Read Spooksville 17: The Thing in the Closet Online
Authors: Christopher Pike
Spooksville 17: The Thing in the Closet (9 page)
Zeta hesitated. 'Yes.'
Watch glanced at Adam, who seemed concerned by these remarks.
'It is possible your uncle is seeking an alliance with the Shadows?' Watch asked carefully.
But Zeta shook his head vigorously.
'Why would he go into league with those monsters?' he demanded.
'Why doesn't he push to get rid of those monsters?' Watch asked. 'Desperate people often do desperate things. To me it sounds as if your uncle is cornered. Cindy said you told her he didn't even want you travelling in this area.'
'He was concerned about my safety,' Zeta said.
Adam sighed. 'All these arguments are of no use. Let us return to Centrae now and see what we can learn.'
'Yeah,' Sally said. 'I don't care about local politics. I just want to get home.'
Zeta put his sword back in his belt. 'We will travel swiftly.'
'And he means it,' Cindy said.
Zeta led them out of the cave and back into the forest. For two hours they walked up and down a series of hills like those of the previous day. It did not take long for the gang to feel tired — Zeta walked so fast But eventually they reached a wide path and the way flattened.
Finally, far in the distance, they glimpsed a huge stone city. Zeta paused and pointed.
'There is Centrae,' he said.
'How long till we get there?' Adam asked.
'At this speed, eight hours,' Zeta said. 'But we should be there before night falls. Our days are longer than Earth's.'
'How do you know so much about Earth?' Watch asked.
'There are stories about it in the old books,' Zeta said. 'We know it lies beyond the Curtain of Dreams.'
'What's that?' Watch asked.
'The border of our world, of course,' Zeta said, surprised at the question. He seemed to think they should know what he meant.
They set off once more, at a brisk pace. Perhaps two hours had passed when they noticed a column of horse-drawn wagons approaching them on the path. Zeta stared at them for a long time before speaking. The front one carried a bright green and red flag. The wagons had caused a huge dust cloud to rise. It followed the column like a dark cloud.
'That is Duke Lester's flag,' Zeta said finally. 'I wonder what his people are doing out here.'
'Is he a friend of your uncle?' Cindy asked.
Zeta nodded. 'They are close friends. Duke Lester is one of the few people he trusts completely.'
'And he has sent him to look for you,' Watch remarked.
'Are you suggesting that this Duke might be a threat?' Adam asked.
'I am suggesting that something funny is going on in this area,' Watch said.
'You just got here,' Zeta protested. 'What do you know?'
'For one thing I know that the Shadows let us go last night,' Watch said.
'That is nonsense,' Cindy said. 'They were ready to eat me alive.'
'You, perhaps,' Watch said. 'But I don't think they intended to harm Zeta.'
Zeta was bitter. 'You were not there when I was attacked. I had to fight for my life.'
'But when has anyone ever escaped from so many Shadows?' Watch asked.
Zeta was annoyed. 'You are saying my uncle told them to spare me?'
Watch shrugged. 'Perhaps. Let us talk to this Duke. I am sure he has many interesting things to tell us.'
But they did not need to talk to the Duke Lester.
Even as his caravan drew near, they saw that several of the wagons were manned by Shadows. The monsters were actually driving the horses on. Zeta stared in shock and dismay.
'This cannot be happening,' he said.
Duke Lester reached them not long after. A tall man with pointed ears and a stunning red robe, he wore a crystal medallion round his neck. He stood up in the front cart and stepped forward to meet them. He did not seem pleased to see that Zeta had friends with him. He wanted to know who they were.
'I want to know how alt these guys know English,' Sally muttered.
'I think they pick it up from our brains,' Cindy muttered back. 'Or else I think we just hear their language as English. Remember, this is a supernatural place.'
Sally scowled at the nearby Shadows. 'I still think those monsters want to eat our brains.'
Zeta bowed slightly at the Duke's question.
'These are humans from earth,' Zeta explained. 'I met them in the Forbidden Territories, and helped them escape the clutches of the Shadows.' He glanced at the Shadows on the wagons and added, 'But I see I have not helped them far enough from this land.'
The Duke raised his hand. 'You are not to talk about what you have seen here today. That is a command from your uncle.'
Zeta was disturbed. 'Am I to keep silent about an alliance with these monsters? This partnership goes beyond reason. The people must know about it. You know these creatures would eat us alive if they could.'
The Duke smiled thinly. 'But they cannot at the moment. For the time being they are on our side in our war with Gilbrare. That is all that matters — that they can protect your uncle from being toppled from his throne.'
'And when the war is over?' Zeta demanded. 'What will the Shadows do then? What will they want for a reward? How many of us will they want to eat?'
The Duke cut him off with a sharp gesture. 'You and your friends are to climb aboard the rear wagon. You will be escorted back to Centrae. There you will await the King's judgment.'
'But my friends and I have done nothing wrong,' Zeta said.
The Duke raised an angry eyebrow. 'Oh? You chose to spy in the Forbidden Territories when you were told not to.'
'I came here to collect information to aid my uncle,' Zeta said.
'And you have learned more than you should have,' the duke said, turning away. 'Get in the last wagon. There will be no more discussion on this point.'
The Duke strode away. His guards stepped forward.
They carried long swords and looked serious.
The last wagon was manned by Shadows.
They slobbered hungrily as they waited.
Zeta turned to Watch. 'It seems everything you said is true. How did you know?'
'I understand rulers,' Watch said. 'For most of them, sadly, nothing is more important to them than staying in power. It is the same in our world. That is all I had to know to figure out what was going on here.'
Adam patted Zeta on the back. 'I am sorry about all this. We seem to have landed here at the wrong time.'
'Yeah,' Sally grumbled. 'And it looks like we're never going to get out of here.'
Ten
Later that same day they found themselves in a cold and dark stone prison far beneath the main palace. At least that was where Zeta thought they had been taken. After the Duke's guards had escorted them into the last wagon, they had been locked away from all sights and sounds. They had actually been blindfolded when the wagon stopped. The blinds had only been removed when they were shoved roughly into the prison.
At least they were together, and there seemed to be no Shadows in the immediate area.
The gang sat on the stone floor and watched while Zeta anxiously paced. Their only light was from a burning torch placed high in the corner. They had been in the prison for over an hour and were getting hungry and thirsty.
'I don't suppose you can call for room service in this place,' Sally said.
'I do not understand why my uncle has not sent for us,' Zeta said. 'He has to meet with me soon. I have to explain to him that this is all wrong.'
'Furma will not talk to you today,' Watch said. 'He may not talk to you until the war is over.'
Zeta stopped in his tracks. 'That is impossible.'
'Watch is right,' Adam said. 'The King cannot allow his secret to be known until the war is in full swing and your people are winning. Then and only then will he be able to justify an alliance with the Shadows.'
Zeta looked weary. 'You humans have a skill for bluntness.'
'It comes from living in Spooksville,' Sally said.
Zeta finally sat down. 'This Spooksville you speak of — is it a great kingdom on Earth?'
'It is just a small haunted coastal town,' Sally said.
'But it is home nevertheless,' Cindy said. 'We feel bad about what is going on here, really Zeta, but we do have to get back to our families. They will be worrying about us.'
'I am the one who feels bad,' Zeta said. 'I do not know how to return you to your home. But one thing's for sure — my uncle will do nothing to help you now.'
'I am still curious about this expression you use,' Watch said to Zeta. 'The Curtain of Dreams. You said it encloses your world. What did you mean by that exactly?'
Zeta gestured above. 'It is just there. It covers everything.'
Watch leaned forward. 'You gesture upwards. By it do you mean the sky?'
'Yes, of course. The Curtain of Dreams. It separates our world from others. Is it not the same in your world?'
'Not exactly,' said Watch before turning to Adam and Sally. 'Do you remember that falling sensation right after we chased the Shadow through the rear of George's closet?'
'Yeah,' Adam said. 'I thought we were going to hurt ourselves when we landed.'
Watch nodded 'Each of us fell as if we'd landed. And maybe we had.'
'What are you saying?' Sally asked. 'That we fell out of the sky when we came here?'
Watch paused.'Yes.'
Sally laughed. 'That is the stupidest thing I ever heard.