The creature sneezed once, then shook its head. Next it gave me a bestial smile as the cloud of salt and iron settled at its feet.

“That was interesting, human,” it rasped. “I have never before been attacked in such a strangely ineffectual fashion. It was a total waste of our valuable time, for we soon shall be very busy together. I will take and you will give. I will have pleasure and you will have pain, until not one drop of your blood remains.”

At first I’d felt alarmed, but I was now getting my fear under control. I took a deep breath, steadied myself, and prepared to deal with this beast in a different way.

My silver chain was in the left pocket of my gown. I brought it out already coiled about my left wrist. Then, in one fluent gesture, I flicked it toward the creature.

My cast was perfectly executed. The chain formed a helix above its head, then dropped to bind it from head to knee, one part lying directly across its teeth. This would have been the perfect cast were I dealing with a witch. If this beast was capable of uttering dark magic spells, it would prevent it from doing so.

I thought it was over.

I truly thought that I had won; that the creature was tightly bound.

I smiled. Now I would carry it back to the Chipenden garden and bind it in a pit there.

But I had completely underestimated my adversary.

I had just made one of the biggest mistakes of my life.

It escaped from the silver chain in a similar way to a skelt. Skelts are large predatory water creatures that can fold their long bony limbs into small crevices to hide while waiting for prey to come within range. A skelt would contract its body and easily shrug off any chain that bound it.

But I wasn’t expecting that now. I was terrified when my opponent suddenly grew smaller, so that the chain dropped off its body and lay in a useless coil upon the floor. Then, within seconds, the creature had inflated itself so that it was far bigger than me—at least nine feet tall. Its eyes glowed red, blazing with fury, and its jaws opened wide.

Jenny’s “beastie” had transformed into a monstrous beast.

I stepped back in alarm, but it quickly reached out to grab me by the shoulder, dragging me toward its huge mouth. I tried to resist, but it was tremendously strong. Saliva dripped from its jaws again. I thought that it intended to start taking my blood there and then, but instead it breathed hard into my face.

I was enveloped in a sweet, spicy smell. Instantly the world spun about me, and I fell into darkness.

My last thought as I lost consciousness was that if it knew about me, it probably also knew about Jenny. She too would be in danger.

6

Help Me, Please

I awoke in a very different room, although I guessed I was still inside the oak tree. I could see the curve of the nearest wall, and a smell of damp wood assailed my nostrils.