Free The Forgotten by Tamara Thorne Page B

that has fur and walks on four legs. Doesn’t mind reptiles, though. Isn’t that weird? He has a horned toad for a pet.”
    â€œIt’s unusual, but not unheard of. He must’ve had a bad experience with something furry and generalized the fear.”
    â€œYou’re smart, baby brother. Do you remember Shagrat and Gorbag?”
    â€œThe names are familiar. Names from a book.”
    â€œWell, yeah, the names were from Tolkien’s Ring books, but what I’m talking about were a pair of bull mastiffs that belonged to Mickey’s dad. Big ugly bastards. Remember now?”
    A scarecrow man with red hair throwing a ball down the beach. Will saw him suddenly in his mind’s eye as if it happened yesterday. It was low tide and he and Maggie had just walked around an outcropping that would flood later. They came right up behind the man, who had just thrown a ball. Giant pale dogs chased after it, but sensing the kids, suddenly turned and started back toward their master—and them—snarling and barking, drool flying. The man glanced back and told them to leave unless they wanted to be eaten. Will and Maggie ran like hell and the dogs didn’t follow. That had to be Mickey’s father. “I vaguely remember,” he told Pete.
    â€œDaddy Elfbones trained the dogs to knock people down and hold them. He used to sic them on Mickey.”
    â€œThat’s unforgivable.”
    The old Pete emerged in unabashed laughter. “It was hysterical. Poor old Mickey never got over it. The old man had those dogs guard his room so he couldn’t come out when he was supposed to be doing homework. Those dogs were always up his ass.”
    â€œYou think that’s funny?” Will said it before he could stop himself. Engaging Pete any further was not what he wanted to do.
    â€œOf course it’s funny. It’s hilarious.” A pause. “You’re just too sensitive. You always were. I mean, that’s what makes you a good shrink, right?”
    Will didn’t reply.
    â€œSorry, bro. Didn’t mean to step on any toes. But you know what’s really weird about Mickey? He’s scared of birds, too. Why would he be scared of birds?”
    â€œI don’t know,” Will said slowly. “Maybe he was attacked.”
    â€œBy birds?” Pete sounded incredulous. “Birds don’t attack except in the movies.”
    â€œThey sometimes swoop people to protect their nests. They can get pretty aggressive under the right circumstances. Or he might have been walking through a flock of gulls milling around on the beach when they decided to take flight. That’s not aggressive, but it can feel that way, especially to a kid.”
    â€œHave you ever seen birds go crazy, Will?”
    â€œI remember watching The Birds on TV then feeling a little nervous walking among the gulls.”
    â€œSo you’ve never actually seen them attack?”
    What is he doing? Does he know about the crows? Or last night? How could he? “I’ve been swooped by a mockingbird a few times. It had a nest in the yard at my other house.”
    â€œDid it scare you?”
    â€œIt surprised me. It didn’t frighten me. Why?”
    â€œYou just really sounded like you knew what you were talking about.”
    â€œI’m a shrink,” Will said, dry as dust. “I’ve heard firsthand accounts of attacks on patients by all sorts of creatures.”
    That damned chuckle. “I’m an idiot. Of course you have. Tell me, bro, what kind of animal attacks the most?”
    â€œThe human kind.” Will waited a beat. Hot damn, he’d actually scored one on Pete. “I have to go now, Pete. Say hello to your wife for me.”
    He hung up before Pete could speak, sat back, pleased with himself. I finally got the last word on him, Michael. He smiled and stood up, ready now to make his pilgrimage to Michael’s grave. The Orange Boys, draped on his