The Wind of Southmore (20 page)

Isobel
ran forward, her mouth full of magic, but she could not prevent the
damage that had been done, nor was she in time to save her sister.
For Penvynne had disappeared from the clifftop into the waves, and
he had taken Imogen with him.”

Mac
stopped and gazed with sorrowful, faded eyes as Arlen slid from her
seat and into a small, crumpled heap on the floor. It was some time
before she came to, her breath so racked and shallow that she could
barely focus.

“
What happened?” Alice whispered, her voice tight and
anxious.

But Arlen
could only shake her head and turn away.

“
They – they never found her – did they?” Alice asked, after
some time.

“
No – no, child, they never did,” replied Mac. “They sent
search parties out, but the seas welled up in anger against them,
and they were lucky to escape with their lives. Heartbroken, Lord
Penmorven and Isobel returned to the castle, with the terrible
knowledge that Imogen was trapped beneath the crushing
waves.

“
But Penmorven hadn’t finished yet. His faith in his
experiments unshaken, he embarked on a quest to find his lost
daughter, and he called upon the power of a stone which had been in
the Penmorven family for many generations. An ancient gem, it was
said originally to have come from Ireland, a fiery treasure of one
of the Sidhe, the Irish faeries, which had been won in battle by a
Penmorven forefather many centuries before.”

“
The ruby,” Arlen whispered, and Alice tightened her grasp on
her arm.

“
Yes, my dear – the Penmorven ruby. A gem so bright and
beautiful, it was said to be like crimson satin or velvet, or
flowing wine. Or human blood. All who looked into its deep recesses
were filled with a wonder that consumed their souls, and for many,
a covetous greed that devoured and controlled them, until they were
driven mad. Many had tried to steal the stone, but it had always
evaded capture, and it was said, indeed, that should the ruby ever
leave the Penmorven clan, days of darkness would fall upon them
until the stone resumed its rightful place.

“
It was to this stone that Lord Penmorven now turned for the
rescue of Imogen. He called on the ruby, and the strange, fierce
power within, but in his grief he forgot that the gifts of the
otherworld are not servants, and their promises can be dangerous to
the manacled mind. Penmorven was no longer the great student of
knowledge, but the anguished father, mourning over the loss of his
child, and he subjected the ruby to the fan and the flame, cajoling
it and threatening it with his pain, trying to force open its
secrets to find his lost daughter.

“
And meanwhile the waters curled and spat, and the wind of
Southmore roared and hissed around the village, and the people
began to be afraid to brave the ocean. It was the cause of many a
loss of income, not to mention loss of life, and there was much
suffering amongst the villagers. Perhaps inevitably, talk began to
turn against Lord Penmorven and his family. However the alchemist
knew nothing of this, and continued to work feverishly, the bloody
light flickering night after night from his tower room over the
dark waters, and over the villagers’ tongues.

“
But Imogen was not to be found, and Lord Penmorven’s sorrow
grew, and with it his anger, and his rage turned to the stone and
its silent crimson heart, which was beginning to consume him. He
had forgotten the origins of the ruby and its place with his
family, and he had attempted to manipulate its power with his cold
instruments. And when the ruby responded to his obsession, the
pictures he saw in the deep glowing centre proved to be
false.

“
Meanwhile the villagers, already a wary and superstitious
folk, and now much resentful of what seemed like Penmorven’s curse
upon the town, were starting to voice their anger, and a plan was
formed to rid themselves of the Penmorven family and their devilish
experiments forever. One night, as Lord Penmorven sat amongst the
yellowing parchments and flickering lights in his room, the
villagers stole to the castle ground and lit a huge fire at the
bottom of the tower, fully intending to burn the place and all its
occupants to the ground.

“
The flames raged and the villagers danced and whooped, but
Penmorven escaped with the ruby through a secret passage that led
out of the castle. The north tower and all of Penmorven’s work were
burned to the ground, but the damaged remains of the rest of the
castle were saved, as were Isobel and the servants.

“
His house was falling down around him, the Penmorven dragon
lay crumped and broken, the servants had scattered, and Isobel
could not reason with her father. Feeling he had lost both his
daughters, he decided to take matters into his own
hands.

“
Completely disillusioned, Penmorven resolved to free his
family and the villagers from his own folly, and he cast the ruby
from the mound of rock on the Beach Road into the sea, vowing to
cease his experiments forever. Yet this was a foolish thing to do,
for he had discarded something of immense power with no care for
its future, and it has been said that Penvynne’s finger has worn it
ever since. The stone that had turned against the Penmorvens was
now on the hand of one more dangerous, and it was then that the
waters of Southmore, so deadly and treacherous to begin with,
became near impossible to sail, and anyone who ventured forth lost
their lives, and perhaps even more than that. The stories in the
village grew, of course, and it began to be told that the ruby,
betrayed by Penmorven’s guilt and grief, had opened the door to a
curse, claiming not only the bodies, but the souls of the dead. It
was said that they were bound to Penvynne forevermore, appearing
periodically to dance around the ruins of the castle, reliving
their attempt to exact revenge upon the family who had wronged
them. It is their lost, soulless cry which calls through the
melancholy wind of this cursed village, their only
voice.”

Alice was
shaking by this time, her stomach turning somersaults. It seemed
suddenly that she was still there, locked in the swirling fog, the
icy hands and mournful voices surrounding her, and Robbie quietly
raised himself and fetched her some water. Arlen, meanwhile, sat
straight and tightlipped, her eyes black and unfalteringly focused
on some particularly interesting part of the wall.

Mac
waited until Alice had drunk her water, and then he resumed his
story.

“
At last it became clear to Penmorven what he must do, and one
night he prepared a small ship and sailed out into the ocean in an
attempt to save Imogen himself, and regain the freedom of his
daughters and the villagers. He was never seen again.”

The cosy
scene was silent for a few moments. The fire flickered in the
grate, and cast strange, hollow shadows on the faces of those
present, while the wind moaned mournfully through the stuffed
window. Arlen’s face was close and tight.

“
And what about Isobel?”

Mac’s
face was sorrowful, and his voice was low. “Isobel was left alone,
but she refused to mourn for her father or sister. Well-skilled in
magic herself – it is said that all the Penmorvens have a touch of
the gift, to varying degrees – she tried all she could do to locate
the whereabouts of her family, but to no avail. The fog would rise
over her vision until she felt that she was being choked, and her
dreams held traces of blood and the whispers of those voices,
trapped and yearning, their souls and hearts held within the wind
and below the waves.

“
The villagers would see her sometimes, searching silently on
the cliffside, gazing over the waters, her eyes and heart never
still, and indeed, I have heard the stories that she is still seen
there, waiting, searching, devising.

“
Finally she turned to her father’s old science of alchemy, and
her light burned low into the long hours of the night, shining from
the window of the small tower room she had once shared with her
sister and, some say, in the mysterious cave known only to the
Penmorvens. This was how she eventually met the man who was to
become her husband, also a traveller in the realms of the
mysterious. Together they searched, but they did not succeed, and
one day he made the fateful trip, against his wife’s wishes, to
search in the ocean itself. She never saw him again, but she lived
to carry on her work and her search, and to raise their child, and
to nurse the broken dragon that lay in her care.

“
And so the Penmorven family lived, hated and feared amongst
the villagefolk, solitary, mysterious, and always searching, for
the delivery of Southmore lies only in their hands. So far, none
have succeeded.”

“
And where do you come into all of this?” Arlen asked then, and
her voice was hard.

Mac
looked at the floor. The others could not see his face, but his
shoulders heaved, and it seemed that he was struggling with a
painful emotion. It was a few moments before he seemed able to turn
again and face the small party.

“
I was a sailor,” he said then, softly, and his eyes suddenly
seemed alive with a blue brightness such as they must have held in
his youth. “I was born in Edinburgh, and spent my childhood
surrounded by the tales of my forefathers and their deeds. But I
was restless, and longed to be away, and when I was fifteen I
joined the crew of a small cargo ship headed for the Americas. I
have never been back home since, but I have sailed all over the
world, and have seen most things and most people – and yet – the
one I have seen that I most wanted, I was unable to
have.

“
It was the late thirties, I remember, just before the Second
War, and I was on a ship delivering gold from America. We landed in
Penzance, and I had a few days’ leave and decided to explore the
country. It was strange, the way I arrived in Southmore. I, myself
a navigator, lost my way reading the map, and here I landed. It was
a cold day, and the sky and sea were the way they always look here,
cold and murky and grey. I was walking along the cliffside, and it
was then that I saw her – your grandmother, I mean. She was
standing on the edge of the cliff, gazing out at the waters, and
her image was so beautiful, so – melancholy – I could not help but
be drawn to her.

“
She was lovely and gracious, and yet – she had her heart set
on another, someone she had met in London, and I – I was – so
jealous and heartbroken, I did something – I have been ashamed of
ever since.”

The three
listeners were waiting with bated breath, their faces, Robbie’s
particularly, taking on apprehensive expressions.

“
I had signed myself off the ship returning to the States –
I
had
to be where
she was, you understand – and I waited, but she did not want me. I
had picked up hints about the history of the place, and I resolved
– I was mad in my feelings for her – I wasn’t thinking – I resolved
– to seek out Penvynne and to – to strike a bargain with
him.”

The room
was silent for a moment. Arlen closed her eyes and found herself
standing, suddenly, on the edge of the cliff, bitterly cold,
watching the scene play before her again. Mac, very much like
Robbie, was standing on the cliff edge with Penvynne, whose cloak
billowed in the anguished song of the wind, his finger red as blood
with the seductive wink of the ruby ring. Mac’s voice seemed to
continue very faintly in the background.

“
It was still the pearls he was after – their power – and I had
guessed that their care had been passed to her. I – I promised him
– that if I should have her – I would bring him the pearls – I
wasn’t thinking straight – I loved her so much – I wanted her – and
I didn’t care about anything else. The pact was sealed with blood,
and I went to search for her. But my heart was heavy when I found
her with her intended, and it suddenly became clear to me what I
had done. I knew that the broken pact would mean my life, and I
grew frightened. I took a large pearl that I had found on one of my
journeys and threw it into the sea, foolishly thinking that he
would be tricked. As the gem hit the waters I heard a huge roar and
the seas rose up against me, and I was lucky to escape with my
life. I walked the ten miles to St Ives, and from there caught a
train towards Southampton and left for Australia with the next
ship. My journeys around the world resumed, and many years later I
met my wife in New York, where your father was born, Robbie, and we
lived there for some time, as you know. I never thought I should
return to Southmore, although it preyed endlessly upon my mind. My
son grew to manhood, and eventually his job took him to London,
where he met your mother and you were born, Robbie. My wife died
shortly after that – cancer – and I – I didn’t know what to do with
myself. My travelling days over, my nights haunted by the memories
of my past, I resolved to return to Southmore and pay the price of
my selfishness, to see the end of the tragedy.

“
And here I have waited. I have been lucky to escape Penvynne
this long – a sailor myself, I know a few tricks of the waters. I
saw your mother grow up and run off to London, girls – I saw her
deliver you, Arlen, into her aunt’s care, and I have watched for
your return, Alice. My time is almost up now – I know it – I cannot
run much longer. It has been too long and I am too tired. I would
have liked to have seen the end of it. The only advice I can give
you is to use your instincts – listen to yourselves. You have
inherited a long and painful history, and I hope it will finish
with you.” He stopped, his face haggard, his voice cracking. The
three listeners were silent, Robbie looking a bit stunned, Alice
thoughtful, and Arlen – Arlen white and frozen and still. She was
still on the cliff edge, the wind coaxing around her, and the ruby
beckoning. Penvynne turned suddenly, looking over Mac’s shoulder so
that she could see into his face, and it seemed that his grey eyes
mirrored her own and bored through her, and in that instant she
felt the sharp stab inside her as the ruby made its mark upon her
soul. She could not look away, and when she met his gaze, pale and
triumphant, he turned and seemed to smile a little, and it was then
that she realised that Alice and Robbie were bending worriedly over
her, and Mac was mumbling instructions for tea in a broken voice.
She sat up slowly, and smiled, and for a second Alice didn’t feel
that she recognised her at all. But she was prevented from saying
anything by a furious knocking at the door.