Engines and werewolves

Chapter 16

e chuckled. There was no mirth in the sound. "Fate cares little for our wishes." He opened his arms and frowned. "Do you believe I want to exist as a monster with these uncontrollable urges? That I wished to become as you know me?" Victoria pursed her lips. He slowly walked toward her. His bright eyes caught her gaze and held her in place. "I do what I must to survive. There's nothing good or evil about that. It's merely how I must exist." Lukeman reached her and set his hands on her shaking shoulders. He cupped one of her cheeks in his palm and smiled down at her. "Though I must admit my life has gotten rather more interesting since you entered it."

Victoria couldn't stop the blush from slipping onto her cheeks. She shook her head and his hand off her cheek, and frowned at the man. "I still can't forget what you did to that man at the hospital, or that man in the woods."

He smiled. "I wouldn't have you develop amnesia. It's quite an annoyance."

Her eyes flickered from Lukeman to Albert and back. "So what do we do now? How can I clear my father's name?"

Lukeman chuckled. "Selfless, as always, and I have a plan that needs just your selflessness. I need you to transform me into Blake."

8

Victoria blinked at him. "You need me to do what?"

Lukeman stepped back and opened his arms. "I need you to change my appearance to that of my former employee so I can impersonate him for a short while."

Victoria's eyes widened and she furiously shook her head. "B-but I don't know how!"

"Nonsense. You performed the magic before," he pointed out.

"But I don't know how I did that!" she argued.

He smiled and shook his head. "There isn't much difficulty to it. Merely focus on my body and imagine Blake being in my place. The magic should do the rest."

Her mouth dropped open. "But I don't know what he looks like!"

Lukeman dropped his arms and arched an eyebrow. "You don't?"

She shook her head. "No! I never met him!"

Lukeman cupped his chin in one hand and furrowed his brow. "I see." His eyes flickered to Albert. "Is his file still in the house?"

Albert shook his head. "No, sir. It was returned yesterday."

"And his personal items? Are they still here?"

The servant nodded. "Yes, sir. I haven't yet destroyed them."

Lukeman dropped his hand. "That means we must rummage through his wallet for his identification. It won't be as perfect as the a larger view of him, but it might do the trick." He held his arm out to Victoria and smiled. "Will you trust me to help your father? I haven't failed him yet."

Victoria frowned, but accepted his arm. He turned them to the back of the house and the rear door. They went outside to the backyard. It was a wilderness of vines, half-collapsed stone walls, and large, overgrown trees that cast shadows over the corners of the yard.

One such tree hung over a small stone building that was stuck in the far corner of the property. The thatched roof was covered in a thick carpet of grass and rotten leaves. There were no windows, and the entrance was a heavy wooden door. A large lock hung from a thick metal plate. Lukeman removed a skeleton key from his pocket, but paused and glanced to his right where stood Victoria.

"This might not be pleasant," he warned her.

Victoria steadied herself and pursed her lips. "I'll do it if it will help my dad."

He smiled. "Brave girl."

Lukeman unlocked the heavy lock and pushed open the thick door. The hinges complained through the use of deep groans as the heavy wood swung into the building. The weak afternoon light stretched across the dirt floor and revealed short wooden benches on either side of them. The benches were set against the walls and on their dusty tops were ancient, rusted gardening tools such as hedge clippers and twine.

Lukeman stooped into the low space and walked over to the far right corner. The dirt floor was newly swept with a broom. The tell-tale cleaning item leaned against the opposite bench. Lukeman knelt in front of the far-right bench and brushed away the dirt with his hand. He revealed a wooden panel with a hole.

Lukeman stuck his hand in the hole and lif

ted the board to reveal a hidden space. The top of a ladder could be seen, but only the first few rungs were visible. The others were lost in the darkness.

He slid into the hole and propped himself on the ladder before he grinned at Victoria. "I'd invite you to go first, but I believe you'd insist on my going."

Victoria nodded. "Definitely."

"Then follow me."

Lukeman climbed down out of sight. Victoria reluctantly followed him down the hole. The ladder was twelve feet tall, and by the time she reached the bottom a primitive oil lamp was lit. The light allowed her to see the space contained a crudely-cut passage that led to the left and right of the ladder. Roots from the surrounding trees sank into the earth and pushed out the dirt from the walls, revealing themselves to her eyes. Little clods of the fallen soil cluttered the passage, and here and there were nubs of discolored candles.

Lukeman held up the lantern and the weak light glistened off his glowing eyes. "Just a little further and we'll be there."

She arched an eyebrow. "Where is 'there?'"

He grinned and half-turned away from her. "You'll see."

Lukeman led her down the right-hand path in the opposite direction of the house. The passage went for fifty feet before they came to another door much like the one that sealed the old gardener's shed.

Victoria's foot struck something half-buried in the dirt. She stooped and squinted. A piece of an ancient green bottle stared back at her. Strange symbols were etched on the surface of the bottle.

Victoria looked up at Lukeman who stood over her. "What is this place?"

"It was once a meeting place for Druids," Lukeman answered as he turned away from her. He unlocked another heavy lock with a different skeleton key. "They prayed to the forest god to vanquish their enemies, and sacrificed to the roots."

Victoria frowned. "What kind of sacrifices?"

A crooked grin slipped onto his lips as he swung open the door. "The most potent kind."

A potent smell wafted through the door and washed over them. Victoria gasped and slapped her hand over her face to stifle the scent. It wreaked of putrid rot.

Lukeman held up the lamp and revealed a small, circular room. The walls were covered in the thick bare roots of the trees as they slithered in and out of the walls. The soft bark was covered in splotches of a blackish-red dye. In the center of the floor was a large, stone-lined pit half-filled with black ash. Across the pit and opposite the door stood a small, new wooden table. On the table was a heavy metal box, rusted and with a small lock stuck through its front clasp.

Lukeman strode over to the box. Victoria reluctantly followed his light into the small room, but avoided the pit by staying close to the wall. She yelped when her shoulder brushed against one of the soft roots. She spun around and stumbled back. The back of her heel hit one of the large rocks that lined the pit. She teetered backward and flailed her arms.

Lukeman's strong arm wrapped around her and pulled her against his side. He held up the lamp to shine the light on their faces, particularly his grinning one. "Did I forget to mention to watch your step?"

Victoria squirmed free of his grasp and brushed her dirty shoulder. "I'm quite fine." She brushed a little harder, but the reddish dirt wouldn't come off. "Why won't this dirt come off?"

Lukeman chuckled and walked back to the table. "That's because it's not dirt."

She frowned. "Then what is it?"

He set the lamp on the table and pulled out another key. "It's dried blood."

Victoria felt her own blood drain from her face. "B-blood?"

He nodded as he opened the box. "Yes. The Druids sacrificed people to their forest god for the world to rejuvenate itself. They spread the blood on the roots to ensure the god received their sacrifice." He glanced over his shoulder and nodded at the pit. "The rest of the body was burned in the pit, and the ashes were removed after cremation and spread over the soil beneath us."

Victoria yelped and stood on her tiptoes. She looked down at the dirt floor and cringed when she noticed her footprints in the dark soil. She'd been walking on dead people.

Lukeman shut and locked the box and turned to her. He tucked a leather wallet into his coat. "There's no need to worry. The sacrifices are long dead," he pointed out as he tucked a wallet into his coat.

"B-but they murdered people! And they're still here!" she protested.

Lukeman moved to stand beside her. He lifted the lamp to reveal the extensive net of roots that traveled across the ceiling. The soft bark was smothered in the dried blood of the Druid victims.

He furrowed his brow. His voice was soft and quiet. "They believed death was a necessity for them. It had to occur for the world to continue."

She glared at him. "It's still murder."

He lowered the lamp and shrugged. "Everything is in the eye of the beholder. Now we should leave this place before we catch our death of cold and become a sacrifice."

Lukeman led her out of the tunnels and back to the gardener's shed where he hid the entrance. The sun had set during their exploration, and the world was shrouded in shadows and darkness. They followed the winding garden path back to the house where the well-lit hall greeted them, as did Albert. His expression was tense.

"The police returned while you were occupied, Master," Albert informed them. "They were adamant in speaking with you, but I informed them you were out."

Lukeman arched an eyebrow. "They had more questions about the case?"

Albert nodded. "Yes, and wished to take you down to the station to ask them."

Lukeman turned to Victoria. "Our time grows short. Let's see if you can control your powers."

Victoria reluctantly followed him upstairs to his chambers. They paused before the fire, and he pulled out the wallet he had tucked into his jacket and held it out to her. "You'll find Blake's license in here. Study it, and we will see what your powers can do."

Victoria took the wallet, but glanced from the smooth cover to Lukeman's expectant face. "The police suspect you now, don't they?"

He nodded. "So it seems."

"Then they don't think my dad had anything to do with it?"

Lukeman bowed his head. "Their questions would lead one to that conclusion."

Victoria furrowed her brow as she looked down at the wallet. "Then. . .then do I need to do this?"

"No."

She looked up into his face. He stared back at her with a steady, penetrating gaze. "I won't pretend to be a good man. I have performed atrocities and sacrificed people in order to stave off my own destruction. However-" he clasped her chin between his fingers and gazed into her bright eyes, "-I have never cared for anyone as I care for you, and that being the case, I won't risk your safety." Lukeman took the wallet from her hand and tucked it into his coat before he stepped back. "You may leave."

Victoria blinked at the man. "I. . .I can just go?"

A soft smile slipped onto his lips. "You have always been free to leave."

She frowned. "But what will happen to you?"

He shrugged. "I expect I'll be taken to the station and tried for the disappearance of Mr. Blake, though without a body they can't convict me of murder."

Victoria furrowed her brow. "But. . .but will they find out you're a werewolf?"

Lukeman sighed and nodded. "Undoubtedly. My beast manifests itself often when I'm under strain, and a long incarceration will be a great strain."

Victoria wrapped her arms around herself and bit her lower lip. "Then. . .then you won't be coming back?"

Lukeman closed his eyes and shook his head. "No."

The young woman felt a tinge of pain in her heart. She pursed her lips and hung her head. "I. . .maybe I don't want that to happen to you."

He arched an eyebrow. "Even though I am guilty of his death?"

She cringed. "I. . .I know that, but I still don't want you to leave. Especially not that way."

He grasped her shoulders. She looked up into his smiling face and shimmering eyes. "Then you will agree to help me?"

Victoria sighed, but nodded

her head. "Yes, if I can."

He grinned. "I'm sure you can."

9

Lukeman pulled out the wallet and handed it to her. "Study his face and focus on changing my face to his."

Victoria opened the wallet. Inside were the usual spare dollar bills and credit cards. Nestled among them was Blake's driver's license. Even in that photo he smirked. She studied his face and her eyes flickered up to Lukeman as he waited patiently in front of her.

"So I just need to focus on you being him?" she asked him.