Chapter Eight

Chapter eight

It wasn’t long before they were out of the room. They entered the hall and saw a rail thin boy, his leg was trapped beneath a large wooden crate. He was breathing heavily, trying hard not to scream, his hands clawed at the floor. The group crowded around and began pulling the crate away. Once the crate had been removed Claire knelt down and delicately ran her hand over the boy’s leg. She looked up at Delcan her eyes glimmering with worry.

“I think it’s broken. Tell Donte to call a healer.” Declan nodded, he took one last look at the boy who was now out cold, and headed to back through the stair room. In the silence Terrence wondered aloud.

“Healer? Don’t you mean doctor?” Claire shook her head.

“No, healers are more advanced than doctors because they are learned herbalists.” Terrence blinked.

“That makes sense.” Said Peter who was standing near the door. He kicked the crate with his foot.

“What is this anyway?” Peter asked. Lye sighed, she walked over to the crate. She ran her delicate hand, the nails painted blood red, over the crate.

“Food, spices, Anthony likes to bulk order.” Something caught Lye’s eye.

“Well, that’s odd.” Lye picked up a letter that was lying on top of the crate. As she read the recipient’s name her eyes widened. She raised her head slowly.

“Declan” Her voice was a coarse whisper. Declan who had returned crossed the floor in two long strides.

“It’s from Angel.” Lye said, passing him the letter.

“Angel?” George asked, his face a mask of confusion. Olly cleared his throat before answering him.

“Angel was Eloy’s first wife. The crate however,” He said while looking at the label. “Is for Anthony.”

“Did someone say Angel?” On instinct, everyone stiffened. Eloy was standing by the door. No one spoke, they simply nodded. Mr. Roblin sighed. He stepped forward to look at the unconscious boy.

“A healer is on the way.” Mr. Roblin knelt down and gazed at the boy’s face. “His name I Charlie. The poor boy is from the village postal service, he always brings Anthony’s supplies. I knew it was only a matter of time before he wouldn’t be able to handle it.”

The healer came in a a few short moments. No one got to see what happened because she shooed everyone out. At supper Donte made sure to ask everyone how their day had been, even Lye. Her answer was surprising.

“Pretty good, the new English teacher is excellent,” She smirked “and easy on the eyes. I was surprised by Jones’ knowledge about Geometry. It was most unfortunate Miss Gvill’s accident.”

“What accident?” Michelle asked. Donte and Mr. Roblin shook their heads.

“No one knows anything about it, must have been bad enough for her not to come back.” Donte answered her, a solemn ring to his tone. A loud creak stopped everyone’s talking cold. A giggle sounded through the hall.

“Did y’all hear that?” Michelle’s voice became higher and her accent more noticeable. As it did when she was frightened. The giggle came again. It was followed by a voice, female, and very excited and faint. They all had to strain to listen.

“Hello! Hi, so very nice to meet you. Dear, oh dear I wish I could have some food. My goodness look at the light through those crystals! It’s so pretty so pretty I remember them! Such pretty crystals.” The voice sighed a deep and troubling sigh.

“What, was that?” Phillip asked his eyes wandering around the room.

“What do you mean?” Claire asked him, her face blank.

“What was that voice?” Phillip expanded, one eyebrow lifting in confusion.

“What voice?” Claire laughed. Jerald groaned in response.

“The voice that wanted to eat our food and was admiring the chandeliers” That was the last straw. Everyone down the length of the table, burst into hysterical laughter; except the newbies. Claire regained herself first.

“Remember how we told you that Dracula was possibly cursed here?” She didn’t wait for a response. “Well maybe you newbies awakened a spirit.”

“Your joking.” Hayden’s face clearly said I don’t believe you.

“No she’s not joking. Not at all. I’m surprised that you straight out called a woman a liar, not very gentlemanly of you. ” If eyes could really grow the size of supper plates then that would accurately describe Hayden’s. He threw down his napkin.

“Alright that’s it. I’ve finally lost it.” Hayden exclaimed, his lips pressed into a firm line.

“You haven’t lost it, you just haven’t found it yet. I’ll be surprised if you ever do. Now the jaw drops.” Hayden’s jaw dropped right on cue.

“This spirit voice is mean!”

“You do realize how nuts that sounded right?” Jerald asked Hayden. “But then again, I hear the voice too.”

“Aww, you hear me? I’m so honored, it’s been so long since I’ve been heard. Like, almost a year. Being invisible is exhausting one of these days I’m gonna, I’m gonna.” As the voice rambled on Terrence curled up in his chair and raised his arms over his head, as if protecting it.

“Please don’t hurt us.” It seemed like a five minute wait until the voice’s laughter stopped.

“So naïve! I’m not going to hurt you silly boy, just, keep you from sleeping!” The voice then muttered to itself. “No, no that’s mean stop them from sleeping that would be rude I mean they are residents here now. So, no, no being mean. I’m not good at being mean, how could I even think about doing that? Bad me, bad me bad me!”

“Are you alright?” Peter asked, then shook his head. “Listen to me talking to a disembodied voice.” Wince clapped his hand on Peter’s shoulder.

“It happens to the best of us. You get used to it.” Peter stared at Wince with horror.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Peter asked him. Wince shrugged comically in response.

After supper everyone gathered in the parlor to play a game. Cill and her twin sister Cer, who had been at the Academy for three years, explained the game.

“Listen up newbies,” Cer began while Cill shuffled a deck of cards that had whist written on the backs. “This game is called Snip, Snap, Snorem. The pack is dealt, one card at a time, and the eldest person places any card on the table. Each player then has to place a card in ascending or descending order.” Cill finished shuffling and handed the deck to Ecrin who started dealing them out to those who had been selected for the first round. Cill continued the instructions.

“For example, if I lay down a three the next player would put down either a four or a two. If a King is played the next player lays down another King, if they can, calling out ‘Snip!’ The next player lays down the third King, saying ‘Snap!’ and the next, the fourth King with the word ‘Snorem.’ A player who can not play a card loses their turn, and the holder of Snorem gets to stay in and start the next round. “

Aden’s expression was priceless. It was a mixture of confusion and astonishment.

“Repeat that for me will you? I don’t think I quite got that.” Cer smiled at him reassuringly.

“Will do. So if I put down a five, your can lay down either a four or a six. If you lay down a six the next person can lay down another five or a seven, and so on. If someone puts down a King, and the person next to them has a King, and the next and the next. You say ‘Snip’ ‘Snap” then ‘Snorem’ got it? It’s a pretty simple game when you know how.” Almost every game they played, the ones who were not foreign to Dark Side Manor won every time. It took a while for the newbies to get it down, but when they did it was almost midnight by the time Donte sent everyone to the showers.

§***§

“Ouch, Blake quit it!” Peter complained.

“Come on, I can’t get to bed until you turn off the light.” Blake replied, thumping Peter on his bare back again.

“I can’t find my shirt.” Peter kept rummaging through his drawers. Dave groaned and rolled over in his bed to stare over the side.

“You don’t need a shirt to sleep.” Peter stopped, and turned to glare at Dave.

“You may not, but I do.” Wit rolled over and gazed at the floor, he reached under his bed and pulled something out.

“Peter, it was under my bed. It must have gotten kicked under this morning.

“Thanks.” Peter said pulling the shirt over his head. Hayden sighed.

“So that voice, why did it keep patronizing me?” Olly failed at trying to control his laughter.

“Who knows? Olly said at the same time Blake said “Finally” Because Peter had turned the light out.

In the dark Wit spoke.

“You know, when I was a newbie I heard a voice.”

“All of us have. It’s part of being new.” Olly explained.

“Did you honestly not hear the voice at supper?” Dave asked “I heard it again as I was walking back from the showers.” Blake groaned, there was the sound of wood creaking, saying that he had turned over.

“Alright, I can see I’m not going to get to sleep until you get your curiosity out of your system. So no, I did not hear a voice. I haven’t since I came here three years ago.” Hayden too turned over.

“How old are you?”

“Sixteen. So I was thirteen when I came here.”

“You do realize we can do math right?” Even though it was dark everyone knew Hayden had rolled his eyes.

“Just making it clear.”

“Do you really think it was a spirit?”

” ‘Course it wasn’t Pete! It was probably joke Roblin played on us. He may come off as serious but I can tell he has a sick sense of humor.”

“Oh he does. One time…” Wit was cut off by a grumpy Blake.

“Go. To. Sleep.”

“Someone needs their beauty sleep.” Wit muttered.