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The Thief of Always

by Clive Barker

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Chapters 10–14 Summary

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Chapter 10

When Jive pushes Harvey off the roof, he falls toward the ground, but just as he is about to crash into a bush, the wind lifts him up and helps him fly. His screams get Wendell’s attention, who is now running toward the House in fear. Harvey swoops at him and lets out a devilish laugh which causes Wendell to yell for help.

Harvey realizes he’s gotten his revenge, but he’s having too much fun to stop. Jive comes to his side and tells Harvey to bite him. As Wendell begs for his life, he tells the vampire to go after the “other kid,” referencing Harvey. Harvey is angry at this betrayal but tells Jive this is only a game. He doesn’t want to hurt Wendell, even if he can’t call him a friend.

Harvey refuses to harm Wendell, and Wendell runs away. Jive and Marr are disappointed, but they change him back to his original form. Jive tells Harvey he “missed [his] chance,” and that they “must serve” the “bloodsuckers and soul-stealers.

Back at the House in the kitchen, Wendell is thrilled to see Harvey alive and calls Harvey his best friend. Harvey doesn’t tell Wendell the truth but says he may one day reveal his trick.

Chapter 11

The next day, Wendell and Lulu are nowhere to be found, so Harvey is left to reflect on the previous night’s adventures alone. He can’t stop thinking about what Jive said: that becoming a vampire for the night wasn’t a game—it was an “education.” Harvey also can’t shake the idea of serving soul-stealers, though he can’t seem to figure out what it all means.

Harvey heads to the treehouse to hide from the afternoon sun but is disrupted when he sees Wendell, fully clothed, stomping around the orchard. Harvey heads down to see what all the fuss is all about. Wendell tells Harvey he wants to leave but can’t get out. Wendell feels he is going to die here, especially after that thing from the night before tried to eat him. He tells Harvey he knows the House is evil and wonders aloud what happened to all the kids before him.

Harvey stays calm and tells him if there is a way in, there must be a way out. He brings Wendell to the wall, the same spot he entered the property with Rictus. However, every time he walks toward the wall and into the mist, he finds himself facing the House again. It seems to be some kind of trick the boys can’t figure out.

Harvey tells Wendell to play it cool and act like they want to stay; meanwhile, he is going to start looking around. He heads to the House in search of Lulu. He checks her bedroom, but she is nowhere to be found. Her bathtub, however, is almost overflowing with water, and her clothing is scattered everywhere.

Downstairs, Harvey asks Mrs. Griffin about Lulu’s whereabouts, but she is unsure. When Harvey starts asking more questions, she reminds him to stop. Harvey continues, saying he doesn’t believe Mr. Hood exists and that he thinks they’re trapped in the House forever. She puts her hands on his shoulders and begs him to be content with what he’s been given, but finally, Harvey gets through to her. Mrs. Griffin agrees that they are all trapped in the House, but she begs him not to push anymore or Carna, another creature of the House, will come after them. She says Carna lives on the roof with the rest of Jive’s family.

Mrs. Griffin tells Harvey...

(This entire section contains 1489 words.)

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he’s the brightest child to ever come through the House and that he needs to spend this time seeking joy because time will be up faster than he can understand. She ends the conversation by telling Harvey that Mr. Hood is dead and to never bring it up again.

Chapter 12

Harvey finds Wendell and tells him they should just enjoy the House while they can. While he’s speaking, he slips a piece of paper into Wendell’s hands and tells him to enjoy some quiet reading time. Wendell realizes Harvey’s move and goes off to read the letter. In the letter, Harvey tells Wendell they will escape at midnight as the seasons change. He tells him to act normally throughout the day; in the meantime, Harvey will continue working on a plan to set them free.

That night, they “play” Halloween, dress up for their daily show, and open presents like every other night. They go to bed ready to enact their plan. Just before midnight, Harvey gets up and gets dressed. He sneaks out of the House through the kitchen door hoping to make less noise.

Just as he feels he’s away from the House and walking towards freedom, he hears a quiet call. He realizes it’s Lulu and calls back to her. When she asks if he’s leaving, he tells her she must come with them. He tries to get closer to her, and when he does, he sees something shimmering around her. She tells him to stay back and not look at her. Harvey respects her wishes. She tells him to close his eyes. He does, and she puts three items into his hand. After she walks away, Harvey realizes it’s three of the figures that fell out of his ark and into the lake. He also realizes that no human could make that trip to the bottom of the lake, which means Lulu is no longer human.

As Lulu runs from him, Harvey decides he can’t leave her and goes after her. He begs her to come with him, but she transforms into a hideous fish monster. Her hands are webbed, she has no hair, and her legs are almost fused together. She thanks him for being her friend and falls into the lake. Realizing she is gone, he clutches the wooden figures and heads to the wall to find Wendell.

Chapter 13

Harvey meets Wendell at the wall, and they make a plan to stand back-to-back as they enter the mist. This way, the person in the back can make sure they don’t get turned around by keeping their eyes on the House. Wendell asks if he can face forward, and Harvey agrees.

As Wendell begins walking into the mist, Harvey sees the House door fly open, and Mrs. Griffin yelling at them to return. He also sees Carna flying toward them in the darkness. Harvey yells to Wendell that they are in trouble, but Wendell responds saying he can’t find the way out. Just as Harvey thinks he will die trying to leave this place, Mrs. Griffin drops a cat at his feet. She tells him the cat has “a good sense of direction” and instructs Harvey to “follow him.”

Harvey pushes Wendell toward the cat and the two follow its tail. Moments later, they see the street. Harvey turns around to see how close Carna is from ripping his head off, but the creature is flying too fast and flies into the real world.

The boys make it through the mist and back onto the street, but so does Carna. Harvey pulls Wendell to prompt him to run away, but Wendell doesn’t move. He realizes the creature cannot survive in the real world, as he watches its wings begin to disintegrate. It falls to the ground crushing itself, but it doesn’t die. Carna begins dragging itself back into the mist. Harvey thinks about lessons and realizes that “Evil, however powerful it seemed, could be undone by its own appetite.”

Wendell says they’ll probably forget this ever happened, but Harvey knows he has been changed by this experience. He reaches in his pocket for the wooden figures, but they begin to disintegrate in his hands. The experience is over, and all Wendell wants to do is go home.

Chapter 14

The boys walk to the center of town and part ways toward their own homes. Before they do, they exchange addresses and promise to help each other cope and tell the story of Holiday House.

Harvey reaches his home and knocks on the door. An old couple answers which confuses Harvey, but when he sees the old woman, he knows it’s his mom. She gazes at him lovingly, but his father feels this is some sort of trick. Harvey realizes every day he spent at the Holiday House was one year long in the real world. Thirty-one years have passed since Harvey left. His family has aged appropriately during that time, but he is still just a ten-year-old boy.

His mother gets him inside and wants to put him to bed, but Harvey feels he needs to tell the thirty-one year long tale before he rests.

Expert Q&A

What is the conflict and trouble for each main character in chapter 12 of The Thief of Always?

In chapter 12 of The Thief of Always, the conflicts are internal conflicts within Harvey and Wendell, as well as external conflicts of the boys and Lulu against the House and its controlling force. The main troubles are Harvey’s desire and limited ability to help Lulu and Lulu’s transformation.

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