The Nocturnals. Tracey Hecht

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СКАЧАТЬ arms around her shins, and buried his face in her fur. “Oh, my beloved!” he cried. “I thank you. I thank you for your honesty and your clear vision.” Bismark gave a deep, grateful bow.

      Tobin smiled. But then, as Cora emerged from the eucalyptus, his forehead creased with concern. The wombat, sweaty, sleepy, and shaky, had clearly suffered fitful dreams.

      “Maybe we should get going soon,” offered the pangolin.

      “Yes,” Dawn agreed. She walked over to the bats, who were just waking as well. “Make sure to have a drink before we set out. It might be a long march.”

      “Good thinking, fox,” said a bat.

      “The old gullet was getting a bit parched,” agreed his brother.

      “Svor.”

      Tobin and Cora also leaned over the bank and took a few sips of river water, but Bismark turned toward the fox. “Did you know,” he began, “that sugar gliders need less water than bats? We can survive on just a few raindrops a day.” Beaming with pride, Bismark reclined against a small rock and plucked a leaf from a fern. “True fact,” he continued, licking a droplet of dew from the plant. “That, mio amore, is just one of the many ways the sugar glider outshines the bat, though I am happy to share all the others.” He cleared his throat, stood, and mounted the rock. “Shall we begin with where it begins?” he said. “Birth.”

      Bismark raised a stick in the air in preparation for his lecture. But before he could speak, the midnight sky rang with a sudden, loud scream.

      “Eeeeeeeee!”

      Snap!

      Boom!

      The forest shook, branches broke, and something heavy fell with a thud.

      “Mon dieu!” cried Bismark, crouching behind his stone.

      “Oh goodness!” Tobin gulped. “What was that?”

      “That was the same noise I heard last night when Joe disappeared!” Cora piped up.

      “Aye!”

      “Svor!”

      “That’s the one!” the bats confirmed. “Quick,” the fox commanded. “Follow me.” Dawn bolted upstream toward the sound. Cora, Bismark, and Tobin quickly followed, running full-speed. The bats scrambled to bring up the rear. Suddenly, the wombat called out, “Stop!”

      The group came to a halt.

      “Here,” Cora breathed. “It was here. I remember because of those rocks.”

      Dawn, Tobin, and the wombat inspected the jagged formation jutting into the river. Bismark glided close behind.

      “I detect traces of a struggle,” Dawn remarked. “Wombat hairs, nail scratches in the moss—thankfully, there are no signs that someone was eaten.”

      Cora sighed with relief.

      “But it’s strange,” Dawn continued. “There’s no trail leading to or away from here. It’s as if Joe simply disappeared.”

      Dawn and Cora circled the rocks, searching for clues. Bismark followed Dawn, purely for the sake of it, and the bats poked around in the riverbank. Tobin lingered back near the tree line. His keen ears detected a twig snapping in the bushes behind them. With the others distracted, the pangolin decided to investigate the sound himself.

      Cautiously, Tobin peered into the dense tangle of leaves. At first, he couldn’t make out much of anything besides dark branches and shadows. But then he caught a glimpse of two small points of light. He squinted, trying to see a little more clearly. Were those berries catching the moonlight? Perhaps drops of dew?

      As suddenly as the lights appeared, they winked out. Tobin leaned in closer, tilting his head to the side, hoping to see them again.

      There they were! But this time, they were larger, closer. Two deep, brown rings with dark dots at the centers. Eyes! Someone was watching them.

       Chapter Six

       THE SCOUTS

      “Oh dear!” cried Tobin. “Everyone, come quick!”

      In an instant, Dawn, Bismark, Cora, and the bats appeared at his side.

      “There’s an animal in there!” Tobin whispered, pointing to the dense brush.

      Together, the four friends and the bats formed a line and slowly stepped toward the bush. They craned their heads forward. Something was moving in there, but it was too fast to track.

      “Tobin, what did you see?” asked Dawn.

      As if in response, two large ears popped up from the grass nearby, followed by a long tail with a brush-like tuft of fur at the end. The body of the creature was hidden as it sprinted away into the forest.

      Her teeth bared, the fox pounced after the creature. The hair on her back stood up in wiry spikes.

      “Be careful, mia bella!” cried Bismark, clasping his heart with both hands.

      But Dawn was too late. The mysterious animal had disappeared into the dark woods.

      “Everyone, stay on guard,” said the fox. She had no doubt that the creature was hiding nearby, watching them still. Her eyes darted over the brush, searching for any sign of the long-tailed spy. “And if anyone sees or hears something unusual, give the following call.” Dawn raised her head and yowled a high-pitched note.

      The others nodded.

      “Like this?” asked Cora. “Arooo.”

      “No time to be shy!” declared Bismark. “A real howl is born from the gut. Now listen and learn.” The sugar glider took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and yodeled into the night.

      “Yes,” said the bats. “With chutzpah!”

      “Blurghhhh,” Tobin gurgled.

      “No, no, no,” said the sugar glider. “Much too much throat.”

      “Blurghhhh!” The pangolin continued to gurgle. He was growing red in the face.

      Cora looked at her friend with concern. “Are you okay?” she asked.

      “The call!” said Tobin. “I’m making the call. Look!” The pangolin pointed toward the tree line ahead. Waddling out of the leaves were two flightless birds. With their fuzzy brown feathers and little round bodies, they resembled a pair of coconuts.

      “Plump prowlers of the night!” yelled the sugar glider. “Explain your presence at once!”

      The birds bumbled toward the group.

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