by A. L. Tyler
*****
CHAPTER 6
Ben Collins’ possessions had taken quite a liking to Lena; she had never met her grandfather on the Collins side, but after a few days of carrying around his watch and wearing his socks, she was sure she was starting to remember him. Since she had found the note addressed to her in his pocket, she had developed a sort of special friendship with him, and she had started dreaming more vividly than she had ever imagined possible. The night before her big proposal, she dreamed something that was so realistic she was certain it must have actually happened at some point.
On an overcast day in mid-April, Waldgrave was as still as it had ever been. It was not the mysterious place that time would make it over the next few decades, but there was still an air of concealment about it. They were in the den today; a fire was burning in a fireplace as sprinkles of rain started to fall on the sprouting grass outside.
“I’ve found a new one since our last meeting, Pyrallis, and I think you’ll like it. I haven’t been able to read it, of course, but I was hoping—“
“Maybe later. I’m in no mood today, and even as such I’ll need to look it over first. My family’s relics are not public record.” He was staring blankly out the window of the library on the fourth floor. Outside, the children were playing. A shrill, high-pitched laugh cut through the air and a much younger Master Daray closed his eyes in disappointment. He called to the door.
“Janet!”
A timid woman, perhaps only in her teens, opened the door. “Yes, Master Daray?”
“Bring my daughter in. She’s not supposed to be outside.”
The woman nodded and left. The two men in the library were silent for some time; a roll of distant thunder made the house shiver ever so slightly. Ben, a beanpole of a man with scraggly hair and kind, gray eyes, walked over to a bookshelf and started looking over the volumes that were displayed.
“That’s all you have this time? That one new acquisition?” Daray asked, frowning.
“Well,” Ben raised his eyebrows as he turned around. He sat down in the chair opposite Daray and drummed the armrests with his fingers. “No, I suppose not. I’ve been doing some historical research. I believe I may have found a lead on something that could be the buried remains of an old Silenti settlement from way back when. Of course, I don’t need to tell you what it means…they never settled, so this is a once in eternity chance to look at how the Silenti lived back when we were nomads.”
“Where?”
“Syria.”
Daray nodded slightly, still looking out the window. “I won’t be going with you this time. Send me your bills, and bring back whatever you can.”
“Dad?”
Daray’s eyes glanced over at the door, where the younger boy, Howard, was looking out from behind the mostly-closed door. His hair and clothes were wet; it was absolutely animal, the way these boys behaved. Avalon wasn’t allowed to play outside unsupervised; he would be having a talk with her later about her defiance. Ben looked over at his son.
“Yes?”
It wasn’t much, but it was something. She asked Howard, right before she went up to speak her final proposal, if he remembered what he had asked his father on that day. He didn’t remember, but his eyes glazed over when she started relating the dream to him. As Lena got up to the podium, with Ben’s watch in her pocket for luck, she was very optimistic that with enough time, he would lead her to the answers and the portal.
By a vote of seventy percent, Lena’s proposal was passed. The Council meetings were extended an extra week to hammer out the details of who was fit to go on the excursion, and every political party was vying to get Representatives onto the team. Immediately after the proposal had passed, Master Daray was angrier than Lena had ever thought possible. He was shouting curses and death threats at her, and had to be removed from the Council chamber, along with a few of his stauncher supporters, until they calmed down. The death threats had caused Master Astley to launch into the mystery surrounding Thomas’s death, and how he believed Daray had killed him and his threats proved he was capable, and the whole hall descended into chaos.
Council was dismissed for the day to allow tempers to cool, and Lena wasted no time in moving into Howard’s room for safety. Master Daray had proved himself capable of murder, and she wasn’t going to give him the chance to catch her alone. She followed Howard around obsessively until the next morning, and he didn’t doubt her judgment on the subject once. The next day, when Council started again, there was still a lot of tension in the room; however, everyone managed to control themselves to the extent that a productive discussion took place. Everything was going passably until Master Daray stood up to speak for the Old Faith Representatives.
“I’ll say this in the unconventional way, as I want you to hear every word, Eden. This whole situation is a monstrosity.” he looked right at her. “I have never been so betrayed. And yet I forgive. I forgive, and I worry. It is not safe for you to leave here, because I know how the New Faith traitors think, and they will be taking the first opportunity to kill you.”
Master Astley shot up out of his chair, rage in his eyes, but didn’t say anything. Daray glared at him before continuing.
“I realize that though it is my birthright to do so, I no longer have the ability to prohibit a proposal passed by this Council. Nor can I prevent you from going, as you are no longer my legal responsibility. However, I do not support this Council’s decision, and I will not honor it. I will do anything within my power to stop this from going forward unless I am satisfied that my granddaughter, the last hope of our dying religion, is safe outside of this house. I ask that my heir go on this mission so that I have a means of keeping in direct observation and contact with the party. He will monitor the situation and assure that both my granddaughter, and the portal, if it is recovered, return unharmed. As long as he is allowed, I concede all of my other rights to who will go, and the project will move forward with my tolerance.”
The hall went silent. Lena wanted to smack her head on the desk in front of her. Of course Daray wanted Griffin to go; he could vicariously keep making her life a living hell that way. It was likely he was even sending Griffin with plans to sabotage the mission. But she wasn’t going to let it happen.
Getting out of her seat, she started in loudly. Griffin isn’t an official—
But Howard pulled her firmly back into her seat. If you’re going, he’s going.
Lena shot a surprised look at her uncle.
If I have to stay here watching him, he nodded towards Daray, Then Griffin is going to watch you. I might not trust him as a person, but I trust him to put your life above his. Your grandfather saw to that much.
Lena rolled her eyes. Howard’s dramatic streak was really starting to annoy her. From somewhere near the back of the room, someone called a hesitant question. Howard translated.
Master Abbott is asking precisely what he’s offering in exchange.
Daray did not smile, but Lena easily identified the sparkle that crept into his eye.
Master Daray has clarified that he will offer his compliance, but not his support. He’s being very clear about how much he dislikes the whole idea, but he’s trying to salvage the situation by assuring your safety. Now he’s launching into a speech about how pointless this excursion is. He’s sure you won’t be able to find it because you’re not as able a Silenti…
The rant went on from there, but none of the Council members seemed convinced enough to give up the mission—even after he told them that she was still having trouble on occasion seeing parts of the Silenti world. But, to Lena’s disappointment, the negotiation went on a long time after Daray’s rant was over; many jumped on the offer as an opportunity to open negotiations on other topics.
Soon, Daray was offering Council access to his extensive library and personal collection of artifacts in exchange for his personal pick of half the team; Lena glared at him, but kept quiet. She wasn’t sure what she could do; she was a key member of t
he team, but a mere token vote given the magnitude that the mission had taken on. She couldn’t threaten to back out now without looking childish and losing a great deal of respect. So she watched her fate slowly condense in front of her.
There were a few squabbles, but the terms were finally set. It was a difficult situation—the Council stood to gain by his offer if they took as big a deal as they could get, but if the portal was actually located, there was a good chance it would wind up in Daray’s hands and not the Council’s. Master Astley had managed to convince enough of the Council that it was a hazard to give Daray so many on the mission, and they settled for Griffin alone. Lena wasn’t looking at him, but she could tell he was smirking from his seat across the room.
Council let out, and Lena saw Griffin trying to reach her through the crowd. She took a shortcut she had found the weekend before that went from the fifth floor down into Daray’s office and then ran for the library stairs hoping to lose him. He caught up with her just as she hit the second floor landing and was headed for the hall.
Lena!
Seeing that she wasn’t going to outrun him, she turned to face him, arms crossed. It was the first time they had spoken since Lena had proposed finding the portal. “What!”
He was still smirking, but there was a cold look in his eyes. “Don’t ever abuse my trust again. You should be thankful he got me on that team, because you’re acting so stupid lately that it’s hard to believe you’re going to survive much longer without me.”
Lena snorted. “Whatever.”
She turned to go, but Griffin was behind her much faster than she would have thought possible. He grabbed both her arms and held her in place.
“I’m getting very tired of chasing you around. After everything I’ve done for you, you should be showing more respect.”
“Let. Go.” Lena tried to keep her voice steady; she was ready to whip around and punch him in the face.
“No. I want to discuss this.”
Very slowly, Lena turned around to face him again. He let his grip go when he saw she wasn’t going to run. His eyes were still angry, but Lena wasn’t afraid. She hadn’t been afraid of Griffin in quite some time. “I’m not a servant, Griffin, and you will not be ordering me around. I’m Lena Collins. To you, that means you’ll face more trouble than you could imagine if you ever lay a hand on me again. To me, it means that after I bring the portal back, we’ll never have to see each other again.”
She turned slowly back to the door and walked back to Ava’s room. He let her go.
“I can’t believe you’re going to do this…”
“It’s what’s best.” Lena said, wondering if she was speaking more to herself or Hesper. “Besides, you want me to come and visit all the time, don’t you?”
Hesper gave her a pleading look. “I want you alive. Phone calls are good enough as long as you’re okay.”
“Well,” Lena sighed, “Not for me. I can find it, and I’ll bring it back. And right after I get back, I’m coming to visit you.”
Hesper closed her suitcase. Maren was lying on her stomach in the middle of the bed, watching them with her wide blue eyes. Eric had finished packing his suitcase only moments earlier, and was helping Greg take luggage down to the car.
“Well, you be careful then. I think it’s great, but you watch your back. And Greg’s back. And Greg will watch your back. She’ll be fine, anyway.” Serena smiled from the other side of the bed, where she was packing up a spare diaper bag. “You’ve grown up so much since the last time we talked…”
Lena was sad that they were going, but more than happy that she was going to get her room back. She was also happy that people were leaving in general; everyone kept telling her she was going to die, and it was making her depressed. Devin had left several days earlier; he hadn’t actually said goodbye, but he had left her a note on the last dinner begging her not to go again.
Serena sighed wistfully. “I remember when I helped you put together your exposition to get onto the Council…Now look, you’ve taken off all on your own. I’m so proud.”
At least Serena was hopeful. Somber, but hopeful. She was very proud of everything Lena had accomplished, and kept saying so over and over. Since getting Lena onto the Council, she had shifted her focus slightly to getting another woman elected as an heir: Daisy, her daughter. Since Eric’s removal from the Council, Greg had been looking for a new heir. Daisy was still very young, however, and wouldn’t be called on for several more years.
“Ladies?”
Everyone looked over at the door, where Greg was standing. He tapped his watch and Hesper pulled her suitcase off the bed and started pulling it over to the door, where Greg took it. Serena picked up Maren. There were a lot of hugs, and Lena said her goodbyes until after she brought the portal back.
“I’ll be seeing you in December, then?” Greg smiled and put his hand out towards Lena, which she shook.
“I suppose so.”
And then they were gone. They had been the last to leave this year; to Lena’s great relief, Griffin had arranged for his mother to go live with her sister at the Alarid residence. She made a dull mental note that she would have to send Alexis a condolence card. Lena watched the cars pull away from her bedroom window. When she turned around and looked at her bedroom, she felt more tired than she had in a long time. She threw herself down on the bed; without meaning to, she fell asleep within minutes.
The end of December arrived much faster than Lena anticipated. Before she even knew it, cars of the approved officials were pulling up the gravel road and parking next to the house. People were circulating life back into Waldgrave as they unloaded massive suitcases and the final details were worked out. Howard had bought some new vehicles on Master Daray’s behest for the team to travel with, as there was no way they would get a locked and unopenable box onto an airplane, if they ever found it. There were two vans and three sedans to accommodate the ten Council members plus Lena, Griffin, and Ava, who had been asked to go at the last moment because she had actually seen the portal before and could assist in its identification.
All too soon, Howard was hugging her and refusing to let go. It was very early in the morning, and it had snowed the night before; a tangible frost had penetrated everything from the cold waffles at breakfast to the mood of everyone in the house. The rest of the team were already out in the cars, the suitcases were stowed, the seating arrangements decided, and Howard was almost crying. He was talking so quietly that Lena probably wouldn’t have been able to hear him if she wasn’t pulled into a hug.
“You’re going to call every night and every time you make a stop.”
“Okay.”
“Be careful, and if anything seems funny, tell me, and I’ll get you out of there.”
“Okay.”
“Promise me you’ll tell me what’s going on, even if you don’t want to.”
“I promise.”
He hugged her tighter for a moment, then pushed her out to arms’ length and studied her as though he were trying to memorize her. His eyes were watery. “If anything goes wrong out there—and I mean anything at all—you run away. Get as far away from everyone as you can, and then call me. But first, you need to get as far away as possible from anyone who calls himself Silenti. Old Faith and New. Okay?”
Lena looked him in the eyes. He was starting to worry her. “Okay.”
“And you’ll call?”
“I promise.” She hugged him again. “I don’t know what you’re making such a big deal about. Everything is going to be fine, and I’m coming back.”
A moment later, Griffin came in and told them they were ready. Howard gave Lena a quick kiss on the forehead, said goodbye, and then walked away into the living room. Through the doorway to the kitchen, Lena could see Mrs. Ralston giving her kind, concerned looks as Howard walked towards her; she had already said goodbye to Rosaleen, Pete, and Cheryl. Her grandfather hadn’t said a goodbye, but the cat had been stationed outside her bedroom that day—for what
reason, she wasn’t sure. He had just wandered away when she opened the door. Lena walked out the side door and got into a van between Greg and Ava. The ignition turned, the cars pulled away down the gravel road, and Lena gave one quick look at the window before she could stop herself. A weight dropped in her stomach as she saw Howard and Mrs. Ralston, just as they were going back into the house. She very suddenly wished she wasn’t going.
The first hotel was a sad awakening. It was confusing, because even across the years, hotels don’t change much. A three-star hotel is a three-star hotel everywhere in the world, now or twenty years ago. The hotel hadn’t changed, but it all looked different. The suitcases were different, and the companionship was different, and Lena was different. Looking in the mirror, she had mixed emotions. She could hardly recognize herself in the mirror; she had become a stranger in the place she had thought she would find peace. There wasn’t anything familiar about the hotel room but Ava’s extensive collection of dresses hanging in the open closet, and Lena was confused and sad. Her father wasn’t there, and that fact was clear.
“I guess we’re going to have to keep the door open all night, because we’re not allowed to be alone together.” Ava said, propping open the door to the adjoining hotel room. “Who knows what they think we’re going to do. We’ve been alone together all that time back home…”
It was sad that she immediately thought of Waldgrave when Ava said ‘home.’ She had never thought of that place as home until now, when she’d had to leave it. She was much smarter than Ava, though; they thought they were going to go sneaking out together if left to their own devices. The thought had already crossed Lena’s mind; she wasn’t going to enjoy the trip as much now that she was going to have to share a room with Ava. Apparently it was inappropriate, by Master Daray’s standards (vicariously brought into the situation via Griffin) that the two women sleep alone or with other Council members, even in separate beds; so, they were staying together in a room adjoining another room in which some Council members were staying. The Council members on the trip didn’t trust the two women in a room alone, so the door to the adjoining room was to remain open during their stay.