Memories came crackling, more vivid, more real than the rumbling bus or the homework in his bag. Alex saw himself pursued by shadowy opponents using weird magic to animate a bizarre army of lethal robots, huge tin men, vicious little flying machines. He remembered the moment he had communicated with the golem itself. He could almost—almost—still feel the power locked inside the tablet, the memory of it moving though him, moving at his command. He had stood on the shoulders of an angel and ordered a river to stop running and rise and . . .

And now he couldn’t do a thing.

For months now, when he tried to contact the tablet, he felt nothing at all. He turned it over for the umpteenth time, trying to trace what had changed and when.

Only twice since returning from Prague had he felt the power. First, the encounter in the park around Christmas, just after he got home. Kenzie had been getting roughed up by older boys. Alex had stepped in and he . . . he had made it stop. He had sent the boys away.

The second time had involved Kenzie, too. Although a word was never spoken about it, Kenzie had been left badly rattled by witnessing Alex’s intervention in the park. When school started again, instead of making his life a misery, like he had for years, Kenzie left Alex alone. But eventually, his little gang began to notice and started goading Kenzie about it.

It came to a head one gray afternoon, when Alex found himself surrounded by an eager circle of boys led by a Kenzie determined to prove a point.

Alex’s heart started hammering as they closed in, urging Kenzie on.

“Give him a slap, K.”

“Get ’im, Kenz. Slap ’im.”

“Little freak,” Kenzie said. He swallowed warily, looked around the faces, licked his lips. “Little freak,” he repeated, louder, working himself up. He raised his hand. Then he fell to his knees.

Alex stood motionless while the rest glanced uncomprehendingly at one another. Kenzie curled on the ground, helpless. One of the other boys moved uncertainly toward Alex, then grabbed at his own throat, choking. He crumpled, fell, eyes bulging.

Alex stood, feeling far away, feeling the power emanating from him, the old tin toy burning blue-white-gold in his pocket. The circle took a step back. He flicked his mind at them. More boys falling.

“Go away,” Alex said.

He stopped it then, felt his mind falling to earth from somewhere else, descending through thick, slow time, and watched them hurry away. All except Kenzie, still moaning on the ground. For some reason the effect was strongest with him. Kenzie hadn’t been quite the same since. None of the boys ever mentioned it again. But they left Alex alone.