The Thirteenth

by G. L. Twynham

  Val held the parchment in amazement. When had she written it? “Where did this thing come from?” Val handed it back to Shane.

  “You don’t know? You wrote it,” Shane said with a puzzled expression. He had expected Val to know exactly where it had come from and give him clarity.

  “No, I’ve never seen it before and I’m sure I haven’t written it, although it is my handwriting. Where did you get it from?”

  Shane pulled another envelope out of his jacket pocket and placed it on the counter.

  “This came this morning by courier from a solicitor’s office. I signed for it and the rest is history.” Val glanced at the other envelope, on which was written ‘for Val’s eyes only’. Val carefully opened the envelope. Inside were several folded pieces of paper. As she peeled them open, it became apparent that they were the deeds of a property. Shane, who was looking over Val’s shoulder, read out the address for all to hear.

  “It says that Val is the owner of the bookshop,” he announced.

  Val looked at it in silence for several moments. How could this be happening? She didn’t remember writing to Shane and she definitely didn’t remember purchasing the shop. Val had to admit that the writing on Shane’s letter was irrefutably hers.

  Suddenly Val realised that not everyone was there. “Where’s Sam?” Val looked around.

  “He took that woman who got knocked out by Excariot to the hospital. She was in a really bad way.” Shane told her.

  “Now, back to you, Val. We knew you would be OK, but you need to tell us what you have been doing and where you’ve been.”

  “Can I get a drink first, and a chair?” Val smiled at them all.

  Wendy rushed over with a cup of water and Fran supplied a stool. As Val sat and slowly sipped her drink, she felt herself slowly relaxing.

  “I have so much to tell you, but the first thing you need to know is that Delta won’t be coming back.” Val’s voice stayed steady. She hadn’t had time to truly feel the pain that Delta had inflicted.

  “Who?” Wendy asked looking puzzled.

  “Delta.”

  Her friends were looking at her as if she was talking in a foreign language. Did they really not remember her? Her mother had warned her about this so Val would need to tread carefully, she really didn’t have a clue what changes had been created by the spell in her absence.

  “Not to worry.” Val shook her head. “I went back to sixteen forty-five where I met my real mother and found out about my father.” Val smiled fondly taking a sip of her water.

  “Oh, that’s so lovely. I suppose that makes being an orphan a little less harsh,” Fran said enthusiastically.

  “Orphan?” Val nearly choked on her water. And then it really hit her: she had given up her parents. The pain was overwhelming, but she couldn’t give anything away, couldn’t do anything that might lead the others to question her. Her parents’ role in this must never be revealed; to expose them would put them in terrible danger. She couldn’t risk it. At that point she was just grateful to have friends that remembered her.

  “Excariot was there.” Val looked at their expressions and realised they definitely still remembered him. “We had a massive battle and I defeated him, but not before he managed to release a large number of criminals from a prison on a planet called Alchany.”

  The others were looking on in awe, yet not disbelief.

  “So where are they now, on a death star?” Jason asked in a Darth Vader voice.

  Val poked Jason’s arm. “No, they are here somewhere. They can take over anyone’s body, and I imagine they won’t be choosing anyone good.” Val stood up and went for another cup of water. “We have to prepare, and now I have a business to run as well so if you are on board it will mean giving me all you have. Excariot tricked us once and I’m not going to let that happen again.” Val filled her glass, her back to the others, waiting in silence.

  When no one spoke, Val turned and asked quietly, “So who is with me?” As she spoke the bookshop door opened.

  “I am.” A dark figure responded, coming into the shop. Val’s heart skipped a beat when she realised it was Sam. The memory of his kiss brought red heat to her face, and yet here he was only just getting to know her.

  “Thank you, Sam,” she said.

  Then the others gathered around her chorusing their support.

  “If Excariot wants a war he is going to get one,” Wendy declared, waving her arms in the air. Val laughed as Sam made his way over to her.

  “Did you have fun wherever you went?” Sam grabbed Val’s hand.

  “Well, I have had better times.” Val looked up into Sam’s eyes.

  “I’m just pleased you are back. It was a very good idea to leave the letter so at least we could all relax a little.” Sam took Val’s other hand. “Are you OK? I found it hard very watching you dying, especially at the end of my sword.”

  “Oh, what has happened to my sword?” Val looked around.

  “It’s here.” Jason handed it to her.

  “Thanks. I’m very pleased to get it back.” Val squeezed Sam’s hand.

  “So what do you want us to do now?” Sam stood back allowing the others to join them.

  “You all need to go home and I need to sleep,” Val laughed, opening the bookshop door.

  “But you don’t want to be on your own, not with that madman on the loose,” Wendy said.

  “He won’t come here. This shop is a doorway to the prison and I’m hoping it can also be my home, so I need to get used to the idea of being here alone.” Val started to pull Jason who was closest to her towards the door. “Out, before I use my statutory right to evict you from my premises,” she joked.

  “Can we come back tomorrow?” Wendy asked.

  “Are you kidding? You’re going to run the shop.” Val smiled at Wendy who was almost swooning. “On the condition that you go home. Now.” Wendy was already out of the door. The others followed suit until Shane was the only one left.

  “Val, you don’t have to cope with all of this on your own. You can come to our house for tonight,” Shane said.

  “Shane, you are one of the most amazing people I have ever met. I can only pray that you stay with me forever, but tonight I need to be alone.” Val placed a kiss on Shane’s cheek the same way she would on her dad’s, then pushed him gently towards the door.

  “Goodnight.” Shane joined the others and walked away, waving.

  “What time do I start tomorrow?” Wendy shouted.

  “Late, I need to sleep,” Val called back as she closed the door behind her.

  Val walked back into the shop. A place she had spent so little time in had now become not only her business, but her home as well. She crossed over to the counter and found her handbag in its usual place on the shelf. Inside was her large bunch of keys. She flicked through them, removing the ones that she knew belonged to the shop. When she had finished she tried the ones that were left, one by one, in the door marked ‘private’. “It’s time you let up your secrets,” said Val to the door.

  She quickly found the key and the door opened with ease. To Val’s amazement, it revealed a staircase. Hanging on the wall at the bottom of the staircase were several of Wallace’s tweed jackets. There was also a telephone on a stand. “Now I know where you are.” Val patted the phone and, touching one of the jackets, decided she would send all his stuff to the local charity shop.

  Not surprisingly, the stairs were made of the same wood that seemed to consume the shop and the area was very dark, and slightly threatening. She found the light switch and, with a tentative hand, quickly flicked it. A light came on and Val began breathing again.

  She cautiously made her way up the stairs. Pulling the sword out of her pocket, she extended it. This place was a portal to another dimension and she wasn’t going to get caught out. At the top of the stairs, she emerged into a very musty, open plan flat. She could see the kitchen over to the right and on the far left a large double bed. Val was surprised to realise that it w
as a very nice (although dated) apartment. She switched on another light switch and the whole place lit up. There were many signs of Wallace, but nothing of Excariot.

  Val was most shocked when she looked in the fridge. She had expected a sacrificial lamb’s freshly beating heart. Instead, she found sliced ham, cheese, a few eggs and a bottle of milk.

  This was stuff she would also dispose of; he could have left it on the chance that he might be able to poison her. Near the kitchen she found another door. Val pushed it open with her sword and entered a small bathroom. “All the usual,” Val giggled. It didn’t matter what side of the galaxy you were on, you still needed a toilet.

  Val left the bathroom and went for the last door. She had seen everything else so maybe this was a guest bedroom or a closet for his very fashionable tweed attire. It opened easily and Val felt her breath catch in her throat as she stood gazing into what looked like a huge mirror. But she wasn’t looking at herself, she was looking at Alchany. She took a step back, worried that she might be drawn through the portal. Her wrist was hurting. When she pulled her sweater sleeve up she saw that her bracelet was glowing almost lava red. What now, she wondered.

  This was clearly the way back to Alchany, but how did it work? She stepped forward again, and placed her hand on the image. Immediately a warning sound resounded through the flat.

  “Warning! Warning! Prisoner in transit.” Val jumped back and slammed the door shut. As soon as the door closed, her bracelet stopped glowing. “Ah, so that’s how I send the prisoners back then,” Val said to herself.

  She moved to the bed area and, sitting down for a moment, took in her new surroundings, trying to comprehend what was happening. She felt it would be better to simply accept what was going on without question. To think too much about any of it would surely drive her insane. She was going to need a very long time to come to terms with everything that had happened to her.

  The silence was broken by insistent knocking. Val froze, realising instantly that it was coming from the door to Alchany. When it didn’t stop, she stood up and walked cautiously to the door. What if this was one of Excariot’s friends popping in for a visit? She pulled out her sword, then slowly opened the door.

  “Don’t point that thing at me, girl!” A very small woman pushed Val’s sword to one side, completely unaffected by the sparks flashing from it.

  “Sorry,” Val said as she walked backwards into the room.

  “Twenty-three Thirteen you made a pick-up call. I’m the collector.” The woman pulled out a sheet of paper.

  “Well, I did it by mistake. I’m sorry.” Val sat back down on the bed.

  The woman became very agitated.

  “Let’s get something straight, Twenty-three Thirteen, crossing dimensions is easy, filling in the paperwork takes all my life force. I will have to tell them why you called me out under false pretences and then fill in a fifty-seven thirty. Do you have any idea how long that takes?” She poked Val in the chest.

  “I’m sorry,” Val shrugged and thought how much the woman’s little finger had hurt her.

  “You guards are always sorry. So much for perfect DNA.”

  “You can call me Val if you like. That’s my name.” Val smiled trying to help the woman warm to her.

  “So Val, are you ever going to make a call again when you don’t have a prisoner for me?” the woman said in a highly patronising voice.

  “No.” Val put her head down.

  “Listen, I know you are new to this and the only female guard that has ever existed, so you are going to get it hard. I know your story and I do feel for you, but you have to start getting things right. The warden will be on your back if you don’t.” The little woman’s face had softened and Val appreciated her words.

  “If it helps, I really am sorry,” Val said.

  “Not unless sorry fills in the forms for an unauthorised call out, no,” the woman responded, “it doesn’t help.”

  “Why didn’t anyone come through the door before now and catch Excariot?” Val asked.

  “Excariot had the door shut. We can only cross through dimensions when doors are open. We can knock, but if no one answers then we can’t help you.” The woman turned and started to walk towards the door.

  “Will I see you again?” Val needed as many familiar faces as possible right now.

  “Yes, I’m your designated collector. If anyone else comes though without prior warning from the warden, then you need to exterminate them on sight.” The woman walked through the door and closed it behind her.

  Val was tempted to open the door so she could see the woman again, but she thought she’d better not get into any more trouble that day.

  After a few minutes alone, Val realised that she had one more thing she needed to do. She stood up, making her way to the apartment stairs and switched off the light. She made her way out locking the door behind her and left the bookshop.

  The sun was rising and the air felt cold and fresh. She made her way past Shane’s shop and crossed the road to the bus stop. As she sat at the stop, the familiarity felt good. The bus arrived in good time, there was hardly any traffic, just the commuters who had to be somewhere at crazy o’clock to please a boss who probably didn’t appreciate them. At least their boss couldn’t remove their souls from their bodies Val thought.

  She walked briskly and in a few minutes she was standing outside her house. The lights were on downstairs. Val knew her dad would be getting ready for work and her mum would be cooking him some huge breakfast. She ran across the road to get a better look. Crouching down under the lounge window, she peeked in. Her dad was sitting at the table with a book in his hand. Then her mum appeared and Val felt a stinging behind her eyes that was almost too painful to bear.

  “Hello,” a voice came from behind her. Val’s heart nearly stopped beating. She slowly turned, expecting to see a police officer or something similar, but it was just the lad who dropped off the newspaper.

  “Hi,” Val responded, trying not to look too much like a stalker.

  “You know the Saunders?” he asked.

  “Why?” Val was cautious; this boy could be an alien for all she knew.

  “Because you are looking in their window at six in the morning,” the lad responded, throwing the paper onto the front step. He turned and rode away. Val slipped to the door and picked up the paper. The Independent. It was her dad’s favourite and her mum said that at least it burned well. Val was holding it as the front door opened and there stood Susan.

  “Hello there, do we have a new newspaper girl?” Susan smiled at Val.

  “Yes, here you go.” Val handed her mother the paper.

  “Thank you, you know The Independent is the best one to burn.” Susan smiled tapping the paper on her hand, then turned away and shut the door. Val stood breathing in her mother’s scent for as long as it lasted. Her mum hadn’t even recognised her. Val felt sure that they were safe, but was heartbroken that she would never see them again. She couldn’t take any risks because she didn’t know who was going to be watching her and when. She didn’t know how long it would take for her to find the criminals, or if she would survive in one piece, but at least she could be sure that her parents were not going to be Excariot’s bargaining chips.

  Val made her way solemnly back to the shop. As she arrived she noticed something different about the place. Above the door the plaque no longer had Wallace’s name on it. It now said ‘Established by Valerie Saunders’. She placed her finger on the surname and stroked it.

  This was it; it was time to grow up. Val knew that Excariot was coming. He was going to do anything in his power to finish her and get Lailah back. Val was going to fight him every step of the way, but now she needed to sleep.

  She opened the door to the shop and noticed that the alarm wasn’t counting down. Val made her way over to the box on the wall where the words “New Code” were flashing at her.

  Val knew exactly what she was going to put in and she spoke the numbers as she pressed
. “Twenty-three, Thirteen, enter.”

  The End

  Acknowledgment

  Special acknowledgment goes to: Michelle & Katie Potter for all their help and support. The Albion Tea Room in Market Rasen for endless hot chocolates to keep me going. Rand Farm Park, near Wragby for free hands to work while children play. North Kesteven Fencing Club, for all their help and advice. And finally to all my family and friends past and present, who have made me who I am today, Thanks.