The Raven Conspiracy

Chapter 11 - I Meet the Troll

Chapter 11 – I Meet the Troll

After the third cabinet and twentieth song, I was ready to jump off the office roof. My mom’s boss, Mr Jules Gardiner, was the most disorganised person in existence. Instead of keeping all his invoices and receipts together in a neat file, he had them all dumped in a big cardboard box. And he never stopped singing. I understood why my mom came home every day with a headache. I was already developing one. I was systematically unpacking the fourth cabinet, sorting the contents into junk, things that need to be filed and yet more junk when the latest, irritating boy-band that Meg was obsessed with, started playing on the radio he kept on at all times. Once he belted out the opening lines, I decided it was time to excuse myself for a tea break.

“Mom?”

“Yes, honey?” she looked up from her computer, oblivious.

“Can I go and take a break. I need to clear my head.”

“Sure. Just don’t take too long, okay?”

I left the office, noticing the gloomy shade the sky had taken. Clouds blotted out the sun. I gave the supposed summer sky a frown as I walked.

Despite there being a perfectly respectable-looking cafe at the end of the road, I found myself climbing onto a bus instead of going to it. I took a seat, holding my handbag on my lap. The skirt borrowed from Anna was neatly folded inside a plastic bag.

“It’s perfectly fine, Maya,” I told myself. “You’re just returning it.”

Yet, I could not shake the feeling of anxiety. I leaned against the window and waited for the right stop. The entire trip, I kept fidgeting with my bag, double, triple and quadruple checking that the packet was still inside. The possible conversations and scenarios played out in my mind. What if Kairo wasn’t there? What if he didn’t want to open the office door and listen to me? Or worse – what i he already hired someone else? I knew that I wouldn’t survive another ten minutes working for Mr Gardiner. Even if Kairo wouldn’t give me my job back, I would find work elsewhere. With that resolve, I climbed off the bus.

Nothing changed since the previous day, except for Kairo’s motorbike standing in front of the door – which dispelled some of my worries. Even the hobo was still there, under the bridge. I watched him out of the corner of my eye as I strode to the door. As a precaution, I clutched my handbag close to me and gave him the evil eye. He wasn’t deterred and was getting closer. I increased my pace, only to find his lumbering stride match mine. Was he getting bigger, or was it merely my imagination and the change in position? The door suddenly seemed very far away. A heavy, disgusting stench reached me, making me splutter and cough. I stopped in my tracks as the hobo grew in size until it was over four metres tall. Its clothes hung about it in tatters and its head was a grey lump that sprouted a few wisps of white hair. It roared, engulfing me with a wave of stink and a raw sound that made me tremble. It stretched out a misshapen hand.

I screamed.

With a burst of adrenaline, brought out of sheer terror, I swung my bag at the hand and ran towards the office door. I could feel its presence behind me, chasing me. The smell was overwhelming. I heard two sets of footsteps running, but was too focussed on my goal to look up. I saw a flare of light. Two gunshots exploded near my ear. The creature roared again; I turned around to see it scurrying back to the bridge and turning back into a deceptively innocent-looking hobo.

“I thought I told you to watch out for the troll,” Kairo said calmly, checking the magazine of a silver gun. It slid back into place with a click. He frowned,