Book Four: Chapter 219

“Um...wait?”

“Before that!” He grabbed onto her arms with his hands, his thoughts now buzzing about loudly in his head.

“That you could lean on me.”

“Lean, lean, Mandragora...”

On the night that the Mandragora had eaten Sarah, it had handed over a hiking staff. At the time, he had been injured, and had figured that the staff had been given to him to help him limp home.

But what if it wasn’t?

He ran out of the office, leaving a bewildered Beth behind. In the living room, Reggie sat on the new living room table, engrossed in a game of Checkers with Jenny. The rat king looked up to watch Mike run through, allowing Jenny to shift two of her pieces unnoticed.

Mike ran down the hall to the back door, then shoved the door open hard enough that the door bounced off the siding of the house, eliciting a shriek of rage from Tink, who was currently working on a new dresser for Beth.

“Lover?” Naia called to him with concern in her voice as he sprin