Breakthrough

by Lynne Roberts

  Chapter 10. The Seventh Gate

  ‘It’s all right,’ said Ben in relief. ‘It’s only a statue.’

  He and Tessa stood up shakily. There was the sound of water dripping musically into a still pool nearby and a string of small brass bells tinkled from the gnarled branch of a small twisted tree. A high stone wall surrounded a garden planted in clumps of brown tussocky plants and spreading patches of green moss. Scattered in the garden were statues of strangely dressed people and animals, their faces twisted in grimaces of pain and rage. Some were combinations of different animals. The puppy ran hopefully over to a stone dog with a dragon’s tail and wings, and beside the pool a cat with a frog’s eyes leaned over the dark water. A series of carved circular doorways opened out from the wall at regular intervals.

  ‘I can’t see any balls here,’ said Ben looking around.

  ‘We’d better try one of those doorways then,’ shivered Tessa. ‘This place is giving me the creeps.’

  ‘Come on,’ said Ben and led the way to the nearest door. A large moon was carved above the top and the doorway appeared to open onto darkness.

  ‘Let’s try the next one’, he said hurriedly and they looked hopefully through each gate in turn.

  The seventh gate was thankfully full of sunlight and showed a white stone path winding up a small hill where a clump of trees stood.

  Tessa went pale.

  ‘I’m never going to feel the same way about trees ever again,’ she whispered as with a deep breath she followed Ben up the hill. The hill was smaller than it had appeared. The trees turned out to be small bushes covered in a variety of different fruit.

  ‘Now what?’ asked Tessa. ‘I don’t see any balls here.’

  ‘Wait a minute,’ replied Ben. ‘Take a look up there. That’s a ball hanging next to those apple things.’

  ‘Those aren’t apples,’ said Tessa scornfully, ‘those are persimmons. Oh I see what you mean,’ she added excitedly, ‘that one is a ball. Do you think you can reach it?’

  Ben looked at the tree and spat on his hands.

  ‘Just watch me,’ he said. ‘Here, you’d better hold my schoolbag, and Jamie.’ He handed over the pencil case as he spoke and began to climb the tree. He carefully stretched up and plucked the golden ball from its branch, passing it down to Tessa who put it safely in the schoolbag.

  ‘Are there any others?’ asked Tessa.

  ‘Don’t think so,’ said Ben, ‘these are all definitely fruit.’ He picked one and took a bite, spitting it out as his face crumpled. ‘Ugh, yuck. These are horrible,’ he continued. ‘They’re not ripe yet. They taste like wet pyjamas.’ Tessa giggled as Ben jumped down.

  ‘Right,’ he said. ‘Now we need to go back to the shop and put everything back to how it was before.’ Retracing their footsteps they found that the stone doorway had disappeared. A wooden door in a painted frame stood in their path. Ben opened the door and together they crept through as a loud tinkle sounded above them.

  A drumbeat boomed out with a steady thump, a triangle tinged and a cymbal crashed beside their ears. Ben and Tessa discovered that they were standing on the stage of the local town hall while in front of them the town band played. The conductor looked across and glared at them as the euphonium player hit a wrong note in surprise.

  ‘Get off,’ he hissed and motioned to the trombones to increase their volume. The drummer gave them a grin and a wink. One of the younger trumpet players, who had lost his place and consequently any interest in the rest of the piece, gave them a thumbs up signal and was scowled at by the elderly man playing beside him. Ben and Tessa crept to the side of the stage in embarrassment. There they found a door that led down a small flight of steps to the carpark behind the hall.

  ‘Let’s go straight to the shop and change Molly and Jamie back,’ said Tessa.

  ‘Don’t forget the puppy,’ added Ben. The puppy by this time was so tired it consented to curl up in Ben’s arms. Tessa carried the pencil case in her hands for safety.

  ‘I also want some food,’ he added. ‘Your parents won’t be too pleased. We were supposed to have been back for lunch hours ago.’

  He was right. On arrival at the Antique shop they heard Molly’s wails reaching a crescendo as Tessa’s mother vainly tried to comfort her.

  ‘Thank goodness you are back at last,’ she said to Ben crossly. ‘This child has been crying for ages and we had to have lunch without you. What on earth have you been doing?’ she asked Tessa. ‘You are completely filthy. And there is another one of your friends waiting for you out the back of the shop,’ she added. ‘This place seems to be a railway station at the moment,’

  ‘Sorry,’ mumbled Ben, tucking the puppy under one arm as Tessa’s mother handed Molly over in relief. Molly smiled at Ben and laid her head on his shoulder.

  ‘Have you ever thought of adopting a baby?’ Ben asked Tessa’s mother hopefully.

  Tessa looked daggers at him.

  ‘Oh no,’ said her mother, ‘One is quite enough for me thank you. Now Tessa, do get rid of your friend in the yard and come in and wash. Those clothes are a disgrace’

  ‘Who is out the back?’ asked Tessa opening the door and recoiling at the sight of Sam leaning against the doorframe. His large hands hung at his sides, reminding Tessa rather unpleasantly of an ape she had seen at the circus.

  ‘What have you done with Jamie?’ rumbled Sam.

  ‘Nothing,’ cried Tessa in terror, guiltily holding the pencil case behind her back.

  Sam growled softly.

  ‘Go away,’ hissed Tessa. ‘I won’t be long, Mum, I just need to talk to Sam.’ Grabbing Ben’s arm she pulled him into the yard and shut the door.

  ‘Where’s Jamie?’ went on Sam doggedly, ‘I know he came here and he hasn’t been home for hours. Have you shut him up somewhere?’

  ‘No,’ lied Ben, trying not to look at the pencil case. The puppy started scrabbling in his arms, trying to get to Molly to lick her face.

  ‘What’s in that bag?’ asked Sam suspiciously, looking at the large bulge on Ben’s back. ‘Nothing,’ said Ben, backing away from Sam.

  ‘Give it here,’ growled Sam and wrenching the top of the bag open he pulled out the golden ball.

  ‘Be careful,’ shrieked Tessa as Sam tossed the ball from hand to hand.

  ‘This an antique then is it?’ he asked. ‘Worth a lot of money is it?’

  ‘No’, replied Tessa.

  ‘Yes,’ said Ben at the same time. Sam looked even more suspicious.

  ‘Wonder if it opens?’ he said thoughtfully and tapped the ball gently on the side of the doorway. There was a soft ‘poof’ and a strong sulfur smell had Tessa and Ben coughing, while Molly hid her face in Ben’s shoulder again. A cloud of mustard coloured gas spiraled around Sam and dissipated into the air. Tessa and Ben gazed at Sam.

  ‘Nothing’s happened,’ breathed Tessa. ‘Thank goodness. But why haven’t things changed back?’

  Sam seemed rooted to the spot. He stood staring vacantly ahead of him.

  Ben walked around Sam and started to snigger. He sat on the ground and shook with laughter as Tessa looked bewildered.

  ‘There, behind him,’ he gasped. Tessa looked behind Sam and there, growing out of his back, was a large tail. It was a beautiful tail. Glowing richly in the dusty yard, it shimmered as a myriad of overlapping scales in purple and emerald green narrowed to a sharp spiky point.

  ‘Here, what are you laughing about?’ growled Sam, coming out of his daze. He spun around and the tail whipped around too. Sam turned on the spot, trying to catch the tail dangling behind him. The puppy ran over barking hysterically and tried to bite the tail. Tessa collapsed beside Ben and mopped at her streaming eyes.

  ‘What’s going on out here?’ came a cross voice as Tessa’s father opened the door. ‘Come on, you lot, off you go. Tessa, your mother wants you,’ he added sternly.

  ‘Just a few minutes more?’ begged Tessa.

  ‘As long as it is only a
few minutes,’ came the reply as the door shut.

  ‘We have to get back to the elevator,’ said Tessa, and Sam will have to come too.’

  ‘He can’t come like that,’ said Ben in horror. ‘There’s no way we can explain a tail.’

  ‘I’ll grab a sack from that pile of rubbish over there by the bin. He can wear it round his waist,’ said Tessa bossily. ‘Come on,’ she ordered Sam, who was cringing against the wall looking desperately miserable. ‘Put this on.’

  Sam stood shamefaced while Tessa draped an old potato sack around his hips and tied two of the corners together with her remaining shoelace.

  ‘Bring Molly and the puppy and let’s go,’ she instructed Ben, and picking up the pencil case in one hand she walked off, with Sam slinking pitifully along behind her.