Blood

by Cheryl Twaddle

  When we got to the mine, Barker let out a few sharp barks before we entered. It was probably a good idea to warn Colonel Al that we were coming. Who knew what he had to protect himself from intruders. I tethered Cocoa to a tree and entered the maze of tunnels. The first thing that struck me as we got deeper into the tunnels was the smell of coffee and I closed my eyes and breathed it in. No one had coffee down here. I hadn’t had a coffee for so long that I had forgotten about it until now. The smell brought a craving to me and I really wanted a cup. I hoped the colonel made a big pot. Barker barked again.

  “Is that you, Private?” Colonel Al called out from further ahead. “Why are you back so soon? Did the girl push you out into the snow?” His voice was coming from a room that I didn’t see the day before. When we entered I knew why; it was his private living quarters. There was a small fire pit in the corner with a kettle sitting atop some kind of grill made out of coat hangars. A small, open cupboard with a few dishes stacked in it sat against the back wall. Next to it was some kind of trunk with the lid closed. On the right was a small cot pushed up against the wall, sheets neatly tucked in and a blanket folded on top, very military. To the left was a small table with one chair and sitting on the chair was Colonel Al sipping coffee and looking extremely smug.

  “Miss Nicky!” he said sarcastically but with enthusiasm. “What brings you here so early in the morning and risking the cooling temperatures.”

  “I had a revelation last night and I wanted to tell you about it,” I explained, not able to take my eyes off the cup the colonel held in his hand. “Do you think I could have a cup of coffee?”

  “Why, yes, you probably could.” He smiled and I felt an if coming.

  “Thank you, it smelled so good coming in here and I haven’t had a...”

  “I will be happy to make you a cup of coffee after you tell me of your revelation.” He said, again, with a sarcastic grin on his face.

  “Seriously?” Of course he was serious. “Whatever. Ok, last night, while I watched Max leave through the snow...”

  “Leave?” he looked confused. “Where has the young pirate gone now?”

  “He went to scout the Blood Demons,” I explained.

  “The who demons?” Was he kidding? How could he not know about the Blood Demons? Humph, I guess he didn’t know everything after all.

  “You know? The Blood Demons,” I said. “They’re the group that Emma Lee escaped from.”

  “The lady from the south?” he asked.

  “Wow, something you don’t know. Go figure. Let me explain.” I started telling him about the group of evil men who had totally destroyed Emma Lee’s old community, killing everybody. I also explained that she was convinced they were on their way up here and feared for our lives. “...and that’s why Max left-to find out where they are and if they’re really on their way here.”

  “Do you think he’ll find them?” he asked.

  “I don’t know,” I answered. “I never really thought about it. I just assumed he would. Max seems very good at finding groups of people up to no good. Can I have a cup of coffee now? I think I’ve told you enough to deserve one.”

  “You know, just because a man has done wrong in his life does not mean he will always do wrong. It just means at one particular time, somewhere in his past, he made a bad decision. He shouldn’t have to pay for it for the rest of his life. The young pirate means well and has tried very hard to do what is right for you people.” He sounded angry with me for questioning Max’s integrity and it irked me. I was allowed to have doubts about Max. It was my life after all. “I still haven’t heard what your revelation was so, no, there will be no coffee poured into a cup for you yet, my dear. Private, bring me your cup.” Barker walked over to the cupboard and grabbed a tin cup from the top shelf and brought it over to the colonel. I watched in disbelief as Colonel Al reached for the kettle and filled the cup with hot coffee and then placed it on the floor in front of Barker. I watched in disbelief as the dog sniffed at the hot liquid and started licking it up. “Careful Private! It’s hot! Don’t want to burn your tongue and ruin the taste of everything else today.”

  “Oh, that’s nice. Well, as long as the dog gets coffee,” I muttered under my breath, not believing, yet, somehow, not surprised that Barker got coffee before I did. I shook my head. “Okay then, the reason I’m here. Last night as I watched Max leave through the snow, I realized something.”

  “Yes?”

  “It’s winter!” I looked at him as if this would enlighten him as well.

  “And...?”

  “And...” I tried to urge him forward, to where my mind was but he wasn’t budging. “Don’t you see?” Still no acknowledgement. “It’s winter and before that it was fall and before that it was summer and...”

  “...before that it was spring.” He looked annoyed at me. “Yes, child I know that; it happens all the time. Honestly, Private, I’m really thinking of asking for your discharge papers. This girl is hopeless. Young Nicky, this is all part of life; spring, summer, fall, winter repeat. It happens all the time.”

  “Yes, but not if you live in a place with no time,” I smiled. “Yesterday you told me that time doesn’t exist down here and that we’re stuck here because of it, right?”

  “Yes, that is my belief,” he said.

  “Then why do we have seasons?” I asked.

  “I explained that to you...” he started.

  “Yeah, I know; physics. That’s what you said yesterday,” I said. “But I don’t buy it.”

  “There is no buying physics, Nicky,” he laughed, but I detected a hint of doubt. “You either abide by its laws or you simply do not exist.”

  “But, don’t you see? This is all about physics.” How could I explain this to him when I didn’t even understand all the science behind it myself. “The changing seasons is time, having night and day is time, everything we do and say is time!”

  “Nicky, I...” He stopped, looking confused. That’s good! That meant he was considering what I was saying.

  “You see, time is not just any old dimension like 2D or 3D, it’s a measurement,” I tried hard to explain this to him. “It’s a measurement that we can not exist without.”

  “What do you mean?” He had risen from his chair and nervously stood with his hands crossed in front of him, his foot tapping rigorously on the floor.

  “Well, like, like,” I searched my mind for something to explain it. “Like me coming here! It took time, see? Or me even telling you this; it takes time. Everything we do or say is measured by how long it takes: time. It exists here; it has to. I think it exists everywhere, otherwise we would be frozen in the millisecond we came here.”

  Colonel Al sat back down, a bewildered look on his face. He didn’t blink or make any sound. It almost looked like he wasn’t even breathing. I didn’t know if I should say anything or if I should go and shake him. After a few minutes he turned his eyes to Barker who was now sitting in front of him. He rubbed his eyes and shook his head.

  “Colonel?” I asked not wanting to upset him.

  “Finally, Private!” He spoke but not to me. Instead, he addressed Barker! Ooh! This man was so frustrating. “The girl proves her worth!”

  “What?” Did he already think of this? Was his proclamation to me yesterday about there being no time only a test to see how much I knew about this stuff?

  “Nicky, you are so right!” He got up from the chair and came towards me holding out his hand. I didn’t know if I should take it or turn and run.

  “I am?” I knew I was but I just didn’t think he would acknowledge it.

  “Yes!” He shook my hand and then turned to the cupboard and grabbed a cup. “Of course, there is time! I don’t know why I didn’t think of it! All this time, no pun intended of course, and I never even considered it! Time exists! How can it not? I thought if I could get those blasted clocks to work...but that would be stupid, wouldn’t it? The clocks have nothing to do with it. She’s right, too. We do have seasons
; winter has started hasn’t it? It has to be something else. There has to be some other reason we’re trapped down here. Oh, what a test the government has put on me, but I’ll figure it out. Yes, I will. That’s why I’m here, too. To figure it out. It has to be.”

  “Colonel?” He was talking so fast and I wasn’t sure if he remembered that I was still here.

  “Yes, Nicky!” He poured a cup of coffee and handed it to me. “You can sit at the table and I will sit here on the bed.” We took our seats and I blew on the hot liquid in my cup, feeling the aroma of coffee fill my nostrils. “Tell me, Nicky, is quantum physics taught in every school now?”

  “Quantum, what? No, it’s not,” I said. “I didn’t even take regular physics. I mean, that’s like math to the nth degree isn’t it? No, I don’t understand any of that stuff.”

  “Then how did you know about time?” he asked and I looked at him, trying to decide if he was serious or not.

  “It’s common sense isn’t it?” I said, with no intent of offense.

  “Sure, be flippant with me, you’ve earned that right,” he said with a smile on his face. “We must now figure out what’s wrong with this dimension because I still believe that there’s something that’s keeping us from our former homes.”

  “I don’t know, I’ve only been here for a short time,” I took a sip of coffee and smiled at the taste. “I just know that we don’t age; whatever age we were when we fell down here, that’s the age we stay at.”

  “Yes, there is that,” he said. We both sat quietly for a few minutes thinking about other possibilities.

  “Hey, didn’t you say that things break down differently here?” I asked.

  “Break down?” he asked.

  “Yeah, when you were in that potion room?” I prodded him.

  “You mean the laboratory?” he asked, obviously not liking my name for it.

  “Yeah, you were looking through the microscope and said that things break down differently here.” He nodded. “Maybe that has something to do with it.”

  “Maybe, but what?”

  “I don’t know,” I was getting frustrated. “You should let me tell the others. Maybe they can think of things we can’t.”

  “What? That group of wayward souls?” He laughed at the thought.

  “Yeah! What’s wrong with us?” I was angered by the lack of respect he had for us. “We’re not stupid, you know.”

  “I never said you were,” he put up his hands in defence. “I just don’t see anyone in your group understanding any of this. They’re from different eras, different centuries. How could they possibly know about the advancements of science? I don’t even know everything.”

  “You think I do?” I asked.

  “You know about the latest gadgets and changes in technology.” He said, trying to justify his remarks.

  “Big deal! So, I know how to work a cell phone; lot of good that does me down here. That doesn’t mean I know anything about science or physics!” I told him. “Robert’s smart and has a huge collection of books. I bet you he has science books in there too. And Cornelius; Cornelius built himself a boat and used the stars to navigate himself here all the way from England. Could you have done that? In fact, he knows quite a bit about astronomy and would probably be a really good help.”

  “Do you think?” Could the soldier be wavering? I hoped so. I hated keeping secrets from everyone.

  “It couldn’t hurt,” I said. “I mean, now that you know time actually exists, you really have been working at this for over forty years. Maybe some help from other people will make a difference.”

  “Yes,” he whispered. I was forcing him to face the possibility that all his work was in vain and I could see it physically deflating him. I felt sorry for him. All this time believing one thing and finding out you were wrong. “I think you should leave now, Miss Nicky.”

  “Leave?” I could tell he wanted to be alone but I wasn’t so sure that was a good idea. “But maybe you should come, too. I could introduce you to everyone.”

  “No, I have work to do.” He got up and urged me to do the same so he could escort me to the door. “I have to figure out what this all means; having time and everything.”

  “Yeah, but wouldn’t you like some help with that?” I asked seeing that he seemed to be in some sort of dazed state. “Like I said, my friends would be willing to do whatever they could to help.”

  “Yes, that is what you said,” he turned to me and put his hand on my shoulder. “Miss Nicky, I must not allow you to take the Private with you. He has to stay and help me with all these changes. Can you make it back on your own?”

  “Through the tunnels?” I wasn’t so sure I could. “I guess, but I’d much rather take the Private with me.”

  “No, he will be staying here,” he left the room and started heading down the tunnel towards the room with the clocks and the room with the potions, Barker right behind him. “Goodbye Miss Nicky. I will see you later.”

  “Whatever.” I turned and held my lantern out in front of me. I just hoped I could find my way out without getting lost.

  Chapter 5

  I made it back to Marshal’s in one piece, surprisingly. Actually, I only made two wrong turns in the tunnels and I recognized my mistakes right away and correctly corrected them. I rode Cocoa slowly through the fields, not wanting to tire her out. I knew that Robert and Cornelius were going out later to gather firewood. Now that the snow was here, we had to be prepared for anything, even if that meant being snowed in at Marshal’s for days at a time. We certainly had enough food and we could always melt snow for water. We just needed to be able to keep ourselves warm.

  I also thought about how I was going to explain Colonel Al to them. Would they believe he was sent down here from the American government or would they think he was some kind of crazy wack job. I still didn’t know what to believe. One thing I still couldn’t figure out was how he knew almost everything about us and secret things too! Like me killing Butcher! He knew how I did it; even how I felt when I did it. I also didn’t like how Barker seemed to feel right at home with him. I couldn’t handle thinking of him belonging to the colonel before I came here. I still thought of him as my dog.

  I took Cocoa to her shelter and took her bridal off. I covered her back with a blanket to keep her warm and filled her trough with fresh hay and left half a bucket of oats for her. Her water had formed a thin layer of ice on top that I broke up and swirled around so she could get a proper drink. I gave her a quick pat on the neck and headed for the house.

  It was quiet when I opened the door. I didn’t hear anything; no voices or rustling of people moving around and getting up. Despite the fact that the sun was up and the morning was well on its way, it was still dark in here. There being no windows meant that natural light couldn’t make its way through. Instead we used candles and lanterns but only when we really had too. Most of the time we spent our days outside working or playing. I didn’t see any light from anywhere and decided this meant that everyone was still asleep.

  “Marshal?” I whispered softly, not wanting to wake him if, by chance, he had finally been able to sleep.

  “Yes, yes, yes, Nicky?” he answered almost immediately.

  “Oh, Marshal, did you get any sleep at all?” I asked, making my way to the table so I could sit with my friend. Marshal took a match and lit the lantern so we could see each other.

  “I get enough,” he answered, sitting back and blowing out the match.

  “I hope you’re right,” I said. “You know lack of sleep can do weird things to your brain. I read about it once online.”

  “Online?”

  “Yeah, on the computer, you know, the internet...” I stopped, realizing my mistake. “...and you have no idea what I’m talking about do you?”

  “Not a clue, clue, clue, Nicky but that’s okay. I like when you talk about things from your life,” he said. “It makes me happy to know that the world is still there.”

  “Yeah, it is, I guess,�
�� I said. “Is everyone still sleeping?”

  “I think so,” he answered. “At least I haven’t heard anybody, not even the kids.” That’s how he referred to Billy and Kitten; ‘the kids’.

  “That’s good,” I said, relieved that I could tell Marshal about the colonel before telling anyone else. He was smarter than the others when it came to assessing what was right down here and what could potentially lead to disaster. I wanted to know his opinion about Colonel Al’s mission. “I’m glad I got back here before the others got up. I really wanted to talk to you about something before I tell anyone else, okay?”

  “Nicky?” He was leaning forward, searching for something. “Where’s Barker?”

  “I left him,” I answered.

  “Left him?” he looked at me, confused. “I don’t understand.”

  “Marshal, there’s something I need to talk to you about,” I started. “It’s really important.”

  “Go ahead, Nicky, but can’t you tell me where Barker is?” he asked again. Evidently, he had grown fond of Barker, too.

  “That’s part of what I want to tell you,” I explained. “Marshal, you know about almost everyone who lives around here and beyond the woods, right?”

  “Not almost, Nicky,” he said proudly. “I know, know, know definitely about everyone.”

  “Okay.” It was the answer I wanted to hear because if Marshal didn’t know about the colonel than I knew for sure that no one else did. “Have you ever heard of or seen any soldiers out there, you know, around where the out-of-towners’ camp was?”

  “Soldiers? What kind of soldiers?” He seemed panicked. “Nicky, are they the Blood Demons?”

  “No, no Marshal,” I assured him. “There’s only one soldier and he’s no Blood Demon. He’s actually with the United States army.”

  “Who is Nicky?” he asked, sitting forward and waiting for me to continue.