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menacing hiss. Dodging Jacob's thrust, it lunged a taloned paw at his stomach, ripping through t-shirt and flesh. Blood soaked the cotton. Jacob slashed and dove, avoiding the beast's claws. Somersaulting between its legs, his second jab landed in the creature's thigh. The holy water of the blade burned its flesh. The creature howled.
    From her position, Malini lost sight of Jacob. He'd rolled behind the scrap. She needed to climb higher, to make sure he was okay. Unfortunately, she had her own problems.
    Below her, a second Watcher approached the boxcar. It stared up at her, squinting its snake-like yellow eyes. She'd learned in Nod that, whatever she was, she was hard for Watchers to see. But she was sure she was easy for them to hear, and her scream had just given away her location. Backing away from the edge as quietly as possible, she dropped down on the opposite side. The sound of talons puncturing metal gave her goose bumps as the Watcher climbed the boxcar. A winged shadow crept over her.
    She bolted, launching herself between piles of junk and ducking behind the first mass of metal big enough to hide her. It was a mistake. The pebbles and dust she kicked up only drew attention to her location. Behind her, wings flapped and footsteps pounded the dirt, closer and closer. Pulse racing, head filled with visions of Nod, she lost all control and panicked. She raced for the gate. The beast was on her in an instant, its serpentine hands snatching her backward by the shoulders.
    Malini's head snapped forward from the jolt. The beast whipped her around. Talons. Scales. Foul breath and sharp teeth. Its yellow eyes drew ever closer. Losing all capability for logical thought, she became a whirlwind of biting teeth and scratching nails. She kicked and thrashed. A terror-fueled howl worthy of any horror movie escaped her throat.
    The place where the Watcher's black scaly hands touched her bare skin began to burn. Agonizing pain radiated from the touch point. The Watcher pulled back one taloned paw and shook it. Had it burned her or had she burned it? She didn't wait to find out.
    Kicking hard against the thing's ribs, she freed herself, falling to the dirt. She crab-walked away from the beast. Its paws were covered in blisters. So was the skin on her shoulder where it had touched her.
    It didn't take long for the thing to figure out another way. With an evil smile, it ripped a pronged chunk of steel from the rubbish, and stabbed it at her with supernatural precision. It caught her around the neck and pinned her to the earth. Helpless, Malini struggled, a butterfly under a pin. Something sharp glinted from the creature's talons. It closed in, a silver knife aimed for her heart.
    "See you in hell, whatever you are," the Watcher said, raising the blade.
    "I don't think so," Jacob's foot barreled into the Watcher's side. They tumbled to her left in the dirt. She tried to watch but the cold steel that scraped the sides of her neck wouldn't allow her to turn her head. She heard thrashing, a grunt, and then Jacob howled in pain.
    Malini couldn't bear it. She closed her eyes and prepared herself for the end, praying in her last moments for Jacob's safety. But instead of death, the sounds of familiar voices came to her. Inexplicably, the metal prong was gone and she rubbed her scraped neck in relief.
    "It's okay, Malini. I'm here." Jacob scooped her trembling body into his arms and stood her up next to him.
    The Watcher was pinned to the Earth next to her, electric purple energy binding its arms, legs, and wings. Mara, Gideon, and Lillian looked on as Dr. Silva lowered a glowing purple spear toward the creature's heart.
    "Why did you come here?" she demanded.
    The beast gave a wicked laugh that made the hair on Malini's neck stand on end. She hugged tighter to Jacob's chest.
    "Your partner is already dead. Tell us why you came and we may spare you," Dr. Silva said, again.
    "Why?" the thing laughed. "You ask why? The why is already done. We