The Wolfstone Curse

by Justin Richards

  “Doesn’t it hurt?” Peter asked.

  Einzel gave a short laugh. “Constantly.”

  “That’s how you knew about the passage,” Carys realised.

  “It is how I escaped the explosion when the British destroyed this castle.” Einzel motioned for the wolf-guard to help him back into his shirt. “Two of the commandos attacked me in the Crystal Room. I was wounded, and the tip of the sword remains in my shoulder. Poisoning me, as you can see. Yet it gives us strength.”

  “The crystal for the rings,” Peter said. “They take it from there?”

  “But the blade works itself ever deeper, and it is harder to get to now without invasive surgery.”

  “Why not have it removed completely?” Carys asked.

  Einzel buttoned his coat. “I am told the operation could kill me. And I keep it as a constant reminder of who I am, and of what happened here. Of why I must succeed. Where better to keep the most precious resource that we have than concealed inside my own body?”

  As the digging continued, Einzel dismissed David. Irena led Peter and Carys away. One of the wolf-guards went with them, grunting with anticipation. He jabbed his gun into Peter’s back to keep him moving.

  “Soon you will know what it’s like when your own body turns against you,” Irena said.

  “What do you mean?” Carys demanded.

  They stopped outside a heavy wooden door off the main corridor. There was a small square window set in the top of the door, criss-crossed with bars. Irena kept them covered with her gun as the guard drew back heavy bolts and pushed the door open.

  Irena smiled. There was a grotesque contrast between the smiling beauty of the woman and the savage snarl of the upright wolf standing beside her.

  “We will need to test the Crystal Room,” she said. “We must be sure that an infected human will be transformed by its power.”

  “But we’re not infected,” Peter protested.

  “No,” she said quietly. “Not yet.”

  The cell door slammed shut behind them. The bolts scraped across. The only light filtered under the door and through the small barred window. Peter could make out Carys’s face in the gloom. She looked scared.

  “It’ll be all right,” Peter said. He felt stupid as soon as the words were out of his mouth. They both knew it wouldn’t.

  “What in Heaven’s name are you two doing here?”

  They both turned in surprise. A figure sat on a bench at the back of the cell, barely more than a silhouette. But Peter recognised the voice, and he was just as shocked.

  “Mr Forrest!”

  “What is this?” Carys said. “A family reunion?”

  As his eyes adjusted to the dim light, Peter saw that Sebastian Forrest looked older than he remembered. His face was drawn and lined, dark rings under his eyes.

  “You know David’s here, right?” Peter said.

  Forrest laughed, but the sound held no joy. “I followed him. Thought I could persuade him that what he was doing – what Einzel is doing – is madness.” He shook his head sadly. “His mother might have talked some sense into him, but I couldn’t.” He turned away and his shoulders heaved in a silent sob.

  “And with David’s help, I guess Einzel no longer needs you,” Carys said.

  “That’s right. We do not, as you may have realised, see entirely eye to eye.”

  “Is that why you’re locked in here with us?” Peter asked. “Or…” A horrifying thought occurred to him and his stomach lurched. “Are you going to infect us – turn us into wolves?”

  Forrest shook his head. “Not if I can help it. And Einzel’s methods are a little more scientific than scratching and biting these days. I imagine he will inject you with his latest potion. A refined venom extracted from saliva.”

  “And why do they want to test the Crystal Room on us?” Carys said. “Do you know?”

  “I can only imagine,” Forrest said, “that it’s because everyone else here is already a wolf.”

  “Including you and David,” Peter said.

  “He’s been duped. Suborned.” Forrest’s voice was laced with bitterness. “David’s young and impetuous. The young always think of themselves before anyone else. I’m sorry,” he added, “that was an ungenerous generalisation.”

  “What is wrong with him – Einzel, I mean?” Peter said.

  “You mean the megalomania, the sadistic delusions, or the argyria?”

  “The what?” Carys said.

  “I mean that bruising,” Peter explained. “His withered arm. It can’t just be because of the crystal blade.”

  “It’s argyria,” Forrest said again. “From the silver at the heart of the sword. It poisons the body, giving it that grey-blue tinge. Silver can promote healing, but it is also a poison – especially to people like myself and Einzel. That’s the irony of course, it’s slowly killing him. But too slowly.”

  “Very slowly, if he really is the Nazi that my grandfather and your father fought,” Carys agreed.

  “You know about that?”

  “Grandad kept a journal.”

  “But it doesn’t tell us everything,” Peter said.

  “He didn’t know everything, and neither do I,” Forest told them. “But I do know that my father led the raid. He pretended to be friendly with Himmler before the war.”

  “Pretended?” It sounded to Peter like a rationalisation after the fact.

  “On the orders of the secret service, such as it was in those days. He was using Himmler to try to discover what Hitler and the rest of them were planning.”

  “I’m guessing it didn’t do them much good,” Carys said.

  “I really couldn’t say,” Forrest replied. “But more to the point, while my father was using Himmler, Himmler was also using him. He took genetic material, as we’d call it now. Blood samples. Himmler knew the truth about the du Bois family, and tried to persuade father to help him set up his obscene experiments.”

  “But he didn’t?”

  Forrest shook his head. “He escaped back to England. Soon after that we were at war. Father kept track of what Himmler was up to as best he could. When it looked like they might even succeed in creating wolf-soldiers… Well, you know what happened. Lionel du Bois organised the raid in 1943 that destroyed this place. Operation Velvet Claw.”

  “And got my grandad infected.”

  “Yes. He always felt very guilty about that. He gave your family the pub, to try to assuage that guilt. After the raid, my family changed their name to Forrest, and we moved away from Wolfstone. Partly out of guilt, partly to muddy the waters so any German agents in Britain would find it harder to find us, and Himmler – hopefully – would lose track of us.”

  “I guess it worked for a while,” Peter said.

  “Except,” Carys went on, “Einzel survived. And now he’s carrying on the Nazi experiments.”

  Forrest nodded. “That’s true. And he has the same problem that the German scientists ran up against. Longevity.”

  “Yes,” Peter remembered, “he said something about that. But he’s ancient.”

  “And he doesn’t know why. He assumes that the Nazi experiments were ultimately successful and he was given the gift of a long life.”

  “Is that true?” Peter asked.

  “Who knows? There doesn’t seem to be any other reason, unless it’s the effect of the crystal and silver buried inside him. But whatever the case, he can’t reproduce it. Genetic werewolves, like myself and my family, are naturally very long-lived. Your grandfather too,” he said to Carys.

  “Not any more,” she said quietly.

  “Ah.” Forrest nodded. There seemed to be genuine sadness in his voice. “I’m sorry.”

  “Not your fault,” Carys told him. “I hope.”

  “Certainly not. But unlike Einzel’s followers, he had a long and full life. Again, that could be because Einzel is long-lived and infected him, or because, as you know, he had a piece of the crystal lodged in his leg. The people that Einzel turns to
the way of the wolf, and the wolves he transforms into proto-humans, they don’t live anything like so long. So far he has been unable to transfer the gift of longevity, and instead they seem to inherit the lifespan of an ordinary wolf.”

  “How long is that?” Carys wondered.

  “It varies of course, but about eight years is normal.”

  “I’m guessing that’s a bit of a problem if you’re trying to get recruits to the cause,” Peter said.

  “I imagine he’s making them promises he cannot yet keep.”

  “So what’s your solution?” Carys asked. “What do you think he should be doing?”

  “Like Einzel, I was looking for a cure. But something to expel the wolf from us, not to bring it out and make it dominant. Not that it matters now,” he said sadly.

  “Why?”

  “Because it’s too late. Far too late for me, and for my son. And now that Annabelle…” His voice choked off and he turned away. “Now he has Annabelle. I’ve lost both my children in just a few days.”

  “Sorry – who has Annabelle?” Peter demanded.

  “Einzel has her. She’s already turned; her time has come. And he has her imprisoned in the wolf-pit beneath the circle back at Wolfstone, to ensure my co-operation with his foul plans. Prolonged exposure to the crystal in the stones themselves, focused by the shape of the circle, will turn her permanently into a wolf. I’ve lost them both. Failed them both.”

  “But – that’s not true,” Peter blurted out. “That’s not where she is.”

  “What?” Forrest was on his feet, advancing on Peter. “What do you mean?!”

  “Just that Annabelle isn’t in the pit under the circle,” he said. “She got out – she escaped.”

  “How do you know?” Forrest grabbed Peter’s shoulders, shaking him. “Tell me!”

  “All right, all right!”

  “Let him go!” Carys pulled Forrest’s arms away.

  He stepped back. “I’m sorry. It’s just – my daughter…”

  “I’ve seen her,” Peter told him. “Since the ceremony in the circle where you tried to cure her.”

  “Without success.”

  “Peter’s dad thinks the Wolfstone Circle was used like the Crystal Room,” Carys said. “It forces a werewolf to change and reveal it’s true form. That’s the sort of “healing” it was for, not actually to cure the ailment, but to reveal who was a monster so they could be killed.”

  “We aren’t all monsters,” Forrest said quietly, but his voice was trembling with emotion. “You’re sure you saw Annabelle?”

  “In the woods,” Peter explained. “She was freezing. I gave her my coat.”

  “You never said,” Carys told him coldly. “You said you thought she was still in Wolfstone; you didn’t tell me you’d actually met her.”

  “It was while you and your mum were… busy. With your grandad.”

  She nodded, biting her lower lip. “Okay.”

  “Anyway, it wasn’t a meeting. She ran off,” he told Forrest. “She’s free.”

  Forrest sighed. “None of us are free.”

  “Certainly not in here we’re not,” Carys agreed. “You will help us?” she said to Forrest.

  “Knowing that Annabelle is alive and safe, I’ll do whatever I can to stop Einzel.”

  Peter hoped that Forrest was telling the truth. Could Einzel have caught Annabelle since Peter saw her in the woods? It didn’t seem likely. But anything was possible. He shuddered at the thought of what they might do. The girl’s beautiful, frightened eyes bored into his memory.

  The scrape of the bolts snapped him back to reality. The cell door swung open, light from the corridor spilling into the small room.

  Irena and two of the wolf-guards stood in the doorway. She stepped inside, hands clasped behind her back.

  “It is time.”

  “You’ve opened the Crystal Room?” Forrest asked. He seemed surprised.

  “Almost. Herr Einzel felt you should be there to see it.”

  Forrest smiled thinly. “How thoughtful. I imagine we’re all in for a treat.”

  “Oh yes,” Irena agreed. She turned to stare at Peter. “Especially you.”

  The two wolf-guards moved quickly, each grabbing one of Peter’s arms. They gripped him so tightly it was all he could do not to cry out in pain. His heart lurched – what was happening?

  Irena was holding what looked like a gun. Except there was a small glass jar attached to the underside. In it, Peter could see a clear, viscous liquid. Fear turned to pain, and he cried out as the gun jabbed into his arm. He felt the injection through his coat and shirt, hammering into the muscle at the top of his arm.

  At once, Peter sagged. Forrest grabbed him by the shoulder to stop him collapsing to the floor.

  “What have you done?” Carys demanded, her vision blurred by sudden tears.

  Irena raised an eyebrow, but did not reply. She turned to the two guards. “Bring them.”

  Carys and Forrest managed to support Peter between them. He seemed to be recovering slowly, but his forehead was slick with sweat. Irena led the way out of the cell and along the corridor.

  “Wolf venom,” Forrest said quietly to Carys. “They want to try him out in the Crystal Room, to see if it has infected him.”

  “Like the count’s daughter scratching her suitors,” Carys said. “Or the huntsman’s kiss?”

  “He’ll be all right, provided we can keep him in human form for long enough to get the poison out of his system.”

  “Grandad wasn’t all right,” Carys said.

  “He was inside the Crystal Room when he was infected. His metabolism changed at once, and irreversibly.”

  Back in the vast chamber with the raised altar, the doors to the Crystal Room had been cleared. A wolf guard scraped away the last of the rubble with a shovel.

  “You haven’t opened it yet?” Forrest asked.

  “We wait for Einzel,” Irena told him. “He must be here when we open the doors. He wants to see the boy change.”

  “I bet he does,” Carys muttered angrily.

  “Easy,” Forrest warned under his breath.

  “What – what’s going on?” Peter pulled his arm away from Forrest, trying to stand on his own.

  Carys held on to his other arm, but gently – letting him stand unsteadily on his own.

  “How are you feeling?” she asked.

  “Like I’ve got flu or something. Headache. And I’m burning up inside.” He was shivering uncontrollably.

  “Your body is fighting the infection,” Forrest said. “That’s a good sign.”

  “It will make no difference,” Irena said. “As soon as the Old One is here we will open the doors, and the Crystal Room will change you for good.”

  Forrest rounded on her angrily. “There is nothing at all good about it!”

  In answer, one of the guards thumped the butt of his gun into Forrest’s back. The man sank to his knees in pain.

  Irena pointed at Forrest. The ring she wore was identical to the one David Forrest had, glinting in the light from the lamps trained on the impressive wooden doors.

  “You will be silent,” she snarled. “And you’ll stay where you are. We already know what will happen to you when you enter the Crystal Room.”

  “Really?” Forrest seemed amused as he pulled himself back to his feet. “Some of us can resist it, you know. Oh, not the real light of the fullest moon, but the glow of the crystal. My father did not change when he entered the Crystal Room all those years ago. He could tolerate it, at least for a while.”

  “Are you saying the crystal doesn’t work?” Carys asked.

  “No, it works all right. I’m just saying…” Forrest smiled. “I guess I’m saying, don’t be surprised by what we might or might not find when those doors are opened.” He leaned closer to her. “Be ready,” he mouthed.

  Einzel strode into the chamber. He stood in front of the wooden doors, nodding with satisfaction. “Excellent,” he whispered. Then he stepped asi
de. “Very well. Open them!”

  Carys watched with trepidation as two of the wolf-guards pulled on the doors. The wood creaked and strained as they heaved on the huge metal handles. Slowly, the doors swung open, scraping over the remaining rubble.

  “Bring him!” Einzel pointed at Peter.

  Another wolf-guard grabbed Peter and pushed him forward. Carys grabbed at his hand, and felt how cold, clammy and sweaty it was. Then it was wrenched from her grip as the wolf-guard shoved Peter forward.

  She expected to be dazzled by the light from within. Carys had her hand up to shield her eyes. But there was nothing. Blackness. She glanced at Forrest, and he met her eyes for a moment. He had just the trace of a smile and gave the faintest nod of reassurance.

  The doors opened back fully. Light shone in from the lamps set up outside. Einzel gave a cry of astonishment and stepped through the doors.

  Into an empty room.

  Irena turned to look. Her smile froze as she too saw the room beyond the doors. An empty room lined with plain, dark stone.

  “It’s the wrong room,” she said. “We’ve opened the wrong room!”

  “No!” Einzel shrieked, turning back from inside. His face was a washed-out grimace of anger in the spotlights. “You think I don’t know – don’t remember?! It was here.” He turned a full circle, as if trying to find the smallest shard of crystal still clinging to the stripped walls. “It – was – here!”

  “Now,” Forrest whispered urgently to Carys. “Be ready, and help Peter!”

  “What?” she started to ask, but he’d already turned away.

  Irena was staring at Einzel as he continued to rage, pacing round the empty stone-walled room.

  Suddenly, in a single swift movement, Forrest lunged for Irena’s hand. Not the hand holding the gun – her other, free hand. He grabbed it, and she turned in surprise.

  She seemed to realise what Forrest was doing at the same moment as Carys did. He wasn’t going for her gun – he was after her ring. Forrest prised open the top, and the light from the crystal inside splayed out across his face.