‘Not sure.’ Jeremiah lifted a pair of binoculars off the hook. ‘Must be big to scare those bullheads...’
Griffin turned the shade of old porridge.
The Submariner’s passengers squinted into the distance, waiting. The river had cleared of all life, leaving a watery emptiness.
‘Maybe they’re just hungry,’ Griffin’s voice trembled. ‘And they saw something to eat. Or – aahh!’
The reeds parted, and from the thick gloom the open jaws of a shark emerged. It charged at them, its many rows of teeth coming straight for them. It struck the glass, jolting the vessel backwards in a deafening clang, flinging everyone from their seats.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Beneath the Flood Barriers
Jeremiah scrambled into his seat, took a book from his pocket and hurriedly scribbled notes. ‘A great white shark. Never seen one this close to Grimsdon. Isn’t she a beauty? She’s sometimes known as a white pointer or white death.’
The others found their seats, rubbing sore knees and bumped heads as the shark charged again, this time with more force.
‘Hang on tight!’ Jeremiah laughed. ‘Ohh, she’s hungry – will eat you as soon as look at you.’
The shark took another bite at the window. Griffin pressed his body into the back of his seat, unable to look away and barely breathing. ‘How strong’s this glass?’
‘We’re about to find out,’ Jeremiah said.
The animal charged a few more times, its teeth scraping against the glass, before it gave up. The length of its sleek, grey body slid past, leaving them with one last flick of its powerful tail.
‘About five metres I’d say.’ Jeremiah scribbled some more notes. ‘Wasn’t that something?’ He turned to Griffin, who was slumped forward. ‘Oh dear.’
Isabella reached over and gently stroked his cheek. ‘Griff? Are you okay?’
He lifted his snow-white face. ‘I will be, as soon as I remember how to breathe again.’ With Isabella’s hand on his face, the colour came rushing back in a bright-red blush. ‘Thanks, Izzy.’
‘It can be a shock seeing everything up close.’ Jeremiah began pushing the treadle. ‘It’s exciting! The river was polluted before the floods, almost lifeless, but it’s now filled with animals.’
‘Like your Skelene?’ Xavier cocked an eyebrow.
‘The Skelene?’ Griffin’s voice wavered. ‘As in the sea monster Skelene?’
‘Jeremiah predicts it’s coming for us any day now.’
‘Oh, great.’
‘There’s something else out there,’ Isabella said.
Slowly, the blurred outlines of a series of large objects became clearer. This time it was her face that whitened.
‘The flood barriers,’ she whispered.
Thick cobblestone bases as wide as their street sat before them, and on top were metal domes shaped like knights’ helmets.
Jeremiah tugged at his beard. ‘I visit them a lot. Reminds me of what could have been. Marvellous, but never built to hold back so much water.’
Griffin snuck a peak at Isabella.
‘Did you work here?’ Xavier asked.
‘No, studied them. Practically lived on them for awhile.’
As they approached, one by one, more of the barriers came into view, standing like sentries across the riverbed in a long, forgotten row.
‘So they were never enough?’ Isabella’s voice was faint.
Jeremiah shook his head. ‘Not even close.’
Everyone had stopped pedalling and the Submariner fell quiet.
‘Did you know Almaric Charm?’
A soft smile crept into Jeremiah’s face. ‘Almaric? Head Barrier Controller. Worked with him on the report for the government. He was good with a joke. I remember one about a pirate. What do you call–’
Jeremiah was stopped by Isabella’s downcast face. ‘Oh, I’m...’ He suddenly looked lost. ‘Bella.’
Isabella gasped. Griffin reached over and held her hand.
‘Almaric talked about his Bella.’ Jeremiah shook his head slowly. ‘Bella the beautiful.’
‘Who’s Almaric Charm?’ Xavier asked carefully.
Griffin blinked away his own tears and whispered, ‘Isabella’s dad.’
‘He worked on the river.’ Xavier only now remembered.
‘He was here on the day of the floods.’ Isabella’s voice cracked.
Jeremiah’s eyes settled on her. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘So my father knew the floods were coming?’
‘Yes. He hoped the barriers would hold, but with each new piece of evidence about the weather and oceans, he knew they wouldn’t. He came with me to Parliament to argue for new barriers. Told them what could happen if they didn’t listen.’ He sighed. ‘Your father was one of the good ones.’
The spectre of the barriers loomed silently over them. Isabella looked away. ‘Can we go home now?’
She said nothing all the way back to the library. As they left, Jeremiah twisted his fingers and creased his brow. ‘Will you come back?’
She nodded and gave him a weak smile.
It wasn’t until Xavier steered the Velotrope into the landing at the Palace that she spoke again: ‘We’re going to stop paying Sneddon.’
‘What?’ Griffin asked.
‘From now on, he can do his own scavenging,’ Isabella announced.
‘Brilliant!’ Xavier cried. ‘That’ll teach him you’re not someone to be pushed around.’
‘But that’s crazy,’ Griffin spluttered.
‘Griffin, what’s crazy anymore? The government knew this was going to happen and did nothing. They let families be ripped apart and houses flooded and a whole city become lost. All we have is each other. This is our family. We owe everything to that, not to some adult floating in the harbour treating us like his slaves.’
‘What if Sneddon–’
‘Xavier’s right. It’s not our fault we’re in this situation, and it’s time we stood up for ourselves.’
CHAPTER NINETEEN
A Planned Attack
‘There you are.’ Xavier opened the frosted-glass doors of the greenhouse. It was late and everyone else was asleep, except Griffin, who was leaning over a garden bed, plunging his trowel again and again into the soil.
Xavier crept towards him and perched on the back of a stone ladybird.
‘Hey, Farmer Joe.’
Griffin flinched and the trowel flew from his hand. ‘Do you have to sneak in where you’re not invited?’
‘The way you were digging, you look pretty angry with that dirt.’
‘I’m not angry.’ Griffin grabbed the trowel and began jabbing at the soil again.
‘Looks like it to me.’
‘Maybe you’re wrong.’
‘Maybe.’ Xavier took out his knife and began cleaning his fingernails with it. ‘Are you angry that Isabella has decided not to pay Sneddon?’
Griffin dug with renewed force. ‘I’m only agreeing to it because it’s what Isabella wants.’
‘But you don’t think it’s the right thing to do?’
‘No. I don’t.’
‘You could refuse.’
‘It’s important we stand together.’
‘Oh, so it’s not because you have a crush on her and will do everything she says?’
‘I told you, I don’t have a crush on her.’
‘But on the Submariner, you almost fainted until she touched your face.’
Griffin waved his trowel at him. ‘It’s none of your business.’
‘I can see the wedding now.’
‘Stop it.’
‘So you don’t like her?’
‘No!’ Griffin shouted.
Xavier went back to cleaning his nails with his knife. ‘I guess that’s for the best. Someone like Isabella would need a different kind of man.’
Griffin hacked at the dirt.
‘A man who was strong and brave and didn’t pass out at the merest hint of danger. Someone–’
‘L
ike you?’ Griffin spun round, his trowel millimetres from Xavier’s face.
Xavier smiled and sat back against the ladybird’s head. ‘You know, Griffy, you’re right. Someone like me. I’d be perfect for her, in fact–’
Griffin flung the trowel and lunged at Xavier, grabbing him around the neck, driving him backwards into the ground. The trowel nicked Xavier’s cheek and the fall sent his knife skidding across the floor.
Griffin pulled his fist back, but Xavier grabbed it and rolled Griffin onto his back in one swift move, pinning his arm across his chest.
‘Come on,’ Griffin wheezed. ‘I’m not scared of you. Give it your best shot.’
Xavier laughed. ‘See? I knew you could do it.’
‘Do what?’
‘Stick up for yourself.’ He dabbed his sleeve at his bleeding cheek.
‘I’m serious!’
‘That’s what’s so impressive.’ Xavier let go of Griffin’s arm and sat on the floor beside him. ‘Even though I’m taller than you, stronger than you and know more about defending myself than you, I believe you would. You’re braver than you think.’
Griffin sat up. ‘Why are you here? In the Palace? You could live anywhere.’
‘Apart from this recently inflicted pain in my hip and face, I like it here.’ Xavier looked down. ‘I’ve never felt more at home in my life.’
A drop of blood fell from his cheek.
Griffin foraged through his pocket for a hanky. ‘Sorry about your face. I didn’t mean to–’
‘I deserved it. I was being a pain and you let me have it,’ Xavier said. ‘And I’m sorry for reading your diary. I didn’t realise it was such a rotten thing to do. I’ve been alone for a long time now, doing whatever I want. I shouldn’t have done it.’
‘It’s okay.’
‘You need to tell her.’
Griffin’s eyes widened. ‘I’d never ... what if she ... there’s no way ... please don’t tell...’
‘I won’t,’ Xavier promised. ‘Let’s deal with one hurdle at a time. The first is defending yourself. We’re in a world of sneaker waves, thieves and freakishly giant fish. You need to be strong and act at a second’s notice. It isn’t a time to be timid.’
‘I’m not timid.’ Griffin sighed. ‘I’ve just never been good at being ... tough.’
‘Let me tell you a secret: the most important thing about being tough is acting tough. It’s fifty per cent bluff. And knowing a few self-defence techniques. Come on, I’ll show you.’
Xavier stood up, his fists raised. ‘Punch me.’
Griffin scrambled upright. ‘I’m not going to punch you.’
‘Oh, don’t worry, you won’t. I’m going to show you how to defend yourself.’
Griffin drew his good arm back and threw his fist.
Xavier grabbed his arm, twisted his own body under Griffin’s and tossed him over his hip to the floor.
Griffin straightened his lopsided glasses. ‘What just happened?’
‘Judo flip. I used to go to classes.’
Xavier helped him up and took him slowly through each step. ‘Grab your attacker’s arm, twist your body away from them like this, bend your knees so you can lift them onto your hip. Then stand up and use their own momentum to flip them to the floor. Now you try.’
Griffin picked himself up. ‘I’m not sure I can–’
‘Remember, fifty per cent bluff.’
Griffin took a steadying breath. ‘Okay.’
Xavier reached back and threw his fist. In seconds, Griffin had Xavier thrown to the floor.
‘Ouch.’ Xavier lay on his back and winced. ‘Maybe Jeremiah was right. Swift and dangerous.’
‘Sorry.’ Griffin leant down to help him up. ‘My teachers used to say I was a fast learner.’
‘What was I worried about?’ Xavier rubbed his other sore hip. ‘You’ve got good instincts. You just have to trust you can do it.’
‘I was never very good at sticking up for myself at school,’ Griffin said. ‘Can you teach me more?’
‘I will if you promise to go easy on me.’
Griffin laughed. ‘That’s the first time anyone’s ever asked me that.’
‘That’s because they hadn’t met this Griffin before. Now come on, Mr. Fast Learner.’ He got to his feet. ‘I’ll show you a few more moves so that no-one will ever mess with you again.’
CHAPTER TWENTY
An Unwelcome Visit
‘You are a wicked creature!’ Dorothy cried. ‘Give me back that shoe. It’s mine, not yours – the Good Witch of the North gave it to me!’
‘But the Wicked Witch just laughed and danced around Dorothy gleefully. This made Dorothy so furious that, without stopping to think, she picked up the bucket of water she was using and threw it on the Wicked Witch. In no time, the Wicked Witch went from cackling to screaming in fear. Then, to Dorothy’s amazement, the Wicked Witch of the West began to melt.
‘See what you’ve done!’ the Wicked Witch screamed.
‘I’m sorry!’ wailed Dorothy, frightened by the sight. She had never meant to hurt anyone – not even a witch.
(From The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum)
‘Well, well, well. Reading our little fairytales again are we?’
Mouse and Tyran stood at the doors of the library. Tyran’s knotted hair looked as if it was trying to escape from under his cowboy hat. Mouse had helped himself to an orange and was tossing the peel on the floor.
Griffin was seated on a lounge with Bea, Raffy and Fly huddled around him.
‘It’s like watching an episode of happy families whenever we come here. It’s so touching.’ Tyran pulled a grubby hanky from his coat pocket. He gave it an exaggerated flick and dabbed at his eyes. ‘Now, where’s Isabella?’
‘She’s scavenging,’ Griffin said. ‘And you’re not supposed to be here until tomorrow.’
Tyran shrugged. ‘We’re early. Where’s this week’s payment?’
Fly looked to Griffin. She took his hand and gave it a squeeze.
‘We’ve decided we’re not going to pay you anymore.’
Tyran stared at Griffin for a good while before he burst out laughing. ‘Ha! That’s beautiful. For a minute there I thought you said you weren’t going to pay us.’
‘That’s exactly what he said.’ Raffy’s chest puffed out.
Tyran’s voice lowered into a gravely snarl. ‘How about we give you a few seconds to rethink that position.’ He waited. ‘That should be long enough.’
Griffin tried to sound firm. ‘We’ve decided.’
Tyran and Mouse exchanged a cold look. Mouse’s hands dripped with orange juice. He threw the last of the peel onto the floor and grunted.
‘Looks like Mouse isn’t happy,’ Tyran whispered to Griffin. ‘And he can get nasty when he’s unhappy.’
Mouse’s cowboy boots clod across the floor. Bea pulled her brother closer as he approached.
He stopped at a small antique table and swept his hand into a vase, sending it smashing against the wall.
Griffin stood up and herded the younger kids behind him.
‘You can’t intimidate us,’ he said, barely breathing. ‘It isn’t our fault we’re living in a flooded city and ... and we don’t see why we should pay Sneddon when we’re busy looking after ourselves.’
Tyran laughed a measly laugh that whistled through his broken teeth.
Mouse launched himself at the bookshelf and, with the force of his whole body, sent a stream of books cascading to the floor. He picked up a leather-bound copy of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and reared back, ready to hurl it through the window behind them.
‘Stop!’ Griffin jumped up, placing himself between the book and the river. ‘Okay, we’ll give you what you want.’
‘We knew if we gave you some time to think you’d see things clearly,’ Tyran smarmed.
Mouse dropped the book on the floor. It landed face down with its pages crumpled and its spine bent. Fly sprang from the lounge and rescued the book, straightening
out the pages and holding it in her arms, eyes trained on Mouse in defiance.
‘After you.’ Tyran swung his arm out in invitation to Griffin, who stepped in front of him, drawing away from his rancid breath as he passed.
In the greenhouse Griffin filled a sack with oranges and apples, while Bea, Fly and Raffy dug for carrots and potatoes. They added cans of soup, casseroles and beans from the kitchen, along with the gold candelabrum from the earlier scavenge.
‘Aren’t you forgetting something?’ Tyran’s smile was twisted and covetous.
Griffin shook his head.
‘The flying machine?’
‘You can’t have that!’ yelled Raffy.
‘It belongs to Xavier,’ Bea added.
‘Children, children. No need to shout.’ Tyran adjusted his hat. ‘What if we just borrow it and bring it back when we’re finished?’
‘You’re lying!’ shouted Raffy.
Tyran bent low and lifted Raffy’s chin. ‘Yes, I am. Ha! Come on, we haven’t got all day.’
‘We’re not going to give it to you.’ Griffin’s back straightened.
Tyran slowly drew a knife from his snakeskin belt. ‘Do I look like I want to talk about it anymore?’ Griffin stood firm. ‘We’re not going to–’
With a flick of his wrist, Tyran sliced through the air, nicking Griffin’s cheek, drawing a line of blood. ‘Get it! Now!’
Fly ran towards him but Tyran turned on her. ‘Just try me.’
Mouse grabbed Tyran’s sleeve. ‘Let’s get the machine and go.’
Fly stared at Griffin. ‘I’m okay. It’s just a small cut. Let’s give them what they want.’
‘Now you’re being smart,’ Tyran said. ‘After you.’ He motioned towards the stairs with the knife.
With Tolkien clutched to her chest, Fly joined Bea and Raffy as they climbed to the rooftop.
The Aerotrope sat tethered by ropes to the surrounding statues, beside the rearing horse with its sword-wielding knight and the spread-eagled fins of the water dragon. Its canvas wings fluttered in the breeze, as if stirring in its sleep.
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