Tregarthur's Revenge: Book 2 (The Tregarthur's Series)

by Alex Mellanby

  I held back, this wasn’t right. I couldn’t leave Mum’s body unburied. Rocks were falling all around me.

  Jenna tried to drag me forward. ‘Come on, there’s nothing you can do.’

  I shrugged her off.

  ‘But your mum said take everybody,’ Jenna cried.

  I turned away.

  Then I felt the strong arms of the Petas. I struggled against them but they lifted me into the air and ran towards the back of the cave where the tunnel had opened.

  ‘My pack! Must get it,’ Mary shouted back to Jenna, who grabbed the backpack.

  Then from deep inside the mountain a rumble started, rushing through the rock, thunderously loud. The shock wave hammered towards us. The earth was breaking around us.

  ‘The tunnel, quick, it’ll be too late,’ Jack shouted, stumbling towards the gaping hole that had opened up. ‘Look out.’ He shouted again as a massive lump of stone fell from the cave roof. We were only a few feet away. Would the Trogs follow us? If they did we were all dead.

  ‘It’s not right.’ Mary stopped and we fell into her. Zach was ahead, going into the dim light of the passage. ‘The light’s changing.’ Zach and Demelza vanished.

  The hazy blue light became a mist, changing through purple to red. A violent heat came from the tunnel walls. I heard Jack shriek as his hand touched the side.

  ‘It’s the only way.’ Jenna pushed us on.

  We were following Zach with no idea where this would lead. Behind us the Trogs had stopped. They stood in silence as we disappeared from their view. They didn’t enter the tunnel. Was that because they couldn’t, or was it because they knew where it went?

  The Moor

  -2-

  Cold. The burning red heat of the tunnel ended in a cold damp drizzle. The Petas dropped me on the ground beside a mound of rock.

  ‘We’re back,’ Jack brushed himself down and shivered. ‘Back on the moor.’

  ‘Where are Sam and Ivy?’ Jenna asked.

  ‘Must be somewhere,’ I said, looking around. Damp grey light hung over miles of open countryside. Hills in the distance topped with huge stone outcrops. I could see Jack and Mary but no sign of Sam or Ivy. ‘They went on ahead,’ was the only explanation I could give.

  ‘Well, we’re back at the Hanging Stones.’ Jenna ducked around the rocks and I followed her out onto the hill, surrounded by black mud and patches of struggling grass; damp air squeezing out its drizzle.

  I’d seen the Hanging Stones before; they looked like two balanced stones ready to fall at any moment. The stones I’d seen were back in the caveman world, much larger than the ones here, these had been worn down over thousands of years of rain and wind and ice. Years that the tunnel had somehow carried us through in seconds.

  ‘That’s how I sent for Jack and Mary,’ Jenna said as she started to explain just one of the things that I didn’t understand. She went on: ‘After you’d been captured I went to the stones and left a note. They seem to act like a letterbox.’

  ‘How did you know that?’ Jack watched one of the Peta brothers climbing up the rocks.

  I was glad he asked. I had so many questions but I couldn’t get over what had just happened. I’d left my dead mother. Left her dead body with the band of savage Trogs. Why had I let myself be dragged away?

  So I was only half listening when Jen explained that something had drawn her to leave a message there, but I took more notice when Mary said that they’d been to see Miss Tregarthur and she had told them to look under the same stones.

  ‘She’s stuck in a nursing home,’ Mary told us. ‘Been there since she got hit by a rock and that stupid promise of hers went all wrong.’

  ‘Not before she got us into this mess.’ Jack poked the rock with his finger. ‘She’s playing with us.’

  ‘So you just turned up at the Hanging Stones and the tunnel opened for you?’ Jenna asked.

  ‘That’s just what happened,’ Jack said. ‘I suppose that’s what Miss Tregarthur expected to happen.’

  ‘She said …’ Mary stopped when she saw my face.

  ‘What?’ I snapped, cross with anything – especially myself.

  ‘Miss Tregarthur told us it would never end,’ Mary said quietly. ‘Words like your mum said.’ And Mary turned away. I think my expression must have shown too much of the way I felt.

  ‘You should have left me back there,’ I shouted at her as I slid further down a tuft of grass.

  Jenna stood over me. ‘They’d have killed you.’

  ‘So?’ I should have died, like Mum. I’d deserted her.

  ‘That’s not what she would have wanted,’ Jenna said in a louder voice. ‘Your mum didn’t rescue you just to let you die.’ We were both getting angry. But she lowered her voice: ‘I didn’t want to see you die.’

  I hung my head. Jenna’s words made sense and I didn’t really want to die. I wanted to be with Jenna, but I couldn’t find the right words.

  ‘Anyway your mum said we had to take everyone or it wouldn’t end,’ Jack added, and I could see that he was trying to make it better for me, but I wasn’t ready for being better.

  ‘Didn’t work,’ Kan called from up on the stones. ‘Not same place,’ Kan continued in his strange accent as he shielded his eyes against the weather and peered out.

  Van joined him. ‘Definitely not the same place and there goes Rat Face, what’s his name – Zach?’ Van pointed.

  ‘Yeah and girl,’ said Kan.

  ‘I thought he was dead,’ I muttered.

  ‘You said you found his bones in the Tiger’s cave. You told me he was dead.’ Mary was getting angry now, we were all getting angry. I didn’t know what to say.

  Jenna tried to answer. ‘Demelza never spoke much and she vanished one day. The next day she came back with Zach and the Trogs. No idea how he survived. Too late to ask him now.’

  We watched Zach and Demelza running as fast as they could down the hill and disappearing into the distance.

  Jack wandered away further up the hill, probably to get away from me. He shouted down to us: ‘Kan’s right. It’s not the same place.’

  I thought it looked like the moor and smelt like the moor. Just like the place we had come to all that time ago and as bad as the first time. I looked back to see if there was any sign of the tunnel. There wasn’t. It was impossible to see where it had been. The rocks looked so solid. The tunnel had been red heat and smoke, it had rolled into itself and disappeared. Nothing there now except dark grey wet stone. No tunnel and no way to go back to Mum.

  ‘Why is it different?’ Jenna asked. ‘Looks just as miserable as before. Didn’t we walk up that valley?’ She pointed down the hill towards an open area of moor.

  ‘Trees,’ said Kan.

  ‘Trees,’ said Van.

  ‘There are too many trees and no noise.’ Jack came back to join us.

  ‘What noise would you like?’ What did I care if we weren’t in the right place? Going home had never seemed like a good idea.

  ‘Cars.’ Jack took no notice of the way I’d spoken. ‘You can’t hear any cars. We could hear them in the distance when we came on the moor to find the tunnel, echoing up from the main road. There’s no noise here at all.’

  We stood and listened. Silence. Cold, wet, drizzly silence. Until we heard the howl.

  ‘What was that?’ Mary moved closer into the huddle.

  ‘Sounded like a wolf,’ Jack muttered.

  ‘How you know wolves?’ Kan said in his chopped speech.

  ‘Don’t you have wolves in Poland?’ Jack said, trying to laugh.

  ‘Maybe.’ Kan looked as though he was actually trying to remember.

  ‘Poland?’ I didn’t understand but no one explained.

  ‘Well it sounds like they have wolves here.’ J
ack was more serious. ‘And if we have wolves, silence, and too many trees then we might be in the right place but it’s not the right time.’

  ‘But Mum said …’ I trailed off. The rest looked at me. ‘She said, take all of us. Well, didn’t we do that?’

  ‘Not the dead ones … not … not your mum,’ Jenna stumbled over her words.

  ‘What? You mean we were meant to drag her body into the tunnel?’ I turned on her, trying to shout but my voice breaking. ‘Dig up the other bodies and carry them into the tunnel. Is that what you mean?’ I was sure I was missing something.

  But Jenna said nothing and just closed in on me, put her arms round me and hugged. I felt myself collapse, fold in on myself. The air didn’t seem to be getting into my lungs until I gave a great sob and turned away. The rest appeared too embarrassed to say anything. Even the wolf howls had stopped. But I couldn’t help feeling that I’d missed something, something Jenna still hadn’t told me.

  ‘What we do?’ Kan poked the soggy ground with his foot. ‘We get wet here.’

  ‘We could follow Zach,’ Mary replied. ‘Even if it isn’t the same time there might be something down there. I saw a small village when we started out on the moor – it looked old.’

  ‘It’s probably been there forever,’ said Jack. ‘It was all stone buildings. So, do we go?’ Jack looked at me. I was beyond talking.

  ‘I don’t know,’ Jenna replied for me. ‘If we aren’t where we started from then maybe we should stay here. Perhaps the tunnel will open again. Maybe if we go into it again it’ll be different.’

  The Hanging Stones felt as though they were the key, but was that wrong? The tunnel had opened in our cave, nothing to do with the stones. If we wanted to find it again were we in the wrong place?

  ‘The tunnel was different this time.’ Jack was still looking around. ‘Not really a tunnel at all, and I can’t see where it was.’

  I could see what Jack meant. Once we were in the tunnel nothing had felt solid, as though we were in a mix of swirling gas.

  ‘There’s nothing there now.’ Van had wandered around the Hanging Stones. ‘No tunnel, nothing.’

  ‘I think we should stay here,’ I mumbled. ‘Stay here at least tonight. See if anything happens.’ I didn’t want to leave, lose all chance of going back and at least burying Mum.

  ‘I don’t …’ Jack started but Jenna held her finger to her lips.

  ‘I agree with Alvin,’ Jenna said firmly. ‘In the night at least we can see if there are any lights anywhere.’

  ‘Ok, but what about the wolves?’ Mary didn’t sound happy with that plan.

  ‘If we build a fire, then we should be alright.’ Jack seemed to have understood that I needed to stay here.

  ‘Plenty of wood,’ said Van.

  ‘We go get some.’ Kan took a step forward. ‘You work on plan while we gone.’ And the twins were off towards a group of trees.

  I wasn’t sure who was going to work on any plan. I certainly didn’t have one. My mind might be full of other thoughts, but no plan. I still wondered why Kan spoke in his strange way and why Jack had mentioned Poland.

  Looking around Jack had found a gap in a pile of huge boulders, almost a cave, a few steps away from the two balanced stones. We moved into it, although it didn’t provide perfect shelter from the damp.

  The Petas returned carrying bundles of wood. Mary pulled out a lighter from her pack and gave it to Jack. The damp branches smouldered, but Jack was good with fires and he blew hard on it to get a flame. Then he moved the other wood nearer, to dry it out. Mary shared out some of the food they’d brought.

  ‘What we do?’ Kan said as he helped Jack.

  ‘Wait and see if the tunnel opens again.’ I didn’t sound hopeful, just useless. I heard Jenna give out a frustrated sigh. I knew I’d have to get over my feelings. I wasn’t the only one who mattered, we had to survive. Jenna needed me to get through this.

  We did wait. The wolves howled.

  ‘They’re getting nearer.’ Mary shivered. ‘I thought I saw a shadow moving out there.’ She pointed, but it was getting dark and we couldn’t tell if it was just the rocks or if the wolves really were closing in on us.

  Darkness fell outside our shelter, a deep dark blanket hiding everything until the moon slid from the clouds, its faint light silhouetting the towering rocks over the moor. Huge dark shapes in an empty land.

  ‘If there is anyone out there, this is the time we should be looking for a light.’ I stood by the fire.

  ‘You ok?’ asked Jenna.

  ‘No,’ I replied, not really understanding what she was asking. ‘But I was the one who said we should stay and I’m going out to look.’

  ‘We come,’ said Kan, looking at his brother who nodded.

  ‘Take a piece of burning wood.’ Jack reached down to the fire and pulled out a burning branch. ‘It’ll keep the wolves away.’

  I thought that unlikely and anyway the flames would soon die out on one branch. ‘We need to do this in the dark or we won’t see anything.’

  ‘Or anything see us,’ said Van and I nodded.

  The three of us moved out from the rocks. Our eyes adjusted to the moonlight and we could make out the valley below. A tumbling stream with a ghostly spray caught in the silvery light.

  ‘Lights.’ I pointed into the distance. ‘Looks like Zach was right to go that way.’

  ‘I think there are more.’ Van touched me on the shoulder. ‘Over there, in the distance?’

  ‘Maybe, but they’re faint and flickering – like they’re fires not electric light.’ I strained to see. Then I turned, hearing a rushing sound.

  Out of the dark a shape sped towards me. A snarling beast launched itself at my throat. In that instant I wished for Jack’s burning branch. I hurled myself sideways. I felt fur brush my head as I fell. Shooting past me, it turned with a slavering growl ready to leap on my fallen body. I could see the row of savage teeth caught in the dim moonlight. I couldn’t move, my body rigid, locked in fear. The animal sprang.

  So did Kan and Van.

  The three met in mid-air and all fell on top of me. With wild screams Kan and Van attacked the animal – gouging, biting, tearing and more screaming. Probably the screaming had most effect, the creature left almost faster than it had arrived. Disappearing into the dark it let out a scalded howl.

  Kan and Van rolled away from me. They were laughing. While I tried to move, they were still laughing. I thought I was going to puke, waves of nausea hit me. They were still laughing. I tried to join in the laughter but it was more a retch with hot bile forming in my mouth.

  ‘Come on.’ Van pulled me to my feet.

  ‘We get under cover.’ Kan turned towards the rocks. They’d both stopped laughing.

  ‘Thanks,’ I said, trying to hide my fear even though I could hardly stand. ‘Strange wolf.’ I added, looking into the darkness in the direction the animal had disappeared.

  ‘Wolf?’ Van said with mock disbelief. ‘I wouldn’t have attacked it if I’d known it was a wolf. I thought it was someone after us.’

  ‘Is there someone after you? Is that why you came?’ I said quietly. I needed some more answers despite the wolves. ‘What’s all this strange accent and talk of Poland?’ I knew the brothers had a reputation for being wild – but Poland?

  As we stood in the dark drizzle Van explained there had been a bit of trouble – quite a lot and I knew what that meant, so when Mary asked them to come on this trip they agreed rather quickly to get away.

  ‘She not explain about lost world,’ muttered Kan.

  I guessed they probably hadn’t told her they were on the run either.

  ‘We’d been trying to make out we came from Poland,’ said Van. ‘I’ve told Kan to keep up with the accent. Have to be realistic, just in
case.’

  I couldn’t see why, but I guessed I’d find out some time.

  Jack came out to listen as Kan said, ‘And eat goulash. I hate goulash.’

  ‘Have to get it right, brother.’ Van had laughter in his voice. Jack started to say something but stopped.

  Van looked into the darkness. ‘Not sure if it was a wolf. More like a big dog.’

  ‘More out there.’ Kan waved us back towards the fire.

  Inside the rock cleft Jenna looked up at me from behind the fire. I knew that only the Petas could have saved me. As I moved under cover I could feel my legs start to give way. Van grabbed me and I slid to the ground. Jenna yelped and came to me, asking if I was alright.

  ‘Yes, alright thanks to these guys, useful to have on your side,’ I said, almost forgiving them for having dragged me into the tunnel. I rubbed the bruises I’d got from falling onto the rocks when the wolf had leapt, but that was all – the injuries from before were gone. All the bruises and injuries I’d suffered when Zach had me prisoner had vanished. Had that happened in the tunnel?

  The Petas’ craziness seemed to follow us. We were all a little crazy. Even Jack and Mary were laughing as Van explained how they had chased off the poor little doggy. It took my thoughts away from the awfulness I’d left behind. I still thought the poor little doggy had awfully big teeth.

  ‘Oh, Kan.’ Jack tried to be part of the laughter. ‘Just to let you know that although they do make quite good goulash in Poland it’s really sausages they are famous for.’

  A moment of silence in the gloom.

  ‘But you said we had to eat it.’ Kan slowly turned towards his brother. ‘I like sausage, don’t like goulash.’ Kan leapt across the fire at his brother, who darted out into the night. We heard the two of them shouting wildly. Van’s laugh of: ‘Goulash, goulash,’ mixed with Kan’s, ‘I kill you. I kill you,’ as he chased after him.