-You are reading episodes of THE POWER IN THE DARK, which is Book 1 of THE
ANCIENT BLOODLINES TRILOGY by Barry Mathias. ISBN: 9781897435113
CHAPTER 13
Gwen watched anxiously as the two youths crept along the path towards the ferryman's cottage. She had felt uneasy from the moment their boat was tied up at the pier, but was unable to point to anything in particular. The two young men were helping her, and it would have complicated the situation if she had insisted they all stayed together.
The moon was very bright in a cloudless sky, and she could see the outline of the flat ferryboat on the other side of the river. She crawled into the tall grass, where the land sloped up to the right. From this vantage point she could just make out the cottage with its faint yellow light. In front was the track that led to the cottage and to her right was the broad road that led down to the ferry landing on her left. Behind her was a dark band of gracefully curving willows growing close to the water and merging with larger elms and birches further up the slope. She edged back into the deep shadows of the trees, where she felt less vulnerable, and hid herself behind the hanging fronds of a willow. Her dark colouring enabled her to blend with the tree, yet still have a wide view of the clearing.
She wondered if Martin and Peter had reached the cottage, and strained her eyes to see any sign of movement, but could see nothing. As she stared into the darkness, there was an unexpected flare of light from two torches burning outside the cottage. She wondered what it meant. By the fitful light of the torches she could see dark shapes moving about. The soldiers were there!
If they caught Peter, she had no doubt they would soon find out everything that they wished to know. The awful face in the water, the leader of the soldiers, he would be among them, and Gwen felt certain he wanted her. In the flower meadow near Woodford, the first assailant, who must have been a brother, had certainly meant to capture her. This second man had not been so certain in the forest. But now he knew, and was determined to find her. She had no idea why this hideous creature was plotting to harm her, but she was convinced he was. She shivered slightly in the warm air.
The torches disappeared, and there was a bright light from inside the cottage. Moments later the torches reappeared and quickly increased in number. They were coming towards her!
It was as though she had planned for this event. Without any conscious decision, she climbed out through the back of the willow and crawled rapidly down to the riverbank, about fifty paces up from where they had moored the boat. Quickly removing her blue gown and folding it into a tight bundle, she placed it on her head and fastened it with the belt around her chin. Then, very slowly, without making a splash, she slipped like an eel into the water and swam up stream and towards the other bank, her head held high. With strong strokes, Gwen soon reached the safety of an overhanging willow on the opposite side. She peered out from beneath the protective covering and tried to understand what was happening on the other bank. Men with torches were shouting to each other and searching the place where she had been only minutes before. She guessed Peter must have been captured.
Then a rosy glow appeared in the sky, followed by a sudden eruption of bright sparks and dense smoke. She knew it must be the cottage. The torches on the opposite bank vanished, and in the still night air she could hear the unnerving sounds of a battle. Gwen wondered who could be attacking the soldiers.
There was a splash and a grinding of rope on wooden pulleys and she saw the ferryboat move like a phantom across the silvery water. When it reached the other side, a number of men on horses galloped up the bank and disappeared from view. The cries and yells increased, then slowly subsided. The glow in the sky faded and silence returned.
