by Al K. Line
More scraping of axes along the ground, more cautious glances, more mumbles. Then another huddle, more grumbles and mumbles while Kane and I looked on, utterly perplexed and confounded by these strange characters.
"Break," they grunted, and they did. Break, that is.
"Right, now, this is a bit awkward wot with you being humans and all. Goes against tradition and you gotta promise not to tell. We're in enough bother as it is. If word got out that we showed—"
"Just get on with it," I sighed, wishing I'd never gone camping, and promising myself this was the last time. Unless the weather was extra nice, but definitely not Snowdonia. Somewhere else, somewhere abroad.
"Follow us," the dwarves chorused, as they marched away.
Kane and I exchanged a look, shrugged, and followed. What else could we do?
Ooh
"You have got to be kidding me," I gasped, so stunned I had to stoop and lift my jaw off the ground.
"This is unusual, right?" asked Kane.
"Yeah, very."
The dwarves skittered about, peering around pillars and into dark spaces, then huddled again, broke, and approached. Their leader said, "You promised not to tell. No human has ever been allowed to see, to know of this. If you tell, we'll be in terrible trouble."
"The worst," agreed the one I was now sure was female.
"Punishment beyond compare awaits. They'll take all our gold." They all shuddered—a fate worse than death.
"We won't tell, we promise. This is what I think it is, right?" I asked, knowing the answer but wanting confirmation.
"If what you're thinking it is, is the Listening and Looking Room, then yes. If what you're thinking is, er, something else, like, er, a room that isn't for looking and listening, then no." The leader fiddled with his beard. They definitely aren't big on imagination.
"Can we see? And listen?" asked Kane.
Again with the huddle, which was becoming annoying and time-consuming. Time we didn't have.
"Yes," came the reply, after the requisite hitting of heads, mumbling, and bickering.
The room was vast, meaning, you couldn't see the edges. At the same time it was cramped, rammed with what I can best describe as long curved horns that ended with large open ends. These were no normal horns though, they stretched up and up until lost to what looked like clouds in this seemingly infinite room.
Each horn was different. Fat, narrow, ridged, or smooth as silk. Others were lumpy, many were intricately carved. There were thousands of them, and I think maybe tens of thousands. Maybe millions. Each stopped at dwarf head height, but as I approached one it rose and the wide open end turned upward and latched to my ear. It wasn't unpleasant, more like putting a shell to your ear. But this was no sound of the sea I was hearing, it was a conversation. A very private, very smutty conversation. I pulled away and the horn bent down then was still.
"If you want to see, you have to turn your head and it will pop over an eye. Any eye, you get to choose."
"Um, no thanks, I'm good." I pulled Kane close before he saw or heard something a boy of his age shouldn't. Yes, I'm aware of the vampire massacre we performed, but I'm his mother and he was, and shall forever remain, my baby boy. Plus I said so.
"This is for the north-western quadrant. Covers Europe, a bit of what you lot call America, couple of other places. You can just do it random, or you can choose cities, streets, houses, any of that stuff. You gotta promise not to tell."
The dwarves were sweating now, and I could tell they were regretting their decision. Axes kept moving in twitchy hands, and I wasn't a hundred percent confident they wouldn't chop off our heads soon.
"I promise. I'll never tell another soul."
"Me either," said Kane, hand on heart.
It seemed to appease them for now, but for how long I wasn't sure. Best to get this over with quickly.
"Can you show me them? Where they are?"
"Um, afraid not. We kind of lost 'em, not that we were keeping a close eye anyway. You'd be amazed what goes on, and it's easy to get distracted what with all the, er…" He began to turn red, what little of his face I could see.
"He's a right perv," said the female crossly.
"Okay, where did you last see them?"
"They was in a black van going into the city, that's all we know. But that helps, right?"
"It does, it really does. Thank you." I finally felt like I was getting somewhere, even if that somewhere was right back home where I could have just gone days ago. It was time to leave.
"Say, don't suppose you've got a shaft that can take us back to our campsite have you?"
More huddles, more breaks, then a simple nod. With that, the ground disappeared from beneath us. I grabbed for Kane, clutched his hand tight, and we fell.
Bloody dwarves.
Like a Hedgehog
I pushed aside the leaves, feeling like I was coming out of hibernation, and dragged myself out of the narrow tunnel entrance where the roots of an oak had tangled through the rock. Once freed and on my knees, I reached in and hauled Kane through. I was sure he'd grown bigger.
"You need to improve your tracking skills," I said crossly, then realized that was a bit harsh as it was his first time. "Um, I mean good job on the tracking. Shame you followed dwarf scent instead of Faz's."
"Sorry, I was following a Hidden scent, I knew that, but I suppose I do need to practice." Kane smiled and I did the same, then checked out where we'd emerged.
I recognized where we were immediately, so we headed back to camp just a few minutes away. Wasting no time, and with at least some idea where to go, I went into the tent and changed, again, got clothes for Kane. He emerged wearing more of Faz's casual gear, a little large, but a decent enough fit.
"You look just like your father," I said, still unable to accept that this fine young man before me was my baby boy.
"Father would want to wear a tie though, right?" Kane smiled, and tugged at the collar of the black polo shirt.
"Haha, he would. All he wanted to bring were suits. Come on, let's pack up and get back to the city. I don't know what we'll find there, but there's nothing for us here now."
Twenty minutes later the tents were put back in their bags—okay, they were sticking out. How come tents never fit back in the bags they came in?—and we had all the equipment stowed in Dancer's car. We checked around to ensure we left nothing behind, then got in the car. I sat with my hands squeezing the steering wheel, eyes clamped shut, and breathed deeply.
I have Kane, I told myself, he's safe as long as he's with me. For now. But what about the others? How much do they know about what's happened? My guess was that by now a team would have returned and found the bodies, but I didn't know for sure and information is always useful, so I released my grip, opened my eyes, started the car, and said, "We're making a stop on the way." Then I drove away from the place where we were all supposed to have a happy, carefree week.
The compound was deserted, the vehicles gone. So the doppels knew we'd escaped. Did they know what had happened to Kane? My guess was they'd assume that with everyone dead then Kane was no baby now, but maybe they'd just think it was me. No, they'd know. The bloody hand prints and general carnage would tell them enough, more than enough.
Who'd returned? Just a scout, someone to inform those in charge what had happened?
What was their game-plan? Who was the boss?
Poor Kane. He would never have a remotely normal childhood.
But then, who did? I certainly didn't. Parents that treated me like an interruption to their hedonistic life, never cared for me, became more distant the older I got, that was no normal life. At least Kane was loved and always would be. The rest we'd get through best we could. He wasn't a freak, he was special. He was my son, and that was enough.
"Don't worry, Mother," said Kane as he reached out and wiped my eyes with his soft fingers. "I think I'm going to enjoy my life. So many wondrous things to see and do, so much to learn. So much magic."
&nb
sp; "Yes, so much magic."
I wasn't sure if that was a good thing, or a very bad thing.
Urban Jungle
It's astonishing how otherworldly the urban environment looks after spending even just a few days in the splendor of the natural world. As we hit the main arterial road back into the city, I saw everything with new eyes, and sights that usually filled me with happiness for I knew I was back in my city, where I had friends and family, was loved and even a little respected, simply made me depressed. It was unsettling. Even though summer had arrived early, and the sky was cobalt and the fancy office blocks sparkled like the windows had just been washed, much of the city felt drab compared to nature's bountiful offerings.
Streets were grimy, litter tumbled down the roads, buildings appeared cramped, the tenements and terraced houses almost wedged into their narrow plots. City dwellers crammed in like sardines in a can. How did people live like this? How did I? There was a world of open spaces and trees, wild mountains, and clean air just a short drive away, yet many never left the urban environment. Most spent their whole lives in their houses or at their place of work, only ever venturing outside to drive from one to the other.
Was it right, or completely unnatural? Just an extension of the communal cave living of our ancestors I supposed, where families would live in dark places, generations cohabiting on top of one another, so maybe this wasn't so bad after all.
Still, it was depressing, but maybe it was just the mood I was in. After all, I wasn't returning to go home and see my husband and Mithnite, to be given orders by Dancer, not that I ever let him boss me about. No, I was with Kane, and bad men had done bad things to him, and they planned on doing more bad things. I just didn't know what.
The thought of returning to our new home made me feel sick. It wasn't our home yet, not really. The events of the previous year were still too fresh in my mind. The attack, watching our house burn, fearing for my baby and my husband, what I did because of the hate some Hidden felt for me. What would they do to Kane? We had a nice new place, another country cottage with more space than ever and we were making a start on it, slowly easing back into working the land and getting it under control, but I had been little use to be honest, all my time taken up with Kane.
Guess now I could attack it with gusto, have an extra pair of helping hands. But first things first. Get my family back.
I made a decision as we approached the turn to home, and instead I drove into the heart of the city, crawled through rush hour traffic, then entered the maze of side roads that took us deep into the urban jungle. Past corner shops, takeaways, pubs, and wine merchants, the streets narrowed, the terraces getting smaller and smaller. Then we were on a nice tree-lined street, the houses still terraced and insignificant, but the compact front gardens neat, a blaze of bright annual bedding plants and hanging baskets.
I stopped outside a familiar house and turned to Kane. "I don't want any arguments, and please don't make this harder than it already is. It's not safe, and until I know what's happening here, this is the best place for you. Understand?"
"I understand. You worry, you want me to be protected."
I nodded. These were the first words we'd spoken since we entered the city. The brooding atmosphere had affected us both, and I couldn't even imagine how overwhelming it was for him to see such chaos for the first time with if not adult, then certainly not baby eyes. For a start, he could look in all directions, as all he'd known of this world so far was what he'd seen from a baby seat facing the roof of the car. Talk about overexposure.
We got out, I grabbed some bags, figured it best to leave the weapons hidden under blankets as it's not the done thing to tote machine guns in residential Cardiff, and we walked up the short path to a very familiar front door.
As usual, it was unlocked, so I pushed it open and shouted, "It's me, Grandma, and I brought you a visitor."
Tea Time
"Tea's brewing," said Grandma as she popped her head around the open door to the kitchen, then smiled and disappeared.
Feeling apprehensive, and a little nervous if I'm honest, I ushered Kane in and we wandered cautiously into the kitchen.
"Hi, Grandma," I said, holding back the tears.
"Hi, love." Grandma's back was turned to us as she stirred something a worryingly intense shade of orange in a huge pot on the stove. "Hi, Kane," she said like it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Hey, Grandma," he said with a smile.
Then it all got emotional. Grandma put down her spoon, growled at the overworked extractor fan so it sped up hastily, then she smoothed down her apron, put her hands through her hair, and turned to face us with tears in her eyes.
"You're so big," she said as she opened her arms wide and we all rushed to embrace.
A Grandma hug makes everything in the entire world better. It soothes, warms, and comforts, tells you everything will be all right. We hugged tighter than we'd ever hugged, and time swept away. It was just us, just family. This was the real deal. Pure Grandma, no deceit.
Eventually we broke and she said, "Pour the tea, there's a love." So I did.
We all sat at her scrubbed table and took a sip of the strong brew.
"Yum, that's nice," said Kane, eyes twinkling. For some reason I burst out laughing, then so did Grandma. "What's so funny?"
After I'd stopped laughing at the ridiculousness of the situation, I said, "I forgot that you've never had tea before. You're only eight months old."
"He doesn't look it," said Grandma, seemingly taking this all in her stride.
"I'm thirteen, I'm a teenager. That's what it feels like, that's what I am inside and outside. From now on I'll age normally, I can tell. My growth spurt is over."
"Oh, thank God," I gasped, my chest deflating as I let my breath escape. It was such good news. I was dreading him turning into a man, completely missing any of his childhood.
"I knew you were special," said Grandma, taking his hand and squeezing, "but I didn't know this would happen. Okay, I had my suspicions, as your parents are unique, Kane, but something has happened, something bad, I know that much. Only terrible stress could make you change so dramatically. And whatever…" Grandma paused, never let go of his hand, but she glanced away as she thought things through and figured it out. "I see. That makes sense, I suppose. You know what you are now? What this means?"
"I know, Grandma. We would have both been dead otherwise, or Mother would anyway, and I couldn't let that happen. Besides, even before I was born, I knew it was my destiny to become vampire. More, more than just become vampire."
"Just don't get ahead of yourself," warned Grandma, clenching her jaw, trying to look calm but obviously as worried as me. Maybe more so as I didn't know what they were talking about.
"I won't. Plenty of time for all that." Kane smiled and sipped his tea while I was left to make sense of this.
"You're talking about him being Head, aren't you?" My head swam just thinking of it, thinking of him ruling the vampires. "You can't."
"Look, love, he's just a teenager, don't go fretting about that now. And no, I'm not just talking about being the one ruling the local vampires."
"What then?"
"Who knows? But Kane's special. For now, and I want you to listen to me, both of you. For now, just enjoy what you have. The future is long, and mysterious, so don't go worrying about what might be. Think about what you can do to enjoy life and let the future take care of itself."
"Yes, Grandma," said Kane.
"You're right. But I worry."
"And that's as it should be. Parents worry, kids misbehave, that's life."
"Okay."
"Now, let's get down to business." Grandma put aside her tea, stared at both of us long and hard, then asked, "How do you know I'm me? Grandma? I know what's happened, a friendly dwarf filled me in on what Delilah didn't, and bless her, she thinks Kane here is still a baby and that he's at home, but I know the doppels are on the loose, at least the ones you haven't killed, an
d I'm guessing you both did that?"
We nodded, and I wasn't surprised that she knew the whole story, or that she'd pretended not to know mere moments ago. Witches are worryingly well-informed; it drove Dancer nuts that they always knew his business.
"Okay, so the doppels are at large, and they took Faz and the others, took you but you escaped, so, I ask again, how do you know I'm me?"
"The hug," I said, convinced that however good the doppels were at taking on the appearance, voice, and mannerisms of another, that was one thing they could never accomplish. Fake the love I felt from her hug. The impostor had felt weird when we hugged, Grandma felt perfect.
Grandma smiled. "You're a smart girl. Your mum is a clever lady, Kane, you look after her."
"I will," he said, squaring his shoulders.
"Okay, so, Kate, do you need my help?"
"No, but thanks. You look after Kane, I'll go get them back."
Grandma nodded, she knew this was why we'd come.
"I'm coming with you," said Kane, determined.
"Remember what we spoke about in the car?" Kane grunted; he remembered "Then please do as I ask. Stay here, look after Grandma, don't let anything happen, and I'll sort this mess out. Okay?"
Kane nodded, but he wasn't happy. Tough, sometimes a mother knows best.
Cold
We weren't in the throes of full summer yet, it was still spring really, so although we were getting weird warm days, like mind-bogglingly weird if you knew the Welsh weather, it got cold early, dark too, so it was both of those things when I left Kane in the safe hands of Grandma.
The cold hit like a snowball to the side of the head after the humidity and heat of Grandma's kitchen. I stepped off her threshold and instantly felt alone and estranged from the city I'd called home for so long.
Everything was out of whack, everything was different, everything was more worrying. I'd been stressed ever since Kane was born, knowing he was different and that Hidden would want a piece of him because of it, would be watching him closely to see what happened, had heard the rumors and seen the worshipers, those obsessed with magic and prophecy, but this took it to a whole other level.
