The Longest Halloween, Book Two. Frank Wood

was a stirring in the room as a chair was pushed and someone rose to stand. “Very good,” a low voice rolled, “all you need do now is hand it over.”

      Gribbett paused. Something was wrong; this wasn’t Scroggins. The voice was too deep. Then he saw the narrow yellow slit-like eyes flash in the moonlight that bathed the room. A huge figure took a step toward the young teenager.

      Gribbett’s mouth fell open as he stumbled backwards in fear. “No,” he stammered, “I … I … escaped you!” he gasped.

      “There is no escape from the pack,” the wolf growled, “or from me! Now, if you value your life, you will hand over the map!”

      “Wh … what map?” Gribbett stuttered, backing into a desk.

      “Don’t trifle with me, boy!” the wolf roared. He was suddenly joined by several equally large, equally terrifying wolves.

      All of this was indeed harrowing—and for the young man who had pursued Gribbett all night and who now was watching this scene unfold before his eyes, confusing as well. But it was clear that four behemoths hidden in shadow against one teenaged boy was not fair. Pulling out his weapon, the young man fired a distractive shot into the night, hoping that the boy would be wise enough to take advantage of it.

      Gribbett did. His senses were already on high alert, and while he didn’t know where that shot came from, he made an immediate dash for the door and sped through it. The wolves would no doubt be hot on his trail, so he had to move fast. He ducked into a small room, fell to the floor and hid behind a counter. He heard the wolves thrash by him loudly and put the silver ram’s horn necklace that he kept in his pocket around his neck. A opalescent barrier sprang up around him. Wow, he thought, I guess Josiah was right. Silver would ward away those wolves after all. They dashed by without batting an eye.

      Gribbett produced a small parcel from under his shirt, and rising to his feet quickly, deposited it into a hamper in the corner. A Lost and Found sign hung over the hamper. He covered the parcel with random shoes, socks, hats, coats and scarfs, then scampered out the way that he had come. Outside the school, he dived into a surrounding field of bushes and caught his breath, watching several figures scurry about. There was a man in a hoodie whom he had never seen before—or had he?—who jumped into a car and sped away, just avoiding the onslaught of three gigantic wolves heading pell mell after him. Good, Gribbett thought, better him, whoever he is, than me. Later on, Gribbett was able to reach his desired contact.

      “Keith!” came the voice on the other end, “where have you been?”

      “I’ve been where I’ve been,” the teen shot back.“A better question is where were you?”

      “What are you talking about?” asked the voice on the other end.

      “Your message said you would meet me at the middle school to pick up the map,” Gribbett said.

      “I never left you such a message!”

      “Well, I don’t know any other Scroggins who’s been substituting at the Portersville Elementary School but in reality is out looking for a long-lost buried treasure map!” Gribbett spat.

      “Shut your big mouth, kid,” the voice ordered.

      “All I know is that I never signed on for this—being chased by wolves and almost served up for dinner!” Gribbett Keith yelled into the phone.

      “You’re more than welcome to head back to where I found you, lost, alone and with no more than lint to pull out of your pockets,” the voice shot right back, “but you won’t do that because you’re too greedy. What concerns me is that if I didn’t send you that message, then who did?”

      “Don’t know,” Gribbett said, “and the cops are coming!”

      “Where’s the map?” the voice asked.

      “It’s hidden,” Gribbett replied.

      The other voice grunted in disapproval. “Well, get out of there, we’ll meet up tomorrow and figure this out!”

      Josiah Scroggins put away his phone and sheathed his small hand held cross bow. His aim had been good but not perfect, just a minute ago when he had taken down that nosy kestrel who had been following him up until now. And while he hadn’t killed the bird, he had wounded it enough to send a message to its mistress that he, Josiah Scroggins, was not someone to be trifled with and that he was on to her machinations. Scroggins would next make his way to the small outdoor café where he was seated alone for the time being. A simmering cup of hot cocoa sat before him.. A shadow fell over his small table.

      “Keeping late hours, aren’t we Mr. Scroggins?” the voice of one Beverly McClafferty asked. “Haven’t you a class of students you need to be ready for in the morning?”

      “I could say the same for you, Mrs. McClafferty,” Scroggins said, rising to his nearly seven-foot height. He glared down at the barely five-foot-tall woman.

      “I’m a mother and a shop owner, my job is rarely over,” McClafferty, unruffled by the towering teacher, said with a smile.

      “Yes, and how are your dear boys?” Scroggins asked. “Keeping up with their attendance, I hope.”

      “They do well enough in that regard,” McClafferty said. “I could ask you about your own boys, I suppose, were that kind of stuff to be known.”

      “You all are not going to win, Mrs. McClafferty,” Scroggins said smugly. “We’re closer than you know, and once that treasure is returned to us, my first order of business will be to order a moratorium on all wolves.”

      “We’ll see, my dear Mr. Scroggins,” McClafferty replied with a smile. “My family and I have waited too long for this Halloween’s arrival to see defeat at the hand of a disingenuous, would-be bandit masquerading as an elementary school teacher, and his band of ne’er do wells!”

      “Your family’s time on this planet is rapidly drawing to an end,” Scroggins retorted, “and I for one am counting the moments until that occasion with the greatest of anticipation.”

      “Time will be the ultimate judge then, I suppose, betwixt the two of of us,” Mrs. McClafferty sniffed. “Until then, Mr. Scroggins.”

      “Ma’am.” The tall schoolteacher stood aside to let her pass. He smiled grimly to himself. He could only hope to see what her face would look like once she found out what had happened to her prize kestrel, no doubt making its way back to her home right now.

      No one would give the encounter the slightest bit of interest, except for the dark eyes looking on from the shadows … dark eyes that understood there was more than routine or chance to the meeting that had just unfolded. The dark specter who had so long ago seen to the safekeeping of Elvira Hanson’s map emerged from the shadows and propelled himself upwards on his gigantic broomstick. His voluminous body was instantly swallowed up by the dark and gathering clouds that had begun to form over the small town of Portersville.

      New Challenges

      “Goood moorrning Lancers!” the coach’s voice called out to the gathered students in the hall, in a pitiful imitation of Robin Williams’s “Good morning Vietnam!” mantra. “Today’s special assembly will highlight one of the newest clubs here at Mayfield High School, and that’s our Tae Kwon Do Club! Tae kwon do is a time-honored martial arts discipline that can instill stamina, courage and strength in a participant’s soul. We will now have a demonstration from two of our athletes, Ian Samuels and Joel Franklin! Gentlemen?”

      Joel Aubrey Franklin could think of about one hundred places he’d rather be right now, and being slammed against the harder-than-they-should-be floor mats by Ian Samuels, new boy in school and all around resident jerk, bully—and most importantly for Joel, rival for Polly Fleming’s affections—was not