by Jacob Grey
“Selina?” he said gently.
She was trembling. Caw couldn’t bear to think of what might have happened to her since she had been taken from the hospital. If the Spinning Man had hurt her …
“It’s OK,” he said. “I’m here now. We’re going to get you out.”
“Where is he?” she said. “He won’t let me leave.”
“I don’t know,” said Caw. “But we can escape – if we go now.”
He crossed the room and stooped down at her side. Selina pressed herself tighter into a ball, as though she was scared of him. Her clothes were the pyjamas she’d been given in hospital, torn and streaked with dirt. As he laid a hand on her shoulder, the trembling stopped and she froze. Selina’s hair wasn’t covered in anything after all, Caw realised – it looked like it had been dyed.
“Come on,” he said. “It’s me – your friend, Caw.”
The noise that came from her throat in reply was utterly unexpected. A laugh. Soft and low and utterly chilling – and not Selina’s at all.
“I know who you are,” a voice said in an emotionless, creaking monotone. “And I knew you would come.”
Caw jerked to his feet.
She unfolded her body slowly, standing in a fluid movement that didn’t look entirely human, with her arms held straight by her sides. Her hair was white, and her face was just as pale. But her eyes were jet black, like polished pebbles. She’d only been in hospital for a couple of weeks, but Selina’s nails had grown several inches and were shaped into points, making her hands seem unnaturally long as they hung by her sides.
“Selina?” said Caw.
“That name means nothing to this body any more, Jack,” said the cold voice. “She is my vessel.”
The voice was still a girl’s – just – but the words belonged to someone else entirely. Caw’s throat was bone dry as he tried to swallow.
“It’s you,” he said.
The figure didn’t move, but her hair stirred and a long-legged spider crawled out. It scurried across her forehead and disappeared again.
“What have you done to her?” said Caw.
“I am the White Widow,” said the voice.
More spiders appeared, pouring out from beneath the workbenches. They massed round Selina’s feet in a perfect circle.
Caw lifted the Crow’s Beak in desperation. “Let her go,” he said.
A spider the size of a mouse dropped suddenly from the ceiling, and sank its fangs into Caw’s hand. He gasped in pain and dropped his sword.
“I will let her go,” said the White Widow, “but by then she won’t be much use to anyone.”
Caw felt his legs wobble unexpectedly.
You OK? asked Screech.
Caw steadied himself against a bench.
“Don’t worry,” said the White Widow. “The poison isn’t deadly. I told you, didn’t I, that I wouldn’t kill you yet. Not until I have taken everything from you.”
“I don’t understand,” said Caw, hearing his words slur.
“There are many things you will learn,” said the girl. She seemed to split into two as Caw’s vision blurred.
“Caw, move!” yelled Johnny Fivetails.
Caw turned. The coyote feral was standing in the doorway, his gun levelled.
“No!” said Caw.
Johnny darted into the room, muzzle trained on Selina. She drifted smoothly across, keeping Caw between herself and the gun.
“Out of the way, Caw,” said Johnny. Two coyotes stole in behind him.
Spiders flooded past Caw’s ankles and he staggered. Caw let his body fall, but his mind focused on one thought – his crows. A black shape knocked into Johnny’s gun as the muzzle flashed and the sound of a shot rang through the room. Then another, as Johnny tried to shake the crows off. Bullets ricocheted off the walls and floor.
“Caw, what are you doing?” he shouted.
“It’s Selina,” Caw tried to reply, but he wasn’t sure if the words even came out.
The spiders surged past Caw and on to Johnny’s legs. The coyote feral smashed Shimmer into a wall, and struck Glum aside with the butt of the gun. Caw saw Selina backed into the corner of the room with nowhere to go. Then Johnny pushed past him, loading another magazine into his gun. Caw grabbed feebly at his leg, but it was no good. Johnny raised the barrel at Selina from point-blank range. She lifted her hands over her face.
With one last surge of energy, Caw lunged up into Johnny’s side, shoulder first. The coyote feral and Caw stumbled through the open doorway and sprawled on the ground, crushing hundreds of spiders as they fell.
“Kill her!” shouted Johnny.
Then Caw heard a terrible snarling and the crash of furniture overturning. He turned groggily and the room tipped on its head.
No, it wasn’t the room. Selina – the White Widow – was on all fours, moving up the wall as one of the coyotes swiped at her with its paw. Another gunshot missed as she scurried upside down across the ceiling over their heads. Then she dropped on to the ground beside them and ran out of the door.
Johnny shoved Caw off him and scrambled into the corridor after her. Caw tried to crawl forwards but his limbs felt heavy and clumsy.
The coyote feral was wildly firing shots into the webbing hanging from the ceiling, and more coyotes tore at it with their claws.
Caw grabbed weakly at Johnny’s ankles.
“Get off me, Caw!” said Johnny. “She’s getting away.” He dragged his leg free and ran to the elevator shaft. He fired three more shots directly upwards. Selina must have fled that way.
“What was that thing?” asked a voice behind them.
Caw, close to passing out, twisted his neck and saw the other ferals spilling into the hallway. Mrs Strickham led the way with her foxes. Crumb and Racklen came on either side. They looked exhausted, panting with the effort of the fight, clothes torn and dishevelled.
Johnny let the gun hang at his side.
“That was the new spider feral,” he said. “And thanks to our friend here, she escaped.” He glared at Caw.
“She?” asked Madeleine.
Caw wanted to speak, but his head was spinning and nausea made him want to retch.
Crumb rushed down the hallway. “Police!” he said. “We need to get out of here.”
“Everyone, back to the car park!” yelled Mrs Strickham.
Caw wobbled to his feet, and Lydia rushed to his side.
“Call your crows,” she said.
They came at once, summoned wordlessly, shooting down the elevator shaft and along the corridor. Ferals scrambled in every direction as the sound of sirens and then the pounding of boots came from above. Caw could barely walk so he let his crows carry him up a stairway. They emerged from a side door into fresh air, rising fast into the sky. From above he saw police vans and spinning lights, and armed cops encircling the building. Crows and pigeons carried several of the other ferals to safety.
As they landed in the car park beside their vehicles, the coyote feral came right up to Caw and shoved him back against a wall. His hand pressed against Caw’s throat and he drew back his other fist.
“Get off him!” said Lydia.
Caw braced himself, but Racklen caught the coyote feral’s arm before he could deliver the punch.
Johnny’s face twisted, and Caw felt the hand on his neck tighten for a few seconds. He could sense Johnny’s anger like static in the air. Then the coyote feral let go and backed off with a growl.
A wolf moved to stand between him and Caw.
“What the hell were you doing?” shouted Johnny. “I had a clear shot. You could have got us both killed!”
Caw breathed heavily as another wave of sickness passed. At last he found his voice. “It was Selina,” he said.
The news registered on Johnny’s face, and his features smoothed as the anger seeped away. “That was your friend?” said Johnny. “The spider feral?”
“Caw, are you sure?” said Crumb.
Caw looked at each of their f
aces. He was glad to see that, despite torn clothes and the odd cut, all the ferals seemed unharmed.
“It was Selina,” he said. “She’d changed. Her hair, her eyes …” he shuddered involuntarily, “but it was her.”
“But she’s the spider feral!” said Johnny. “That means she must be the Spinning Man’s child.”
Caw shook his head. His mind was still a jumble, but he knew who he’d spoken to down there. “No, that’s not quite right. It’s the Spinning Man himself – he’s inside her, somehow. He called her the White Widow.”
“How can she be the Spinning Man and the White Widow?” said Zeah, the parakeet feral.
“Exactly,” said Racklen. “If she’s the spider feral, she’s not your friend any more.”
“And you just threw away the best chance we’ll ever have of taking her out,” added Johnny.
Several of Crumb’s pigeons swooped down and landed on Mrs Strickham’s car roof. One let out a series of coos, and Crumb sighed. “The spider feral is gone,” he said.
Johnny Fivetails slammed a bunched fist on to the bonnet of a car three times, then turned and sank to his haunches against the wheel arch. He pushed a lock of hair back from his sweating forehead.
“Nice work, Caw,” he said.
he ferals huddled deep in discussion, while crows and pigeons kept watch. Johnny Fivetails was pacing back and forth.
Caw sat apart, against the wall of the car park, inspecting the twin fang marks on his hand. The flesh was a little swollen, a purple patch of bruising spreading under the skin. Every so often his stomach would cramp.
He shivered again as he remembered the pale face of the White Widow, the hollow black eyes, and the voice filled with malice. Was that even Selina any more, with so much of her life and spark snuffed out? Their friendship hadn’t begun normally – with Selina wielding a baseball bat at Caw when he discovered her squatting in his house. And for a good while she had been lying to him, working for her mother. But when it mattered, when she had to make a choice, she’d stood up to her mother and she’d been prepared to die to stop the convicts. Could the Selina he knew be gone forever? Or was her spirit still in there somewhere, waiting to be freed?
Caw’s stomach spasmed again, sweeping all thoughts away. He clamped his eyes closed, waiting for it to pass.
“Caw, we should get you to a hospital,” said Lydia, placing a hand on his shoulder.
“No,” he said. “I’m all right.”
“You don’t know that,” said Lydia. “The poison might be doing all sorts of damage inside.”
Caw stood up shakily. “He said it wasn’t fatal.”
“And you trust him?”
“He wants to punish me. Selina’s part of that. The nest too. But he’s been true to his word so far.”
Lydia sighed. “I know what that place meant to you, Caw. I’m sorry.”
“I don’t get it,” Johnny Fivetails said, approaching Caw and Lydia with the other ferals. “If the White Widow’s the new spider feral, she must be the daughter of the Spinning Man.”
“Not necessarily,” said Mrs Strickham.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” said Johnny. “There’s only one way to become a feral – your parent passes on the power when they die. Well, maybe there’s one other way. The way those prisoners got their powers bestowed by the Mother of Flies …”
Caw saw Mrs Strickham flash a look in his direction. His own eyes flickered downwards. Yes, the Midnight Stone was still there. He could tell what Johnny was thinking. If Selina wasn’t the daughter of the Spinning Man, how could she have got the spider feral powers without Caw helping her? But there was no way her powers had come from the Midnight Stone – it had been under Caw’s protection since that night on the commissioner’s apartment roof. And even if somehow Selina had touched it at the same time as a spider, that didn’t explain how she had been infected by the spirit of the Spinning Man. Those black eyes had looked at Caw with real hatred. The White Widow wasn’t just the new spider feral – she was carrying the soul of his bitter enemy.
When Caw looked up, he saw Johnny Fivetails leading the others further away, round behind some of the ferals’ cars.
“What are they doing?” said Lydia.
“I don’t know,” Caw replied, as Johnny flashed a glance back at them, “but I’m going to find out.”
Maybe just stay out of it, said Screech, hopping at his side.
“No way,” muttered Caw. Why were they sneaking off to talk in private? They were all supposed to be on the same side.
Let’s listen in, said Shimmer.
But Caw needed to hear it directly. Staying behind the cars, he crept closer, still unsteady on his legs, with Lydia trailing behind him. The other ferals were talking in hushed voices, too absorbed in their conversation to notice his approach.
“And you trusted her – this Selina?” Johnny Fivetails was saying.
“She helped us,” said Mrs Strickham. “I really don’t think she knew her mother was the fly feral.”
“Or if she did, she was in denial,” said Crumb.
Johnny put his hands on his hips. “And you think you can trust him?” he said, head nodding sharply towards where Caw had been a moment before.
Caw held his breath.
“Don’t even go there,” said Crumb. “You can’t seriously be suggesting—”
“I’m ruling out nothing,” said Johnny.
Mrs Strickham held up a hand. “Johnny, I’ve been through so much with Caw. He’s Lizzie Carmichael’s son, for goodness’ sake.”
There was a pause, and then Johnny sighed. “I know,” he said. “But his loyalties are torn. He attacked me when I could have killed the spider feral.”
“If he thought it was his friend—” began Crumb.
“But you said yourself, he’d only known her a few days,” said Johnny. “If that’s even true …”
Crouched in the shadows, Caw couldn’t believe they were talking about him like this. He bunched his fists.
Lydia laid a finger on her lips, and Caw nodded stiffly.
“We need a united front if we’re going to meet this new threat,” Johnny went on. “Caw’s conflicted. He’s upset. We should move the operation away from his house.”
Crumb shook his head, but Racklen, Zeah and Ali nodded. Johnny stared at Lydia’s mother.
“Vel?” Johnny said.
Mrs Strickham closed her eyes in a slow blink. When she opened them, she nodded too. “Just let me talk to him.”
Caw stepped out from behind the car. “If you have something to say,” he said, “say it to my face.”
“I know this is hard for you, Caw,” said Mrs Strickham. “Everyone’s confused.”
“So am I!” he said. “I didn’t attack Johnny. I stopped him shooting her. I don’t know how to prove to you that I’m on your side, and I shouldn’t have to.” His voice was strained, too high.
“No one thinks that,” said Crumb.
“I didn’t say anything about you being a traitor,” said Johnny. “But, Caw, if you want to prove yourself …” he glanced briefly at Mrs Strickham, “the Midnight Stone.”
Velma Strickham’s gaze was crystal clear, and in an instant Caw knew that she’d already told the coyote feral all about the Stone.
Johnny shrugged. “I know what happened with the Mother of Flies – I know how she created her army.” He stared at Caw. “You’ve got it, right?”
“Yes,” said Caw after a brief pause.
“Well, let’s use it!” said Johnny, stepping towards him. “We can create an army of our own.”
“No,” said Caw. “It’s dangerous. The crow line swore to guard the Stone.”
Crumb squared up to Johnny. “You’re talking about taking normal people and making them fight with us? That’s crazy.”
“Is it?” said Johnny. “Then what’s the Stone for? When a line dies, we bring it back. It’s the ultimate weapon. Life after death, right?” His face was animated, his voice imploring
.
“Slow down, Johnny,” said Mrs Strickham. “We haven’t talked about this.”
“Fine,” said the coyote feral, suddenly calm. He took a deep breath. “Even if we decide not to use it right away, it’s better that Caw lets us look after it, surely? It’ll be safest with someone who can guarantee its security.”
“And someone you can trust?” added Caw bitterly.
No one spoke, but everyone was looking at Mrs Strickham. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again she was staring at Caw. With a sinking heart, he knew exactly what she was going to say.
“We trust you, Caw. Of course we do. But … Johnny has a point.” Caw began to shake his head, but she continued. “If the Spinning Man is back, if he wants some sort of revenge on you, then the Stone will be better with us. Somewhere we can protect it.” She held out her hand.
Caw moved back as Racklen began to approach with his wolf at his heels.
“Come on, Caw,” said the wolf feral.
“Give him space,” said Crumb. “This is Caw! He’s one of us.”
“Easy for you to say,” said Ali angrily. “I lost half a swarm in there. They gave their lives for nothing.”
“Stay back,” said Caw. “You’re not having it.”
“Please,” said Lydia desperately. “Leave him alone, all of you.”
“Be honest, Caw,” said Johnny. “Did you use the Midnight Stone on your pal Selina? Maybe you felt sorry for her. Maybe you thought giving her powers was the only way to save her.”
“No,” said Caw. “You’ve got it all wrong.”
His back touched the low wall at the edge of the car park.
“Why are you running away?” asked Johnny.
“Leave him alone!” said Lydia again, lunging forwards. Mrs Strickham caught her daughter and held her back.
“Is it in your pocket?” asked Johnny.
“Just hand it over,” added Racklen.
Caw, said Glum. On your left.
Two coyotes glided across the car park.
“There’s no need for that,” said Crumb. He put a hand on Johnny’s shoulder, but the coyote feral pulled free.