Malice (11 page)

She turned to Curly. ‘Take her away and lock her up. Don't remove the wrist restraints!'

The screeching of a powerful car braking outside took everyone's attention. Someone came in through the front door. ‘Oriana! The waves have smashed some of the boulders out of the way,' he called out. ‘Those kids will drown, and we'll be able to get in and get the box from their bodies as the tide goes down!'

Glistening in black all-weather gear, a tall man with close-cropped fair hair, and a tight, hard mouth in a gaunt face, lurched into the room. The dog wagged its tail and licked the water off the man's boots.

‘What's this?' he said, jerking his head in my direction.

‘Just a little stickybeak. You can deal with her later, Dragan.'

I didn't like the thought of him dealing with me, and especially not the cold reference to my friends' lifeless bodies. I felt terrible despair as I was dragged roughly upstairs by Curly and thrown into a room with the door locked firmly behind me.

11:06 pm

Trapped in the room my mind reeled as I tried to work out what to do. Being kidnapped by Curly—and everything Oriana had said, particularly about the Drowner, had left me in shock. And Dragan! His ruthlessness scared me. He must have been the one with the loud sports car. He'd been listening in on our conversations, lurking behind the curtain in Rose's shop. No wonder Rose was so frightened!

Now, Oriana, Curly and Dragan had all the information we had and even knew about the treasure on the shipwrecked Windraker. I thought of Boges and Ryan. I had to warn them about Dragan and Oriana, and about the building cyclone—the Drowner. If the cyclone surge had moved some of the heavy boulders near the caves' entrance, there would be no protection from the deadly sea. The boys could be mashed up against the walls of the sea caves and cut to pieces on the rocks!

As the minutes ticked by, I could feel my panic rising. I had to get away, but how? I had searched every corner of the room but could see no way out.

Out the window I could see the semi-transparent roof of the wraparound verandah on the ground floor beneath. Rain pounded on it, making a terrible racket. But what did I think I was going to do? With my hands tied behind my back, I was helpless, useless.

I slumped against the wall, slipping down, my bound hands scraping painfully against the wall. My hands … it would be so much better if they were in front of me, instead of behind. I wondered if the TV shows were true, and that it was possible to step through the hoop formed by my bound wrists.

I got down on the floor and started trying the manoeuvre. I strained and heaved, stretching muscles I didn't know I had, pulling my joints painfully, powerfully driven by the terrible danger confronting my two friends. I concentrated every ounce of energy on pulling my bound wrists down under my bottom. Then, feeling like I was going to be completely squished, I folded one leg at the knee as tight as I could, until my knee was hitting my forehead and I couldn't breathe. I dragged the leg through the circle of my tied-up wrists. I repeated the same procedure, so much harder with my other leg taking up almost all the room. But finally, I unfolded my upper body and sat up straight, panting, aching all over. I'd done it! My hands were now in front of me. Even though they were bound, I could move my fingers and I was able to unlock the window. I used strength I didn't know I had left as I forced the window open, pushing it up with my whole body. I looked down again and gulped. There was no other way. I was going to have to jump and just hope that the verandah roof would break my fall and that the pounding rain would cover the sound of my escape.

OK, Winter
, I told myself,
jump!

Crash!

I smashed through the roof, but the tough material stretched a little before it tore under the weight of my body. I fell heavily onto the cement, violently wrenching my left ankle. The scream of pain didn't get past my gritted teeth and I rolled around on the hard surface, riding it out. For a few moments, all I knew was the awful pain and the noisy drumming of the rain.

When the agony subsided a little, I started wondering whether anyone had heard my fall. I needed to get away as quickly as possible. I attempted to stand. I stumbled immediately. Oh no, I thought. My left ankle won't hold me! What will I do? I have to get to Ryan and Boges! Holding onto the verandah railing, not caring that I was getting drenched, I hauled myself up.

I tested how much weight I could put onto my left leg. Only a tiny bit. I couldn't let that stop me. I pulled myself along the railing, arm over arm, until I was able to cautiously hop down some steps and onto the ground.

I hobbled around to the back of the house,
feeling around in the mud under the bushes for my phone. I seized it. Curly's car was pulled up there still. Praying it was open, I tried the door.
Yes!
I hoped that no-one would hear the sound of the vehicle over this storm as I got in and started it up. Handicapped by my tied hands and afraid to turn on the headlights, I was barely able to see the road through the pouring rain as I coasted out, painstakingly slowly. I didn't know how soon Oriana's lackeys would realise I'd escaped and come after me.

The car slid and slipped on the muddy road, but I waited until I was a fair distance from the house before I switched on the headlights so I could drive faster. It still took what seemed like forever to get near Perdita and the top of the cliff steps, where I skidded to a halt.

I looked in the rear vision mirror. I could see a light shining in the distance behind me. Someone was coming after me!

Perdita

11:52 pm

Somehow, despite the darkness and the furious storm, and my injured ankle, I had to help Boges and Ryan before I was captured again by my pursuers. As I stumbled and slid down the treacherous steps, I imagined the water rising higher and higher, Boges and Ryan trying to keep their mouths and noses above the level of the rising tide. I imagined the ceiling of the cave only centimetres above their heads.

My left ankle had swollen up like a football. I was so slow, I could only go at a snail's pace. I felt a terrible howl unfold from the depths of my being as I realised there was no way I was going to be able to make it down the cliff to save my friends in time. I was helpless—worse, I was useless. There was no hope. I wondered how I would ever be able to tell Cal.

As I despaired, the light I had seen came towards me. Dragan was coming after me to ‘deal' with me. Filthy, injured and scared, I stumbled under an overhanging bush and hid.

The figure came closer, and I saw a kerosene lamp glowing. The yellow light reflected off Dragan's raincoat and the hat he held down against the wind. He looked up, searching. It wasn't Dragan! I scrambled painfully out from under the bush. ‘Harriet! Harriet!' I screamed. ‘Help me!'

‘Winter? What are you doing out here?' she shouted. ‘And what are your friends up to? I was out looking for my chickens and I saw them heading for the beach! They shouldn't have gone
down there—not in this weather. I yelled at them to stop, but they couldn't hear me. So I ran back to get a lamp. But we can't get down there now!'

The words flowed out of me in a torrent as I stumbled towards her. ‘Help me. My wrists! Please!' She caught my bound arms.

‘Who did this to you?' she asked, cutting the nylon cuffs with a Swiss Army knife.

A tiny hope flickered in my mind as I remembered the map Oriana showed me. The mark in the cellar. It wasn't more than a hunch probably, but it was the only thing we had. If I was right, I now understood the strange rectangular rock carving near the cave's roof.

‘Help me get back to Perdita!' I yelled. ‘I'll explain everything later. I've got to get down into the cellar. There might be a way to help the boys get out of the sea caves!'

‘That's crazy!' said Harriet as she grabbed my arm and I leaned on her, while we staggered to the house. ‘The sea caves would be a death trap right now! Please don't tell me that's where the boys were heading?'

‘That's exactly where they are and there's a Drowner tide coming!' I shouted.

12:01 am

We staggered into the hallway of Perdita.

‘The cellar! It's through there—let's go!' I said, leaning on Harriet as we crossed the big front room. We grabbed a couple of Ryan's looped ropes that hung near the fireplace. I pressed hard against the acorn, waiting impatiently as the secret passage opened.

‘So you found the passages,' Harriet murmured. ‘I wondered if the rumours were true. But who tied you up?'

‘A truly evil woman. I promise I'll tell you—,' I froze in fear as outside, over the sound of the storm, came the roar of a powerful engine. ‘Oh no!' I cried. ‘Dragan!'

I looked around, trying to find a weapon of some sort but it was too late. Harriet and I turned to face the intruder as their footsteps clumped down the hall. A masked figure pulled off a helmet. I could barely believe my eyes!

As fast as my limp allowed, I ran to him. ‘Cal! Cal!'

‘I've been riding all night,' he said. ‘I haven't even been home yet. I just knew something was wrong, Winter. I knew it when we spoke on the phone. You promised you'd tell me if something was going on here!'

I tried to describe what was happening as quickly as possible, knowing our friends' lives depended on it. ‘Cal, Oriana's in town, she has a thug coming after us and she's after the map to the shipwreck holding 10,000 gold coins. Boges and Ryan are in the sea caves looking for the map too—it's in a metal box tucked up at the top of one of the caves, but they don't know about the cyclone and the king tide. They're going to be smashed to pieces or drown down there, unless we can save them! And I think I know how. But you've got to trust me and we have to go down to the cellar right now.'

Cal and Harriet stared, trying to comprehend what was going on. But I could see Cal understood there was no time for more explanations.

‘Right,' he said, following me into the secret passage. ‘No time to call the cavalry, then. Let's go get our boys! Oh, and it's nice to meet you Harriet.'

By the light of Harriet's lamp, we made our way down the steps to the cellar. I ignored the pain in my ankle and pushed on as fast as I could, swearing under my breath at each throbbing step.

We rushed into the damp, stone room and as Harriet held the lantern up high, I looked around for a telltale mark on the floor. ‘If there's an opening into the sea cave through the stone floor, we might be able to help the boys!'

‘Like another trapdoor?' Cal asked.

‘We'll have to feel around for it. I just know it's here somewhere,' I said. Our scrabbling fingers finally located two metal handles, and further digging revealed them to be attached to one particular flagstone. ‘Come on, Cal,' I urged. ‘Help me lift this. You take this handle and I'll take the other.'

‘Got it, you ready?' Together, we slowly prised it open, while Harriet held the lamp over the opening to reveal heaving black water barely centimetres beneath the cellar floor. The terrifying roar of the angry sea filled the stone room.

‘Oh my God,' Harriet breathed.

Cal and I looked at each other, but we couldn't let fear overtake us. We quickly looped one of Ryan's ropes over the iron hook, tightening it into a climber's knot, and pulled on it to make sure it was totally secure. ‘That should hold
me,' Cal said. ‘You two stay here and haul us up.'

‘Forget it,' I said. ‘I'm coming too.' I had no choice. I had to go down there, injured as I was. My friends' lives were on the line.

‘You can't go down into that!' Cal yelled, above the growling ocean. He grabbed the rope from me. ‘No way, Winter.'

But I insisted and payed out some slack, roping myself to him around my chest, securing it under my arms.

‘You're injured,' Harriet cried. ‘Let me go down there instead!'

‘We need you up here, Harriet,' I said, touched by her bravery. ‘You make sure the rope remains attached to the hook. You might have to haul us in and my ankle just can't take that strain. The water will buoy me up down there. I'll give three tugs when I'm ready, OK?'

I followed Cal, and put my head down into the hole in the floor, and immediately copped a mouthful of saltwater as a wave broke over my face.

‘Boges! Ryan!' I screamed at the top of my voice. Over the crashing roar of the sea sweeping through the sea caves, I thought I heard a feeble voice calling my name. A dim, elfin light glowed in the blackness as I searched, desperate to locate their whereabouts.

‘Boges? Ryan? Where are you?'

‘Over here! … air pocket … water … rising … '

‘Where's Ryan?'

‘Holding him … knocked unconscious … can't hold much longer … '

‘Boges!' I screamed. ‘We're coming! Hang on!'

Cal jumped into the water and disappeared. The rope between us tautened. A glassy wave bulged up through the trapdoor, almost sucking me through the opening as I plunged into the freezing water, following in the direction I thought Cal had gone, trying to ignore the shock to my system. I swam out as strongly as I could with my one good leg, following the blurring light I could see on the other side of the cave.

‘No! …' came the wailing voice.

‘It's OK! We're roped!' I yelled, my head just above water, and scarily close to the roof of the cave.

12:12 am

It was the hardest swim of my life. The raging sea tried to take me down, swirling me around, pulling at my legs and throwing me hard against the walls of the cave. Bit by bit, swallowing water, my head occasionally bashing up against the ceiling of the cave, I just kept heading towards the light and Boges's voice.

It seemed a long time before a wave threw me against something soft.

‘Cal! Winter! Thank God. Help me with Ryan! I'm losing him!' Boges screamed over the cacophony of the sea.

Cal grabbed Ryan's unconscious body and I managed to pull a big loop of the rope through the water, and wrapped it around him. As I did so, the huge waves smashed the jar that held the torch and we were plunged into complete darkness.

Groping around, I guided Boges's hand to the rope behind my shoulders. I felt him grab it. I had no idea which direction to swim in. So with Cal holding Ryan and me towing Boges, I gave three strong tugs on the rope with my grazed hands. Another wave smashed the four of us hard up against the roof of the cave and we were completely submerged. I was caught unaware, and was desperate to get a breath of air. My chest tightened, and I scrabbled at the roof to find an air pocket, but there was none. After all this effort, after finding the trapdoor and the boys, I was going to die in this dark, turgid water. But then, I felt the rope tighten and then a slow strong pull. The water suddenly dropped and I breathed a choking sob of air. Harriet was hauling us in.

We were a heavy load and the sea was powerful, dragging us in the other direction. The water was almost completely at the top of the cave, and we could only breathe when the sea surged away, leaving a small air space near the roof, before gathering its strength to slam us up against the walls and roof of the cave yet again. I felt Boges swimming and kicking as hard as he could, helping to propel me along and I did the same to Cal, who had a harder job, trying to keep Ryan's face above the water.

Finally, my salt-stung eyes saw dim light and I realised we were close by the opening into the cellar near the roof of the cave. I saw Cal push Ryan ahead and a huge sea surge helped to wash them through the trapdoor. I tried to gain a handhold but the stone edges crumbled away and another wave smacked the wind out of me. I frantically reached again, and with Boges hanging on tight behind me, another wave smashed us up and onto the cellar floor.

I fell in a gasping heap and looked up, blinking and exhausted into a bright light above me.

And found myself staring into the jaws of a snarling dog!

12:24 am

‘What's going on?' I heard Cal say. My eyes focused on Oriana de la Force, Curly and Dragan, restraining the monstrous dog, while Oriana
pointed a small silver pistol at us.

Harriet stood to the side of the iron hook, the rope she had been holding now in Oriana's other hand. Had she been playing for Oriana's team the whole time? What little strength I had ebbed out of me and I barely struggled to get up. All our efforts had been completely wasted. We were no match for this armed trio and I couldn't take my eyes off the silver weapon. The Doberman strained at his leash and Dragan looked as if he couldn't wait to let his beast rip into us.

But at least, I thought, Oriana wouldn't get her hands on the metal box.

I was wrong.

‘How thoughtful,' Oriana mocked, kicking Ryan's unconscious body. ‘The brave lad has held onto the prize despite everything!' It was true. I could see the top of the metal box fastened to Ryan's chest with octopus straps.

I heard Boges, sprawled on the floor nearby, swear in despair under his breath as Curly wrenched the box from Ryan and passed it to Oriana.

‘Boges, the brain,' jeered Oriana. ‘You thought you were smarter than me. Big mistake. Let's take a look at what we've got here,' she continued, putting the small silver pistol away. ‘Winter, I told you I was going to win. You thought you could get away from me, stupid girl.' She gave me a vicious kick to the ribs. I cried out in pain.

A massive wave crashed through the trapdoor opening. The whole room trembled with the force, as water sprayed in like a geyser, hurling rocks onto the cellar floor.

Oriana, water swirling around her ankle boots, picked up one of the rocks and smashed the metal box. It fell apart. With a crow of triumph, Oriana seized the contents—a limp piece of fabric—and held it up to Curly's powerful flashlight. I saw her expression change from elation to rage.

‘What's this? It's useless! It's all rotted! You kids—did you have something to do with this? Where's the real chart?'

I couldn't believe it. After all we'd been through—a bit of rotten vellum! No diagrams, no indications as to where the Windraker lay.

Wearily, Boges answered her. ‘That's the chart. It's been in a sea cave for over a hundred years. We didn't do anything to it.'

That just enraged her further. We all got a good kick as she screamed, ‘Get up! You interfering little scum bags! You'll pay for this!'

‘But it isn't their fault,' said Harriet, stepping forward, ‘I don't know who you are but—' A slap across the face silenced her.

‘I don't know who you are either, you little witch, except that you're with this lot. Get up the steps now! All of you. Dragan, Curly, take them upstairs while I decide how to dispose of them!'

Another massive wave shook the cellar and a jet of seawater shot up through the opening in the stone floor, this time almost hitting the ceiling, showering water all over us. The cellar rumbled and groaned.

‘Now! Get up there!' Oriana screamed, the silver pistol back in her hand. ‘I'm going to teach you all a lesson you'll never forget!'

We started shuffling towards the stairs. Harriet and Boges were ahead of Cal, who was supporting a now semi-conscious Ryan. Dragan was behind us, his dog growling, ready to race up after us. I couldn't even think of escape, not with my sides bruised, my twisted ankle aching—I could barely walk. I slowly started up the stairs.

‘Get a move on, Curly!' Oriana shrieked. ‘The water's rising!' I heard the
whoomp
of an enormous wave hitting the underside of the cellar floor, as the furious sea forced tonnes of water upwards.

Suddenly, there was a massive explosion and the walls of the passageway shook as if an earthquake had hit. I heard a bloodcurdling scream from behind us, suddenly cut short. I spun around but could see nothing in the darkness. Had Captain Greenlowe been storing explosives? I went down a couple of steps to peer back into the cellar.

I froze, stunned in my disbelief. The middle of the cellar floor had totally disintegrated. There was now only a gaping hole and the foaming, crashing waves! The last thing I saw as the Drowner sucked and pulled back towards the caves was Oriana de la Force's arms flailing helplessly as the churning water whirlpooled downwards into the cave. The Doberman was swimming crazily nearby. The iron hook rattled wildly with the rope still attached to it. There was no sign of Dragan or Curly at all.

‘Run!!' I screamed up at the others. ‘The cellar's breaking up! The water's still coming!'

I grabbed onto Ryan and Cal, pushing them in front of me, ignoring the pain as we struggled desperately along the narrow passageway. Ryan stumbled but Cal pulled him onwards. ‘We're nearly there, come on!'

Glancing back, I gasped as the raging sea lashed up behind me and flew up in my face. I couldn't let the Drowner take us now!