The White Widow’s Revenge

You need to come and look, said Glum.

Is she better? said Screech, hopping up to a higher branch.

I don’t know,said Glum. Something’s happened in her room – the window’s boarded.

Caw leapt up. Was Selina in danger?

He quickly fastened the Crow’s Beak under his coat, then swung out of the nest and dropped from branch to branch, leaping down to the grass. It was a clear, cold night.

Caw glanced back to the house, shrouded in darkness. Should he wake them? No. No need.

He ran towards the back fence, ignoring the slashing rose thorns, summoning all the crows he could find. Black shapes flickered against the moonlit sky. Caw held out his arms, waiting for the moment when their talons would fall on him and their wings would make him weightless.

They flew at high altitude, the glow of street lamps and headlights illuminating the city far below. Caw and his birds crossed the river and then passed the ram-shackle ruin of the church where Caw had once lived with Crumb and Pip. In the distance, Caw could make out the solid outline of their destination.

Blackstone Hospital was a towering structure of purpose-built concrete blocks, sprawling around a maze of access roads. The visitor car park was practically empty, and a lone ambulance with spinning lights was parked next to an open set of double doors. Caw and his crows circled over the main entrance. A mad part of him thought about transforming into a crow and flying along the corridors …

Follow me to the back, said Glum, turning his wings and descending in a shallow dive.

The crows swooped low over trees and then banked up round the far side of the building. Glum landed on a windowsill four storeys up. Caw saw that one of the windowpanes had gone, and a wooden board had been nailed up in its place.

“Are you sure this is her room?”he asked.

It’s hers,said Shimmer. I’ve been here enough times …

The slatted blinds on the other side of the glass were closed.

“We have to get inside,” Caw said.

As they flew away from the window, something caught his eye – a sparkle below. At Caw’s command, the crows deposited him softly on the grass. Hundreds of tiny glass shards were scattered on the ground. Directly beneath the boarded-up window. Caw ran towards the main entrance.

What are you doing? asked Screech, gliding above. They won’t let you in at this time of night.

“Wait by the doors for my signal,” Caw told her. “I might need a distraction.”

The three birds landed on a bench beside the front doors as Caw marched into the well-lit foyer. A man with a bandage over his hand was falling asleep on a chair, and beside him an elderly woman sat knitting.

The man at the front desk looked up. “Can I help you?”

“I’m looking for a patient,” said Caw. “I think she may have been moved.”

“What’s her name?” asked the receptionist.

“Selina Davenport,” Caw replied. “She’s my sister,” he added quickly.

The receptionist held Caw’s gaze then picked up a phone. “Hi, Marie – I’ve got a kid in reception. Says he’s related to the girl …” He paused. “Yes, the Davenport girl.” He smiled unconvincingly at Caw as the person on the other end of the line spoke. “Sure. Of course.” He put down the phone. “If you wouldn’t mind waiting a moment, someone will be with you.” The smile looked faker by the second, and the back of Caw’s neck itched.

“Is she all right?” he asked.

The receptionist gave him a sympathetic look. “Please, just wait here.”

Something was wrong. Caw leant as casually as he could on the counter, and turned his head towards the closed doors.

“Now!” he mouthed, and summoned his crows with his mind.

They took off as one and the doors swished open.

The man with the bandaged hand jerked upright with a startled cry as the birds flew through the foyer.

The receptionist leapt up from his seat as the birds descended on his desk, squawking wildly. “What the—! Get out of here!”

Shimmer landed on the edge of a mug and tipped coffee across a keyboard. The receptionist picked up a folder and began flailing it at the birds.

Caw walked quickly down the corridor to the stairwell. He knew the way from his previous visit. The crows would find their own way out. A few orderlies passed him on the steps, but no one seemed bothered by his presence.

Caw exited on the fourth level, found Selina’s room and tried the handle. Unlocked. He stepped into the dark interior, his fingers fumbling for the switch.

As the light flickered on, his heart fell. The room was the same – a bed and several pieces of monitoring equipment – but it was empty, the sheets neatly folded.

What if she hasn’t made it? What if …

But that didn’t explain the broken window. Caw crossed the room quickly.

A few jagged shards of glass remained in the frame. He glanced around the room. Something was missing from beside the door – there was an empty stand where the fire extinguisher had been. Maybe it was used to smash the window.

He went over to the wardrobe and hanging inside were Selina’s clothes – black jeans, T-shirt and leather jacket – all cleaned, presumably after she had been admitted. Even her ankle-length boots were tucked neatly inside.

How could she have run without her clothes?

Caw’s heart was beating fast. Maybe she didn’t run at all.

He looked again at the window. Four storeys up.

It wouldn’t be long before the receptionist came looking for him. He went back to the window, trying to piece together what had happened. Someone had come into the room and used the fire extinguisher to smash the glass. They had taken Selina. But who could make a jump like that? Even with a ladder, carrying a grown girl was treacherous – almost impossible.

Impossible for a regular person, but for a feral …

Caw’s throat felt tight as he spotted something under the blind.

Three small insects, curled up in death.

Flies.

Caw scooped their bodies into his hand. So small, so delicate. But Caw had seen what havoc these insects could wreak.

Maybe Crumb was wrong about the Mother of Flies. What if her feral powers had somehow survived? What if Caw wasn’t the only one visiting Selina?

“What are you doing in here?” said a sharp voice.