by P. T. Hylton
“More than a few, apparently. See a movie every once in a while.”
Frank reached back and put his hand on the handle of the closed door. If this went south, he wanted to be ready to run. They could use the locks to turn invisible if need be. But who was to say if that would be enough. He remembered feeling safe from the Larvae because of his lock until one of them buried itself in his arm.
“Okay,” he said. “What happens next?”
“I test a theory,” Zed said.
Zed crouched down next to the tree and held his compass near the bark. He tilted his head and moved his eyes around the trunk. Finally he stopped and pointed at one spot. “There! You see it?”
Frank squinted at the place Zed was pointing, but he didn’t notice anything different about it.
Zed looked up at Willis and Matt. “Ready, gentlemen?”
Willis said, “You know it.”
“I’m ready,” Matt said. To Frank’s ears, Matt didn’t sound nearly as enthusiastic about this endeavor as his red-haired friend.
“Good.” Zed turned to Frank, Sophie, and Mason. “Watch close. It’ll happen very quickly now. Don’t do anything unless I tell you to, understand?”
None of them answered.
There was still time, Frank knew. He could disappear right now and probably be out of this shed and back in Sophie’s car before the mysterious creature appeared. The fact that he was still here at all spoke to his level of insanity.
Zed drew his forefinger across the bark in a complicated pattern. It reminded Frank of the way he’d moved his finger across the pages of the book back in Sanctuary.
“What’s happening, Zed?” Mason asked, and for the first time in a while Frank heard that childlike quality in his voice, the one he’d used when talking to Zed in Sanctuary, before he’d been betrayed and abandoned there.
“Trust, Mason,” Zed said. “You have to trust me.”
Frank opened his mouth to say that was a tall order indeed, but something happened before he could get the words out. A tiny pinprick of light appeared in the tree trunk just where Zed had touched it. It was small but brilliant. The white light cut through the air and shone in a bright circle on the ground not two inches away from Frank’s shoe.
Matt reached up and put a hand on the spotlight. Willis crouched down next to the rope.
Zed hopped to his feet and leapt back two steps. “This is the fun part.”
Frank glanced at Sophie, then at Mason, checking to make sure they were doing okay and that neither of them was frantically signaling him to use the locks and make a run for it. They both had their gazes fixed on the tree trunk.
The trunk of the young tree couldn’t have been more than a foot and a half in diameter. At least whatever was coming through that hole couldn’t be too big.
The pinprick of light was growing now. Frank watched the circle of light grow from the size of a dime to the size of a quarter to the size of a baseball.
“Frank,” Zed said, “I need to ask you something.”
The light was getting larger at a faster rate. It was as big as a basketball now and Frank could swear he felt waves of heat coming off it. The temperature in the shed must have gone up twenty degrees since they stepped inside.
“What I’m bringing through that tree is going to be very unhappy when it gets here,” Zed continued. “It’s being ripped from its home, so it’ll be startled. We’re pulling it through a hole too small for its body, so it’ll be in pain. The good news is it will be disoriented enough for us to subdue it. But…if it sees me, it could be a different story.”
Frank tore his eyes away from the light streaming through the tree and looked at Zed. “Why?”
Zed grinned at him. “Oh, it really doesn’t like me.”
Frank thought Sophie would make some joke about how they all had something in common with the creature in that case, but she didn’t.
“So I’m going to ask you a favor.” Zed moved closer to Frank and looked him in the eye. “Remember when I said I’d pay you back for the trust you gave me in stepping into this shed? This is the moment. I’m trusting you to save my life.”
Frank’s eyes flicked between Zed and the tree. “What are you talking about?”
“If that thing sees me, it will kill me. And I’m not sure we have a way to stop it. If it doesn’t see me, if it only sees a room full of strangers, that’ll add to its disorientation.”
“I still haven’t heard the favor.”
“I need to be invisible to the creature. I’d like to borrow one of your locks.”
Sophie’s voice was cold as ice when she spoke. “You’ve got to be kidding.”
Zed didn’t take his eyes off Frank. “I’m not asking her; I’m asking you. That thing will be here in a moment. You have to decide. I’m asking you to save my life.”
Frank paused. His instinct, his gut reaction was to flip Zed the bird, wait for the creature to come through, and watch the old bald bastard die. Isn’t that what he’d been dreaming of since the day Zed met with him in the jail in Rook Mountain? The day he told Frank he was sending him to the Away? If he’d had a tree and a crazy, Zed-hating creature coming through it then, things might have turned out much differently.
But he’d survived, hadn’t he? As horrible as it had been, he’d made it through. And he’d ended up defeating Zed, after a fashion. He’d stopped the man’s plan, anyway.
And now Zed was asking for Frank’s help. That didn’t much matter to Frank. But the reward Zed was offering did matter.
Frank flashed back to that moment in Sanctuary when he’d stepped through the tree, expecting to hug his brother for the first time in years, and instead found him dead on the ground. If there was a chance he could stop that from happening, he had to take it.
Zed had revealed something in his plea. If the locks could protect him from the creatures, it could protect Frank, Mason, and Sophie too.
Frank held up a finger, the pre-arranged signal to turn on their locks. Mason gritted his teeth, nodded, and quickly disappeared. He’d apparently forgotten to remain visible to Frank and Sophie. That was fine. Sophie squeezed her eyes shut for a brief moment like she always did when activating the lock. It was a bit of a tell, but Frank would never let on he knew. If he were being honest, he had to admit he found it pretty cute. But he wouldn’t go there. Not now. Not with the way the world was spinning out of control.
“It’s coming.” The voice was almost too soft to hear. Zed muttered, as if to himself, “Any moment. It’s coming.”
Zed had turned away while Frank was looking at Sophie. The man’s eyes were fixed on the tree now. The look on his face was more transparent than any Frank had ever seen him display. Zed was afraid.
And that was what sealed it for Frank. As much as he was sure Zed was at least partially playing them, as much as he knew Zed would betray them at the first opportunity if it bought him the tiniest advantage, that look was real. Whatever else he’d lied about, he wasn’t lying about the danger that creature coming through the tree posed him.
Then the light in the tree darkened. Something was blocking the hole.
“My God,” Zed said. “It’s here.”
Frank thought of Jake lying on that cold, mossy ground in Sanctuary, his eyes empty.
He reached out and put his hand on Zed’s shoulder, mentally pulling him into the protection of the lock.
The tension in Zed’s face eased a bit, but he didn’t turn away from the tree.
“Come on,” he muttered. “Come on.”
And then something was pressing through. A face. A human face.
It was misshapen, like a bit of putty squeezed through a hole too small for it. The head popped out and the creature began to howl as it wormed its way through: first its shoulders, then its arms. When its hands had passed through the barrier, it clawed at the floor, looking for leverage to pull itself through. It was hard to make out any distinct features with its body blocking the light through the hole and the thing
moving in a panicked blur of blacks and grays.
With one final Herculean pull, it popped through the basketball-sized hole in the tree. It let out one more indignant roar and collapsed onto the floor.
Not it. Him. The creature was a human. A man. Or at least it looked like a man. After everything Frank had seen, he wasn’t about to take anything for granted.
The newcomer raised himself up on his hands and knees, and Frank saw his thin face, his jet black hair, and carefully manicured beard. His dark eyes shot up and his gaze darted around the room.
“Who dares?” he asked, his voice a low, quivering rumble.
With that, the spotlight came on. It was aimed directly at his face, and he howled again in pain and surprise.
Zed stood leaning forward on the balls of his feet, looking positively giddy. “Do it, Willis!” he cried.
Willis had the rope in his hand and he quickly threw it over the man. Matt leapt into action, helping Willis wrap the rope around the tree, and then around the man again, circling again and again until the man was secured with his back against the tree. Willis tied the rope off and nodded at Zed.
Zed turned to Frank. “Thank you. Thanks for being worthy of my trust.” He stepped forward, pulling away from Frank’s hand.
Zed inspected the knots, giving them an exploratory tug before nodding in satisfaction.
Matt turned off the spotlight.
Zed looked at Frank, a wild look in his eyes. “Turn it off.”
“What?” Frank asked. He was still struggling to catch up with what just happened.
“The lock,” Zed said. “It’s still hiding me from him. Turn it off.”
Frank mentally shut off the lock that hid both him and Zed.
The man tied to the tree drew in a sharp breath as Zed suddenly appeared in front of his face.
“You,” the man said.
Zed got within an inch of the man’s nose. “Rayd. Thanks for joining us.”
The man scoffed. “You’ve moved beyond insanity, Zedidiah. When Wilm comes—”
“Yes,” Zed said. “When Wilm comes. How long will that be? How long until she breaks free of her prison and starts looking for you? How long until she actually finds you?”
“As if you could hold me that long.”
Zed helpfully brushed a piece of dust off Rayd’s shoulder. “You are secured to a tree. One of the timeless. You know the rules.”
There was a long silence, which Sophie broke. “I don’t know the rules.”
Zed tilted his head at Rayd. “You want to tell her?”
“Go to hell.”
Zed nodded politely. “While he’s tied to the tree, Rayd is unable to escape his bonds himself. Someone else will have to untie him. And the only people likely to do that are his three friends. Once they find him.”
“Yeah?” Frank said. “What happens then?”
Zed turned away from Rayd for the first time since the man had passed through the tree. “They kill us and destroy the world. Of course, if they don’t find the King’s Crossing book we might stand a chance of defending ourselves a bit longer.”
“Why?” Mason asked. His voice was low and scratchy. “Why are you doing this? If they’re going to destroy us, why did you bring him here?”
“It was going to happen eventually,” Zed said. “I just sped it along a bit. I told you I’d save your loved ones. That was the carrot. Consider this the stick. Find that book. And find it fast.”
THE BOY WHO FOUND THE WATCH (PART TWO)
Topeka, Kansas
June 1948
Zed waited almost a month.
Charlie often came and sat in their little visiting room. At first, it was all polite smiles and tips of the hat. But as the weeks passed, Charlie became more relaxed around Zed and his mother. A loosened tie. Then no tie at all. Before long it was sleeveless tee-shirts. For her part, Zed’s mother always seemed to be racing around. Waiting on him hand and foot when he was there and preparing the house for his arrival when he was away. She talked to Zed less and less. Which, in all honesty, was perfectly fine with Zed. It gave him more time to think. To plan.
And always, there was the watch. Zed could tell Charlie was proud of it, but he rarely took it out. And he never did another magic trick. But how Zed savored those precious brief glances at the watch. He longed for them like a junkie longs for a fix. And, just like a junkie, he had to be careful. At first he hadn’t been. On Charlie’s second visit, Zed had walked right up to him and asked him for the time, as clear as he might ask someone on the street. Charlie hadn’t bought it. Not for a moment. He smiled his thin smile and pointed toward the grandfather clock on the other side of the room.
“You’re a big boy, Zed,” Charlie had said. “Why don’t you tell me?”
He’d known. Zed was sure of it. He’d have to work to become more subtle.
So began Zed’s quest to befriend his mother’s boyfriend. Charlie was odd for an adult. So casual and friendly. Having Charlie there was a bit like having a dad and a bit like having a big brother. The campaign wasn’t easy for Zed. He was withdrawn by nature, but he knew in this situation knowledge would be power. His only way to obtain knowledge was to convince Charlie to give it to him. So he asked questions. Lots and lots of questions. Never about the watch, of course, but often around the watch. And he learned so much useless information.
Charlie had been born in Florida. He’d given up on school at age ten and gone to work in the groves, climbing rickety ladders and picking oranges for a penny a bushel. He’d learned to work fast and to keep his mouth shut. That was the only way to make a living out in the groves. Somewhere along the way—the when and the how of it weren’t entirely clear to Zed—Charlie had fallen off a ladder and injured his leg. Unable to work on his feet, he’d gone to work at a hotel, checking in guests, holding doors, doing whatever needed to be done. And there at the hotel was where he’d met the Boss.
It was always the Boss. No first name, no last name. But boy, how Charlie admired the Boss. It was as if he’d hung the moon, as Zed’s father might have said, had he been there instead of wherever men who run out on their families go. The Boss became friendly with Charlie through the course of his regular visits to the hotel. He grew to admire Charlie’s work ethic, and Charlie wasn’t too humble to say so. One day the Boss approached Charlie with an offer. The Boss was required to travel a great deal. He was sometimes needed in two places at once. Seeing as he hadn’t quite figured out the logistics of splitting himself in two, he was in need of a good man. A man who could go to those places he couldn’t and carry out the work in his name. The pay, while not extravagant, was enough to keep Charlie afloat. Besides, he’d always wanted to travel.
And that was how he’d spent the last nine years. Traveling for the Boss.
That vague and slightly unbelievable story raised a thousand questions in young Zed’s mind. What was this Boss’s business? Was it legal? When did Charlie do it? He seemed to hang around Zed’s mother’s house at all hours leaving little time for any mysterious business dealings. But Zed couldn’t ask bluntly like he would have in normal circumstances. Because he wasn’t playing the role of Zed; he was playing the role of friend. Zed had a tendency to come off as aggressive and confrontational when he spoke. Friend wasn’t like that at all. Friend would pry the information out gently and carefully, like a piece of corn stuck in a tooth.
Charlie’s story had one implication that made Zed nervous, one that neither Charlie or Zed’s mother seemed willing to acknowledge: if Charlie’s job was to travel, he would be traveling on from Topeka as soon as his business was concluded. That meant Zed would have to work not only gently, but also quickly.
One afternoon, Zed walked into the formal dining room and saw Charlie sitting at the long table eating a sandwich. Zed hadn’t heard him come in that day. For all Zed knew, the man hadn’t left the night before. Zed didn’t think Charlie and his mother were sleeping together, but one couldn’t be too sure.
Charlie and
Zed acknowledged each other with a friendly nod, and Zed moved to his seat where his mother had set out a sandwich for him. As he was sitting down, light glinting off something hit his eye. He saw what it was, and his heart caught in his throat. It was the watch. Sitting right there on the table in front of Charlie.
Zed wanted to look away, but he couldn’t. It was as if everything beautiful, everything missing from his life, everything he was supposed to be, was caught up in that gold watch with the strange symbol.
“I’ve seen the way you look at it,” Charlie said, talking through the food in his mouth. “I don’t blame you. It’s a hell of a thing. You’d like to hold it, I bet.”
Zed pried his eyes away from the watch. It was like moving a heavy object, but he did it. He knew anything he said would sound desperate. He just nodded.
Charlie reached out his hand, and for one glorious moment Zed thought he was going to push the watch forward. Instead, he wrapped his fingers over the watch and pulled it back away from Zed.
“I can’t do that, Zed.” There was something wild in the man’s eyes. Something terrible lived in there. Either Charlie was very good at hiding it, or Zed had been too consumed by his quest for the watch to notice it. Charlie pulled the watch off the table and gripped it in his fist.
Zed tried very hard to keep the despair off his face. If Charlie knew how badly Zed wanted the watch, he’d keep an even closer eye on it and the boy would never get his shot.
“See, my Boss asked me to hang on to this watch,” Charlie continued. “Just for a little while. I have to give it back soon. And if the Boss asks for it and I don’t have it…” His voice drifted off and his face went pale, as if just thinking about it was too much for him. “You ever read Inferno by Dante? The stuff they do to those people in the different circles of hell?”
Zed could only shake his head.
“Well, that shit would be downright pleasant compared to what’ll happen to me if I lose this thing. So when it comes to the watch,” he held it up, and Zed’s heart ached anew at the sight of it, “it’s look but don’t touch. Understand?”