‘The islanders ain’t going to welcome us, are they?’ Alice said.
The Spook nodded thoughtfully. ‘You could be right, girl. Refugees are rarely welcome anywhere. It just means extra mouths to feed. And a lot of folks will have fled the County and headed for Mona. There’s Ireland further to the west, but it’s a much longer journey and I’d prefer to stay as close to home as possible. If things are difficult, we could always head west later.’
As we approached the island, the waves became less choppy, but the drizzle was heavier now, and blowing straight into our faces. The weather and the green rolling hills ahead reminded me of the County. It was almost like coming home.
The fisherman put us ashore on the south-east of the island, tying his boat briefly to a wooden jetty that jutted out over a rocky shore. The three dogs leaped off the boat in turn, happy to be back on dry land, but we followed more slowly, our joints stiff after being confined in the boat for so long. It was just minutes before the fisherman put out to sea again. Silent and grim on the voyage across, now he was almost smiling. His debt to the Spook was paid and he was glad to see the back of us.
At the end of the jetty we saw four local fishermen sitting under a wooden shelter mending their nets; they watched us draw near with narrowed hostile eyes. My master was in the lead, his hood up against the rain, and he nodded in their direction. He got just one response: three of the men kept their eyes averted and continued with their work; the fourth spat onto the shingle.
‘Right, wasn’t I? We ain’t welcome here, Tom,’ Alice said. ‘Should have sailed further west to Ireland!’
‘Well, we’re here now, Alice, and we’ll just have to make the best of it,’ I told her.
We advanced up the beach until we came to a narrow muddy path, which ran uphill between a dozen small thatched cottages, then disappeared into a wood. As we passed the last doorway, a man came down out of the trees and barred our path. He was carrying a stout wooden cudgel. Claw bounded forward and growled at the stranger threateningly, her black fur bristling.
‘Call the dog back, lad. I’ll deal with this!’ the Spook shouted over his shoulder.
‘Claw! Here – good girl!’ I called, and reluctantly she came back to my side. I knew that even by herself, she was well able to deal with a man carrying only a club for a weapon.
The stranger had a tanned weather-beaten face and, despite the chilly damp, had his sleeves rolled up above his elbows. He was thick-set and muscular, with an edge of authority about him, and I didn’t think he was a fisherman. And then I saw that he was actually wearing a military uniform: a tight brown leather jerkin with a symbol on the shoulder – three running legs in a circle; legs that wore armour. Under it was a Latin inscription: QUOCUNQUE JECERIS SABIT. I suspected that he was one of the island’s yeomen.
‘You’re not welcome here!’ he told the Spook with a hostile glare, raising his club threateningly. ‘You should have stayed in your own land. We’ve enough mouths of our own to feed!’
‘We’d little choice but to leave it,’ said the Spook mildly. ‘Enemy soldiers burned my house and we were in peril of our lives. All we ask is to stay here for a short while until it’s safe to return. We come prepared to work and earn our keep as best we can.’
The man lowered his club and nodded. ‘You’ll work all right, if you’re given the chance – just as hard as all the others. So far, most seeking refuge from the County have been coming ashore at Douglas, to the north. But we knew some would try to sneak in like you lot, so we’ve been keeping watch,’ he said, looking first at the Spook and then at me. I saw him note our distinctive hooded cloaks, then our staffs and bags. Even those on Mona would recognize the garb and accessories of our trade.
Next he studied Alice, looking down at her pointy shoes, and I saw his eyes widen. He quickly crossed himself. ‘What’s a spook doing in the company of a witch?’ he demanded.
‘The girl’s no witch,’ the Spook replied calmly. ‘She’s been working for me copying books. And this is my apprentice, Tom Ward.’
‘Well, he won’t be your apprentice while he’s here with us, old man. We’ve no call for those of your trade and have our own ways of dealing with witches. Once sorted, those chosen will all work on the land. It’s food we need, not your hocus-pocus.’
‘Sorted?’ asked the Spook. ‘Explain what you mean by that!’
‘We didn’t ask you to come here,’ growled the yeoman, lifting his club again. ‘The lad’s young and strong, and will certainly be put to work. But some go back into the sea – and we might have different remedies for others…’ His gaze fell on Alice.
I didn’t like the sound of that, so I stepped forward to stand beside my master.
‘What do you mean by “back into the sea”?’ I demanded.
The Spook rested his hand on my shoulder. ‘Take it easy, lad. I think we both know what he means.’
‘Aye – those who can’t work are food for the fishes. Old men like you. And as for witches,’ the yeoman said, scowling at Alice, ‘you’re not the first to have tried to sneak ashore this past week. You’ll all get what’s coming to you. We have our own way of dealing with your kind!’
‘I think we’ve heard enough,’ said the Spook, rain dripping off the end of his nose. He lifted his staff and held it across his body in the defensive position. The man gave a mirthless grin and stepped forward aggressively.
Everything happened very fast then. The stranger swung his club at my master’s head, but it didn’t make contact. The ‘old man’ was no longer there. The Spook stepped to one side and delivered two rapid blows. The first cracked his assailant on the wrist to send the club spinning from his hand and a cry of pain bursting from his lips. The second thwacked him hard on the side of the head to drop him unconscious at our feet.
‘Not exactly the best of starts, lad!’ said my master, shaking his head.
I looked back. The four fishermen had come out of their shelter and were staring at us. The Spook followed my gaze, then pointed up the hill. ‘Best we put some distance between ourselves and the shore,’ he said immediately, striding out at a furious pace that had Alice and me struggling to keep up.
We climbed up through the trees, the Spook some distance ahead.
For the next half-hour or so my master did his best to take a route that would throw any trackers, even hounds, off our trail. We walked up to our knees in two different streams, once leaving by a different bank, the next time by the same. When he was finally satisfied, the Spook led us northwards at a slower pace.
‘We’d have been better off taking our chances in the County,’ Alice remarked. ‘Don’t care how many streams we cross, they’ll hunt us down now for sure. Soon find us on an island this size.’
‘I don’t think Mona’s that small, Alice. There’ll be plenty of places to hide,’ I told her. I hoped I was right.
The Spook had reached the summit of a hill and was staring off into the distance.
‘Think they’ll make a serious effort to find us?’ I asked him, catching up at last.
‘Could do, lad. I reckon our friend back there will wake up with a bit of a headache – he certainly won’t come after us alone. Those fishermen didn’t chase after us, so he’ll need to find himself some proper help and that’ll take time. Did you see that symbol and sign on his shoulder?’
‘Three armoured legs in a circle,’ I replied.
‘And the Latin underneath means…?’ my master asked.
‘Wherever you throw me I’ll stand?’
‘Aye, that’s near enough – it suggests self-reliance, lad. They’re a tough, resilient people, and we’ve clearly come to the wrong place. That said, I reckon we’ve shaken ’em off our trail now. Besides,’ he continued, pointing down the hill, ‘they’ve got more than just us to worry about!’
Far below I could see a large town and a harbour full of boats of all sizes. Beyond that lay a wide half-moon bay with a scattering of larger vessels, some of them a good distance from the land. Smaller boats were ferrying people to the shore. A huge flock of seagulls circled over the harbour, making a racket that we could hear up on the hill.
‘That’s Douglas, the largest town on the island. More people seeking refuge like ourselves,’ said the Spook. ‘Some of those ships will be sailing away again soon, but most probably not back to the County. I might just have enough money to get us a passage further west to Ireland. We should receive a warmer welcome there. It certainly couldn’t be any worse.’
‘But will they let us leave?’ I asked.
‘Best if we go without ’em noticing, lad. We’ll wait until nightfall, then you go down into the town. Most sailors like a drink or two – you’ll find them in the waterfront taverns. With a bit of luck you’ll be able to hire someone with a small boat.’
‘I’ll go with Tom,’ Alice said quickly, ‘and keep my eyes peeled for danger-’
‘No, girl, you stay with me and the dogs. The lad will be better off alone this time…’
‘Why can’t Alice come with me? Two pairs of eyes are better than one,’ I suggested.
The Spook glared at us in turn. ‘Are you two bound by an invisible chain?’ he asked, shaking his head. ‘You’ve hardly been apart lately. No, I’ve made up my mind. The girl stays here!’
Alice glanced at me and I saw fear flicker in her eyes as she thought of the blood jar, the only thing keeping the Fiend at bay. Inside that jar were six drops of blood: three of hers and three of mine. Alice was safe too – as long as she stayed close to me. But if I went down into the town alone, there was nothing to stop the Fiend taking his revenge upon her. So I knew that, although she didn’t argue now, she’d disobey the Spook and follow me. I set off down the hill soon after dark, leaving my cloak, bag and staff behind. It seemed that the islanders didn’t welcome spooks – or their apprentices. By now they could be searching for us in the town. The clouds had blown away and it was a clear starry night with a pale half-moon high in the sky. Once I’d walked a hundred yards or so I stopped and waited. It wasn’t long before Alice was by my side.
‘Did Mr Gregory try to stop you?’ I asked.
Alice shook her head. ‘Told him I was off hunting for rabbits, but he shook his head and glanced down at my feet so I know he didn’t believe me.’