The Gretel Series: Books 1-3 (Gretel #1-3)

by Christopher Coleman

  The screams that detonated from Mrs. Klahr as the oil dribbled from the holes at the top of the sprinkler on to her naked abdomen and breasts were slightly muffled by Marlene’s wailing laughter as she was overcome with the joy of her life. Whether she got the answers she wanted was secondary right now. She was happy again.

  OFFICER DODD SQUEEZED his palms to his ears, praying the dueling horror of the two sounds in the back room would come to an end. This is madness, he thought. I am mad for believing that I could ever deal with this demon. She was insane, that was without question now, but he supposed he knew that the instant he saw her through the doorway, sitting as quiet and still as a mannequin.

  But Dodd had also hoped she would be malleable, or at least reasonable, and that he would be able to shepherd this arrangement, to work toward a common goal in a way that would suit his conscience. An old woman like that should have been easy to maneuver in the direction he wanted her to go.

  He could leave now. Forget the deal. Forget his dream of immortality.

  But he couldn’t. He understood now the lure that had captured Stenson. Once it was known, this potential, once it was unquestionably real, there was no rejecting it.

  The screaming, though, had to stop. He couldn’t listen to the screams any longer.

  Dodd ran to the bedroom and swung open the door, automatically preparing himself for an attack; it was an instinct he’d acquired over his years in the System whenever he entered a strange building or room.

  Marlene stood hunched over the poor Klahr woman, releasing tiny droplets of acid or perhaps boiling water onto her torso, licking her lips each time a tiny bead hit skin, sizzling.

  “Stop it, Marlene!” he commanded. “That’s enough.”

  She continued, as if unaware of Dodd’s presence in the room.

  “I’ve got something of yours, Marlene.”

  Marlene cocked her head faintly to one side and held the metal torture device upright, holding back whatever evil remained inside.

  “I told you I was one of the first officers here after hearing Anika Morgan’s story. And I found something that day. On the counter, there in the kitchen.”

  “Orphism,” she said. The voice sounded like it had been released in a gas, like the whisper of a ghost.

  “Yes. Orphism.”

  Marlene turned and faced Dodd, and he knew she was weighing the consequences of an attack. This was another instinct he’d developed as a System officer.

  “I don’t have it with me, Marlene, but I can get it. Just stop hurting her. Please.”

  Marlene smiled. “Certainly, Officer Dodd. I think I’ve already gotten what I wanted.”

  “What is that?”

  “There’s a letter apparently. At her home. It apparently has details about the Morgans’ trip.”

  “She told you that?”

  Marlene laughed. “Of course. You’ve never felt the lead sprinkler, I take it. It is quite effective. I only use the hot oil in this one. The molten lead sprinkler is the true test, however.”

  Dodd paused, attempting to imagine the pain of molten lead on his stomach. “Why?”

  “Why what?”

  “Why were you still torturing her when I came in? Why did you keep torturing her after she told you what you wanted?”

  In a flash, Marlene’s smile turned to a snarl. “Because I enjoy the sound of it.” She paused. “Now I’ll need that book from you, Officer Dodd. That will be necessary for our deal to come to fruition. And I will need the letter as well.”

  “The letter? How can I get that? You said it’s at her home. I can’t go back there. I’ve risked too much already.”

  “Did we not agree that you would do as I said, lest the treaty be broken?”

  “I won’t go to prison for it.”

  Marlene frowned, and Dodd could see he’d won this round.

  “Perhaps it’s not fair that you do both tasks. Perhaps a compromise is in order. You just get the book then. And you bring it back here. We’ll figure about the letter later.”

  “Why do you even need this letter? You said they were on their way here. If that’s true, why do you care where they went?”

  “It could be interesting, Officer Dodd, that’s all. They may have gone somewhere that was once very important in my life.”

  Chapter 30

  Gretel, Petr, and Hansel said their goodbyes to Ben and made their way up the porch steps to Gretel’s house. When they were on the road, outside the perimeter of the witch’s cabin, Gretel had suggested they could stay at the Klahrs for the night. But after some discussion and a quick assessment of their own house, Hansel and Gretel decided the screened porch would work fine. The night was unseasonably warm, and the porch was well-stocked with blankets and pillows. They hadn’t done so in years, but when Gretel and Hansel were younger, they would sleep out on the porch quite often. Gretel had always loved the warm air and the buzz of insects; it made her feel like she was on another planet.

  But those days of fantasy were far behind her now. In the morning, she and Hansel would begin the awful task of cleaning the basement.

  And then prepare for the coming storm.

  Ben had dropped off a stunned Sofia, who had said she understood the importance of keeping quiet about the things she knew, though she hadn’t quite promised to do so. But Ben seemed confident there were enough gestures and nods from the girl to imply she’d keep their secret safe. It didn’t, however, seem likely that she would accompany them to this battle, despite her earlier shows of intrigue.

  Ben was still in though, and Gretel was pleased with this. He seemed inherently strong-willed—and physically strong as well—both attributes they needed.

  The next morning, Gretel woke just as the sun rose over the trees, and she immediately went to work on the basement. She wrapped a large dish towel around her neck, which she would use to cover her nose and mouth, and dressed from head to toe in a layer of old clothes she’d taken from the shelf of her bedroom.

  She was surprised how the cabin no longer felt like her home; they would leave this place for good once this ordeal ended, though she had no idea where they would go. There was so much still in question, including whether she would ever see her mother again. As strong as her intuition was—and it was getting stronger every day, it seemed—she couldn’t imagine where her mother was right now. Or if she was even alive.

  Ben had picked up Petr early to leave for the Urbanlands. If everything went as planned, by mid-morning, the first morsel of bait would have been laid. Gretel still wasn’t entirely sold on the strategy, but she trusted Petr. He was skeptical of most things, so if he thought this had a chance to work, then so did she.

  Gretel descended the steps and immediately saw Hansel in the basement, toiling. He looked like he’d been up for hours, a lather of sweat coating the back of his neck. The back door was slid wide, and he tossed things by the armload into the yard. Apparently, he had had the same idea as she of using a towel around his mouth and nose.

  Gretel motioned to him and they both walked out to the backyard and into the freedom of the open air.

  “I see you’re copying my new fashion,” Gretel joked.

  “I did it first, so you’re copying me.”

  “What time did you get up today? It looks pretty good down here. I mean, considering.”

  “Early. Before Petr left with Ben. I barely slept last night. Knowing what was down here. It was like our house was toxic. Stained with hate or something. I couldn’t stand it.”

  Gretel reached out and placed her hand on her brother’s shoulder. “I’m proud of you, Han. I really am. This would be so much harder if I had come alone. I’m glad you’re here.”

  Hansel smiled wide and rumpled his glistening eyes. “Of course you are, otherwise you’d be cleaning the house alone.”

  Gretel laughed. “Dummy.”

  “I think if we get to it and work through the day, we can probably finish cleaning by tonight. It will probably need another full day of ai
ring out though before we can live here again. Maybe two.”

  “That’s fine. We’ll do what we can during the day and keep to the porch at night. At least it isn’t winter. Tomorrow I need to get back to the Klahrs.”

  “But they’ll know by then, Gretel. Right? If Petr is right about the System, they’ll know soon that we’re back. She could be coming by then.” There was no fear in Hansel’s voice, just making sure his sister understood the situation.

  Gretel nodded and gave a look of deep thought. “We’ll just have to see. Let’s see what Petr thinks when he gets back. For now, you can keep copying my new style so we can get to work.”

  “SO WHO IS THE GUY WE’RE looking for again? What is his name? The one you trust?”

  Ben was filled with questions, most of which Petr had already answered three times or more. The two boys sat in the truck outside the System station, and Petr walked through the names again as he revisited the details of the plan. It wasn’t complicated, but there was no harm in making sure they were on the same page.

  “His name is Conway. He’s the overseer of the case. But it shouldn’t matter to you. I’ll do the talking. They know who I am here; they know I have a special interest in this case. It’s been my obsession for the last eleven months, as you already know. You, however, they do not know, so I think it best for that part of this story to remain the same.”

  “The overseer? That means he’s the boss, right?”

  “The boss of this case, yes. You know, the more I think about it, the more I think it might be best if you stayed in the truck, Ben. No point risking any mistakes.”

  Ben laughed, opened the door, and stepped to the pavement. “Thanks, overseer. I think I’ll come along though. I’ve never seen the inside of one of these places. And I didn’t come along just as someone for you to talk to on the way. I’ll be an extra pair of ears and eyes. Sometimes you miss things when you’re so close to it.”

  Petr had expected nothing less. “Just let me do the talking.”

  Ben saluted, and the two boys walked toward the front of the barracks. The plan, as Petr first explained on the truck ride back from the Northlands, was to inform the case overseer that Gretel had finally returned from the Old World. Petr would explain that he wanted to make sure the System had all the up-to-date information they needed. He was committed to assisting them in any way he could. The Case of the Missing Witch, as they knew, was somewhat of a project of his.

  Petr never thought Conway was involved; on the contrary, in his brief meeting with the officer, he seemed to Petr like a man of integrity. But Petr also knew the System a bit by now, and he knew that Conway, at some point, during lunch or on a coffee break perhaps, would casually let fly the news that the Morgan girl returning to the Back Country.

  And then it would be set. If Petr was right, the woman would come to them.

  The scoundrels on the inside who had covered up the witch’s missing body, who had doctored the reports with myths and outlandish theories of bears devouring the corpse or wolves dragging it to some mysterious den would begin to blossom like rotten mushrooms. And in Petr’s estimation, there was only one reason why anyone in the System would have gone to such lengths to hide the truth, and it was the same reason Petr’s father had. They were seeking the potion. They were assisting the witch for the promise of immortality.

  Petr didn’t have any proof about who any of the players were in this deranged show, but he was fairly certain he knew at least one of them.

  Petr and Ben hadn’t been in the station more than thirty seconds when he heard his name spoken from behind him. “Petr Stenson, right?”

  Petr turned to see a large man approaching him, his eyes curious but kind. “Yes,” Petr said, his voice crackling.

  “It’s Officer Conway. Do you remember me?”

  “You’re the overseer!” It was Ben, apparently excited to be able to put a face to the name.

  Conway gave a puzzled smile. “That’s right. And you are?”

  Petr gritted his teeth, wanting to punch Ben. “This is Ben. He’s my transportation here today. I have some important news about the case that I want to deliver.”

  “Not the Case of the Disappearing Witch, I hope. Because, as I told you the last time you were here, that one isn’t at the top of the docket anymore.”

  “She didn’t disappear. She never died. I told you.” Petr felt himself flush with anger but reined it back, remembering that showing his conviction was not the point of this confrontation.

  “What can I do for you, Petr? I don’t have a lot of time for more theories, if that’s all you’ve come for. I’m on my way out.”

  “No sir, Officer Conway. It is to do with my father’s case, but not about the...body. I just thought you should know, in case you had any more follow-up questions for the Morgans, that Gretel Morgan is back from the New Country. She came home yesterday.”

  “Is that so? Well that’s not that interesting, but okay, Petr, I appreciate your meticulousness as this case is concerned. And should I have any more questions, I’ll be sure to contact her.”

  Petr had planted the seed, but he didn’t like Conway’s manner. He seemed distracted, disinterested. This plan only worked if word spread throughout the System, if it reached the right ears, and Conway wasn’t acting like he was champing at the bit to spill some dirt.

  To this point in his quest, Petr’s instincts had been close to spot on, so he made the decision to pile his eggs high into one lone basket. “Overseer Conway?”

  Conway stopped and turned at the threshold of the exit door, an eyebrow cocked.

  “I know this isn’t a high priority for the System right now, but I was hoping you could do one more thing for me.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Will you make sure Officer Dodd gets the news I just told you? The last time I was here he said he wanted to stay on top of things.”

  “I can do you one better kid. Dodd’s in his office now. Go tell him yourself.”

  Chapter 31

  “You have to go to your feet, Ms. Anika. They not let you board if you no walking. Ms. Anika!”

  “What?” Anika woke with a jolt; her senses were blurry but quickly beginning to tingle back to life. “What are we doing? Where are we?”

  “They think you drunk if you no stand, Anika. You can’t go drunk.”

  Anika recognized the voice of Oskar and the urgency in his tenor. Without another word, she forced herself to sit up in the carriage.

  Her memory of the journey from the mountain village consisted of no more than a few minutes of the commencing dash of the quartet of huge stallions pulling from the village to the shore. After those first moments, she didn’t remember anything

  Before they left, the tall woman had given them provisions and made them as comfortable as possible in the covered carriage, which, for Oskar and Noah wasn’t very comfortable at all. Anika had watched them in a fog as they sat scrunched together beside the driver in the box seat, while she lay alone, blanketed in the back. She had tried to protest, to tell them she would sleep sitting and that they could ride in the back with her, but as she now recalled, the words may not have even been spoken outside of her fevered mind.

  “It’s not unusual,” she had heard the host woman tell Oskar before they left. “The fever will break in a day or two. The pill is forcing her body to fight the sickness. It’s a good thing. She will be okay. Just keep her warm. Weather is approaching.”

  They were the last words she heard until Oskar’s voice encouraged her to stand.

  Anika looked to her left and saw Noah standing next to the carriage with an outstretched hand. She grabbed it and stood, and then stepped down gingerly to the wooden planks layering the ground below. The smell of this place is familiar, she thought, and she looked up quickly, instinctively, and immediately recognized the terminal. It was the port where she’d left Gretel and Hansel only a couple of weeks earlier.

  “How are you feeling?” Noah asked.

&nbs
p; Anika looked at Noah, stunned. “How is this possible? How can we be here already?”

  Noah laughed. “Yes, already. Well, I can only say that you should be happy for your ability to slumber as you did along the way. It was quite a ride! There have never been horses as those in this country. I will assure you of that.”

  “What time of day is it?”

  “It’s just before dawn. We made it here in less than eighteen hours. It was like nothing I’ve ever experienced. The driver pushed the horses through. It seems you made an impression back at the village.”

  “Where is he now? His carriage is here, but where are the horses? They obviously couldn’t have gone back. I want to thank him.”

  “He’s taken the horses for feed and gone to look for lodging. He insisted we tell you that thanks were not necessary.”

  Anika accepted this news with a nod and asked, “When does the ship arrive? When are we leaving?”

  Oskar and Noah shifted their eyes toward each other and then back to Anika.

  “You go alone, Ms. Anika,” Oskar said. “But we wait for you here. When you come back here.”

  “What? You have to come...I...you just have to.”

  “Our home is here, Anika,” Noah said, “but Oskar is right. When you come back, we’ll be here if you still need us.”

  Anika sighed and nodded again. “I understand.” She paused and looked to the ground. “But I’m not coming back.”

  “Anika...but you have to.” It was Noah this time, concerned.

  “Not soon anyway. Not for this...cure.”

  “But why?”

  “I’ve been away from my children for too long. There is a very real chance they may be in danger. I can’t leave them again.”

  “Bring them back with you. Of course.”

  “I don’t think so, Noah. Gretel and Hansel aside, returning here never made sense to me. Not to those mountains. It’s hard to explain but...I trust the men of the village, the medicine men or whatever they are, and I believe them when they say the cure to my sickness is in the book. But I don’t think they’re too concerned about helping me. I think they just want the book. I think they gave me the pill to keep me alive long enough to find the book and bring it to them.