The Molten Pendant

Chapter 1 - 2 Days Later

Will rang the doorbell to Mrs Cooper's house. He heard a woman's voice, followed by soft footsteps walking down the hall. The door opened a little way and an eye appeared in the crack it made. The eye widened when it saw who stood there, and the door opened fully. Mrs Cooper said "William! Where have you been?" When she saw Will had nothing to say, the old woman beckoned him inside and led him down the hall. The house was musty as if for several weeks no attention had been paid to cleaning it. Black and white pictures hung from the walls, some dotted with yellow stains and others suffocated in blankets of spiderwebs. At the last door on the right she turned and entered the room, and Will followed. On a bed in the room was Will's mother. He rushed over to her and hugged her tightly as if he would never let go, as if he had to protect her from anything that might have happened in his absence. After several minutes he broke away, but still held her hands. Will looked his mother straight in the eyes. "Where have you been, Will?" she asked. "Mrs Cooper told me you said you would only be a couple of days!". Tears welled in her eyes.

"I had to hide. I had to make sure you were safe and then I had to go somewhere where the men would never find me". His voice broke as he said this. "But it's okay now. I found somebody who can help us".

Elaine Parry had a lot of questions for her son when they arrived back at their home in Winchester. Will told her the story of what he had been doing for several weeks, and she believed him, at least after he told her about his father. Will tried to postpone this fact for as long as possible, as he wished to avoid hurting his mother any more. When he told her of his father's death she seemed to become sad and distant, but no tears escaped her eyes. The part he struggled with was telling his mother about Lyra. His voice broke every time he mentioned her and towards the end of the tale he had to pause several times before continuing. When he finished explaining he put his head in his hands. Elaine looked down, understanding how much her son had been affected by the events of the past few weeks, from leaving her and home to parting with Lyra. After several minutes of sad silence, she asked "Who is the person who can help me?". Will looked up, his face shining with tears and replied "Mary Malone".