The Tzohar Legacy

By VB Tremper

The only way for twelve-year-old Becky to save her grandfather is to save the world from the prince of darkness.

 

Becky Pfleger grew up with stories of demons vs. Pflegers, but she always thought they were just that – stories. Until the day a demon invades her grandparents' New York City apartment and puts her beloved grandfather in the hospital.

 

While his life hangs in the balance, Becky learns about the tzohar, an ancient Biblical relic the prince of darkness wants to use to rule the world. As Pflegers, it's up to Becky and her little brother to bring the tzohar home safely. But how can a short, skinny, twelve-year-old take on the prince of darkness and his minions?

 

With the tzohar in the evil prince's clutches, the world is becoming darker, crime rates and extreme weather events rise, and scary creatures roam the earth. Her grandfather gets sicker and Becky fears she'll never see her parents again. Becky must learn to trust herself and believe in things she can't see or she'll lose everyone she loves.

• Language: English
• Publisher: VB Tremper
• Release date: Apr 28, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393374749

Book preview

Chapter 1

As I stared into the glass case at the Metropolitan Museum, a shiver crawled down my spine. Fearing my little brother was causing mischief, I whirled around. Jake? I asked.

He stood in front of an urn with our grandfather. Neither one paid me any attention. Zayde—the Yiddish word for grandfather—coughed into a handkerchief, folded the handkerchief, and put it in his pants pocket.

I brought my attention back to the family of mummies in the case. A woman and two kids and a mummified cat. They were simple. Carved wooden boxes in the typical shape, but smaller than the others in the exhibit. The label said one of the kids had been a twelve-year-old girl. Like me.

So much history made me feel small. Then again, I was small. Petite, my mom always said, but it didn’t make it less true.

Lifting my hand to the glass, I stared down at the painted face. What had her life been like? Why had it been so short?

I loved mummies. The colors, the carvings, the expressions on the faces of the ancient Egyptians. The painted eyes seemed to see right through me.

Again, I felt a shiver, as if someone other than the mummy girl was watching me. The museum was full of people. February Break was a popular time for tourists and kids off from school, like me and my brother.

Nothing seemed off. Everything was...normal.

Jake bounced over to me. My little brother wore his usual blue cape over a winter jacket. Ooh, mummy kids. Awesome.

Still, I felt weird. Have you noticed anyone watching us?

Jake glanced around. No. But we’re surrounded by mummies and dead stuff. Did Zayde’s bedtime story last night creep you out? He grinned and rocked on his toes.

Of course not. Those stories weren’t real. Zayde liked to tell us about our ancestors, the guardian Pflegers. As if.

Once upon a time, Jake intoned in a raspy voice, a man, a Pfleger like us, had to save Jerusalem from a smoke demon who could barely be seen. Rooms darkened when he came in, but for no reason, like he was a storm cloud. His arms rose above his head and I looked around to make sure no one else was listening. Especially no one I knew.

Even the air seemed to leave the room when he entered. The demon terrorized the people in his attempts to find an ancient relic with special powers.

Stop. I was there. I glanced around again. It still felt like someone watched me and at least it wasn’t one of my classmates.

Jake ignored my words but waved a hand in front of my face to get my attention. Becky, remember? Our ancestor kept coming up against this demon and could never find a way to defeat it. Being made of smoke, the demon didn’t have a face or arms. Jake’s voice lowered to a whisper. Was he seriously trying to scare me? Our ancestor couldn’t find a weakness.

Normally I enjoyed Zayde’s stories and might even get a kick out of Jake’s rendition. Normally I loved the Egyptian exhibit. But I couldn’t shake the creepy feeling of someone watching me.

For all we know, the demon still exists and causes all the bad guys to win. A real supervillain.

"Good job, boychick, Zayde said, joining us in front of the mummified family. You’re becoming quite the storyteller."

Jake beamed, but I turned away from the mummies, shrugged off the memory of Zayde’s story, and wandered down the row of glass cases. Cartouches, stone fragments with hieroglyphs, painted sarcophagi. This part of the Metropolitan Museum was my favorite vacation activity, but my annoying little brother may have ruined it for me. For today anyway.

I caught up to Jake and Zayde in front of a painted wooden coffin.

Zayde coughed into his elbow and put his other arm around me. Your grandmother happily visited the mummies with me for years until she got tired of them.

Oh, I’ll never get tired of them. Despite Jake trying to creep me out with stories of non-existent demons.

Zayde squeezed my shoulders and smiled down at me. "I know, Rebecca bubbala. You are very much like me."

Happiness spread through me. There was no better way to spend February break than with mummies and my grandparents.

Normally, Zayde’s back hunched slightly as if he needed to be closer to us when he spoke, but now it went rigid. His glance darted around and then fixed on a spot over my shoulder. His steel wool eyebrows rose. I glanced over but saw nothing.

What was he looking at? Did he feel watched like I had?

"Time to go, Kinder." Zayde used the German word for children, as he often did.

But we haven’t seen... Jake complained, until his eyes widened. What is that? He raised a finger and pointed in the same direction Zayde stared.

What? I said.

Zayde’s hands shook as he reached for Jake. "Oy gevalt. Let’s go." Zayde ushered us away, glancing over his shoulder, coughing, and muttering in Yiddish.

What? Why? Unease burbled in my tummy. Something was wrong, but I wasn’t sure what.

Zayde moved so quickly I didn’t have time to keep worrying. We ended up in a special exhibition of jewels from India. Zayde relaxed and pointed out different kinds of gems.

These are beautiful, but nothing compares to the Light of the World, Zayde said, patting his chest.

What’s the Light of the World? I asked, staring at a golden animal head set with red, green, and clear gemstones.

Zayde looked around again warily before answering. Something very special you will learn about one day. For now, though, I’ll say it’s the strongest and most sought-after jewel in the world. It can withstand extreme cold, extreme heat, and anything else you care to throw at it. He smiled in an unfocused way, as though thinking about a place beyond the walls of the museum.

I didn’t know why a person would throw anything at a gem.

In the next breath, Zayde whipped a flashlight out of the inner pocket of his jacket and brandished it like a sword. He stood like a fencer and went swish swish.

Wh— Not again. I whipped my head around to make sure no one saw us.

He had acted like this occasionally throughout my childhood. Not often, but often enough that each time was burned in my memory. Whenever people noticed, they’d shake their heads and laugh and walk away. New Yorkers were pretty used to crazy.

I wasn’t.

It’s gone, Jake said. What was it? A ghost?

I snorted. There’s no such thing. I’d expect this kind of behavior from my brother, but not from Zayde. What was wrong with him today? I’d have to remember to ask my grandmother about the flashlight fencing when we got home.

Zayde put the flashlight away with a relieved sigh and wiped his forehead. Ready to go? How about some hot cocoa?

Yeah! Jake shouted.

All of a sudden, everything was fine? Despite my little brother’s enthusiasm, I kept checking over my shoulder. Eyes watched me, I was sure of it. And it was as if Zayde and Jake had felt it too, or seen something. Something not there.

Was Zayde losing his mind? Did he have Alzheimer’s?

If so, someone else would have noticed by now. Dad was a lawyer. As busy as he was, he’d notice if his own father was losing his grip on reality.

Jake grabbed my hand and pulled me out of the special exhibit and into the Greek and Roman gallery. He loved hot cocoa. And he loved how Bubbe and Zayde spoiled us by putting whipped cream on top and as many marshmallows as we wanted.

I loved their cocoa, too, but I couldn’t shake an uneasy feeling. Surrounded by white sculptures of heroes, goddesses, and other figures of myth, I spun around again to check behind us. Still nothing. But I caught Zayde glancing over his shoulder one last time. Sweat dripped down his temple and his eyes were wide with fear.

Dread rolled into a ball in the pit of my stomach.

Chapter 2

B ecky? Jake whispered in the dark of the guest room.

I’d been poring over pictures Mom had emailed me of Paris. Someday I planned to go to France. It was at the top of a very long list of places I wanted to visit.

Zayde had rushed us out of the museum so quickly, I’d had to concentrate on keeping up with his longer legs and could barely hold onto the memories of worry and confusion. And when Bubbe greeted us with huge smiles and steaming cocoa, I didn’t want to ruin the moment by asking her about Zayde and his weirdness with the flashlight.

Becky? His whisper became hoarse.

I glanced up from my phone to Jake’s twin bed with the ruffly comforter and the ruffly bed skirt. What?

When Zayde was fighting with the flashlight, I saw something. Kind of like a ghost. Can you believe it? His voice went up in excitement. It was white and see-through and Zayde made it disappear. It was so cool. Zayde was like a superhero. Like in those stories he always tells us. He rolled over in his bed and stared at the ceiling.

I laughed at my brother’s weird enthusiasm. There was no way Jake saw a ghost today. Ghosts don’t exist. And Zayde fighting a ghost? Puh-leeze. Jake’s obsession with superheroes had him seeing the impossible. Go back to reading your comic book.

I finished looking at Mom’s photos and touched the reading app on my phone. Snuggling down into the covers, I prepared to read a new mystery story I’d bought yesterday.

Becky?

What now?

Are you mad at Mom and Dad for being away during our February Break?

Well, I wouldn’t mind being in France, too, but I’m glad we get to spend the week with Bubbe and Zayde. We’d have more fun with our grandparents than if we’d been stuck at home all break while Dad worked late and Mom graded essays.

Yeah, ditto. I could hear the smile in his voice.

Anyway, Dad has business meetings. Bo-ring.

A shriek came from the other side of our door.

What was that? he asked.

My heart pounded and my mind filled with static. Bubbe, I think. I threw the covers off and ran to our door, Jake right behind me.

Clattering and grunts accompanied the creaking of our door.

We rushed down the narrow hallway, past the kitchen, and into the dining room which seemed darker than normal despite the lamps on every side table.

Bubbe lay sprawled on the floor near the television, but my eyes were drawn to Zayde sparring with the air on the other side of the dining table. The table held an overturned bowl. Dark pink liquid covered the table and beige carpet all around him.

Jake gasped.

I couldn’t gasp, I couldn’t move. Zayde was doing it again, like at the museum earlier, but this time without a flashlight and now there was no one else to see. No reason for me to be embarrassed. There were only reasons for me to be worried about my grandfather losing his mind.

Zayde tipped his head down and leaned to the left, holding an arm in front of his face, as if he’d ducked a blow. He jumped up and punched his right fist into the air directly in front of him.

Something was very wrong with my grandfather. I couldn’t believe he’d knocked out my grandmother, but the evidence lay on the floor in front of me.

An onyx figurine fell off a side table between Zayde and the living room and crashed to the floor. Too far for Zayde to touch it, and he hadn’t bumped into the table.

What’s going on? I asked.

Zayde glanced over at us. His head jerked back as if he’d been hit and he crumpled to the floor.

Zayde! I rushed to his side.

His flashlight sat on the dining table. Jake grabbed it and swung it wildly above my head.

What are you doing? I yelled. Help me.

Zayde’s eyes were closed and a red spot bloomed across the side of