The Cog Chronicles Box Set

by P M Cole

  “You cannot read L… oh, yes of course, you had no education. Well, tomorrow I will call for the best educators in London and we will change that sorry state of affairs!”

  “Umm… thank you.”

  “Your mother and I want you to feel at home here, with us. So… oh, I almost forgot—” Again, another silent exchange with Ophelia. “Because of your excellent demeanour since arriving here. We have discussed it and we want you to accompany all of us, to a banquet we will giving for a very important man.” He looked at Heather. “Heather, will help you choose the appropriate attire.” She grinned at me. My emotions wanted to burst from my chest, but instead I smiled back. He then looked at the food platters. “Now let’s eat.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  “This is Mrs Mallet,” said Ophelia, standing at the end of the reading table in the library. A woman of middling to advancing years, stood next to her. Her face was bird-like with a pointed noise, heavy brow, and her grey black hair was in a bun. She clung to a green and black bag, and from her smile was proud to be where she was. “She is a teacher of etiquette for young ladies and comes highly recommended.”

  It was too much to hope for, that I would actually get someone that would teach me something useful.

  She looked at me and frowned. “No no—” she said in a strong Scottish accent, placing the bag on the table, rushing to me, and placing her hands forcefully on my shoulders. “— A young lady does not slouch!”

  “Well, I will leave both of you to it,” said my mother, who went to leave.

  “How long will the lesson be?” I said to her.

  “I’m not sure. It is up to Mrs Mallet, but the Latin teacher will be here in a few hours. Why?”

  “Oh, I just wanted to look at some dresses for the banquet with Heather.”

  My mother smiled, then looked at the teacher. “Maybe just an hour for this first lesson.”

  The Scottish woman returned the expression and nodded.

  As soon as my mother had left, Mrs Mallet turned to me. “Right then. Let’s start with how you walk…”

  Thirty minutes later I had learned how to walk straight, which I thought I was able to do already, but evidently, I had been doing it wrong.

  I doubled over, rubbing my stomach. “I think I have a bit of a stomach bug.” Mrs Mallet took a step backwards, as I took one towards her.

  “Maybe we should end today’s session early. Yes, I think I will do that.” She walked around me and picked up her little bag. “Umm… I’ll be back tomorrow. I hope you feel better, but don’t worry we will have you ready for Saturday.’

  I told her I was thankful, to finally know how a young lady should walk, and with that she left. I stood upright, being thankful to be able to roll my eyes, as it was becoming painful not doing so. I was also glad to have the chance to explore.

  I waited a few moments, then walked, not so correctly, to the wooden door. It was unlocked. I opened it slightly and listened. No sound came from the tunnel on the other side. I already had mapped out the rooms and disorientating corridors that made up the topmost levels but wanted to see what was deeper.

  I was fairly certain it was still early in the day. Heather would still probably be sleeping, and I knew my mother would be in her own room for at least another thirty minutes. Hopefully, enough time to do what I needed.

  I slid through the gap and pulled the door to without closing it completely, then looked back down the torch lit rock walls to the end of the tunnel. Still silence.

  I ran, arriving at a junction, then immediately took the right and kept on running.

  Left… then down to the end, and up the small steps, then first left again.

  I played through the route in my mind and quickly arrived at my destination, the grand hall. It was empty as expected. Halfway along the left rock face, was a door. An iron one. I was told not to open it.

  Definitely a test.

  But that wasn’t what I was interested in. A few feet further on was a hole in the rock. A chute, with a metal grating across it. I had a quick look the day before, and caught a glimpse of something glittering, some way down at the bottom. There was a room down there and I wanted to know what was in it.

  I ran across the stone slabs, past the iron door, and got to the iron covering. I grabbed it, melting the pins on the lock holding it in place, and pulled it open. I then lifted my dress and pulled from the lining, five iron and silver rods I had fashioned from the nails and cutlery I had stolen. I looked into the hole at the strange orange light at the bottom. I really hoped five was going to be enough.

  I stepped up the bank of small rocks, then let my feet hang in the circular opening. A sound came from somewhere in one of the other tunnels. I dropped the five rods, and, at what I hoped was a space of a yard apart drove them into the rock with my mind. I then crawled inside, placing my foot on the first rod and pulled the grating back in place.

  I waited, not knowing who was about to enter the hall. Footsteps entered then left. Maybe my mother.

  I looked down. The rods were sticking out, barely reflecting the light from above and below, but visible enough for me to see. Shaking my head at the insanity of what I was doing, I reached down, holding the rod, then let my foot drop down to the next. The chute was also small enough for me to use my back and legs to support my weight, but one slip…

  I tried not to think about that, instead Mrs Mallet came to my mind, and I stifled a laugh. I wasn’t sure why, but I was glad for the distraction as I made my way lower, moving from rod to rod, until there was no more left.

  Hell…

  I was sure I had not descended far enough, and looking down confirmed my fear, but I also noticed something else. The floor, which was still at least another twenty feet from me, was shining, as if it was made from… metal.

  I couldn’t believe it. I balanced on the final rod and quieted my mind, then reached out with my senses and a tingling rose up my spine. It was metal alright and a lot of it.

  I looked back up. The light from the hall looked far away compared to the room below me, but I also didn’t know if it was devoid of people. Maybe Hades had guards in the strange metal room.

  I hesitated for a moment, then fate made the choice for me as the rod I was on, bent, then completely failed. In a desperate scramble and with the floor rushing towards me, I grabbed the metal below with my mind and raised it to form a platform which I duly landed on with a solid thump.

  “Oww...” I said, trying to determine if every part of me was still functioning and ignoring the pains coming from my back. I looked up at the chute exit, then slowly back down to where I had landed.

  My mouth fell open. I was not merely on a mound in a room, but on a hill of gold. A cavern which could contain two… three… ten grand halls, was laid out in front of me, and silver, gold, and bronze, like snow, were formed in peaks tens of feet high.

  I burst out laughing. They were so concerned to keep me away from metal, and Hades palace was literally built atop a mountain of it.

  All the precious metals he had mined from around the world were here, and I was able to manipulate all of it. My mind started to race with what I could do with this much metal. I hopped off the golden plinth I had created and landed with a crunch on heaps of coins and bars. I raised a few in the air with my thoughts, then a group of them, then more… a swarm of disks and trinkets flying around me. I held out my arms and twirled, lost in a tornado of glittery silver and gold and for a fleeting moment I felt something I hadn’t felt since I arrived in this subterranean nightmare: free.

  A noise came from far above, and everything dropped to the ground with a clatter.

  I needed to get back. I picked up a few coins, hid them in the lining of my dress, then with a little effort, climbed back on my metal platform, and then raised it higher until I could reach back into the vertical tunnel.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  “What about this one?” said Heather holding up another black lace dress. I wanted to make a
joke that we were not going to a wake but resisted.

  “That’s very pretty, but maybe something with some colour?”

  She frowned and threw the dress on the floor. The elderly man and woman standing nearby, holding other options, shivered in response.

  “I’m bored. We have been doing this for hours! I need to get some air.” And with that, she stormed out of the room.

  I stood, not knowing whether to stay or leave when I noticed the elderly woman staring at me, her eyes wide. She suddenly thrust the gold dress she was holding, out in front of her.

  “You think I should try that one?”

  She looked straight ahead and nodded, although she might have just been shaking, I couldn’t tell, but I walked forward and took the long, flared dress from her, and moved behind a wooden partition placing it over the back of a nearby chair. I went to turn away when I noticed something new was on the floor. A piece of a paper. I reached down and opened it.

  ‘Please help us. You're not same as others. We are not what we are look like. Heather is bad woman, made us old. Daphne Edwards. I am nine.’

  Confusion transformed into horror as I realised the women just a few feet from me, who looked old enough to be my grandmother was, in fact, a child. I went to step out from the partition when footsteps and a rustling of silk heralded Heather's reappearance.

  “Are you done yet? I want to go to the main house, and evidently, I’m not allowed to leave you alone, so you have to come with me.”

  I tucked the piece of paper inside my dress and moved back in the room. “Yes, I would love to see the main house.”

  Heather fluttered her eyelashes. “The manor house is alive with workers! Father has hired them to improve the decor for the banquet.” She reached out, grabbing my hand. My skin crawled. “Come we will find the most handsome of them!”

  “Umm… OK.”

  As she pulled me from her room, I looked back at the elderly woman, still standing like a statue with the man. I smiled and nodded. “Yes, bring the gold one to my room later.” I saw a wave of relief came over her face before I was tugged outside and allowed to have my hand back.

  On the way back to the surface I studied how Heather activated the earth elevator. No magic appeared to be in use, for she merely pushed on a small circular stone on one of the pillars then it started to rise, buoyed by the mechanism below the sandy platform.

  Flickers of snow were falling as we made our way carefully up the main staircase and across the terrace. As we approached the rear doors, I looked up at men hanging off scaffolding, cleaning, and restoring masonry while noises of hammers and saws came from inside.

  Inside the air smelt of dry wood and grease. The panelled walls which were peeling the last time I saw them had been transformed with new patterned wallpaper, and the old rugs replaced with lavish newer versions.

  Heather had already found her first target, a young man with a large moustache sanding a doorframe. I feared for him, but there was nothing I could do, so instead I decided to look around, and wandered into a nearby room. Chairs and a table from a different era were up against a nearby wall. Outside the gardens were a series of white troughs and peaks, with the occasional spike where a statue was placed. I kept on walking, moving from room to room, past workmen until I found a suitable place to dispose of Daphne’s note. An old fireplace, filled with black soot and ashes and surrounded by a hearth as tall as I, was against a wall. I pulled the note from my dress, tore it into as many small pieces as I could muster and dropped them into the black dust rummaging my hands to make sure—

  A floorboard creaked behind me. I quickly brushed off my hand, preparing my excuse for becoming dirty, when I heard a voice I recognised.

  “Cog, it’s me.”

  I almost burst with joy on hearing Colin’s voice, and swung around with expectant haste, but stopped on seeing his appearance. His left eye was heavily bruised, and scars covered his cheeks. He was also unshaven which added to his confusing appearance.

  “It’s me C—”

  I ran forward and threw my arms around him, then regretted the decision, not being entirely sure we were alone. I jumped back and ran to the doors on either side of the room to make sure we were not about to be discovered.

  “What are you doing here? How are you?”

  “I’m OK. We were watching out for you! Where did you come from?”

  “We?”

  “Estelle is here as well.”

  “Hades has a home under the ground, in the middle of the grounds.”

  He glanced out of the frost-covered window.

  “I’m sorry for what happened, you have to believe me.”

  He shook his head. “No, I should apologise, I was…”

  I briefly kissed him.

  “We were planning to rescue you this Friday! But here you are, we can go now!” He held out his hand, but I took a step back.

  “No… I cannot leave.”

  “What do you mean? We can get out of here!”

  “And then what? He will never stop coming for me. I have to do this alone, but maybe you can—”

  A noise came from one of the rooms nearby.

  “We have to flee!” he said.

  I leaned in and kissed him on his cheek. “Be ready to help me escape on Saturday. I’ll be at the banquet.”

  His face contorted. “I don’t understand!”

  Boots on floorboards made us both move further apart, and Heather came through the doorway.

  “There you are!” she glanced at Colin and frowned. “Really? You can do far better. Come with me—” She placed her arm through mine. “— I’ve found two delightful young men on the first floor who are just dying to meet you.”

  *****

  I looked at the metal items I had collected over the previous week. Metal rods with their ends blunted, coins, and more nails from the manor. A good tally, but I still wasn’t sure how I was going to use them to help me escape.

  A noise came from the tunnel outside my door. I ran to my mother's painting, pulled it down, then with my mind swept all the items from my bed into the hole which I had carved out in the rock face. Then quickly re-hung the painting.

  A faint knock came at my door.

  “Yes?”

  “I have the golden dress you asked for, miss,” said a feeble voice.

  “Oh, yes.” I moved to the door and pulled it open. The eighty-year-old plus version of Daphne stood in front of me, her face gaunt. In her hands lay the satin and lace dress.

  I stood back. “Come in.”

  She shook her head. “No, miss. I shouldn’t.”

  I looked down the tunnel behind her. It was deathly silent. “Come inside!” I pressed.

  She nodded and stepped softly into my room. I took the dress from her, laying it on the bed, then closed the door.

  “Please sit.”

  She did.

  “Are you Daphne?” I sat next to her.

  She nodded.

  “Heather made you old?”

  Another nod.

  “Did everyone here used to be young like you?”

  She looked back at the door, then leaned in close to me. “They take us from the streets. They make us old so we cannot escape. Some—” A distant noise echoed through the rocks and she shivered.

  “It’s OK, there’s no one outside, but talk quickly.”

  “Some of us… died.”

  “Did this happen in the greenhouse on the surface?”

  She nodded. I swallowed, anger making me tense.

  “I’m going to get all of you out of here, but you must keep it a secret. Can you do that?”

  She nodded. “How?” she whispered.

  “I’ve got a plan. But I will need all of you to gather in the grand hall on the night of the banquet. Can you do that?”

  She nodded.

  I hugged her gently, being aware of how frail she felt. “Go now. Remember, tell no one else until Saturday evening. OK?”

  She stood, and I opened th
e door and watched her walk away unsteadily.

  Now I just needed to come up with a plan.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  “Where is Mr Cannington?” I asked my mother. We were sitting in an area of the main hall, near a wall which glowed from heat.

  “Why do you want to see him?” She looked up from some embroidery. It had the initials ‘W’ and ‘G’ already sewn, and now she was working on the angels that would surround the letters.

  “There are some things I wish to relay to him.”

  She looked back down, plunging the needle back through the fabric. “Like what, dear.”

  “I need to apologise.”

  She looked up, the needle posed to make another strike. “You want to do that?”

  “After spending some time down here, with you, with the others, I can see how my mind was twisted by my former employer, and I need to make amends for that.”

  Her hand fell. “Oh… I must say I’m quite surprised, but pleased. Yes of course you can see him to do that. He is in his study right now… I’m not sure he would want to be disturbed though.”

  I had never seen any of the rooms that Hades spent his time in, when he was down here with us. I displayed my best impression of disappointment.

  My mother placed the sewing on the ground. “Come with me, let's see if he is not too busy.”

  I followed her through a series of tunnels until we came to a staircase which descended. At the bottom, a small hallway had three doors. Ophelia headed for the centre one and knocked.

  “Yes,” came Hades voice from the other side.

  “If you are not busy, Corine would like to talk to you.” She looked back at me and smiled briefly.

  There was a short pause, then a series of what sounded like bolts slid back, and the door opened.

  Hades looked at me with his usual smile. “Is this true? You would like to converse?” He wore a white shirt, with no waistcoat this time.

  “Yes, there are some things I need to say.”

  He studied me while I held his gaze.