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Then she heard a rustling in the hedge next to the house she shared with her dads Though the sound ht little of it; probably one of the neighborhood dogs got out again

Then she heard it again--and louder And that wasn’t a dog That sounded like footsteps

"Uncle Gary?" she called "Uncle Dave?" Verlaine hurried from her room--but Uncle Dave had his headphones on, because apparently his World of Warcraft guild had a ht, and Uncle Gary was on the phone with his sister in Nebraska She consideredup, or both, but that was stupid She’d heard footsteps, no al for people to walk around in their neighborhood Even this late at night This close to the house

Verlaine snapped on the outside lights Once again, sorabbed a flashlight fro, heavy one that would hurt like hell if she swung into the side of someone’s head Then she fished around in her purse and found her rape-whistle key chain, the one Uncle Dave made her promise to carry at all times, and stuck the whistle between her lips Verlaine hesitated for oneif this was a good idea or not Very not As in, actually intensely du out there, and you need to see it’s nothing before you can go to sleep, she rationalized, or it’s soh your walls So you ht beaht and others were still dark Verlaine edged down the front walk, then toward the side of the house where she’d heard the rustling--right by her rooht in front of her, but saw only the feeble brown grass Her heart was pounding, even though it was nothing; it had to be nothing--

A hand closed over her shoulder and she gasped, the whistle falling froed back "Uncle Gary!"

"Honey, what are you doing? Did you hear so"

"Well, let’s see" He took the flashlight fro a himself between her and the forces of evil--if he only knew!

Then she realized he’d do it even if he did know, and she hugged hihed "Noas that for?"

"Just for being awesoe, Uncle Gary pushed some of the branches aside "Look at that Soarden Who would do that to a gnohbor’s vegetable patch had been torn up--no Melted It had ht where it stood, like it had been exposed to some terrible heat

She remembered Asa, and the unearthly, demonic heat that emanated from hiive them the bad news, Verlaine prodded the melted stuff with the toe of her shoe Then she looked over at her house This exact scorched spot was the very best place to see the light froh the dark, hands in the pockets of his black coat He’d been playing spy for Elizabeth--tracking and observing Nadia and her closest friends, the better to learn their habits and vulnerabilities

With Nadia and Mateo that was si distracted when he watched Verlaine