Charlie Bone And The Red Knight (Children Of The Red King, Book 8) (23 page)

"Please!" begged Charlie. "I want to be there. After all, I was the one who opened the box."

Lyell laughed. "So you were. All right. You've won me over, Charlie, but please do everything I say."

Charlie made a solemn promise and in the late afternoon, before the streetlights had come on, Uncle Paton, Charlie, and his father made their way up to the academy. They were approaching the square when a black car drove out. It stopped a moment before turning onto High Street, and Charlie saw Weedon at the wheel. Beside him sat his wife, and in the back was the unmistakable figure of Norton Cross in his elephant jacket. Beside him was a hunched figure veiled in black. Charlie didn't see the fourth passenger until the car was driving away from them. A small white face looked out of the back window and then hastily bobbed out of sight.

"Joshua," muttered Charlie.

"And his mother, most likely," said Paton. "They're all leaving."

"Rats and a sinking ship come to mind," said Lyell drily.

Weedon hadn't even bothered to close the academy doors behind him. The three visitors stepped into the shadowy hall without bothering to knock.

And for the last time in his life, Charlie shivered in the cold wickedness that seemed to pervade the building. It was truly a seat of evil, and the prime cause of all that evil was sitting in his wheelchair, staring down at them from the landing at the top of the staircase. It was almost as if he had been waiting for them.

"I suppose you've come to gloat," he shouted. "But you haven't won yet. You've finished off Count Harken, but I'm still here and I'm not budging."

"We have the will, Ezekiel," said Lyell. "The true will. It's all over for you."

"Never!" screeched the old man.

"I'm afraid, Ezekiel," said Uncle Paton, "you'll have to spend your last days in a nice home for the elderly."

"NO! I won't. I'm staying put!" Ezekiel began to giggle uncontrollably. "Manfred's going to make sure of that. If you make another move, he's going to burn the place down, and you wouldn't want that, would you, now?"

At these words Manfred walked out of the shadow behind the stairs. He held his hands in the air, every finger blazing like a torch. "Don't come any closer," he warned. The awful power of his ancestor Borlath, the Red King's eldest son, had at last materialized in Manfred.

Lyell took a brave step toward Manfred.

"Dad, no!" cried Charlie, staring at the flames leaping from Manfred's fingers.

"Woooo!" shrilled Manfred, and the flames leaped higher. "Scaredy-cats!"

What happened next was so astounding, Charlie could hardly believe his eyes. For old Ezekiel came flying down the stairs. The wheels of his chair hit the treads once, twice, and then he was in the air. Too shocked to move, Manfred could only stare at the airborne thing in horror. When it landed on him, he emitted a single high-pitched scream that would echo in Charlie's head for years to come.

Old Ezekiel rolled out of his chair, gave a long gurgle, and fell silent. The flames, smoldering on a hand that protruded from the tangled heap, spluttered and died.

The three visitors were momentarily too shocked to speak, and then Paton murmured, "How on earth?"

Charlie had seen the culprit, or rather their savior, depending on how you looked at it. A short, fat dog stood at the top of the stairs, wagging his meager tail. "Blessed!" cried Charlie. "Dog of the day!"

Paton brought out his cell phone and began to call for an ambulance. While he was doing this, Charlie noticed a solitary figure standing by the door to the west wing. Dr. Bloor moved toward the dreadful pile of wood and bones. It was difficult to read his expression, but he didn't touch either of the bodies.

"It was the dog," said Lyell. "He must have pushed the chair."

"I knew he would do that one day," Dr. Bloor said bleakly. He looked up at Blessed, still happily wagging his tail. "I gather you've found the will."

"We have," said Lyell.

Dr. Bloor gave a huge sigh. "I won't give you any trouble," he said. "There's no point now. I'll go and pack."

"Thank you," said Lyell.

The Easter holiday arrived and Paton Yewbeam and Julia Ingledew were married in a small church at the edge of the city. It was packed to the door; there were even people singing outside under the cherry blossoms. After the ceremony the newly-weds went to live in candlelit harmony above the bookstore. Emma was very happy with the new arrangements.

Billy Raven was unaware that he had almost been the heir to the Bloor fortune. While Charlie and his parents were packing up their belongings in number nine, Billy stayed with Benjamin. But after a few days of being chased around the house by Runner Bean, Rembrandt said that he couldn't stand another day in the place. So Billy went up to the Silks' home in the Heights. He enjoyed talking to the Silks' many pets, but Gabriel's sisters kept complaining that they needed more room, even though Mr. and Mrs. Onimous had moved back to the Pets' Cafe. Fidelio Gunn's house was Billy's next temporary home. The Gunns were such a large family, they decided that one more child would hardly make any difference and they asked the social services to start drawing up some adoption papers.

It was difficult to tell if Billy was happy with this arrangement. He smiled at the appropriate time and nodded his head when he was required to. But was he happy? He had taken to visiting the cathedral when Lyell Bone was practicing the organ. He would sit himself in a pew behind one of the great pillars, close his eyes, and listen. But his presence didn't go unnoticed.

One day Lyell called to Billy and asked if he would like to learn how to play the organ.

Billy crept shyly out of his hiding place and approached the great organ. Lyell helped him to place his fingers in the right places, and Billy was thrilled by the sound that came from the tall pipes. After the lesson they walked out of the cathedral together. It had begun to rain. It was only a light spring shower but enough to make them stop in the porch for a while.

As they watched the rain bouncing on the shiny cobblestones, Lyell put a hand on Billy's shoulder and said, "Would you like to come and live with us?"

Billy frowned. He took off his new glasses and rubbed the lenses with his thumb. "How long for?" he asked.

Lyell smiled. "Forever."

Billy replaced his glasses and stared straight ahead. He could hardly believe what he had heard. He felt breathless, his throat closed up, and he wondered if he was going to die.

Worried by Billy's silence, Lyell said, "I would do my best to be a good father."

In a small, choked voice, Billy asked, "What about Charlie?"

"It was his idea," said Lyell. "And Amy and I thought, well, we thought we'd really like another son." Lyell peered down at Billy's rigid face. "So how about it?"

Billy couldn't believe it. The kindest, bravest man in all the world had just offered him life with a family he loved. Speechless, he clasped his arms around Lyell's waist and clung to him.

"I'll take that as a yes," said Lyell.

"There's just one thing," said Billy in a whisper, and he reached into his pocket. He felt that his life depended on Lyell's answer. "What about my rat?"

Lyell took the proffered glossy black creature into his hands. "I'm particularly fond of rats," he said. "Welcome, Rembrandt."

"Many thanks," squeaked Rembrandt.

A week after the Easter holidays, Bloor's Academy opened under new management. It also had a new name. The Bone Academy. Dr. Saltweather's appointment as headmaster proved to be very popular, and Señor Alvaro replaced him as Head of Music. A few of the staff left -- old Mr. Paltry and Mr. Pope among them. They were considered no great loss. Cook moved back into her old apartment beneath the kitchen, but this time she said her closet door would always be open to children in need of cocoa and sympathy. Blessed spent most of his days lying beside her stove, and Dr. Saltweather visited her often.

Cook brought her friend, Maisie Jones, back to the academy with her. Maisie spent her weekends with her family, of course, but every weekday she was queen of the green cafeteria in place of grumpy Bertha Weedon. It took only a few days of the new regime for every student to declare that the Bone Academy was the best and happiest school for miles.

* * *

Today the city is a very different place. It has a permanently springlike atmosphere. The three number thirteens in Darkly Wynd are deserted. No one knows where the four sisters and Eric have gone. The Loom family have left the city, and the Brankos' shop and cafe lie empty. Not so the Pets' Cafe. It reopened with a grand party. So many animals attended, there was scarcely any room for their owners. Gabriel arrived with enough gerbils for everyone, even Dagbert. Lysander came with his parrot, Homer, plus his girlfriend, Lauren, and her parrot, Cassandra.

The three Flames watched the proceedings from the counter. No one dared to suggest they should move.

Charlie and his friends had managed to grab their favorite place beside the window. Altogether there were twelve pets and eleven children. Mrs. Onimous had outdone herself; six plates piled high with delicious pet food and assorted cakes sat in the middle of the table.

After too much food, Rembrandt fell asleep and slipped off Billy's lap. Billy quickly ducked under the table to rescue him from Runner Bean. When Billy came up again, his eyes were very wide and he had a big grin on his face. Leaning close to Charlie, he whispered, "Tancred and Emma are holding hands."

JENNY NIMMO

I was born in Windsor, Berkshire, England, and educated at boarding schools in Kent and Surrey from the age of six until I was sixteen, when I ran away from school to become a drama student/assistant stage manager with Theater South East. I graduated and acted in repertory theater in various towns and cities.

I left Britain to teach English to three Italian boys in Amalfi, Italy. On my return, I joined the BBC, first as a picture researcher, then assistant floor manager, studio manager (news), and finally director/adaptor with
]ackanory
(a BBC storytelling program for children). I left the BBC to marry Welsh artist David Wynn-Millward and went to live in Wales in my husband's family home. We live in a very old converted water mill, and the river is constantly threatening to break in, which it has done several times in the past, most dramatically on my youngest child's first birthday. During the summer, we run a residential school of art, and I have to move my office, put down tools (typewriter and pencils), and don an apron and cook! We have three grown-up children, Myfanwy, Ianto, and Gwenhwyfar.

Also by JENNY NIMMO

OTHER BOOKS IN THE CHILDREN OF THE RED KING SERIES

Midnight for Charlie BoneCharlie Bone and the Time Twister
Charlie Bone and the Invisible Boy
Charlie Bone and the Castle of Mirrors
Charlie Bone and the Hidden King
Charlie Bone and the Beast
Charlie Bone and the Shadow

THE MAGICIAN TRILOGY

The Snow SpiderEmlyn's Moon
The Chestnut Soldier
Griffin's Castle
The Dragon's Child