Where Death and Danger Go by V M Knox

Author:V M Knox
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Book Reality Experience
Published: 2020-11-04T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

Clement sat up. He was in a large barn, two stories in height with high beams. He turned around, his ears straining. There was no sound; neither human nor animal. ‘Is anyone there?’ he asked quietly. No one responded. He stood, the barn’s lofty roof high above him. He was completely alone. Whoever had shared the lorry ride with him had not accompanied him. By the diminishing light in the building, he guessed it was between nine and ten at night. The barn was an ancient building, large and made of stone. Farm machinery of various kinds were on one side. Above him, suspended from the overhead rafters was a block and chain. He had seen such things before but he didn’t really know what they were used for. A large metal hook hung from the block. He stared at it feeling uneasy.

Clement slowly turned around, staring at the walls. There were no windows and soon the whole barn would be in darkness. Only the large double entry doors afforded a chance at escape. He walked towards them and pulled the handle. Locked, and a heavy wooden beam bolted the door from the outside.

Reaching into his pocket, he withdrew Reg’s innocuous device, feeling it between his fingers. It was the only weapon he had. From the time taken in the lorry to leave Cambridge and to arrive at the barn, he knew he was still in Cambridgeshire. Once he left the county, there may not be another opportunity to escape. He looked at the device and thought back. To activate it, Reg had said to remove the rod, select the colour for the time delay then run a coin along the groove. He rummaged in his pocket until he found a shilling. Red for thirty minutes. It was the shortest time available. Removing the rod, he ran the coin along the groove, then placed the device directly below the right-hand side of the door and covered it with straw. Noting the time on his watch, he took refuge behind the tractor.

He waited. Fifteen minutes passed. Then the sound of someone lifting the beam over the door. He peered around the edge of a tyre. The door opened and a girl of approximately sixteen with a frightened expression entered carrying a tray.

Clement stood but he didn’t walk towards her. The girl approached him, her mouth open, her timid eyes wide.

‘I apologise, I must look quite a fright,’ he said, hoping to draw the girl a little further away from the door.

The girl nodded and put the tray on a straw bale on the ground near to where Clement stood. ‘I was told to bring you this. It’s not much.’

He watched her. While she appeared scared, from her comment, he thought she seemed concerned for him.

‘Thank you. May I know your name?’

‘I’m not supposed to talk to you.’

‘Surely it can’t hurt if you tell me your name?’

‘Isabel.’

‘Do you live here, Isabel?’ Clement persisted.

‘No. In the village.’

‘Which village is that?’

‘I told you not to speak to him!’ Hector Armstrong’s voice bellowed from the doorway.

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