CHAPTER 10
Tintin could feel his arms and back ache as the evening progressed. Enzo, Captain Haddock, Captain Chester, and Chester's family were all busy drinking and socializing happily; however, Tintin felt really exhausted. He couldn't believe both of the captains had the vitality to stay up chattering away while putting mugs of ale down. It had been awhile since Tintin saw his captain so socially boisterous with others.
Tintin knew that when Bob brought a keg of ale in from the garage that he'd made, there was going to be drinking that night. Tintin made a long face and turned to go upstairs, but Chester saw him and discreetly walked away to check on him. Haddock, like the others, was too busy listening to Bob sharing one of his perilous tales when Nathan had just started working on their boat during a bad storm. Nathan of course corrected some of the exaggerations.
"Are you ok?" Chester tapped Tintin on the shoulder.
"Ouch! Yes…I'll be fine…I just need some rest if we are going to work like that again tomorrow" Tintin explained. The strong stench of ale wafted from Chester's mouth. Tintin backed away just a little.
"Yea I'm starting to get drunk…" Chester sighed. "Listen, I'll be there to dig Haddock out if he puts his foot in his mouth…you know what I'm talking about" Chester said secretively.
"Captain Chester, I don't know how to thank you for all you are doing for us, I feel like the old man and you and Haddock are the youth" Tintin laughed as he gave Chester an unexpected hug.
It was a little awkward for Chester because he was afraid Haddock would think something else if he walked up and saw them in the stairwell; but then he put one strong arm around Tintin and smiled. "Haddock is a lucky man!" Chester replied.
"You think so?" Tintin answered surprised by Captain Chester's candidness.
"Of course, Haddock and I go a long time back kid, maybe one day we will tell you all of our tales" he laughed returning back downstairs.
"I would love to hear them all" Tintin nodded.
Tintin stopped to look at his self in the mirror. He was wearing light blue pajama pants and shirt that seemed to still be a little big on him. Tintin made an assertive masculine look at his reflection which satisfied him even if he was a man with a small frame. He managed to build some toned muscle, but he still appeared unchanged much by time.
"I got to stay in good spirits! After all, I'm 'Action Man'!" he joked to his self.
He suddenly heard the 'pitter patter' of small feet coming up the stairs, "Snowy!" he smiled happy to see his best friend. "Sorry Tintin, making new friends" Snowy barked.
"I'm going to bed Snowy, you can join me too!" he smiled walking down the hallway opening the door to the room. Tintin shuddered as the hinges creaked loudly with the slightest of movements.
"We'll hear the captain when he staggers up here tonight" Tintin joked.
"Hopefully he won't do that horrible snoring tonight" Snowy whined.
Tintin shut the door behind him as snowy jumped on his little spot on the daybed curling up. Tintin closed the door and got on his side hiding underneath the sheets and the soft green quilt. The soft cool pillow was a welcoming feeling on Tintin's face, and It wasn't long before sleep overtook him.
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Tintin sat up lying on the ground in a dense forest. He could see the darkened sky behind the many branches above and around him. He continued to look around but couldn't see far as a fog seemed to roll in the area.
A young boy stood in front of him with blond hair and green eyes wearing a long blue night shirt that covered just below his knees. He wore a pair of slipper looking sandals. "Come on, they'll find us, we got to keep moving!" He looked anxiously around.
Tintin stood up and was the exact same height as he was, wearing the same Sunday outfit he wore during their last encounter. Tintin realized he was a child again. The other boy grabbed his wrist and began to lead him quickly through a network of bushes and briars. Tintin could hear dogs and men's voices.
"They're coming!" the boy cried. Tintin kept up as quickly as he could. The briars were cutting up his face, hands, and Sunday looking jacket and the boy leading him had scrapes and cuts all over as his night shirt was torn in many different places too. "They won't find our safe place, we just got to make it there!" the boy gasped for air as they kept running.
A strong feeling of fear and anxiety overwhelmed his senses. All he knew was that it wouldn't be good if he and this other boy were to get caught. Suddenly the ground gave way and they both fell into an old sink hole as they both hit the bottom with a hard thud. "We got to climb out of here before they find us!" the boy said climbing roots and vines sticking out of the ground.
Tintin followed his same route climbing out of the hole desperately trying to get out. When he got out he saw two men and one had the other boy struggling to get free with one hand over his mouth. "We're not going to hurt you boy" one man said walking closer to him. Tintin couldn't see the man's face as if some shadow prevented it. The other boy bit the other guy's hand, "Run brother! Run! Don't let them get you!" he screamed. Tintin turned to run but almost fell back into the sink hole when someone scooped him up. "No! Let me go!" Tintin cried.
"Tintin! Tintin!" a familiar voice said shaking him. Tintin woke with a sweaty start. Captain Haddock had him in his arms.
"Captain?! What's going on?" he asked confused.
"You were about to jump off the bed again" Haddock said putting him back on the bed already dressed in his usual beige pajama set.
"What were you dreaming about boy?" Haddock asked him with much concern.
"I dreamed I was a little boy again. I was running away from some bad men in the woods with another boy who kept calling me brother… the dreams are coming back again" Tintin recalled.
Haddock cocked an eyebrow as he locked the door and got in bed cutting off the lamp.
"Brother you say? Did they get you?" he asked as he got under the covers.
"Yes they got us both…I think…" Tintin kept trying to remember if there was more about the dream but couldn't. He just lied there silently in deep thought.
Haddock wrapped his strong hairy arms around Tintin spooning with him under the covers, "Don't worry my little angel, if anyone dare tries to harm or take you from me, I'll turn into the devil himself…and they don't want to see that" Haddock whispered.
Tintin put one of his hands on Haddock's, "Thank you captain! I love you too!" Tintin whispered back.
Before he could finish his sentence Haddock was already lightly snoring.
"Captain?" Tintin whispered back, but it must have been late and Haddock must have been in his coherently drunken states.
Tintin was used to surviving on his own, but he felt better in the safety of Haddock's arms. The nagging questions in his head continued and each time he dreamed it seemed that the dreams increasingly became more vivid. "They'll never find our safe place" Tintin thought just before he drifted back to sleep.
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The next morning felt just like being at Marlinspike Hall. When he came downstairs the smell of breakfast brought a smile to his face. Mary Ann was bustling around the kitchen just as Alyssa came back inside the house with a small basket full of eggs. Haddock and Chester were sitting on the sofa smoking their pipes, while Enzo sat watching the television on a nicely upholstered chair near the fireplace.
"Well lookie who got up" Mary Ann smiled.
"Morning Mary Ann, how are you?" Tintin said still stretching his muscles and yawning.
"Fine, nothing like a good night's rest to put you right," Mary Ann laughed. "We should have breakfast ready in ten minutes, why don't you sit for a moment and get your thoughts sorted out," Mary Ann suggested.
Tintin sat down as Enzo sat with his eyes closed facing the television. Tintin guessed with the hard work and perhaps the drinking that last night put him over the edge.
"Morning landlubber!" Haddock smiled.
"Decided to join us eh?" Chester commented as Tintin sat on the love seat adjacent from them.
"It's hard to sleep when you have the wonderful smell of breakfast filling your room" Tintin said taking a whiff of the air. Snowy was already in the kitchen following Mary Ann around just waiting for her to drop a treat for him.
"Are you ready for another hard day of work?" Haddock asked enthusiastically.
"I guess…" Tintin sighed still feeling just a bit sore.
"Come on! Where's your sense of adventure?" Haddock joked. Everyone erupted in laughter by the sofa.
"I know, all of those moles and other perilous creatures we may encounter…" Tintin played along.
"Wait a moment" Alyssa interjected walking over. "I'm afraid I need to borrow your lad" Alyssa continued looking at Haddock. Chester and Haddock quickly gave each other a startled glance but quickly recovered giving Alyssa a suspicious look.
"Sure, that's fine, isn't your mom going with you?" Haddock asked.
"No, she asked me to take the car and run the daily errands at the farmer's market. She has to get started on the laundry, so if you have anything that needs washed I suggest you see her after breakfast" Alyssa explained smiling coyly at Haddock then Chester.
Chester locked gazes with her for a moment. Her aqua eyes were full of intrigue, but her uncle Chester's grey eyes could hide mountains and she realized that. Chester whispered into Haddock's ear as his eyes seem to dart to Tintin then to Alyssa.
"Go straight to town and don't dawdle anywhere else, got it?" Chester said adamantly.
"You two hurry back now you hear?" Haddock replied seriously.
"Of course Uncle, it's not like we've got assassins after us!" she laughed.
Haddock seemed to wince a little as Chester put up his hand and nodded.
"Breakfast is ready folks!" Mary Ann announced.
Enzo turned the television off as they sat at the breakfast table with plates, utensils, another full English breakfast, and glasses filled with orange juice waiting for them.
"So this is what it feels like to have a full family…" Tintin mused quietly to his self.
"If anyone needs anything washed, now's the time to speak up" Mary Ann mentioned as they ate.
"I think we all have something that could be washed," Chester commented.
"Well gather your things up and put them in the basket I sat out in the hallway," Mary Ann instructed.
"Uncle Frederick, how much longer do you intend to stay?" Alyssa asked.
"Are you trying to get rid of me that quickly!?" Chester joked.
"No! Not at all, as a matter of fact, I was hoping you planned on staying awhile," Alyssa smiled.
"Alas, we set sail Thursday, my daughter will be expecting me. That gives me a few days with her and her family, then we must return back to work and set off from Glasgow Monday but no later than Tuesday," Chester said figuring out his schedule.
"You do mean to go by train don't you?" Mary Ann asked with some concern.
"It depends, if Haddock and Tintin wish to come along, we will take the Shooting Star if they choose to do so," Chester answered.
"It'll be a long ride" Mary Ann said disapprovingly.
"I've sailed around the world before, so cruising around to Glasgow would be a cake walk" Chester pointed out.
"If me and Tintin go with him you've got nothing to fear" Haddock put his two cents in. "We're among the best sailors you'll find in this part of the western world" he bragged.
"Pretty confident there" Alyssa laughed.
"Thunderin' Typhoons, your uncle and I sailed a sail boat once that required a crew with no less than five by ourselves in our younger days!" Haddock boasted again.
"Well, you just check the weather and make sure you don't be taking any petty risks" Mary Ann warned. She realized she wouldn't feel as bad if Haddock was with him having sailed out with the two a couple of times in the past noting their skills as sailors.
"Don't forget about me," Enzo finally spoke up.
"You're still a child," Mary Ann dismissed him jokingly.
"Oi! He's still a good sailor! He'll make a fine one someday," Chester defended him giving Enzo a good slap on the back.
"Easy now" Enzo grinned.
"Let's go Tintin, so we can hurry and get back" Alyssa prompted standing up after she had finished eating.
"Wait!" Haddock reached into his pocket pulling out his wallet. He handed Alyssa a five pound note and her eyes widened looking at him and the note.
"You went to the bank already?" Tintin asked not remembering Haddock even leaving the house.
"No whippersnapper, I brought it from home thinking we may come here" Haddock smiled. "If you don't mind, pick me up some tobacco and a bottle of whiskey please; and Tintin, you know the brand I like. Fill up your mom's gas tank Alyssa," Haddock smiled.
"You don't need any more whisky Captain, you still got a bottle or two left don't you?" Tintin asked.
"All gone, now you'll get me whiskey or else!" Haddock pointed closing one eye at him. "Now hurry back, we got work to do" Haddock instructed.
"Would you like to come with us Enzo?" Tintin offered.
Enzo glanced at Captain Chester curiously, "You can go if you want, but remember, you're still being paid so hurry back" Chester nodded.
"Yes sir!" Enzo's spirit soared.
"Captain can you get my dirty clothes too when you get yours" Tintin reminded.
"Mine too" Enzo smiled looking at Chester.
"Go on, both of you! Kids!" Chester laughed.
"Now you remember what Chester and I told you!" Haddock reminded.
"Well let's be off then!" Alyssa said leading them out to the car glad to get out of the house for a bit.
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"Don't worry about washing the dishes, Alyssa will take care of them when she returns" Mary Ann mentioned.
"You may want to phone your daughter before you go. She does come down this way quite a bit as of late,"
"I will. Did your husband bring the seeds and a list of what he wanted in his garden?" Chester asked.
"Yea, he told me this morning they're in the garage near the shovels and other gardening tools…here's the list" she said pulling it out of her apron.
Chester looked through what he wanted and started laughing handing it to Haddock.
"This will be an all-day project, at least we don't have worry about plowing the rest of the soil" Haddock sighed in relief.
"We'll see how fast we get done, well let's get changed and go play in the dirt!" Chester laughed.
Once they were got their gardening tools out of the garage with the seeds they began planting away. The weather was nice, not a cloud in the sky and it was fairly warm. This place felt so much like home at Marlinspike Hall to Haddock. He began to remember when he and Tintin planted their first garden. It wasn't as successful as he would have liked it to have been, but the next year's garden was much better with a little help from Nestor.
"We couldn't have asked for a better day!" Haddock replied taking a nice whiff of fresh air.
"I know it, I guess I really couldn't blame those youngsters if they decided to stay gone a bit longer," Chester snapped his fingers.
"I don't know if it was such a good idea letting the three of them go off like that..." Haddock said with much doubt.
"Well, I don't want to clue Alyssa or Mary Ann on what could possibly be developing, so we will just have to trust they will do as their told" Chester sighed.
"Chester, not to be darkening the mood, but we really need to know exactly about this All-Seeing-Eye and what those four did on your ship" Haddock inquired.
"I think we should wait for Tintin to get back and I will divulge the details later tonight, mind you I've told you most of what I know…speaking of which, tell me again how you and Tintin met" Chester asked as they continued to work.
"It's a long story mate, but we got time. Well it all started when Allan's behavior became treacherous as and he had Tintin kidnapped as a prisoner on MY ship," Haddock paused as he and Chester both began slowly planting using hand shovels.
"I've had similar problems toward the end with Gaspar, he increasingly became more defiant and had a fascination with the macabre," Chester said grimly.
"Blisterin' Barnacles I don't want to know what it was he did but it sounds like you should have put him out of his misery" Haddock said with disgust.
"Aye, I know, well… enough about him continue with your story," Chester prompted as he moved around Haddock to plant the next seeds.
"Well it was when he climbed through that window where Allan had me holed up drunk on whisky, that I first met that baby faced tuft ginger. Who would of thought he'd pull me out of the bottom of the barrel and turn my life upside down…in a good way!" Haddock pointed with a smile.
"That's a nice ring you got, it's silvery, yet dark and not in the least dainty" Chester commented.
"That was a gift from Tintin when I turned forty. I specially had his made for his twenty-first birthday," he said taking off his ring to let Chester look at it.
The ring had two anchors and Haddock's initials engraved on it, "That's pretty clever, nice to look at but not tacky in the least" Chester complemented handing it back. "Continue…" Chester urged him on.
"It was then Tintin became the voice of reasoning and awakening for me..." Haddock continued.
Haddock retold Chester his tale of how he and Tintin met. The sun shone down on them as the cool gentle breeze kept the fatigue away. Mary Ann continued her chores as she noticed the two out of the kitchen window. She smiled remembering a time when the three of them were much younger. It was a pleasant thought; but, she snapped back to the present wanting to finish her laborious tasks.