The Considine Curse (17 page)

My heart quickens. This is my last night in England and I was looking forward to going to Will’s exhibition, but I can’t go out and leave Madeleine with Oberon and Gerald. I feel sick because I know what I have to do. I must stay behind and talk to my cousins, tell them the truth about Madeleine.

‘I’ve been thinking,’ I say. ‘Since I’ve seen the exhibition this morning I’m more than happy to stay in and babysit tonight too if you’d like.’

‘Don’t you want to come along and big me up?’ Will sounds disappointed. ‘One day I may actually sell a picture.’

‘I’m sure Mariel would rather spend the evening with people her own age, Will,’ Chrissie says.

The buzzer goes.

‘That will be the boys.’ Uncle Will stomps down the stairs to answer the door.

I hear Oberon’s voice say, ‘Mum and Dad are waiting in the car.’

When Oberon swaggers in, I am holding Madeleine up on her feet, bouncing her up and down.

‘Ah, ickle Cousin Madsie and ickle Cousin Mariel. Hello,’ says Oberon. He grabs the remote control and switches the TV on. ‘There’d better be some meat in the fridge. I’m starving. Maybe I’ll go with the vegetarian option.’ He laughs at his joke, then shrugs. ‘Suit yourself.’ He goes to the kitchen, barging past Gerald coming the other way.

‘I’m staying with Madeleine,’ I say.

‘You should go to the exhibition with your mum,’ says Gerald. ‘It’s not safe for you here.’

Aunt Chrissie dashes in, kisses Madeleine goodbye and reminds Gerald he has her mobile number if he should need it. She doesn’t seem at all worried about leaving her baby with them. But why would she? She doesn’t know the truth.

‘Keep an eye on her,’ says Chrissie. ‘She actually managed to crawl for the first time this afternoon.’

‘That’s great news,’ says Oberon from the kitchen.

‘Chrissie, come on,’ shouts Will.

‘Sorry!’ Chrissie kisses Madeleine again and leaves. They are in such a hurry that Mum forgets to say goodbye until she’s at the bottom of the stairs. ‘Oh, bye, Mariel, see you later,’ she shouts up as an afterthought.

‘Bye, Mum,’ I respond too quietly for her to hear.

Oberon comes back into the room, bends down and talks to Madeleine. ‘Crawling, eh, little wolf? That means you can be coaxy-woaxed now.’

‘She’s too young,’ replies Gerald.

‘Not for what I have in mind,’ snarls Oberon.

A look of horror crosses Gerald’s face. ‘I won’t do it. Nor will the others.’

Oberon stands up to face his brother and snarls, ‘Tonight when I become pack leader you’ll all do as I say.’

‘Not that.’

‘Madeleine can’t be coaxed,’ I say. ‘She isn’t one of you. Will isn’t her real father.’

‘That’s just a pathetic attempt to save her,’ says Oberon. ‘I’d spend more time protecting yourself and less time worrying about ickle wickle Madsie, if I were you.’

‘I don’t care what you do to me. Leave Madeleine alone,’ I say. I pick her up but take her by surprise and she starts to bawl. I try to comfort her but she thrashes around, pounding me with her fists.

‘Now, don’t tell me that’s not a Considine,’ says Oberon.

Gerald takes her from me and she instantly calms down.

‘If you don’t believe me, call Chrissie and ask her,’ I say.

‘Yeah, Gerald,’ says Oberon. ‘Why don’t you call Chrissie and ask her who Madsie’s daddy is. I’ll put her to bed.’ Oberon takes Madeleine from his brother. ‘You ready for bed, ickle Madsie?’ he asks her. ‘Oh, she’s definitely one of us. I can see the wolf in her eyes.’

Oberon leaves the room. Gerald pulls out a mobile phone.

‘Will isn’t her father,’ I whisper. ‘He can’t have children. He told us today.’

Gerald finds Chrissie’s number but doesn’t call it.

‘Gerald, you have to believe me,’ I say desperately.

‘This is the truth?’ he says.

I nod. ‘Will said they are going to tell everyone now Grandma’s gone.’

Gerald puts his phone away.

‘You’re not going to call?’

‘Tonight is Uncle Will’s big night. I don’t want to ruin that.’

‘But Madeleine.’

‘Don’t worry, if she’s not related to us she’s in no danger. We won’t let him coax her.’

There’s a crashing noise from the back room. Gerald looks at me. He doesn’t need to say anything; I understand the look of fear in his eyes.

‘Obe?’ he shouts.

We run to Madeleine’s room to find the curtain flapping in the wind. Both Oberon and Madeleine are gone.

‘Where’s he taken her?’ I ask. I remember Elspeth’s poem.
With each sun that rises and sets, the pack goes from two legs to four, but feast upon flesh of your own and you will change no more.
‘He wants to coax Madeleine, then eat her, doesn’t he?’ I say. ‘He wants to take the pack full wolf? He’s going to kill her.’

Gerald looks away. Terror and anger rip through my body and come out as a scream in a voice I don’t even recognise. ‘She’s a baby. A baby,’ I sob. ‘We have to stop him.’

I glance back and notice something at the window. The creature’s long nose, white teeth and red eyes don’t disguise who it is.

‘Lily,’ I say.

‘Why is
she
here?’ she asks Gerald, climbing down into the room.

Last time I saw Lily in wolf form I didn’t have time to take in what she looked like. Her hair is a beautiful brown. She looks amazing, a million miles from the shy girl who hides behind her own hair. She swishes her tail confidently and steps forward.

‘Oberon is serious about taking the pack full wolf,’ Gerald says. ‘He’s taken Madeleine with him to use as the sacrifice.’

‘But she isn’t related to you. Will isn’t her father,’ I say. ‘He’ll just kill her for no good reason.’

Gerald nods to indicate that I’m telling the truth.

‘We have to stop him,’ I say again.

Lily turns to me. ‘This is wolf business,’ she says. ‘
You’re
not going to do anything.’

‘How come you’re here anyway?’ I say. ‘I thought Father Gowlett was babysitting for you?’

‘He left,’ Lily says impatiently.

‘He left you when he was supposed to be babysitting?’

Lily looks at me. ‘Do I look like a baby that needs sitting?’

‘What happened?’ asks Gerald.

‘He told us that he knows about us. He was really creepy, saying stuff like we could open up to him about our secrets. He said whatever we said he would understand and he’d help us. It was pretty obvious what he was doing. He wants to show us off like animals he has discovered.’

‘But you won’t let him, will you?’

‘Elspeth told him she would. She told him to meet her in the woods where she would let him take her picture. We have to find her before she does something stupid.’

‘You mean she’s going to kill him,’ I say.

Lily’s eyes answer the question. ‘Tonight is full moon when the wolf’s voice is loudest.’

‘You’ll have to get Freddie’s help,’ Gerald says to Lily. ‘I’ve got to bring Madeleine back.’

‘I’ll help,’ I say.

Lily raises her nose close to my face, pushing me backwards out of the room. ‘You stay here,’ she says. ‘This is nothing to do with you.’ I haven’t heard her speak like this. She sounds angry, dangerous. She slams the bedroom door in my face. I try the handle but the door won’t open. I bang on it.

‘Let me in. I can help,’ I yell. I try the handle again and the door flies open; they have both gone.

Overhead, a cloud drifts past the moon. The hill with Percy’s Ruin is visible from where I am standing. There is a flickering flame at the top. I think of little Madeleine somewhere up there in the woods with Oberon.

There’s a phone in the hallway but I can’t call for help as I don’t have anyone’s number. Next to it is Uncle Will’s bicycle. I grab it and head downstairs. The bike is awkward on the stairs and the pedals keep bashing my shins, but I get it out and the front door slams shut behind me. Madeleine is all that matters now. All these cousins and uncles related by blood and it turns out that the one I care about most isn’t actually a relative at all.

Chapter 21

The Silver Bullet Technique

The well-lit streets give way to dark windy uphill lanes. Even in the lowest gear the climb towards Percy’s Ruin is hard on my legs. Each time a car passes me, the headlights throw shadows into the surrounding woods. I have never felt such fear. My hands are like ice. My body is numbed by the cold. The only thing that stops me from turning the bike around and freewheeling back into town is the thought of Madeleine.

A car passes, then suddenly stops and reverses along the road. It stops on the verge and the door opens. A figure steps out. It’s too dark to see who it is but I know the moment he speaks.

‘Mariel? What brings you out tonight? It’s not safe for you,’ says Father Gowlett.

‘Nor you,’ I reply.

‘I’ve arranged to meet with Elspeth in the woods so I can get my evidence.’

‘She’ll kill you. They’ve always known about you. It was Flora that kept you safe,’ I reply.

The red glow from the car’s backlights gives his face a demonic look. There is a strange look in his eyes, a mixture of fear and excitement. ‘I think I have a fair chance of survival.’ He opens the boot of his car and takes out a leather travel bag. He unzips it. It is full of silver jewellery. He reaches into the boot again and pulls out a camera and then his rifle.

‘You’re planning to shoot her?’

‘Of course I would much rather your cousins willingly gave themselves up. But if they refuse to let the world in on their secret then this is the only way. A wounded wolf is a dangerous creature. A dead werewolf, on the other hand, is a brilliant prize.’

‘She’s a little girl.’

‘Elspeth is no little girl tonight. She’s an animal. Some of us are made in God’s image, but your cousins are not. They are something very different. No one will judge me for sacrificing her life in order to show the world of the existence of these creatures and for revealing the true beasts of Wilderdale.’

‘You must go back. She will kill you.’

‘An eight-year-old wolfling against me with a bag of silver and a shotgun. We’ll see who gets hurt.’ He flips the barrel and loads the gun. ‘Ever heard of silver bullets killing werewolves?’

‘Is it true?’

‘No. Any old bullet shot through the heart will kill a werewolf. The silver bullet is a technique. It’s a method passed down through generations of wolf hunters. To kill a wolf stay hidden, stay still and silently wait, then set your sights at the heart and aim straight. To make a mistake, will seal your fate. Any metal will do for the bullet, the silver is used for the bait.’

‘You lure them with silver,’ I say.

He holds the barrel of his gun up and looks through the sight. ‘They can’t resist it. And tonight, with the moon full they are at their most careless.’

‘Where are you meeting her?’

‘At the same spot I saw Flora all those years ago.’

‘How can you think of killing one of them? How can you? You preach about believing in God and being nice to everyone. How can you do something like this?’

Father Gowlett touches his dog collar. ‘This is God’s most important work. I am ridding the earth of the devil’s creation.’

‘But it’s a gene. You said so yourself.’

‘It’s a genetic defect and one which I believe can be traced back to the father of evil himself. But you haven’t answered my question. What brings you out tonight, Mariel?’

I tell him about Oberon taking Madeleine. He doesn’t say anything in response but reaches into the bag of jewellery and takes out a silver cross just like the one I found by Percy’s Ruin. He hands it to me. It glints in the moonlight.

‘I swore to your grandfather I would protect you but perhaps both of our fates await us in the woods tonight,’ he says.

‘Why did you say you’d protect me?’

‘That’s how Frank died, protecting you. Flora was going to kill you.’

‘Why would she have killed me?’

‘It’s what they do. They’re killers. You can have no sympathy for any of them.’

He pulls out his keys and locks the car. It beeps twice and the lights go off, leaving us with the milky white light of the full moon. I have one more question before he leaves.

‘Is there any chance . . . I mean, is there any danger I’m one of them?’

‘Thankfully no. The gene is very specific. It can only be passed down through carriers of the opposite sex from the parent wolf. There is no way you could be infected any more than I could.’

‘Last night I dreamed I was one of them.’

‘Dreams have no meaning, Mariel. Good luck.’

I watch him disappear into the woods, then I get back on the bike and cycle further up the road. I get as near to Percy’s Ruin as I can, then lean the bike against a tree and continue on foot up through the forest. The ground is soft and damp. The cold wind whistles through the trees. Every branch sways. Every twig shakes. Everything moves. My imagination conjures up things from the shadows but what could be scarier than the truth that awaits me?