Chapter 6
1574 Words
6
The interior of the home was plain but elegant. There was a small entrance hall with rooms on either side and a hallway that led to the rear of the house. Alwin let us into the right-hand room and I saw it was a sitting room. The plush furniture was carved from a rich, dark oak and polished to a smooth, bright shine.
The woman took Greg’s backpack and disappeared into the hall while Alwin seated us on a small couch. He closed the curtains and took a seat in a chair opposite us. His smiling demeanor slipped into a frown and he clasped his hands in his lap.
“Are the rumors true about rebellion in the marketplace?” he questioned us.
Greg nodded. “Yes. My Master was recognized by one of the more vocal leaders and taken to the Braille. The Guards attempted to stop the crowd, but they were overwhelmed.”
“And Greenwood thought it best that he agree to his capture to lessen the trouble?” Alwin guessed.
“Exactly,” Greg agreed. “If custom holds, there’s to be a trial on the morrow. Am I correct?”
Alwin leaned back and snorted. “You are, but it will be a mockery of one, if there is one at all.” He quieted when the woman returned and took a seat in the corner of the room. “Is Eva back?”
The woman nodded. “Yes, but she says the horses are nervous.”
Alwin frowned. “That means spies among the bushes. The red berries are more eyes than delicious treats these days.”
“Spies for whom?” Greg asked him.
The Councilman shook his head. “If I had that information I would bring it to the Council in a moment, but I don’t. All I know is that anyone who speaks up for the lords and Council find their livestock plundered and their house ransacked, or worse.”
I raised my hand. “Could we drop the Mission Impossible spy stuff and find out how we’re going to get Erik out of this brick place?”
“Braille,” Alwin corrected me.
I furrowed my brow. “Like that thing for blind people?”
He nodded. “Yes. It’s called that because the cells are underground and in complete darkness. Not even our senses can pick up enough light to see without a lamp. The only way to move around is by feeling the walls, and there’s only one entrance. A set of stone stairs that lead down to a door made of iron.”
“So where is this Braille place?” I asked him.
He nodded out one of the windows. “On the far side of the town near the cliffs. It was put there so if someone did manage to escape they would have one less direction to flee. However, in its three hundred years of existence no one has ever escaped the Braille. The walls are solid stone and when a prisoner is present the entrance is guarded by at least two people at any one time.”
I jumped to my feet and threw up my arms. “So what you’re telling me is this place is impossible to rescue somebody from?”
He bowed his head. “I’m afraid so.”
“There may be a way,” the soft voice of Alwin’s wife spoke up. All eyes turned to her in surprise, most especially Alwin’s.
“What way do you know?” he asked her.
“There is someone on the island who knows the caves and paths better than anyone, and who wouldn’t find the darkness any trouble. He might be able to help,” she explained.
“One of the fishermen?” Alwin guessed, but his wife shook her head.
“No, someone Lady Greenwood and I found several years ago. He called himself a relic of the past, so we gave him the name of Methuselah.”
Alwin frowned. “I don’t know this man. Who is he?”
“A vampire.”
Greg and Alwin started back. I blinked at the wife. “Seriously? A vampire?” I asked her.
A small smile slipped onto her lips and she nodded. “Yes, seriously. Lady Greenwood and I found him on the rocks barely clinging to what little life that species holds. We took him to a cave and fed him-”
“Shannon!” Alwin gasped. Even Greg looked aghast.
I swung my head between the astonished gentlemen to the bemused lady. “Um, would somebody please tell me what’s the problem here? Other than there being real vampires?”
“Vampires are our sworn enemies,” Alwin explained. The tone of his voice spoke of a bitterness only centuries of animosity could create. “They feed off us to gain our strength and keep alive their unholy existence.” His hard eyes didn’t swerve from his wife. “How could you help one of them?”
“They’re not my enemies. I came from the human world and can’t hold such a grudge against them,” she pointed out.
“But Eva! Don’t you care for her?” he protested.
“Methuselah promised he wouldn’t harm anyone. He has kept his promise and not revealed himself,” she pointed out.
“But a vampire!” Alwin insisted.
Shannon smiled and clasped his hands in hers. “Do you trust me?”
His lips flapped for a while before he sputtered out a few words. “I-I do, but-”
“Then trust me on this. Methuselah wouldn’t harm anyone, most especially anyone from our two families.” She turned to Greg and me. “That’s why I believe he’ll help you. Speak Lady Greenwood’s-Cassandra’s-name and he will give you an audience. No one knows the caves better than Methuselah. If anyone can help you reach Greenwood without being noticed, it’s him.”
Greg bowed his head. “We’re grateful for you in revealing this secret.”
Shannon smiled and shook her head. “I would do much more to save my friend’s son. Cassandra and I were-are great friends, and I wouldn’t want a mother to lose her child.”
“Where can we find him?” Greg asked her.
“The entrance to the cave systems under Market Island are near the cliffs. Eva can show you the way,” she told us.
“Not Eva. I will take them,” Alwin insisted.
Shannon squeezed her husband’s hands. “You and I must convince the townspeople to release him. If they don’t agree then we at least have given our friends here a distraction,” she pointed out. Shannon leaned back and a sly grin slipped onto her lips. “Besides, Eva is as brave and resourceful as her father. She’ll be fine.”
Alwin pursed his lips, but sighed and gave a nod. “Your words are wise. Too wise, I think, but you’re right.” He looked to us. “We will try to convince the people to let young Greenwood go. I agree with my wife that I don’t believe they’ll release him. The feelings run high against anyone from Wolf Island, especially since the Guards became so overbearing.”
“When did that start?” Greg asked him.
“About two months ago,” Alwin revealed.
I furrowed my brow. “Two months? Isn’t that when the shipment of dynamite went missing?”
Alwin nodded. “Yes, and like you I don’t think there’s a coincidence in the timing. There’s an evil current beneath the islands. Something is happening, and I believe we’re sorely unprepared for it.”
Greg stood and bowed his head to our hosts. I followed his example. “Whatever happens we will always remember we have allies here.”
Our hosts rose and smiled at us. “We’re glad to be allies of the lords of Wolf Island,” Alwin graciously replied.
“Say hello for me to Cassandra when you see her next,” Shannon requested.
I grinned and saluted. “Will do.”
“Now we’ll skip any more farewells. You should be off,” Shannon pointed out. She turned to her husband. “I’ll fetch Eva.”
“And I will prepare the cart,” Alwin added. He looked to us and nodded towards the entrance hall. “Follow me and I’ll point the way to where you’re going.”
Our kind host led us outside and over to the barn. The doors were shut, but he opened them and nodded through the structure. “The path leads from the other end of the barn through the fields to the cliffs. It’s a rocky place, but not much worse than some parts of Wolf Island.”
“Yeah, we know about those,” I quipped.
“There are a mess of caves ten yards above where the water crashes against the rocks. If she hasn’t already, Shannon will tell Eva which one to take that leads to that abomination.” He paused and turned to us with a steady, fixed gaze. “I must ask that you not let Eva into the caves. My wife might trust this monster and I trust that she believes in him, but I can’t put any faith in-well, in other things. I’ve seen too much of what they can do to werewolves.”
I cringed. “And what exactly can they do?”
Alwin frowned. “They can drain a werewolf of all his blood within a minute. It’s a delicacy for them. They crave the power that runs through us. If they had a choice between an easy target of a human and a tough werewolf, they would choose the werewolf every time.”
“Comforting. . .” I mumbled.
“We will be careful, and Eva won’t accompany us any farther than the cave entrance,” Greg promised.
Alwin nodded. “That’s all I ask. Oh, and you may leave your bag of provisions here. They’ll only get in the way.” He glanced past us at the house. “Here they come.”
We turned and saw Eva and Shannon exit the house and hurry over to us. Eva was dressed in a dark cloak that was the color of the rocks. Two other cloaks like it were slung over Shannon’s arm. She presented them to us.
“To help protect you from the berries,” she told us with a wink.
We put them on and Eva grabbed one of Greg and my hands. She smiled and pulled us through the barn. “This way. It isn’t far.”
- Writer
