Rosehead

Chapter 23. Petra's Diversion

They arrived at the crowd. Panther stuck his nose into Lilith's ear, growling in the lowest register he could muster, "Old news, madam. Bär told me already."

"What? You talked to Bär? He can talk? Wait, since when are you two on speaking terms?" she asked a little too loudly.

The mastiff arrived behind them and woofed angrily. Gustav shushed him, but not before giving Lilith and Panther the meaningful look of one who knows everything, including thoughts.

The crying escalated.

"Poor girl. I wonder what happened?" Daniel's voice finally forced Lilith to stand up and look.

Sitting on the floor, surrounded by broken china, little Petra wailed uncontrollably, pointing at the floor-to-ceiling windows that faced the garden. Flustered, Sabrina and Norman kneeled next to their daughter in a fruitless attempt to calm her down. Patrick stood to the side, his face white.

"Pup, I'll go see if I can help." Daniel gave the leash to Lilith and walked over.

Gabby threw her arms in the air. "I can't stand this noise. Can't stand it." She stalked off in search of coffee on the table, where Gwen, Daphne, and Irma—unperturbed by the racket— stuffed themselves silly. Trude and Hanna relayed something to the blind Heidemarie, their heads touching.

Lilith gave a startled gasp.

A shadow covered the window. A gigantic leafy shape peeked inside, rotating its ruby eyes, exactly at the moment when the only people she saw looking in that direction were Petra, Patrick, and her grandfather. Lilith sensed with her back that both Gustav and Bär stopped breathing for a moment. They must've seen the monster as well.

Petra screamed anew, choking on her tears. Alfred rushed to the window and jerked the curtains shut, Gustav and Agatha at his aid. By the time the others looked up, the source of the agitation disappeared. The butler and the housekeeper proceeded to close every curtain in the hall and turn on all the lights.

"She's here," mumbled Lilith to no one in particular, her skin erupting in goose bumps. "Dad!" She ran up to her father and tugged on his sleeve. "Dad, did you see her?"

"Yeah, I saw her. Poor girl," he echoed.

"No! I don't mean Petra, I mean—"

"My dear guests," Alfred boomed. "I apologize for the interruption of your meal. I'm sure little Petra got scared by a crow. We have an unusual number of them this season. We've closed the curtains, they shouldn't disturb her anymore. If I may hold your attention for a little bit longer, I have an important announcement to make."

Petra's crying changed to hiccups.

Lilith held her breath. At last, her grandfather would tell everyone the truth. She was gravely mistaken.

"I wanted to keep this a surprise, but, alas, the circumstances dictated otherwise. In the best tradition of the Bloom family, tomorrow we'll have a good-bye carnival!"

Norman forced a fake cheer.

Gwen and Daphne picked it up, squealing.

"I'm glad you're excited. I'm excited too. As you may remember, we owe our roots to the daughter of a circus jester, my twenty-times great-grandmother Rose Bloom." Scattered applause ensued. "Thank you, thank you. In honor of Rose, and in memory of my late wife Eugenia, we'll have a traveling circus perform in the garden tonight. There will be trained elephants, and clowns, and—"

The pounding in Lilith's ears prevented her from hearing the rest. She tried to think logically and couldn't. Her grandfather tricked her, in the most cowardly manner. She had to act, but how? Ask the mansion to do something? What? Could she risk it coming alive in front of these unsuspecting people? No. It would cause panic, would make them flee and run straight into Rosehead, who probably patrolled every exit this very moment in hopes of scoring a meal. Then what? Disoriented, Lilith resorted to the only method she knew. You need not fear to speak the truth, Sherlock Holmes' words rung in her head.

"Don't listen to him. He's lying!" she said loudly.

All heads turned toward her.

Alfred tensed. "My dear girl—"

This infuriated Lilith. "I'm not your dear girl, stop calling me that! Liar! You're hiding a monster in the garden! Tell them!" she screamed, deliberately working herself into hysterics. "I saw her just now! Petra did too, that's why she's crying!"

Petra nodded, sniffling.

Daniel started saying something, as did Alfred, but Lilith screamed over both of them. "Her name is Rosehead! Like Rose Bloom's nickname! She's some possessed bush-freak that feeds on people!" Lilith sucked in air, stepping away from her parents, who both advanced cautiously.

"SHE'S REAL, I SAW HER! SHE'S PREGNANT! WHATEVER COMES OUT OF HER TOMORROW, IT WILL EAT YOU! ALL OF YOU! AS HEIR TO THE BLOOM PROPERTY, I COMMAND YOU TO GO! LEAVE WHILE YOU CAN! GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!" Her voice broke from strain.

An uneasy silence descended on the room.

Alfred lurched at her, apologizing to everyone. Gabby darted after, but Daniel restrained her.

Not wasting any time, Lilith jerked on Panther's leash and sprinted for the vestibule.

"She iz mental, didn't I tell you?" Daphne blocked her, a crumbling bun in her hand.

"You're right. Mom sayz her nickname iz loony." Gwen materialized next to her sister, chewing on an identical bun.

"Out of my way, you elephant-hugging piglets!" Lilith shouted. Panther barked, and the twins parted, squealing.

"Where you off to? Back to the madhouse? Togezer with Kitty?" Daphne shouted.

Panther grumbled angrily.

Lilith halted and turned around. For a second only, a picture of Rosehead swallowing Daphne dominated her vision. This was the girl whose life she was about to save.

"I'd choose being mad over sleeping with a stuffed elephant any minute," she said sharply.

Daphne's face contorted. "Mutter!" she howled. "She spied on me! She broke into our room!"

Irma sauntered over. "What iz ze matter?"

"Incidentally, it's nothing compared to,"—Lilith turned to Gwen—"sucking your thumb. Do you smear jam on it, to make it less revolting?" Gwen joined her twin, yowling.

The rest of the guests erupted into gossip.

"Lilith!" Gabby and Daniel reached their daughter, but Lilith was off, sprinting through the foyer, skidding to a halt, yanking the front door open, and shutting it behind her.

"Dear mansion, please don't let them follow me."

The walls shivered in agreement.

"Thank you," whispered Lilith, thinking it's the least she could do—lock them up inside for their own safety until she located Rosehead and figured out what to do next.

"That was quite the exit. A bit melodramatic for my taste," growled Panther. "So the mansion is your new friend now? You just ask it to do things and it does them? Very convenient."

Lilith didn't get a chance to respond.

The doors shook. She jumped away. There was vigorous pounding and energetic tugging on the handles. They wouldn't budge. Muffled voices expressed puzzlement. Crows squawked, dotting the sky in a shifting blanket. The familiar rotten odor enveloped the garden, intense and overpowering. Moans of agony trailed on the wind, alarmingly close.

"I can't believe she came right to the house," Lilith said. "We need to find Ed, and then try to talk to her."

"I don't think there's need for that," Panther squealed.

The ground shook. Crows scattered. The rose garden parted like a bloody sea, and a tall figure towered over them.

"Rosehead," they said simultaneously, staring upward.

The bush woman stood about thirteen feet tall. An enormous belly protruded from her midriff. She located the girl and the dog with her scarlet eyes and, arms outstretched, took one thunderous step forward.