But even as they emerged into the front parlor, Sophraea could hear the sounds of fighting coming from the courtyard. She rushed to the window and saw Stunk's bullies trying to force their way into the yard from the public gate. Bentnor, Cadriffle, and their brothers were holding them off with hammers, tongs, and some long lengths of boards intended for coffins.
From the huge grin that split Bentnor's face below his bloody nose, Sophraea judged that he was having a wonderful time bashing the redheaded goon in front of him. Bentnor's wide shoulders, where his heavy leather work apron didn't protect him, dripped blood from a mass of scratches. Nothing serious yet, Sophraea decided, because the injuries weren't slowing him at all. One of Stunk's fatter guards screeched as Bentnor rammed a board into his midriff.
'That's not good,' said Gustin, pointing over her shoulder in the other direction.
Sophraea spun to peer through the window toward the Carver's former gate into the City ofthe Dead. The newly mortared bricks were starting to bow forward. Sophraea's father and her uncles rushed to the bricked over gate with lumber to shore it up..
A brick plopped out of the wall and a ghastly hand reached through. It pulled at the next brick. Sophraea's father Astute crashed his mallet down on the grasping fingers. The corpse on the other side obviously felt no pain. It continued to worry at the bricks blocking its way.
Sophraea's mother swept into the courtyard, leading the Carver aunts and other wives. The women all carried pots, pans, brooms, and buckets of steaming hot water as well as some wicked carving knives. With a curt wave of her free hand to the left and right, Reye directed the women to split into two groups, one to reinforce the defenders of the street-side gate and the other to help the men trying to hold back the deceased nobility intent on breaking in from the graveyard.
Even Sophraea's old grandmother was in the yard. Myemaw threw her black ball of yarn toward Stunk's bullies. The yarn wound up the legs of the thin man who was always complaining. entangling him from ankles to hips. He tipped forward and crashed to the ground, yelping as he fell.
With a quick click of her knitting needles, Sophraea's grandmother summoned back the yarn and redirected it toward another thug.
'It will be night soon. Everything is getting worse,' said Sophraea, spinning away from the window and heading toward the center staircase. 'We need some real help.'
'Where are you going?' said Gustin, pelting up the stairs after her.
'To Volponia!' Sophraea shouted back, praying as she went that the former pirate queen would know what to do!
TWENTY-TWO
Realizing her family's tactics would only delay the invasion of Dead End House, Sophraea flew up the stairs to Volponia's room.
Gustin was hard on her heels.
When they reached the landing just outside Volponia's door, the wizard grabbed her hands. 'Look,' he said.
From the tower window, Sophraea clearly saw that Rampage Stunk's men were well into the courtyard. Behind them strode the fat man. From his gestures, it appeared that he was instructing his men to herd the Carvers into the center of the yard..
Bentnor, Cadriffle, and the rest of the younger Carver males were not giving up, despite equally urgent gestures from Reye and Myemaw, who were trying to pull the family back toward the house. From this angle, Sophraea could not see the City of the Dead or the graveyard gate. But the worried glances in that direction from all the women suggested that the graveyard gate was being breached by the dead.
'I'm going to die,' said Gustin, peering down into the yard. 'Look at the size of Stunk's men. Look at the size of your family. I'm going to go down there and try to stop them from killing each other and end up being crushed between them. Or be overrun by corpses bent on revenge against Stunk.'
He gave a huge sigh, but there was that peculiar undercurrent of joy in his voice, that bubbling excitement he always exuded in the worst situations. Just being near him made the extremely worried Sophraea feel a little more confident.
'We don't have time to stand around talking,' Sophraea said as she hurried up the stairs.
'When I was small,' he responded with a laugh, 'I dreamed about this. Fighting a great battle in Waterdeep. Just like my guidebook promised!'
'Nobody has to die,' Sophraea retorted as she reached back to grab him and drag him after her. 'We will stop this somehow.'
Although, at that moment, she had absolutely no idea how she could save her family.
'No,' said Gustin, shaking his head just as firmly as Sophraea so often shook her head at him. 'I'm going to die this afternoon and there is nothing that your huge collection of male relatives can do to me after that.'
'What were you nattering about? We don't have time for this!'
'Yes we do!' announced Gustin. He grasped Sophraea's shoulders and turned her to face him. His eyes were burning a brilliant green and the hum of a small spell slipped through his smiling lips.
Sophraea felt her feet leaving the floor. Gustin's smile broadened. She floated upward until her mouth was level with Gustin's smile.
'Gustin!'
He pulled her to him. She could see nothing but the emerald sparkle of his eyes gleaming under those absurdly long lashes. 'Gustin!' she squeaked again. 'What were you doing?' 'This,' he answered. And he kissed her.
TWENTY-THREE
Flustered and flushed from Gustin's kiss, Sophraea wriggled free of his grasp. The minute her hands left his shoulders, which felt harder and broader than she had expected, her feet thumped back onto the floor.
Although she would have given almost anything to have examined his face for a moment longer, she dashed toward Volponia's room.
Timing, Sophraea moaned to herself, timing is everything and she just didn't have any time left. Or she would have stayed still longer and maybe kissed him back.
She burst through the door into Volponia's room. Still, despite that recent distraction, she suddenly knew exacdy what to do and who could help them. She rushed to Volponia's bed and bent over the old woman sleeping under her silken quilt.
'We need to fetch Lord Adarbrent here,' Sophraea said, shaking awake her dozing great-aunt. 'Immediately. He started this and he must stop it!'
'Don't ruffle my ruffles so,' scolded Volponia as the former pirate queen pulled herself up higher on her feather-stuffed pillows. That day, the gilded headboard of her bed was carved in the shape of a rearing dragon.
'What is happening?' Volponia asked the agitated Sophraea dancing from foot to impatient foot at the end of her bed.
'We don't have any time left,' panted Sophraea. 'Stunk's bullies are in the yard, the dead are breaking through the wall. The family is all downstairs fighting but they can never stop them uguunnui jgnuu all. We need Lord Adarbrent and his spellbook.'
Fully awake now, Volponia's eyes narrowed as she listened to Sophraea's tale. Spotting Gustin in the doorway, she pointed at the young man.
'Is that your wizard?' she asked.
'Yes… no,' Sophraea stuttered to a halt and then started again. 'We can never get to Manycats Alley in time,
