The World of Nicholas Mallet by Paul Audcent - HTML preview

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter Sixteen.  A walk and adventure with an old poacher.

 

They had changed into old shirts and jeans and armed themselves with a pair of stout walking sticks, sitting down on the steps at exactly one twenty five. Alex joined them but without the dogs. Nick and Ash had learnt that a sudden coolness in the air meant one of the Malling’s was close.

‘Greg is afraid Bill and Ben might take a fancy to him, because the dogs were trained to be on the lookout for poachers in our early years, so I’ve left them in the house if you don’t mind, lying on the bed snoring.’

'Right you are, I was just settling Mrs. Gordon into the attic room, I think Master Alex, I might ask HE if she could become a maid in the house, she used to do for the vicar when he had company.'

'I’m sure Nick and my Father would agree, but terms need to be discussed.’

'Just bed and board Master Alex and she do love fishing, so when the Masters Ash and Nick finish the pier maybe she could use it?'

“Well I’ll get Tom to  buy some hardwood planking and we also need some ground treated bearers, I’ll write him a list this evening, anyhow Ash and I want to finish it now we’ve started.”

“And there are fishing rods in the game room on the left wing, I suppose they belong to HE?” said Ash.

‘Mine and Peters so Maggie’s welcome to use them, in fact I might be interested to take it back on. Presumably Ash and Nick would eat anything we caught.’

“Bar ells!” They said in unison.

‘Now I’ll try to become visible if I must, Master Alex has been teaching me, so I’m going to give it a go now, so be prepared for a truly horrible sight.’ Lots of hissing and blowing followed by a short stocky crumpled man in a long leather coat appeared, still huffing and wheezing.

‘Right Greg you can stop that horrible noise, can you see us clearly?’

“More importantly can they see I?”

“Yes!” came a chorus and Alex appeared as Peter also came down the steps.

“Father has sent me to keep you lot out of trouble, just in case Gordon gets carried away.” Greg Gordon looked hurt.

“I’ve changed me ways now Mr. Peter, still lets be having you and first we start by walking up the Beech Drive. Then we cut across the forest and move up toward the eastern road.”

They all trudged up behind Greg Gordon as he walked along at a surprising speed. They stopped halfway up the long drive then turned right. Nick marked the nearest beech tree with a chalk mark. Then they proceeded through some laburnum bushes to find a clear path snaking through the woodland into the forest proper. Here it was dank and shafts of sunlight streamed through the branches.

“Tis a new experience for me as I normally walked these paths at night.” Greg pointed ahead.

“If I had known that I would have stayed out longer with my shotgun.” Peter looked directly at Greg.

“Would have been no use Mr. Peter, Guzzling, your gamekeeper, always gave me a whistle when you or Master Alex went inside, then we’d split the night takings. Molly caught us at it one night, splitting up the rabbits and partridge, that’s when young Alex caught me good an proper.”

“No Gordon, when I came with the dogs, Guzzling had his hand on your collar, it was he that had nabbed you.”

“Was for the show, I got nicked, Guzzling got a bonus from your father, we split that between us later when I came back. Still taught us to leave the partridge and just hunt for rabbits seems Molly never minded that! Well come on then I’ll show you the cave and tunnel.” They walked on and then veered up toward the road where they came across a deep bowl like depression in the ground. The ground was carpeted with dead leaves Greg skipped across them and drew back a holly trees branch, beyond was a yawning tunnel entrance.

“Any guesses?” Gordon looked around the party.

“Hidden treasure. Possible opal mine,” Nick cried out.

“A quarry”, Ash struck his toe into the ground, it was rocky, “used to build the new manor as infill for the sandstone.”

“Cheat, Ash you’ve been reading the manor’s history manuscript Mother wrote up.” Peter wagged his finger. “Do we go in or stay out here?”

They all filed in, the tunnel was fairly long and led eventually to a cavern, it was bare but the floor was even. It was dark so Alex and Peter puffed up and lit the interior with their exertions.

“Can’t keep this up for too long, so Ash and Nick better take a quick look and make for the exit.” Alex started to fade so they dashed out back along the tunnel.”

“Wonder what we could use that for?” asked Ash.

“I guess some sort of storage, I expected it to be damp but seemed perfectly dry. Did you notice the evenness on the floor?”

“Was used to store munitions during the war. I used to stay here on a rainy night, best time to snatch a rabbit early morning. That was my shift, nights.”

“Presumably Greg Gordon you want continue with a nightly shift?” Peter asked.

“Of course as a sort of night watchman, that would suit me fine Master Nick and Mr. Peter, would suit me fine.”

“Right then I’ll ask Molly to count all the rabbits before you start.” Alex laughed but Gordon looked serious.

“It wouldn’t mind doing a little catching, for the manors pot, I’m sure Alice would appreciate. I’ve heard she can make a fine rabbit pie.” The others looked at him squarely.

“She did mention it when she showed me up to the attic, I met Old Mr Dunning and I asked him, said I should keep my hand in like.”

“That’s fine with me, as long as you are restricted to rabbits. If you make it swans, birds or otters Alex and Ash will hand you over to Molly!” Nick said seriously.

“You can be sure it will be only be rabbits, after all it was I who taught Master Alex the ways of the woodland, weren’t it Master Alex? And if young Master Ash would like to see and learn, we could arrange that. Well lets walk on, we’ll bye pass Molly as you know her ground, but there’s a hidden area where I used to come in at night and has a big old oak with a rotten inside, where we could all hide. I hammered steel pins inside so I could climb up the funnel like inside, and spot out at a good height!”

They continued along a path leading upwards towards the road when they came to the hollow oak, Ash wrote up the location on a small map he was drawing.

“Nick did you notice there was an old plank door in the cave, I glanced about me quickly before Alex dimmed.” Ash and Nick were outside waiting for the others to come from the tree.

“Can’t say I did see it, the walls all looked the same colour, are you sure of what you saw?” Before Ash could reply the others appeared and they all walked on now forcing their way through overgrown shrubs. They eventually reached a two-metre high brick wall; it had fallen in at one spot.

“Lorry hit it, never been repaired, I used to come in this way” Greg pointed at the fallen bricks. Ash made a note for Tom to repair it.

They continued along a path that eventually led to Molly’s back garden. A shrill voice reached them.

‘You mind me garden now, don’t thee be treading any closer, go around where the fallen logs be.’

They skirted around Molly’s house and yard and soon came to the original drive, still clear of shrubs and trees. 

“Funny nothing has grown here, or on the old building site for that matter” Nick brushed his hand along the remnants of a broken wall.

“Haunted,” said Peter with a smile.

“More likely to be shallow earth, I expect its rock underneath.” Ash scrapped a small pathway of leaves until his foot yielded rock.

“No bad for a young un.” Greg called them over to a tree on the edge of the site and pointed to it.  “Can you see anything different to this tree to the others further on?”

“The barks twisted like a corkscrew.” Ash said as he felt the rough bark.

“Its Elm, and the twist is a sure sign of water beneath.”

“Its true Ash”, Alex leaned up against it, “ The rock floor looks solid enough so the house was pitched here, but there’s an underground stream running through it, the rocks soft and Peter’s partly right. The sound forced the family to move. Also one of the exterior walls started to buckle.”

“I thought Peter was alluring to a tragedy of some sort with his ghosts!” Nick knelt and put his ear to the ground.

“Do you feel anything untoward about this place?” Peter asked them both quietly.

 

 

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Chapter Seventeen.  Mystery upon mystery.

 

Autumn had come to Mallings and some of the trees had started to loose their leaves.

Nick and Ash had moved from their cottage to the house for winter. During September they had had a new boiler and radiator system installed in both wings much to Aunt Celia’s concern as it meant moving all her prized possessions around and even worse letting strangers into the wing! The plumbers had complained of the excessive cold in the right wing and told Nick that area needed double the heating. Had they known Aunt Celia and the family had been keeping a close eye on them and thus altering the temperature level, they would have understood. In any event Nick organised the same radiator heat output for both wings, explaining that the right wing windows were not double insulated. Neither was the left wing but when the radiators had been installed he arranged for all windows to be double insulated. This took up the budget from the years Mallings fund but all agreed the house for much warmer and more pleasant to live in. As Joan said, they could use the heat with great effect and appear more often because of it.

 

Jason’s two children, Pip and Polly had arrived and the family settled into Number Two cottage. Pip was twelve and Polly ten. Jason had enrolled them into the village school.

There was the question telling the new family of the Mallings and Dunning agreed that he and Alice would take that responsibility on. Jason was introduced to HE and it was agreed that Ash and Jason should choose  the best time to introduce the children to their neighbours. Ash agreed to do this with Alex’s help.

“But not at dinner, Alex, perhaps introduce you as my cousin.”

‘Which I am.’

“And perhaps you in the flesh so to speak fishing on the new pier with me?”

So it was arranged that warm July evening with the fishing rods and bait ready on the pier, Jason bought Pip and Polly down to the riverbank. Here Ash and Alex were busy putting old trout skin onto their hooks. Jason explained to the children they could have a chance to fish as he had bought his old rod with him.

“Master Ash and Master Alex will show you how its done and I am away to the house to help grandpa size up the windows in the house as Mister Nick is talking about double glazing.”

“Double glazing but its so warm here Dad?”

“In winter Pip it gets quite cold and it’s a big house to keep warm. If you’ve noticed Mister Nick had double glazing put in on our cottage windows when they renovated it.” Jason winked at Ash and left the children holding his rod.

Alex carefully threaded a piece of silver trout skin onto the barbed hook and explained to the two children how dangerous the barb could be. Then he showed them how to cast up stream allowing the hook and float to gently follow the river flow. As he handed the rod to Pip he vanished. Polly gulped as Alex’s rod was still held up in the air.

“Where’s Master Alex gone?” she asked Ash.

“He is still here, but he has this impressive talent of being able to disappear whenever he wants too. All the Mallings have that gift, except Nick and I.”

“He’s a ghost!” Pip exclaimed, and Polly gulped.

“He’s as much alive as you are, look to prove it I’ll ask him to remain hidden and still catch a fish, then will you agree?”

“Don’t you disappear Mister Ash, please stay with us,” Polly was close to tears, but suddenly Alex’s line jerked and he reeled in a large fighting trout. It took Alex several minutes to fight the fish.

‘Now Pip you take the rod, if you think you are better than me.’

“I didn’t say that Mister Alex, but it daunting watching a flailing fish on a jerking rod.” Pip took the rod and the fish twisted then dived pulling him off the pier. Ash reacted by grabbing one leg but Pip was seen to be rising out the water and was gently lain back on the pier.

“Gosh, how did that happen?” Pip spat water from his mouth, and then Alex appeared climbing out of the water.

“And you lost my fish Pip!” Alex stood with his rod and line and no hook.

“Now I’ve got to find that fish and remove the hook, do I have your permission Polly to go and search for it, if it can see me then I won’t be able to catch it.”

Polly nodded, and Alex disappeared for a second time.

“Wish I could that, where do you think Mister Alex has gone?”

“See that thin line of movement in the water over their moving toward the rushes, just wait and see.” Ash motioned the children to see and suddenly the trout jumped up in the reeds and stayed poised for several seconds.

“Alex had to take the hook out, now you see Polly and Pip, a fine cousin I have and a ghost as well!”

“Is Mister Peter like that?”

“Yes and how lucky you are. You will always have them as special friends, but they are special and no one outside our family and friends are allowed to know about them.”

“Why’s that Mister Ash.”

“Firstly just call me Ash please, I don’t call you Mister Pip or Miss Polly do I? Well people might try to capture them so we keep it to ourselves, do you agree?”  Both children nodded as Alex climbed back onto the pier. He shook himself to get rid of the moisture.

“Listen Pip, you better get back to the cottage to dry out and no fishing for you or Polly without one of us to rescue, understand!”

“Come on you two I’ll explain to your father,” Ash picked up the rods as Alex disappeared again.

“Where’s he gone now Ash,” asked Polly now more amazed than frightened.

“Off to help that old trout we nearly caught I expect.”

“I like Mister Alex,” Pip squelched behind them.

“Then you’ll like his dogs, they’re invisible as well!”

“Can we see them?” Polly looked around her, so Ash called them. They came romping in bodies gradually appearing. Polly was entranced, but Pip held them away as they tried to lick him dry.

 

The following evening saw Nick and Ash fishing on the end of the pier. There was a bucket with three trout in and another on Ash’s line, which he reeled in.

“Makes four, just another Nick and Alice will have enough”. As Ash spoke Nick felt a twitch on his line and jerking upward snared another fish, he reeled it in and they returned elated to the manor. Two fish each for tea!

Alice soon prepared and cooked the trout, Polly and Pip were  called in so it was only one fish each. Ash bought up the cavern door but noticed Peter at the kitchen doorway with his finger over his lips then pointing to HE’s study.

After tea Ash went along to the study, knocked and entered when bidden. The computer keyboard was tapping away.

‘Yes Ash?’

“Uncle, I was wondering what that door in the cavern was, As you know I read all about Mallings from your history file but their was no mention of a door.”

‘Nor of the cavern if my memory serves me, why do you ask?’

“I was going to bring up the subject over dinner with Nick but Peter motioned me to be quite, I just wondered why?”

‘Well I expect it’s a secret door, if you noticed it you have got sharp eyes as I had the door painted the same colour as the walls. Did you observe any handle?’

“No Uncle just the boards, they looked old and heavy!”

‘Indeed Ash, and for a purpose, Peter could take you and Nick up there again with lamps this time. Ask him when you next see or rather hear him. Now come here please and tell me what this Internet auction is about’

“First up Uncle you’ll need a credit card.”

“A credits what?” HE appeared dressed in an old smoking jacket.

“A bit of plastic, a card which allows cash transfers.”

“Well Ash cash was good enough in my day and plastic which we called Bakelite was cheap and nasty.”

“Fetches good money on the antique scene so Nick tells me.”

“Bakelite! You’ll tell me next that cheap transfer porcelain also fetches a good price.”

“Indeed it does Uncle.”

“To think we could have invested in a warehouse of the stuff for pennies. Do we know anyone with a credit card Ash?”

“I’ve got one for my Trenchard trouble money, and Nick has one from his Australian mine money. But the solicitor supervises the Malling accounts so alas you don’t get one.”

“Well look here my lad there’s something here on this web site I’d like for your Aunt, can you lend me your card?”

“Yes of course but still Uncle I’ll send the application for you, now you know what an auction is?” HE nodded his head, so Ash showed him the intricacies of Internet auctions, and the various types available. By the time they had finished it was late and Peter popped though the wall to see his father.

“Ah Peter, can’t see why you miss the door every time you come in! By the by young Ash wants to see behind the cavern door so I suggest you take them both with a search light down the tunnel if that’s convenient?”

“Fine, Ash tell Nick to be ready at ten tomorrow, and ask Alice to pack sandwiches when you have breakfast. But mind you tell no one where you are going.” Peter disappeared as Ash nodded.