Bayou Moon - Andrews, Ilona [85]
“Here.” His voice came in a hoarse whisper.
She closed her eyes for a second, overwhelmed by relief. Alive. He was alive.
“Aunt Pete?”
“Hurt.”
Oh no.
“Can you open the door?”
“Stuck . . . tight.”
“Hang on, Mikita,” she breathed. “Hang on. We’ll get you out.”
Think, think, think. The magic-treated neutralizing solution would kill any contamination. She had no doubt about it—her grandfather had taught Aunt Petunia to make it, and his magic never failed. “Erian, do we have any neutralizing solution left?”
“How much do you need?”
“As much as you can carry.”
He ran up the stairs, taking them two at the time.
Cerise glanced at Ignata. “I need you to move, so I can have room.”
Ignata climbed up the steps.
She had to cut the lock out. “Richard, I need a knife.”
He passed her his knife. She concentrated on the blade. The door was three inches thick. It would take more than one strike.
Cerise flashed, slashing at the door handle with the blade. A three-inch-long gouge scoured the metal.
Slash. She broke through the metal.
Slash.
Slash.
Sweat broke out on her forehead. Not fast enough.
Slash.
Slash.
Finished. A ragged crescent cut cleaved the lock from the rest of the door. Cerise rammed the door and bounced off. Stuck tight.
William landed on the stairs next to her, a roll of pale bubble gum lined with paper in his fingers. He tore a chunk of bubble gum, pressed it against the upper hinge, tore another strip, stuck it on the lower one, peeled the paper away in one single-layered movement, grabbed her hand, and ran up the stairs, pulling her into the crowded kitchen, away from the door.
“Explosives!” Richard barked.
The family pressed against the wall.
A second passed.
Another.
The explosion popped, small, almost like a firecracker going off.
William dropped her on her feet and dashed back down the stairs. Richard followed. Cerise chased them.
“Mikita, get away from the door,” Richard called out.
Erian reappeared, carrying a bucket of the neutralizing solution. Cerise grabbed one side of the bucket, he grabbed the other.
Richard and William rammed the door with their shoulders in unison.
The door creaked, careened, like a tooth about to fall out, and crashed down. Cerise and Erian heaved and dumped a glittering liquid cascade into the opening. The water fell, leaving Mikita, drenched and pale, holding his mother in his arms as if she were a child. He took a step and crumpled. They lunged forward and caught his big body before he hit the floor.
SIXTEEN
SPIDER raised his eyebrows. No explosion.
“You were right,” he said. “They’re gone and they’ve taken Lavern’s body with them.”
Gone to the Rathole. Gone behind the wards where they couldn’t be touched. He braided his fingers, thinking. Cerise, Cerise, Cerise. Such workmanship with the sword. A single strike per body, flash stretched over the blade—an almost forgotten skill. But who was with her? Who was the second person in the boat?
“What now?” Ruh’s yellow eyes regarded him.
“We could return to the base.” Spider smiled. “But then there is that trace of odd blood in the water. There were three people in that boat. One of them was Cerise, we know that. One of them was her cousin, the thoas. The question is, who was the third person? The thoas had bled and was poisoned. From what we know, it was likely copper poisoning, which would rob him of consciousness. Cerise wouldn’t be able to move him by herself. She had help from her passenger, who was likely a man and a strong one. I want to know who he is. Aren’t you curious, Ruh? I’m curious. It’s such a nice little cottage. Looks very hospitable. I think that I shall call on them.”
CLARA tugged at the woolen blanket, freeing Urow’s feet. He couldn’t sleep with his feet covered and usually wriggled until his clawed toes emerged from under the blanket. Her gesture served no purpose now. Urow had sunk so deep into his herb-induced sleep that a roar of an ervaurg in his ear wouldn’t wake him. Let alone the feel of wool on his feet.
She