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along….”
    â€œYou think Tengu caused it? That can’t be true!”
    â€œEnemies among us bring the darkness. Trust nobody.” He peered at Willa in a way that made her feel that she too was under suspicion, and then he turned back to the view. Flocks of birds wheeled as far as the eye could see. Willa felt cold.
    â€œHorace? What do the spots mean? What’s going to happen? What should we do?” Willa looked at him pleadingly. Please tell me what to do. Please.
    Horace just waved her away, annoyed. “Don’t pester me, child!”
    Tears sprang to Willa’s eyes, but she blinked them back. It was time to go. She was a few steps down the path when he called to her.
    â€œWilla! What’s the bird’s name?”
    â€œI don’t know. I mean … I didn’t give her a name.” Willa waited for a reply, but none came, so she continued down the path. Dusk was falling quickly, and the air was cooler. As the shadows lengthened, there was rustling all around, in the dead leaves, the dry grass, the murmuring trees.
    About halfway down, she stumbled a little. The dark shapes on the ground weren’t rocks, as she’d thought, but birds spilling out into the path from the bushes. Willa shooed and waved her arms, but it had no effect on them. She had to shuffle along the ground so she wouldn’t accidentally step on one. This and the increasing gloom slowed her progress. It felt like she’d never reach the bottom. After a while she became aware of the distinct sound of shuffling feet that paused every time she did. She stopped and started a few times to make sure and then stumbled ahead, not sure what to do next.
    At the bottom of the hill it took all her willpower to whirl around, scanning the path behind her. There was nothing there, and for a moment all was still. Then she heard a low, menacing growl. She turned and fled down the street. Nothing followed.
    As she reached her front door, gasping for breath, Horace’s last words suddenly came back to her — he’d asked what the bird’s name was, and she didn’t have an answer. I didn’t give her a name , she thought, and was ashamed.

Chapter Six
    Weapons for everyone!
    T he rest of the week was quiet. The autumn days were sunny and bright, though there was a cold nip in the air. Despite the sunshine and calm, Willa grew more and more uneasy. The black stain on her desk wasn’t getting any bigger, but every day she stared at it, wondering what horrible fate was coming for them all.
    Everyone else, on the other hand, was annoyingly cheerful. Her mother was still smiling because the bird was gone. Dad was smiling because Mom was smiling. Even Belle could be heard humming a merry tune in her room.
    Baz was having the most glorious time of all. In the aftermath of the last big catfight in the alley, she had become the supreme ruler of all the cats in the area. In the late afternoons they gathered in the front yard, waiting for Baz to emerge at dusk. Currently there were over twenty flea-infested , battle-scarred alley cats in this gang. Every night Baz led them prowling about the city, and they fattened themselves on the excess of birds. They ate so many birds, in fact, that Baz no longer joined Willa’s family for human meals at all. She’d stay out all night and snooze on the couch all day, a blissful grin on her face and feather fluff in her hair. She left the bones under the sofa cushions, teeny tiny bones licked clean. It grossed Willa out, but she quietly disposed of them before her mom saw them.
    Baz was drifting away from the world of people, and she seemed less and less human every day. When Willa tried to speak to her, she just stared back with blank eyes, showing no sign of comprehension. It was unnerving to talk to her, feeling all the while that you were speaking not to a person but to an animal. Willa was a little frightened of her. She had no idea what Baz might do next,