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"And I know better than to accept a gift from the fairies," she snapped

"Oneti I promise that no intentional har as I a voice, he said, "Coe, when your kind and ours needs ether You could have called the police with your suspicions - which were correct Had you done so, she would not have gone without killing a great hed and glanced back at the car’s darkened s "It is difficult to change when you are so old, and she was always in the habit of eating ss, was our Nellie"

"Which is why I called you," Mrs Cullinan said stoutly "I didn’t knoho it was taking the little ones until I saw Nellie over by our backyard two nights ago and this child’s puppy was "

The fae looked at Leslie for the first ti ss

"Ah," he said after a long moment "Child, you may take what comfort you can that your puppy’s death meant that no more would die from that one’s "

"Give it to her," Mrs Cullinan said suddenly "Her puppy’s dead Give her your reward I’m an old woman with cancer; I won’t live out the year Give it to her"

The fae man looked at Mrs Cullinan, then knelt on one knee before Leslie, as holding very tightly to her father’s hand She didn’t know if she was crying for her puppy, the old woman as more her ift for a loss," he said "Take this and use it when you most need it"

Leslie put her free hand behind her back He was trying to make up for her puppy’s death with a present, just like people had tried to do after her s better Quite the opposite, in her experience The giant teddy bear her ht she left was buried in the back of the closet Although Leslie couldn’t stand to get rid of it, she also couldn’t look at it without feeling sick

"With this you could get a car or a house," the man said "Money for an education" He smiled, quite kindly - and it made him look totally different, more real, somehow, as he said, "Or save some other puppy from monsters All you have to do is wish hard and tear up the card"

"Any wish?" Leslie asked warily, taking the card, more because she didn’t want to be the focus of this er than because she wanted the card "I wantback to life," he told her sadly "I would that I could But outside of that, al"

She stared at the card in her hand It had one ritten across it: GIFT

He stood up Then he s she’d ever seen "And, Miss Leslie," he said, when he shouldn’t have known her na for more wishes It doesn’t work like that"

She’d just been wondering

The strange man turned to Mrs Cullinan and took her hand in his and kissed it "You are a lady of rare beauty, quick wits, and generous spirit"