B00dw1duqa ebok, p.32
B00DW1DUQA EBOK, page 32
‘We should go to the well first,’ said Diane. ‘Get some water. We’re both dying of thirst.’
Finn nodded. There had been an old leather bucket tied to a rope there that had been used, at some point, to draw water. They could probably haul some up with that. He just wished they had something to eat. How did the people in the hovels out here, the old man who had helped them, survive? He wished he’d been able to bring some food with him, but he couldn’t see how it would have worked. They just had to hope that, once back inside Engn, they could find something to eat.
They set off back the way they’d come, holding hands again. Neither saw the shadow that lifted itself off the ground behind them. As they walked towards Engn the figure floated after them, a patch of darkness against the night. Finn heard nothing and saw nothing until a blow to his head sent the ground lurching up to hit him in the face. He turned over, tried to rise. A man stood there, club raised, silhouetted against the whirling stars. Another blow came and Finn knew no more.
‘Hello again, young man.’
Pain hammered through Finn’s head, dwarfing the distant voice. He recognized it, though. Thinner than it had been, sharper, but a familiar voice from his past. Who was it? He squinted open an eye briefly but the throbbing in his head redoubled and he shut them again. He tried to speak but couldn’t make the words come out, his parched lips sealed together.
Something cut into his back. He tried to wriggle away. Rough rope dug into his wrists. His hands were tied to something behind his back. He tried to speak again, shout out. He felt water being dribbled into his lips, seeping into his mouth, wonderfully fresh and cool. It made no sense. The person had knocked him out, tied him up.
He opened one eye again. The figure was a blur, right in front of him, watching him. More water was tipped into his mouth. He gulped it down. He looked around. Diane was next to him, also bound. They were back at the line-of-sight tower, tied to one of its legs.
‘Thought you’d got rid of me for good, didn’t you, eh? Afraid not, young man. Here I am, large as life.’
He looked much older, his podgy features sunken down to the lines of his bones. Finn’s mouth worked now. He whispered the name of his attacker.
‘Matt.’
‘Ah, so you do remember me? Good, good.’
‘How did you get here?’
‘Me? I’ve lived here for years. Nowhere else I could go, was there, once you had me thrown out of the valley? See, I know what you did, you and your father. Had plenty of time to work that out.’
‘What do you want? Why are we tied up?’
‘I wondered if it was you. The descriptions were vague but I thought to myself, perhaps it is him. Him and the girl, escaping from Engn. You always were slippery. So I came to see for myself. And here we are, just like old times.’
‘I don’t understand. What do you want?’
‘What do I want? Isn’t it obvious, young man? I want a life. I want a house and a bed. I want everything I had before. And with you to trade, the Masters of Engn will give it all to me.’
‘You’re going to turn us in?’
‘Waited years for a chance like this. I never thought it would actually happen.’
Finn closed his eyes again, trying to think of what he could say, of a way out. But the pain in his head was too large and there was no room left for thoughts.
‘Let Diane go at least,’ he said. ‘I’ll come with you.’
‘Such a fine, noble lad. Your father’s son, eh? But no. I think the price will be much better for the two of you. The two escapers captured. The masters will be very grateful.’
‘They weren’t grateful to you before. They just left you to die out here.’
The blow across Finn’s cheek stung briefly. The worst of it was the way it sent his brain thudding with pain again.
‘Now, now, there’s no need for that, is there young man?’ said Matt. ‘I’m just setting things straight. I’ve been wronged and you’ve escaped from Engn. This will put everything right.’
‘We won’t co-operate,’ said Diane. He turned to look at her. Dried blood matted her hair where she’d been struck. She scowled from the pain throbbing in her own head. ‘You’ll have to drag us to Engn.’
‘And if I threaten to cut some bits off you with my knife here?’
‘So what?’ she said. ‘It’s nothing compared to what will happen to us inside.’
Matt snorted with laughter, as if Diane had said something funny. ‘Good point, young lady. How about this then? If you don’t co-operate, I’ll take the knife to Finn here. And if he doesn’t come, I’ll cut you up. Oh yes, I’ve seen you together, holding hands. Two right little love-birds aren’t we?’
‘If you touch her again I’ll kill you,’ said Finn.
‘No you won’t,’ said Matt, delighted at Finn’s outburst. ‘You really won’t. Because I’m going to turn you over to the masters of Engn and be richly rewarded. And you will never be heard of again.’
Matt rose and walked behind them to work on their ropes, untying them from the leg of the tower.
‘Right, up you get. Time we were leaving. It’s a good day’s walk around the walls to the gate. We can be there before they close at dusk.’
He yanked on a rope that was tied around both of their waists.
‘Up you get or I’ll start using the knife. The masters want you alive, that’s all. But they won’t mind if a few parts are missing.’
Finn and Diane worked their way back up to their feet. Their hands were still tied behind their backs and their legs were bound together, too, so that they could only shamble forwards in tiny steps. No chance of running.
Matt walked away ahead of them, hauling them forwards by the rope. They half-stumbled and followed after him, unable to catch up, not daring to stop. Desperately, Finn tried to think of a way of escaping. Perhaps they could overpower Matt as they walked. Grab the knife and cut themselves free. But he couldn’t see how. They were too tightly bound.
As they stumbled their way towards Engn, Finn tried to understand what had happened. Had Mrs. Megrim betrayed them? Sent a message through to Matt, told him where they were? Or perhaps she wasn’t alone back there in the Switch House. Perhaps there were Ironclads with her, waiting for Finn to try communicating, telling her what to reply. But that made no sense either. If the Ironclads knew where he and Diane were they wouldn’t have sent Matt. They’d have come themselves.
Must have been the old man then, the one who’d shown them the tunnel. He’d betrayed them. Told everyone what he’d seen, what he’d done. He knew where they were going, anyone could have worked out where they were hiding. He told Matt and Matt had simply waited for them to come out. It was strange. They’d been so terrified the Ironclads would catch them. It had never occurred to him the old lengthsman from his boyhood would get them instead.
Eventually they reached the gathering of huts where they’d met the old man the day before. It was a lot nearer than Finn had imagined: the route they’d taken through the tunnels must have taken them far out of their way. Was that all a part of the old man’s plan? Delay them so he could set about betraying them?
Finn saw the old man squatting next to a smouldering pile of ash as they approached, the remnants of the night’s bonfire. The smoke was a thin column of grey climbing vertically into the still air. At their approach he looked up, startled, his hand reaching for a stick lying beside him on the ground. His response puzzled Finn. He carried on clutching his stick as they approached, as if frightened of Matt.
‘What do you want here?’ the old man asked. He stood up tall and straight, trying and failing to look fierce. His grey skin was little more than parchment stretched over a framework of bones. He looked ancient, as if one blow from Matt would crumple him to the ground.
‘Oh, nothing from you, old man. We’re just passing through. A bucket of water from the well is all we need.’
The man’s eyes were on Finn and Diane now.
‘Why are these two tied up? What are you doing with them?’
‘That’s none of your business, now, is it? said Matt. ‘You just sit there quietly and say nothing and we won’t have any problems.’
The two men seemed not to know each other after all. They certainly didn’t appear to be working together.
‘He caught us,’ Finn blurted out. ‘He’s going to take us to Engn, turn us over. Please, help us.’
Matt laughed and gave the rope a vicious yank, sending both Finn and Diane sprawling to the ground.
‘Now, now,’ said Matt. ‘This old bag of bones isn’t going to be able to help you. No-one is. We’ll take our water and be on our way to Engn. The gates will be opening soon.’
Finn scrambled back to his feet, Diane helping him upright. The old man sat there, clenching and unclenching his staff, his hands like the talons of a giant bird. But he did nothing to help them.
Matt made them haul up a leaking bucket of water from the well. He filled a flask, took a drink. He didn’t give any more water to them.
‘Well,’ he said. ‘Let’s be getting you to Engn, shall we?’
They set off again, over the grassy rise of ground, the pumping and whirring of Engn suddenly louder. Finn could see the six wheels, all of them turning now, looming beyond the wall.
They skirted around the edges of more and more clusters of houses. They seemed to huddle beneath the walls of Engn, sheltering from the winds, perhaps. Near these ramshackle little communities, Finn saw a few places where the land had been tilled and planted with vegetables. He also saw traps set out here and there like those back on Connor’s farm. Rabbits or rats. With what they could catch and their meagre crops and the water from the underground streams, the people here scratched out a living. This was how Matt must have been living all this time, seeing the gates to Engn open and close each day, waiting for his chance.
After a couple of hours of stumbling progress, Matt stopped and gave them each a sip of water. He took great gulps of it himself, spilling more to the ground than he let either of them have. Finn thought about his long journey to Engn years before, sitting inside the moving engine. Now here he was again, being taken to Engn, helpless. And this time there would be no bed or meal waiting for him. His stomach churned with anxiety at what lay ahead. For Diane as well. Somehow they had to get free. But he could see no way. They had nothing sharp they could use to cut the rope. Even if they did, Matt looked in better shape than either of them. He would soon catch them again. If they could incapacitate him, somehow, knock him out, then perhaps they could get far enough away. But he could think of no way of doing it. He glanced across at Diane, hoping she might have an idea, some plan to escape. But her head was down, watching the ground in front of them as they trudged along.
They stopped at around midday, the sun high in the blue sky, its heat pinning them to the ground. He could feel his skin burning. Too used to the dim chill of the caves. Matt had a rough hat, little more than a floppy cloth, that he draped over his bald head to keep the sun off. He gave them a few more sips of water and then began to chew on a lump of something he pulled from inside his jacket. He didn’t offer any to them.
Up ahead, the wall of Engn climbed upwards: a sheer, smooth cliff of grey rock. Another cluster of the little houses must be there too. It was invisible behind a rise in the ground but Finn could see another line of smoke, rising against the dark stone even in the noon heat. Why burn fires in this heat? It made no sense.
Glancing backwards he saw that all the other fires still burned too: indistinct plumes of smoke all across the plain. Most were solid lines but some had breaks in them where something had interrupted their rise. Realisation of what they really were came to him at the same moment as he saw the bulky, black figure atop a nearby rise. Another silhouette, but this one had the bulk and height of an Ironclad. The figure stood unmoving for a moment and then, weapon in hand, strode down the slope directly towards them.
Chapter 30
Finn slumped to the ground, Diane with him. Matt had let go of the rope but neither thought about running. They were too exhausted. Matt would hand them over to the Ironclads and that would be that.
The Ironclad broke into a run, racing towards them down the hill, brandishing a metal club. He cried out in fury. ‘I should have killed you when I had chance, Matt Dobey!’
Finn looked on in amazement. He recognized the voice immediately, of course. This was no Ironclad. Was it possible? His father wasn’t as tall as he remembered, but there he was, charging down to rescue them.
Matt fumbled for a knife from inside his jacket and held it forward, but he was too slow. His father, swinging his metal club, smashed Matt’s arm to one side, sending the knife flying.
‘Please, no. I can help you,’ said Matt, cowering to the ground. ‘I have friends in Engn.’ His father swung again, connecting with the side of Matt’s head, sending him crashing to the ground where he lay, still.
His father dropped his weapon and ran across to them. He hugged Finn into his chest, nearly crushing him. ‘Oh, my boy. My beautiful boy.’
Finn squeezed his father back as hard as he could.
‘And this must be Diane,’ his father said, looking over Finn’s shoulder.
‘Yes. You know her?’
‘Mrs. Megrim told us everything.’
‘I should have told you myself. I’m sorry.’
‘It doesn’t matter now.’
‘We? So mother is here too?’
‘She is. And Badger. I’ll take you to them now. It’s not far.’
‘But how did you find us?’
‘I saw Bran’s signals and wondered if it could be you. It looks like Matt saw them too.’
‘You mean the old man’s fire? The smoke?’
‘There’s a whole language to it if you can read it. We’re just lucky it’s a still day.’
‘I thought the old man - Bran - had betrayed us.’
‘No, no. He just put the word out. It’s what people do. I knew Diane had been captured recently and I thought, I hoped, the two of you had somehow managed to escape. And here you are. It’s a miracle.’
‘Matt was going to take us back. Buy favour with the masters.’
‘I know. Don’t worry about him. He can’t harm you any more.’
‘Is he dead?’
His father knelt down to examine Matt. The ground was stained red beneath his head. His father looked up. ‘Like I say, you don’t need to worry about him any more.’
Finn nodded.
‘Come on,’ said his father. ‘Let’s get you to your mother. It’ll be safer inside the hut. And there’s a lot to talk about.’
His mother didn’t speak when Finn ducked into the low hut. But Badger leapt at him in uncontained delight, all tongue and paws and wagging tail. His mother simply clutched him to her and rocked him from side to side as if he was still a baby. He didn’t protest. When she finally let go his eyes had adjusted to the gloom. She looked pinched, sucked dry, but the smile on her face was his mother’s old smile. She stroked his cheek as she studied him. ‘Oh, Finn. Look at you.’
They sat on the ground in a circle in the quiet darkness of the hut. Badger rested her head on Finn’s legs and closed her eyes. They ate freshly baked bread. It was the most delicious thing Finn had ever tasted. How did they manage to even make it out here? It was just one more miracle.
When he had eaten his fill he sat back and looked around in contentment. For the first time in years he felt safe. Felt he could relax, sleep safely. It was a glorious feeling. But, at the same time, he knew it was an illusion. They couldn’t stay here. Sooner or later the Ironclads would find them. He was only endangering his parents. If his father and Matt had read the smoke-signals, Engn could, too.
‘We’d better not stay long,’ he said. ‘The Ironclads will find us.’
‘It’s safer here than trying to cross the plain,’ said his father.
‘I’m not going to cross the plain. The thing is, I’m going to get back inside.’
‘Finn, no,’ said his mother. ‘You can’t do that.’
‘But I have to,’ said Finn. ‘Diane too. It’s the only way. We won’t be free or safe until we destroy the machine. Destroy everything.’
‘Oh, Finn,’ said his father. ‘You must know by now that’s not possible. You’ve seen how vast it is.’
‘I think there’s a way.’
‘What way?’
‘I don’t know. I mean, I don’t know the details. But I’m sure it’s possible. A plan put in place. I’ve been talking to Mrs. Megrim. She’s told us about a tunnel back inside. A secret tunnel. A way to get in touch with Shireen and Connor.’
‘Shireen? She’s still alive?’ said his mother.
‘You didn’t know?’ Somehow he’d imagined Mrs. Megrim or the wreckers inside Engn would had kept them informed.
‘No. Tell us,’ said his mother.
‘She’s alive and well. She’s in something called the Directory.’
‘How do you know all this?’ said his father. ‘How have you been talking to Mrs. Megrim?’
Finn held out the roll of paper from the line-of-sight. ‘It’s here,’ he said. ‘It’s all here.’
No-one spoke while his parents read. Finn watched the fear and the hope fighting on his mother’s face. His father simply frowned, deep in thought.
‘Don’t you see?’ said Finn when they’d finished. ‘This is our chance. Our only chance. With Shireen’s help we can find Connor and do … whatever it is we need to do.’
His father shook his head. ‘It’s crazy, Finn. You can’t really do this.’
‘I have to try, father. You brought me up to always do the right thing. That’s what I’m doing.’
‘But you’ll just get yourself killed,’ said his mother. ‘That’s not going to help anyone, is it?’
‘Look,’ said his father. ‘Idealism is all very well. But when you get a bit older you learn you can’t change everything. You learn you have to accept some things as they are.’
‘You don’t understand,’ said Finn.
‘I understand very well,’ said his father.
