Special Smashwords Edition
Castle:
The Fall To Domum
By
J H Wear
Special Smashwords Edition
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Published by
Melange Books, LLC
White Bear Lake, MN 55110
Castle 1, J H Wear, Copyright 2009-2011
ISBN 978-1-61235-994-6
Names, characters, and incidents depicted in this book are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental and beyond the intent of the author or the publisher. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Credits
Editor: Taylor Evans
Copy Editor: Mae Powers
Format Editor: Mae Powers
Cover Artist: A. Bratt
Castle – The Fall To Domum
By
J H Wear
After inheriting an Irish castle, Jon and his girlfriend Liz find themselves thrust into the world of Domum. The two must search for a crystal that will aid them in finding their way home, if they can survive the dangers of the many harrowing twists and turns of adventure the two find themselves caught up in.
http://www.jhwear.com/index.html
Also by J H Wear:
Night Moves Anthology: At The Edge Of Darkness
Shadows And Sensations, an anthology
Table of Contents
Castle – The Fall To Domum
By
J H Wear
PART 1: The Truth Can Be An Elusive Commodity
‘Relax And Take The Bus’. The words chiselled in the sign haunted Robert Jon McKinney as he peered out of the bus window. Jon had squeezed his bulk across the hard vinyl seats in a vain attempt to find comfort on the finely cracked green vinyl; the seat in front of him forcing him to sit slightly sideways. He ran his hand back through his short dark hair to try to smooth it down. His girlfriend Nadine Newman described his hair like that of a dandelion ready to explode. He really didn’t think that it was an accurate assessment or a particularly funny one. Of course Nadine’s comments didn’t stop just at his hair, sometimes she indicated his weight was a bit on the high side as well. More than just indicate actually and it made him wonder at times why she went out with him. Jon was a big man and not soft, but he didn’t scare anyone when entered a room.
The sign he recalled was done on chipped paint on the side of a brick wall of an equally worn building that he saw on the cab ride over from the airport. That should have given Jon a hint of things to come when he boarded the bus.
He felt a bit apprehensive about the final leg of his journey when the driver, a heavyset man approaching the age of retirement, yawned as he went past him. The bus, which had its best years behind it, was less than half full and Jon was able to have a bench seat for himself.
An hour after lurching through stop signs and traffic lights the bus made its way into the countryside. Jon slouched in his seat and stared out of the window.
* * * *
Two weeks ago he had sat in a lawyer’s office with Nadine to receive an inheritance from his Uncle Gordon Miller. He recalled meeting his uncle only once as a young boy when the tall, distinguished man visited the family in Boston. Jon didn’t talk much with him, at nine years old he didn’t have a lot to say that grown-ups were interested in, but it seemed his mother’s brother took a liking to him anyway and left something for him in his will. At first he thought it was odd that he was left anything at all but Uncle Gordon often asked about him in his letters and paid for a sizable portion of his college tuition.
Nadine had to come along with him to the lawyer’s office and the family rumours of his uncle’s hidden riches made her excited as they exited the elevator on the twenty-fifth floor. Nadine, a short, small boned blonde with her hair tied tight to her head in a bun preceded Jon into the office. They had to wait several minutes past their two o’clock appointment and Jon took in the thick carpet, the dark oak walls and the original paintings on the wall. He felt a bit intimidated wearing just a golf shirt and black jeans. A woman came from around the opening in the reception area and beckoned them to follow her.
“Mr. Van der Velde will see you now.”
Unlike the receptionist Van der Velde seemed to be pleased to see them and apologized for their wait. He stood up at his desk and opened his hand towards the chairs sitting in front. Van der Velde, a tall sixty year old on a slim frame, had retained most of his silver white hair.
“First, Mr. McKinney, I need your signature on these documents … and these … and these.”
Jon signed several legal documents as Mr. Van der Velde carefully explained the reason for each piece of fourteen-inch paper.
“Now you may think the requirements of the will are a bit peculiar but rest assured that many wills have special conditions attached to them before they can be fulfilled.”
Van der Velde paused and peered at them from the top of his bi-focal glasses. They nodded as they leaned forward in the soft leather chairs.
“First, he has bestowed upon you the legal possession of a castle, its land and any contents inside.”
He paused as Jon sat upright and Nadine gasped as she covered her mouth with her hand. Van der Velde slid over the desk a set of papers folded together.
“There is also an item of some import inside this sealed envelope.”
He lifted up a bulging envelope.
“The instructions in the will stipulate that you may not open this envelope until you have read and agreed to the terms of this final document inside this other envelope.”
He held up a second envelope, this one flat.
“The final stipulation of the will states that you read this document alone, that it is for your eyes only, within twenty four hours of accepting the legal document giving you possession of the castle.”
He looked at his watch.
“The time is now fourteen minutes after two o’clock. If you wish you may read the document in a room we have for consultations. I would advise you do this as I can then verify that you have met all legal requirements of the will and will be able to attest to that fact if the need should arise.”
‘Robert’ – Uncle Gordon had not known Jon had switched over to using his middle name – ‘I can only ask that you follow these final instructions as I have no way of enforcing them. I can only trust your own good judgment on these conditions.
1) Take particular care of the necklace; it is not valuable in a monetary sense but rather as a symbol and conveyance of power.
2) Visit and claim possession of the castle as soon as possible, if possible within a few days of reading this document. Please don’t delay on this request.
When you arrive at the castle, and it is best you do so alone, you will likely soon discover the secret that I cannot reveal now. I have left you additional information in a desk located in a small study on the main floor.
I also ask you not to reveal the contents of this letter to anyone. In good conscience I must warn you that there is a degree of danger for you. There are forces out there that will stop at nothing to gain what you now have. Be careful whom you trust, they may not be what they appear. I wish I could tell you more, but I doubt you would believe the truth. Besides, as I have learned over the years the truth is an elusive commodity.
I understand if you think of me as a bit of a madman, but I have given these items to you because of all my relatives and acquaintances you alone seem to possess the character and intellect for the task that may come to you.
Sincerely Uncle Gordon
Jon sat alone in the small office the lawyer had provided and reread the letter. Uncle Gordon was known as an eccentric in the family. Well off, but a bit odd. He scratched at his chin as he tried to read more into the letter but the mystery remained.
* * * *
Jon considered it fortunate that he was able to fly to Ireland in the middle of summer. He would be able to see the castle and return home and not likely miss any of his final year of college. Nadine saw him off at the airport, along with parents and older sister. They stood apart from each other; neither the parents nor Nadine were particularly fond of each other though they were always civil when together. Nadine was still upset that he wouldn’t reveal the letter contents to her, though when he told her, “It’s a promise and condition,” she seemed to accept that explanation. She also wanted him to postpone his flight for a few of weeks so she could arrange time off from work but he denied her request on that as well. It all made for an awkward goodbye.
Despite Nadine’s anger at him for leaving on the first available flight, or perhaps because of it, Jon felt relaxed and happy as he sat back on his seat.
At Shannon Airport he walked around while waiting for his next flight, making use of a pay phone to call Nadine’s apartment. He was surprised that he could only leave a message on her answering machine, after she had told him to phone when he arrived in England.
Slightly peeved he phoned his parents house, only to be surprised again when his sister answered.
“Hi there. Mom and dad are out in the back. We’re here for dinner,” Sandra was referring to her husband Martin and their son Jason. “How’s the weather there?”
“Don’t know, haven’t left the terminal yet. Did Nadine tell you where was going to be later today? I tried her place but she wasn’t home.”
She sighed. “No, she doesn’t like to talk to the rest of the family, remember?”
He remembered all right. He remembered both sides giving him their opinion of each other. His sister once called her an anorexic witch to him, a comment that caused him to chastise her. He felt uncomfortable telling off his older sister but felt that time she had crossed the line in her comments. And as he pointed out at the time, although she was small framed she certainly had an appetite. In fact her love for rare steak was a bit startling when he saw her eat.
“Yeah, but I thought she may have said something in passing.”
“Sorry, as soon as you walked through that gate she was gone. Don’t fret, I’m sure you’ll hear from her soon enough. Hey, do you want to talk to mom?”
He talked to his mother for a couple a minutes and then went to get a magazine.
The bus ride was determined to make sure he didn’t get any more rest. He still wasn’t able to get a hold of Nadine and was getting a little concerned about her. He stared out at the moving countryside. The glass gave an odd reflection of the interior of the bus imposed on the outside. It gave the impression of two different worlds fighting for the same space.
* * * *
The bus finally completed its last stop, the town of Ballymiller. The driver in dry voice announced the stop without joy, adding a comment in such a flat voice Jon wasn’t sure if he was joking.
“Eighty five hundred souls, eighty six if ye count the ones without bodies.”
The hour was late and he checked in the Demister Hotel across the street from the bus stop. The room was small, though comfortable but used dark colours. An air freshener had been used in the room making the air smell of decaying flowers. The TV received only the local channels and after trying the two stations he decided the local pub would be a better place to spend the remaining hours of the evening.
The Demister Pub was located next door in the same building as the hotel though for reasons unexplained to him he had to go outside of the hotel to gain access to the pub. The bar was quite full and lively which he found surprising for a Wednesday night. He ordered a pint of warm beer and a sandwich from an energetic young blonde woman from behind the bar and then went to a small table with the beer. She had stopped moving long enough to give him a warm smile and advised him which beer would be more suited to his taste and then suggested a sandwich. As he sat he watched part of a darts tournament and eyed the some of the people around him. Charlene then introduced herself a bit more formally by shaking his hand when she bought him the sandwich, chatting with him for a moment before running off to do some more work.
As he neared the bottom of his glass a couple of women at a neighbouring table struck up a conversation with him. Intrigued with his American accent they invited him to join their table consisting of several members of a darts team. Jon, though not used to being the centre of attention, enjoyed the banter and the jokes.
The barmaid swung by the table and as she stood by Jon rested a hand on his shoulder. “Well then, are we having another round?” she squeezed his shoulder a bit, “Who’d be buying?”
Jon didn’t need any more of a hint than that.
“That would be me.”
Everyone at the table grinned happily at the news. Apparently he passed some sort of test with the four male darts players and the two girls.
They soon found the reason why he was visiting their Ballymiller, to claim ownership of the Miller Castle.
“So do you know the story behind the Miller Castle? Or the whole town for that matter?”
Tori had short almond coloured hair and a medium sized frame. She wore clothes as though she were a size smaller, causing her to receive attention from the men around her.
“No. Uncle Gordon was known as being a little eccentric but I can’t say anything beyond that.”
“Well then I can tell you the castle and the area is haunted, and not just by human ghosts either.”
Thomas chimed in, “Tis true. I myself saw a demon near there with me own eyes. Ganky thing. Disappeared in a blink of an eye.”
Jon was told of other strange happenings around the castle that included leprechauns, goblins and other assorted creatures. The common denominator seemed to be the ability of the creatures to vanish a moment later and for most of the sightings to be around the castle itself.
“Well that all sounds interesting. Did Uncle Gordon ever talk about them?”
Travis laughed.
“Himself? I can't say your uncle ever talked about them or anything else for that matter.”
Liz shushed him.
“Your uncle was a private man, that’s all. I talked to himself a couple of times and was always nice.”
She rested a hand on his knee. Liz tossed her long blonde behind her head. She was average height with a nice figure that was still obvious under her loose T-shirt and blue jeans. Jon was momentarily taken back by her touch. Back at Boston young ladies didn’t seem to find him interesting enough to flirt with him.
“Where did you talk to him?”
“That would be at the café where I work. He’d stop in from time to time for lunch. We didn’t talk about those creatures, just stuff like the weather.”
“Oh. How did he die? I was never told.”
“Well I'm sorry to say he was presumed drown. Your uncle went fishing from a pier near thee castle. His fishing stuff was found on thee end of the dock. But your uncle had disappeared.”
“Never found the body,” Travis pointed out as he took a long drink. He didn’t look too keen on Liz cozying up with Jon, watching them closely.
“Yeah, but the lake is deep, more like a loch.” Liz turned her attention on Jon, twisting in her chair. “They hoped his body was going to show up after a bit. Sorry, didn’t mean to be crude.”
“That’s okay. I only met him once, when I was young. But the police figure that was the only explanation, that he fell off the dock and then drowned?”
“You’ll have to take a look at the dock. You can see it’s pretty old and slopes down at a pretty grand angle. It was pretty chilly the morning he disappeared and would have been wearing heavy clothing. The cold water would have soaked into the clothing and pulled him down fast.”
“I’ll have to take a look. I’m going to get the keys and location of the castle tomorrow morning.”
“'tis not hard to find, far end of town.”
She got up and put on her coat.
“I best be heading. I have to work in the morning.”
She looked at him. “Care to walk me home?”
His eyes opened wide at the possibility. “Oh, yeah sure.”
He quickly put on his own coat, bid everyone goodbye and followed Liz out the door. She lived only a short distance away but they managed to squeeze a fair amount of conversation in that time. She found out he had played football, “you must be good, you’re so big and strong” and that he was studying to be a computer network analyst “you must be really smart” and generally made him feel on top of the world. She gave him a quick kiss at her house, quietly because she didn’t want to wake her parents, and received a promise from him to call her.
Halfway back to his hotel he remembered Nadine and felt a rush of guilt feelings. In his bed he thought of Nadine again and wondered why he couldn’t get a hold of her. Then he finally he reflected on Liz and how good she made him feel about himself, something Nadine didn’t seem to do. How odd, he contemplated, that he had to travel across the ocean to get a compliment. He knew she was only flirting with him but still it was a good feeling.
The next morning he rose early, his biological clock still hadn’t adjusted to Europe. After breakfast and he went to visit the lawyer's office. The morning sun quickly burned off the early fog, promising a warm day. He decided when he woke up that he would walk to the lawyer’s office and then to the castle rather than take a taxi, assuming even there was one in the town. He left his suitcase at the hotel, still not sure if he would spend the night at the castle or would return to the hotel.
The white haired gentleman that was currently acting as a lawyer had him sign some papers and then gave him a collection of keys, including a rusty skeleton key. By the time he left it was quite warm and he carried his jacket to the iron gate of the Miller Castle. The first key opened the padlock that secured the short chain that went through the bars of the gate. He walked along the curved gravelled roadway to the two massive front doors and there he hesitated before carefully slipping the skeleton key in the lock. The right door opened slowly to his push quietly until near the end of its journey when it gave out a squeak. Jon stood there at the door, facing the gloom of grey stonewalls as cool air blew past him causing goose bumps to appear on his arms and a shiver to race down his back.
Jon took a deep breath and boldly stepped inside, leaving the door open so more light could enter into the dim interior. Not, he told himself, that he was concerned about any ghosts or demons.
The main room that adjoined the entrance hall rose two stories high with a staircase located at the rear wall. A gaudy red and gold short piled rug covered the marble floor where several oversized chairs sat around a coffee table. A thin layer of dust covered the table and other horizontal surfaces. Along a wall a large fireplace sat with half burnt logs inside the hearth with a stack of chopped wood sitting next to it. Jon took in the huge chandelier marking the centre of the room, the large rectangular windows high above, the large paintings and the large everything in the room. Some parts of the room were well lit from the sunlight that poured through the windows but there still dark shadows hid other areas.
Jon noticed a lamp cord that ran to an outlet attached to the wall. The outlet sat outside the wall in a metal box with a metal conduit running from it before disappearing around a corner. It looked like the modern convenience of electricity was added to the castle so that it would not tamper with the original stonewalls.
He tried the lamp but the electricity had been turned off. Jon attempted to look in some of the other rooms but wasn’t willing to do too much exploring without light. He did find the study, a dark room with a single small window located next to the kitchen. Another key opened the desk drawer and there he found a large yellow envelope with his name on it, ‘Robert McKinney’, testifying his Uncle Gordon addressed it several years ago. He carried the envelope to the front hall when he heard a scampering sound in the kitchen. Jon didn’t investigate what caused it, be it a mouse or a ghost. He quickly left the castle and locked the front door behind him.
Jon released his breath. He clutched the envelope and decided he wasn’t going to let the stories of ghosts cause him to overreact. As his heart rate began to slow down he walked around the outside of the castle, fighting the overgrown plants encroaching the stone path to the back. It wasn’t always easy to see where the path led but a few minutes later he found the back yard. The grass needed cutting and the hedge trimming but it looked like it had been taken care of in the past. The yard extended towards the lake and Jon saw the pier that was slowly sinking at the far end into the water, one side dropping more than the other. A large tackle box sat at the edge. He decided fishing on the edge there could be a hazard. He stared out towards the lake, watching the water lap towards the shore and thought it looked rather peaceful. Jon suddenly felt a tickling at the back of his neck causing him to turn around quickly. He thought he saw a shadow disappear at the edge of the castle and that was enough for Jon to call a retreat. He hurried back along the path and once at the front retied the chain and padlock at the gate.
“Damn stories of ghosts last night are working on my mind.”
He shook his head and decided to get something to eat and read what was inside the envelope.
In after thought he supposed it wasn’t much of a coincidence; it was close by to the castle and there could not have been too many cafes in Ballymiller. However it was a pleasant surprise to find Liz there and she was happy to see him.
“Hey, fancy seeing you here. Were you at the Miller Castle?”
“Yeah, but it was pretty dark in there, they’d shut off the electricity.”
“You didn’t bump into any ghosts now, did you?”
He gave a nervous laugh. “No, I think they were all in hiding.”
“When are you heading back?”
“Well, I’m not sure. I guess I’ll have to get the power back on or maybe use a flashlight.”
“If you like I’ll go with you. Me parents have some torches we can use.”
He readily agreed. Some company going into that castle would be welcome, especially with someone like Liz. He actually made two dates with her, one at the pub later that night and a second one for tomorrow to return to the castle after she finished work at the café.
During his lunch he opened the envelope and read a second letter from his uncle.
Robert –
I trust you will take this information with an open mind. You may find it bizarre, but allow me tell you of my own investigation.
If one does even cursory examination of the tales of fabled creatures such as goblins, leprechauns, ogres, fairies or ghouls it becomes apparent that these myths must have had some basis for their being. It is easy to reduce these creatures to mere superstition and imagination but that doesn’t explain the persistence of these myths over time and different locations.
If you, like myself at one time, still scoff at suggestions there may be something behind these tales then do what I did and ask people in Ballymiller if they have seen any strange creatures. Their answers are not lacking in conviction, and their insistence that the best place to see them was at the castle inspired me to renovate the castle and live here.
Previously I was an absentee landlord of the castle but I moved in to prove or disprove an existence of the creatures. Robert, without a word of a lie I have found that the castle appears to be a gateway to another world! How I do not know, but I have had enough interaction with various creatures to know this is true. My plan is to find a means in which I can cross over from where they came.
The necklace with the crystal is very old and has been handed down through generations. It was willed to me as one of a pair. Where the other one is I cannot say. The crystal is a key of some sort and is much sought after in the other world (or as the Alternative World as I’ve come to call it).
A final note: I have learned some of these Alternative World beings may be living among us in disguise or at least hiding very well. Be wary of those who take too much interest in what you are here for.
Sincerely, Uncle Gordon
Jon carefully placed the letter back in the envelope and finished his lunch. The walk back to the hotel was slow as he contemplated the contents of the letter. The desk clerk was a young man with jet-black hair and a weak growth of hair on his chin who displayed a nervous energy at any task given to him. He grabbed the register book when Jon announced he would be staying at least another night and then handed him a message written in a barely legible scrawl of a name and phone number.
“Uh, your sister called sir. Early this morning. Just after you left”, the clerk added the last statement with an anxious smile.
Jon went to his room and immediately phoned his sister.
“Hey sis, you called.”
“Yeah I did. Everything going okay down there? Have you been to the castle?”
“Everything’s fine. I went to the castle but without any power or lights it was hard to see anything. I’m going to try again when I can get some lights.”
“I guess there’s no hurry, the castle has been there a few hundred years,” a pause “Look, I phoned Nadine at her apartment but didn’t get any answer so I phoned her at work. That place with the weird name, DeltaBio. She was a bit curt with me that I phoned her there but she calmed down when I told her you had been trying to reach her. She did ask if you were okay and I said as far as I knew you were. Anyway the gist of it was she got an emergency call at work and that’s where she’s been pretty much the past couple of days.”
“Thanks, I was getting a bit concerned.”
“Wouldn’t have hurt her to call you and let you know what she was doing. What do you see in her? She must be real good in bed.”
“Sandra! That’s none …”
“Relax, I’m just joking. You know me, no tact at all.”
“Yeah, I know. Must make you a good lawyer though.”
“Thanks, I think. How’s Ireland?”
“Nice. I’m enjoying it here. They have some nice pubs here.”
“That’s a surprise Mr. Social Butterfly. Are you just sightseeing or are you meeting new people?”
“Uh, a little of both.”
“Well, well, well. Some of them female, I hope?”
“They’re just being friendly.” Jon felt himself feeling uncomfortable.
“I’ll bet.”
They ended the conversation with Jon wondering how Sandra always could put him on the defensive. He thought about Nadine and despite the time they spent together they had not yet been really intimate, let alone being great in bed. He did find that a little perplexing but she claimed she needed time to get used to him. Her own history of being raised as a foster child made it understandable it would take time for her to lower her barriers, though it was odd that she was the aggressor when they first met.
He phoned Nadine but only had the answering machine to talk to, again leaving the hotel‘s phone number. He washed up before heading to the pub to meet Liz. He wondered what he was doing meeting her on a date, feeling guilty that he was cheating on Nadine. He finished his dinner at the pub, currently quiet of people and noise. He waited for Liz, nursing his beer and chatted with Charlene. The conversation drifted about Liz when he told her he was meeting her.
“Nice lassie. She is back here for the summer university. She had trouble keeping the local lads in line though, as they all wanted to be the one keeping her company. So she refused to date any of them so there wouldn’t be any problems. All the same I don’t think she’s had to buy a drink yet this summer,” she laughed. “I should have her problem. And speak of the devil,” she nodded towards the door.
Liz bounced in wearing a short top and tight jeans. Jon took a deep breath and waved at her. He glanced at the clock in the bar as they made their way to a table near the back. She was right on time at half past six. Nadine usually kept him waiting and he found it annoying she rarely bothered to apologize or explain her tardiness. They drank and talked. She asked him several questions about Boston and was pleased to hear he loved the Boston Celtics.
“Grand Irish name. Do you have many girlfriends back home? Anyone special?”
He froze as he raised his glass to take a drink, and then took a drink to give him time to think what to say.
“Uh, no I don’t have a lot of girlfriends. Just one, she’s, that is, she’s the one I’m going out with.”
Liz laughed and patted his arm.
“It’s okay. You won’t be breaking me heart when you head back to Boston. I’m here just for a good time too, so let’s just try to have some fun.”
They continued to talk and he started to feel hungry again. He looked at his watch. The time was approaching nine o’clock and he wondered how the time went by so quickly.
“Hey, are you hungry? Want to order some food?”
She laughed. “I bet you can eat all the time. But the pubs here don't serve grub much past dinner time. You're out of luck.”
Jon shrugged his shoulders, mentally translating what she said. Her way of speaking with an accent made him aware that she probably had trouble understanding him too. Still he did enjoy listening to her speak with a lilt in her voice. “Well I guess I have enough body weight to hold me for a while longer.”
They chatted a bit longer when Liz glanced at the clock on the wall behind the bar. “It's getting to closing time. We best leave before they kick us out.”
As they walked down the street they slipped arms around each other’s waist. Just before they reached the next street he took a gamble and turned her towards himself to kiss her.
She grinned. “First American I ever kissed.”
“First Irish girl I ever kissed too.”
She looked at her watch. “It's after eleven. I have to get up early even if you don’t.”
He proceeded to walk her home, holding her hand along the way.
“How come you picked the Demister?”
“It was right across from the bus stop and was cheap.”
“Room okay?”
“Yeah, I suppose so. Would you like to see it sometime?”
“Shame on you. That was a bit forward.” She laughed. “No, though the offer is tempting for when we know each a bit more.”
He suddenly realized she thought he was offering something else and hadn’t said no to another time. He hadn’t it meant that way but now was elated she was willing to. They stopped in front of her parent’s house again, kissing once more. He tried to slip his hand under her shirt before she gently pushed him away.
“Me father would have a fit if he caught us necking out here. I’ll see you tomorrow, alright?”
He stood at the front of her house until she closed the front door and then walked out onto the deserted street.
Liz stopped to look out the front window, pushing the curtain to the side just enough to see outside. Jon was walking slowly and then suddenly took two quick steps, jumped while raising his arms above his head before yelling touchdown! She covered her mouth to stifle a laugh before going upstairs to bed.
* * * *
The following day Jon finally was able to reach Nadine at her apartment. She sounded tired and spoke only briefly before complaining she needed to get some sleep.
“Look, things are going really bad at work. I’m tired and not feeling very good.”
“Maybe you just need some rest. Can’t you take some time off from work?”
“Hardly. Crisis situation.”
“Are you going to be able to fly down soon?”
It was such a long pause before she spoke he almost started to repeat his question.
“Why, do you miss me?”
There was a hint of sarcasm and then another pause.
“Look, I have to go. I have your number at the hotel. Be careful, there’s danger at … never mind. Just be careful.”
He hung up feeling rather perplexed. The ‘Do you miss me’ question hinted she knew about Liz, and what did she mean ‘be careful’? She seemed to know more than she was willing to say and there was a suggestion of a particular place of danger as well. But he still felt more distant than ever from her, and a few minutes later his thoughts returned to Liz.
Liz went upstairs after closing the curtain again. She grinned as she made her way quietly to her bedroom; the memory of Jon jumping up in the air so excited made her feel special. True, she told herself, he was just supposed to visiting Ballymiller but he did inherit the Miller Castle. This meant, she assumed, that he was likely to be around a bit longer. Unfortunately she had to go back to university in the fall so that would put an abrupt end to any romance anyway. Likely. But you never know … the unfinished thought drifted away.
Still there was something about him that drew her towards him, even on the first night when she decided to invite him to their table and flirt. Perhaps, she reflected, it was due partly to the relief of not having to worry about how much dating she was pressured to do with the local boys. She didn’t want a relationship with anyone destined to live their lives out in Ballymiller. An image of her cooking, cleaning and raising two kids while her man went to the local pub didn’t appeal to her at all. Best stop any pretences of romance they may have with her right in the bud. As far as Jon was concerned, maybe it was just because he was someone new and spoke with a strange accent, but whatever it was he had gotten under her skin.
The next morning while yawning she made her way to work, almost forgetting the torches they needed to visit the castle. Business at the café was slow but steady, with old Mr. Doherty being the usual pest in asking for endless cups of tea. Her shift was to end at two and she checked her watch several times as one o’clock approached. Jon finally made it in and she hurried over to his table to see how he was doing.
She knew he had a girlfriend back in Boston, though she didn’t know how serious that relationship was and in the meantime considered it wasn’t obviously close enough to stop him from looking around. Besides this was just a summer thing anyway; what could come out of a chance encounter with a man who now owned a castle? This was just a fling, something that that would end soon enough by one of them leaving to go back to Boston or the other to university.
They chatted about their day, and when he ordered a sandwich she had an excuse to talk with him a bit more at his table. This annoyed some of the other customers but none of them were in a hurry to leave in any event as far as Liz was concerned.
They walked hand in hand after her shift down the partial concrete walks to the castle. Parts of the walk had never been paved and they used the sparsely travelled road to continue. She, like most people in Ballymiller, had never seen the inside of the Miller castle. She was a bit anxious with anticipation when he pushed open the front door.
The castle was cooler by several degrees than the outside and her summer top and short skirt quickly caused her to feel a bit of a chill. Jon didn’t seem to notice the difference. Of course, she noticed, he had enough weight to be able to absorb a few degrees of coolness without a problem.
After they left the main room that had been converted to a living room they had to switch on what he called flashlights to see into the other parts of the castle. It was a bit unnerving and she stayed close to him as the beams danced ahead. Liz felt her imagination was taking leaps into the unknown. Twice she thought her light caught something for a split second only for it to vanish. She also felt eyes were watching her and she took a quick glance behind her looking for the source but saw nothing.
The flashlights made shadows appear to move as living creatures as the light slid over objects. He gave her a tour of the castle, though he was as unfamiliar with it as she was. They left most of the upstairs rooms for another time when she complained of getting a chill. Liz had hoped the castle would be a romantic place for them to spend some time together but between the chill and the feeling of something else lurking about she just wanted to leave.
Jon took her outside again and the sun quickly warmed her up. They left via the front door to go to the back and she saw the path he had used the previous day. Liz could guess how the back yard must have looked when it was still being looked after.
“Hey, there’s the back door. It must lead to the kitchen or someplace like that.”
He walked over and peered through the glass window, trying to make out was on the other side.
“Can’t see nothing. But at least it’s better than having to walk around the whole castle every time we want to go to the back.”
It didn’t escape Liz’s attention he used the word ‘we’ and she was pleased at his unconscious inclusion of her. He rejoined her where she stood on the edge of the small brick patio.
“What’s kept in there?”
She pointed with her free hand, the other being wrapped around his waist. A small green wood garden shed stood partially hidden by a large oak tree. Thick black wires ran from it to the castle.
“I dunno. Tools maybe.”
They walked over the small wooden building and then pulled open the unlocked door, the padlock hanging open at the latch.
“What is that? A motor of some kind?” Liz took in the orange metal object.
“It’s a generator,” a moment of realization crossed his face, “Uncle Gordon must have used this to provide power to the castle.”
“How do you start this thing? Does it still work?”
Liz watched him walked around the dim interior with his flashlight. He tapped on a tank. “That’s the gas tank and it’s empty. We could put some gas in it and see if it’ll start.”
“Why don’t we chucker that tomorrow? Let’s go for a drink and a maybe a bite.”
Jon seemed quite willing to give up on the project of starting the generator for a chance to eat. Liz suggested the Demister Hotel and they made their way there just as some of the regulars had sat down. They accepted the invitation to join them, with Jon buying a round for the table. Liz waited until Jon had eaten and then rested a hand on his lap.
“'Hey, I’ve had enough to drink. How about showing me your hotel room?”
He almost spilled his beer but recovered in time to nod and then gulped down the rest of his drink.
The room was much like she expected, the older hotels had small rooms. Still it was clean and reasonably well appointed. Jon was nervous and excused himself to go the washroom where she heard him make use of his toothbrush. She sat on the edge of the bed and looked around before her eyes fell on the night table holding a small lamp with a folded piece of yellow memo paper lying by it side. She picked it up and looked at the scrawled message: Sandra Draper, call as soon as possible. A phone number was attached underneath.
“Well,” she murmured to herself “at least I know the name of me competitor.”
She carefully refolded the paper and replaced it.
He seemed better composed when he entered the room again and she relaxed a bit more herself. Liz felt that perhaps she was being a bit too forward with him and didn’t want to appear that anxious to go to bed with him. He sat down next to her and the small talk led to hand holding, then kisses and finally clothes being pushed off to the side.
He certainly wasn’t the most experienced lover she had been with, but he was caring and kept her in his arms afterwards. She relaxed against him and started asking him how long he was planning to stay in Ballymiller.
“Uh, I guess planning is the wrong word. My ticket is open ended. I figured I would take a month to check out the castle and the country. I can’t afford to stay in this hotel too long. I figured I’ll check out other types of accommodation, maybe even staying in the castle.”
“A month. Hmm, I can do some checking for extra rooms in homes around here. Should be a few that would be willing to take someone in for a few weeks. And then there’s the haunted castle.”
She nudged him in the ribs and laughed.
“Thanks. I think I’ll get the power up and running so I can look around better. As far as staying there, perhaps it’s a little too rustic for my tastes.”
She laughed.
“Yeah, like old ghosts.”
They kissed a few more times and then she insisted on leaving, explaining her parents would have a fit as it was coming home this late.
Reluctantly he walked her home and expressed relief that the lights were out in her parent’s home and they were not waiting up for her.
The next morning she met up with him after breakfast and together they went back to the castle. Jon borrowed an old metal jerry can from a service station and used that to pour some gas back into the generator’s tank.
Liz watched him study the controls for the generator and lift off a cover.
“Battery’s dead. This generator uses a small electric motor to start it and that motor in turn uses a battery. I might be able to pull start the generator.”
Liz trained the flashlight on where he grabbed a cord with a black rubber handle at the end and pulled. And pulled. And then pulled some more.
“Getting tired?”
“No, but my shoulder is complaining.”
He fiddled with the top of the motor and he played with a couple the devices there, mumbling to himself about the ‘choke’ and ‘prime the damn thing’. He replaced the covers and pulled again and this time the generator sputtered. Three more tries and the generator stayed on.
“You did it!”
He stood there grinning.
Liz led the way back into the castle, entering through the back door this time. Once they were inside they tried the various light switches. Most of the lights came on and for the first time they could see how the inside looked.
Liz noticed the paintings hanging on the stonewalls were mostly scenes of medieval times. The colours in the paintings and the other furnishings were generally rich, as if Gordon Miller was trying to breathe life into the rooms despite the grey walls and floor. Liz started the fire in the fireplace. Her parents had one and was quite use to using one. She was glad Jon didn’t try to take over, as most men were prone to do.
With the fire burning and lights on the castle didn’t seem so fearful, and Liz didn’t get the feeling anyone or anything was watching them. She sat against him on the couch and then heard his stomach growl.
“Getting hungry again are we?”
“A little.”
She took out her mobile.
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Why she did that she wasn’t certain. She rarely had invited boys over before to meet her parents, let alone have them come over for supper. But before she knew it she had called her parents and asked if she could bring over a special friend from Boston.
“There, it’s settled. You are invited to eat at my parent’s place,” she grinned happily at his puzzled face, “They won’t bite, honest.”
She then remembered she had told them he was a special friend and then also recalled she hadn’t come home the previous night. Her parents would put two and two together rather quickly on that one, she supposed. She doubted it would even be worth it to tell them she had stayed overnight at her girlfriend’s place. The lie would be too obvious.
* * * *
Liz was pleased her parents didn’t even frown when they arrived. In fact they were great hosts, smiling nicely, asking only polite questions and offering him a drink. Her father, she thanked the Lord, didn’t ask him what his future plans were and talked instead about American football and rugby. Her dad was a big man, almost as tall as Jon but about the same weight, and had played rugby in a senior league until a knee injury forced him to stop.
Liz wasn’t surprised he enjoyed the dinner and complimented Margaret O’Doul several times as he ate. Margaret began to blush after the third compliment, the redness in her cheeks accenting her red hair. She was small woman and managed to keep looking younger than her fifty-two years.
After dinner Liz helped her mother wash the dishes while Jon and her father Patrick retired in the living room with cans of Guinness.
“Your man is a pure nice, Lizzy.”
“That he is.”
A moment dragged on as she passed a plate over to be dried.
“You spent last night with himself?”
To Liz her voice was casual, perhaps too casual. The question wasn’t really a question; just a confirmation what her mother already suspected.
“Aye.”
She turned to watch her mother’s face looking a sign of disapproval but her face continued to look relaxed.
“Your father would have a fit, you know,” she passed over a glass, “thinks you spent last night at Tori’s.”
“He doesn’t have to know, does he?”
“Not from me he won’t. You’re old enough to make your own decisions on life. Just be wide. Pure careful.”
“To be sure, I don’t sleep around. Not in university, not here either. He, he’s just be someone I got close to real fast.”
“I can understand why, but don’t fall too hard Lizzy. Summer romances don’t often last.”
The rest of the evening went well enough but she decided to say goodnight to Jon at the door rather than leave with him and raise her father’s suspicion.
* * * *
Jon told Liz he made a decision to move into the Miller Castle, telling her while most of the castle was dark, dusty and generally not very inviting a large portion of the main floor was furnished and well lit. That included living room, entrance hall, kitchen, study, bathroom and a bedroom converted from a drawing room.
Liz helped him repack his suitcases and did a final check of the room as he lugged the two bags through the door. She spotted the folded memo paper still on the nightstand.
“There’s a paper on thee table here. You want it?”
“Naw, it’s not important. I have the number memorized anyway.”
She picked up the paper and held it over the wastepaper basket, changed her mind and slipped it into her jeans pocket.
Liz wasn’t certain why Jon was determined to stay at the castle when he could have obtained other accommodation in Edwards. She knew he was a bit nervous about the rather abundant stories he heard of ghosts, goblins and other creatures that were suppose to hang around the castle but he refused to be kept away.
‘Male ego or bravado I suppose’ she thought.
Liz continued to spend much of her free time with him and was tempted by his offer to spend more of her nights with him as well but wanted to ease the possibility of moving in with him by her parents first. Strange, she thought to herself, how a mature, university educated woman could be intimidated by her parents on what she did. And then there was the matter of the other girlfriend living in Boston. She wondered if he was still in contact with her on a regular basis and was curious what she looked like.
“How are things at the castle?” she asked when she met him for dinner at the Dockers Pub, “Spotted any more creatures?”
She was referring to Jon’s chance encounter with an odd looking man less than three feet high dressed in brown pants, a green shirt under a black cape with peak cap. Jon mentioned the small man was coming out of the kitchen as he sat in living room. He took a look at Jon, turned around and ran back into kitchen in slipper like shoes. Jon ran into the kitchen himself but found nothing, even opening cupboards in a vain attempt to find where he had disappeared.
“Yeah, another one like that small man, again in the kitchen. But I also saw this really odd looking thing in the back yard through the window last evening. Thin, about four, maybe five, feet high wearing dark clothing. Ugly face, though I couldn’t see much detail. Ran away when I turned on the outside light, and man was it fast. Zip! And it was gonzo.”
“You sure it’s safe to be there? I could find you a place to stay, you know.”
“Yeah, but I’ll be fine. Hey, I found this really neat room upstairs on the third level, like a laboratory. Tools, equipment, textbooks, notebooks, the whole works. I don’t know what it’s supposed to do but Uncle Gordon wrote something about being able to investigate the Alternate World, whatever that meant. I’m going to read the notebooks some more to try to figure out what he was trying to discover.”
“You’ll have to show me that room.”
She took a drink and tried to casually ask what was on her mind, “What does your girlfriend back home say about this?”
He froze a moment before lifting a chip to his mouth and slowly eating it.
“I haven’t been able to get a hold of her much. I spoke to her a couple of days ago but she’s got some kind of emergency at work and is spending a lot of time there and when she’s home she pretty much sleeps so we haven’t talked much.” He spoke in a rush and quickly shoved another chip into his mouth.
“Jon, I don’t want to put pressure on you, but you’ve asked me to stay overnight with you. It would be awkward if she were to show up here. A summer fling is one thing but maybe we’re heading a wee too fast if you got someone else waiting for you. Understand?”
He rubbed his face with his big hand.
“Look Liz, if you’re asking me to choose between you and, and … her, then I’ll do that. But I don’t feel good telling her it’s goodbye over the phone or by an answering machine,” he reached over and grabbed her hand, “I don’t want this to be just a summer thing.”
“Okay,” She said thinking 'So he wants more of a relationship with me. He indicated he willing to drop her over me, but wants to do that face to face. And he avoided using her name.'
She squeezed his hand back feeling she had put him through ‘we need to talk’ conversation enough for the time being. She smiled at him to let him know the inquisition was over for now.
He walked her home later that night and again hinted on her staying at the castle with him. She gave a smile and a kiss in reply.
“Maybe. We’ll talk about that a wee more.”
* * * *
After a week and a half of eating out and bringing in fast food she decided a change in diet was necessary for both of them. She brought over some groceries after work and decided she would attempt to cook dinner that night.
'Attempt,' she admitted to herself, is the operative word.'
At university the microwave and frozen were the two words she used most in preparing dinner. Still, she had watched and helped her mother often enough in making meals as she grew up to gave her some confidence. She placed the groceries in the kitchen and a small overnight bag in the living room. Even though she decided to spend the night with Jon she didn’t want to appear too anxious by putting it in the bedroom where it would end up.
She had spent more than one night with him but the step of moving some of her belongings into the castle was one she was a bit hesitant about, not the least because of what her parents would think. Still after she accepted a copy of the keys to the castle from Jon a few days ago it was evitable she would be moving in eventually but she wanted him to see the bag first and coax her into staying one more time, just to make her feel pursued a bit more. After all she did most of the work in the beginning when they met and now it was his turn to show how much he wanted her.
Liz called out to him but didn’t get a reply, so she did a quick look around the castle before looking out a window and seeing a newly cut lawn out back. The small side door from the kitchen led her to the back yard where she spotted him standing on the dock looking up and down the shoreline.
She called out to him again, causing him to turn around. He was wearing a long sleeve grey shirt, worn jeans and sandals, looking a bit ragged. He was holding a can of Coke and raised it in a salute to her. She then noticed the yard had been cleaned up. She walked to where he stood and after giving him a kiss followed his gaze along the shoreline.
“I almost expect to see him washed up to the shore,” his voice sounded a bit strained, “Never really knew him, but …”
“Jon, don’t go there,” she squeezed his hand, “Come on inside. I’ll make you something to eat.”
He nodded and looked once more at the dock with an oversized fishing tackle box sitting on the end.
“Hey, see that fishing box there?”
“Yeah?”
“It’s nailed down to prevent it from sliding off the dock. If the police assumed he drowned because of the tackle box sitting there they should know that it was always there. Maybe there’s another reason he disappeared.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know. Maybe something to do with his experiments.”
* * * *
He sat in the kitchen as she made him a sandwich. He looked a bit worn from his labours outdoors and she had to listen how he cut this, mowed that, dug that and generally reformed the landscape of all of Ireland.