Wintermoon Ice (2010) by Suzanne Francis Read Free Book Online Page A

relieved, as an easy explanation suggested itself. "Of course. You knew her when she was old. She told you, or else you read her journal."
    He shook his head patiently. "She hid the journal behind a loose brick in the fireplace at Seadrift. It has been there for the past thirty-five years, ever since her husband passed away."
    Tessa could not believe what she was hearing. She licked her suddenly dry lips. "How do you know all this? Tell me the truth."
    He must have sensed her alarm. "You have nothing to fear, at least not from me, Tessa."
    "Not... Not from you? What exactly does that mean, Mr. Sunshine?"
    He leaned forward. "There are others here. Old enemies of mine. They want the mirror you found." Jakob's voice dropped to a ragged whisper. "Suvi's mirror. They will stop at nothing to get it."
    Up to this point, she had been exasperated and amused in turn, but now fear scrabbled in her stomach, looking for purchase. "What in the hell are you talking about?"
    "Polys. In dark suits. They look like men, but they are not. Believe me, they are not. The night I met you on Wharf Lane they were there, two of them. I wanted you and your friend to cross the street -- that is why I said the things I did -- to protect you. But then you ran into the alley instead. Not a very bright move, because you could have been trapped. If they had gotten to you before I did they would have killed you."
    Tessa stood, knocking her chair back. "Stop it! I don't want to hear anything else. I didn't see anyone threatening on the street -- except for you! Jane and I thought we were going to have to ask the guy on the corner, in the dark..." Her eyes went wide, but then she shook her head. "No! I still don't believe you. And now I am leaving."
    He stood too, and his height and agile grace seemed far more menacing now. Tessa measured the distance, thinking she would have to push past him to get to the door. How stupid that she had left her mobile at home. Panic gripped her and her eyes darted about, looking for a weapon. They lit on the knife he had used to cut the pie.
    "Don't," he said gently. "I already told you -- you have nothing to fear from me. I came here to save you from the Polys and I promise I won't fail you." But the desolate look of determination in his eyes said he had failed before.
    "You
are
insane. Just let me go, please."
    His voice sounded utterly reasonable, but filled with worry. "All right, but be careful. The two on Wharf Street are no more, but there will be others. Remember they always work in pairs. Watch the shadows..."
    Tessa heard nothing else, because she had her fingers firmly jammed in her ears. "In five seconds I am going to scream."
    Jakob stepped away from the door. She shot by him and took the stairs two at a time.
    "Don't forget, I will be here if you need me," he called to her as she ran back the way she had come. Tessa gave no indication she heard.
    Jakob sighed and went back into the boatshed, and finished the excellent pie.
    * * * *
    "What did he call them? Pollywogs?" Jane asked later, as she and Tessa shared a pot of tea. She grinned and spread her hands wide as though she was reading the paper. "I can see the headline now -- 'Giant Guppies Eat Assistant Instructor Kivelson...'" She snapped her fingers. "I have it! Maybe they think you are a biology teacher. They have come from the planet of the frogs to avenge untold laboratory slaughter."
    Tessa did not look amused. "Not Pollywogs. It was Polys... I think." She closed her eyes, trying to remember exactly what he had said. But instead, she saw his face, his lazy grin. The clean line of his jaw, his cheekbones. That silly pirate shirt...
    "Hello, Tessa?" Jane shouted her name above the buzz of conversation in the hospital dining room. "Are you there?"
    "Yes. Sorry..." Tessa frowned. "If he hadn't seemed so absolutely rational I wouldn't be worried."
    "But that is classic psychotic behavior. I did a psychiatric rotation in med school. We learned all about this