“The knight!” Patrick cried out.
“Sir Andrew!” James said.
The knight groaned. He struggled to sit up. Blood covered his shoulder.
James rushed over to him.
“Help me,” Sir Andrew said. Then he slumped to the ground.
The Secret Room
James placed himself under the knight’s arm. Then he pushed upward.
Patrick and Beth moved in to help. The three of them got Sir Andrew to his feet. He swayed.
“Take me to the secret room,” Sir Andrew whispered.
“Is it far?” Patrick asked. Sir Andrew was very heavy, even with only his chain mail. Patrick was glad the knight wasn’t wearing full armor.
“Stay with Sir Andrew,” James said. “I shall be right back.”
James disappeared into the darkness.
Patrick and Beth leaned Sir Andrew against a wall. The cousins propped him up with their shoulders.
The knight moaned.
Patrick and Beth heard a scratching sound. It came from the back of the cave. A yellow light flickered a moment later.
The cousins looked toward the light. James came back carrying a torch.
“Please hold this,” James said to Beth.
Beth stepped away from Sir Andrew. She took the torch in one hand. In the other, she held the golden tablet.
James took her place at the knight’s side.
“This way,” James said. “Follow us.”
Patrick and James half carried, half dragged Sir Andrew deeper into the cave. Beth followed.
Beth turned a corner and moved down a narrow passage. She came to a solid wall.
“It’s a dead end,” Beth said.
James smiled again. He reached a hand between two large stones. There was a click. Suddenly the wall moved.
“That way,” James said.
Beth led the way into the secret room.
“Light the other torches,” James called to Beth.
Beth saw torches hanging on the walls. She walked around the room and lit them.
James and Patrick took Sir Andrew to a bed of straw. They helped him lie down. Then Patrick and Beth knelt beside the knight.
James went to a jug lying nearby. He poured water into a clay cup. He brought it to Sir Andrew. The knight sat up halfway. He drank slowly from the cup.
“You are wounded,” James said. He picked up a cloth. Then he gently cleaned a wound on Sir Andrew’s shoulder.
“I fought the birds,” the knight said softly. “The children got away safely.”
“You must be dreaming,” James said to him. “No bird could make a cut through your chain mail.”
“The giant eagles got him,” Patrick said to James. “He had to take off his armor to climb a cliff. Then he fought the birds to save us.”
Sir Andrew rested his head against the straw. He closed his eyes.
Beth studied Sir Andrew’s face. It was so like Mr. Whittaker’s: the same nose, the same round chin, and the same thick hair. Except the knight’s hair was dark brown, not gray.
Sir Andrew opened his eyes. “You are here in my time,” he said. “Why?”
“We don’t know,” Beth said. “The Imagination Station brought us here.”
“It is amazing,” the knight said. He put a hand to a leather strap around his neck. On the strap was a gold ring. It had a picture on the top. The picture was of a knight inside a shield.
“That’s a pretty ring,” Beth said. “Where did you get it?”
The knight said, “This is John of Whittaker’s magic ring.”
The Second Ring
“A magic ring?” Patrick asked. “How did you get it?”
Beth groaned. “It’s not magic!” she said.
“My brother Albert gave it to me,” the knight said. “He was afraid it would be stolen.”
“Why do you think it’s magic?” Patrick asked.
“If I put it on my finger, I arrive wherever you are in time,” the knight said.
Patrick smiled. “So that’s how you do it!” he said. “Mr. Whittaker’s ring must trigger the Imagination Station.”
“It is a mystery,” the knight said.
Beth looked at Patrick. “Why would it make him follow us?” she asked.
Patrick shrugged. “The ring must have caused a glitch in the Imagination Station’s computer,” he said.
The knight coughed. James wiped some blood from the knight’s neck. Sir Andrew winced.
“Tell me,” Sir Andrew said. “Is that the golden tablet?”
Beth had forgotten all about it. She held it up for Sir Andrew to see.
“Yes,” Beth said. “Isn’t it beautiful?”
The knight smiled. “It will save my brother,” he said.
“Please put it with the other treasures. Over there,” James said. He pointed to something behind the cousins.
Patrick and Beth turned around. For the first time, they got a good look at the secret room.
Patrick’s eyes went to a large blue shield. On it was a picture of a white rose. There were also several spears. Two swords leaned against the cave wall. A large trunk filled with clothes was in a corner.
Beth pointed. “Patrick, look!” she said. The Viking Sunstone and the silver cup sat on the wood table.
“The treasures are safe,” James said.
Beth went to the table. She placed the golden tablet on it.
James put a cold, damp cloth on Sir Andrew’s head. The knight groaned.
“We must do something about the children’s clothes,” Sir Andrew said.
Patrick and Beth looked at each other. They were still in their clothes from the time of Kublai Khan.
“In that trunk,” James said, “you will find some old clothes.”
Patrick went over to the trunk. He pulled out a simple tunic, tights, and boots.
“What about me?” Beth asked.
“You will have to wear these,” James said. He gave Beth a bundle.
She held up a long off-white dress with a red vest. “It’s almost the right size,” she said.
“I am sorry, but I do not have anything better,” James said. “They were my sister’s.”
Sir Andrew slumped back onto the straw. He closed his eyes.
Beth crouched behind the large shield to change her clothes.
Patrick found a corner to put on his new clothes.
Soon they were both standing together again. Patrick looked as if he could have been a fifteenth-century farmer. Beth looked like a village girl going to church.
“Please help me undress Sir Andrew,” James said to Patrick.
The two boys busied themselves with Sir Andrew’s chain mail.
Beth thought they should have privacy. She moved toward the door and into the tunnel. She thought of the letter still lying on the rock. Should they leave it there?
In the main cave, Beth looked at the rock. The letter was still there. She picked up the letter and put it in her pocket.
Suddenly she heard a rustling sound. It came from the mouth of the cave. She saw figures on the other side of the vines.
She stepped toward the tunnel to warn Patrick, James, and Sir Andrew.
It was too late. Two men pushed through the vines into the cave.
Master Hugh
Beth was trapped.
If she moved toward the secret room, the strange men would see her. So she hid behind a big rock and watched them.
The two entered quietly. They stood in the middle of the cave. One was a normal-sized man. He had on a fine white shirt. The other man was huge—almost a giant.
Beth didn’t know what to do. Maybe she could run outside. That would distract the men from the secret room.
No. The cave was narrow. The men would grab her.
The bats! She remembered how Patrick had scared them. She looked around and found a rock. But just as she picked it up, Sir Andrew groaned loudly.
The men turned their heads toward the sound. The smaller man sign
aled for the larger one to follow. They disappeared around the corner and into the tunnel.
Oh no!
Suddenly there were shouts echoing from the tunnel. Beth also heard grunts. Were they fighting?
A moment later, the men returned. The smaller one had a firm hold of James. The tall man held on to Patrick.
“As I thought,” the smaller man said to James. “Albert stole the treasures. You hid them. I was wise to follow you here.”
The man smiled. He seemed proud of himself.
“You have no right, Master Hugh,” cried James.
“I am steward of Lord Darkthorn’s castle,” the man called Hugh said. “In that role I have every right to catch thieves.”
“We are not thieves!” James said. “We are loyal to Lord Darkthorn.”
“That is not how it looks,” Hugh said. “The Sunstone, the silver cup, and the golden tablet are in your thieves’ den.”
Patrick grunted. He tried to pull away from the large man. But the man held him tight.
Hugh laughed. “Stop fighting, child,” he said. “Roderick here will knock your heads together.”
The tall man gave a mean smile. He was missing three teeth.
The men pushed the boys through the vines. They all disappeared from sight.
Beth carefully came out from her hiding place. What was she going to do? Where would Hugh take the boys?
Then she remembered Sir Andrew. What had become of him? Hugh had said nothing about the knight.
Beth went down the tunnel. She crept quietly to the doorway. Torches still flickered in the secret room. She looked over at the bed of straw.
Sir Andrew was gone!
The Cottage
Beth looked around the secret room. Sir Andrew wasn’t hiding. No one was there.
Is there another way out? she wondered. Then she thought, Or maybe he put on the ring and jumped through time.
Beth saw James’s knife on the straw bed. She picked it up and wrapped it in a piece of cloth. She put the knife in her dress pocket. Then she crept back to the mouth of the cave. She peeked through the vines.
Hugh and his henchman still had hold of James and Patrick. The men were talking. Then Roderick nodded. He reached out with his free hand and grabbed James from Hugh. He dragged both boys away from the cave.
But Hugh turned around. He headed back toward Beth!
Beth jumped back. She hid behind the big rock again.
Hugh walked through the main cave and into the tunnel to the secret room.
Should I sneak away now? Beth wondered. She gave it some thought. She could follow Roderick and the boys. But what was Hugh up to? She decided to wait.
A few minutes later, Hugh came out of the tunnel. He was carrying a sack. She heard a rattle of the silver cup against the golden tablet.
Hugh has the treasures! Beth thought.
Hugh left the cave in a hurry.
Beth decided to follow him.
Hugh moved away from the cave and headed into the woods.
Beth hid close to the larger trees. She raced from one to another.
Hugh went deep into the woods.
Beth was afraid she would get lost. She tried to memorize what the trees looked like. But they all looked the same. She hoped she could find her way back.
The trees grew thicker. The branches and leaves blocked out the sun. Shadows covered everything. Beth had a hard time seeing Hugh.
All at once the steward stopped.
Beth moved behind a tree and peeked around its trunk.
Hugh stood at the door of a small stone cottage. It was covered with ivy. Hugh pushed the door open. He stepped inside.
Beth moved closer to the open cottage door. She could hear Hugh moving around inside. Candlelight flickered a moment later.
Beth carefully stepped up to the door. She peeked inside. A couple of wooden tables and chairs sat on a dirt floor. A basket of vegetables lay beside a wall.
Hugh stood at a table with his back to Beth. He took the treasures from the sack. He placed them on the tabletop.
Hugh stepped to one side.
Beth could now see the whole table.
It was covered with treasure! A silver necklace and a gold medal hung from a wooden rack. There was a white vase with flowers carved into the side. A large silver tray leaned against a marble statue.
A circle of gold was at the table’s edge. It looked like a crown.
Cleopatra’s crown! That was the stolen treasure James had talked about.
Hugh was the thief!
Hugh stepped over to the table again. He had a silver cup in each hand—both looked exactly the same. He grunted and put them down.
Then he lifted up the golden tablet in his right hand. And then he took another golden tablet in his left hand.
He seemed to compare them. Then he put them down again. He did the same with the two Sunstones.
Beth thought, Hugh doesn’t know we sent the extra treasures back in the Imagination Station.
The steward shook his head. He asked out loud, “Where did these come from? How can there be two?”
Then he suddenly hit his fist against the tabletop. He headed toward the door. Beth dashed around the corner of the cottage. She heard him slam the door.
The steward rushed past her. Then he headed back into the forest.
What should I do? Beth wondered. Should I follow him?
Then she had an idea.
She would take three of the treasures back to Albert. Surely a castle couldn’t be very hard to find. Then she would tell Albert what she’d seen at the cottage.
Beth sneaked into the little house. She picked up Hugh’s sack. She put one silver cup, one Sunstone, and one golden tablet inside.
Back in the woods, she found a tall tree with a lot of branches. Beth climbed it. She went up as high as she could and looked out.
Lord Darkthorn’s tower stood in the distance.
It was made of stone and was dark and frightening. Beneath it sat the castle.
She climbed down the tree, picked up the sack of treasures, and ran as fast as she could.
The Stocks
Beth got lost in the woods.
Night came fast. The old moon was nothing more than a sliver. It was covered in clouds.
Beth sat against a pine tree. She prayed and asked God to protect her from bears. And then she fell asleep.
At dawn she woke and found a path. She followed the trail downhill and out of the forest.
Before her was a beautiful valley.
Groves of rich green trees sat like islands in square fields of brown. A flock of sheep was grazing. A group of huts with thatched roofs was off to one side. On the far end of the valley sat the castle.
“Just like the fairy tales!” Beth said out loud.
Beth followed the path through the village. A rooster crowed. Cows mooed. Only the animals were awake this early.
She saw a small wood square in the middle of the village. It had holes in it where a person’s legs would be locked down. She had seen pictures of something like it in history books. They were called stocks. They were used for punishing criminals.
The legs of two criminals were locked in the stocks.
Patrick and James!
Patrick woke when he heard Beth’s footsteps.
Beth rushed toward him. Her red vest and long white dress flapped in the wind.
“Beth!” Patrick called. “Help! Get us out of here!”
“Shh,” James said to him. “Someone will hear you.”
The stocks were held shut by hinges and a lock. A sign in front of the stocks said, “A thief’s end. Beware!”
Beth looked around. None of the villagers were close by.
“What are you doing here?” Beth asked.
“Roderick put us in the village jail,” Patrick said. “But Master Hugh wanted the people in the village to see us.”
“Master Hugh likes to scare the villagers,”
James said. “So Roderick locked
us up here.”
“It looks really uncomfortable,” Beth said.
“It is!” Patrick said. “Now please get us out.”
“How?” Beth asked.
“Use something to break the lock on the side of the stocks,” Patrick said.
Beth studied the lock. “It’s made of thick metal,” she said. “I can’t break it. I’d need a crowbar.”
“Only the blacksmith has those,” James said. He shook his head. “I wish I had my knife. It would be easy to pick that lock.”
Beth smiled. She pulled the knife out of her pocket. “You mean this knife?” she asked.
James smiled and said, “I am pleased you have it. Sir Andrew gave me that knife.”
James took the knife from Beth. He reached around the side of the stocks. The thin knife tip slipped inside the lock.
James twisted the knife right. Nothing. He twisted the knife left. Nothing.
He flicked the knife back and forth.
Click.
The lock dropped off.
The boys were free. They all crept to the edge of the village. They hid behind stacks of hay.
“What have you been doing all this time?” Patrick asked.
Beth told how Sir Andrew had vanished from the secret room.
“He put on the ring when he heard Hugh coming,” Patrick said.
Then she told how she’d followed Hugh to the cottage. She told them about the treasure.
Patrick said, “Hugh is stealing the treasure and letting Albert take the blame! That’s awful!”
Beth then showed them the sack. She explained about the two cups, two Sunstones, and two golden tablets.
James said, “Now I understand. Master Hugh said that we would stay in the stocks until we answered his questions. He wanted to know where the extra treasures had come from. We did not know what he meant.”
“We don’t know where Sir Andrew is. So we must tell Albert,” Patrick said to James. “Take us to him!”
Albert
James led the cousins away from the village path. He didn’t want anyone to see them.
The three children sneaked through the trees. They came close to the castle. It was midmorning now.
Revenge of the Red Knight Page 2