“I haven’t passed my driving testyet,” he said to Bill, “failed for going too fast.”
Bill nodded and grabbing onto his seatas Arthur swerved to avoid a stray rabbit.
“Can we slow down a bit?” he said. “Ithink we’ve escaped now.”
Arthur eased his foot off theaccelerator and the engine noise changed from frantic screaming to an evenclatter.
“Oh Bill!” wailed Arthur. “What are wegoing to do?” He banged his hand on the steering wheel.
“I guess we go back to our rooms.”
“I mean what are we going to do?I’m trying my best not to get upset, but...”
Bill nodded sympathetically. He wastrying his best not to think about Ophelia.
“I keep imaging us all in thekitchen,” said Arthur, “scoffing one of mum’s huge breakfasts and having alaugh.”
A few minutes later fields gave way tothe dark and sleeping suburbs of Middenmere. They pushed on into the citycentre, navigating its maze of twisting roads. Eventually they drove up TurpinStreet and slowed down outside Conatus College. Arthur carefully guided the vanthrough the stone archway and up the long drive that crossed the grounds. Hestopped in the car park at the side of the college and turned off the engine.They both sat in silence for a while.
“What are we going to do?” said Arthurtearfully. “We’ve lost everything.”
“We’ve still got the book,” said Bill,doubtfully holding up the journal.
“Fat lot of use that is! I wantto see Mum and Dad! I want to see my brothers and baby sister. Do you thinkthey’re still home?”
“Do you want to go back?”
“We escaped by the skin of our teeth.Underwood a madhouse. How can we ever go back?”
“But we're got to try.”
Arthur took a deep breath. “I can’thelp them if I get turned. That’s what’ll happen if we go back.”
“True.”
“So what do we do now?”
“There’s only one person I can thinkof. She may be able to help... mother.”
“But I thought she was evil. Nooffence.”
“Well, she is. But the Apostles fightpagans and will get rid of Lord Percy – he seems to be the centre of it all.They can help us round up your family and Ophelia and fill them up with VitaDantis.” Bill wasn’t entirely sure if the Apostles would be quite sohelpful when it came to rescuing pagans. He remembered what they’d done toProfessor Jareth and Lilith, but he could think of no other course of action.
Arthur considered this plan for amoment and looked hopeful. “Yeah. They'll have loads of Vita Dantis. Sowhere's your mum? What happened to her when the bikers invaded the Manor?”
“The Rolls wasn’t there, so I guessshe escaped. But I think I have a pretty good idea where she might be. And it’snot too far a walk from here.”
“Well, what are we waiting for?”
They both got out the van and Arthurnoticed Bill was still clutching the journal tightly to his chest. “Why are youbringing that stupid thing?”
“I don’t know, but I don’t want toleave it behind. One of Beryl's friends may understand it. It may be the onlyway to find a proper cure.”
Arthur gave him a dubious look.
They made their way across thedimly-lit grounds and left the college via the front entrance. Arthur followedBill to the top of High Street and they stopped outside the University ofMiddenmere Sports Hall.
“Remember when we came here forFresher’s Fair and Frank took me off?” said Bill.
“Ah yes... you said you went to somecreepy doctor’s house.”
“It wasn’t far. I just have to rememberwhere we went. I’ll try and retrace my steps.”
They walked along the road for acouple of minutes. It didn’t look quite the same at night with the buildingsilluminated by street lights. Bill was starting to think he’d gone the wrongway but then he saw a familiar looking side road lined with tall Victorianterraces. The road sign said Laburnum Grove. This was it! He remembered thefront door had chipped red paint and a gilded number nine. They knocked andwere please when it was answered by Mordred, wearing his black butler’s uniformand white gloves. He gave them look of haughty indifference, showing nosurprise at them turning up so unexpectedly.
“Good evening sir. I will take you toMadam.”
The boys followed him through theshabby hallway and into the front room. Arthur looked with some curiosity atthe wooden display cabinets filled with figures dressed in ribbons andVictorian petticoats. Their smooth white faces stared out through the dustyglass and gave him the creeps.
“What the...” he said under his breathto Bill.
“His doll collection.”
Sitting on the chesterfield was Beryl,wearing her usual white, robe-like dress, diamond drop earrings and redlipstick. She looked surprised to see him and a little bit annoyed. “HelloDarling. I’m glad to see you but you’ve been very naughty. We’ve been lookingabsolutely everywhere for you and your little chum. Frank had you in his carebut you ran off.”
“I went home but you’d gone. I foundLord Percy in residence.”
“Ah yes, quite amusing really. We weregoing to such drastic lengths to find him and he turns up on thedoorstep. I have to be grateful to Mordred, who had the foresight to slam thedoor in his face and bundle me off in the Rolls.”
As Bill stared at his mother's smilingface he suddenly remembered his visit to the cellar... the terrible contraptionholding Professor Jareth... Lilith’s bloody teeth on the table... He realisedhe was very angry with her.
“I know what you’ve been hiding fromme mother. I was down in the cellar, I saw my two friends. I know everything.”
Beryl's smiled instantly faded and sheerupted with an anger he’d never seen before. “They are not your friends! Theyare the Devil’s Bane! Their only desire is to feast on your blood and curse youinto following Satan! Consider the people you knew as dead! The vermin in thecellar think of us as nothing but sacrifice!”
Bill was about to argue but heremembered what had happened after he’d freed them. He knew what his mother wasdoing was wrong but could think of nothing to say to her.
Doctor van Devlin
