We'll take it."
Inside, the Rose's Thorn was much nicer than the Clam. Rugs covered the floors, no barflies snored upon the tables, and tapestries bedecked the walls. In the common room, the old innkeeper tossed a fresh log into the fireplace, and the Bullies settled around the hearth to dry. Neev cleaned and rebound Jamie's wound, and they all sat warming their hands around the fire. Gradually Neev's horn shrunk into nothing, the jinx wearing off. The innkeeper brought them barley-and-bacon soup and some ale, and Neev granted him a large tip, painfully aware that their funds were dwindling. Once they were dry and fed, they checked into their room, removed their shoes, and lay Jamie upon the single bed.
"What do we do now?" Jamie asked, tucked in.
Sitting at her bedside, Neev touched her hair. "Go to sleep, Jamie. You're tired. You need rest."
He hadn't finished his sentence before she was snoring.
Sighing, Neev looked over the bed, and his eyes met Romy's. She sat at Jamie's other side, staring at him.
"What do we do now?" the demon asked. She had removed her hood, and Neev spent a moment looking at her. Her bee-stung lips trembled, and tears beaded in her large, flaming eyes. Her hair of fire, normally crackling like a torch, now burned on low flame. Wet and scared like a drowning cat, Romy possessed nothing of her usual flare, but still she seemed beautiful to Neev, maybe more so than ever.
"I have to find Scruff and Cobweb," he said, rising to his feet. "I'm going to look for them."
"I'm coming with you." Romy leaped to her feet, baring her fangs.
Neev shook his head. "No, Romy. You stay and guard Jamie. She's hurt and needs you."
Romy rushed around the bed and hugged Neev, a bear hug that squeezed the air out of him. She sobbed against his shoulder. "I'm scared for you, Neev. You'll be alone out there. What if Dry Bones comes after you? Please, Neev, don't leave me. I love you." She raised her head and kissed his lips.
For hours, Neev had felt cold. Her kiss sent fire through him, and he had never felt more hot. Her kiss was like a jolt of whiskey, shooting across his body, tingling his fingertips. He touched Romy's hair. It was made of flames, but did not burn him. He kissed a tear off her cheek.
"Goodbye, Romy. I'll come back soon. I promise you. I promise."
He left her trembling and crying in the room.
Outside it was still raining, and Neev hurried down the street, his cloak wrapped around him, his hood over his head. It was still dark, but soon dawn would break, he knew. He had no idea where Scruff and Cobweb might be, but decided to leave Queenpool, to head north along the road they had taken. Maybe he should have sent Romy on this quest—she was the better tracker—but he would have gone crazy just waiting at the inn. He had to do something... anything.
Soon he had left Queenpool again, and was walking north along the road, heading the way Scruff and Cobweb had gone. What had happened to them? Had they met Dry Bones too? Had he killed them? The road was black around him, and Neev risked using a little magic, lighting a small fire in his palm. It was too small a spell to trigger his jinx, but that couldn't cheer him up. Every ounce of magic he used weakened his reserves, and every footstep put him in more danger.
We're in trouble, he thought, cursing. Together the Bullies were strong. Now they were split up, in more danger than ever. Scruff and Cobweb were tough, but they had no magic, and would not fare well against Dry Bones. Neev himself was alone, his reserves of magic quickly depleting. Jamie was wounded, with only Romy—who was a child at heart—to guard her. We're all so vulnerable now.
Lightning struck a tree before him, and Neev jumped, his heart racing. He breathed out shakily and kept walking. It reminded him of the black lightning Dry Bones had tossed to hurt Jamie's leg, the lightning he killed Father with. Was Dry Bones lurking in these trees, surrounded by grobblers?
Dry Bones, perhaps the most powerful warlock in the world, wanted him dead, and had managed to split up their group. Things are bad, Neev thought, slushing through the mud. Things are very bad.
Chapter Nineteen
Round Two
Jamie hated being wounded and weak.
Hated it.
Hated it.
All her life, she had relied on her speed and strength. She did not think herself particularly clever, nor particularly pretty, nor particularly pious. All she'd ever been good at was swordplay. When she held a blade, she was happy, powerful, doing what she was born to do.
And now she lay abed, her leg bandaged, the fight taken out of her.
Propped up in bed, she looked out the window. The sunlight sparkled on a soggy world. It had stopped raining several hours ago, the crisp air smelled of wet soil and rainwater, and birds chirped throughout the city. On any other day, Jamie might have thought the day beautiful. But not today. Today fear coiled inside her.
Neev had been gone for hours. When would he return? Worry gnawed at Jamie. Neev was smarter than her, but he was not very good in a fight, and Jamie was used to protecting him. Scruff was strong, but sometimes dense and innocent; Jamie often had to look after him, too. Now both brothers were away, separated, in danger. It was the first time all three Thistles were apart.
And perhaps worst of all, Romy was annoying the hell out of her.
"I'm bored!" Romy whined at her bedside. "Let's play cards."
"I told you, no! You always cheat."
Romy pouted. "I won't cheat this time, I promise."
Jamie tossed the cards at her. "You always promise, then you cheat again."
Romy looked at the fallen cards, dejected. "Well, I'm a demon... that's what we do, cheat at cards. I can't help it."
"So I'm not playing with you."
"But I'm bored."
Jamie turned in bed, facing the other way. "Go take a walk."
"No way," Romy said. "I have to stay and watch over you." To emphasize her point, she walked around the bed until she was facing Jamie again, then sat down and stared.
"You're driving me crazy," Jamie yelled, "not watching over me."
"I'll defend you from Dry Bones if he shows up." Romy straightened, puffed out her chest, and bared her fangs.
Jamie gr
umbled. "I'm not a damsel in distress. I don't need anyone to defend me, least of all you."
Romy pouted. "You do too. I'm your defender."
"You are not!"
Romy struck a heroic pose. "You might even say, I'm your heroine. Romy, defender of the weak and helpless!"
"Now you're just asking for it." Jamie grabbed the closest thing she could reach—a wooden bowl of porridge—and tossed it at Romy. The demon ducked, and the porridge flew over her head.
Just then the door opened, and a grobbler burst into the room.
The porridge landed on the creature, and it cried out in rage, blinded.
"I told you!" Jamie said, pulled a knife from under her pillow, and tossed it into the grobbler's neck. "I don't need anyone to watch over me!"
The grobbler hit the ground, knife in its throat, legs kicking.
"Wait till you see the others!" Romy said, glancing downstairs, panting. "Five more, rushing upstairs."
The inn shook with grobbler screeches, and the smell of blood filled the air.
* * * * *
Strangely, no fear filled Romy.
She had spent so many days with her fear, trembling in the rain, shivering at nights, so confused in this strange world overground. Used to the cozy, flaming underground, she found Earth the most frightening experience of her life. Earth, it seemed, was full of insane skeleton warlocks, roaming grobblers, and all sorts of horrible, horrible birds on every tree. Since Neev had summoned her from Hell, she had felt fear more often than not.
But now, with Jamie abed, with grobblers rushing upstairs to her room, Romy felt no fear.
She didn't have time for fear. Until now, she had let the responsible Bullies take care of things—Scruff with his mace, Cobweb with her arrows, Neev with his magic, Jamie with her blade. But now Jamie was hurt, and the others gone; it was all up to her, so Romy did not allow herself any fear. She merely snarled, baring her fangs, and shoved the fear down. I'll have to take care of this myself.
The grobblers clanking upstairs, Romy grabbed Jamie and tossed her over her shoulder.
Eye of the Wizard: A Fantasy Adventure Page 20