Leo pushed the trolley with the black statue closer. ‘Look, here’s Father Chiminny Christmas. Isn’t he nice and shiny and pitcherful black?’
‘What?’ said Mooma. ‘Who …’
Just then the black clouds drifted apart, revealing the full moon. Bright beams of moonlight shone down on the wet, black statue, making it gleam and shine. Mooma froze and seemed to have turned into a statue herself. Softly the song wind sang its tune between the rocks:
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
‘Armando!’ Mooma whispered.
43
Slippery
Alfie was still dangling over the chasm. He gripped Mooma’s arms and looked up at her anxiously.
‘Wrow, don’t drop me, please.’
Mooma was staring at the black statue on the cart and didn’t seem to hear. Then she shook her head and glared at Grandpa Werewolf.
‘That’s mean of you, Grimbeard. What good is a statue of Armando to me? My sorrow was too great for my heart. I even forgot what it was. But now I remember and that hurts even more!’ With a jolt, she turned back to the chasm.
‘Wrow!’ growled Alfie.
‘No!’ Tim and Noura cried in one voice.
‘Mooma, wait,’ crunched a deep voice, a stony voice, a gritty voice of granite. Mooma stiffened. Alfie peered past her elbow at the statue of Armando. The voice had come from the statue, he was sure of it. But … how?
Everyone was looking at the statue. Mum and Dad and the orphans too.
‘See, my statue wants to live,’ Dad whispered. ‘I had to hack him out before full moon. And I managed.’
‘I heard it too,’ Tim said happily. ‘Or is Grandpa Werewolf a secret ventriloquist?’
The statue of Armando was still standing motionless on the trolley. Alfie saw Mooma waver. She looked at Grandpa Werewolf.
‘Did I hear right, Grimbeard? Was that his voice? Is it possible that …’
Leo pushed the trolley a little further until it was close to the edge. Mooma turned around. Now she was holding Alfie with just one hand around his ankle so that Alfie was dangling upside down over the chasm. It didn’t make him feel any safer. Mooma stretched her other hand out to the statue.
‘Armando?’ she whispered. One claw touched the statue. She stroked the black stone.
In that instant a bright moonbeam hit that very spot and a shudder passed through the statue. The head jerked. CRACK! The rock started to split open. CRACK! It burst open in another place. Cracks spread like little rivers from top to bottom all over the statue. There were grinding and crunching sounds. Little by little, pieces of stone started to fall to the ground. The statue was slowly crumbling away. Everyone watched breathlessly. Even Alfie was holding his breath.
‘Look,’ Tim whispered. ‘Something is coming out of the stone.’
‘Not something,’ Noura said, ‘someone.’
Alfie stared at the figure in the black cape, standing there between the lumps of rock. He looked surprised, as if he had just woken up. His face was pale. His hair was grey. His eyes were red.
‘Thunderous thundering!’ growled Leo. ‘There be a vam-pirate in that stone. Like a birdy beast in a neaster egg!’
Dad sniffed with emotion. ‘My work of art is really alive. This is the most beautiful reward an artist can have. I can retire now.’
‘Not quite yet, dear,’ Mum whispered. ‘First we have to rescue Alfie. That crazy old werewolf is still capable of anything!’
Alfie breathed out. They hadn’t forgotten him!
Grandpa Werewolf was the only one who didn’t seem surprised. He just nodded.
‘Exactly. This is how it was meant to happen. Welcome back, Armando the Grey.’
Armando looked at Mooma and smiled. There were two black holes in his smile where the dentist had pulled his fangs.
‘Mooma!’ he said in a voice that sounded a little rocky. ‘I have mithed you tho much. You’re ath beautiful ath ever.’
‘Hee-hee,’ Leo giggled quietly.
Armando struggled to raise his arms. He seemed to want to give Mooma a hug.
‘Thorry, for lithping like thith.’
Leo held his paw in front of his jaws. ‘Hee-hee-hee.’
‘What is it, Leo?’ Tim asked.
‘Oh, that just be a privatical joke of Leo’s.’
Mooma stood as still as a rock. A very cautious smile gradually appeared on her face. It was as if the sun was slowly rising. As if something inside of her was thawing. Alfie held his breath again.
Hold on to me! he thought. Don’t drop me!
Almost imperceptibly, Mooma’s enormous body changed shape. It grew less angular, softer.
‘Armando, it’s really you!’
‘Wrow,’ Alfie asked, ‘could you please let go of me now?’ He was still dangling over the chasm. ‘I mean, could you please put me down gently on the ground?’
Mooma looked sideways at Alfie. ‘Oh, yes, you poor werewolf orphan. I’ll—’
Just then her foot slipped. The rocky edge of the cliff was slippery from all the rain. Mooma’s legs shot out from under her.
‘No!’
One cry, coming from everyone’s lips. Grandpa Werewolf grabbed his head.
‘This wasn’t supposed to happen,’ he mumbled.
Mooma fell. She disappeared over the edge of the cliff, dragging Alfie with her.
44
A Good Memory
‘Alfie!’ Mum and Noura screamed together.
For a moment everyone stared at the cliff in shock. Mooma was gone and Alfie had disappeared with her. Noura stood frozen beside Tim. Leo’s jaw dropped. The orphans grabbed each other in dismay.
‘It’s my fault,’ Olga cried. ‘It’s all my fault. They’ve fallen to their deaths.’
Then something incredible happened. Armando leapt off the trolley and hurled himself over the edge of the cliff, his cloak flapping around his body like black wings. It happened so fast that all anyone saw was a black flash. In an instant he’d disappeared. It seemed as if time had stood still. No one knew what to do.
Then Grandpa Werewolf walked slowly over to the edge of the cliff.
‘Oh, no,’ Noura said. ‘Is Grandpa Werewolf going to jump over the cliff too? Are we all supposed to do it or what?’
But Grandpa Werewolf just stood at the edge. He turned back and beckoned.
‘Come here, quick,’ he said, pointing into the depths with his umbrella. ‘Fortunately Armando has a good memory. He remembered that vampires are very special creatures. Sometimes they change into bats and they can also fly …’
Everybody ran to the cliff and looked over the edge. There below, floating in the moonlight, was Armando, close to the cliff face. His arms were spread wide and he was flapping his arms.
Hanging beneath him was Mooma, with her paws wrapped around his legs. And Alfie was there too. He was holding tight to one of Mooma’s feet.
‘Wrow, it’s OK. I’m still alive.’
Armando was looking up with a worried expression. When he saw Grandpa Werewolf he smiled.
‘Grimbeard, old fellow, give uth a paw, will you? Thith ith a heavy load for an old lithping vampire. I can’t get them up all by mythelff.’
‘Hee-hee,’ Leo giggled. ‘Hold on. Leo be giving you a paw.’
Grandpa Werewolf handed Leo the umbrella. ‘Your turn, Leo. But there’s nothing to laugh about, you know.’
‘Sorry, Grandpa, Leo be having a privatical joke.’ Leo lay down flat on the edge of the cliff. ‘Keeps up the good workings. Here be Leo with his helping paw.’ He stuck the umbrella down over the edge as far as he could reach and Armando stretched his hand up as far as he could reach. He just managed to grab the handle of the umbrella.
‘Got it.’
Quickly Leo hauled up the umbrella. Five seconds later everyone was standing on the cliff top.
Everyone hugged Alfie: Noura, Mum, Tim, Dad, Grandpa Werewolf, even Leo. And Mooma cuddled Armando. They were all relieved and overjoyed. Only the orphans were looking worried.
‘What’s going to happen to us now?’ Olga whispered. ‘Do we have to go back to the icy cellar?’
Igor shook his head angrily. ‘I don’t want to go back. I’d rather jump over that cliff right away.’
‘Not me,’ Inouk said. ‘I’ll run away really fast. Now!’
Just then Mooma’s big paw grabbed him by the scruff of the neck. She lifted Inouk up and pressed her hairy cheek against his muzzle.
‘Mooma’s dear werewolf orphans. Mooma is so happy her heart has thawed. Now you can stay with Mooma and Armando for ever. In the Arma-Mooma Werewolf Orphanage. A warm home where you can grow up safely. Where it’s fun and cheerful!’
The orphans looked at each other.
‘You mean we’ll never have to go back into the cellar again?’ Ashanti asked.
Armando laid an arm over Mooma’s shoulder.
‘That ith really true,’ he said. ‘We’ll look affter you really well. I promith!’
‘Hee-hee,’ giggled Leo.
‘Cool,’ said Igor. ‘Then we’ll have a werewolf mother and a vampire father. Almost no one has that.’
The orphans jumped up and down, threw their heads back and howled at the moon for joy. Only Olga looked at Alfie unhappily. For a moment Alfie hesitated.
Am I still angry? he thought. No, my anger has disappeared. I’m much too happy that we’ve been saved. He smiled at Olga.
Gradually a smile appeared on her muzzle too. Then she leapt into the huddle of orphans and howled along with the others.
‘Hooray, we’ve got a vampire dad and a werewolf mum,’ they sang with raspy werewolf voices.
Tim’s father gave a jealous sigh. ‘I wish I had a werewolf mum and a vampire dad. That would be really different! And I really love things to be different.’
Thwack!
‘Ow!’ Dad grabbed his ear.
Grandpa Werewolf grinned at him. ‘Did I do that? Oh, well, you’d better stop moaning then. Otherwise I’ll whack you on the other ear too.’
Dad rubbed his ear miserably. ‘OK, Grandpa.’
Loud laughter rose up over the trees.
45
Secrets
‘Look, Alfie.’ Grandpa Werewolf pointed at the wall with the trees full of photos and names. The two of them were sitting alone in the Secret Room and the moon was shining in through the tall windows.
‘You see the third tree from the left? They’re all ancestors of yours. And you see that young man with the hat?’
‘Grimbeard,’ Alfie said. ‘Is that really you, Grandpa?’
Grandpa Werewolf nodded. ‘Definitely. That’s me as a youngster. And the pretty young lady next to me is Mooma.’
‘Wrow, that’s incredible,’ Alfie growled. ‘Is Grimbeard your real name? I never knew that, Grandpa.’
The old werewolf gave a growling laugh. ‘How could you, Alfie? Grimbeard is my secret werewolf name. The WSO gives one to every werewolf. One day you’ll get one too.’
Alfie scratched his head. ‘Wrow, what’s WSO stand for, Grandpa?’
‘Werewolf Secret Organization. They’re the ones who pick up orphaned werewolves all over the world. They bring them here, to the werewolf orphanage. The WSO keeps the werewolf family trees in this room up to date too.’
‘And the photos? How did they get one of me?’
Grandpa Werewolf chuckled. ‘The WSO has secret members in every country. They send in photos of every new werewolf cub.’
Alfie looked at him. ‘Are you one of those members?’
‘You’ve figured it out, Alfie,’ said Grandpa Werewolf.
Alfie studied his family tree more closely.
‘Wrow, there’s Leo too. Noura’s not on it.’
Grandpa Werewolf pointed at an empty spot next to Alfie’s photo.
‘That’s right, Alfie. That’s her spot. Maybe you can ask her for a photo one day? And give it to me without telling anyone. Because this is all top secret and it has to stay that way. You understand that?’
Alfie nodded. ‘Wrow, I’ll take care of it, Grandpa Werewolf.’
‘Excellent.’ Grandpa Werewolf stood up. ‘Come on, we’ll go and join the others.’
They walked out of the Secret Room and into the hall with the werewolf portraits looking down on them. Their hair was even longer now and their ears were pointier.
‘They’re weird paintings,’ Alfie said. ‘It’s as if they change at full moon.’
‘They do,’ said Grandpa Werewolf. ‘Paintings of werewolves are like that sometimes.’
Suddenly a gust of wind rustled his fur. The song wind whispered down the hall.
A vampire’s pain can end as well
Although it lasted very long
That was the story I had to tell
This is the end of Armando’s song
Alfie and Grandpa Werewolf smiled at each other for a moment, then walked on. At the kitchen door, Alfie paused.
‘Wrow, one last question, Grandpa. Why did you shout out that I was Mooma’s grandson?’
For a second, Grandpa Werewolf seemed to blush under the hair on his cheeks.
‘Mmmm, because you are, Alfie.’
Alfie couldn’t believe what Grandpa was saying.
‘But how can I be? I mean, who … what … how?’
Grandpa Werewolf leant on his umbrella. ‘A long time ago Mooma and I were in love with each other for a while.’
‘You?’ Alfie couldn’t imagine Grandpa Werewolf being in love. And definitely not with Mooma. Although … he thought of the photo of the pretty young woman. ‘Wrow!’
Grandpa Werewolf nodded. ‘It’s true. It didn’t last that long, but we did have a baby: your real mother.’ Grandpa Werewolf sighed. ‘Then Armando showed up. Mooma fell in love with him. So deeply that she immediately forgot all about me. I took our daughter away with me and brought her up by myself.’
Alfie stared at Grandpa Werewolf. ‘So … so Mooma is actually …’
‘Yes, Alfie. Mooma is Grandma Werewolf.’
46
Surprise
Alfie gulped. ‘Wrow, what a … surprise. Grandma Mooma! Does … my real mother know too?’
Cheerful sounds were coming from behind the kitchen door.
‘She knows, but she doesn’t want anything else to do with werewolves. She’s not a werewolf herself and neither is your father. You know that they abandoned you.’
Alfie nodded. ‘That’s why I’m lucky enough to live with a family as great as Tim’s.’
Grandpa Werewolf grinned. ‘Exactly!’
‘Wrow, shall I tell Mooma myself? That it’s really true that I’m her grandson?’
‘That sounds like a good idea,’ Grandpa Werewolf growled, pushing open the door. Everyone was sitting in the large kitchen of the werewolf orphanage talking and laughing. A big fire was burning in the fireplace and everyone was almost dry again. The full moon was shining in through a window and casting a cosy light over the kitchen table. Mum was making tea for Tim, Dad and herself, and Mooma had got a few raw, bloody steaks out of the fridge.
The orphans were sitting around the kitchen table with Tim and Noura. Alfie sat down next to Noura.
‘Wrow, Noura, could you give me a photo of yourself sometime?’
Noura blushed and giggled. ‘What? Oh … sure, if you like.’
Alfie grinned and gave Grandpa Werewolf the thumbs-up. Tim looked at Inouk, the North Pole werewolf. He had a white coat like Alfie’s and blood-red eyes.
‘We’ll never go back to the icy cellar,’ he sang. ‘Mooma’s promised us that.’
‘Absolutely,’ growled Mooma, who had come up behind them and put a dish of steak down on the table. ‘I’m going to nail the icy cellar shut. It belongs to the days when Mooma wasn’t herself any more. But now I’ve found myself again and I only want to see happy, cheerful w
erewolf orphans. Dig in, everyone. The steaks are juicy, and nice and raw. Just the way you like them.’ She looked around. ‘Is everyone happy?’
‘Absolutedly,’ Leo shouted, digging his teeth into a hefty steak. Armando the Grey was standing in a corner of the room talking to Tim’s father.
‘I’m so proud of you,’ Dad beamed. ‘You’ve turned out so well. It cost me grit, sweat and tears, but you’re a wonderful work of art!’
‘Yeth and thank you very much for hacking me out of that rock,’ Armando said. He waved at Mooma and sucked something red up out of a glass with a straw. ‘Juth fabulouth thweetheart,’ he said. ‘I feel juth fine after all thothe yearth ath a dumb pieth of rock.’
Leo screamed with laughter and rolled over the floor. Everyone gaped at him.
‘Leo, what are you laughing about the whole time?’ Alfie asked. Leo sat up, looked at Armando and burst out laughing again.
‘Sorry,’ he finally growled. ‘Leo can’t be helping it. It all be cause of that vam-pirate.’
‘What exactly do you mean, Leo?’ Grandpa Werewolf said. ‘Be clear for once.’
‘Juth thay ekthackly what you have to thay,’ said Armando. Leo roared with laughter, pounding his knees and pointing at the vampire.
‘He be nice enough, but … he talk so funnified. That makes Leo chuckuluckle the whole time. That be tickling Leo’s funny-boney.’
Everyone burst out laughing, but that was something Leo didn’t understand.
‘Why youse be laughing so hardly?’ he asked.
And that just made them laugh even harder.
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Alfie the Werewolf 6: Werewolf Secrets Page 8
