Chapter Eleven:
Deadly Encounter
The Windmill:
Dusk had fallen at the windmill, where Karl, Thomas, Lucy, and Heidi were still trapped.
During the remaining daylight, after the four of them had retreated to the relative safety of the first level above ground, they had taken turns to watch the floor below, as well as outside. Occasionally, there had been the pounding of bat-like wings in the air outside. Karl had rushed over and looked through the windows. Eventually, he had been able to catch sight of the creature…, and his heart sank.
"Karl… What is it?" Lucy pleaded to him.
"Another of those winged creatures that attacked us at the manor," Karl sighed. "What your mother called a 'Grotesque'. Wait… There's another as well. They're circling round us…"
"…like vultures," Thomas added morbidly.
"Yes," Karl agreed. "Waiting for us to catch us off guard, or weaken enough."
"Or…," Lucy hazarded a guess. "…containing us for something else?"
Karl stroked his beard in thought. "Possibly. I've only glimpsed the arms of the creature that has cursed you and Thomas – and those arms were different from the Grotesques out there. They are gray. The other creature was blue-white."
Lucy had some healing ointment with her – but it had failed to work against the slowly-creeping malady affecting both her and Thomas.
As the sun went down, and using a little oil from a lantern that she found hanging up, Heidi helped Karl to create a small fire in the empty hopper – enough to provide some heat, as wooden crates were broken up to provide fuel.
Whilst considering what weapons and ammunition they had left, Karl left Lucy to check on their collective food and drink, and be responsible for the rationing for it. He did this to keep her mind diverted from her rigid foot and ankle. Even so, he had to comfort her at one stage as she sobbed – complaining of her lower leg stiffening. She refused to look at it, however – and forbade Karl to do so as well.
After Lucy had fallen silent from her crying, Thomas muttered "Wish someone would hold me right now, if we're all goin' to die." He glanced hopefully at Lucy and Heidi.
Heidi gave her face impassive, but Karl could sense the fear via the subtle trembling of her hands and shoulders. Lucy, meanwhile, actually managed to smile at the courier's gruff, unsettled tone.
"At least we are not making it so easy for those Grotesques to get at us. We have a chance…"
She was interrupted by the noise above as something smashed through the roof hatch. Karl bolted to his feet.
"Heidi – you're with me. Take the shooting rife!"
"Yah, mein herr," she concurred as she chased after Karl, racing towards the top level of the windmill.
And as they disappeared, two of the Grotesques stomped into the first-floor level of the windmill below Thomas's watchful wide-eyed gaze. The brutes roared back at him – making Lucy cry out in alarm.
"What in heaven's n-"
With its wings folded in tight, the first of the two monsters strode across to the ladder. Using its clawed hands, it tried to climb up to the gap that Thomas was guarding
"Lucy – quick!" He yelled across to her, even as he pulled out his pistol and held it with his left hand. "Make us a pair of torches from the fire we got goin'!"
With difficulty, Lucy managed to climb upon her feet. She dragged her afflicted leg behind her, but reached the churn and got to work. "What's happening!?" she cried out.
"Pair of Grotesques, trying to sneak in – whilst somemutt's attacking us from above… Crafty devils." Thomas then gave a defiant war cry, as the Grotesque drew nearer. He fired into the centre of its face, knocking it back down to the ground.
Then, directed by Thomas, Lucy hurried over as fast as she could, and dropped her makeshift torch onto the slumped creature as it turned over to rise again. The wings promptly caught fire – and the thing thrashed out. Panicking, it ran out back into the darkness outside, screaming…
"Lucky for us, it didn't collide with the walls…," Thomas mused. He then fired at the chest of the remaining creature as it scampered up the ladder. There was a piercing screech – and it tumbled backwards, collapsing at the base of the ladder. It did not rise again.
"We did it!" Lucy smiled and gave Thomas a quick hug.
"Good goin', girl." He squeezed her back, but his grin soon dropped. "Now, how long can we keep them back…?"
"And how are Karl and Heidi faring?" Lucy asked the other pertinent question.
*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*
At the same time, Karl and the handmaiden Heidi were shooting at the Grotesque that was breaking through the roof hatch to the windmill, creating small ragged gaps. The winged monster screamed as it was hit - and it fell down upon the roof. The two defenders could hear the 'thud' from their positions at the base of the stepladder leading to the hatch.
"You Fight Well, Humans…"
"Vat…was that?" Heidi gasped.
"You heard it too?" Karl glanced at her, wincing as he reloaded his pistol. "That struck me not so much an actual voice, as a spike into my mind." He raised his voice. "Who or what are you? Show yourself!"
Karl sensed the smile behind the creature's next words. "I Am The Being That Could Save Your Township From The Shadow Witch… If You Will Let Me."
"Really…? Then why attack us!?"
"In Order To Create My Army, I Must Also Feed… Those Who Are Strong Enough, I Allow To Live – To Serve Me."
"Create an army? Feed…?" Heidi whimpered.
Karl's mind raced, in order to make sense of what they were being told. "You are the being behind the Grotesques!" he challenged the voice.
"The…Grotesques?"
"The winged monsters, such as the one that just tried to break through the roof hatch!"
"Ahh… My Loyal Minions. I Approve Of The Name You Have Given Them…"
"You are the being that has murdered people by turning them into husks – that is your feeding! Yes?" Karl barked.
"Correct…"
"And does that…then give you the energy to turn other people into living statues?" Karl slammed his reloaded pistol to, and raised his narrowed gaze to the ceiling above him and Heidi.
"Yes… You Are Intelligent, Human. We Should Meet…Face To Face. Climb Through The Hatch, Mortal…"
"Nein! Don't d-," Heidi protested.
"You don't have to, Heidi. But it may help for us to stand on the roof, back to back," Karl muttered. "We need to know what exactly we are dealing with, find out what this thing knows of the Shadow Witch, and discover how we can reverse the effects of its curse upon Thomas and Lucy!" And with that, Karl began to climb the stepladder.
Gulping, the handmaiden followed him up.
As the pair of them emerged onto the roof of the windmill, with the night breeze ruffling their hair and clothes, Heidi gave a gasp upon seeing the creature perched close by, on the fantail – its talons embedded into the dome roof before it, to secure its hold. Karl forced her to stand back-to-back with him, not wanting to be caught out by any tricks. The Grotesque who had broken open the hatchway was nowhere to be seen…
Instead, the being that now grinned at Karl was the same entity that he had glimpsed grasping Thomas and Lucy – a blue-white colored humanoid. It had well-developed arm and leg muscles, pointed ears, two short horns on its hairless head – and it was slightly larger than the Grotesques, with bat-like wings that were separate to its arms, and that it was flexing in the cool air. A pointed tail flicked from side to side, almost as if it was some bizarre pet.
It was the living realization of a gargoyle, Karl realized.
"Identify yourself!" he breathed, pointing his pistol towards the being.
"I Have No Name." The wide, fanged mouth did not move as the thing spoke into Karl's mind. "And What Of You?"
"I am Karl Harrison, retired private from the Continental army. I hunt monsters…" He paused. "Were you responsible for the voices in the basement here? The vanguard for the Ancient One…?"
The Gargoyle tilted its head at him, and hissed. "So They Are Already Moving Into Position Around The Town!? This…Vanguard…Is Not Of My Accord! I Sensed Power When I First Came To This Structure. Now I Know Why. I Thank You, Human… I Will Deal With The Vanguard, After I Have Settled With You And Your Party…"
"What are your aims? Where are you from, gargoyle?" Karl fought to keep his nerves, and his aim, steady. His other hand slowly pulled out a dagger that was tucked into his belt.
"I Have Come From The Catacombs, Where I Was Created, Not So Long Ago… As For What I want… I Wish To Have My Freedom, My Own Army. Shadowbrook Will Become My Territory – Not The Shadow Witch's!"
"What is your quarrel with her?"
The creature sniggered. "Not Mine…"
Karl's eyes widened as he considered that – but instead of following that through, he thought of something more pressing.
"Creature – I implore you to reverse the curse that you have marked my friends with!"
"My Stone Touch?" The gargoyle laughed in Karl's mind. "But The Process Cannot Be Undone, Human… Those That I Have Chosen Will Serve Me Well As My Living Statues. They Will Form A Part Of My Army – To Fight Against The Shadow Witch And The Ancient One. But You Need Not Despair, Mortal… You Too Can Join Them…! As For You, Human Female…"
"Vat?" Heidi turned round to face the Gargoyle.
And at that moment, the missing Grotesque pounced from where it had hooked itself in the outside panels of the windmill, below them. Wings pounding, it soared into the air and swooped upon the distracted defenders, knocking them apart as it rammed itself into them, as they spun round.
Both Karl and Heidi cried out from the impact.
The world went spinning for Karl. Quickly, he stabbed out with the dagger in his hand – and it found purchase, digging into the roof of the windmill. He forced his sweating fingers to clench around it, not daring to let go, despite his protesting arms – even as his feet dangled over the lip of the roof…
Move! He silently yelled to himself.
Karl heard Heidi's screaming, but he focused on his own efforts to get his footing back on the roof. Swinging his legs, he was soon able to do so – leaving the knife where it was for now. He could do nothing for Isabella von Took's handmaiden for now. The pistol was still on the roof close by…
Down!
His senses still keen enough after his experiences from the war, and from his more recent exploits of hunting inhuman creatures, Karl ducked as he sensed the change in the air – avoiding the Gargoyle's talons as it swiped at him. He had already failed to detect the incoming attack of the Grotesque that had been waiting in hiding, whilst its master had lured him and Heidi out into the open with the ploy of parley. But Karl was now determined not to be caught off-guard again…
Diving forward onto the domed roof, Karl snatched his dropped pistol and used his momentum to roll sideways. As he did so, he managed to block the next lunge of the Gargoyle's claws with his pistol. But it turned and clipped him with the edge of its wing, instead, knocking Karl back down upon the narrow ledge running around the dome of the roof. Hissing with its mouth wide in a gleeful look of triumph, the villainous monster raised one arm. The taloned hand glowed blue as it prepared to inflict the 'Stone touch' upon him…
Karl fumbled with the pistol still in his hand. Quickly, he leveled it and fired.
The Gargoyle was struck in its bulbous head. With a piercing scream, it back-flipped over the ledge of the roof and disappeared from sight.
Panting from his exertions, Karl carefully glanced over the edge. The Gargoyle had struck the ground outside of the windmill with enough force to sink a few inches into the earth itself. It hissed and started to twitch its wings – clearly far from dead.
Karl checked his pistol and ammunition left. No time to reload right now – and the distance was too great for him to finish off the devil just yet…
A cry of fury diverted his attention. Heidi and the Grotesque that had swiped her away had apparently come down to earth together, and the minion had taken the worst of the crash-landing into a nearby tree. Now, she pulled out the dagger she had previously been hiding upon her person from the chest of the Grotesque as it wailed and flapped its wings in its dying throes. The Germanic handmaiden then turned and froze at the sight of the reviving Gargoyle, which was now pulling itself out of the ground. Screaming, she spun round and staggered over to where the dropped hunting rifle lay.
"Heidi! Finish it off – now!" he yelled down to her.
"Mistress Isabella! I vust report back to vhy mistress…!" the young woman shrieked, half-mad in her hysteria. She ran off. Moments later, Karl heard the neighing of one of the horses – and then Heidi was galloping off. In the moonlight, Karl managed to catch a glimpse of her riding the brown-colored Boreas along the road leading to Shadowbrook.
In the meantime, the Gargoyle was apparently beginning to recover from its concussion. With clawed hands clutching its wounded head, the monster raised its eyes towards Karl high above it, and hissed its anger…
Heart pounding, the soldier pulled out his dagger from the roof of the windmill, and hurried for the remains of the broken hatch – before clambering back down the stepladder. Seeing some grain-filled sacks, he moved to the hatchway leading to the next level down, and set about creating a blockade to cut off any intruder that got in from the roof…
Once that was done, Karl rejoined Thomas and Lucy, relieved to see that they were not only still alive, but that they had held out against the two Grotesques that had tried to get to them from below. The second, burnt, creature was now lying on its back, upon the ground level floor of the windmill – with Lucy's just-thrown pitchfork embedded in its still chest.
"Good work…" He smiled at her.
"Karl! Thank heavens… One tried to come back in again – but I got it!" Lucy hugged him – but then froze, upon seeing the look in his eyes. "Heidi…?"
"She's taken Boreas. Bolted back for Shadowbrook. To report back to her mistress," he reported.
Thomas appraised his friend with his good eye. "Betrayal…?"
"Yes. Isabella von Took did not supply her handmaiden to us out of goodwill. Heidi was here to spy on us! And even if she makes it back to town, if I have the measure of her sly mistress…"
"…no one might come to our rescue! We're still trapped here," Lucy concluded. She winced, still troubled by her afflicted leg. "Dear lord – save us!"
Thomas ruefully glanced at his right hand, and pulled out his shirt cuff, to reveal the spread of his gray skin. His forearm was now like stone.
"I don't think he's listenin' right now, girly," he spat.
Karl bowed his head, not knowing what to say, in order to reassure his friends. Then he sat down on the floor with them, next to the hatchway. Seeing that he had their attention, he spoke again. "This is what I learned, up there…"
And so, bit by bit, he told them what he and Heidi had heard from their enemy.
*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*
The Town Hall:
Isabella von Took was sitting in one of the audience chairs in the main chamber of the town hall, facing the raised platform where the long table – reserved for the town elders – was placed. Right now, with the sun having set two hours ago, four of the elders were present – Lord Hanbrook, Magistrate Kroft, the Reverend Harding, and Sophie the midwife. From the conversations that she had been able to listen into, Isabella had gathered that since her hurried departure from the farm estate of Major Bruckner, it had been Sophie O'Hare who had raised the alarm and started gathering the elders – firstly by riding her horse to reach Hanbrook Manor. Having informed her ladyship of the incident at the farm, it seemed that a frightened Josette Hanbrook had refused to leave the manor, but she dispatched a messenger to local her husband. He had been conducting his ongoing search for the beast that had killed Eli Bunt and Richard Shaw – and which led into a search for clues in the woods along the banks of the River Shadow, to the east of Shadowbrook. Apparently, with some hunting dogs, he had found the trail that confirmed the survivor of that attack did made his way towards Major Bruckner's farm.
"That is because it was Major Bruckner himself who fled that attack, despite being bitten by a werewolf, your lordship," Inspector Cooke addressed the four elders as he stood up from his chair.
In the audience chairs next to the Inspector and herself, Isabella looked over to Anne Marie and Victor. They had all listened to his story with disbelief – but that female outlaw who was now being flanked by Ben, Katarina Clark, confirmed the parts of the playwright's story that she had witnessed. And next to Katarina and her armed guard was the Scarlet Shadow – his hands tied together and with a guard on either side of him. He also added his weight behind both Victor's warnings – and the warnings from Katarina's visions that his partner in crime had related.
As for the other female outlaw, Ruby, was it…? She had gone with the injured Doctor Manning to the doctor's office – to help his understudy, Doctor Cochrane, treat Manning's werewolf scratch, as well as see to the concussion he had taken from his collision with a tree. Ruby had knowledge of the local herbs, having lived as part of the outlaw troop for years. Harlow Morgan, however… Isabella shook her head. She did not know where he was now. There were more pressing matters to address – such as the threats from the Shadow Witch apparently possessing Bruckner, and controlling the 'feral kin', as they were being referred to. And also the identity of 'the other being' that was threatening the town.
This 'other' had to be the intelligence behind the Grotesques that appeared above the town an hour ago, Isabella coolly reasoned. The militia – along with the guns, accuracy, and co-ordination that she and Inspector Cooke had provided had helped to fend off the pair of the winged monstrosities that had swooped down and clawed people, apparently at random. Both of the creatures had eventually succumbed to gunfire – with her musket delivering a shot that had hit one fiend badly enough to cause it to collide with the church tower, and tumble to the ground – close to where Anne Marie had been stationed at the time. In her fright, the school teacher had improvised and used her satchel of books to fend off the monster's claws from striking her. Then Inspector Cooke had struck it from behind, to ram his dagger into the Grotesque's heart, killing it.
The militia had collectively managed to shoot down the other twisting, airborne creature. However, it came down and struck a brazier near to the blacksmiths, starting a fire. The militia - including those from the covered bridge - and the townsfolk were quick enough to gather enough water to put it out, though, leaving only the Grotesque burnt to death.
Isabella pulled herself out of her disturbed recollections and thoughts, as the bewigged Reverend Harding broke the silence that had fallen. He now rose from his chair and pointed at Victor.
"If this is god's truth, man, th-"
"It is, sir," Victor wailed.
"…then god is surely punishing us for our laxity! We had sentenced Elaine Bartlett to death – but have underestimated her tenacious spirit. She must have truly done a deal with the devil for her to not now be burning in hell! And as for her brute of a brother…" He glared at the other town elders present. "…we should have never allowed him to become an elder of this town!"
"You know the reasons why we did so, Elijah…," Lord Hanbrook declared calmly, even though the keen-eyed Inspector Cooke could see the sweat on his brow. "His money was needed to run the estate of Hob's Hill farm that he acquired, for one."
"And the other reasons?" Cooke spoke the question that Isabella herself had formed in her mind.
"We are not at liberty to say, Inspector." Kroft nervously folded his hands and looked away.
"The Major called you hypocrites…," Victor blurted.
"They are hypocrites. All of them have secrets – even the ones who are not here…," the Scarlet Shadow languidly volunteered. "For example, the Reverend's father had an affair with…"
"Be silent, you scum!" Kroft hissed at him, jerking his head.
"Enough!" Sophie yelled, startling the others. "I know nothing of this 'other' that Mr Danforth speaks of – but it must be behind the Grotesques and the living statues! In the meantime, it is clear that the town is going to come under siege from the werewolves that Bruckner has gathered. We must instruct the militia to set up barriers around the whole of the town! The Shadow Witch is cunning – she will direct her chosen soldiers, and could send them against us from any direction, now that she has control over people like that servant boy who aided the outlaws…"
"Exactly." Katarina nodded her head. "Jack will know of less obvious ways to get into this town!"
"I concur with you, Sophie," Lord Hanbrook declared. He glanced to either side of him along the long table, to gauge the reactions of Harding and Kroft.
"Agreed. We need to set up a cordon around the town, and lay down traps." Kroft turned to address the Captain of the Watch. "Townsend! See to the necessities for the defenses!"
"Yessir!" Townsend gave a short bow. "What about the Shadow here?"
"Take both of the prisoners and throw them into the gaol, of cour-"
"No. Let me help you defend the town!" the outlaw leader proclaimed.
Kroft's eyes widened, then he let loose a derisory bark of laughter. "You pair are proven criminals, and will be locked up! Now. Soon to be joined by your weepy wretch who is currently at the doctor's of-"
"Ruby is weepy because she has lost her brother! He died at the hands of the ghost soldiers at the marsh. And they are there, we believe, because of the Shadow Witch's power," Katarina spat with disgust. "And if you care anything about the safety of the people in Shadowbrook, Magistrate…"
"How dare you…! Of course I d-"
"…then you should make use of every fighter available to defend the town. That includes both me and Darcius here!" Katarina did not flinch from the pudgy man's furious glare.
"She has a point, Tiberius," Sophie cut off the retort that was about to spill from Kroft's opened mouth. "I have also heard accounts of how accurate a shot Miss Clark is."
"I'm deadly with bladed weapons too." Katarina smirked.
"It makes sense to put them to work in fighting these…creatures…I suppose," Harding concurred, his voice stern. "If it is God's will for them to die in the defense of this town, then they will. Otherwise…"
"…you can lock them up, afterwards, Tiberius," concluded Lord Hanbrook.
Kroft took in the determined expressions of his fellow elders, and huffed. "Very well… Mr Summersby – see to it that the outlaws do not escape us again! They are to assist in setting up the defense of this township! Captain – start seeing to setting up the arrangements! We will join you when we have finished here."
Captain Townsend clicked his heels together, gave a stiff nod, and then left the chamber.
"Sir!" Ben saluted his acknowledgement.
"We won't run out on you." Katarina's eyes hardened. "I want to ensure that the Shadow Witch and this…Other…pay for the loss of our friends, including Jack…"
"And what if your former servant boy turns against either of you?" Cooke put to her.
Katarina did not reply. Instead, her gaze fell upon the polished wooden floor.
"If he is truly lost to us, we will have to consider him as hostile – and…put him out of his misery… I hope it is what he would have wanted us to do," the Shadow hesitantly declared. "If it was me… If I became one of those cursed minions of Bruckner and that witch, I would want to be put down before I could take an innocent life, or harm a loved one."
Anne Marie saw Katarina stiffen at those words. More than that, the lips of the copper headed outlaw trembled…
"Then we have something of a plan of action," Inspector Cooke spoke up, his attention on the Scarlet Shadow and the elders. "Sergeant Allardyce made it back to town with…most…of his militia company, after their run-in with these…spectral soldiers that Mr Danforth and the outlaws themselves encountered." He coughed nervously, still getting to grips with everything that had been thrown at him in the last few days. "Anyway, the good sergeant has reported to me since my own return to town – and both he and I will, of course, serve amongst the defenders. In the meantime, there is the question of what you can be doing now, Miss von Took and Mademoiselle Piaget…" He turned to face them as he spoke.
"I will return home an' rest, whilst I can. Then I will consider my next move," Anne Marie considered. She smiled apologetically at the Inspector and Isabella. "Pardon moi. I am not so brave as certain others here."
"Nor am I, unfortunately, mademoiselle," Victor declared as he dabbed his handkerchief against his flushed face.
Anne Marie's smile widened as she locked a bashful gaze between them. "I think you are learning that you're braver than you think, Monsieur Danforth," she responded.
Victor was surprised to feel his heart flutter.
Meanwhile, Isabella placed the tips of her long fingers together. "I will see how I can help around town. Then later, perhaps I should keep Lady Hanbrook company, and ensure that all is well at the manor."
"Thank you, Madam von Took. However, that brings me to another pressing point." Lord Hanbrook slammed his palm on the long table, startling those present as a crack formed in the elder's calm demeanor. "I have been informed by a messenger sent by Lady Hanbrook that my daughter has not returned home since she left, this morning, apparently to conduct her usual charity work in town. But she did not go there. Reverend Harding, here, has told me so. So, do any of you self-appointed defenders of our town know where she is?"
Silence fell.
Then there was a commotion at the main door to the chamber. A soldier entered, supporting a breathless and frightened-looking Heidi. She was clinging onto a sturdy-looking rifle.
"Excuse us sirs, ladies…," the soldier declared. "This woman was insistent on coming in. Says she has information of great importance…"
"…including the whereabouts of Lucy Hanbrook, no doubt. Excellent timing, Heidi!" Isabella smirked. She stood, walked over, and gently removed the weapons from her servant's now-yielding grasp. "Another hunting rifle! Excellent. Against any one target… Well, I only need one shot," the noblewoman declared, her gray eyes now as hard as solid silver.
*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*o*
The Doctor's Office:
Several hours later, Inspector Cooke emerged into the Doctor's office, as Manning's understudy – a tall, thin young man named Cochrane – opened the door. It was raining heavily outside, and the two newcomers shook their wet cloaks and removed their hats, before huddling before the still-lit coal fire in the waiting area.
Cooke saw the mustached junior doctor curl his lip with distaste at the sight of the woman who had entered with the Inspector.
"Why is that thief here, Inspector?" Cochrane snapped irritably. He had barely rested – having taken shifts with Sophie during the long night to treat the injured who had been brought in from the clashes that had sprung up since sunset...
"I'm here to see Ruby!" Katarina snapped, her brown eyes flashing as she shot her face towards the junior doctor. "Where is she?"
"I see. This way, then," Cochrane answered back, as he adjusted his bloodstained apron and unlocked a side door, leading Cooke and Katarina into the chilly morgue, where Cochrane lit the lantern present for their benefit. There were already more bodies than tables here – with two, cloth-covered shapes lying on the stone floor. Cochrane tiredly walked over to the nearest shape, and pulled back the cloth to reveal the clawed and battered form of Ruby. Her eyes were still open, the lids already rigid.
"No…, no…, no…!" Katarina collapsed besides her deceased friend and hugged the body as she wept.
At a gesture from Cochrane, Cooke followed the junior doctor back into the warmer waiting room, which was – compared to earlier in the evening – now empty. With no other illumination in the room, the flickering flames of the fire created deep pools of shadow on Cochrane's face as he turned away from the fireplace and towards the Inspector.
Behind the drab curtains of the nearest window, the rain continued, unabated.
"Thank heavens for this downpour. It's why the attacks from those…winged things…have stopped?" the rather stuffy medic asked, his expression drawn and weary.
"It would seem so. And maybe why the lupine beings have not yet besieged the town," Cooke considered.
"I will repeat my earlier question, Inspector. Why is that outlaw here? Granted, I am glad that she still had my money on her, and that you earlier sent Sergeant Allardyce to repay me…"
"Katarina Clark is here for two reasons, Doctor Cochrane. One is because of the news that you sent to me, via Sophie – and I am allowing Miss Clark to grieve…"
"And she is not under lock and key, whilst the Scarlet Shadow is?"
"Darcius Redfern…as we now know him to be…has been helping to fight off the…Grotesques…earlier – as has Miss Clark. And their shooting skills have helped our band of defenders to bring down some of the devils! But Magistrate Kroft would only allow his Mandate to me to bring the lady here – whilst Redfern is now enjoying a bed in the gaol, resting before he is needed again," Cooke declared in hushed tones. "Reason number two is that with Ruby dead, we need someone else from the outlaw gang to lead us to their herbalist at their hideout, to save Doctor Manning from the werewolf bite and scratch that is still afflicting him. Or has his situation changed?"
Cochrane sighed. "It hasn't. Until that Ruby woman was snatched outside by one of those winged creatures, she and I had been taking turns seeing to Doctor Manning – whilst Sophie did what she could to administer aid to the other wounded patients. We have tried to administer belladonna to Doctor Manning – but we have run out…"
"We will have some at our hideout," Katarina answered, as she pushed open the door before her. She held Cochrane's gaze. "How did Ruby die, doctor?"
"One of the…Grotesque beings…seized her, during one of their attacks. I saw her bolt out, to help a blind woman with two staffs, who was being targeted by the creature. It…grabbed her instead with its legs – then rose into the air and dropped her onto a roof. I saw her roll down, and land in the street. Her head injuries and broken ribs…" Cochrane shrugged and trailed off. "…I could not save her in time."
Katarina wiped her red-rimmed eyes with her head and nodded. "I hope her soul is now with Rudy – and that they are happy together…," she muttered. "I am losing my friends in the gang. Rudy, Ruby, Jack - and Sloan, who was turned into a statue at the keep… I swear that I am gonna make those winged freaks pay."
Cooke's eyes widened. "If one of your friends was turned to stone, then…"
Katarina pressed a gloved hand against her face as she considered the implications of Cooke's words. She collapsed into one of the nearby seats. "Darn it…! Can't we go now!? You want me to take you to Merrick, our medic. If we wait too…"
"No. The rain is too heavy, Miss Clark. In the darkness, our party would be more vulnerable to attack. We set off at sunrise. You, me, a soldier to escort you, and Doctor Manning himself."
"Transporting the patient? I must object, Insp-," Cochrane protested.
Cooke raised his hand. "Orders from the remaining town elders, sir. We need your superior cured as soon as possible, so that he can assist you when Shadowbrook comes under attack again! As for transporting Doctor Manning, Carnaby the coachman has been allocated to assist us."
Cochrane sighed. "Well, dawn is only a couple of hours away, now…"
"Exactly. We will both rest here, if you will put up with us, Doctor Cochrane…," Cooke gave him a stern look.
It did the trick. The younger man huffed and turned round, heading for the staircase. "I'll see if there are any spare blankets upstairs, then. You can both sleep in here. I will continue to watch over Doctor Manning. Sophie is hopefully getting enough rest now to relieve me at daybreak."
"Thank you, doctor…" Cooke rubbed his tired eyes. Too much had happened today. So many incredible things – and later, as he lay on the wooden floor, covered by a spare blanket, he stared at the now-sullen Katarina, who was just beginning to nod off underneath her own blanket after the sleeping draught Cochrane had given her. Beyond the nearby window, the rain continued to pour. There had been no screeching of the winged terrors since the rainstorm had broke out – and now the constant, but natural, gushing of the rain helped to smooth Cooke's frayed nerves. Still, he considered how muddy the ground around Shadowbrook would be tomorrow. Against the wolf creatures, it would hinder both them and the townsfolk – but the Grotesques would be able to take advantage whilst diving at prey slipping in the muddy streets…
Cooke silently mulled over the incredible story that Heidi the handmaiden had related of the events at the windmill. The news that the winged devils were the servants of a living Gargoyle... He hoped that Harrison and Harrow were still alive, along with Miss Hanbrook. Lord Hanbrook had dispatched a pair of militia soldiers to aid them, before the storm had broken out – but they had been immediately attacked by Grotesques swooping down from above. The two men had been fortunate to return to Shadowbrook alive, it had seemed. That had shaken Lord Hanbrook's confidence. So, for now, Harrison, Harlow and Miss Hanbrook had to fend for themselves – wherever they presently were…
And right now, what lay in the shadows beyond the lantern-lit streets of the town? What exactly were the Shadow Witch and this…Gargoyle…planning?
He thought of his superiors back in Boston. How they would mock him if he told them of the strange series of events he had to relate – even if he did survive the course of things to come. Even if he did present them with the bodies of the Grotesques he had already secured. How he wished to be back at his home! His own parents had passed away – and he had lost contact with his brother and sister, after moving to Boston in order to prove himself in his career. He had been more concerned about his work than his own relationships – and there was no wife, and no children to await him back in the city. Nonetheless, he wondered if he would ever see his own home again – where he could be right now, sleeping in his comfortable bed, instead of being on the hard floor of a Doctor's office, in a town under siege…
Jonathan Cooke closed his eyes and tried to find his own sleep naturally. But his dreams – when they came - were haunted by the Grotesques, and most of all by his memories of that awful moving living statue of Samuel Shaw that had reached out to strangle him with its stone hands…