Goblins on the Prowl (17 page)

She held out her arms. I ran to her and hugged her, the way I used to so long ago. Uncle Edrick bent and kissed me on the head. “Be good,” he said, giving my hair a gentle tug.

Back when I was Gertrude, it had always made me laugh when he did that. Now it made me sad. “Do you really have to go?”

Sophronia had tears in her eyes. “I wish we didn't, dear. But this is the vow we made when we joined the League of Teldrum.”

“Will you ever come back?”

Edrick shook his head. “That would raise the risk of another evil wizard finding the stone and coming after it. No, once there, we'll need to stay.”

William took my arm. “Come on,” he said softly, leading me back to the others.

Standing face-to-face, arms around each other, Sophronia and Edrick began to chant. As their voices blended, a swirl of white light rose around them.

A strange aroma, wild and spicy, filled the air.

An instant later they were gone.

After a long silence William said, “Well, Gertrude. That was interesting.”

I smacked him on the arm. “The name is Fauna, and don't you forget it!” With a smile I added, “You big wug!”

So that's the story of how I became the Lady of Toad-in-a-Cage Castle.

When we arrived back at the castle a few days later—having been sure to return Flegmire's bucket—we were relieved to find that the Baron had made a complete recovery. I was afraid that when he learned I was his sister, he would faint again, but he actually seemed happy about it.

“I only wish Father were here,” he said. “He never stopped hoping for your return, you know.”

Hulda was delighted to have another female in the castle. As it worked out, she got two, since after Bwoonhiwda went to the queen to report on her mission, she returned to us. She is now in charge of castle defense. I don't really think we need much defending, but it's good to have her here. It certainly makes Igor happy.

Karl and William helped me write all this down. It has taken us a few months, and in that time I have grown about half an inch. It is very strange to be getting taller again after all these years.

Herky still lives with us and is as much of a menace as ever. And Werdolphus continues to haunt the ­castle. He says he'll move on when he's good and ready. Sterngrim, however, returned to the other lindlings. She told William she would miss us but didn't think it was pos­sible for her to live aboveground.

As for me . . . well, it is strange to be living in the castle again. It is as if I am beginning my life all over. Mostly I like it. But sometimes I get restless and sneak away to spend a night or two in the forest.

I need to be alone to think.

What I mostly think about is this: I have been angry with the world for a long time.

Maybe it's time to stop.

A NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR

Goblins in the Castle
, the first book about the strange ­doings in and around Toad-in-a-Cage castle, was published in 1992. Why return to that world now, more than ­twenty years later? Well, the truth is, Nilbog has never been far from my mind, and this is actu­ally something I have wanted to do ever since the first book came out.

It was just that life, and other stories, always seemed to get in the way.

Well, that and the fact that I didn't know what happened next. All I knew was that whatever the plot turned out to be, it had to include Bwoonhiwda, who appeared one night when my wife and I were bouncing Nilboggian ideas around and making each other laugh hysterically.

Of course, having Igor living in the cellar beneath the cellar beneath the cellar beneath my house meant that I shouldn't have worried about it. Once again the time came when late one night he trundled up the stairs and plopped
Goblins on the Prowl
onto my desk.

I was astonished to find that this time Fauna had written the story . . . and even more amazed to discover her secret. (Really, I had had no idea!) But what delighted me most was finding the “story beneath the story” of the giant Harry. This was because my very first published book,
The Foolish Giant
(a picture book illustrated by my wife, Katherine), told the version of ­Harry's story that Bonecracker John relates in this book. What a shock it was to find the real version of Harry's story!

As is the way with books, this one still needed fine tuning and editing to make it worthy to see print, so I would like to acknowledge those who helped along the way.

First of all, there is my reading partner, Tamora Pierce. Tammy lives across the street from my office, and most weekdays when we are both in town we get together in the early evening to read our works-in-progress to each other. When Tammy groans at my jokes, or curses me for my cliffhanger chapter endings, I know I'm on the right track.

Then a very special thank-you goes to teacher Doug Hinton, who has been reading
Goblins in the ­Castle
to his classes every year for nearly two decades now. At this point Doug probably knows the text of the first book better than I do, and his input on this book was incredibly valuable. If Doug wasn't satisfied with what I had, then I knew it wasn't right yet . . . and when he was satisfied, I was very, very happy indeed.

And of course there is the editorial team . . . first Karen Nagel, who demanded I make it better, then the wonderful Amy Cloud, who told me when I had managed to do so.

Additionally, I have the great good fortune to be in two wonderful writers' groups, MFL and TOG. I received tremendous support and important input from both. Alas, I cannot reveal the meaning of “MFL” and “TOG” as those are deep, dark secrets. However, I can list the membership for each group. In MFL we have ­Cynthia DeFelice, MJ Auch, Vivian Vande Velde, Patience ­Brewster, Robin Pulver, Ellen Stoll Walsh, and Katherine Coville. The TOG team consists of Ellen Yeomans, MJ Auch, Amber Lough, Suzanne Bloom, and Laurie Halse Anderson. If you think I am lucky to be part of these amazing groups, all I can say is, “You're right!”

Last, but far from least, is my wife, author and artist Katherine Coville, who has been putting up with Igor's antics for over forty years now.

How could I do it without her?

Read the fantastical prequel to
Goblins on the Prowl
:

Goblins in the Castle

And don't forget these other Bruce Coville titles:

My Teacher Is an Alien

My Teacher Fried My Brains

My Teacher Glows in the Dark

My Teacher Flunked the Planet

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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 author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division

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First Aladdin hardcover edition June 2015

Text copyright © 2015 by Bruce Coville

Jacket illustration copyright © 2015 by Eric Deschamps

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

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Jacket designed by Jessica Handelman

Interior designed by Hilary Zarycky

The text of this book was set in New Baskerville Std.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Coville, Bruce.

Goblins on the prowl / by Bruce Coville. — Aladdin hardcover edition.

p. cm.

Sequel to: Goblins in the castle.

Summary: When an accidental spell brings a mysterious stone toad to life, and it hops away with her human friend William between its jaws, Fauna must use her magic and her wits to save him, embarking on a journey through dangerous lands filled with fearsome giants, talking bears, and packs of rogue goblins.

[1. Adventure and adventurers—Fiction. 2. Goblins—Fiction. 3. Magic—Fiction. 4. Friendship—Fiction.] I. Title.

PZ7.C8344Go 2015

[Fic]—dc23

2014043342

ISBN 978-1-4169-1440-2 (hc)

ISBN 978-1-4814-4128-5 (eBook)