Page 39 of My Monster's Keeper
“Earth.” He places another one next to the Earth biscuit. “The Fae world, or Faerie.” He pulls out a third and fourth biscuit and places them on the table, touching the edge of the Earth one. “The Shadow dimension, and,” he pauses, looking at the last biscuit, and picks it up and puts it in his mouth. “You don’t need to worry about that one. But see how they all touch at the edges of your world. We can cross into your world. You can cross into ours, but we can’t reach each other without passing through yours first. In order for the world to open to Faerie, enough people need to believe in magic. With the shadows, people need to fear monsters. When enough people believe, doors open, and we can slip through.”
I stare at them, rapidly rearranging bits of information in my brain.
“This Shadow realm, what is it exactly?”
“Well, no one I know has ever been there.” Wilder steals the Faerie biscuit and shoves the whole thing in his mouth. “They are different from us. Our realm follows rules, hierarchies, and codes. They are crass, undisciplined, they fight and kill, it’s a brutal place by human recollections.”
“Huh. Why are you all here?” I scratch my head. With every question I answer, a million more pop up.
“I followed a bird. It was a tiny black bird with a long, wagging tail and a blue head. I followed it until I hit a concrete river that was hard like stone. Diablos found me after that. I could not get back, but, then again, I did not want to.”
“It was time. I was bored, and I wanted to find something more,” Stix says and brushes a hand down my spine. I shiver at his touch and wonder how he managed to sneak into the room soundlessly.
“I was trying to escape my older brother’s orders to kill me. He owed me a favour, and our father had given him an unavoidable command. So I left,” Frost says darkly and pulls open the packet of biscuits and grabs a handful. I stare at the sad prince and have to fight to resist the urge to reach out to him.
“Puppy?” I ask. “How did you come here?”
“I smelled you,” Puppy says from the corner of the roof. “I followed the sweet stench of your fear.”
That steals my brain cells for a few moments. My Grim followed me out of his world? That shouldn’t be so romantic.
“All right, so Diablos found you, and what, he forced you into conscripting for his strange new law enforcement agency?”
“No, he asked us to help him. Diablos was a revered demon in my world,” Stix says and passes me the last biscuit. “But it was more a need to be here. To help save the omegas. If there was any chance, I needed to be here.”
“But why team the four of you together?”
“Because we’re the strongest that has passed through. It’s only logical,” Frost says.
I reach down and touch the handle of the knife on my belt. It gives me some strength.
“Diablos has a theory.”
I peer at Stix, who suddenly has the room’s whole attention.
“He believes that creatures from my world came across years ago and have been infiltrating the world and your society. This person in charge has been catching anyone weaker who comes through and collaring them. Growing the army.”
“For what?” I ask. I pause. “Barcoding them?”
“I have no idea.” Stix shakes his head and smiles slightly. “I guess that’s why we’re all here.”
Puppy snorts. “I’m here to eat things.”
I must be getting used to him because his comments aren’t even getting a rise out of me anymore.
“Speaking of our eloquent leader,” Frost says. “I received this message on the fon contraption.”
It takes me a moment. “Oh, phone?” I reach for it and open it up, showing the message. “He says the community centre is safe, Stix’s report has been filed.” I narrow my eyes on the long-limbed demon. “Why didn’t I have to report?” I look back at the phone. “He has another job for us by the docks. A complete shift of dock workers went missing three hours ago, well, that’s five now. One was particularly showing signs of being an omega.”
“I hate water.”
I slide my eyes to the sulking Grim. Noted, you fucker.
“All right, so we should head out before it gets darker.”
“Indeed.”
“Here,” Stix says and hands me my jacket. I slip my arms into it and turn, finding him staring down at me.
