by Jenny Nimmo
"Charlie, are you all right?" Uncle Paton looked back and waited for him.
"I . . . I . . . yes," said Charlie miserably. He walked up to his uncle.
"You've had a terrible disappointment. I'm so sorry, Charlie." Uncle Paton squeezed his shoulder.
"It's OK. I was being silly. I knew it couldn't really be him."
"One day it will be," said Uncle Paton.
Charlie watched his uncle and Albert push the boat into the cave. And then they were all climbing the wall of rocks into another bay where a narrow path wound up to the top of the cliffs.
Christopher Crowquill led the way with Billy behind him. Next came Uncle Paton, followed by Charlie. Albert Tuccini brought up the rear. It was a perilous climb, and when they were halfway up, Uncle Paton said, "You should have seen us coming down, Charlie. We were on our bottoms most of the time."
Charlie managed a halfhearted smile. He looked back at the Castle of Mirrors. It was shrouded in mist. Soon it would be invisible. But its precious secrets would still be there, hidden in the wall of history and one day Charlie would return to find them.
By the time they had reached the top of the cliff, the tide was high, and looking down, Charlie saw foaming waves crashing against a barrier of jagged black rocks.
Albert Tuccini had been watching Charlie anxiously. He put a hand on Charlie's arm and said, "I am sorry that I am not your father."
"That's all right," said Charlie lamely
They were walking along the cliff top to the road where Uncle Paton had parked his car. As they turned away from the sea, a bird gave a sudden shriek and flew into the sky. Peering ahead to see what had frightened the bird, Charlie saw a dark shape standing directly in their path.
Uncle Paton slowed down. "What the . . ." He shook his head. "A tree." He strode out again ahead of the others.
When they drew near the tree, they saw that it was squat and curiously misshapen. Its crooked branches bore clusters of thin, blackened needles, and the bark of its gnarled trunk was riven with scars.
"A black yew." Paton's voice was choked with dawning horror.
Before their eyes, a gnomelike face twisted out of the rough bark. The branches shriveled, scattering their needles like dark rain, and the writhing trunk slowly assumed the form of a tall man. It was Tantalus Ebony He stared at the motionless group, his thin lips curled into a malicious smile.
Charlie couldn't believe his eyes. Was Tantalus Ebony a shape-shifter?
The man spoke. "We meet again, Paton Yewbeam."
"What . . . ?" Paton began.
"Come, come, Paton. Don't tell me you haven't been expecting this moment. I warned you, didn't I, that if you harmed my Yolanda you would pay for it with your life?" The voice was familiar, and yet it seemed to come from deep underground. "You KILLED MY DARLING!" the shape-shifter suddenly roared.
"Yorath," Paton said fearlessly, "your daughter was a monster."
The shape-shifter gave a scream of fury and came running full tilt at Uncle Paton. Charlie could see what was going to happen. Careless of his own life, Tantalus would take his uncle over the cliff. Charlie clung fiercely to Paton, but his uncle pried away his clinging hands and stepped forward.
In a sudden instant, a small gray body flew at Tantalus. For a moment, they wrestled together, and then amazingly, Christopher Crowquill was forcing the shape-shifter toward the cliff. It happened so fast that no shouts, no movements were quick enough to stop their headlong rush toward the cliff s edge — and over it!
There was a shout, a scream, and then silence.
Paton ran to the place where the two figures had disappeared. He spread his arms as Charlie and Billy leaped forward. "NO!" he commanded, forcing them back. But Charlie had already seen the boiling sea and the dark rocks. There was nothing else, except for a black bird bobbing on the waves. A crow? A raven? Or a shape-shifter?
"The dear man gave his life for me," Paton said huskily.
"Why?" cried Billy "Why did he do it? He was my only relative. My guardian. Now there's no one again."
"There's us," said Charlie.
"Why? Why?" Paton shook his head. "It makes no sense." He squared his shoulders and seemed to pull himself together. "We must leave here. I'll alert the coast guards when we've put some distance between us and this awful place. Nothing more can be done."
In stunned silence, they walked on until they came to Paton's car. Charlie and Billy scrambled into the back, while Albert took the passenger seat.
While he drove, Uncle Paton explained the shape-shifter's attack to a bewildered Albert Tuccini. "He is so old he has no form of his own and has to borrow the shape and sometimes the minds of other creatures. His daughter was just as bad. She killed my mother, and then tried to do away with someone very dear to me."
Charlie whispered, "Miss Ingledew?"
Billy shuffled away and huddled in the corner, a picture of misery
"What a fiend this Yolanda must have been," said Albert.
"I electrocuted her," Paton said flatly
If Albert was shocked, he didn't show it. Maybe some of his memories were coming back to him. Memories that were so bad, nothing would ever surprise him again.
After they had been traveling for some time, they stopped at a café on the edge of a small town. The day was warm and sunny and Uncle Paton chose to sit at one of the tables outside. He gave Charlie a list and enough money to pay for four lunches. Billy, who seemed to have recovered a little, followed Charlie into a low-beamed room, lit by several soft lights.
"Just as well your uncle didn't come in," said Billy nudging Charlie's elbow as he read out the list to a purple-haired woman behind the counter.
Charlie gave Billy a warning look, and Billy said in a crushed voice, "I didn't give anything away, did I?"
Charlie grinned at the purple-haired woman, and she smiled back in a surprised way before disappearing through a curtain made of beads.
When Charlie and Billy went back to their table, Uncle Paton was in a public phone booth across the road.
"He is telling the police about the accident," said Albert. "It's a terrible t hing."
"One bad tiling and one good thing, really," said Charlie without thinking.
Billy shot him an injured look. Albert said nothing. A few moments later, a girl in a very short black dress appeared with a tray of sandwiches, water, orange juice, and coffee. Uncle Paton returned from the phone booth, saying he had done his best to explain what had happened, but the police seemed to think it was a hoax.
"I don't know what else I can do," said Uncle Paton with an uneasy glance in Billy's direction. “s for Alice, how am I going to tell her? She'll be heartbroken."
"Like me," said Billy gazing at the ham sandwich he couldn't eat.
"Billy dear boy I don't know if this will help, but your guardian cared very very much for you. H e did what he did for a good reason. In fact , I believe he sacrificed himself for you. For seven long years, he longed to see you. He would not lightly have given up an opportunity to be with you."
In a weak voice, Billy said, "Oh."
************************************
Albert Tuccini remained quiet during the meal. There was a strange, faraway look in his eyes, and he seemed hardly aware of the others. When the sandwiches had been eaten (Charlie ate Billy's), Albert announced that he was going inside to find the men's restroom.
Several minutes passed. When a quarter of an hour had gone by and Albert still had not returned, Uncle Paton became anxious and Charlie was sent to look in the restroom. There was no one there.
Uncle Paton frowned when he heard the news. "No one? Ar
e you sure?"
"More or less," said Charlie.
Paton stood up. "I'll have a look."
"Do you think you should? There are lots of lights in . . . ," Charlie began.
But his uncle was already striding through the door of the café. Charlie prayed that he wouldn't have an accident. A few moments later, he heard a man's voice shout, "Sue, the lights have all gone out in the men's restroom. There's an awful mess in there. Glass everywhere."
Uncle Paton came hurrying out. He looked flushed. "Bother!" he muttered. "Still, I'm sure no one can point the finger at yours truly"
He had been followed by the purple-haired woman, who now looked extremely irritated. "Are you Mr. Paton Yewbeam?" she asked.
"Er, yes," Uncle Paton said nervously
"That guy left a note for you." She handed Paton a folded note and walked off grumbling that she had enough to do without having to carry notes and clean restrooms.
Uncle Paton unfolded the note. His expression became very grave as he read it. "I can't say I'm surprised. Poor man."
"What does it say?" begged Charlie.
His uncle read the note aloud.
"Dear Mr. Yewbeam ,
I have so enjoyed knowing briefly you and Charlie and Billy. B ut now w e must pa rt company. Do not look, for me, I beg you. It is better this wa y. Ma ybe we will meet aga in in happ ier times.
"Your humble friend,
Albert Tuccini (so-cal led)"
"Where will he go?" asked Charlie. "If he doesn't know who he is?"
Uncle Paton gave a shrug and tucked the note in his pocket. " I believe he is a gifted pianist, Charlie. We must hope that he can find a life for himself somewhere in this world."
They walked back to the car and began another long journey south, toward Filbert Street and Bloor's Academy
Christopher Crowquill's sudden and dreadful departure had put everything else out of Charlie's mind, but now the memory of his journey with Queen Berenice came flooding back and he couldn't imagine how he could have forgotten to tell his uncle.
"You didn't ask how we found the island," he said, leaning over Paton's seat.
"Your friend Tancred told me about the white horse, if that's what you mean," said Uncle Paton. "I couldn't get him off the phone. He told me everything: oaths and ogres, spirits and storms. That lad can go on, can't he? Not that I wasn't interested. You two have certainly been through the wringer these past few days."
"Wringer?" asked Billy
"Squeezed, mangled, wrung out," Uncle Paton explained.
"Mangled," said Billy quietly "Yes, I feel mangled."
"Boys, I should . . ." Uncle Paton hesitated, and then he said, "Never mind." Charlie wondered what his uncle had been going to say. His voice had held a note of warning, but perhaps he felt that they had been through enough today.
There was a long silence and then Charlie said, "The queen ran away when she saw the island. I wonder where she went."
At the mention of the queen, Billy sat up and a smile crossed his face. "She said she wouldn't abandon us. 1 think we'll see her again. In fact, I know we will. It's like she's a kind of parent."
Charlie was glad to hear Billy sounding so hopeful. He wished he kit the same.
A tiny point of glimmering light moved down his sleeve, and leaning forward, Charlie said, "Uncle Paton, I've found my wand. Or rather it found me. It's turned into a moth."
"I'll be darned. What's next?"
The moth's company was comforting to Charlie, who just then felt in great need of comfort. "You won't tell Mom what I thought, will you?" he asked his uncle. "About my dad?"
"No, Charlie. I'll keep that to myself."
LOSING THE BALANCE
It was dark when they arrived in the city Uncle Paton didn't drive straight to Filbert Street, as Charlie expected. He parked, instead, beside the familiar and very noisy building where Fidelio's family lived. Gunn House.
"What are we doing here?" asked Charlie.
Uncle Paton turned around in his seat. "It seemed the best solution," he said, looking at Billy
Billy had been silent for most of the journey He had even given up wondering where he would go or where he would be sale. Maybe he had expected to live at number nine, although with Grandma Rone around, it would have been impossible to hide him for long. Now, all at once, Billy grasped what Uncle Paton was saying.
"Do you mean that I'm to live here?" said Billy
"I can't think of anywhere better," said Paton. "As a matter of fact, Mr. and Mrs. Gunn have already approved the plan. You'll hardly be noticed in a house that holds seven children already. It was Mr. Crowquill's suggestion." Paton's voice softened. “And a very good one, too. You were never out of his thoughts, Billy."
It was then that Charlie guessed why Christopher Crowquill had saved Uncle Paton's life. Christopher was already ill, anyone could see that. He was an easy victim for the Bloors. Not so for Uncle Paton, who was endowed with a deadly talent. Christopher had saved the only person he knew who could protect Billy Raven.
Billy already looked happier. "Yes, it is a good idea. I've stayed with Fidelio before."
As soon as they got out of the car, the noise from Gunn House came surging toward them. Musical instruments of every description were being banged, blown, scraped, and pounded. Mr. Gunn's loud bass and Mrs. Gunn's powerful contralto competed with their children's instruments, and the whole building shook with sound.
"Good thing the house is detached," said Uncle Paton. He pressed a knob beside the front door.
Immediately a recorded voice boomed, " DOOR! DOOR! DOOR!" Obviously a bell would never have been heard above such a racket.
Fidelio's older brother, Felix, answered the door. "Charlie Bone!" he exclaimed. "Fidelio's been worried sick about you. Where've you been?"
"It's a long story:" Charlie stepped into the house, closely followed by Billy.
"Billy Raven! So you were 1 together all the time," said Felix, banging the door shut.
"Hold on," said Charlie. "My uncle is still outside. Do you mind turning off the lights?"
"Good grief! Mr. Yewbeam!" Felix hurriedly switched off the hall light. "Oh, parents! Lights!" he shouted. "Mr. Yewbeam's here!" He opened the front door and Uncle Paton stepped into the dark hall.
Mr. and Mrs. Gunn continued their duet in the kitchen, while Felix bellowed, "Lights, parents! Lights! Paton the power-booster is here."
Charlie couldn't see Uncle Paton's face, but he knew his uncle was blushing because of the way he cleared his throat.
Still singing, Mrs. Gunn poked her head out of the kitchen door. "What, what, what, what, what, what, what, what?" she trilled in the scale of C major.
"YEWBEAM, MA!" yelled Felix. "Mr. Yewbeam. Lights."
"Heavens!" sang Mrs. Gunn, turning off the kitchen light.
This brought a musical bellow from Mr. Gunn as he stumbled over the deaf cat, and a yell from the cat whose tail had been stepped on.
"So, Billy's been found," said Mrs. Gunn when she saw him cautiously entering the kitchen. "Welcome, Billy, you'll be safe here, my love. So many children, so much music. You'll be well hidden."
The three visitors sat at the kitchen table, and while they ate a selection of Mrs. Gunn's exotic sandwiches, Felix gave them the news from Bloor's Academy. Felix had recently obtained his music degree and was about to embark on a world tour with his group when he'd been summoned to Bloor's to fill in for a music teacher who'd mysteriousl y disap peared. "Name of Ebony," said Felix.
"We know.” said Charlie.
"Couldn't resist the offer," Felix added. "The pay's really good."
"I bet," said Uncle Paton. "So what's been going on?"
"What hasn't?" said Felix dramatically. "Gabriel Silk's in a coma. Left the school."
"What?" cried Charlie. "1 low did it happen?"
"Something about a cape," said Felix. "But your Other friend, the stormy one . . ."
"Tancred? What's happened to him?" Charlie dropped his sandwich and the cat pounced on it.
"Gone berserk," said Felix. "It keeps raining on his friends. Fidelio's been soaked several times, so's Lysander, and that girl Emma Tolly has had a really bad time. Her fingers were struck by lightning."
"Not her fingers!" Charlie could hardly believe it. What could possibly have happened to Tancred to make him torment his friends in this way? Charlie had been thinking about taking the rest of the week off from school, but that was out of the question now. He had to find out what was going on at Bloor's. Cook's words echoed in the back of his mind. "I’m the lodestone, Charlie. I keep the balance. Once that has gone, we’re lost."
So, what had happened to C ook?
Three against six," Charlie said to himself. "Seven if you count Manfred."
"What's that, Charlie?" said Uncle Paton
Charlie looked up "I've got to get back to Bloor's.”
"Not tonight, dear boy," said his uncle. "The lights will be out. They probably won’t even open the door."
“Tomorrow, then," said Charlie. "As soon as possible. I'll walk it I have to."
"No need for that," said Felix. "I'll give you a lift."
When Charlie and Uncle Paton got up to leave, there was an unpleasant noise under the table and Mr. Gunn sang, "Pusskins has eaten a parsnip again!"
Charlie was relieved to see Billy join in the laughter. He was definitely in the right place — at least for no w.
As soon as Charlie walked into number nine and turned off the hall light, Grandma Bone shouted at him from the living room. "Don't bother to tell me where you've been. I know You stupid boy"