The Shadow: The Poisonwood Shadows Book One

by Christina Crook

  “The thing is,” Vale paused, as he tried to remain dignified, yet his tone was strung with sarcasm, “your city - you have the power and the land and the money and you seem to think it's deserved, yes? The buildings and the riches and the army that you have, running around in the alleyways…such fun,” he said mockingly. “Except for one little thing.” He held up a long bony finger. “Poisonwood has some very dirty secrets that dear old Walter desperately wishes to keep hidden.”

  “We knew you were blackmailing him. Don’t act like this is justified just because Poisonwood is a richer city than Silverwall. We can’t help that I’m afraid,” Captain Summers said casually, unable to resist baiting the old man.

  At this, Vale’s eyes flashed angrily. He clenched his fists and his breathing became short. “You see, that’s the thing, Gabryel. Poisonwood may be rich, but money and decency don’t go hand in hand. You people are a joke to us here in Silverwall. You know nothing of the truth.”

  “Listen, Victor,” William smacked his hand down on the table, “I don’t want to play your games.” He spoke sternly and eloquently, enunciating each word as he tried in vain to control his anger. “You tell me how it is. You tell me the big secret that you seem to find so amusing, and then I will decide. You see, whatever it is, you’re holding it over Walter Poisonwood, and you know full well that he is old and he is scared and his judgement is not what it once was. But I am the future of the city. My judgement is crystal clear and from now on, I decide whether this is a secret worth keeping. So you tell me right now.”

  Vale watched them both mischievously, his eyes settling on Captain Summers. “Are you sure you want to let your Captain in on your family secret, William?”

  “I’m sure,” William responded. The Captain had watched over him since he had joined the Shadow Army. He had overseen his training and been his confidante and mentor in the years that followed. William trusted him with his life.

  “Even if it involves…murder?” Vale whispered.

  “Just get to it. I have no interest in your attempts at sounding theatrical. No wonder your city is falling apart if this is what’s leading it.” William looked at Vale disgustedly.

  “Okay. Well…” Vale leaned back in his chair, shuffling around to make himself comfortable. William and Captain Summers watched, arms crossed and impatient. Eventually he stopped and looked across at William. “The Shadow Army was founded by Walter Poisonwood Senior. Am I right?” He raised a wild and overgrown eyebrow.

  William nodded, unimpressed.

  “Well, that’s the story your great grandfather told, isn’t it? That he solely founded the Shadow Army - a fine, brave man, intent on protecting his city.”

  William continued to watch, unwilling to respond to Vale’s veiled digs at his family.

  “That’s not the true story though. Walter did not create the Shadow Army by himself. While trying to decide what he could do to protect his city, he sought counsel from a young lady who lived on the Outside.

  “Your great grandfather had met this woman on his travels to Stormcroft. Back then, the Outside was a sight more dangerous than it is these days, and the young lady’s father had taught her how to fight, so that on the days when she was at the cottage alone, she could see off anyone who might try and force their way in.

  “Her name was Kathrin and the two became fast friends. He would come out to see her and talk about the pressures of having an entire city sitting on his shoulders and the worry he felt at how he could keep his people safe. And so she made a suggestion to him - the Shadow Army. She helped him with the idea, the execution, the training plans and she taught him how to fight. It was all her.

  “She was moved to the city and implemented all techniques, as a silent contributor to the cause. By this time, Walter Senior was a married man, keeping the fact that he was meeting with this woman a secret from everyone. He passed it off as his own idea and the Council worshipped him for it. Of course, Kathrin was happy for him to take credit at first. But then, as the army took off, she found that she was getting shunted to one side. Walter took the credit and as the streets became safer, he began to wish that Kathrin wasn’t there anymore. He changed as he grew in power and Kathrin became a threat.

  “She grew jealous of his wife and the family he had created. She wondered why she hadn’t been good enough for him and she turned bitter. Eventually, Kathrin asked Walter for some recognition for her hard work, but as the figurehead of the city, he needed to be seen by his people as powerful and intelligent. It couldn’t possibly get out that the greatest idea he had ever had actually belonged to a girl from the Outside, could it?

  “Kathrin threatened to tell everyone, and Walter knew that the media would believe her. Before the army, he was seen as a useless excuse for a man who could never do anything right. He was in over his head and Kathrin had saved him. Now he wanted nothing more but for her to go away, so he tried to pay her off. He tried to get her to leave, but she couldn’t stand that he didn’t want her anymore. Kathrin couldn’t believe that he had turned on her and expected her to submit to whatever he said, after her father had always taught her to do the exact opposite.

  “Eventually she moved back home, but Kathrin still persisted with her visits to the city, making threats to Walter, and so one night, Walter paid his own visit. He tried to talk at first. He tried to give her more money. He tried all of the things that he had already tried and still she said no. Kathrin got upset, Walter got angry and they fought. Kathrin’s father returned that night to find his only daughter strangled to death.” At this, Vale stopped talking and watched William to gauge his expression.

  Unwilling to give anything away, William remained stony faced and raised his eyebrows back at the man, indicating him to continue talking.

  “The old rogue got away with it, didn’t he?" He cackled. “Kathrin’s father had known all about the army of course, but he was a feeble man really. He liked to hunt and drink, and he did all he could to teach his daughter how to fight back, but ultimately he was just one man from the Outside. He could never defeat a city such as Poisonwood, no matter how hard he tried and so, without much of a fight, he gave up. He lived out his days in a drunken stupor, avoided by everyone in his community. Nobody wanted to listen to his ramblings about Poisonwood and his dead daughter.” Vale stopped talking again and watched William.

  “Is that it?” William asked, doing all he could to feign disinterest.

  With this, Vale raised a smile, a furtive and underhanded kind of smile which told William that there was more. He began to talk again. “There was a child. A daughter. Kathrin and Walter’s daughter. Her name was Amelya. She was raised by her drunken grandfather; an almost feral upbringing out in the wilds of the Outside land. In place of bedtime stories, he brought her up with tale of her mother and the Shadow Army.

  “When Amelya was old enough, she ran away. She had long since tired of her grandfather and the coldness and misery that came with living out there. And so she was greeted with open arms by the city of Silverwall. She tried to tell her story to a few passers-by, and after it went through a few people, young Amelya was called to meet with the Silverwall Council. Now, my own father didn’t like to interfere with other cities. He was a quiet, indifferent man, pliant and weak.”

  “Not like you then,” Captain Summers couldn’t help but interject.

  Ignoring him, Vale continued, “But the story was noted down and kept in our records for future reference, like everything is. It wasn’t of much interest to my father, but once I discovered it…well, an ambitious man such as myself would find a tale like that very, very exciting.” Vale smiled wickedly.

  “What about the girl? Amelya?” William asked.

  “She had a sad existence. She lived alone in a small shack downtown, got a job in one of our workhouses and had a child of her own - Olivia. However, Amelya died in childbirth and the baby Olivia was placed in an orphanage. And here is where the story gets interesting again. At the age of seventeen, Olivia
found herself with child. These women certainly got around.” Vale sneered, rubbing his hands together.

  William shook his head and narrowed his eyes.

  “After that, Olivia left Silverwall and journeyed across the land to Poisonwood. Having never met her mother, she had no idea of her own history and associations with the city, but she hoped that she could find a better life for herself. Heavily pregnant, she came all that way in the dead of winter.”

  “How do you even know this?” William asked suddenly, his insides freezing.

  “To be quite honest I’m filling in the gaps here, but I'll get to that shortly. The girl slipped off our radar. I mean, there are a lot of people in our city and we can’t keep track of them all, can we? It was only in the last few years that I decided to look into where that orphan might have got to, so what do you think happened? Well, I was startled to discover another Poisonwood mystery that was all I needed to reconcile what had happened to Olivia. It turns out that soon after she left us, we received a note from Poisonwood asking if there was anybody by the name of Winchester living in Silverwall. That was the family name, you see?”

  Winchester. William felt the blood drain from his face. His stomach flipped and he was sure he might vomit.

  Vale watched him knowingly. “So who knows what happened to Olivia? But what we do know is that a baby was found in the snow on a downtown street and taken in by one of your families. Scarlett was her name.” He raised his hands and shrugged. “Amazing, isn’t it?”

  William felt frozen into position, unable to move or speak, as he attempted to process what Vale had told him.

  Unaware of William’s shock, Captain Summers said, “Why is Walter so afraid of this getting out?”

  “Isn’t it obvious? The Poisonwoods have spent decades building their reputation. What do you think would happen if their people found out that it was all built on a lie, a cover up and a murder?” Vale hissed.

  “How can you be so sure that Walter killed this girl? Where’s the proof? For all we know a traveller did barge in and attack her. All you have is the word of Amelya which came from the drunken grandfather. It seems suspicious to me,” the Captain retaliated, “and I’m sure our people will understand that what’s passed is passed. Times have changed, Vale.”

  “Are you sure? They will find out that Walter has been sitting on this secret for years, lying to them. I don’t imagine they’ll be too happy with that.”

  “He didn’t know though. He only found out when you revealed it to him. How do we know that any of this is true? You could have made it up!”

  “Well, how about you and your army go back to Poisonwood and look for the girl? The child who was found in the snow? I’m sure you can remember that far back - around twenty three years ago?”

  “I remember,” the Captain said, now quiet.

  William turned to look at Captain Summers fearfully.

  “I’m sure the girl could verify what she knows of her back story.” Vale looked pointedly at William, whose alarm was apparent in his eyes.

  He was sure that Vale knew something more. Had he sent spies after Scarlett? Did those men who attacked her know who she was? What if he sent more men after her? William looked back at Captain Summers. He really wasn’t sure how the city would respond to the story. Even if they tried to explain the blackmail and the fact that Walter had only just learned the truth about his father himself, the story was too complicated, too intricate to have been locked away all these years. Nobody would believe it and it wasn’t a risk that should be taken. The faith the city had in the Poisonwoods could be shattered, and who knew what would happen then? He needed to look into it himself.

  “This can’t get out, Gabe,” William said softly. “Not yet, anyway.” He turned to Vale. “But that doesn’t mean things are going to carry on as they were. You’re going to let my family go, along with the other prisoners. Things will go back to how they were before and you are going to stop this madness,” he told him forcefully.

  “Oh, but what does that leave me with? Not much really.”

  “You must be truly evil to be doing this. I don’t understand it and I pity you. I’m more than confident that you will get exactly what you deserve.”

  “But what do I get for now? I give up my prisoners and what do I have left?” Vale asked smoothly.

  William watched him, unsure how to proceed. “Why do you need my family?” He asked. “I don’t understand why you kidnapped them.”

  “You can’t answer a question with a question, William. Come on now. What do I get if I can’t keep the Poisonwoods? Land? Money? I’m a businessman. Offer me a deal.”

  “It’s not right for you to do this!” William shouted at Vale, as he leapt up and threw the table across the room.

  Captain Summers jumped up just as swiftly, summoning all his strength to hold William back. Vale remained sitting, as calm as ever.

  “Gabe, talking doesn’t work with him. I can’t do it anymore!” William cried. “Why do you need my family? What good does it do? My grandfather will keep quiet for you, you know that!”

  At this, Vale stood slowly and stepped closer to William. “Well, you see, my boy. That’s the thing. When you met with us all those weeks ago, Walter was unprepared to negotiate anymore. We would have been willing to release you on that very day if your grandfather had chosen to co-operate with us on the matter, but he chose not to. He wouldn’t negotiate, yet he was adamant that the story be kept secret or we go to way, so what could I do? You have to understand my dilemma.”

  “You’re insane,” William whispered, as hatred seethed out of every pore. “You let my family go right now, or I will kill you.”

  “Will,” Captain Summers said sharply, his voice panicked, but William didn’t hear.

  Vale remained unphased. “How about this then? A proposition. As the future leader of Poisonwood, I’m sure that you are of more importance to the city than your grandfather is. You’re certainly not like your ancestors, I’ll give you that much. In you I see intelligence and determination. Perhaps we could even unite our families. A match would be delightful! Yes, I like that.” Vale nodded thoughtfully and slowly paced around the room before speaking again. “I’ll release your family and we will keep the secret between us for now. On one condition.”

  “We’re not negotiating, Vale. We told you that,” Captain Summers muttered.

  “Well, if that’s going to be the case, then your dear mother is going to have to get used to the conditions in the city prison, because she is going to be there for a long time.”

  At this, William’s heart broke. He couldn’t bear the thought of his mother being kept prisoner any longer. She didn’t deserve it and though he was sure she was trying to be brave, William knew that wherever she was, she was scared and waiting for him to take her home.

  “What’s your condition?” William asked quietly, his head to the ground.

  “You re-join us. I’ll let your family go if you come back. And don’t run away this time.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous. You’re not having Will,” Captain Summers spat.

  “You be quiet!” Vale shouted. “Let the boy speak for himself.”

  “If I agree to this…if I promise I won’t escape again, you let my family and the Poisonwood prisoners go home and you leave Donald Kelby alone,” William said seriously. “Let the other men go back to their lives.”

  “Will, no! What are you doing?” Captain Summers marched between the pair, placing one hand upon Will’s chest to push him away.

  Vale rubbed at his bristled chin as he pondered the offer. “I’ll let your family go, but the prisoners are mine. I came about them in the fair way and I don’t want to let them go yet.”

  “Be open to negotiation then? As stated in the treaties?” William responded, not missing a beat.

  “Will, stop it. You don’t need to do this,” the Captain persisted.

  William watched impatiently as Vale feigned deep thought, before nodding slowly and
shrugging. “Okay. It’s a deal,” he murmured with a smile.

  “And you leave the girl alone,” William added.

  “The girl?”

  “Scarlett. Wherever she might be. Poisonwood, Silverwall or on the Outside - you leave her alone. Keep her out of this, okay?” William desperately hoped that he had not revealed anything in his words or his tone.

  “Fine,” Vale replied, uncaringly. “She wouldn’t be of use to us anyway.”

  “Okay. Good.” William nodded, doing all that he could to keep his breathing calm and steady. “So, will you let my family out right away? And provide them with an airship to see them home? Otherwise I’m bringing the Council of the Realm in and you’re going to see out your days in a prison a lot worse than this one.”

  “You bring them in and your secret is out. I’ll find a way,” Vale retaliated.

  “Either way, you would still be in trouble,” William said, forcing eye contact. “If you agree to everything I have said, then we'll keep the Council out of this.”

  “It’s a deal,” Vale said, holding up a thin hand. “But you leave it at this, okay? No more silly attacks. We let this lie and regular negotiations will resume.”

  William nodded slowly. He had no idea if he had done the right thing, but without this, he was sure that Victor would never have agreed to let his family go. Eventually the whole thing would come to rights somehow. The true story would be verified and his release would be negotiated, sooner rather than later. He righted the table and sat down, as Captain Summers and Victor Vale left the room to speak to their men. He was a prisoner.

  Sitting back on the old, creaking chair, William felt it immediately. He was in a separate world now. As thoughts swirled around, his mind rested on Scarlett. If the story was true, did this mean that they were distantly related? Leaning forward to rest on the table, he dropped his head down into his hands with a groan. Things were supposed to be resolved now. He had attempted to cut through the tangled mess that had been created by Vale, and William was sure that things would be better for Poisonwood now, but he hadn’t anticipated that he would be the sacrifice that needed to be made in order for peace to exist.