The Skeleton Clock Read online

  Inside the window was a large open area. Rusting chains hung from the rotting beams, swaying gently and silently as the water moved. Beyond them, Jake could just see what might be another opening. It was the only way out.

  The darkness was closing in as they left the light from the lamps on the riverbed far behind. But he could see the slowly swaying tentacles of a second Kraken in a corner of the room. Another one close beside it. He could see the pile of debris and bones and carcasses of large fish… Was this where they lived?

  Towards the opening, and all Jake could see was the vague shape of it. He felt the floor start to slope upwards. Was it possible they’d find a way out after all? He didn’t dare hope. He expected at any moment that another Kraken would appear, that a cold tentacle would latch on to him and drag him away.

  There was light. From somewhere ahead and above, there was a faint glow. Bubbles were escaping from his mouth. His vision was misting. Any moment now, Jake would be breathing in water, choking, drowning.

  A few more yards. One step at a time. Upwards. Towards the light. How far could it be?

  And suddenly, Jake’s head broke through into the air above. The rich, clean, desperate air that he coughed and retched and gasped into his lungs. He dragged Revelle up the slope, out of the water. Was he in time?

  Jake’s spluttering coughs became laughter as he realised Revelle was retching too. Water was spewing from his mouth and running back down the slope. Jake collapsed to his knees, then on to his back. They lay side by side, their feet still in the water but too exhausted to move further up the slope. Coughing and retching and laughing.

  *

  ‘Let’s see where we are,’ Revelle said when they’d recovered.

  Jake had stopped laughing when he remembered Sarah wasn’t with them. He sat cross-legged on the wet sloping floor wondering how he’d tell her father what had happened.

  But he couldn’t put it off. He couldn’t sit here forever. ‘OK.’ He stood up, his legs still weak, and his clothes still saturated, and followed Revelle slowly up the slope.

  The light was coming from electric bulbs suspended from a cable running along the ceiling. Before long the slope levelled into a wide corridor. The corridor ended abruptly in a large watertight floodgate.

  ‘It’s just like the gates in the tunnel system,’ Jake said. His throat was still sore when he spoke, and his voice sounded like a rasping whisper.

  Revelle nodded. ‘But someone obviously comes down here.’

  ‘How do you know?’

  ‘The lights. Though I wonder why anyone has a private way down to where the Krakens live.’

  ‘You saw?’

  ‘I saw enough, as I drifted in and out. It’s some sort of feeding ground or nest out there.’

  Revelle examined the big metal gate. There was a locking wheel in the middle, and clamps round the edge though these were open. He heaved on the wheel, then tried turning it. It moved easily.

  ‘Definitely gets some use,’ Revelle announced.

  The gate swung open and they went through. Revelle closed it behind them and spun the wheel. They were at a junction, a sort of crossroads of tunnels. Beside them was another closed floodgate. Two other tunnels led off at right angles to each other.

  ‘It’s not part of the main system,’ Revelle said. ‘But I think it used to be.’

  It did look like the main tunnels, with the same curving roof and walls. But the brickwork was old and pitted. The tattered remains of posters clung to one wall.

  ‘We must be above the level of the water though. Above ground,’ Jake said.

  ‘Moved during the slippage maybe. Perhaps that’s why it’s separate – if it sheared through and no longer connects.’

  ‘But where do these tunnels go? Maybe they never come out anywhere.’

  ‘Remember the lights,’ Revelle said. ‘That one leads back under the water. You can see it slopes down again.’

  The tunnel did slope quite steeply into darkness. Jake could see lights strung from the roof, but they were not lit. The other tunnel was rising slightly, and bending away so that Jake couldn’t see how long it was.

  ‘This one then,’ he said.

  ‘Seems sensible.’

  In fact the tunnel was quite short. It curved round in a shallow bend, then stopped at the base of a flight of stone steps. The steps were in shadow, but there was a brighter light shining somewhere above. Jake could see the edge of each step was painted yellow.

  ‘This looks more like it,’ Revelle said, starting up the stairs. ‘Soon be out in the open air.’

  But Jake was staring at the broken, uneven yellow edges of the steps. ‘I’ve been here before,’ he said slowly. ‘I know where these steps lead.’

  Revelle paused, half a dozen steps above him. ‘And where do they lead?’

  Jake slowly started after him. ‘Up into a book shop,’ he said.

  ‘Another coincidence,’ Revelle whispered. ‘It could even be just a coincidence. But let’s be careful.’

  They went slowly, warily, and as quietly as they could. Sure enough, the steps emerged just as Jake remembered, outside the room with the chess table at the back of Mandrake’s Rare Books and Manuscripts.

  ‘I suppose there’s nothing wrong with him having a back door,’ Jake whispered.

  ‘Even if it leads down to a section of tunnels no one knows about. Even if it comes out in a warehouse where the Krakens seem to live.’ Revelle obviously wasn’t convinced.

  They tiptoed towards the back of the huge main room of the shop. If Mandrake was at his desk, he would see them as soon as they stepped inside. Would that matter, Jake wondered?

  He glanced back towards the stairs, and saw that they had left a trail of damp footprints across the wooden floor.

  There were voices. Low and hushed. Revelle gestured for Jake to stop, and they both listened intently, pressed against the wall close to the door. Looking through the crack between the door and its frame, Jake could see the silhouette of Mandrake sitting behind his desk. Another figure was leaning over the desk, talking urgently. A woman, with long strikingly red hair that seemed to glow as it was picked up by the candle light.

  ‘Marianna Patterson,’ Revelle murmured close to Jake’s ear. ‘Which makes it one coincidence too many.’

  ‘I still need your help,’ the woman was saying. ‘And I’m paying you well for it. But I can’t allow you to waste any more time and resources on this absurd venture. Azuras is dead, no matter what the legends say. And searching for the pieces of his legendary chess set isn’t going to change that.’

  Mandrake stood up, leaning over the desk to face Miss Patterson. Something in the way he stood, something in the shape of Mandrake’s silhouette against the candlelight and the way he clicked his tongue sarcastically before he replied made Jake gasp with realisation.

  ‘That’s him,’ he murmured to Revelle. ‘That’s the man from Whispers. Gabriel Mandrake is the murderer.’

  Chapter 17

  ‘Are you sure?’ Revelle asked quietly.

  Jake nodded. ‘I’m sure.’

  ‘He has powerful friends.’

  ‘We have to get out of here.’ Jake wasn’t sure if there was another way out. Even if they got past Mandrake and the woman and out of the building, he knew the tunnel back to the main system was wrecked and flooded. ‘We can try the other branch of the tunnel, back the way we came,’ he whispered.

  But Revelle was straining to hear Mandrake and Miss Patterson.

  ‘The search was a useful exercise for the Phibians,’ Miss Patterson was saying. ‘Unhappily it showed just how lacking in initiative and intelligence they really are. Oh they can follow simple instructions, carry out menial tasks. But not much more. Far less than we had hoped.’

  ‘That is hardly my fault,’ Mandrake pointed out. ‘I allowed you access to the information in my Clandestine Archives. I showed you how to lure the Kraken creatures that emerged from the depths after the slippage.’

  ‘You h
ave been well rewarded for both. And of course I’m not blaming you. It is a disappointment to say the least. But we have an alternative strategy. A way of keeping more of the human aspects of the donor.’

  Mandrake was interested. ‘And how is that going?’

  ‘We suffered a minor set back. Lost our main test subject.’ She walked slowly away from the desk, apparently examining some of the books on the nearest shelf. ‘But don’t worry about that.’

  ‘And the Head?’ Mandrake said. There was no mistaking he urgency in his voice.

  ‘A curiosity, no more. Despite what you think it is. The Toymaker’s suggestions were useful but ultimately yielded little of interest. I had no idea it would intrigue you so much, or I’d have told you about it at once.’

  ‘So, you have finished with it?’ Mandrake asked eagerly.

  ‘Perhaps. We shall see. I think I will keep it in the White Tower for now. If you continue to be as helpful and generous as you have been so far, I see no reason why you should not have it. Eventually.’

  Mandrake slumped down in his chair. ‘What do you want?’

  ‘There are certain things I need to look up. Further techniques and procedures my scientists need to know about.’

  ‘Of course.’

  ‘And I shall need more of the powder. We require more genetic material.’

  ‘You mean Krakens.’

  ‘Your powder attracts them. It’s the only sure way. That’s how you use them, isn’t it?’

  ‘As blunt instruments,’ Mandrake confessed. ‘But they are little use except to attack wherever the powder is, or whatever it is on.’

  ‘I’ll send someone to collect it. They can tell you in more detail what information we need.’

  Mandrake nodded. ‘Very well Make sure they know the two powders I shall give them must be kept separate. If they mix, then the Kraken will find them. Together, the powders form a substance that they can detect, perhaps they smell it. A concentrated form of the plankton they feed on in the depths. Under the water they can detect a food source half a mile away. Even in the air, they can sniff it out from a distance.’

  ‘I’ll make sure he’s careful,’ Miss Patterson said. ‘Now, I should be getting back. It’s a long walk to the White Tower from here.’

  ‘At least you don’t need a boat,’ Mandrake said. He stood up and gestured for Miss Patterson to walk ahead of him. ‘I’ll open the floodgate for you. I’m not expecting any clients now the access tunnel is flooded. And I can leave our friends to deal with any visitors of the unwelcome, uninvited kind.’

  Jake and Revelle both drew back. Miss Patterson was heading for the doorway behind which they were hiding.

  ‘Which way?’ Revelle hissed.

  Jake pointed to the small book room close to the stairs. The room with the chess table in it was beyond that. It sounded like Mandrake and Miss Patterson were heading down the stairs.

  ‘I must admit it is convenient having a back door to your establishment,’ Miss Patterson remarked as she came out of the main book room. ‘I do wish it was not quite such a long walk, but it does afford easy access to your archives for my people.’

  They started down the stairs, oblivious to Jake and Revelle watching them from the shadows of the little room close by.

  ‘I must point out,’ Mandrake said as they disappeared into the gloom, ‘that my archives are quite secure. Without my help it would be impossible to get past the security door.’

  ‘Perish the thought.’ She was out of sight, but Jake could heart the ironic amusement in her tone.

  ‘And the Clandestine Archives are below the water level, of course.’ Mandrake’s voice was fading into the distance. ‘There are sluice gates I can open at a moment’s notice that would flood the whole chamber, should that be necessary.’

  ‘I am sure it will not.’

  ‘I’m pleased to hear it.’ Mandrake’s voice was receding into the distance. ‘I do have a suggestion. For an experiment, with the golden head. If we can solve any problems of tissue rejection, it might be of interest to you?’

  ‘Part of your own ongoing research into longevity?’ Miss Patterson’s voice faded.

  Revelle and Jake moved cautiously to the top of the stairs, straining to hear more. But the voices had receded into indistinguishable murmurings.

  ‘He’s warning her not to try taking the information from him,’ Revelle said. ‘She would too, if she thought she could do it.’

  ‘We have to get out of here,’ Jake said.

  ‘Let’s hope he’s got a boat or there’s a ferry within sight,’ Revelle said. ‘The tunnel’s not going to be any use.’

  They were still talking quietly, even though Mandrake and Miss Patterson must be well out of earshot.

  ‘He gave me a book,’ Jake remembered. ‘I had it in my coat pocket. And that Kraken thing came after me.’

  ‘Sprinkled some of this powder they were talking about inside the book,’ Revelle said. ‘Amazing they can sense it even through the tunnel walls.’

  ‘He must have done the same thing at Atherton’s. But, why’s he want to kill me?’

  ‘For what you know,’ Revelle told him. But before he could explain or speculate further, he held his hand out to stop Jake.

  They were at the back of the main book room. Bookcases stretched out almost as far as they could see. It was dark outside, so the only light came from flickering candles positioned carefully on shelves away from the fragile, brittle papers and books.

  ‘What is it?’ Jake was instinctively whispering.

  ‘I think we should be careful,’ Revelle whispered back. He pointed to the floor. The bare boards were splashed with water. A trail led down the main aisle towards the door.

  ‘Could have been Mandrake. Or Miss Patterson,’ Jake pointed out.

  They walked slowly along, careful to make as little noise as possible.

  ‘Mandrake mentioned he was leaving “friends” here,’ Revelle murmured, so quiet Jake could only just hear him. ‘Not sure they’ll be our friends.’

  But they reached the end of the room without seeing anyone or anything. They heard nothing and no one. Jake sighed with relief. Now all they needed was to find a boat. Surely Mandrake would have a dinghy they could take? Or if not, they could attract a passing Boatman before Mandrake returned.

  Revelle was at the door, ahead of Jake, just standing there. It was a heavy wooden door, braced with metal. And it was locked.

  ‘Now what?’ Jake hissed.

  ‘Find a key? Or go back the way we came. We won’t break through, that’s for sure. And the windows are too high to be of any use.’

  They turned. Standing behind them in the aisle, swaying from side to side like an impatient snake, was a Phibian. Its large, bulbous eyes caught the candlelight. Its wet scaly skin glistened as it moved, shifting its weight from one webbed foot to the other.

  Jake and Revelle moved quickly – running across to the next aisle. But the Phibian was close to a gap between the bookcases, and it moved with them, still blocking their route to door at the back of the room.

  ‘Split up?’ Jake suggested.

  ‘Worth a try.’

  They moved in opposite directions, watching to see which way the Phibian would go, who it would follow. But it stayed where it was, still blocking the same aisle.

  As he reached the top of the next aisle, Jake saw why. There was another Phibian waiting half way down that one. He glanced quickly across at Revelle. ‘There’s another one here.’

  Revelle nodded. ‘And here.’

  ‘Rush them?’ Jake suggested. ‘Just run for it, try to get past?’

  They were together at the top of the central aisle now. This was the widest path between the bookcases, so they had more room to get past. Slowly, nervously, they edged their way towards the Phibian. Revelle had his hands out in front of him, gesturing for the creature to back off. It tilted its head slightly as it watched, but it showed no sign of letting them past.

  ‘Ready?’
Revelle asked.

  Jake swallowed, and nodded. His heart was racing. What if he got through but Revelle was caught – he’d have to go back and help. But was he brave enough? Could he do that? He remembered Sarah being dragged out of the diving bell, the way she had struggled and screamed. The way he had been unable to help her. The way he’d just watched as she was taken. As she died.

  He didn’t wait for Revelle. Jake yelled with anger, fear and sadness, and charged at the Phibian. He could hear Revelle’s feet close behind him, boots thumping on the wooden boards.

  Jake’s shoulder slammed into the Phibian. He’d caught it by surprise. The creature was solid and heavy, but it still went flying. Jake’s shoulder jarred with pain. He stumbled and almost fell. Revelle caught him, dragged him on. Behind them the Phibian crashed into the bookcase and sprawled on the floor.

  Suddenly the aisle ahead of them was filled with swirling paper. Books flew through the air. The glistening shape of a Phibian was clambering through the bookcase from the next aisle, sending the contents of the shelves flying.

  Revelle didn’t break step. His hand slammed out – palm flat – at the Phibian’s head as he shoved the creature hard. It crashed back through the bookcase.

  They reached the door, conscious of the creatures close behind them. Jake dived through, and Revelle slammed the door shut.

  ‘No key,’ he gasped. ‘Come on.

  The stairs were the only option – the only other way out.

  ‘You think they’re following?’ Jake asked as they hurtled down the chipped stone steps.

  ‘Maybe. Maybe not.’

  ‘Why not?’

  ‘Because down here, we’ll run into Mandrake.’

  They paused at the bottom of the steps to listen. But there was no sound from above.

  ‘The only other way is back to the flooded warehouse basement. And the Krakens,’ Revelle said.

  ‘No,’ Jake said, remembering. ‘There was another flood gate. That must lead somewhere.’

  ‘It might be closed because that tunnel is flooded.’

  ‘We don’t have a lot of choice,’ Jake pointed out. ‘If we wait here, Mandrake will find us, or those things will come and get us.’