“I can hear you, bobbin,” a dark, growling voice said from further down in the tunnel. “You are coming close to me.” Two red eyes shined out from the dark. “Come closer, bobbin. Let me look at you.”
“I didn’t come here to fight you, troll.” I gulped loudly. “I come in peace.”
“Well that’s a shame, bobbin. Because I don’t do peace.”
The red eyes vanished and then a great quake in the tunnel knocked me to the ground, directly into the sewer sludge I was trying to avoid. When the ground stopped vibrating, the troll stepped out into the light. He was nearly as tall and round as the pipe itself. Red eyes glared at me above a hooked nose covered in pimples, and his yellowed teeth protruded from thick lips and scraped against his meaty neck.
The troll’s massive arms hung low below his waist and his fat belly jiggled with every move, but I could tell he was strong, very strong, underneath the layers of fat on his bare, hairy chest.
“What do you want, bobbin?”
“Just a small request,” I said, my voice shaking. “A bit of mucus from your snout.”
The troll chuckled. “That is a very gross request, little bobbin.”
“What is a bobbin?” I asked, trying to buy myself as much time as possible to scoot myself out of the pipe.
“A bobbin’s a young witch, one who hasn’t done her first spell. A young, fresh, little bobbin.”
“I’m not a witch.” I took another step backward, hoping I was being inconspicuous.
“Only a witch would want my mucus, for some witch potion or another. Ah, you’re just a little bobbin though. Can’t even defend herself, can you? It’s barely a fair fight.”
“Move, Banana,” Katie said behind me, trying to block me from the troll.
“Yer familiar can’t help you, bobbin.” The troll took a lumbering step forward. “I can tell she doesn’t even know how powerful she really is, let alone how to use that power.”
“Stay back,” Katie said, staying between us as best she could. “This girl isn’t even a bobbin. She’s very powerful. She caught a goblin just yesterday.”
“A goblin, did she? That’s not very impressive. It’s like saying she caught a flea. There’s nothing to catching goblins. Witches been doing it for ages.”
I pushed myself to my feet. I could see the edge of the pipe behind me. “It’s almost daybreak, troll. And I’m about to step into the light.”
“You don’t know how quick I can be, bobbin.”
I gulped loudly. “I’m very small, and not a good meal. There must be something you desire. Anything in the world. If you let me go, I will bring it to you.”
The troll stopped moving forward. “That’s an interesting proposition. I always wanted to try unicorn. You ever had unicorn, bobbin? I hear it’s delicious.”
“Is that what you want?” I said. “I will find it and bring it to you.”
The troll laughed. “What kind of bobbin, are you? Unicorns ain’t real. You should know that, if you plan to be a witch.”
“I must be light on my studies.”
“I like you, bobbin. All right. I’ll tell you what. If you bring me back a dragon heart, I’ll give you mucus for whatever disgusting spell your heart desires.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
“But don’t come back without it, you hear?”
“We won’t.”
“I’ll wait for you here tomorrow at sunset. Bring it then, or I’ll have to eat another one of those homeless out there. They’re gamey and taste like old feet, but they keep me nourished and nobody asks questions.”
“We’ll be back by tomorrow night,” Katie said. “You can count on it.”
“Well then, I suppose we have an accord.”
Chapter 31
It was well after dawn by the time I returned back home. I parked Samantha’s car around the block and walked to my house. I didn’t want anybody to get suspicious about where I got the car. It was bad enough that I was out all night.
When I opened the front door, Mom and Joanne were sitting at the kitchen table. Their necks whipped around when they heard the door creak open.
“Oh, thank god!” Mom shouted, running toward me. She wrapped her arms around me, and Joanne was close behind. “I thought I lost you, hija.”
“I’m fine, Mom.” I struggled to breath with Mom’s arms so tight around me. “Can you let me go, though?”
She took a step back without letting me go and studied my face. “Where have you been? We were so worried.”
“Just…out. I’m sorry I didn’t call.”
“I left you four messages.”
“Yeah, I, uh, left my phone in the car so I wouldn’t lose it.”
“What car?” But I couldn’t answer, so I just stared at her, stone faced. “Was it Samantha’s car? Do you know where she is?”
“How do you know Samantha?” I asked, confused.
“Her mother called here last night, looking for her,” Joanne said. “Frantic. We’ve been up all night worried sick.”
I pushed away from Mom. “I’m sorry for worrying you, but I’m fine. Really.”
“Do you know where Samantha is?” she asked.
I was sick of lying to my mother. I didn’t know how much longer I could keep it up, so I decided to trust that she was on my side.
“Yes,” I said.
“What are you doing?” Katie said to me. “They’re going to think you’re crazy.”
“I don’t care,” I said, under my breath. “I’m sick of lying to everybody.”
“Who are you talking to?” Mom asked, frowning.
I grabbed her tenderly around the wrists. “Mom, I’m going to tell you the truth, and I really hope you believe me.”
“Of course I’ll believe you, chica. I’ll always believe you if you tell the truth.”
I didn’t know if I believed that, but there wasn’t a choice. The rift was widening every single day and soon I might need her help, or worse, she might see the rift for herself and have a heart attack.
So, I told her everything. I told her
