The Hammer is a weapon—it is not a victory. Daniel forgot this and he paid the price
.
I was just getting up to check the yard when my mom called up for dinner. Sneaking a quick peek at the woods and seeing nothing, I headed downstairs, wondering if the yellow eyes were just beyond my sight in the shadows.
I joined Tom and Stache at the table—Stache had actually made it to the dinner table on time today, though that was probably just because my mom had yelled at him. As usual he was covered in dust and paint and dirt and who knows what else. Even his moustache had white paint in it. My mom plunked a big, steaming plate of chicken wings on the table. Despite the whole yellow-eyes incident, I was starving, so I immediately started to load up my plate.
Dinner at my house is like a police interrogation. My mom fires off a rapid stream of questions, and I do my best to give her the shortest answers possible so that I can avoid telling her the truth without actually lying. It’s an art form.
Tom was sitting across from me eating Brussels sprouts. He really loves Brussels sprouts. Like savours them. It’s weird.
“How was your day, Tom?” my mom asked, turning to him.
“Not bad,” Tom said, poking around for his Brussels sprouts. “I made a friend. Shannon.”
“Told you,” I said knowingly.
He frowned. “Not that kind of a friend. She’s just very nice. She told me she liked my shirt. I told her I liked her shoes. She thought it was funny. We laughed.”
“I see,” my mom said, frowning. “Laura?”
“Got an A on a math quiz,” I replied curtly.
My father looked up. “Congratulations.”
“Thanks, Stache,” I said. “Tom, you want my Brussels sprouts—”
“Hold on,” my mom cut in. “That’s very good, Laura. What else happened?”
Here we go. She wanted to know about bullying. It was nice of her to ask, I guess, but it’s not something I love talking about. Especially in front of my dad. He lives in his own little happy world where his daughter is a beautiful princess loved by all.
“That’s really it. Just fighting off the boys like usual.”
“What boys?” my dad asked with his mouth full.
My mom sighed. “I think she’s joking, dear.”
“Oh,” he said. “Good.”
“Who were the girls you walked home with?” my mom asked.
“Shal and Mia.”
She wiped her face with a napkin. “Were you fighting with them yesterday?”
Sigh. She was very perceptive, I had to give her that.
“Yeah, but we’re good again,” I said. “Just about a girl at school. No big deal.”
My mom hesitated. “Is she…picking on you?”
“Not yet,” I said calmly, taking a big bite of a chicken wing. “Probably tomorrow though. We had a bit of a showdown today.” I stopped and looked at the chicken wing. “I probably should eat something healthier in preparation, actually.”
“What for?” my dad asked, sounding indignant. I love Stache.
“I’m preparing for a marathon,” I said sarcastically. “But if we could just hide the snack food, that would be super. When ten o’clock hits, no bag of chips is safe from my wrath.”
My mom nodded. “Of course. I could probably stand to lose a few pounds myself. I’ll start buying fresh fruit instead.”
“Great,” Tom muttered.
I smiled and tossed a Brussels sprout at him. It bounced off his forehead.
“Very nice,” my mom said.
Tom frowned. “I would have eaten that.”
—
As I lay in bed that night, the guide beside me, I realized I had to make a decision. The door would start rattling again soon, and Eldon would be waiting. Could I really go back in there after that disastrous training session yesterday? All the reading I had done had said the exact same thing: the Monster Crusher had to be a mighty warrior, protecting both worlds and keeping the tunnels secure. The only one who didn’t look that big in his picture was Paul the Imp Chaser, and apparently he’d been killed three weeks into the job. I clearly wasn’t the Monster Crusher. Maybe it was better if I just didn’t go back.
Of course, there was also the issue of the yellow eyes in the woods. If that was some sort of creature hunting me, it wouldn’t stop just because I decided not to be the Monster Crusher. Was I putting my family at risk? Did I even have a choice? What if they just came and took me back to Derwin to train against my will?
My mind was racing as I glanced over and saw 10:30 on my alarm clock. The door still wasn’t rattling. Maybe it wasn’t going to rattle tonight, and Eldon was giving me another day to think about it. If that was the case, I definitely appreciated it.
I placed the guide on my nightstand, put on some fluffy red-and-white pyjamas, and flicked off the bedroom light. But as I got into bed, I heard something strange. It wasn’t rattling. It was voices. I immediately stopped and listened.
The voices were coming from outside my window.
I slowly crept to the window and peeked through the curtains, but it was too dark to see anything. I stood there for a moment, trying to decide what to do. What if something was out there? What if it was coming into my house? Should I wake my parents? Would they think I was completely nuts?
I frowned and thought about something else. I was hearing voices. I sincerely doubted monsters could speak, and if they could, it definitely wouldn’t be English. It had to be the Swords. I decided to ignore it and go to bed.
I was just climbing onto the mattress when I heard the voices again.
There was no doubt: there were people outside, and they were getting closer. Were the Swords trying
