Withmy daughterhere?
“Mouse,” I said, voice hard, “raise the alarm. I want all civilians alerted and moved into the lowest level of the castle.”
Mouse huffed out a growling affirmation, rising to his feet. He guided Maggie’s hand to his collar with gentle teeth and then started trotting for the door.
“Make sure she gets secured,” I told Bear, “then arm up and meet me on the roof.”
“Got it,” Bear said, and stomped rapidly off with Mouse and my daughter. I heard Mouse begin to bark in steady cadence. The Temple dog’s power shook the stones of the castle, harmonizing with the energy of the threshold that had been built around the place by a year of weeping, laughing, and living through crisis.
I heard voices being raised as people heard the sound and were drawn out toward it. Bear began shouting instructions.
I closed my eyes for a moment and then called, “Major General?”
There was a zipping sound, then a whipping sound of larger wings, and Major General Toot-Toot Minimus, all three feet of him in his shining new faemetal armor and his dandelion fluff of lavender hair, came soaring into the room, landed in front of me, and saluted. “Reporting for duty!”
I dropped to a knee in front of him. “I need messengers sent out. Tell these people I need them here by sundown, and to come prepared for a fight. Got it?” I fired off a rapid list of names.
“Yes, my lord!” Toot piped, and his dragonfly wings blurred and carried him out of the gym.
“Basil!” I called.
There was a rippling, rumbling sound in one wall, and the large gargoyle appeared, his lion’s head in an expression of sudden wariness. “My lord?”
“I’m expecting danger at sundown. Help the residents into the lowest level and position the Knights to guard the stairwell. Shut and bar the gates. After that, I want you and your people ready to rock.”
“We are always rock,” Basil intoned seriously. But he vanished into the floor as though sinking suddenly into water.
“Bob!” I called.
A bright blue dot appeared on one stone wall of the gym and tracked rapidly around the room to the wall nearest me like someone shining a large laser pointer. “Yeah, boss?”
“You got a handle on the castle’s functions now?”
“Uh…” he said. “I think?”
“Get them spun up,” I snapped.
The spirit had no need to gulp, but he’d learned enough context to make the noise anyway. “Um. Which ones?”
Bad guys coming here.
To my house.
I felt pure rage rising from my bones.
“All of them,” I snarled.
Chapter
Fifty-Two
I came out of my upstairs room, ready to go, and almost tripped and fell over Matias.
The middle-aged father blinked as he looked up at me and swallowed. He looked a hell of a lot paler than he usually did, but beneath his greying beard, his jaw was set in determination, and he was carrying one of the shotguns from Marcone’s stash during the battle.
His eyes, though. They looked sick with fear.
Not fear of what was in front of him—but what was already behind him. Fear that piles up in your stomach like thick, acidic mucus. Makes you feel sick. Makes you feel weak. Makes you feel like the ghosts of horrible times past are holding a dance party in your guts, all singing at the same time,It’s happening again! It’s happening again! IT’S HAPPENING AGAIN!
