The Turnarounders and the Arbuckle Rescue (13 page)

‘Sir? Sir? Are you all right, sir?’ Seth asked anxiously. He was looking directly into Winters’ face but Ralf’s history teacher did not seem to see him. He was sitting bolt upright in his pew one arm outstretched. His eyes were glassy and beads of sweat rolled freely down his face. ‘It’s usually people I know,’ he murmured cryptically. Ralf and the others exchanged worried glances.

‘Sir?’

Winters stirred feebly. ‘A ghost! By the font!’ he whispered, a shaky finger pointing towards the Lady Chapel. ‘A Renaissance friar kneeling right there!’

They looked from Winters to Seth in disbelief but there was something in Seth’s eyes that made Ralf pause.

‘Seth?’

Seth’s head jerked, unwillingly it seemed, into a brief nod. ‘I saw it too,’ he said but before he could explain further Gloria appeared and, pushing Seth firmly to one side, she sat next to Winters and took his hand in her own.

‘You can stop pointing now, Winters,’ she said briskly. ‘Sit quietly for a minute or two. Bound to make you feel odd.’

Winters lowered his arm and, eyes still wild, slumped back in the pew.

‘Another one! Another ghost and not a week since the last!’ Gordon Kemp exclaimed. Then everyone seemed to be talking at once.

‘Yes, Winters saw it. A monk in the Lady Chapel!’

‘The same one that was here before?’

‘What does it mean? What do they want?’

The vicar hurried over, robes rustling and arms outstretched. ‘Now we’ve all had a nasty shock haven’t we?’ he said soothingly.

‘What of the ghost though, vicar?’ Rosie Kemp asked shakily. ‘That monk again. Now that Mr Winters has seen it, perhaps you’ll believe me?’

‘An exorcism is what it needs,’ said Frank Duke gravely.

‘Nonsense!’ the vicar blustered. ‘It’s been a trying morning but we really mustn’t let our imaginations run away with us!’ He stooped next to Winters
and patted him reassuringly on the arm. ‘A trick of the light, I’m sure. See, it’s gone now.’

Gloria, who’d been sitting quietly next to Winters patting his hand, suddenly came to life. ‘Don’t be ridiculous, Vicar!’ she snapped. ‘It was nothing of the sort!’

Denning, it seemed, didn’t quite know what to say to this. However, they were spared the agony of watching him try to think of something by the appearance of Major Kingston-Hawke who took charge.

‘Be quiet, Beth! No one wants to hear your crackpot theories now!’ he barked gruffly. ‘Some room, please everyone!’ They all shuffled back a few steps but no one seemed to want to take their eyes off Winters who was now shaking terribly. The Major slid into the pew next to him and put a firm hand on his shoulder.

‘Now, Tim old boy, brace up,’ he said, not unkindly.

The sound of the Major’s voice so close to his ear seemed to have an effect on Winters because he blinked rapidly and his eyes slid back into focus.

‘I – I saw – at least, I thought…’ Winters looked into the Major’s face and swallowed. ‘I’m most terribly sorry. Can’t imagine what I was thinking…’

‘Nonsense, l
ove!’ Rosie Kemp called from where she was standing. ‘You takes yer time.’

But Winters was already struggling to stand.

‘That’s the ticket!’ said the Major briskly. ‘Up you get. Now, quick march back to the Kemps. Gordon, a tot of brandy and a hot sweet tea on the double, if you please!’

‘Right you are, sir!’

Suddenly everyone was rushing to help. Gordon Kemp took Winters by one arm, Rosie patted him reassuringly on the other and Winters allowed himself to be led away by a gaggle of villagers who all seemed to be talking at once.

‘Look, Leo,’ Seth sighed, ‘it doesn’t matter how many times I tell you, I’m not going to change my mind about what I saw.’ He furiously gnawed at a fingernail then took his hand from his mouth and examined the bleeding mess he’d created. ‘It was there a good ten seconds after I came in, while you lot were all looking the other way. In that little side chapel place there was a praying monk. Brown robes. Shaved head. The lot.’

They were sitting in the shade of an old oak on the Village Green. Frightened looking villagers were still milling around the church and the Arbuckle boys were giving the rotting fox (or whatever it was) a decent burial at the far end of the graveyard.

‘But are you sure it was a ghost?’ Alfie asked shakily. ‘I mean could it have been someone dressed up?’

‘Not unless someone in 1939 has got access to holographic technology.’

‘Do what?’

‘I’m sorry, Alf. It looked exactly like a ghost,’ said Seth gravely. ‘I could see right through his stomach.’

Valen shook her head. ‘Isn’t this a bit of a turnaround for you?’ she said incredulously. ‘I wouldn’t have thought you’d believe in ghosts!’

‘I don’t,’ said Seth. ‘And I’d have a lot more success coming up with a different explanation if everyone stopped asking me questions for a minute so I could think!’

‘What if the ghost tries to get us?’ asked Alfie, suddenly.

‘It’s a monk, Alfie,’ said Valen. ‘What do you think he’s going to do – pray you to death?’

They couldn’t help laughing. But Seth shouted suddenly, making them all jump.

‘That’s it! The monk! He wasn’t a ghost!’ Seth was smiling now and they all looked back at him, confused.

‘You said you could see through him,’ said Alfie. ‘That sounds well ghosty to me.’

‘Yes, he was transparent but that was because he wasn’t all the way through!’

‘Through?’

‘I saw a transparent monk but then I allowed myself to be distracted by all this talk of ghosts.’ Seth scratched his head, still grinning. ‘Don’t you get it? He wasn’t a ghost at all! He was exactly what he appeared to be – a monk from the past! There’s a Fall in the church! A Fall in Time. That poor monk was minding his own business, having a quiet little pray, when suddenly Time springs a leak and he
nearly gets dragged into 1939. There’s a Time Fall in there! I’m telling you! It’s the only logical explanation.’

‘Like the ones Ambrose talked about?’

‘Like the one we came through yesterday?’

Seth nodded. ‘Clearly that wasn’t an isolated phenomenon.’

‘A Fall in the church!’ Ralf repeated excitedly.

‘Who did?’ said a voice directly behind them. ‘That little waitress from the café?’ Captain Keen stepped from behind the oak tree wearing a puzzled smile. He waited.

Everyone jumped but Ralf forced himself to say something, anything, to fill the awkward silence.

‘She seems alright now, sir,’ he said, a little too fast. ‘We were just deciding which of us should look out for her if the Germans turn up.’

Keen clapped his good hand against his thigh. ‘Ha! Fighting talk from the youngsters! Just what I like to hear! That’s the kind of attitude that will stop Jerry in his tracks!’ He grinned broadly, patted the pompom on Alfie’s hat then caught sight of Gloria’s Father across the lane. ‘Ah! There’s the Major. Must catch him before I go. Cheerio all!’

Seth pulled a face. ‘That man is such an idiot!’ he said when Keen had gone.

‘I like him,’ said Valen.

‘You would!’ said Seth.

‘We need to be more careful,’ said Leo. ‘That was too close. Do you think he suspects?’

‘That we’re visitors from the future who have lived several times before and are waiting for Old Father Time to come and rescue us?’ said Ralf, drily. ‘I doubt it.’

‘Okay. So there’s a Fall in the church,’ said Ralf as they all walked towards King’s Meadow later that afternoon. ‘How come?’

‘I’ve got a theory about that,’ said Seth. ‘Remember Ambrose said that Time was affected by fear and that in times when people were particularly afraid, Falls could open up? That’s what happened here.’

‘So there are Falls in Time opening up all over the country right now because war has just been declared?’ said Valen. ‘No wonder Ambrose hasn’t come. He must be rushed off his feet!’

The others sniggered at this but Seth answered seriously.

‘It’s possible, but I don’t think so. No, I think the declaration of war worried people and made some people afraid, but the fear levels were ramped up massively by all those flies appearing like that.’

‘So it’s a coincidence then?’ said Valen doubtfully.

‘I would say so but for two things. Tell them Leo.’

‘Well, you know the vicar asked Ron to help him check over the church? He said there was no way that fox could have got in of its own accord. Apparently all those grates in the floor are supposed to be screwed down but, you guessed it, the one with the fox under had had all its screws removed.

‘So someone put it there on purpose?’ asked Ralf.

Leo nodded.

‘What kind of a sick joke is that?’ Valen cried.

But Ralf had already moved on. ‘And the second thing?’

‘Gloria.’

Ralf gave a start. ‘Gloria? I mean, I know she’s weird and everything but I don’t think she’d do anything –’

‘I just meant we mustn’t forget what she told you about the ghosts. The monk has appeared before, hasn’t he? There’s fear in this village. It was here before we arrived and it’s causing holes to appear in Time.’

‘Like those weird shadows we saw when we were with Gloria?’

‘And you were g
oing to tell me about this, when exactly?’ Seth cried, incredulous.

‘I’m telling you now! This is the first chance I’ve had,’ said Ralf.  He and Leo filled the others in on the details.

‘But that’s amazing!’ said Seth.

‘You know what this means, don’t you?’ said Valen. ‘There are other Time Falls!’

‘It’s more than just Falls,’ said Leo. ‘Those shadows weren’t natural.’

‘Let’s not get panicky, Leo. They were just in the wrong place at the wrong time!’ said Seth. ‘There’s no other explanation for the shadows not matching like that. A Fall must have opened to another place at another time of day.’

‘No, Seth. There was something weird about them. It was like they were alive.’

‘Yeah, and don’t forget the flies,’ Alfie agreed. ‘That was no ordinary swarm. They was killer-death, dive-bomber flies.’

‘I told you there was something wrong with this place…’ said Leo darkly.

‘And you were dead right, Leo,’ said Ralf. ‘But the point is –’

‘The point is,’ said Valen, her eyes glinting with the spark of an idea. ‘If there are other Time Falls in King’s Hadow, we might be able to use one to get home!’

‘There a
re three we know about for definite: the one we came through at the station, the one in church and the one on the lane back there. But I think there are others,’ said Ralf. ‘Gloria said that she’d seen ghosts in the middle of King’s Meadow too.’

‘Brilliant!’ said Valen. ‘So, that’s got to improve the odds of us being able to get back.’

‘Slightly,’ said Ralf. ‘There are more Falls, but there must be hundreds of possibilities as to which other points in time they lead to.’

‘Millions, actually,’ said Seth gloomily. ‘And they’re not open for very long either.’

‘But it’s a start, isn’t it?’ said a rather exasperated Valen. ‘We can at least go and check them out!’

Seth gave a curt nod. ‘Alright, but don’t get your hopes up, okay? There odds of finding a Fall that can take us back home are infinitesimally small.’

They spent the next few hours examining what felt like every blade of grass in the meadow and every patch of shadow on the lane.

‘You heard what Ambrose said,’ Ralf reminded them. ‘A hazy patch or a glimmer in the air. Shout out if you see anything!’

They found nothing out of the ordinary at either spot. The day was still and hot and by the time they’d finished there they were sweating and tired.

‘I don’t know what the rush is,’ Alfie muttered under his breath as the shadows lengthened into evening. ‘I’m in no hurry to get back as it goes.’ Privately, Ralf had to agree with him.

A mournful lowing echoed across the meadow and they all froze.

‘It’s OK,’ Alfie said, after a moment. ‘It’s only Sefton.’

‘Who’s Sefton?’

‘And what the heck’s the matter with him?’ Valen looked appalled.

‘Sefton,’ said Alfie grinning, ‘is the Sedleys’ Dexter – bull, that is. He was a bit funny at this time last night too.’

‘Oooh, look who knows so much, all of a sudden!’ said Seth.

‘Leave it out,’ Alfie blushed. ‘It’s nothing to chat about. I mean, he’s big, yeah, but he’s alright when you get to know him.’

‘Hasn’t taken you long to turn into Fred the Farmer, has it?’ laughed Valen.

Alfie shrugged. ‘It was borin’ just hanging round, so I helped out on the farm a bit this morning. That’s what the other me woulda done.’

‘That’s good,’ said Leo suddenly. ‘Alfie’s got exactly the right idea.’

‘How’ja mean?’

‘Leo’s right,’ said Seth, gravely. ‘We don’t know how long we’ll be here, so it’s really important we try to fit in.’ He glanced at Ralf but said nothing of his belief that they were stuck there. ‘Time’s in enough trouble already without us making it even more messed up.’