Something Strange and Deadly (Something Strange and Deadly #1)(88)

“It’s not Elijah anymore. He’s dead. The spirit—it took his body, Daniel. I-it was waiting all this time, and it’s Marcus—the necromancer Joseph knew.”

Daniel’s brow wrinkled. “I’m not sure I follow, but now’s not the time to figure it out.”

He shot up tall and peeped around like a prairie dog. Then he slouched back to my side. “We’re outta time. Joseph and Jie are luring the Hungry away.”

An explosion from the south caused the ground around us to crumble.

I gripped Daniel’s shirt and forced him to look at me. “I sent the Dead to you like we planned—Elijah sent the army to the river. Why didn’t Joseph stop them? Why are you here?”

“I... I got separated from them.” He shook his head. “And I said I’d follow you, didn’t I? I meant it.”

“But that wasn’t the plan.”

“Damn the plan, Eleanor! You were right. On the bridge when you said I’d do the same, you were right. I would. I am. Now come on.” He scrambled out of the grave and towed me out with him.

“Look,” I said. “It’s the grimoire. Marcus wanted it.” It was half buried in the soil at my feet. I swooped it up and passed it to Daniel, who shoved it into his pocket. Then he darted to a familiar sack nearby. It was the pulse bombs.

He slung the bag up. “We’re gonna run now, you got it? When the Dead get close, I’ll light one of these, but I’ve only got two left. The rest are with Joseph and Jie. We’ve gotta get to the river.” He pointed toward the Schuylkill, and I scanned the horizon. There were endless tombs and endless bodies between us and the river. And charging around those tombs and corpses were the Dead. Directly in our path.

Daniel and I launched into a gallop. The sun had completely risen behind us, and the blazing light sent our shadows shooting far ahead. The Dead were approaching fast.

We reached a gray granite monument, and Daniel heaved me down before it. He slipped a pulse bomb in my hand and whipped out a match. With a flash and crackle, the dy***ite’s fuse flared to life.

“Throw it,” I said. The Dead were so close now I could hear their gnashing jaws.

Daniel didn’t budge, and the fuse blazed on. Now I could hear the thud of each footfall as the earth soaked it up. The Dead would be on us in a moment.

“Daniel! Throw the damn—”

His arm reeled back and then snapped. The bomb sailed over the monument. He pulled me to his chest and wrapped his arms around me.

The explosion was deafening. It covered all sounds and echoed in my brain. Debris flew and fluttered around us. Then Daniel yanked me to my feet and we pressed on through the smoke and dusty haze. Limp bodies were scattered among the wreckage of blasted tombstones.

Thank God his inventions actually work.

We raced past the coffin on which the Union soldier had impaled himself. I spared a glimpse, but the body wasn’t there. Nor was the splintered wood.

Next we came to the main carriageway, and I could see the forest fringe. Beyond those trees was the Schuylkill River. We were close, and we had one bomb left.

Another explosion blasted, but it was far off. I hoped Joseph and Jie had enough pulse bombs. The war wasn’t finished yet.

We reached the edge of the cemetery’s woods. Daniel grabbed my left arm, and we bounded into the trees. The ground sloped down, and we ran faster now. We were in trouble. The Dead had surrounded us, and I could see their faces in the foliage.

I didn’t hear the crack of the match, but I saw the flame and I watched the fuse catch. As before, Daniel lobbed it away and hugged me to his chest.

Something hit us at full speed, knocking us sideways. I landed on my right shoulder. Then the monster was at my throat.

I clawed at its face, but my nails just shredded decomposed skin.

Boom! The shadows of the forest disappeared in a flash of light.

The corpse crumpled onto me. Branches, rocks, and unrecognizable body parts crashed around, but I couldn’t hear any of it. The explosion had been too close, and it had blackened my hearing.

Daniel appeared, pushing the corpse to the side. Then he drew me to my feet, and we stumbled onward.

We reached the rocky edge that dropped to the river. It was far too steep to descend. The sun sparkled on the lazy water, but I couldn’t see our boat. Daniel pointed north, and I nodded. As we clambered along the bluff, my hearing returned, and with it came the sounds of struggle.

The forest was filled with crashing and beating footsteps.

“How many Dead are there?” I shrieked.

“Too many!” Daniel seized my hand. “We need to get to the water. Now.” He shoved me ahead of him, and we bolted down the hill.

Another explosion rang out from the forest while we were tumbling down the jagged hill. Joseph and Jie were heading toward the water too.

We hit the riverbank. So did the Dead. They landed in heaps of flesh and cloth. Busted knees and broken elbows didn’t matter to them—nor did the angle at which they hit the ground. They always bounced back to their feet.

The rowboat was only feet from us. Daniel shouted, “Get in!”

Dazzling pain blasted through my brain. Red, white, black shards that stabbed everything.

I screamed. One of the corpses had locked its mouth onto my right hand. Teeth shredded through the skin and grated against my bones. A long strip of splintered wood protruded from its chest and sliced at my legs.