'How is it possible?' I asked.
The wall which the mirror hung upon was lumpy and uneven. I pressed my cheek against it and felt the cold stone upon my skin. I could see the back of the mirror through a slither of space where it didn't quite lie flush against the wall. There was no secret cavity behind.
'It's not a trick!' I declared.
'Indeed,' replied Edward. 'My hand is inside the mirror. Here, see for yourself.'
I stepped forward and moved my hand hesitantly towards the mirror. Its surface was dull like the reflection of the sky in still water on a cloudy day, but the likeness of the table and the jumble of oddments upon it, the hearth and everything else in the room was reflected in it. I inched my fingers forward, afraid to touch the mirror, until I felt the cold, hard surface of the glass at my fingertips, then a moment later nothing at all. I gasped as my own hand disappeared into the mirror, moving freely beyond the confines of the solid surface.
''Tis remarkable, sir,' I said as I withdrew my hand and examined it, half expecting to see some mark of the magic it had just been exposed to, but there was none. 'Is it one of your creations?'
'Aye, it is quite a wonder,' replied Edward, 'but I'm afraid I cannot accept credit for it. It is far older than I am. It has been in my family for as long as I can tell.'
'Your forebears were magicians too?' I asked.
'Yes, for at least six generations,' replied Edward.
'I had no idea there were entire families of magicians. Rupert said there are rival groups to the Guild of Gatekeepers across Europe. It seems most everyone I meet now is involved in magic one way or another.'
Edward smiled. 'Magicians and sorcerers have always been around, but 'tis simply that we prefer not to advertise ourselves as such to non-magical folk. Even if it were not for the oath of silence that the Guild holds you to, you would do well to keep quietly about the business you are involved in.'
'I don't expect I shall be involved in it much longer once we have got the dragonskin to the King- if we ever do,' I replied, looking down at the array of books, papers and oddments that littered the table. ''Tis a shame; I should have liked to become a great magician and do some good with magic. I have heard too much of the harm that it can do and little of the good.'
'You may yet get your chance,' said Edward. He paused for a moment then crossed the room to a large chest of drawers that stood in a corner. From the top drawer, he pulled out a small brass telescope. 'Take this,' he said. 'The future may not always be easy to predict as you have seen, but the past is fixed, and the wise will look to it and learn from it. This at least will help you in doing so.'
''Tis a telescope, sir,' I replied, more than a little bemused.
'Aye, it is,' said Edward, 'but the lens is quite different to that of an ordinary telescope. It looks not to magnify distant objects but rather to see into the past. One may gaze into its lens and see the events of any time and place at any point in the past that he has in mind. It is quite an extraordinary experience.'
'Thank you, sir,' I replied, a little over-awed by Edward's generosity.
I rested the telescope on my palms and felt its weight in my hands. I imagined all the events in history I might look to see: the burning of the library at Alexandria that Emerson had told me of, the defeat of King Harold at the battle of Hastings that I had learnt of, even Jesus and his disciples sharing the last supper, but perhaps mundanely my first instinct was to see my mother and father and Lizzie, even just a moment from years before.
Downstairs, a door slammed, and the sound of hurried footsteps could be heard coming up the stair case. A moment later, Rupert appeared at the door, breathless and pale.
'Roundheads!' he cried. 'A whole company of them! They're making their way here. I believe they mean to search the castle!'
'Into the mirror,' said Edward. His voice was calm, but there was an unmistakable tone of urgency to it. 'Where is Eliza?'
'I left her downstairs in the drawing room,' I replied.
At that moment, the thud of horse hooves sounded outside then stopped before the castle gates. Voices could be heard: the leader of the Roundhead company remonstrating with Edward's groom.
'Go!' said Edward, ushering us towards the mirror, 'I will find Eliza.'
Rupert pushed a chair up to the hearth and climbed upon it before he stepped into the mirror without hesitation and disappeared. I glanced behind me as I moved to follow him, anxious not to leave Eliza behind in danger.
'Tom, hurry,' came Rupert's muffled voice from inside the glass, followed by his hand pulling me into the mirror.
A moment later, I was inside a room that was a perplexing mirror image of Edwards's study. I looked about, unnerved by the way in which furniture and objects that had been on one side in the study were now arranged upon the other. It was the same room, but not, and a jumbled pile of books and objects that Edward liked to keep hidden cluttered the table.
I looked about as my eyes adjusted to the dimness of the room, in spite of the fire in the hearth. Something about the place made me uneasy. The door stood ajar at the exact angle as the study, but the passageway beyond it was ominously dark. Through the mirror, I could see back into the real study as through a heavy curtain, its features vague and obscure.
'You knew about the mirror?' I asked Rupert.
'Yes, 'tis where Edward hides his tools when the witch hunters come knocking, as they do now and then. Witchcraft is still a hanging crime, you know. But hush! Someone is coming!'
Through the opaqueness of the glass, I could just see Edward and Eliza slipping through the door. Edward's voice could be heard speaking urgently as they drew closer, and a moment later, Eliza emerged through the mirror.
'Well I never!' she exclaimed, looking about at the room before her. 'I've never seen anything like it!'
'Indeed, but look you! I hear footsteps on the stair!' said Rupert.
Chapter 47
We crept forward to the edge of the glass and peered out at Edward. He had moved away from the mirror and now sat perfectly still at the table, reading as the footsteps grew louder. Only the slight trembling of the papers in his hands betrayed his anxiety.
'Can we be seen in here?' whispered Eliza.
I shook my head and held my breath as the footsteps stopped outside the door. Mrs. Treadway entered carrying a lantern, followed by a dozen men armed with blunderbusses. Their attire marked them immediately as Roundheads, for their hair was closely cropped to the head, and each wore a short breastplate over his tunic. Poor Mrs. Treadway's face was white with fear as she ushered them into the study, but a flash of relief passed across it as her eyes scanned the room and saw that we were gone. She hurried to Edward and took his hand. 'Husband, these men have come to search the castle,' she said. 'I could not deter them.'
Edward pushed back his chair and stood to address the Roundheads in a firm but even voice. 'Sirs! What possible reason have you to search my home at such an hour?'
'I've a warrant for the arrest of fugitives wanted by the Long Parliament that are believed to be harboured here,' replied the foremost man who appeared to be the leader. 'Step aside, old man! Hindering our purpose will only go worse for you.'
'Why, sir, you mistake me,' said Edward 'You are welcome to search as you will, but I fear it will be in vain; none have passed this way this last three month. 'Tis a lonely spot my forebears chose to build this castle. Wanderers through these parts are few and far between.'
'Be that as it may, I must still carry out my duty,' replied the Roundhead, his fervour somewhat assuaged by Edward's reasonable attitude.
'As you will,' replied Edward. 'May I escort you?'
'No, wait here,' replied the Roundhead, then he turned to the man beside him. 'Cobham, take the men and search the castle. Be sure to look out for priest holes.'
Cobham and the others at once retreated to search while Edward and Mrs. Treadway waited in silence as the Roundhead leader poked around the study.
''Tis a peculiar a
rray of tools you keep in here, to be sure,' he said, looking curiously at Edward's telescope.
'Merely instruments for observing the movements of the heavens,' Edward replied.
'For what purpose?' asked the Roundhead, eyeing Edward suspiciously.
'Personal interest, nothing more,' said Edward.
'Seems to me there is plenty for a man to concern himself with in these dark times without looking to the stars,' said the Roundhead.
'I try not to concern myself with other men's conflicts,' replied Edward.
The Roundhead scoffed. 'You may shut yourself in, but you cannot shut the world out forever, old man,' he replied.
He turned away from the telescope and proceeded to make a round of the room, tapping on the walls now and then in search of secret cavities where fugitives may be hidden. He spoke to Edward as he went along, but I didn't catch his words, for a sudden cold draught swept along my neck, and an inexplicable wave of fear crept upon me at that moment. Slowly, I turned my face to the door behind us which now stood wide open.
'Rupert!' I hissed, clutching his arm, but he and Eliza were already staring in horror at the mist that was advancing towards us from the open door. It curled itself around the table legs and chairs as it filled the room, enveloping it in its suffocating darkness and contaminating the air with fear and dread.
'Tom Wild. Come with me. I will show you the secrets of the grave,' came a disembodied voice from somewhere within the mist as it shaped itself into the form of two hands with long, wizened fingers that groped towards me.
I shrank back against the mirror and looked frantically back to the study beyond. The Roundhead was still in the room, and Edward stood with his back to us. There was no escape.
'Tom Wild,' the voice croaked again as the hands reached towards me.
'The mirror on the table!' Rupert hissed. 'Hold it up! Let it move into the mirror!'
Immobilised by fear, it took every shred of my will to tear my eyes from the advancing mist and pick up the mirror. I shrank back behind Rupert and held the mirror before me while the hands groped ever closer.
'It's not working! It's getting closer!' cried Eliza.
The mist swirled around my feet, and the hands now reached out and gripped my ankles. A freezing pain seared through my legs at their touch, and my knees buckled beneath me. I sank to the floor and felt the hands grip me tighter as they dragged me towards the door. I had no idea what lay behind it, but an overwhelming fear of crossing the threshold to whatever lay beyond seized me suddenly, and I thrashed my arms about, desperately trying to grab hold of something to keep myself from sliding towards the terrifying unknown. It was no use; the hands held me tighter and dragged me with even greater force. A sudden surge of pain ripped through me, and I swooned, too weak to resist any further.
'Tom!' Eliza screamed from somewhere behind me.
Rupert's hand grabbed mine as I was dragged closer towards the door, but the hands that pulled me were too strong, and I slipped from his grasp. I felt myself sliding away, overcome with fear and dread as the mist swept over me.
Chapter 48
Darkness engulfed me, but a faint flash of light penetrated it for just a moment. I opened my eyes and saw Edward standing before the door, his wand in his hand, commanding the creature to begone, but his voice was muffled and distant. Then silence.
I lay still, paralysed and trapped somewhere between sleep and waking. In the darkness, I couldn't be sure if I was seeing what was truly before me or dreaming, but slowly an image began to emerge out of the blackness. It was a room; the single downstairs room of the cottage I had grown up in. I saw it as one who was standing inside and walking about, but my mother and father and Lizzie were nowhere to be seen. As I moved towards the door to search outside for them, I saw blood smeared upon it. I wanted to cry out, but my voice was paralysed as the image changed suddenly, and I saw my own face, pale and deathly, as I lay in darkness. At first glance, I appeared to be sleeping, but the stillness and paleness of my body seemed beyond that of sleep, and I realised with horror that I was dead. I was looking upon my own corpse.
My mind reeled as a procession of ghostly figures and animated corpses in various stages of decay passed before me one after the other. The scent of damp soil filled the air, and the oozing, slimy things that haunt the deep earth crawled over me, gnawing at my flesh. I felt hot tears escape from my closed eyes, and my heart pounding, and I realised that I wasn't dead. I gasped and felt clear air fill my lungs. My eyes sprung open, and I sat bolt upright.
I was surprised to find myself in the drawing room, lying on a couch drawn up beside the fire. Edward, Rupert and Eliza watched over me anxiously, but their expressions gave way at once to relief when they saw that I woke.
'Tom!' cried Eliza. 'Thank heavens! I was so afraid for you.'
'What happened to me?' I asked. 'I thought I was dead. I saw my own corpse, and then things too horrible to speak of. I felt worms and other foul things gnawing at my flesh.'
''Twas just your mind playing tricks when that creature attacked you in the mirror,' said Eliza, but I caught the anxious look Rupert exchanged with Edward.
'Aye, think no more on it,' he said with little conviction.
'Come, Tom needs rest,' said Edward. 'Eliza, please fetch more blankets. He must be kept warm.'
'Yes, sir,' replied Eliza, dashing off at once.
'Wait,' I said as Edward and Rupert moved to leave. 'What of the Roundheads? Are they gone? How did I get out of the mirror?'
'Yes, do not fear,' said Edward. 'They searched the entire castle, outbuildings and all, but found nothing. I do not expect they will return. I sensed something was amiss in the mirror and climbed in after you, but the shadow had already overcome you before I could stop its attack. I dispersed it with the light from my wand, but there was little we could do but carry you out and wait for you to regain consciousness. You gave us quite a fright.'
I shuddered at the reminder of the shadowy creature and pulled the blankets that covered me closer.
'Rest now,' said Edward.
I shut my eyes, too weary to argue or question any further. As I drifted towards sleep, I heard Edward and Rupert speaking in low voices away from me.
'What creature was that, Edward?' said Rupert. 'And what did it want with Tom? Speak plainly with me.'
Edward sighed as though the answer he was to give was one he did not wish to. ''Twas a Shade, a creature from another realm,' he replied, 'I fear it is a bad omen. They are harbingers of death and doom when they appear un-summoned. I like not what the boy says he saw. I fear it may have been a premonition. Speak nothing of this to him or Eliza.'
Chapter 49
When I woke, I found I had slept through the night and into the late morning. The curtains remained closed, but daylight showed beneath their folds. I sat up and looked about, but I was alone. I shivered as the memory of Edward's words to Rupert came back to me. Even in the bright light of day, the fear and dread of the Shade was not easily dispelled. I couldn't shake the feeling that both it and the spirit of Nicholas Treadway had revealed to me not the danger my family faced, as I had first thought, but my own impending death. There seemed little else that could be implied by the sight of my own corpse.
My thoughts were interrupted as Eliza put her head around the door. 'Good, you're awake,' she said. 'How do you feel?'
'Fine,' I replied. 'I cannot lie a-bed any longer. Where are Rupert and Edward?'
'In Edward's study preparing the spell. The Roundheads following our trail hither has spooked Edward, and he is anxious to complete it as soon as possible. You are to rest by his orders, but I'll not tell if you wish to sit up and play a game of checkers.'
'Very well. Let's play.'
I said nothing to Eliza of what I had overheard the night before, but my disquiet could not easily be assuaged. That my own death had been revealed to me seemed certain. Now more than ever, I wished I had never picked up the box on the beach on that rainy day back in Septemb
er.
For the next two weeks we saw little of Edward while he was holed up in his laboratory preparing the transmogrification spell. We passed the time playing checkers together or reading from his extensive library. In the evenings, Rupert would entertain us with tales of his adventures fighting alongside the King in the Civil War, or against the Spanish in the Netherlands, or the Holy Roman Emperor in Germany.
Outside, the year was drawing to its close. Autumn was receding to winter, and ice clung to the window pane when I looked out of my window one morning in late November. A smudge of snow covered the ground, the first of the year, and delicate flakes drifted down from the sky and settled upon the glass.
'How much longer will the spell take?' I asked Rupert as we sat at breakfast. 'It is December in five days' time, and the weather will only worsen.'
'I will speak with Edward,' replied Rupert. 'I too am anxious about any further delay.'
That evening at supper, Edward joined us for the first time since we arrived at Treadway Castle.
'I fear I have not been as good a host to you as I might,' he said, 'but my time has been consumed with preparing this spell quickly, and I have been working in my laboratory late into the night. It is now almost complete. In the morning, I will meet with you in the library to discuss your onward journey.'
Eliza and I ate in gloomy silence. Now that it came to it, I had no desire to leave the safety of Treadway Castle to go riding across the country with winter drawing in and danger both in front and behind. Thus far, I had managed to put Edward's words to Rupert out of mind, but with the prospect of leaving imminent, a dull sense of dread stalked upon me.
After supper, I went straight to my room, anxious to savour my last night in a bed before the week or more of sleeping out in the open that was to follow. I was careful not to think too much beyond that point; reaching the Isle of Wight and giving the dragonskin to the King was the responsibility that Eliza and I had, perhaps recklessly, taken upon ourselves, and it had been our sole objective since the day we met George in Mrs. Tucker's house. What may come after that, I dared not think.
A Skin of a Dragon (The Guild of Gatekeepers Book 1) Page 17
