Hugo and the Bird

by Jeff Mills

  “Hey! That’s just down the road. Look Jules!”

  Julia looked up from washing up and dropped her tea towel.

  “I wondered whose car that was,” she said in surprise. “I noticed it yesterday and thought then that it had been abandoned or something.”

  Hugo looked up from his cornflakes and suddenly began to get interested in what was being said. Was it just a coincidence or was there something more ominous going on. That car was very close to the entrance to the cave and it was strange for someone to go missing around those parts. He couldn’t wait for Emma to come so that he could tell her and ask what she thought.

  * * *

  D. I. Hyde walked around the Fiat Panda waiting for the forensics people to finish their work.

  “No signs of any violence or problem!” Bill Sutton, the forensic officer, announced to the detective. “It’s all yours.”

  He closed his large black case with a snap.

  “Find anything?” he shouted to two other officers, also in white suits, who were walking over the pebbles of the beach, searching for anything that might give them a lead.

  “Nothing yet,” they screamed back and continued their search, poking sticks into every nook and cranny they could find.

  One turned to the other and said,

  “I think that this is a waste of time. There was a big high tide yesterday and if there had been anything, it would have, more than likely, been washed away.”

  Just then, the noise and down draught of the Air Sea Rescue helicopter passed overhead, heading out to sea to see if they could find anything out there.

  “I’ll just go and take a look over at that little cave over there!” one of the white-suited men shouted to his colleague and started to move towards the dark shadow by the cliff face. Suddenly he slipped on an algae-covered rock and went headfirst down amongst the pebbles. His partner, seeing him fall, dropped his stick and carefully but quickly raced over to his friend.

  “You OK, Tom?” he said as he reached him, holding out his hand to help his friend up.

  “Yeah. Think so!” he replied, but as he put his weight on his leg he collapsed down again in great pain. “Think I might have broken my leg,” he groaned. Wincing, he tried to stand again. This time his friend grabbed him under his shoulders and helped him get up on his one good foot.

  “Hey, Tony. Give us a hand!” the one officer shouted and a minute later the two of them had the injured policeman supported between their shoulders and heading up the beach back to their patrol car.

  As he limped along, the injured officer explained.

  “It’s no good, sir. The tide’s washed everything clean. If there was any evidence there, then it’s gone now.”

  Carefully, with the help of his comrades, the limping policeman was eased into the back seat of the patrol car. With sirens screaming and blue lights flashing, his colleague whisked him off to the hospital at Barnstaple some ten miles away.

  * * *

  The inspector rubbed his hands together to get rid of the sand that had covered them when he had helped the injured man up. He shouted and waved his arm at his sergeant, who was talking to some holiday makers a hundred yards away, to join him. Phil Cummings breathlessly came up to him after running the last fifty yards.

  “Don’t think we can learn anything else here. Let’s head back,” the inspector suggested and, with a final look around, they turned, unlocked and seated themselves in their patrol car and, with more lights and sirens, left the scene.

  A pair of bright blue eyes peeped out of the darkness of the hollow where the police officer had been heading, blinked and disappeared as fast as they had appeared.

  Chapter 26

  False Trail

  Morgana stood behind her curtain, stroking her hair and admiring herself in the fragment of mirror which she had now cleaned and polished until it shone. Not a streak or smear could be seen. Suddenly, she felt a strange vibration on her bottom and a strange musical tune coming from behind her. She spun around, desperately trying to find the source of this strange noise and feeling. Nothing was there, yet the music and vibration persisted. She put her hand to where she felt the vibration and discovered a strange object in what appeared to be a pocket. She pushed her hand into the opening, carefully drawing out a strange rectangular object that not only vibrated and sang but lit up the whole area with a bright light which, on examination, turned out to be the picture of a grey cat.

  As quickly as it started, the picture and sound suddenly stopped and the cat disappeared only to be replaced a few seconds later with a ping and a message saying, “You have voicemail.” She felt that she knew, deep down, what this strange thing was but could not quite remember. Prompted by the finding in the one pocket, she felt around the strange trouser-like garment she now wore. Three more pockets were found which when emptied revealed a small note book, a thin blue stick-like object, with a top that could be removed, a crumpled up piece of soft paper and a set of three keys on a small wire ring.

  Again, each of these objects felt familiar, but she was not sure what the blue stick was or which locks the keys operated. Putting them to one side, she was about to look again in the mirror when, from outside the curtain, a small voice called her. Throwing back the curtain angrily, she saw the small form of a cringing goblin in front of her.

  “What!” she shouted.

  The small figure turned and started to flee at the sight of this strange person standing before him. The voice he recognised, but the character before him did not correspond. It was only when he was ordered to “Stop!” in that familiar voice did he turn and face this strange vision. Hesitatingly, Fulmer, the spy, explained all that he had heard and seen at the Gnome Reserve. He related that the gnomes were planning to send word, asking for help, to their friends at another camp in Somerset, the county adjoining Devon where they lived. When the reinforcements arrived, they would attack the goblins. However, since it would take several days for the Somerset contingent to arrive, those from the gnome reserve would, in the meantime, hide out in the cellar of the home where the owner of the Reserve lived.

  “Excellent! Good work!” she said to Fulmer, which surprised him, as she never praised anyone, and she actually smiled, which was unheard of. He was getting to like this new witch. “Call your leaders and tell them to be here in ten minutes,” she ordered and, without further hesitation, off he dashed off to carry out her instructions.

  Ten minutes later, the area in front of the curtain was abuzz with excitement with several dozen goblins, all wondering what this new Morgana had in store for them. The curtain was thrown back and she stood tall in front of them. Those who had not seen her transformation were visibly shocked and started to back away but they slowly returned as those around them quickly explained about the new person standing before them.

  “My informant,” she said, looking towards Fulmer, who blushed and looked at the floor, “has told me that for the next few days the gnomes will be hiding in the cellar of the big house at the Gnome Reserve. This is our opportunity to smash them once and for all. We will attack at midnight tomorrow. Those from the Saint Austell group will scout the grounds from eleven to make sure that we do not leave any stragglers outside and then at midnight the rest of you will block the entrances to the house and we will burn it down with the gnomes in it. If anybody escapes, then kill them any way you can!”

  A great cheer arose from the assembly, followed by a loud buzz of excitement. The witch waved her hand and they went their ways, talking about the plan and the new witch, except for one small goblin who asked timidly, before she slid back behind the curtain.

  “P… Please ma’am, but what about that big Bird thing and the big people there?” The other goblins stopped their exiting and turned waiting to hear the witch’s answer. She looked at them and smiled, which disturbed several of them, as they had never seen Morgana smile,

 
“Leave that big bunch of feathers to me. I’ve got a particularly nice pebble ready for him and this time, he will never hatch.”

  The goblins gave a whoop of joy and with a cacophony of shrill voices they went about their business.

  Back at the reserve, Bird had selected a few trustworthy gnomes and this time, genuinely checking that they were not overheard, he outlined his real plan to trap the interlopers and eliminate them, though he did stress that he preferred to capture them, rather than kill, as killing them might incite other groups to come to seek retribution.

  Chapter 27

  Harding & Jasper

  Hugo had just started arranging the parts of his Millennium Falcon model when he heard the doorbell ring. A minute later there was a knock on his bedroom door as Emma came in.

  “Oh, hi” he said. “You haven’t got the bug have you?”

  “I hope not,” Emma responded, unconsciously looking at her face in the mirror on the wall. “How is Steph?”

  “Anybody would think she’s royalty for the attention she’s getting. Mum won’t let me see her in case I catch it,” Hugo said sarcastically.

  “What’s happening?” Emma enquired.

  “I’m building this model,” answered Hugo, showing her the picture on the box lid.

  “I can see that, silly. No; what’s happening with Bird and the gnomes?”

  “Don’t know. I haven’t seen him for a couple of days. Let’s ask him. Check outside to make sure the coast is clear.” Emma opened the door a little and looked outside and listened.

  “Your mum and mine are still nattering downstairs. They’ll be ages.” With the door firmly shut, Emma sat on the bed and whispered; “Bird, Bird, Bird.”

  A few minutes passed but Bird did not appear, so again, but a little louder, Emma called. The wall shimmered and a rather dishevelled Bird emerged, with crumbs still around his beak.

  “I’m sorry,” he spluttered. “It’s been a hard night.”

  Casually preening his feathers, he explained to the pair about the events that had occurred and what they were planning. Finally, he sat back on his haunches and sighed. “I just hope that Morgana falls for it.”

  “I thought that you two were supposed to be back at school today?”

  “We were,” responded Emma and explained about Stephanie having chickenpox and that the whole family had to be in quarantine until they were considered to be non-infectious.

  At the mention of “Chicken Pox” Bird sat up straight. Since he was a bird, and if it affected chickens, then he might catch it but Emma laughed and reassured him that, as far as she knew, he was safe.

  “I am sorry but I must get back; there’s a lot of work to do.” their feathered friend explained as he rose onto his feet.

  “If we can help in anyway, please let us know.”

  Hugo offered but Bird quickly told them that he had caused them enough trouble as it was and did not want the responsibility of looking after them, in what might be a dangerous situation. With a final stretch and fluffing out of his wings, which knocked Hugo’s alarm clock off his bedside table, their friend melted back into the wall.

  “I feel that we should do something to help,” Hugo protested as soon as he had gone but then slouched back onto his bed in deep thought.

  Downstairs the telephone rang and the two heard Mrs Bennett shout out to her husband that there was someone on the phone for him. The lounge door squeaked open and Mr Bennett took the call.

  The rest of the morning and afternoon passed very slowly and Hugo and Emma rapidly became fed up with playing the same game on the computer, so Hugo suggested to his mother that they take Jake for a walk.

  “You know you’re really supposed to stay indoors but, it is a nice day and the dog needs a run, so I don’t think it should matter much, providing that you avoid coming into contact with anybody. Just in case, take this bottle of antiseptic hand rub with you and use it if you touch anything.”

  Grabbing the small bottle, the dog’s lead from behind the door and a bottle of water, the two, plus an excited canine, left the house to walk into Westward Ho! They had only gone a few yards when they noticed several police cars and policemen standing around a small blue car that had police ribbon draped around it. Out of curiosity, despite being told to stay away from other people, they went up to where the policemen were talking. As they approached, one of the officers looked up and came across to them. At first Hugo thought that they were going to be told off for not being in school but as the policeman approached them, he asked if they were local, if they knew whose car this was and had they seen anybody around it, especially a young lady. Taking out a paper from inside his jacket, he showed them a picture of an attractive young woman with long light-brown hair. The two looked carefully at the picture but admitted that they had not seen her, or anybody like her, near the car. Emma was itching to know what was going on and asked the officer if the picture was that of the woman, mentioned in the news, that had gone missing. He answered that it was and that if they should see her, or know anybody that had seen her, they should let them know immediately.

  Slowly, the two left the scene, fighting to hold Jake on his leash and frequently looking back to make sure that they didn’t miss anything. As they walked they discussed the possibility of going to have a look at the cave to see if they could find out anything that might be useful to Bird but they eventually decided that if they went, they might upset their friend’s plans and so they settled with just walking around the village and window shopping.

  When they returned home, Mrs Bennett was just laying the table for tea and, after asking casually what they had been doing, told them both to go and wash their hands thoroughly. The dog meanwhile was lapping up a bowl of water, thirsty after the walk. As they sat down to tea, Hugo’s father said to his wife, but loudly so that everyone could hear,

  “I had a weird phone call today, that one you got me to take, Jules. It was from some company called Harding and Jasper.” Hugo and Emma grinned at the name Jasper. “They said that they were from a company that specialised in finding relations of people who have died without making a will and, as such, may be the beneficiaries of any money or property that they have left. They were commonly known as heir hunters.

  They said that their research had shown that I might be entitled to the estate of a case with which they are dealing with. They were not able to go into full details over the phone as they had to ensure that I was the genuine person that their research had thrown up. They also did not say how much I might inherit but, anything would be better than nothing, wouldn’t it?”

  He looked around at everyone, smiling. His wife clapped her hands and screamed with delight.

  “Oh, darling! We could be millionaires,” and she ran over to her husband and gave him a big kiss. Hugo blushed with embarrassment and tried to ignore it but he too was caught up in the excitement and immediately thought of the gadgets and goodies he would be able to buy if his dad was a millionaire.

  The kitchen door opened and a dishevelled, spotty girl came into the room.

  “What’s the fuss about?” she mumbled, but as soon as she heard the news her demeanour and humour rapidly changed and her appearance and discomfort were immediately forgotten. The next hour was spent with Julia Bennett telephoning everyone she could think of with the news. By the time that any semblance of order returned, the tea was cold and Jake was pining for his supper, for, in all the excitement, no one had remembered to feed him. By the time Emma’s mum came round to pick her up, the raised emotions had started to die down but it still took over an hour, while the adults chatted, for her and Emma to leave.

  During the remainder of the evening Hugo’s father explained that the representative from Harding and Jasper had wanted to come the next day for him to sign some special papers. These would give the company exclusive rights to investigate the case, and to agree a percentage of the e
state that would be claimed as their fee. However, after explaining about the quarantine due to chickenpox, he had agreed to come in a few days’ time when the chance of infection was reduced.

  “Oh, drat!” exclaimed Julia. “I can’t wait that long.” and she gave a loud sigh.

  That evening extended deep into the night, with the four of them excitedly discussing what Mr Bennett might be getting and how each of them was going to spend their good luck. Frequently he would warn them that it might only be a couple of hundred pounds and not to get their hopes and expectations up. He also warned, what might be even worse, was that he might not be the person they thought he was, or even worse still, there might be several more people who were potential beneficiaries. What was left would have to be shared around. Everyone groaned at this but the mood rapidly lifted as one by one they dismissed these possibilities.

  Eventually it was Jake’s barking to go out for a toilet break that broke the spell. After attending to the dog’s needs they decided it was time for bed but it took a long time before any of them finally went to sleep.

  Chapter 28

  Preparations for Battle

  Bird, Barguff and a few selected gnomes worked hard setting the trap for the goblins. They weren’t exactly sure when they would come but what they did know was that, if Morgana ran true to form, then it would not be too long.

  All the concrete models of gnomes that they could collect were gathered together in the cellar of the house at the Reserve and set out to look as if they were having a meeting. Barguff had been to see the owner to explain the whole situation and what was planned. She was seriously taken aback and threatened to call the police when it was explained to her. The little man was able to calm her down and suggested that she should go away for a few days until it was over but she refused. By the time Barguff had left she was in fighting mood and couldn’t wait for the action to start. Several of the other gnomes had been ordered to scout around the grounds for anything that could possibly be used as weapons and a respectable pile of sticks, garden rakes, spades, stones and even several fishing rods with large hooks on their ends were beginning to accumulate. As the pile grew, Barguff ordered that the weapons be distributed around each of those gnomes that were able to fight, with the strongest being given the most lethal. He chose for himself a large scythe and, between giving orders, picked up a stone and started to sharpen it as best he could. Some of the female gnomes protested that they hadn’t been given weapons but Barguff explained that they were the second line of defence. He ordered them to go home and fill as many small bags as they could find with flour, which they could use to throw at the goblins and blind them. Also, if the goblins were covered in flour, then they would be easier to see at night, as they were grey and even in daylight were sometimes hard to see. Other female gnomes were ordered to collect the children and, when the time came, take them to the other side of the Reserve to the grotto. Here they should be safe but, to make sure, Barguff instructed them to take a large net and intertwine, between its cords, a mix of plants and moss, so that when it was hung in front of the grotto the entrance would be camouflaged.