‘Come on, Alfie,’ Noura called, but Alfie was already walking back down the path.
‘Wrow, did I just see Grandpa Werewolf’s shadow,’ he growled to himself. ‘Maybe he’s here too?’ He looked left and right and walked around a bush. ‘It wouldn’t surprise me,’ he mumbled. ‘I think Grandpa Werewolf is keeping something secret.’ He stopped. Next to the shadow of a big tree there was a second shadow. A tall one with a big nose. Two big hairy feet were sticking out from behind the tree. They could only belong to one person, thought Alfie.
‘Wrow, Leo! What are you doing here?’
A big werewolf’s head poked out from behind the tree. It was Leo in his baggy overalls. He gave a crooked grin and waved cheerfully with a big black paw.
‘Hi, cuz wolf. Leo has to peekaboos what youse be doing.’
‘Who said so, Leo?’
‘Grandpa Werewolfy.’
‘Why?’
Leo shrugged. ‘I don’t nose, cuz wolf. I just sees and looks where youse be going.’
‘And what are you and Grandpa going to do then, Leo?’
Leo scratched his head and peered down his nose. ‘Then Leo goes with Grandpappa to get a trollipop, he thinks.’
‘A trolley? What for? Is Grandpa planning something secret?’
Leo stared at the tip of his nose. A moth was sitting on it.
‘Leo not be nosing that, cuz wolf. Maybe Grandpa Werewolfy all tired out and wants to sit in a trollipop to rest his old leggers?’
Leo was still peering at the insect on his nose.
‘Leo don’t nose nothing bout Grandpa’s secret plannings.’ He lashed out and brought his fist down on his nose. ‘Ow!’ Leo grabbed his nose with both hands and danced around in a circle. The moth fluttered off in the moonlight.
‘Ow, ow, ow. Stupid buttery fly!’
Alfie burst out laughing. ‘The poor little moth couldn’t help it, Leo. It’s just lucky to be alive. Hurry back to Grandpa Werewolf. Tell him we’re at the werewolf orphanage. He’ll know where it is.’
Leo nodded, his eyes crossed from the pain. ‘Leo goes and tells. See youse later, cuz wolf.’
Shaking his head, Alfie watched Leo walk off into the trees.
‘Wrow, a trolley! What do they want that for?’
Suddenly he heard a cry in the distance. Two cries! Alfie spun around and pricked up his ears. Tim and Noura …
24
Hush
What’s that? thought Alfie. Are they calling me? Is Olga there already?
He hurried back. He could see Tim and Noura in the distance. There was someone else with them. Someone large and angular. What now?
Alfie dropped on to all fours and crept closer, hugging the ground and slinking from bush to bush. He peered at Tim and Noura. The other person obviously wasn’t Olga. It was a fat, enormous werewolf instead.
The Big Box! Alfie realized. Mooma! He felt the shock through his whole body. She was wearing a dress and an apron, and glasses with very thick lenses. There were curlers in her hair.
Alfie heard her roaring voice. In the light of the moon her fangs glittered like shining daggers.
‘So! A werewolf orphan running around loose with an accomplice. You thought you could make a monkey out of Mooma! That was a mistake. You’re in for it now!’ The big werewolf reached out and grabbed Tim and Noura by the scruffs of their necks. ‘Oh, if only you knew how much Mooma loves her orphans.’
‘I’m no orphan,’ Noura growled. ‘Let go, you horrible werewolf … lady.’
‘Hush, quiet now, sweetie,’ Mooma said gently. ‘Orphan or not, you’re coming with me.’
Her voice changed into a furious snarl.
‘It’s your own fault for coming here.’
‘Ow,’ Tim bellowed, ‘my neck!’
Alfie had crept up behind a bush and was lying on his stomach. His heart was racing. He didn’t get it: sometimes Mooma’s voice sounded really mean, other times it was soft and gentle.
He watched the gigantic werewolf carry off Noura and Tim, who wriggled helplessly in her arms. Noura made a strangled squeaking sound.
Behind the bush, Alfie groaned. He wanted to help, but Mooma was big enough to take on six werewolves at once. There was nothing he could do.
Mooma carried Tim and Noura up the hill to the house.
‘Hush now, my darlings. I won’t leave you behind. You’re going to the icy cellar. To shiver with the others …’
25
Mooma Howls
Alfie crept on all fours, following Mooma as she stomped up the hill, a dark silhouette with the full moon behind her. Frogs leapt out of the way of her feet. Bats fluttered up and fled squeaking. Tim and Noura were clamped under her arms like two loaves of French bread.
Alfie saw Tim’s feet kicking and heard Noura growling and spluttering. The big werewolf ignored them and walked up the stone staircase of the werewolf orphanage. At the top, in front of the door, Mooma turned. Her daunting head moved from left to right. Alfie saw a yellow glow in her eyes and for a second he was afraid that Mooma was looking for him. He hugged the ground.
Then Mooma raised her head in the air, looked at the full moon and let out a bloodcurdling howl. A howl that was mixed with a sob.
Alfie shuddered, pressed his front paws over his ears and buried his muzzle in the grass. It was the most terrifying werewolf howl he had ever heard. It sounded so terribly sad.
Almost as sad as I felt when I touched the weeping stone, thought Alfie. How is that possible?
WHAM!
Alfie jumped and looked up. The door to the werewolf orphanage was shut. Mooma had disappeared into the house with Tim and Noura.
What now? Alfie panicked. What do I do?
Slowly he sneaked up the stone steps and tiptoed over to the door, where he carefully raised the flap of the letterbox. He peered in through the narrow opening. The long hall was in front of him, with the walls and floor lit up by the light of the moon. At the end of the hall he saw Mooma disappear with Tim and Noura.
Am I brave enough to go inside? thought Alfie, wavering. No, I’m not brave enough. But I have to! He swallowed, grabbed the doorknob and quietly opened the door.
26
The Icy Cellar
The moon was shining brightly through the windows. Cautiously, Alfie crept down the hall, past the door of the Secret Room. The people in the paintings glowered down at him.
Alfie stopped for a moment to look at the portraits. Only now did he notice that the men and women had pointy ears as well as bushy sideburns and hairy faces.
I didn’t pay much attention last time, he thought. They look a lot hairier now.
Suddenly he figured it out. Of course! They were portraits of werewolves! Very ancient werewolves, maybe even from hundreds of years ago.
Strange! thought Alfie. Have werewolves always lived here? He scratched his head. It doesn’t matter, he thought. I have to find Tim and Noura.
On tiptoe, he ran down to the dark end of the hall, where Mooma had disappeared into the darkness with Tim and Noura. A curving staircase led downwards.
So I have to go down the stairs too, thought Alfie. He wasn’t keen. Who knows what’s waiting for me down there in the darkness, he thought, looking around. There was no one in sight. Just the eyes in the portraits following him.
Alfie swallowed, then cautiously started down the stairs, one foot at a time. With every step it grew colder and darker. At the bottom of the stairs there was a wooden door. Alfie pressed his ear against it and heard vague sounds on the other side. He couldn’t make out any words.
Tim and Noura are behind this door, he thought. This must be Mooma’s icy cellar! A freezing draught blew past his hairy feet. Gently he pushed the door slightly open. A wave of cold air rose up to meet him from the inky darkness. He took a quick step back. Are they down there? He hoped not.
Again he peered through the opening. Suddenly a light flared up. Alfie saw more steps, stone this time, leading further down. Standing at the bottom w
as Mooma. She’d lit a candle and the flame cast a circle of light around her. Her shadow on the rough stone wall was enormous.
Alfie held his breath as he looked down through the crack. He jumped when Mooma’s voice suddenly boomed through the cellar. It was so loud that, for a moment, Alfie thought she was talking to him.
‘Wake up, little orphans. Look. Mooma caught two busybodies. They can keep you company in the icy cellar.’
The scruffy werewolf orphans were sitting in the circle of light. By the looks of them, they’d been sitting in the dark for a long time. They rubbed their eyes and blinked at the unexpected glare.
Alfie made out the hairy faces of Igor, Olga and the other orphans. They were all shivering. Where’s Noura, he thought. And Tim? He squinted, peered hard and finally spotted them, lying on the floor at Mooma’s hairy feet. The reflected candlelight glinted in their frightened eyes.
Then one of the orphans stood up.
‘M-m-may I p-p-please leave the c-c-cellar now, Mooma?’
Olga! thought Alfie. That’s Olga’s voice. He could see her trembling.
‘I l-l-lured them here for you. M-may I go?’
Alfie couldn’t believe his ears. Olga had lured them into a trap!
27
Betrayed
Stunned, Alfie peered at Olga through the crack. The candlelight danced over her muzzle and blonde werewolf fur. Alfie saw Tim and Noura staring at her in disbelief too.
Olga has betrayed us, thought Alfie. She pretended to be a friend. I thought she was sweet, but she’s not! What a nasty, sickening trick! Noura was right. We shouldn’t have trusted her.
‘M-may I l-leave now?’ Olga asked again. Alfie saw Mooma bend over her.
‘Leave the icy cellar? You? Forget it,’ she snarled. ‘Sit! You stay here, just like the rest. Is that all right, dear little orphan girl?’
Shivering, Olga sat back down on the stone floor. The other werewolves didn’t say a word. They seemed numb from the cold … or fear. Mooma’s voice echoed through the cellar.
‘No one’s leaving this cellar. Ever again. We’ll turn to stone here together.’ There was a sob in her voice and she sniffed loudly. She sat down on the bottom steps of the stone staircase. ‘Mooma’s doing this for your own good, dear little orphans,’ she said in a voice that was suddenly kind and gentle. ‘You do understand that, don’t you?’
Alfie saw the orphaned werewolves looking at each other.
‘Um, are you going to start being nice again, like in the old days?’ asked Igor.
Mooma shook her head. ‘Nice? Mooma has to be hard as nails to protect you poor orphans from the cruel world, so you don’t suffer like Mooma. Mooma’s heart feels cold and lonely with a great sorrow locked up inside. A forgotten sorrow that hurts and burns like ice-cold fire.’
Mad, thought Alfie. This werewolf is completely bonkers! His heart was pounding. What do I do now? If only I could ask Tim for advice. And … Suddenly he heard Noura’s voice.
‘Please, Mrs Mooma, can Tim leave? He’s not a werewolf like us …’
Alfie felt a lump in his throat.
Wow, Noura is so brave, he thought. She really is the best!
‘What’s that got to do with anything?’ Mooma snarled. ‘The human child stays here with us. He could betray us! No … no one is leaving! You will all stay here for ever!’
Again he heard Noura’s voice.
‘For ever? What do you mean by that, Mrs Mooma?’
For a second it stayed deathly quiet. Alfie could hear the silence rustling. Then Mooma answered with a sob.
‘For ever. So that the cruel world can’t hurt us ever again.’ Mooma blew out the candle, plunging them into immediate darkness. Alfie jumped when he suddenly heard Mooma’s footsteps stomping up the staircase.
She was already at the door …
28
Panic
Alfie spun around. Sweat was running past his hairy ears and down his neck.
Out of here! he thought. He could already hear Mooma’s snorting and snuffling. He ran up the stairs as fast as he could and into the hall. He could see the front door in the distance, but it suddenly seemed a very long way away.
I won’t make it, thought Alfie. Oh no, what do I do now? He could hear Mooma’s footsteps on the stairs. He heard her growling and puffing. In a panic, Alfie looked around. The werewolves in the paintings seemed to have mocking smiles on their faces. A glow was burning in their eyes. Between the paintings was the door of the WSO Secret Room.
Alfie looked back. One of Mooma’s paws appeared around the corner. No time to think. Into the room it was! Alfie pushed the door open and slipped inside.
The room looked just like it had the previous evening. The curtains in front of the tall windows were open and the moon was shining in. Quickly, Alfie closed the door behind him, waiting and listening. He couldn’t hear any noise on the other side of the door. Was Mooma still there? Or had she moved on? Alfie was too scared to open the door to check.
He looked at the paintings. They were all portraits of werewolves. The wall opposite him didn’t have any paintings on it. It was the wall with the trees.
‘Wrow! They’re the pedi-trees Noura was talking about. With names and photos and …’ Alfie gasped. Written on one of the trees was his name: Alfie Span. And next to it was a photo. A photo of him …
29
A Fanlight
Alfie walked up to the wall and stared at the tree, touching the photo with one claw.
That … that’s me! he thought. An ordinary photo of me as a boy. What’s going on? How do they know my name? Where’d they get that photo?
His eyes glided over the tree. The name Alfred Spanman was written on the trunk and there were lots of other names on the branches: Paul Spanman, Stephanie Buckler, Elizabeth Spanman, Jerome Brewster, Ricardo Spanman. And it went on like that. Some of the names didn’t have a photo next to them.
They must be really old, thought Alfie. At least fifty years or so. From the days before photos were invented, I guess.
On the outside branch, Spanman changed into Span. Alfie stared at it disbelievingly.
Are all these people related to me? he wondered. My great-great-great-grand-fathers and mothers? He scratched his head.
‘Wrow, I’ve never heard of them. Is Grandpa Werewolf here too somewhere?’
There was a photo of a young man with a hat, but he was called Grimbeard. And there was a photo of someone called Ludwig Span.
I don’t know either of them, thought Alfie.
Next to the photo of the young man with the hat there was a small portrait of a young woman. She looked sweet, with flowers in her hair.
I don’t know her either, thought Alfie, bending forward to read her name.
Suddenly there was a noise in the hall. Alfie turned back to the door in fright, bumping a chair and knocking it over with a bang. The footsteps stopped at the door.
Sugar! thought Alfie. Mooma! Wro-oh! She must have heard me.
His eyes flashed around the room. There was only one way out. One of the fanlights was open, but it was way up above the tall window. Much too high … for an ordinary boy.
But not for a werewolf, thought Alfie. I can climb like a, um … monkey. I think.
But there was no time left to think. The door was already opening. Alfie dug his claws into the red velvet curtain and quickly pulled himself up. Rish, rish, rish. His claws ripped into the fabric, but three seconds later he reached the fanlight and dived through it.
Landing in front of the window, he saw Mooma in the room, staring at the knocked-over chair. He caught a glimpse of her turning her head towards the window, then he was on the ground and pressing himself up against the wall.
Did she see me? he thought. He peered up past the window ledge and saw Mooma appear at the window. He lay there quiet as a mouse.
If she looks down, he thought, she’ll see me, but Mooma didn’t look down. She looked up at the full moon. Tears gleamed on her hairy cheeks.
Her fierce wolf’s howl could be heard through the glass. Alfie shivered and screwed up his eyes.
Why is she howling? From anger? Or from sorrow? He didn’t dare move. Mooma could discover him at any moment. Alfie waited … and waited.
Suddenly there was a strange sliding noise. Followed by loud rattling. Alfie couldn’t hold back any longer, he crept forward and looked up.
The window was no longer visible. It was now covered by heavy metal shutters.
Oh, no, she’s closing up the house, thought Alfie. Sealing it off. Nobody will be able to get out any more! Not Tim and not Noura either. He leapt up and ran off without looking back. He could only think of one thing.
30
The Dentmobile
I have to get help! Alfie thought, racing through the forest as fast as he could go. Trees whizzed past. His feet slid over rocks, grass and branches. Above his head, the full moon floated along behind him. And meanwhile the song wind reached his ears:
A vampire too can feel the pain
In a stony heart that beats no more
But if he sees his love again
That heart will beat just like before
‘Wrow, go away, wind, with your stupid songs,’ Alfie growled. ‘I don’t want to listen to you. I have to get help for Tim and Noura before it’s too late.’ He ran along the bank of Silver River, which was babbling quietly in the moonlight. He could already see Dad’s tent. Alfie ran around it.
‘Dad, Dad, help!’ he shouted. ‘We have to …’ He fell silent in astonishment.
Tim’s father was sitting on the ground in front of the tent with a hammer and chisel between his feet. The kangaroo tea cosy was crooked on his head and he was staring into space with a miserable expression on his face.
Alfie the Werewolf 6: Werewolf Secrets Page 5
