She hugged them both. Her strength surprised Madeline, quite a bear hug for such a small, elderly woman. She ushered them through the garage. Ted remembered the room well, instead of holding a car it was covered and used as a playroom. Antique toys adorned shelves lining the walls, floor to ceiling. A collection of glass bottles, their contents dark and unrecognizable, also dotted the shelf space. Part playroom, part antique store.

Above them, the fluorescent lights illuminating the room flicked and buzzed for a moment.

"Never mind that," Aunt Lilith said. "Old thing is on the fritz."

Ted saw a small stove he remembered playing with, a toy that was heavy and metallic, with very little plastic and probably made from the same materials as an actual stove. Something else clawed at his memories, a half-formed image of a friend, a playmate. That was right. He had a playmate.

Why couldn't he remember the friend's face?

"Come inside!" Lilith squealed. She clenched her fists for a moment and shook them in excitement. She sang to herself as she opened the door to the house and led them through. She took them into the kitchen, a bright room with a massive sliding glass door that faced the backyard. She seated Ted and Madeline at a faux walnut linoleum table, the chairs all painted in different primary colors. A small radio on a shelf above the counter murmured and hissed with static.

Around them, every surface adorned with dust covered plastic flowers and vines, ceramic figures, and sporadically, little bits of yellowed paper covered in crayon figures.

"Did Ted draw those?" Madeline asked.

"Yes, my dear. My art gallery," Lilith said. She pulled one gently from the fridge. The magnet holding it fast clattered to the floor. She handed it to Madeline. On the paper, an image of a small creature. The being had bulbous eyes and a row of sharp teeth, two curling horns sprung from its forehead. The thing was gray, and the head sat upon a small, diminutive body.

"Who's DB?" Madeline asked, reading the scrawled name.

"Who knows," Ted said. He walked up to his Aunt.

"It's you," Ted said.

"Yes," she said. She put her gently against his cheek. Then she took his hand in both of hers.

"It's you." He hugged her, grabbing her with both arms and pulling her in tight. He tried to control it, keep his emotions in check. He couldn't. He buried his face in her neck and shoulder. She held him tighter. Madeline sniffed and wiped at one eye. She sat down at the table.

"You're home now," Aunt Lilith said She patted his arm and pulled away. "Both of you."

"Aunt Lil?" Ted asked. "I remember so much, but so much of it seems...impossible. I can't believe I'm here with you."

Aunt Lil. That was what he called her. It came naturally to him, like he'd been gone a few days instead of a lifetime.

She took a seat at the head of the table. He sat next to her. She reached out and squeezed his hand.

"My dear, all of it is true. But that shouldn't surprise you two! After all, you bought and sold haunted houses! You operated The Key, a machine that decimated cities and laid waste to thousands, as a toy!" She chuckled and clasped her hands at her chest. "Oh, so good to see you both!"

"Did you say 'decimated cities?'" Ted asked.

"You mean the box?" Madeline asked. "You know about it?"

"The Key, my dear," Lilith corrected. She reached toward Madeline and patted her hands.

"You know about all that? You know want happened?" Madeline asked. They both assumed she simply knew the town was gone and they were homeless. But Aunt Lilith appeared to know much more.

"I do," she said. "That whole mess with Arlo Smarz. Terrible man."

"Smarz?" Madeline asked.

"Oh yes," Aunt Lilith said. "He started going by Hart. But yes, I know."

"How?" Ted asked.

"I have watched you. From the moment you left. You look uncertain. I assumed you weren't easily spooked anymore. After all, you saw my camouflage outside and didn't run. Did you know that no one in town knows I even live out here? They think these woods are haunted. Well, they are, but-"

"That's not why he looks like that," Madeline said. She crossed her arms.

"You watched me, all those years, and never...I don't know, said hi? Or helped me? Or fucking warned me about that machine?"

"I thought it would be wrong to. And watch your language, please."

"That reeks of bullshit," Madeline said.

"Language!" Aunt Lilith said.

"You just...stayed away from me?"

"You were taken from me, Ted. You were taken away by a well-meaning fool, but a fool nonetheless. I was unable to retrieve you, and I became convinced it would be better not to."

"It would have been better if you had," Ted said.

"But without the Sycamore House, you would not have found Madeline Price. Tell me you would have it any other way?" Lilith asked. "As you grew and my memories became distant...I felt it was wrong to upend your life."

Ted and Madeline froze. She knew about the house, the hellish orphanage that both grew up in.

"I have kept up with you, from afar. I interfered only once, when you went to that awful place, where you faced The Shadow," Lilith said, her voice cracking. "You two and a child. Alone against The Shadow."

"The Shadow? You mean Death?" Ted asked.

"Its name can't be translated into your tongue, but 'Shadow' is close enough."

Madeline looked at Ted. He nodded.

"Now, I will need to be leaving shortly." Lilith stood. "You two will watch my home for me and we can discuss your next steps when I return. And when I return, I will answer everything. Every question you have, how I know what I know. All of it."

"Why wait?" Madeline asked.

"I have my reasons," Lilith said.

"And I have my reasons why that's bullshit. You abandoned him. And as excited as I am to meet the little blue garden people and that weird ass apple tree, we will walk the fuck out unless we get some answers."

Aunt Lilith smiled. "I like you. I'm glad you chose Ted."

"We chose each other," Ted said.

"Oh Ted," Lilith shook her head. "And I am afraid I had to remove the tree. It became...aggressive. I will not be gone long, you two."

"Where are you going?" Madeline asked.

"A meeting. One that involves the fallout from your little adventure. We wait because I will have more satisfactory answers after the meeting. You can't go because my home is vulnerable. Now, while Madeline and yes, even you, Ted, may not trust me."

Lilith walked to sink and opened a drawer to the right. She brought out an envelope. She tossed it on the table. Inside, Ted found cash.

"Holy shit," he said.

"Fifty thousand dollars. Another fifty after I return. If you decide to stay with me, then there will be even greater rewards. You will have family, a home. Love. A safe place for your child. Regardless, consider this an apology."

"Jesus, apology accepted," Ted whispered.

"What do we need to know?" Madeline asked.

Aunt Lilith returned to her seat. She explained the rules for watching her home. Water the flowers daily and try to keep the thermostat under seventy degrees. She took a deep breath and pointed outside. Through the glass, they could see the bones attached to the trees. She explained that the totems could not be removed from the trees under any circumstance.

"Weird. Okay, why?" Madeline asked.

"Because something might get through, dear. Behind the tree is a creek. Don't cross it. Getting over is easy, but getting back, well, that's a different story. Also, please ignore any sounds you hear in the attic, such as moans, creaks, squeaks, screams, or growls. Don't go up no matter not."

"I'm trying to keep pretending this is normal," Madeline said.

"I've given up. Ignore screams in attic, got it," Ted said.

"Finally," Lilith said. "The most important rule of all. No matter what you do, never, ever let the cat in."

"What?" Madeline asked.

At that moment, they heard a small mew and a squeak on the glass door as a small gray tabby batted at the door from outside.

"Oh my god, he's fucking cute!" Ted squealed. "Sorry, I love cats. Madeline loves them even more."

"I pretty much want to nuzzle him until I die," Madeline said, nodding.

"It can't come inside unless you invite it," Lilith said.

"Do we feed it?" Ted asked.

"That's what will happen if you let it in. Now, should anything happen, just summon Mr. Brown." Lilith stood and walked to the fridge. She pulled a piece of paper from a magnet and handed it to Madeline.

"Summon Mr. Brown?" Ted asked.

"Is this Latin?" Madeline asked.

"It's an older language, no one speaks it, so I wrote it phonetically. Now, I am afraid it's time for me to go. I will only be gone a couple days and when I return, we will have a very long talk."

They walked her out. Her bags were already in the backseat of the maroon 1988 Oldsmobile. She crawled inside and waved, slowly pulling out of the driveway. When her car disappeared from view, Madeline asked Ted if he was ready to leave.

"I'll start the car," Ted said.

They rushed into the vehicle. When it started Ted shifted to reverse, but stopped. He put the car back into park.

"Two days. And she has answers."

"I know," Madeline said. "But this also seems...alarming. She's been stalking us, she knows I'm pregnant, for Christ's sake."

"I saw her. I saw her down there with us. That was her."

"I know. I believe you. She said you were taken from her?"

"I only remember wandering around town. I was scared and alone. Then I ended up in Sycamore. Someone took me from here. I wonder why?" Ted asked.

"I don't know. And I don't know if she will ever tell you. Look, what if we go? Right now?" Madeline asked.

"Where?" Ted asked. "Where could we go?"

"I don't know, we'll crash on Rabbit and Linette's couch! We have money now."

"This may be my only chance to find out what happened. To understand why she left me. Plus, we stick it out for two days, we have a nice college fund for Ted Junior."

He was right. For their kid, she could do it. Two days. She could do two more days. "Two days. I don't think we need to raise Madeline Junior in a place like this. We get answers. I see those little garden people, and we get the fuck out of here."

"We're not even considering Ted Junior?" Ted asked.

"That sounds weird," Madeline said.

"Whatever. Two days. Then we're gone," Ted agreed.

With that, the crow fluttered onto the back of the passenger seat and cawed. Again, they jumped and cried out in terror.

"Fuck you, bird!" Madeline screamed.

"How did it get in the car?" Ted cried.