I put on the kettle, grabbed the jar of instant espresso and my cup. Then, waiting for the water to boil, I grabbed my backpack from where I’d dumped it last night on the floor beside the bed.
I unzipped it, looked inside.
First aid kit. Water bottle. Granola bars. Bug spray.
Panic rising, I turned the bag upside down, dumping everything out.
The monster book was gone.
As was the doll.
And my gun.
THE BOOK OF MONSTERS
By Violet Hildreth and Iris Whose Last Name We Don’t Know Illustrations by Eric Hildreth
1978
CHARMS AND SPELLS TO KEEP YOU SAFE FROM MONSTERS
Monsters cannot cross a circle of salt. Buy a big box of kosher salt. Make lines of it on all the doorways of your house. Make a circle around your bed. Also create a circle of salt anytime you attempt to do any magic, like a binding spell or a spell for seeing monsters.
Other things you can do to protect yourself: Sleep with your windows closed. Block the space under your bedroom door and your keyholes. Hang a cross and cloves of garlic above your bed. Put mirrors all around your room, facing out of your windows.
Make a charm by filling a small sack of cloth with equal amounts of lavender, dill, oregano, and sage. Keep it with you at all times.
Charge a knife by soaking it in salt water on a full moon. Sleep with this knife under your pillow, knowing that if you need to, you can slay a monster.
Vi
July 24, 1978
HOW LONG HAD the Ghoul been there watching?
How much had it seen?
Had it seen the kiss? Had it heard what they were talking about?
Vi’s head raced as she chased it through the trees.
The creature matched Eric’s description exactly: black hood, tall black boots, pale face.
It was just approaching dusk, and Vi knew they didn’t have much time. If they were out in the woods without a flashlight when it got fully dark, they’d never find it. Worse, they might not be able to find their way home.
Worse still, the Ghoul might tire of being chased and turn around and chase them.
Part of Vi worried that they were being led into a trap: that the Ghoul knew just what it was doing, that it had a plan.
Monsters, Vi knew, were clever creatures; some were experienced predators.
They were already far away from any path Vi knew. The sun was down low enough that she couldn’t tell what direction it had set in. She was disoriented. Lost. And the Ghoul was fast. Otherworldly fast.
Vi didn’t have anything to use for a binding spell—no kosher salt, no holy water, no magic words. She didn’t have an amulet of protection or a magic blade.
What would she and Iris do if they actually managed to catch up with it?
She’d started the chase feeling very brave, but was now beginning to doubt herself, to wonder if they should turn and run in the other direction, back toward home.
But which way was home?
The trees flew by. Vi’s legs were burning. Her lungs ached. She felt like they’d been running for hours, like the woods had to end soon. At any minute, they’d come out by the highway. At least, she thought that was the direction they’d been running. Maybe they’d come out near the dump or the old Wheaton farm. She looked up at the sky, hoping to see a familiar constellation. Then she might have some idea what direction they were heading. But there was nothing but a thick, dark cover of clouds.
And now it was starting to rain.