That thing emerged from the shadows. It rose from beneath them, clinging to the underside of the steps like a spider, its pale belly against the metal as its claws dug in with that terrible scraping sound. For heartbeat Tom’s brain tried very hard to make it into a bat.

  It was about the size of a fat housecat but looked wrong in every other way. Its completely hairless body was made of smooth muscle, and stiff tendon cables flexing and relaxing rhythmically as it moved towards them. Four hooked limbs folded tight along its sides as it clawed its way toward them. Its wings were more like stretched membranes between an excessive number of joined fingers that snapped open and closed to test the air. Up until the mouth opened, its face was just a dark, moist wedge of flesh. The mouth split back much farther than it should have, almost to where its ears would be, and was lined with rows of tiny, glassy teeth.

  When it screamed, the scream didn’t come out loud. It arrived directly in Tom’s skull as a spike of pressure behind his temples that made his vision warp for half a second.

  As soon as the first kids caught a glimpse of it, everything broke loose. The four at the front attempted to scramble backward at the same time. Miss Riley was torn between staying upright and catching them as she half-turned and extended her arms. Someone stepped on someone else’s heel, the pair behind them loudly collided with another, and all of a sudden there was no line anymore, just a tangle of legs, backpacks and grasping hands.

  “It’s a monster!” someone shrieked.

  “Go back! Go back!” another voice yelled.

  “Don’t push!” Miss Riley snapped at them, but they were already doing so. The weight of twenty-four tiny bodies bunching in panic on a staircase that wasn’t built for it.

  It launched before anyone could make sense of the blur of wings and blackened flesh. The creature struck Miss Riley as she turned, one arm still spread wide to prevent the children from rushing headlong into one another. It was a bundle of claws, membrane, and slick muscle that struck her upper body and sent her stumbling sideways into the railing. It came quickly blessed with an unnatural lightness, more like something thrown than something alive. Before she could stop herself a sharp, startled cry ripped out of her throat.

  Its mouth latched onto her hand. Tom saw only the shape of it for a split second, the tiny glass-bright teeth sinking in as the strange jaw stretched around her fingers. Miss Riley screamed with real pain this time. The creature clung to her, its hooked limbs digging into her sleeve and its wings beating in short, frantic snaps that stirred the air with a papery, rotten flutter. Her entire body jerked violently as she tried to wrench her hand free.

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  Blood run at once. It filled up around the creature’s mouth and then spilled in bright, staggering streams over her skin, dripping from the heel of her hand to the metal steps below. With a choking sound Miss Riley slammed her arm against the railing in an attempt to shake it loose or crush it. But it only made it cling more tightly to her arm, chewing deeper, its slender body twisting with terrible determination.

  The children saw the blood and a wave of screams tore through the staircase raw with terror. Some of the children started crying right away. Others recoiled so hard they almost fell over each other.

  “Miss Riley!” someone wailed.

  “Oh my God!”

  “It’s biting her!”

  Miss Riley finally managed to rip her arm backward with a wild, desperate motion. It remained stubbornly affixed to her hand for half a heartbeat, before the creature was thrown free. With a wet smack, it struck the stairwell’s side, clung there for a moment like some obscene spider, then dropped.

  Her hand was shredded, and as far as Tom could tell, she had a finger missing. She staggered back, blood pouring between her fingers as she clutched the wound to her chest with her other hand. She still tried to put herself between the creature and the children even though her face had turned white with agony and her breath was coming in short, broken gasps.

  The bat-thing crouched low again, its mouth opening in that terrible shriek, its teeth slick with her blood.

  “Back up!” Tom shouted, he himself moving in the other direction. “Everyone get back!”

  They attempted, but the narrow staircase quickly turned into chaos. Some of the kids were able to turn around and scramble upward. Others were locked in place, to terrified to move. Suddenly Mrs. Mason found herself in the center of it all. Her knees would not bend quickly enough to keep up with the crowd. Children piled up behind her like water behind a rock, the pressure building second by second.

  Tom went rigid when he heard the sound of claws skittering dryly against metal. That terrible thing came back, and faster than before it leaped from the shadows.

  “Get down!” he yelled. “Keep your heads down!”

  Some of them obeyed at once, crouching awkwardly on whatever step they were on. Others just let out even louder screams than before. Desperate to escape in any direction, one boy grabbed the railing in panic and attempted to climb over. Sam grabbed him by the waist and pulled him back, just as the creature flew close enough to make him flinch.

  It didn’t go for the adults this time. It went for the weakest point in the mess, a tiny girl wedged between Mrs. Mason and the wall, one trainer off her heel, arms pinned by two different kids clinging to her. She couldn’t even lift her hands to defend herself.

  “Miss!” she shrieked, her voice becoming apart with panic.

  The bat-like thing folded in on itself, tucking its wings in and pulling its limbs close. Then it drove straight at her face.

  Tom was already moving, but he had to fight for each step in that cramped space. The stone wall hit his shoulder hard; jet he scarcely felt it. He yanked his rucksack free and swung it like a baseball bat.