Enchanted Ivy by Sarah Beth Durst Read Free Book Online Page B

pointed teeth, and then it lurched toward them. "Behind you!" Lily cried. Clawed paws scraped over flagstones.
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    Smooth as a cat, Tye spun and launched himself forward to intercept. Lily scrambled to her feet as Tye wrestled the monkey-thing to the ground. The creature slashed at Tye. He yelled as its claws scraped his arm.
    Squirming out of Tye's grasp, the creature ran on all four paws toward Lily. She backed off the path into the ivy. Vines snagged her ankles, and she kicked them free.
    Tye scrambled after the monkey-thing and wrapped his arms around its hind legs. It kicked, claws raking Tye's shoulder. "No!" Lily screamed. Reaching for a rock or a stick, she plunged her hand down into the ivy.
    The vines slithered around her fingers as if they were snakes. She glanced down and screamed--the vines writhed like tentacles all around her.
    The creature kicked hard, broke out of Tye's grip, and charged again at Lily.
    "Stop!" she yelled.
    Ivy vines uncoiled from Lily's ankles and shot out in front of her like striking cobras. They wrapped around the monkey-thing's torso and yanked the creature flat onto the ground. Tye pinned it down as the ivy encircled the thrashing creature, until the vines wrapped it so tightly that it lay cocooned.
    Lily stumbled backward as black spots danced through her vision. Leaning over, she put her hands on her knees and squeezed her eyes shut. Don't faint , she ordered herself. Her leg muscles trembled and spasmed. She sucked in air.
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    Panting, Tye said, "Knew there was something about you."
    She raised her head. He was kneeling on the monkey-thing's back. Blood dotted his arm. His sleeve had been shredded. The vines lay still now, wrapped tightly around the ... whatever it was. "What the hell is that?" she asked. "And what do you mean, 'something about' me?"
    "It went for you, not me," Tye said.
    The creature fixed its hungry yellow eyes on Lily. Its face was disconcertingly human, except that its skin was as leathery and green as a reptile's. It licked its teeth, flecked red with her blood. She shuddered. If Tye hadn't been here ... She pulled out her cell phone. "I'll call ..." Police? Animal control? What was it, a mutant monkey? She guessed she should call 911.
    "No!" he barked.
    She jumped and nearly dropped the phone, catching it before it plunged into the greenery. At the same moment, she realized that she was still standing on the vines that had been writhing like snakes a minute ago. She scurried to the center of the flagstones, a safe distance from the ivy. Absently, she noticed that the ringing in her ears was gone.
    "You have no idea what this is, do you?" he said. He didn't wait for her to answer. "No police. This ... creature ... it has to stay secret. Understand? The safety of a lot of people depends on it." His golden eyes pleaded.
    "But why? What is it?" Lily walked toward him to get a closer look.
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    "Keep back," Tye said. "You can't let it bite you again."
    "Is it rabid?" She twisted her neck, trying to see the bite marks on her shoulder. She touched them and winced as they stung. Don't panic, she told herself. She never panicked with Mom; she wouldn't panic here. "You can't hold it there forever. We need help." She flipped open her phone and dialed.
    "Dammit, Lily," he said. "Who are you calling?"
    "My grandfather," she said. The phone rang. "Pick up, pick up, pick up ...," she murmured. Voice mail answered. "Grandpa, I need you," she said. "Call me back ASAP."
    "Richard Carter, right?" Tye asked.
    "He's supposed to be at the Fiftieth Reunion tent," she said. "Where can I find it?" She wondered how he knew her grandfather's name.
    Tye considered it for a moment, then nodded. "All right, he could help. Fiftieth tent is on the other side of Nassau Hall and Alexander Hall, next to Blair Arch." She blinked at him, and he pointed. "Straight that way."
    "I'll be right back," Lily promised. She turned and took off at a run.
    He called after her, "If you feel faint or weak or