Dark Harbour: The Tale of the Soul Searcher (2 page)

Jeremy looked very thoughtful. ‘Have you ever been there, Granddad? Have you looked into the waves?’

‘Don’t be stupid!’ his brother quickly cut in. ‘It’s not real, you know!’

His grandfather made no reply. He had slipped back into his silent mood.

Chapter 0.2

Over the following weeks, Jeremy and his brother slowly began to orientate themselves in their new life. It was during the first days of June when they moved in, not long before the end of the school year.

Simon was admitted at one of the local secondary schools for the remaining weeks of term. As for Jeremy, although he’d started school prior to moving here, a place could not be found at either of the crammed primary schools. However, one of the schools agreed to accept him for the start of the following academic year. For the next couple of months Jeremy was to spend a lot of time with his grandfather.

Though not quite of retirement age, Ulric Tuckwell was currently not in employment either, not that the boys had ever been clear on what his line of work was. Evidently, their grandfather just did a bit of work now and again for some friends.

Since moving in with him, Simon was eager to find out what his grandfather did. He was usually so curious that, after school while they sat around the tea table, he would persistently dig away with questions. The answers he usually received tended to be rather vague: a bit of ‘buying and selling’, talk of ‘speculative investments’, often followed by the sound of the air whistling through his grandfather’s moustache.

Ironically, it was the disinterested younger brother who had the best insight into their grandfather’s occupation, but Jeremy couldn’t understand what all the fuss was about. What Jeremy
was
fascinated by was all the different places in his new hometown. Each morning after Simon had gone to school, Ulric would take Jeremy on a walk to a new corner of these shores.

One of the first places they went to was Moonlight Cove. Ulric knew of a secret way of getting there, through a patch of woodland not far from the flat.

As they walked through the trees, Ulric recounted to his young grandson how evil spirits once haunted the woodland. His story went that a mysterious traveller had wandered into the area a few years ago and made a home within the wild trees. The ghosts and ghouls weren’t happy about this and so they tried to scare the poor man away.

However, this cunning traveller made sure he had the last laugh. Casting a spell in the woods, he strode to the giant tree in the centre, a great oak that was hundreds of years old, and on one of the branches he carved an angel that would keep the evil spirits away.

Jeremy certainly couldn’t see any ghosts as they walked deeper into the woods, but, even so, he held onto his grandfather’s hand tightly.

‘Take me to the angel, Granddad! I want to see the angel!’

‘Okay, I’ll take you there. We have to go right to the heart to find her.’

‘Do you know the way?’

‘Of course I do, my boy! But you can’t tell anyone about her. She’s a secret.’

Ulric led Jeremy off the main path and in amongst the trees. After fighting their way through the thick growth of bracken and branches that all seemed to reach out and pull them back from their route, they eventually reached the magnificent oak.

‘Here she is,’ Ulric announced. ‘The oldest tree of the woods. The oldest and the wisest.’

It was very majestic, its monstrous limbs reaching for the heavens like the arms of an almighty ogre. It didn’t take Jeremy long to find the carving; his enthralled eyes were magnetised to her before Ulric had even raised his finger to point her out.

Two feet tall, dressed in flowing robes, her wings were unfurled as though she was magically floating within the timber. Despite the shadow of the canopy, the carving just happened to be at such a point where the sunlight trickled its way through the leaves to illuminate her. She looked radiant, almost as if she was generating the light herself, shining her protective spirit over the woodland.

As they left the angel behind them, Jeremy wondered how his grandfather knew so much about this place. He just seemed to know
everything
. The young boy hoped that one day he could be like his grandfather, that he could be so clever and insightful. He hoped that one day people would be in awe of him.

On the other side of the woods, just a short walk through some wild flower meadowland, was the cove. Ulric had been quite spirited trailing through the woods, but by the time they arrived at the shore he was a little solemn.

The ageing guardian led Jeremy to the top of a cliff that looked down onto the sea. For about a quarter of an hour he just stood there watching the waves dancing over the rocks. Jeremy did not speak.

The whispering sound of the crashing surf began to draw the boy into a comforting corner of his mind. He felt lulled by the soothing sensation, feeling cleansed of the unhappy feelings that were polluting his life.

In this trance, he continued to gaze on the effervescent waves as they swept over the beach, making the grains of sand glisten in the brilliant sunshine as though the sea was scattering jewels across the shoreline.

Jeremy eventually looked across to his grandfather and it seemed that the salty air was stinging the old man’s eyes. Ulric ran his fingers through his thinning grey hair and then circled his palm over the back of his head, almost as though he was trying to massage his own mind.

So many questions began to fill Jeremy’s head and he wondered if he should voice any of them. He thought about all the other broken people that had presumably come to Moonlight Cove over the years and he wondered whether they found what they were looking for. He wanted to know how these moonlight-reflecting waters were able to perform such magic. He wanted to know what other secrets were to be unveiled within this town.

Just as a question seemed to find itself on the tip of Jeremy’s tongue, Ulric drew in a deep breath of sea air and turned to his grandson. He took his hand and then led him away from the sea, back home to the flat. But Jeremy would soon be back here. Sooner than he would have expected.

Ulric went out that evening and left Simon to keep an eye on his brother. He told them he was going to see a friend and that he would return around eleven. Jeremy was easy to baby-sit though. With his
Star Wars
action figures and
Knight Rider
on television, the young lad was in a world of his own.

As he continued his battles against the Empire, Simon was back to playing Sherlock. That was until he eventually came back into the living-room and slunk down onto the settee. He shifted around in his seat for a moment as though he couldn’t get comfortable, and then he got up again and switched off the television.

‘Granddad’s in trouble. I’ve found something out.’

Jeremy put his action figures down. ‘What sort of trouble?’

‘Doesn’t matter.’

Jeremy didn’t know whether to leave it at that or to risk being berated for asking another stupid question. Not knowing what his brother was on about anyway, he got back to the galactic battle.

‘I found a letter in his bedroom.’

Jeremy decided to put his figures down. ‘What did it say?’

‘I shouldn’t tell you really,’ Simon replied, facing the window as though talking to a six-year-old was beneath him.

There was an usually dramatic tone to his words, and Jeremy’s heart was starting to thump. ‘Simon, what did it say? Who was the letter from?’

‘I don’t know. He just put his initials: T.H.M.’

‘What does that stand for?’

‘I don’t know, Jeremy!’

Simon lowered his head as though he was about to pray, but then Jeremy noticed the letter was in his hands.

Simon unfolded it. ‘It goes like this: ‘Dear Mr Tuckwell, I understand the angels lead us to paradise, and the martyrs greet you and lead you into the holy city of Jerusalem. Is this not how it goes for you? Do the angels greet you? Did not Lazarus, once also a poor man, find eternal rest? Perhaps you chose to dwell in Dark Harbour for another reason. Perhaps you thought someone else might be able to save you. Alas, you cannot hide under my eyes. Adieu.’ Signed T.H.M.’

Simon folded the letter up again and there was a cold silence. Jeremy’s mouth had suddenly gone very dry. He didn’t understand what it all meant but he could feel the sentiment of it.

‘What should we do?’ Jeremy pressed.

‘I think Granddad needs our help. Well, my help at least.’ Simon got up and walked back to his grandfather’s bedroom to replace the letter.

Jeremy looked back at his action figures but he didn’t feel like playing anymore. What did he mean? How could
he
help him out? He knew that these were no idle words. Simon meant what he said.

Jeremy did not sleep very well that night. Despite having an enjoyable day in the sunshine of Moonlight Cove, it seemed that an ugly presence had floated along in the form of that sinister letter. He was even a little angry with his brother for reading it to him. Why did he have to go and dig it out?

The poor youngster had wanted things to be happy again in his new life but it seemed that the clouds of misfortune had been following him over here. He could see it in his grandfather, the ponderous way he stroked his moustache all the time, the way he drummed his fingers at the dinner table, the fact that he could never sit still for longer than five minutes.

During the next week there was further unfurling of their grandfather’s secret problem. One afternoon, around the time they’d usually set off to meet Simon out of school, Ulric said they were going to have a visitor.

‘Who’s coming over?’ Jeremy asked.

‘Someone I’ve known for a very long time.’

‘Is he a friend?’

‘A good friend.’

Just at that point, there was a knock at the door so Ulric went to answer it. Standing in the doorway was a very smart and commanding gentleman dressed in a black suit and hat. Jeremy guessed he was a fair bit younger than his grandfather by maybe twenty years.

Feeling a little intimidated, the shy boy tried to peek over his grandfather’s shoulder at the tall man’s eyes but the brim of his hat cast a shadow over them. He was smiling gently to Ulric. A gentleman in the true sense of the word, Jeremy thought.

He was handsome too. He wouldn’t have been out of place in a film playing the role of Superman or Flash Gordon (if he had blonde hair). Stepping into the flat he removed his hat and shook hands with his grandfather.

Jeremy could now see that he had warm blue eyes, just like Superman’s funnily enough. Suddenly those eyes were peering directly at him. The man crouched down.

‘Hello there, young man. You must be Jeremy.’

How does he know my name?
Jeremy thought.

‘That’s him,’ Ulric said. ‘His brother Simon is at Harbour High but the other schools were full.’

‘Oh, you should have had a word with me. Not that he minds starting his summer holidays a little early, eh Jeremy?’ The gentleman flashed his smile at him and Jeremy didn’t feel quite so timid, even stepping forwards to stand by his grandfather’s leg.

‘I’ve been taking him to see the places round here,’ Ulric said, ruffling his grandson’s hair.

‘Do you like your new home then, Jeremy?’

‘Yes.’

‘A bit different from where you came from, isn’t it? Outsiders often feel out of place.’

‘Not Jeremy,’ Ulric vouched. ‘He’s already got that Harbour kick in his voice.’

‘You know what they say. You can’t take the Harbour out of the boy, but you put the boy in the Harbour…’

‘…And he’ll drown.’

They both laughed, but Jeremy frowned at their joke.

‘Jeremy, do you want to go and play with your toys for a bit? Me and Alan need to have a chat.’

‘Here, maybe I’ve got a sweet for you,’ the gentleman, Alan, said. He rummaged into his jacket and brought out a bag of mints. Jeremy saw on the packet that they were mint humbugs, whatever they were. He took one.

‘What do you say?’ Ulric asked him.

‘Thank you, Mr…’

‘Oh!’ Alan laughed. ‘You can call me Alan. Only people I don’t like call me Mr Hammond!’

Ulric patted a hand on Alan’s back. ‘Come through.’

The mint humbug was quite a hard sweet at first and so blandly minty that Jeremy thought about spitting it out. As he continued to suck on it, he eventually got to a gooey, sweet centre that made the initial hardness worthwhile.

Ulric and Alan Hammond talked over coffee for well over an hour, so long in fact that they had not finished talking by the time that Simon returned from school. As soon as he stepped inside, he heard the muffled voices beyond the kitchen door.

‘Who’s he talking to?’ Simon asked his brother.

‘Alan.’

‘Who the hell’s he?’

‘A friend, a good friend.’

‘What are they talking about?’ There was urgency in Simon’s voice but none in Jeremy’s.

‘I don’t know.’