Jenna glared at him with pursed lips. “You’re the stupidest thing anyone’s ever heard.”
“It was black magic. They wanted a child,” Gemma said.
“Black magic?” Jenna turned on her sister this time, horrified. “They would never!”
What followed next was a three-way of mostly shouting and some name-calling. They were arguing over how the Zarlocks died. Tom thought the answer was obvious. It was the Le Fays. Who else could it have been?
“You thought pixies and fairies were cousins,” Jenna said to Saafir.
“Maybe they are.”
“No, they are not.”
“They look like they should be.”
“Oh. My. God.” Jenna held her hands in front of her face and clawed at thin air through gritted teeth.
“The Le Fays killed the Zarlocks,” Tom said.
The three of them turned to look at him, surprised. He hadn’t really participated in their injudicious debate. Maybe they had forgotten he was still there.
“How do you know?” Gemma asked pointedly.
He wondered if they were going to have another one of those things, him and her. Where she says really rude things, calls him an ape, and then he shouts at her. He hoped not. The first time wasn’t that enjoyable...
“He’s right,” Jenna said. “Well, maybe not right. But we’re all wrong. It wasn’t a poisoned apple or black magic or old age that killed the Zarlocks. They were murdered. Tom saw it.”
The old man walking towards the thing, knowing it was after him. The bodies lying on the bed, covered in blood. It had killed them.
“What happens now?”
“We need to go there,” Jenna said. “To the House of Zarlock,” she added.
He was glad she had used the word “we”. He wasn’t too keen on avenging the Zarlocks alone.
“Where is it?”
“Camelot,” Gemma said indignantly.
Of course it was.
“How do we get there?”
Chapter 20
Leaning back in his chair, staring absently out the window, Tom sat in Master Hickey’s history class. Two weeks had passed, and they still hadn’t figured out a way to get to the House of Zarlock. He’d had the dreams another five times. No more dead bodies, just him running away from it.
The dreams were becoming more frequent. And they were taking a toll on his health. The pain lasted longer each morning, and even though he was constantly tired, he struggled to sleep every night.
“The Werewolves' War,” Master Hickey said. “Who can tell me something about it?”
The twins’ hands shot up, as usual. But he ignored them and explored the class, looking for someone else.
“Saafir.” Master Hickey pointed at him.
Saafir, who, with quill in hand had been steadily etching an eagle onto his desk, looked up startled. “Sir?”
“Tell me something about the Werewolves' War.”
“Uh, we battled the wolves?”
Master Hickey nodded and waited expectantly for more, but none came. Saafir returned to his piece of art, satisfied with his contribution.
“I guess that is telling me something... Maybe I should have been more specific,” the teacher muttered. “Can anyone tell me how the war started?”
The twins’ hands were still up, and after searching the class and not finding any more, he turned to them reluctantly.
“The wolves came from the west one day, thousands of them, biting and killing witches and wizards, and everything else in their way,” one said.
“The wizards were quickly overrun. They had never seen wolves before. They didn’t know how to fight them. They were losing. But one day the wolves just stopped. They dispersed into small packs and fled back westward, from where they came,” the other said.
Tom didn’t know his Atlantis history that well, but he did know the twins' answer covered more than what had been asked. They were like that in class, always adding little titbits of information and answering questions that might have followed.
Master Hickey didn’t seem to mind though and he nodded agreeably. “And that is where they still are to this day,” he said. “Once you have finished with school, some of you will head for the wild west, to the Line of Control. You will come face to face with werewolves. What you learn today could very well save your life. What you need to remember most is that the wolves were never defeated. They simply turned and ran. Why, no-one knows. They live in small packs now, and they are easy to keep away, but if they were ever to regroup they would be a force to reckon with, even with wizards united.”
***
Another day of classes finished. Tom and Saafir walked down the corridor against the flow of children. They stepped out through the back of the school and onto the path that led down the hill to the tree house.
Tom hadn’t taken many steps on the stony path before he felt someone grab him by the back and push. He tumbled to the ground, scraping his knees. He turned and looked up. A big tall boy stood over him. Tom scrambled back before he stood up cautiously.
“Breeder,” the giant grinned.
“What do you want?” Saafir asked warily.
Tom recognised him. The boy had pushed him to the ground once before and then stepped on his hand. He wasn’t alone. Fredrick, Malcolm and Andre stepped out from behind him.
“Rufus here is going to teach this Breeder a lesson,” Fredrick announced.
“Couldn’t do it yourself?” Saafir asked. “You need this big,” he pointed disgustedly at Rufus, “lump of meat to help you?”
Tom thought it great that Saafir didn’t seem fazed by Rufus, but he wondered if it really was necessary to call him that. Lumps of meat could hurt you. Was it wise to antagonise the giant?
“Walk away, Malik,” Fredrick said. “This isn’t your battle.”
“What’s your father’s name, Rufus?” Saafir ignored Fredrick.
The grin disappeared from Rufus’s face. “My father’s name?” he asked, confused. He took a step back and looked at Fredrick uncertainly.
“Yes you big idiot. You do know his name?”
“I don’t want to beat the Breeder,” Rufus said, suddenly terrified. Glancing over his shoulder, he took a few more steps back.
“What’s going on here?”
The twins, Gemma and Jenna, were standing next to Tom. It was as if they had appeared out of thin air. But they couldn’t have, could they?
It was suddenly four against three and one very scared-looking giant. The odds still didn’t favour Tom. There was no guarantee the twins would help if a fight broke out. But Fredrick didn’t know that.
“I’ll see you around, Breeder.”
Fredrick turned and walked back into the school. Malcolm and Andre trailed after him. Rufus mumbled an apology and darted after them.
“What was that all about?” Jenna asked.
“How did you get here?” Tom asked, bewildered.
“We walked... We were in the tree house, waiting for you. We have a plan.”
They had a plan? They were both smiling. Tom had never seen Gemma smile before. He always imagined she would look scary if she did, that that would be the difference between the two girls. But he was wrong. She didn’t look scary. She had a nice smile.
***
They were in the tree house. The twins sat on the bed, Saafir on the sofa and Tom pulled out a chair. They had already agreed on what to do, it was the how they were struggling with. Apparently you couldn’t just grab a carriage and ask the driver to take you there.
“We fly,” Jenna said. “Brooms,” she added triumphantly.
“We don’t have brooms.”
“Caretaker Byrne does. He keeps them in one of his sheds.”
A smile broke across Saafir’s face. “Have you ever flown?”
Jenna shook her head. “How hard can it be?” she asked.
“Hard enough,” Saafir said under his breath. “What do we do once we’re there? We can’t just walk in – the house
closed and became their tomb.”
Tom had heard that phrase uttered before – the house closed and became their tomb. He couldn’t remember if he had asked what it meant. He was never this bad at remembering. The lack of sleep was getting to him. He stared longingly at his bed. It looked so comfortable. Even with the twins sitting on it, he was sure he could find space there to snuggle up and drift off.
“It’ll open up for Tom,” Jenna said. “They are calling him.”
“When do we fly?” Saafir asked eagerly.
“We have to borrow the brooms first,” Jenna paused, “and then we need to learn how to fly.”
“So, a week from now?”
“No. Not a week from-”
“What did you guys mean when you said the house closed and became their tomb?” Tom interrupted.
“The house closed and became their tomb,” Gemma said. Her eyes bore into him. “It’s really not a complicated sentence.”
It was a good thing she didn’t talk much, Tom thought. She was glaring at him now, as if he had offended her, which, he reasoned, his mere presence probably did.
“They say the house is alive,” Jenna explained. “It closed its doors once the Zarlocks died. No-one could go in and there was no-one left to come out. The house became their tomb.”
“Their bodies are still in there?”
“Creepy, isn’t it?”
Yes, it was. Why was Saafir grinning? Somehow, this made it worse than standing in a graveyard at night with a shovel in hand. He didn’t know how, but it did.
“Why is Tom dreaming of them?” Gemma asked. “What’s so special about him? I mean, look at him.” She raised her and finger pointed in his direction. “He’s lumpy, his back is funnily shaped, his eyes have black patches around them, he isn’t even a proper wizard,” she muttered.
Tom was so glad she didn’t talk much... But it was a good question. Why him?
“Maybe that’s why,” Jenna said. “You’re the first wizard born to Wanderers.”
“About that,” Gemma looked at him critically, “Wanderers don’t give birth to wizards. That’s just stupid. So, what are you really?”
He didn’t know what he was. They had said he was a wizard. Apparently you could tell just by looking at one. And he believed them. It explained why Cindy and Karim and everyone else in Atlantis seemed so familiar. But Wanderers didn’t give birth to wizards. So, he was a freak of nature? Was that what she wanted him to say?
“Are you really smart for a Wanderer?” Jenna asked.
“Huh?”
“Do you use all of your brain?”
“I don’t know...” Tom said slowly, wondering why she was asking him that. It would have made sense had it come from Gemma. She was mean like that.
“Wanderers only use a small amount of their brain,” Jenna said. “Maybe you use all of yours? You might be the next step in Wanderer evolution?”
Oh.
Tom wasn’t exactly stupid. Back on the Other Side he did well in school. But so did quite a few others. He wasn’t a genius by any stretch of the imagination. And he certainly didn’t feel like an evolved version of Wanderers.
“Imagine what it would mean if you were,” Jenna continued. “The Le Fays would be pointless. Maybe that’s why the Zarlocks chose you?”
“We are not evolved apes,” Gemma scoffed, not looking at him. She continued, “And if that’s what Wanderers evolve to, then-”
“Then what?” Tom interrupted.
She turned to look at him. Her lips tightened and her eyes twitched. This was going to end with another shouting match. But he didn’t care. He had had enough of her holier-than-thou attitude.
But Gemma didn’t say anything. She simply stared – unblinkingly. Tom did the same, until he blinked. It felt silly to stare at each other after that and they both looked away, the tension broken.
It was decided. They would borrow brooms from Caretaker Byrne, learn how to fly and go to the House of Zarlock, the place where the bodies still lay. The twins were at the door, ready to leave. Tom remembered the moment when the old man had stood with his hand out and whispered the word.
“Sensavil, what was the spell for?” he asked.
“It let the user know who was around him, where they were, what they were, how many. Useful in times of war, or when under attack.” Jenna paused. “Or being chased,” she added.
Tom shuddered as he remembered that feeling of confusion, of disbelief after the old man uttered the word.
“Do you know what killed them?”
Tom shook his head. He didn’t know who or what had killed the Zarlocks, but he did know something. Whatever it was, it was very old. What if it was still there?
Chapter 21
Two weeks had passed since the twins put forth their plan to fly to the House of Zarlock. Two weeks and six dreams later, the four of them stood at the edge of the school building, overlooking the sheds and cottages at the bottom of the hill. Huddled together in the dark, they waited.
When Jenna said Caretaker Byrne had brooms in his shed, Tom didn’t imagine for a minute she meant to steal them. But here they were, late at night, watching and waiting for the right moment.
Caretaker Byrne lived in the largest of the cottages and the light from within it had only just disappeared. They were to wait an hour before they made their way down, the twins had agreed, to ensure that he really was asleep. It didn’t sound much like borrowing to Tom, but what did he know?
“We’re going to steal brooms from a flying swordsman?” Saafir asked.
“Borrow,” Jenna hissed irritably.
“You do know their hearing is really good?”
“He’s old.”
“It’s freakishly good.”
Jenna hesitated. “He’s very old.”
The twins had spent the past two weeks keeping an eye on Caretaker Byrne. It was to observe his routine so they would know when best to borrow the brooms. Apparently, the only thing he did that could count as a routine was sleep at night.
“An hour’s a long time, isn’t it?” Saafir asked.
“You just have to talk, don’t you?” Jenna said tetchily.
Tom and Saafir’s eyes met, both a little wide and brows raised. They had never seen Jenna like this before. She wasn’t her usual carefree-self. She seemed nervous, on edge, ready to explode – much like her sister’s normal persona. Incidentally, Gemma hadn’t said a word since they had met in the courtyard an hour after supper.
“What?” Jenna asked angrily. “You want to go down now?”
“No,” Saafir said quickly. “We can wait.”
And so they waited. An hour really was a long time, Tom concluded. More so when it was spent doing absolutely nothing.
“I think he might be asleep now,” Jenna finally spoke.
“He’s not the only one,” Saafir muttered.
Jenna led the way down, tiptoeing. It took forever, but no-one complained. Tom was all for taking every precaution. Caretaker Byrne seemed too serious a person to be caught by.
“Where should we look first?”
“That one.” Jenna pointed to the largest shed.
Tom was afraid she would say that. It was attached to Caretaker Byrne’s cottage. They tiptoed towards it, in a straight line, one after the other. Somehow, he had ended up at the front as they reached it. He closed his eyes and winced as he pushed the door, imagining the loud creaking noise it would make.
But it didn’t make any noise.
“It’s locked,” Tom whispered.
“Did you try the handle?”
He hadn’t even noticed a handle. But it was there and it was actually quite large. How had he missed that? He grabbed it and pulled. Nothing happened.
“I think it’s locked,” he whispered again.
Gemma stepped in front of him and kneeled on the floor as she rummaged through her bag. She pulled a book out and flipped through the pages until she found the right one. She placed her hand on the door handle, muttered som
ething unintelligible, and a moment later Tom thought he heard a clicking noise.
She pushed open the door and they followed her in. It was dark inside, but their eyes adjusted and he was glad Jenna had chosen this one to start with. Stacked on a shelf high at the top was a pile of brooms.
Tom watched enviously as the twins moved their hands like a conductor and brought the brooms down. They made it look so easy. It bugged him a little. He was still struggling with the torch in the tree house. It either burned or remained unlit for days on end.
They grabbed a broom each and made their way out of the shed as quietly as possible. Gemma locked the door behind them. They would keep the brooms in the tree house until they were no longer needed. Tom had agreed to that before he knew what “borrowing” really meant...
They tiptoed up the hill and into the school building. The twins led, lighting the dark corridors with their palms. They passed through the courtyard in the middle before taking a left, walking through a long corridor and coming out behind the school.
It was here they would practise, at the top of the hill overlooking Tom’s tree house. There was a sufficient stretch of open space and the stony path that led down the hill would glow in the moonlit night providing good visibility – according to the twins.
“So, it’s quite simple really,” Jenna said. She mounted the broom, putting it in-between her legs. “Once you’re in this position, you simply push with your feet, steer with this,” she jittered the handle, “lean forward to speed up and back to slow down.”
It seemed simple enough, but as Jenna stared ahead, looking focused, nothing happened. She was still on the ground. The broom hadn’t moved at all.
“What’s wrong?” Tom asked. “Why isn’t it working?”
“I haven’t kicked yet.”
“Why?” Saafir asked, smiling. “You’re not afraid, are you?”
Jenna didn’t reply. She took a deep breath, leaned forward and kicked with both her feet. The broom shot off the ground at speed. Saafir stared after her, no longer smiling. She was flying fast – too fast. The tree house had seemed a safe distance away, but not anymore.
The Other Side (Thomas Skinner Book 1) Page 10
