Aimée Carter - Curse of the Phoenix

Curse of the Phoenix

Aime Carter

MARGARET K. McELDERRY BOOKS

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Childrens Publishing Division

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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the authors imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Text 2021 by Aime Carter

Jacket illustration 2021 by Vivienne To

Jacket design by Debra Sfetsios-Conover 2021 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.

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Interior design by Irene Metaxatos

CIP data for this book is available from the Library of Congress.

ISBN 9781534478442

ISBN 9781534478466 (ebook)

For the best dad in the world.

And for those who have lost someone they love.

Grief may never lessen, but life expands.

S OMETHING WAS WRONG WITH THE dragons tail.

Zac Hadley squinted at his drawing, tilting his head and holding it at arms length to try to gain some perspective. The unicorns in the valley looked okay, and he was pretty sure hed nailed the shading in the mountains. But the longer he stared at the dragon that perched on the words THE WILDEWOODS SAGA written in block letters, the more distorted the image seemed, until it didnt look like a dragon at all, but rather a puffy lizard with a tail that was too big for its body. It wasnt right. Nothing he drew was right anymore.

Frustrated, he tossed his graphic novel onto the foot of his bed. A month ago, he would have already been erasing the tail, determined to start over. Maybe he would have shown it to his mother first and asked what she thought. But now

His stomach rumbled. Glancing at his watch, he realized with a jolt that it was three oclock. Hed missed lunch. Nohis father hadnt called him down for lunch in the first place.

Hungry and confused, Zac plodded across the hardwood floor and into the hallway. Pausing at the top of the stairs, he listened for the clacking of fingers on a keyboard as his father worked from home, the way he had for the past month, but Zac heard nothing. The entire house seemed quiet.

Too quiet.

Dad? called Zac. His heart began to race as he scrambled down the steps, nearly slipping on the polished wood. Dad? Where are you?

He darted across the living room, narrowly missing a coffee table that was cluttered with pop cans and a greasy pizza box from the night before. The door to his fathers office was closed, and he skidded toward it, stopping half an inch from the knob as his chest began to tighten.

It wouldnt happen again. His father was fine. Sleeping, maybe, or wearing headphones and distracted by his work. Everything would be okay.

Dad? His voice shook as he knocked on the door. Not waiting for an answer, he pushed it open, and in that split second, he imagined what he would see on the other side. His dad in his office chair, reading a book. Or leaned back with his mouth open as he snored. Or

The image appeared in his mind before he could stop it. Hed been hungry that afternoon, too, and wondering if his mother had finished lunch yet. He hadnt known then to be afraid of walking into quiet rooms that should have been noisy.

Hed expected to see her standing at the stove and stirring the contents of a pot, or maybe pulling plates out of the cabinet. Instead she had been lying on the floor, motionless.

For an instant, that was all Zac could see as he stood in the open doorway of his fathers office. He was cold now, and he could barely draw a breath, but none of that seemed to matter as he relived the worst moment of his life. It had been a month ago nowa month and four daysbut Zac still couldnt make himself walk into the kitchen.

Zac? His fathers voice cut through the fog, and Zac blinked as the present materialized around him again. The curtains in the office were drawn, and his father sat at his desk, a phone held up to his ear. Is everything all right?

I Zac tried to swallow, but his throat was too tight now, and he couldnt speak. Stars danced in front of him, and he clutched the knob for balance.

Merle, Ill call you back, said his father urgently into the phone. Dropping it on his desk with a thud, he hurried toward Zac, hovering over him anxiously. Are you okay? Do you need your inhaler? Where is it? He looked around, as if expecting to find it on one of the side tables cluttered with old bottles and documents, but of course it wasnt there.

Zac shook his head. Now that he could see his father and knew he was all right, the tightness was easing. He wouldnt be running any races soonor everbut it wasnt a normal asthma attack. This kind had been happening more and more lately, and Zac had a feeling that mentioning it to his father would only result in more trips to the doctor. I justdidnt hear you call for lunch, he said, his voice hoarse.

Oh, said his father, and Zac noticed his eyes were swollen and rimmed with red. Right. Lunch. I thought you had leftovers from last night.

Yeah, but you need to heat them up for me, he said, sounding pathetic even to himself. His father frowned.

Youre twelve years old, Zac, he said gently. You can heat up your own food.

Zac pressed his lips together. It was pointless to arguethey both knew why he wouldnt go into the kitchen. But no matter how many times his father urged him, he couldnt do it. Not yet.

His father sighed, his shoulders hunched. Ill heat them up, but this is the last time, all right? Tomorrow, you make your own

Help! An ear-piercing cry echoed from the foyer as the front door slammed open, hitting the wall with a resounding crack. Dadhelp!

L U HADLEY BALANCED PRECARIOUSLY ON a low branch as she glared at the ancient tabby cat perched several feet above her. The cat stared back unblinkingly through his single eye, a silent challenge that made Lu long for a time before he had learned to climb a tree.

You know you need your medication, Rufus, she said, gripping the rough bark. We shouldnt have to do this every single day.

Rufus turned away from her and began to groom himself. With her legs wrapped firmly around the branch, Lu grabbed the scruff of his neck and eased him down, swaddling him in her sweater before he could scratch her. Got you!

I dont know why you bother, said her best friend, Sophia Lopez, from the grass fifteen feet below. She sat at the edge of the woods that bordered their neighborhood, and while she untangled a burr from a long-haired kittens coat, the rest of the homeless cat colony gathered around a pile of fresh kibble nearby. The infections probably gone by now, anyway.

With Rufus and the sweater tucked under one arm, Lu climbed down and dropped back onto the ground. Probably isnt good enough when he only has one eye left. Pulling a tube of ointment from her pocket, she sat beside Sophia and wrestled Rufus onto his back. With enormous effort, she pinned him down and held his good eye open, and at last she administered the single bead of medication he needed.