Chapter 5

I wanted to shout out to Luke and have the fairytale reunion I'd been imagining in my head for years, but he was much too far away to hear me now. I decided it would be best to continue my search for Charlie. I longed to talk to Luke, but I reluctantly turned away and left all thoughts of him behind. Besides, I doubted he'd even remember me. It was nearly eleven years since I last saw him.

I knew searching for Charlie was hopeless; I had no leads, but I still clung onto the tiny bit of hope that I could find him. I headed off to Highyard Hill and tried really hard not to focus on anything but rescuing Charlie.

A little boy I'd never seen before wandered up to me, looking lost. He was crying.

"My… my mummy… I've lost my mummy…"

I couldn't help feeling sorry for the little guy. I had to help him.

"Do you know where your house is?"

The boy sniffled and nodded. He pulled out a small piece of paper with directions on it.

"But I… I don't know where it is." And more tears trickled down his cheek.

"Don't worry! I'll take you back to your mummy."

The little boy managed a quivering smile. "Really?"

Following the directions from the paper shred, I led the boy down busy streets and dark alleys, all the way through town. Finally we reached a huge mansion decorated with plants and trees everywhere. The front garden was huge, and the curvy path was lined with little pebbles and tiny flowers.

"Wow, you live in a really nice house," was all I could think to say.

The boy said nothing. He led me to the door and knocked five times. I didn't really see a reason for me to come inside, but then I thought it would be best if I made sure the boy was safely reunited with his mother. The door creaked open, but I couldn't see anyone in the darkness. We stepped inside and the first thing I noticed was how different it was from the beautiful exterior of the house. It was dark, gloomy and eerie, dimly light only by a candlelit chandelier hanging from the ceiling. Cobweb covered suits of armour guarded every corner of the hall. The stuffed heads of animals adorned the walls and crossed swords threatened to fall and chop off my head.

"Erm…" I said cautiously to the boy, "you li-"

I'd walked into a handkerchief that was quickly tied in some kind of knot around my head, preventing me from speech. My hands were yanked around my back and bound together with rough, irritating rope. The last thing I remembered was hitting my head on something hard, and the room fading to black ever so slowly.

I felt my eyes flutter open and saw a blurry image of some kind of office. A devious, manipulating voice belonging to a man was the first thing I heard. "Ah, you're awake. I trust you had a peaceful rest?"

I managed to yank the handkerchief off my mouth before I realised I was sitting on a cold stone floor in a small metal cage, like a jail cell. I sat up too quickly and my head throbbed painfully. My vision was still blurred.

"Who…"

"Excuse me? Terribly sorry, you'll have to speak up, dear; my hearing isn't too good these days."

"Little…boy…lost…"

I was confused, and my head hurt the more I tried to figure out who this man was.

"Ah, yes. I suppose my little…'helper' found you alright? No problems? Oh, look. Here he is now. Riley!"

The little boy toddled in on command.

"You…you used this infant in a sick plan to capture me?"

"Oh, no my dear. Look closely. It is most probable that your eyes were simply"–he clicked his fingers–"deceiving you."

I blinked hard and had to do a double take to make sure I wasn't imagining things.

No it couldn't be. Right in front of my eyes, this sweet little boy had transformed into and ugly thug, his body plastered with tattoos. He was huge and muscular, and looked like he could squish me just as easily as a car crusher.

"Wha- How?"

"My dear, I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about."

I rubbed my eyes. My vision was clearing a little now, but I still couldn't be sure if I'd just seen what I thought I did.

"Who are you?

Somewhere in the building, there was a whimper. I could have sworn – no. Now's not the time for making yourself upset again, I thought.

"Again, my dear. I'm not telling you just yet."

Another whimper. I wasn't imagining it this time.

"Charlie…?"

Then I had a sudden realisation. "You're… You're the man from my letters…"

"Ah, a bright one, I see. You are correct."

"Then… then that must mean… CHARLIE! Charlie!"

I heard a yelp and a bark. I was crying and laughing at the same time. I'd found him at last. Though rescuing him was a different story.

Then he whimpered again. He wasn't…hurt?

"What's happening to him?!" I screamed at the man. Now that my vision was clearer, I could see him properly. He wore a black pinstriped suit and a malicious grin. I noticed that everything about him was long. His face was long, his neck was long, his arms and legs were long and his shoes were long and pointy. He must have been at least two feet taller than me. His face was shadowed by a feathered hat, so I couldn't see it very well.

"Oh, my men are just running some usual procedures. To keep him quiet." He added the last part with a smirk.

"Leave him alone!" I yelled at him. "You're just a big… a big… meanie!" After I said that, I immediately regretted it. I felt like an elementary school kid. Sorry, primary.

"I'm a meanie? Oh no, please don't tell my mummy!" He mocked me. "Pathetic."

Suddenly the door burst open and Luke appeared. I was so shocked I jumped and hit my head on the roof of the cell, making it rattle a little. Luke was shocked when he saw me too.

"My god, it's you again! Are you alright? What on earth are you doing here?"

"She's my hostage," the evil man cut in. "I knew you'd come running."

"What? But you don't even know me? And I don't know her!"

"You… what?"

"I don't know this lady. I was just leading a little girl back to her house and the next thing I know I hear screams and… was it a whimper?"

"Charlie!" Tears were streaming down my cheeks now.

Luke looked at me as if he'd just had an epiphany.

"Hold on, you're that girl's mother, aren't you? Don't worry, miss, we'll find your daughter and get you both safely back home."

"No, I am not the girl's mother!" I said in frustration. Did I really look old enough to be a parent? "Look, the girl's not even real."

"What?"

"Mm-hm. It is most probable that your eyes were simply – I clicked my fingers, imitating the man in the black suit – deceiving you."

Luke laughed a little.

"Will someone explain to me just what is going on here? Triton, why do you have no idea who this girl is?" The suited man was getting frustrated now.

Luke was taken aback. "Wait, how do you know my name?"

The man just ignored him. "Anyway, now I have you both where I want you, I will have my revenge! Prepare to leave this world as you know it!"

I had no idea what he was talking about, and by the looks of things, Luke was none the wiser, but I knew it couldn't be good. I knew we had to get out of here, and fast. The man turned his back for a few seconds, which left just enough time for Luke to solve the puzzle lock on my cell. I wondered why there was a puzzle lock, and I would have thought that a normal lock would be more secure, but Luke seemed to solve it without question. Maybe he'd seen a lot of puzzle locks in his lifetime.

By the time I'd climbed out, the man was turning round, armed with weapons, and the room was filling in with angry, tough-looking thugs.

"We have to leave," I said. "Now."

"Wait!" he grabbed my arm. "We have to find the professor!"

"The pr- you mean that man you've been walking round with?"

"Yes! I lost him on the way up here, but I don't know where he went.

That led to a lot of creeping around and trying to keep out of the thugs' lines of vision. Eventually, we found 'the professor' poring over some ancient artefacts in a glass case as if he were on a field trip and there weren't hundreds of thugs piling into the building to seek us out kill us, most probably.

He kept saying things like, "My, this is quite a find!" and jotting things down in a little notepad.

"Professor!" Luke whisper-shouted. "Now isn't the time!"

With my help he dragged him away and we made our exit. We ran all the way through town and tried to be seen by as little people as possible, to avoid them giving any information to the thugs.

Eventually we found an old abandoned shack in the woods with only a homeless kitten for company. Luke, who'd always been able to talk to animals, found out his name was Keats, and that he'd find all the puzzles we left behind on our journeys and 'take good care of them'. I didn't have a clue what all the fuss over puzzles was about, or why the hell they needed taking care of, but Luke and the professor seemed perfectly alright with the idea. It was as if Keats had told him he was going to have a nap. Or climb a tree.

~Hey guys, are you still enjoying it? I haven't had many reviews in a while, so I'm just kinda writing randomly. Please review and tell me if you like it! Even if you hate it, please review or PM me on what I can improve on. Oh, and if you like it, great! But tell me what you like about it so I can make sure I carry on doing it, and in future fanfics, too. I love reading your reviews! It makes me so happy that you've actually taken the time to sit and read my story. It means so much to me, it really does. I mean, this is my first fanfic, ever, so I really appreciate your support and kind words. It really does help. Sorry for the babbling and cheesyness (I do that a lot, don't I?), but I needed to thank you guys. Thanks to all.

Also, if you have any suggestions that could lead to a later plot, or a character of yours you'd like me to fit in, I'd be so happy to hear them! ~