Chapter 5: Searches and Demands

Charlie was lying in bed, squares of sickly moonlight shining on his body. He thrashed around, in neat intervals, for about an hour. Next to him he could hear the steady breathing of a sleeping Billy Raven, and a few other boys. But there was another boy, besides himself, that he could tell was still awake; a boy whose breathing came in shallow, uneven sort of hiccups.

Breathing in noisily, Charlie went out on a whim. "Fido?" he whispered, throatily.

"Yeah?" Fidelio turned around to face his friend. "I can see I'm not the only one that can't quite sleep," he added, lightly. Charlie had informed him of Manfred's unspoken threat, and of Gabriel's absence in the King's room.
Charlie threw himself onto his bed, clutching his pillow to his face. "How can I, Fido?" he whispered fiercely. "What do you think they've done with him? More importantly, how do you think they got him in the first place?"

His question was met by silence.

--

Charlie was not the only person tossing with worry that night. Tancred, although asleep, slept fitfully, his dreams plagued with terrible visions of a suffering Gabriel.

Lysander, in the same room as him, was sitting up in bed, hugging his knees to his chest. He was gazing out the window. The night was so peaceful. You would never suspect that a kidnapping had occurred, and very soon, blackmail. The moon, luminous and green-tinged, hovered peaceably in the sky. Occasional wisps of cloud floated by; and a long, arching tree limb obscured the city.

Lysander's gaze travelled from out the window to the ceiling. "Where are you, Gabe?"

--

Breakfast, as usual, wasn't fit for humans. A lumpy sort of mush, the same color as caramel but not nearly as desirable. "Is this supposed to be oatmeal?" Charlie asked Cook, the sharpness in his voice surprising even him.

"Why, yes it is, Charlie," Cook replied quietly.

"Well, you should do a better job," he snapped. Guilt welled up within Charlie as Cook, her eyes wounded, stood silently against his assault.

Charlie inhaled noisily. Fortunately he was last in line so he could take almost all the time he wanted, without arousing much suspicion. "I'm sorry," he said finally, "I'm just, you know…did you hear about Gabriel?"

Cook nodded grimly. "I found out what happened, as a matter of fact, Charlie…" She trailed off as Dr. Bloor walked past them; deliberately, Charlie thought. "Here's an extra helping, Charlie," Cook said, rather loudly. As soon as she was certain the headmaster was gone, she continued. "The new piano teacher was your Aunt Venetia-I mean, the youngest one. The one that bewitches clothing."

Charlie gaped. "Oh no…" he rasped, paling rapidly.

Cook shook her head. "Yes," she replied, in a resigned sort of way. "They have him captive who knows where…the poor boy. You'd best be on, Charlie." Charlie nodded, and, feeling dazed, went to join his friends.

"What happened with Cook?" Fidelio asked Charlie in a hushed, urgent whisper.

Charlie replied in an equally low tone. "The new piano teacher was a trap. My Aunt Venetia…they got him."

Fidelio's cheeks reddened, his eyes clouding with an emotion Charlie couldn't quite read. "This is not good," he murmured. "You know they'll use him, right? For something…something, you know." Charlie glanced away and nodded, distractedly.

"But what can I do?" he asked, helplessly. "I don't know what kind of health he's in, where he's been taken, if they're torturing him…if he's even conscious!" Charlie's last words were in a raised, despairing tone.

Fidelio took his hand. "It'll be okay. Everything always ends up okay." But even confident Fidelio sounded somewhat unsure of himself.

--

That night, Charlie was awakened, his shoulders being shaken violently. "Hey, Bone," Dagbert Endless sneered. "Follow me. If you want to know where your friend is." Charlie bolted up.

The moonlight radiant on his hardened features, Charlie hissed, "Where…is…Gabriel?" Dagbert's only response was a half smile, shallow on his pale green face.

--

Charlie shivered, half out of fear and half out of the cold, as he followed Dagbert to the outskirts of the ruin. He wasn't completely surprised when he saw Manfred and Joshua already there, Joshua smiling patronizingly up at Manfred.

"What do you want?" Charlie spat, determined to be as difficult as possible. This seemed to amuse Manfred, who smiled, folding his arms across his chest.

"Charlie, don't be like that. Tonight, it's all about what you want. Or what you decide." His smile darkened into a superior sort of smirk. "The thing is, Bone, as you probably know, your friend Gabriel is now in the Bloors' custody. And we can do whatever we want with him." He paused to stroke his chin in exaggerated thoughtfulness. "But of course, you can have some say in his fate, now can't you?"

Manfred whirled around, his beady eyes boring into Charlie's gaze. He shivered, trying desperate not to show any signs of fear. Something told him he wasn't doing such a good job; maybe it was how everything through his eyes seemed to be trembling.

"Give us your wand." Manfred's statement was simple, but his tone was intense. As Charlie opened his mouth to protest, Manfred cut him off. "It's your choice, Bone," he continued smugly, "You do have the option of saying no…but Gabriel will suffer for it."

Charlie was silent. He stood there, agape, unsure of what to do. So, this was how it was going to be: Gabriel's fate his burden and his burden alone.