The Wealding Word Read Online Free Page B

away. Perhaps Lexi would trade it in town for money. Either way, she would make sure Nell was never able to give it to Lady Zel. Best to keep it my secret for now . Her spirits dampened, Nell pressed the golden acorn into her pocket and finished cleaning the floor.

C HAPTER 3
    T HE T RAPDOOR
    Night drew its curtain earlier and earlier as winter settled on the land. Nell’s room was the farthest from the warmth of the kitchen, but she didn’t mind. She loved to crawl under the covers that Sola had already warmed, knowing she was finally safe from her sister. Lexi slept on a cot in the kitchen, next to the hearth, so Nell had the chilly little bedroom all to herself. Rawley followed her into bed to keep her feet toasty, and most evenings Nell fell asleep listening to the animals snore.
    It was late one night when Nell’s eyes fluttered open. Something wasn’t right – she felt it instinctively. Crystal centipedes frosted the small pane of glass above her. Moonlight streaming through it made the ice glow silver, shining a pale shaft upon her bed. In the distance, a chorus of high whines, like a pack of hungry dogs, filled the night with their vicious yammer. The sound of it made Nell shiver.
    Beside her, Sola lifted her head and seemed to say something, but Nell couldn’t make out the words. It was as if she was again deaf to the voices of her pets. As she sat listening, something knocked heavily against the shingles of the cottage.
    Startled, Nell knelt on her bed to clear frost from the windowpane. She expected to see a few strays fighting over a bone outside, but there was nothing – just diamond flakes shimmering down in the moonlight. Rawley jumped up onto the bed, and Nell could feelat once that he was wet. “Oh, get off Rawley,” she said, thinking he was still muddy from the day. Then she realized that her hands were warm and slick where she touched the dog. A dark patch matted his fur, leaking ink-black upon her white bed. “Rawley, you’re hurt!”
    The dog looked at Nell with blue-rimmed eyes, but she couldn’t tell if he was speaking to her. At that moment there came a scrape like steel on stone, followed by another high whine. Both were closer now. In fact, the grating sounded just outside her room! She wheeled and pulled the covers up around her, staring into the darkness.
    Sola darted under the bed as the door slowly opened. Nell could only clutch her blanket, feeling Rawley tremble beside her. The smell of charred hair filled her nose, and suddenly the room was stifling hot. The scraping sound came again, footsteps stopping just beyond the shaft of moonlight. Staring in horror, Nell’s eyes locked on the gaping black doorway.
    There was an intake of breath, and a voice issued from the door like water thrown into a hot pan. “I have found you, greenspeaker. You will serve when the time is right. Soon… soon we will come for you.”
    Nell wasn’t sure if the words were spoken aloud or were only in her mind. She opened her mouth to ask, “Who are you?” but fear clutched her throat. As she sat trying to catch her breath, the heavy scrape came again, and shadowy tendrils shot forth around the doorframe. Vines twisted and stretched themselves up to the ceiling, climbing the walls with a dry rattle. The black creepers ate up the moonlight and crowded into the room, curling around the posts of Nell’s bed and cracking her window. Cold night air rushed in. Outside, the knocking sounded again against the cottage. Somehow Nell knew if she looked now, something would indeed be waiting for her out in the moonlight. The vines wound over the bed and around her bleeding dog. Then they were upon her, cutting into her feet and legs. Her only chance was through the window, and into the arms of the thing outside.
    At that moment Nell’s mind fled away into dark slumber.
    When she opened her eyes again, sunlight filtered into her room. Sola nuzzled in a tight ball next to her pillow, and Rawley snored at her