Children of the Red King Book 01 Midnight for Charlie Bone

by Jenny Nimmo

  "Charlie!" Dr. Bloor spoke his name as if it were a bad mistake. "After supper we have two hours of homework. Endowed children work in the King's room." He paused for several seconds, staring around at the silent and motionless crowd of children. And then, in a thunderous tone that made Charlie jump, he commanded, "Disperse!" 178

  "Where's the King's room?" Charlie asked desperately as Fidelio leaped up from the bench.

  "Follow Gabriel," Fidelio advised, "or Billy Raven - he's easy to spot. I've got to go now, Charlie. We have to be in our classrooms in three minutes. See you tonight!"

  Fidelio was swept away on a tide of colored capes as children surged toward the end of the dining hall. Charlie searched frantically for Billy Raven's white head. But the tiny albino was hidden in the mass of jostling children. At last Charlie spotted him. He was weaving his way very expertly between the others, and it took Charlie some time to catch up with him.

  "Hi!" said Charlie, grabbing the end of Billy's cape. "Can I come with you? I don't know where the King's room is."

  "Not many people do," said Billy grinning. "It'll take you a while to remember the way but I'll be your guide as long as you want." Charlie barely had time to murmur his thanks before Billy was off. First to the lockers to pick up books

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  and pens, and then back across the hall, down a passage, turning a corner and leaping up a staircase. At last they arrived at a pair of tall black-painted doors. Billy pushed one of the doors and they stepped into a strange circular room. Ten children sat at a round table. Manfred and Asa were there; Gabriel Silk sat between Emilia Moon and a plump, curly-haired girl who looked so normal it was hard to believe she was one of the endowed. A large, muscular girl contrasted strangely with the small, slight girl sitting next to her. Beside them, a dark girl with a long, sharp nose stared disdainfully at Charlie, and he felt his heart sinking. How much time would he have to spend with this unfriendly-looking bunch? He wished Fidelio and Olivia were part of the group.

  Two boys sat with their backs to the door and one looked back as Charlie came in. He had chiseled, African features and the warmest smile Charlie had seen for a long time.

  "This is Charlie!" said Billy Raven.

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  "Hi, Charlie, I'm Lysander," said the dark boy with the big smile. Some of the girls introduced themselves. Dorcas was plump and cheerful, Beth very large. Bindi was tiny and Zelda had the long nose. Emilia Moon didn't even lift her head.

  Charlie's relief at seeing a few friendly faces was short-lived.

  "Sit down, Charlie Bone. And be quiet!" Manfred nodded at an empty chair on the other side of Emilia Moon. Billy sat beside Lysander. As Charlie fumbled with his books, wondering where to start, he felt Manfred's coal-black eyes on him. He wanted to take a better look around the room, but dared not glance up until he was sure Manfred's dangerous stare was directed back at his book. When at last Charlie managed to take a quick look at his surroundings, he found someone else watching him, or rather goggling at him - the only person in the room whose face he hadn't seen.

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  The boy was older than Charlie, maybe twelve or thirteen. He had round startled eyes and his yellow hair stood up stiffly as though an electric current had passed through it. Charlie frowned, hoping the boy would look away but he didn't. In fact Charlie's fierce expression only seemed to intrigue him. In the end it was Charlie who had to look away Instead of starting his homework, his gaze slid up to the wall behind the yellow-haired boy And there he was, the Red King. He stared out from a gold-framed painting, which must have been very old. The paint had cracked and faded so badly that the features on the long, dark face were blurred and misty except for the eyes - black and magnetic. The cloak he wore was a rich, velvety red and the slim crown on his dark hair had a mysterious golden sparkle.

  "Charlie Bone!"Manfred's voice made Charlie start. "Why aren't you working?"

  "I was looking at the Red King," said Charlie, avoiding Manfred's gaze.

  "It is the Red King, isn't it?"

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  "Of course! Get back to work!"

  Manfred kept his eyes on Charlie, until Charlie opened his English book. For the next two hours no one spoke. There were sighs and grunts, coughs and sneezes, all around Charlie, but no words. In a dark corner a clock ticked and chimed every quarter hour. Pages turned, pens squeaked, and Charlie was in danger of falling asleep.

  At last the clock chimed eight o'clock and Manfred stood up. "You may go!" he said, and he walked out of the room with Asa loping behind him. Charlie gathered his books together and went over to Billy Raven. "Who's the boy with the yellow hair?" he whispered.

  The boy in question had just left the room with his green cape flying around him, as though caught by a mysterious breeze.

  "Oh, that's Tancred," said Billy "He can be a bit stormy Come on, I'll show you the way to the dormitories."

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  Their journey took them up so many staircases and along so many passages, Charlie began to wonder if he'd ever find his own way back for breakfast. At last they arrived in a bleak, low-beamed room with bare floors and a single, dim light.

  There were six beds, placed uncomfortably close to one another, on both sides of the long room. The beds were narrow and covered with woolen blankets. There was a chair at the end of each one and a small cabinet against the wall between them. Charlie was relieved to see Fidelio sitting on a bed at the end of the room.

  "Over here, Charlie!" Fidelio sang out. "You're next to me." He pointed to a bed.

  Charlie went over and dumped his bag on a chair.

  "Capes on the hooks beside us, the rest of your stuff in the drawers." Fidelio lowered his voice. "And look who's on your other side. You'll be able to get a look at his cape."

  Charlie saw Gabriel Silk pushing clothes into a bedside 184

  cabinet. He didn't remove the cape, however, even when he went into the bathroom.

  "Very suspicious," said Fidelio. "Have you got a flashlight?" Charlie hadn't been thinking about flashlights when he packed his bag.

  ?A flashlight is an essential item," Fidelio told him. ?You can read after lights out and find your way around. It's so dark in here at night, you can't see a thing." He took a slim blue flashlight from a drawer and handed it to Charlie. "You'll need that to see the cape," he said. "Put it under your pillow"

  Charlie was the last boy to get ready for bed. It took him some time to unpack his bag and find everything he needed for the night. He was embarrassed about the bears on his pajamas, but when he saw that somebody had squirrels on theirs, bears didn't seem so bad. He had just hopped into bed when a hand came in the door and switched off the light. "Silence!" said a harsh female voice. The hand retreated, the door closed, and the dormitory was plunged into darkness. 185

  There was something familiar about the voice, but Charlie couldn't quite place it.

  "Who was that?" he whispered to Fidelio.

  "Matron," said Fidelio, "the nearest thing a woman can get to a dragon." There was a great deal of snuffling and rustling as the boys tried to get comfortable in their hard, narrow beds. Charlie waited until the noises had died down. In the bed beside him, Gabriel Silk was breathing deeply He seemed to be asleep.

  Charlie took out the flashlight and swung his feet to the floor. Making sure the flashlight was trained on the wall, he switched it on. The blue cape was right in front of him. He lifted it down from Gabriel's hook and saw the initials sewn inside the collar.

  "It's mine," Charlie whispered.

  Fidelio was sitting up in bed. "Take it," he said softly "Quickly" Charlie took Gabriel's tattered cape and replaced it with his own. He was about to hang the old cape on Gabriel's hook when there was a howl of panic.

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  "No!" cried Gabriel, leaping up and tearing at the cape. "You can't do this. Please! Please take it!" He flung the cape with the slashed corner on Charlie's bed.

  Charlie laid the flashlight on his pillow where it cast a soft glow aroun
d his bed. "That one is yours," said Charlie. "I don't want it."

  "You don't understand. I can't wear it, I can't. It's full of... of horror. Its fear drags me down." Gabriel sank onto his bed and covered his face with his hands.

  "What are you talking about, Gabriel Silk?" Fidelio asked in a harsh whisper. "Why should Charlie give you his cape?"

  "Because I can't wear that one." Gabriel nodded at the older cape.

  "Something dreadful happened to the person who wore it before me. I can feel it, you see. It's like wearing a nightmare."

  Charlie began to understand. "Is that your endowment, Gabriel?You can feel things that have happened?"

  Gabriel nodded. "I get it from the things people have worn. It's horrible. If my clothes aren't brand-new I get all these feelings that don't belong to me.

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  Other people's worries. Sometimes I get happiness, but even that's no good because it's not true happiness and it doesn't last. At the beginning of the semester I had a brand-new cape, but my gerbils attacked it and Mom had to get me another one."

  Charlie couldn't help being curious. "How many gerbils do you have?" he asked.

  "Fifty-three," said Gabriel miserably "They ate almost all of it. We haven't got much money so Mom asked the academy if they could give me a secondhand cape. They gave me that one."

  By now the whole dormitory was wide awake. One of the boys at the end of the row said, "I bet it belonged to that girl who was lost in the ruin. She must have been pretty terrified."

  "I think we should be quiet or Matron will come in and we'll all get detention," said another voice.

  Charlie didn't know what to do. How could he make Gabriel wear someone else's nightmare?

  "I'll do anything for you, anything," Gabriel whispered. "But please don't make me wear that cape."

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  Charlie took down his new cape and handed it to Gabriel.

  "Thanks! Thanks, Charlie!" Gabriel hugged it gratefully

  "There is something you can do for me," Charlie said softly He opened one of his drawers and took out the tie his mother had given him. "Can you tell me anything about the person who wore this?" He passed the tie to Gabriel.

  Gabriel didn't ask any questions. He wound the tie around his neck and closed his eyes. He ran his fingers down the length of the blue silk and touched the small gold "Y" at the end of the tie. A shadow crossed his long face. "It's very strange," he murmured. "Whoever wore this tie was happy once, but now he's lost." He took the tie from his neck and ran it through his fingers. "I've never felt anything like this before. It's as if the person doesn't know who he is." He passed the tie back to Charlie. At least his father had been happy once. Charlie assumed 189

  that "lost" meant dead. He put the tie in his drawer. He hadn't learned very much.

  He was about to turn off the flashlight when a small figure appeared at the foot of Gabriel's bed; his white hair was a pale blur in the darkness.

  "Can you tell me about this person?" Billy whispered. He put a long blue scarf on Gabriel's blanket.

  Gabriel sighed but he didn't object. He draped the scarf around his neck and once more closed his eyes. "Well, this person was always in a hurry" he said. "Here, there, everywhere. He just couldn't stop," he paused,

  "and now, I'm afraid, he's dead." He took off the scarf.

  "Nothing else?" Billy Raven begged. "Didn't he say anything?"

  "I'm sorry it doesn't work like that," Gabriel said regretfully "I don't hear voices. And when people die the messages get much weaker."

  "I see. Thank you." Billy's sad voice echoed in the darkness as he tiptoed away

  Charlie turned off the flashlight, leaned over, and

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  tucked it under Fidelio's pillow. Fidelio had fallen asleep. His quiet breathing made Charlie yawn and then, suddenly he was wide awake. Something Gabriel had said didn't make sense.

  "Gabriel," he whispered. "My father wore that tie. He died when I was two. Why did you say he was lost?"

  "Because he is," said Gabriel's sleepy voice.

  "Do you mean dead?"

  "No, I mean lost. Definitely not dead."

  Charlie stared into the darkness. He listened to the soft breathing that filled the unseen spaces all around him, knowing that he would be lying there, listening, for hours to come. "Not dead?" he whispered. "Gabriel, are you sure?"

  "Quite sure," Gabriel murmured with a yawn. "Good night, Charlie!" 191

  SKELETONS IN THE CLOSET

  Charlie woke up with a dry throat and sore eyes. He had only slept for an hour. He resigned himself to wearing Gabriel's tattered cloak. After all, it wasn't going to give him nightmares.

  Gabriel and Fidelio waited while Charlie tried to untangle his hedge of hair, but after five minutes they all agreed that Charlie's combing wasn't having much effect.

  "If we don't go soon, you'll only get the burned pieces of bacon," Fidelio warned.

  Charlie was starving. He threw down his comb and hurried down to breakfast with the others. He was | glad of their company for he'd never have found his way down to the bottom floor without them. Gabriel was so happy wearing Charlie's cloak, he looked like a different person. In fact, he was all smiles. He even walked faster, now that he had cast off those horrible, frightening feelings.

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  Breakfast was oatmeal, burned bacon, and a mug of tea.

  "Do we get this every day?" Charlie asked, trying to swallow a lump of oatmeal.

  "Every day" said Fidelio.

  Charlie tried not to think about Maisie's big breakfasts. His second day at the academy was not as bad as his first. With Fidelio's help and sometimes Gabriel's, Charlie managed to find all his classes. On the third day he even found his way to the garden by himself. Friday arrived. The day Charlie had been dreading. When classes were over he sat on his bed and watched Fidelio pack.

  "What happens in here," Charlie asked, "when everyone else has gone home?"

  "You're pretty much left to yourself," said Fidelio. "There's nothing to worry about. Manfred will be about, of course, but you won't be alone. Olivia's got detention too, remember, and Billy Raven never goes home, because he hasn't got one. I'll go and see

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  Benjamin and collect the case you want me to hide and at, let's see, half past eleven on Saturday I'll come and wave to you. I'll give you the thumbs up if we've managed to move the case."

  Charlie was tempted to tell Fidelio about the baby but now wasn't the time. "How will I see you?" he asked glumly

  "Go to the music tower. Olivia will show you. I'll wave at the window facing the street on the second floor, and then you'll only have four hours to go before you're out."

  Charlie sighed.

  "Cheer up!" Fidelio patted Charlie's shoulder and picked up his bag. Charlie followed his friend downstairs and watched him swing his bag toward the tall oak doors. They were open now, and children rushed through them, eager for a weekend of freedom.

  Fidelio turned and gave a quick wave. He was almost the last to leave. Charlie had a desperate urge to rush through the doors before they closed. He took a

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  few paces forward, glanced quickly around him, and increased his pace.

  "Give up, Bone!"

  Charlie whirled around. Manfred Bloor was standing in a shadowy recess halfway down the hall.

  "Did you think no one was watching you, eh?"

  "I didn't think anything," Charlie said.

  "Take your homework to the King's room and stay there until you hear the dinner bell." As Manfred spoke, the two massive doors closed and his voice echoed across the empty hall.

  "OK," Charlie muttered.

  "Say ?Yes, Manfred,? none of this 'OK' stuff."

  "Yes, Manfred."

  Charlie found Olivia and Billy chatting in the library

  "We don't have to be silent when Manfred's not here," Billy said happily Charlie wondered how Billy survived, imprisoned in Bloor's week after week, all alone in the da
rk dormitory when everyone else had gone home.

  "Do you ever get out of here?" he asked Billy 195

  animals."

  "Cook has a dog," said Billy "It's very old, but it's friendly and there are - mice - and things."

  "You can hardly talk to a mouse," said Charlie. Billy was silent. He looked down at his book and began to read. The round lenses in his reading glasses made his eyes look like two huge red lamps. All at once he muttered, ?Actually I can."

  "Can what?" asked Olivia.

  Billy cleared his throat. "Talk to mice."

  "Really?" Olivia closed her book. "That's fantastic. Is it your thing? You know, your endowment."

  Billy nodded.

  "Does that mean you can understand them as well?" asked Charlie. Slowly and solemnly Billy nodded again.

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  Charlie gave a low whistle. Benjamin had often said he wished he knew what Runner Bean was saying. "Could you come and talk to my friend's dog?" he asked Billy

  Billy didn't reply He stared at Charlie with a bewildered expression.

  "Perhaps that would be frivolous," said Charlie. "Sorry I shouldn't have asked."

  "Please don't tell anyone. I can't talk to everybody's pet. Animals have so many languages. It's very tiring listening to them." Charlie and Olivia swore not to tell a soul. They returned to their books, but after a while Charlie became aware that Billy was neither working nor reading, he was just gazing into space.

  "Can I tell you something?" Billy asked.

  Olivia and Charlie both said, "Yes."

  "It happened a week ago. I was on my way to the garden after tea. Manfred had been talking to someone. I don't know who it was, but I heard a girl crying in the prefects' room."

  "Not me," said Olivia.

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  "Not you," Billy agreed. "But like I said, it was a girl, and she was crying, so I knew someone was in bad trouble. I suppose I'd slowed down a bit to listen, because Manfred suddenly stormed out and knocked me over. He told me I was blind and stupid and other horrible things, and that I was to go into the garden at once."