Timelock

by R. G. Knighton

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  When Tyler finally arrived at Carl’s houseboat he also found Henry who had just returned to reassess the planned operation for tonight. Carl thought it best not to mention anything that had happened to him last night in case he was associated with the death of the ‘captain’. An issue that Carl was not able to determine was fact or fiction.

  To the sound of the radio blasting out the latest releases, the trio sat around the table in the cramped galley, talking animatedly and exchanging ideas while they sipped at their freshly made coffee. During a lull in conversation, Carl decided to ask Tyler about yesterday.

  “How did it all go last night?”

  He asked, noticing that Tyler’s manner seemed different this morning, more confident and mature but he could not put his finger on the reason why.

  “Oh you know one does one’s best in these situations. Just a private tour of the house, period costume dance with a string quartet, seven course gourmet meal, renaissance musical duo and professional dancers. Then this morning an off road rally through Gisborne forest, nothing too fancy really. “

  Tyler replied in all sincerity without realising how boastful he sounded. Carl drew a deep breath ready with a sarcastic reply then caught Henry out of the corner of his eye as he subtly shook his head, Carl thought briefly then changed his mind when he realised how much effort Tyler must have put in at such short notice and how crass he would sound to deride Tyler over the use of his wealth.

  “Well done Tyler, you’ve kept all of us safe from a sticky situation.”

  Henry replied, raising his eyebrows and subtly leaning his head forwards at Carl to respond.

  “Oh err yes; well done Tyler, you took one for the team.”

  Carl’s answer was not the most eloquent but his follow up of a pat on Tyler’s back meant considerably more than he realised and Tyler was deeply moved. Clearing his throat sharply to control his rising emotion, Tyler returned the question hoping some advance had been made.

  “And how did your evening progress?”

  Carl began to explain, and then ceased his reply when suddenly the boat rocked to the port side from the extra weight as someone or something stepped on board. Carl was the quickest to react; he grabbed a bread knife and tiptoed over to hide behind the inner door while silently urging Tyler and Henry to secrete themselves behind a door into the larder. Through the gaps in the louvre panel’s, Tyler watched as a shadow slipped silently across the wall and up a yellow window blind as the kitchen door handle slowly turned and the door creaked open. Raising the knife in his right hand poised to strike, Carl used his left to quickly grab the handle from his side, yanking the door violently open and pulling in the intruder who fell to the floor. As Carl stabbed the blade through the air, Tyler and Henry charged from the larder screaming at Carl to freeze. Unable to stop, Carl managed to alter his swing and stab the tip of the blade into the wooden floor less than half an inch from the intruders left ear. The man on the floor turned out to be a terrified George Harding who lay on his back shielding his face with his forearms. Carl let the blade go as he quickly stood up and remained rooted to the spot with shock as Tyler and Carl helped George to his feet and gave him a group hug in relief at his return. Carl was still angry and staring at the knife still impaled into the floor and rocking side to side like a metronome. He finally looked up as the colour returned to his cheeks.

  “You daft beggar, what on earth do think you’re doing creeping up on us like that? I could ‘ave killed you.”

  Carl exclaimed, still visibly shaking as he reached down and pulled the knife from its resting place, dropped it into the sink and then sat down. George sat down also, his face as white as a ghost from the sudden realisation of how close he had just been to death. He closed his eyes and sat silent for over a minute while he gathered himself, giving time for Tyler to make everyone some fresh coffee. Taking a deep breath as he recovered, George began;

  “When I came back through the portal everyone had gone. I wasn’t sure if you had all been abducted or gone back through the portal yourselves. I really didn’t know what to expect, so I acted very cautiously as I set off to try and find someone, and the first port of call was here.”

  “Everybody’s fine George, but that was yesterday, you’ve been gone for over twenty-four hours.”

  Henry replied, relieved that his ideas for tonight would now not have to be tested. George stared in shock and surprise at the statement but after what he had just been through, he quickly accepted the facts and before being allowed to be brought up to date with recent events, he insisted on telling them first what had happened to him.

  For a full twenty minutes, they all sat around the kitchen table while George told everyone of his amazing journey on the angel powered craft and then of his meeting with the Guardian in purgatory. He then informed his friends what must be done to rid themselves of their hosts so they can be returned to their rightful place. When he reached the part about the high priestess Toomak and the way her soul evaded capture as she searched for the right time portal to unite her with the sacred amulet; Tyler hung his head, grabbed two hands full of hair, screwed his eyes tight and groaned.

  “It’s Mary!”

  Nobody paid any attention to his proclamation and carried on with their conversation.

  “IT’S MARY!”

  He repeated, much louder this time. Everyone stopped talking and turned in shock to look at Tyler as he continued whilst still looking down at the table;

  “Mary is possessed by this priestess called Toomak and she has the amulet.”

  He announced, almost running out of breath. Questions fired from all directions and Tyler, with his head still in his hands answered them all without looking up. He also explained his reasons for lending her the amulet when she saw it exhibited in the museum as he gave a tour of the house. He only omitted the part of how she persuaded him to save his embarrassment.

  “We must resume the cleansing tonight, including Mary, before she has the chance to use the amulet or God knows what will happen. Anyway Tyler where is she now?”

  Tyler raised his head in sudden realisation and the colour drained from his face.

  “O Christ, I dropped them both off at Mary’s flat about an hour ago.”

  “Mary and who?”

  George asked, wondering who else knew about the gathering.

  “Mary and Marion your fiancée. Marion is staying with Mary. She came to see you yesterday for a surprise visit and Mary took her in. I entertained the ladies yesterday while these two tried to find a solution to this mess. We told her you were on a field trip.”

  At this point George was already on his feet, reaching for his coat as he listened intently then said,

  “We have to get her away from Mary. We have no idea what she’s capable of, Marion could be in danger.”

  Everyone quickly filed out of the boat only to be met on the towpath by Professor Appleyard; who had come to talk to Henry.

  “George my boy your back, glad to see you, what happened?”

  “No time to talk now professor, come with us and I’ll explain everything en route.”

  Replied George breathlessly as he ran past. The professor did not need to be told twice as he turned and followed them back to Tyler’s car.

  Once more George explained all, this time with the professor as Tyler drove at breakneck speed through the narrow streets of the historic town. Carl sat in the front holding on to his seat belt, wishing it was him at the wheel.

  “The main priority now is to ensure the safety of Miss Masterson.”

  The professor announced, as he was now completely up to speed with George’s information.

  “What are we going to do when we get there?”

  Henry said, voicing openly what everyone was thinking. George shrugged his shoulders and stared through the window, his eyes not really focusing on anything, barely aware of the constant blur of colours flashing by.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

>   For the rest of the morning Marion had to endure Mary pacing up and down her flat like a caged animal while talking incessantly about any subject that entered her mind. Mary also told Marion of a previous engagement that she had to attend tonight and she was welcome to stay and help herself to whatever was in the fridge. The manic behaviour continued and it was approaching lunchtime when Mary happened to mention George, letting it slip accidently on purpose about her attraction for him and his feelings for her. This only confirmed Marion’s growing suspicions so she stood up furious and embarrassed at the whole situation.

  “Thank you so much for your hospitality Mary, but I think it is best if I leave now.”

  She said through gritted teeth and pursed lips as she put on her coat, picked up her suitcase and headed for the door.

  “Sit down slut you’re not going anywhere.”

  Mary screamed in a voice that sounded nothing like her own. Scared greatly, Marion reached out anxiously for the door. To her horror, the brass door knob was searing hot to the touch and she snatched her burning hand away, staring in disbelief at the red weal’s forming on her fingertips. Blowing hard trying to cool her pained fingers, Marion turned back in fear from the sound of Mary standing with her hands on her hips, throwing her head back and laughing like a pantomime villain.

  Her voice had deepened greatly, sounding more like a man than a woman and her breath rasped like a heavy smoker as she breathed. Undeterred, Marion pulled her coat sleeve down over her fingers to try again, only finding to her horror the knob had now turned into the head of a cobra that hissed and struck out for her hand forcing her to back away. She spun around angrily to confront Mary only to find that she was now standing directly behind her and they stared at each other face to face.

  “What the hell is going on here, have you drugged me or something?”

  Marion yelled, showing more belligerence than she actually felt. Mary ignored the question and stared curiously, cocking her head to one side like a bird eying up its prey as she growled;

  “You don’t deserve George; I’m the only woman for him. He won’t want to look at you when I’ve finished with you.”

  Mary stepped away then pointed with an outstretched arm to the kitchenette. She whispered a few words that Marion did not understand and then to her amazement the cupboard doors swung wide open, smashing back on their hinges as plates and dishes flew out in her direction. Marion dodged instinctively as a saucer whizzed towards her, catching the skin of her left temple as it hurtled past, and with a bang and a puff of smoke embedded its self into the cassette deck of Mary’s music system. The tidy room rapidly changed into complete shambles as crockery flew in all directions, smashing ornaments and tearing holes in her posters as they bounced off the wall. Marion stumbled backwards around the room, cowering in terror from Mary’s onslaught and using a sofa cushion as a shield from the barrage. When the fusillade ran out of ammunition, Marion tried again for the door as she noticed the serpent had disappeared, leaving behind a plain door knob. To her relief it was cold but as she snatched open the door, unbelievably there was a solid brick wall blocking her exit. Marion slammed the door closed in disgust and turned back into the room. Mary seemed to have lost interest and was staring out of the window and down to the car park. She was watching Tyler’s car pull up with Carl and Henry getting out.

  “We have company, time to go.”

  She announced as she watched the two men run into the building. She opened the window and stepped out to check the fire escape. Satisfied it was clear she climbed back into the room, grabbed Marion by the hair and dragged her to the exit.

  To the relief of everyone in the car, all seemed quiet and normal as Tyler for the second time today stopped sharply outside Mary’s block of flats. The professor thought it wise for George to remain behind as Mary and Marion did not know he had returned and it could complicate matters so Henry and Carl volunteered to go inside and check things out. This left Tyler behind the wheel with the professor and George for backup. The two men tried to keep a calm demeanour while they entered the building as they were watched keenly by the policeman guarding the crime scene. When they were out of sight they ran up the three flights of stairs two at a time until they arrived outside Mary’s flat. Carl knocked loudly on the door then listened intently for any sound coming from within.

  Outside in the car the professor was trying to occupy his mind methodically cleaning his spectacles by breathing heavily on each lens and wiping away the moisture with the familiar little yellow cloth provided, that was imprinted with the name of his optician. As he held the lenses up to the light to check for signs of dirt, movement caught his eye and he quickly replaced the glasses back onto his nose to observe Mary and Marion climbing through a window onto the fire escape.

  “Look up there, it’s them!”

  He cried pointing through the car window, jolting Tyler and George from their daydreams. They got out and watched as Mary held on tightly to Marion’s blonde hair and led the way up the fire escape steps to the roof. Marion tried to prise away Mary’s fingers, only to be rewarded with a sharp twist of her hand, making Marion scream in pain. Luckily the young policeman had moved around the corner out of the wind and was using his radio receiver to talk to the station so he did not hear Marion’s cry. Without delay George and Tyler jumped from the car and headed straight into the building looking for the stairs, leaving the professor watching proceedings as he stood by the car.

  Back outside the flat Carl and Henry waited for someone to answer and wondered what to do next.

  “Why don’t we just kick the door in?”

  Suggested Henry, anxious to get it over with.

  “This isn’t a cop show and we don’t want to bring attention to ourselves do we?”

  Carl whispered as he fished in his pocket for a credit card then attempted to slip the lock like he had seen in hundreds of detective shows. Henry rolled his eyes as he waited, wondering how long Carl was going to take when he heard a woman scream from inside the flat. This was all Henry needed, he turned around and mule kicked the door wide open leaving Carl still kneeling down with his credit card in his hand. The doorframe splintered where the lock was previously attached and the catch housing flew across the room still screwed to a chunk of wood torn away on impact. Carl jumped up and both men entered the flat. They paused to look around, amazed at the carnage and before they could search the rest of the flat Marion screamed again, this time from the fire escape. Spotting the curtains billowing in the breeze from the open window, Carl dashed across the floor and cautiously pulled the curtain aside, half expecting something to make a lunge at him through the gap. All he found was an empty metal landing so he climbed out and looked down over the rail for the two women only to see Professor Appleyard pointing to the roof. Carl turned, looking up to see Marion being dragged by the hair from the top of the ladder and out onto the roof. By this time Henry had also climbed out and he quickly followed Carl up the metal ladders while George and Tyler walked as fast as they could into the building whilst trying not to raise attention from the police presence. The professor not wanting to draw any more attention to his self followed, walking casually into the building. Fearing for his health he decided to wait in the lobby, leaving George and Tyler to take the stairs as fast as possible until they reached the roof.

  “Where are they?”

  George panted as both he and Tyler reached the top of the stairs and crashed through the exit door out into the stark sunlight. Carl and Henry were standing looking at something out of sight around the corner of the brick housing covering the top of the stairwell. George circled around and stopped dead in his tracks, blocking Tyler who almost tripped over his extended trailing foot. What everyone now stared at was the sight of Mary still holding tightly to Marion’s hair as they both stood on the edge of a waist high, slab topped brick wall that encompassed the perimeter of the rooftop to stop anyone from falling over the side.

  “Marion!”

  George cri
ed as he started to walk towards them.

  “Take another step and your little bitch goes off the roof.”

  Mary growled, her voice completely taken over by Toomak. George stood still, holding out his open palms in an attempt to show calm. Mary twisted the hand holding on to Marion’s hair; jolting her head sideways making her cry out in pain and then fear as she momentarily lost her balance. George gasped out loud and made a half step in Mary’s direction, stopping again when Mary raised her free hand and pointed at his feet as she spoke.

  “One more step and she’s dead George, I won’t tell you again.”

  George dragged his leg back to its original position as he tried to plead for his fiancée’s life.

  “You have the amulet, you don’t need Marion. If you let her go we will all back off and allow you to go back down the stairs and escape.”