Lester stood without saying anything. Since completing the translated passage, he’d been busy mulling over Ben’s advice about trusting his friends. Silently staring at the pages of the journal, he hoped the old postmaster was right.

“Strange stuff has been happening to me,” Lester blurted out.

Amanda and Mae turned to look at him.

“Yeah, we know, Lester,” Amanda said. “That’s kind of why we’re here.”

“No. This is different.”

Throwing caution to the wind, Lester told them all of the odd things he’d been experiencing over the past few weeks. It was slow going at first, as he explained about the math test and the lights and humming from the Drawing-In ceremony. However, by the time he got to the part about his voice dropping after being bitten by Mac, the words flowed out of him with increasing speed. It was as though a dam had burst somewhere inside. He hadn’t realized how badly he’d needed to tell someone. Finally, he recounted the bizarre behavior of the water in his bathroom. When he finished, he fell back against his chair and rubbed his face with his hands.

“Young boy’s voices do change, Lester,” Amanda said gently.

“Yeah, I guess,” Lester replied. Did she think it was all in his head or that he was making it up? “But how do you account for everything else?”

Amanda sighed. “I can’t. I’m sorry. It’s not that I don’t believe you. I do. It’s just — things were so normal a few weeks ago. Since that night in Elmwood City, I keep expecting to wake up. I know it sounds selfish, but sometimes I wish we could forget all of this and return to the way it was.”

Lester knew the feeling. Like Ben’s dream about the lake, they’d found themselves inexplicably over their heads and ill-prepared. And somewhere beneath them, something was moving, something bigger than anything should be. As it glided along, unaware of their presence, it roiled the water, upending their world as it went, catching them in the whirlpool of its wake. They didn’t need to get a good look at it to understand the undeniable truth. This darkness they could sense but not see, this thing with no name, could not be turned back.

“Hey!” Lester shouted, suddenly finding himself inexplicably cold and wet. “What the heck, Mae?”

Mae sat on the other side of the table, an empty water bottle in her outstretched hand. “Sorry,” she said sheepishly. “I was testing a theory.”

Lester stared at her as water dripped from his face onto the front of his soaking wet t-shirt. “It’s not funny, Amanda,” he said, wiping droplets from his cheeks.

“Sorry. I know,” Amanda said, not sounding sorry as she failed to suppress a giggle.

Lester tried to maintain his irritation, but it wasn’t long before all three of them were nearly falling out of their chairs with laughter. The dark pall that had hung so heavy in the basement only moments before burst, and the fear, tension, and anxiety they’d been feeling evaporated.

It had been a long time since Lester had laughed this hard, and he was wiping his eyes when he saw Mae pick up a can of soda and begin to shake it. Amanda noticed too and started vigorously nodding her head in encouragement.

“No! Mae, don’t!” Lester said, but it was too late.

Mae snapped the ring on the can, and the pressurized liquid inside shot out.

Instinctively, Lester threw up a hand to shield himself. As his fingers spread wide, there was a shimmer in the air, and the stream of soda made an abrupt turn. Then, with a flash of speed, it raced back in the direction it had come.

Mae cried out, and the empty soda can clattered to the floor. She brought both hands up to her face and stumbled backward.

Lester and Amanda leaped from their chairs and rushed to her side.

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“Are you alright?” Amanda asked.

“I am so sorry, Mae,” Lester said. “I didn’t mean to. It just happened.” He stared down at his hands, but they looked like they always did.

“Come on, Mae,” said Amanda. “Let me see.” She gently removed Mae’s hands from her face, revealing a huge grin.

“That was so cool!” Mae shrieked.

“Oh, thank goodness,” Lester said, dropping into a nearby chair, relief washing over him. “I think I’m going to pass out.”

“Did you see that?” Mae asked. “It was incredible!” She was practically skipping with excitement. “Actual psychokinesis!”

“What?” asked Amanda.

“Psychokinesis,” repeated Mae. “It’s the ability to move things with your mind.” She turned to Lester, whose face was ashen. “Were you in a heightened state of stress or excitement when this happened before?”

“Why would that matter?” Amanda asked.

“Strong emotions can distract or even suppress the conscious mind. Take the flight-or-fight response humans exhibit when confronted with danger. The body redistributes blood to the brain, legs, arms, and muscles to ready ourselves. Our pupils even dilate to bring more light into our eyes for better vision. All without conscious thought.”

“Uh, Mae,” Amanda interrupted. “You might want to move your feet before Lester unconsciously vomits all over your shoes.”

Feeling weak and nauseous, Lester had bent down and put his head between his knees.

“You okay, Lester?” Amanda asked.

“Yeah, just give me a minute.” Lester took a few long slow breaths and carefully sat up. The room wobbled but then righted itself. “That’s a little better.”

“I’d offer you a glass of water,” said Amanda, “but I think we’re fresh out.”

Lester laughed but quickly stopped, as it made the pounding in his head worse.

“Running away from danger is one thing,” Amanda said to Mae. “But how is that connected to what just happened?”

“I don’t know. I suppose if we believe Doctor North’s story, and based on what you saw your fathers do in the alley, it certainly seems probable, you both may be descended from members of The Dark. As such, you could have inherited some sort of heightened awareness or abilities.”

“But if that’s true,” said Amanda, “why would it happen to Lester and not me? I’m much closer to thirteen than he is.”

“Maybe it is happening to you, and you just haven’t noticed?” Mae said.

“I think I’d notice if I came out dry every time I tried to take a shower.”

“I don’t know if that’s how it works,” said Mae. “According to Solomon’s books, each demon possesses very specific powers. So if you do develop abilities, they could be quite different from Lester’s. There’s no telling what form they might take.”

“I’d be happy to throw something at you if you want to give it a go,” Lester said. The color had returned to his face, and the sick feeling in his stomach was now a gnawing hunger. He grabbed a bag of Flaming Hot Cheese Puffs from the pile of snacks on the table and began rapidly shoveling them into his mouth.

“Do it, and I’ll slap you,” warned Amanda.

“Maybe there’s more on this in your great grandfather’s journal,” Mae said, picking it up and flipping through the pages. As she did, a square piece of paper fell out onto the table.

“Is that the one from the alley?” Lester asked.

“Oh! I almost forgot!” Mae said, grabbing it. She began rummaging around in her bag. “Lester, when you found this paper, you said it was blank, right?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure?” asked Mae.

“It wasn’t exactly my most pressing concern at the time, but yeah, I’m pretty sure,” said Lester.

“Well, take a look at this.”

Mae held a silver cigarette lighter under the paper and lit the flame. At first, there was only a faint glow, but as Lester and Amanda watched, brown, burnt lines began to appear. As they grew, the markings crisscrossed each other, forming a crude design. It looked like an hourglass without a top.

“What is that supposed to be?” Amanda asked.

“I don’t know,” replied Mae, putting out the lighter. As soon as she did, the image began to fade. By the time she set the paper down on the table, it was gone. “I’ve been looking through guides on symbols and emblems, but I haven’t found anything that matches yet. I may need to take a trip to the library in Elmwood. Then again, it could be nothing.”

“No, it’s something,” Lester said.

“You know what it means?” asked Mae.

“No idea. But I’ve seen it before.”

Lester tried to remember. It wasn’t in his house or at school. Was it outside somewhere? He could almost see it lurking at the edge of his thoughts. Maybe Ben would know. Then it hit him.

“Of course!” he said, jumping up and grabbing his backpack from the floor.

“Wait. Lester, where are you going?” Mae asked.

“I need to check on something. Meet me at my place first thing tomorrow morning and bring your bikes.”

Before either Mae or Amanda could object, Lester had sprinted off into the dark maze of shelves.

“But, Lester!” Amanda shouted after him. “Tomorrow’s Saturday. I don’t get up early on Saturdays!”

There was no reply, just the distant clang of the basement door.