Dragonsapien (6 page)

‘Mainly
,
I suppose. We’ve got a pretty complex system of lungs in there,
according to Dr Frobisher.’

‘Ah, so I was
right; the doctor is one of you too, right?’

‘One of
us
?’ Celly said, a little peeved once more. ‘We’re not going
back to monsters and humans again, are we?’

Jake
laughed.

‘No, no; sorry!
I meant – well, he
had
to know about you, about you being
different
, if he treated you, wouldn’t he?’

Celly
nodded.

‘We’d have been
discovered ages ago if we didn’t have our own doctors,
surgeons–’

‘Wait a minute!
Just how many of you are there?’

‘We’ve lived
peacefully amongst you for ages Jake! We
are
like you in
most
ways; in fact, we’ve never taken part in any of your
wars. We’ve been conscientious objectors, refusing
conscription.’

‘Hmn, was that
really
because you’re more peaceful? Or because any medical
check-up or wound would soon reveal that you weren’t really human?
That you were really aliens, living amongst us?’

‘Aliens
?’
Celly laughed. ‘Is that what you think we are? We’ve been around on
this earth longer than you have, Jake! Earlier humans mistook us
for gods. The Babylonians believed their empire had been found by
Dagon who – for some
weird
reason – was always pictured as
half man, half fish.’

Having seen
Celly flying over the jungle, her immense wings glowing
metallically in the sun, Jake could well believe that others like
her had been taken to be gods or goddesses. Had other awed humans
believed they were seeing angels?

‘So,’ he said,
‘if you’re
not
aliens, then what
are
you
exactly?’

‘You won’t
believe it.’

‘After what
I’ve
seen, I’ll believe it.’

‘Well, you,
you’re
descended from apes, right?’

‘Huh huh,’ Jake
agreed doubtfully, seeing already where this was leading yet unable
to think of any animal Celly’s species could have evolved
from.

‘Well,’ Celly
continued, ‘the creatures we evolved from are no longer around, as
you humans wiped out the very last of them.’

‘Dodos?’ Jake
said with an amused smirk. ‘Ouch!’

‘Dodos
!’
Celly gave a satisfied smile as she nudged him hard then playfully
rolled on top of him. ‘Are you saying I look like I’m descended
from a
dodo
?’

They chuckled
and giggled as they mock wrestled amongst the sand.

‘Ouch! Oww!’
Jake cried out. ‘I’m kidding, I’m kidding!’

From his
position beneath Celly, looking directly up into the sky, Jake
suddenly saw the sparkle of spread, flapping wings passing above
him. And suddenly, Jake knew the answer he’d been
seeking.

‘I get it, I get
it,’ he chuckled as Celly continued to pretend to punch and jab at
his chest. ‘You’re the human equivalent of a
dragon
,
right?’

Celly drew back,
grinning, impressed.

‘Got it,’ she
said. ‘So, how did you guess?’

Jake pointed
over her shoulder, up into the sky.

‘When I saw them
flying towards us in the distance.’

He could now see
that there were two of them, not one as he’d first supposed. They
were coming in from across the sea, moving quickly.

Celly turned to
look. Frowning anxiously, she rose to her feet.

‘It’s dad,’ she
said, ‘and he’s got someone else with him.’

*

By the time that
Celly and Jake had run back to the camp, everyone else was already
there. Erdwin was well into explaining what had happened on his
trip.

‘…
he
says the police suspect something isn’t quite right, and he’s
worried they might be thinking of taking him in…’

Even though
everyone had gathered in the rather cramped shade offered by one of
the camp’s makeshift gazebos, the only person Jake really noticed
was the newcomer. He was a boy of about his own age, Jake reckoned,
although he had the self-assurance and presence of someone a few
years older. He was tall, athletically slim (he was still bared
above the waist, his shirt tied by its sleeves around him), blond
and classically handsome. Like Celly, he had skin that glistened as
if permanently lightly tanned.

In summation,
the boy was everything that Jake thought
he
wasn’t.

All at once,
Jake felt envious, jealous, threatened.

Particularly
when the boy glanced Celly’s way and, instead of instantly averting
his gaze – as many boys would, fearing being caught staring at a
pretty girl – he kept on looking until his eyes locked with
hers.

The boy grinned
confidently.

Celly smiled
back shyly, yet obviously flattered by his attention.

‘Celly!’ Erdwin
cried, turning towards them on hearing their entrance.

He rushed
towards his daughter, almost lifting her off of her feet he hugged
her so hard in greeting.

‘I’ve missed you
so much, missed you
all
so much!’ he exclaimed happily, even
turning to Jake with a wide, welcoming smile. ‘And Jake, as I
promised, I dropped off your letter. According to Harry – Dr
Frobisher – they’d accepted his explanation that you’d seemed a
willing
temporary
hostage; sorry, but he’d explained
that
by saying you and Celly obviously had eyes for each
other.’

He said it with
a chuckle, implying it was the most ridiculous thing, such that
Jake wondered if he were about to add ‘complete nonsense, of
course!’ Fortunately, Erdwin didn’t notice Jake and Celly’s
exchange of nervous, embarrassed glances. He was too intent on
excitedly introducing the boy to Celly.

‘And this,
Celly,’ he continued, pretty much breathlessly, ‘is Harry’s boy;
Leon. You remember Leon, surely? From when you used to play with
him? When you were both
much
younger?’

Jake picked up
an intonation in Erdwin’s voice that seemed to imply that, now they
were older, it was only natural that Celly and Leon should be
looking at being something more than friends.

‘You’ve changed
a lot since then,’ Leon said to Celly with an assured grin, his
eyes twinkling warmly.

Celly smiled
back bashfully, obviously flattered rather than unnerved by Leon’s
appreciative, lingering gaze.

Jake felt sharp,
stabbing pangs of pain in chest. His throat was abruptly dry and
sore, as if it had somehow become twisted.

And, almost as
if he could sense Jake’s discomfort, Leon glanced his way. It was a
fleeting glance, but in that brief stare Jake sensed disgust, even
hate.

Only a moment
ago he had felt so wonderful, so light headed with joy, that he
could have almost believed that he was also capable of flying. Now,
suddenly, Jake was experiencing something akin to an addict’s
withdrawal symptoms; a ponderousness, a dullness, to his actions
and thoughts that weakened and shamed him, leaving him feeling
useless and inferior.

Leon wasn’t
looking Jake’s way anymore. His charming grin had
returned.

‘My father
believes he’s safe for now,’ Leon explained. ‘But, just in case, he
wanted me to come out here until it all definitely blows
over.’

‘And your
mother? How’s she taking all this?’ Celly’s mum asked
anxiously.

‘She’s fine,
thanks, Mrs Volance,’ Leon reassured her. ‘Like dad, she’s worried
about the way the police are continuing to probe around – which,
considering it’s their own people who’ve been lost, is only to be
expected. But also like dad, she can’t see that they’ll find
anything that will make them begin to even consider the truth. Of
course, the other reason why they’re putting so much of their
resources into this case is standing right here before
us.’

As he nodded in
Jake’s direction, he lowered his eyes menacingly.

‘I know it’s an
awful thing to say,’ he added casually, ‘but they would have put
less effort into solving his murder than they’re putting into
solving his kidnapping, hoping to find him alive. It might be safer
for everyone if–’

At last noticing
Leon’s simmering antagonism towards Jake, Erdwin broke in
urgently.

‘We can’t return
him just yet, Leon. We’ve let George and Fiona – Jake’s parents –
know that he’s fine. That might take the heat off the police
investigations.’

Leon frowned
bemusedly.

‘Wow! That’s
what I call loving parents, Jake!’ He glanced Jake’s way again,
this time with what could have been interpreted as either a pitying
smile or a smirk, depending on your opinion of Leon. ‘According to
all the papers, you’ve been abducted by a bunch of callous killers;
and your parents treat it all like it’s just some elongated
sleepover?’

‘They know the
Volances would never hurt me,’ Jake snapped back.

‘We knew Jake’s
parents, Leon.’ Celly’s mum was embarrassed, defensive. ‘They know
we’re not like…well, however the papers are describing us! They
know
we’re not like that!’

‘I’m sorry, Mrs
Volance; I didn’t mean to upset you, I just meant that with all
those photos of those police officers appearing in th–’

‘Yes, yes; thank
you Leon,’ Erdwin interrupted. ‘We
do
have an idea what the
papers will be saying and showing. But Jake’s an old friend of
Celly’s – his parents
do
know he’ll be safe with us; and the
letter from Jake will reassure them even further.’

‘Still,’ Leon
persisted, ‘I would feel a lot happier about
my
parents
coming out of all this undiscovered if only we could somehow, say,
return
Jake safe and sound back to his parents – ensuring,
of course, we can trust him not to reveal what we are. Oh; but I
don’t suppose that would be possible, would it?’

Jake simmered
with fury. Leon had managed to sound throughout as if he were both
concerned and considerate, but there was an unmistakable barb at
the end – that Jake was a threat to them all.

What made the
accusation so strong, however, was that it was correct. Jake had
realised this himself just a few days ago. How could the Volances
return him when he knew that they weren’t human, but an entirely
different species? He had hoped, of course, that he could be
returned as soon as the police worked this out for themselves. But
what if they didn’t work it out? Why should they even consider such
a seemingly unlikely possibility?

And even if the
police did discover the truth, what then? Would the Volances still
hold him here to prevent him revealing their island hideaway? Yes,
he had lost all sense of direction when they had flown out here;
even over land, they had been far too high for him to obtain any
idea of where they were heading. Yet just by describing the island
– its vegetation, the curve of its beaches, the climate – he could
provide more than enough clues for someone to figure out its
general position.

‘It’s true,
isn’t it?’ he said bitterly. ‘You can’t let me go back, can
you?’

Erdwin and
Perisa smiled wryly at each other, a sign, Jake presumed, that they
had been caught out, that now they would have to tell the
truth.

‘The truth is,’
Erdwin said sadly, turning to Jake, ‘that, yes – we can and will
let you go back.’

‘What?’

Jake and Leon
spoke at the same time, Jake in amazement, Leon in
anger.

Erdwin now
turned to Leon.

‘Your father,
Leon; he knows the police don’t believe his version of events. How
could they, when there isn’t any story he could make up that
reasonably covers everything that happened that day? Our lawyers –
Kubrick and Stanhope – are fighting a losing battle in preventing
the police from holding him. As soon as he has settled his affairs,
your father and mother are intending on flying out here, possibly
as early as tonight. But I fear that our presence amongst humanity
can’t remain a secret much longer. Modern forensics are far too
sophisticated for us to be able to control events like this, as we
have in the past.’

‘But the island;
he
can still let them know where we’ve come!’ Leon spat,
glaring hatefully at Jake.

‘Jake wouldn’t
tell them!’ Celly insisted.

‘We know that,
darling,’ her mother said. ‘But the police would pester him for
descriptions of the island, and even Jake would find it hard to
keep on refusing.’

‘We’d move
anyway,’ Erdwin said, smiling reassuringly at Jake. ‘So yes, as I
was saying earlier, you can be returned soon Jake.’

‘If we’re about
to be discovered,’ asked Hincheley, who had remained resolutely
quiet until now, ‘what’s going to happen to those who haven’t had
the chance to escape, like we have? Shouldn’t we get word to
them?’

‘Kubrick and
Stanhope are warning everyone they know, and asking them to pass on
the message as quickly as possible. That’s why Harry has stayed so
long, despite being under increasing pressure from the police; he
doesn’t want to alarm the authorities with his disappearance until
it’s absolutely necessary, giving everyone as much chance as
possible to spread the warning.’