The Shadow Chapter 6.

Chapter Six.

 

Birch House.

 

 As good as his word, Mr. Powell delivered them, his milk and eggs to Birch House. This was a huge grey building with small windows.

Aidan pointed them out to Emma and asked,

"Are those to stop people getting in?"

She shook her head. "No, they are to stop people getting out."

Aidan shuddered. "That is horrible," he said. "I cannot think of anything worse than not being able to get out of somewhere."

Mr. Powell stopped the cart by the front entrance. "I will take this stuff round to the kitchen," he said. Then he scratched his chin. "I am very grateful you found the brooch for us."

"I am supposed to be very good at finding lost things and returning them to their rightful place," Aidan replied.

"Actually," continued Mr. Powell, "I was going to ask you for a small favour. If, er, when, you remove the spell from the town, could you send me a message? If no one can go in or out, then the folks there are going to need eggs and other supplies straight away. The first farmer there is going to be very popular."

Emma laughed and promised to do as Mr. Powell asked.

She and Aidan walked up the steps to the front door. Above it was a sign that read, “Welcome to the Prince’s Children’s Home.” Emma tugged on a chain dangling from the ceiling above the door. From inside, Aidan could hear a bell jangling.

Emma said, with a grin, "I have always wanted to use the front door. When I lived here, we always used one of the side doors when we went for a walk."

Before Aidan could answer, the door swung open to reveal a rather stern looking woman in a grey dress and white apron. She frowned at the pair of them and then said,

"Emma."

A huge smile lit up her face. "Oh my dear, it is so good to see you. And with a friend too. Well, don’t just stand there, come in, come in."

She stood to one side. Emma led Aidan inside.

"Hello Matron," said Emma. "This is Aidan. He came with me from Barford to make sure I arrived safely."

Aidan found himself shaking hands with the large lady.

"Well, don’t just stand in the hall, come through to the lounge and you can tell me all your news." Then a worried look crossed the Matron’s face. "You haven’t been dismissed have you?"

Emma shook her head. "No. But there is a problem in Barford."

Matron opened a door and led them into a large room. Aidan felt very uncomfortable. This was the first time he could ever remember being inside someone’s house. The walls felt too close. The ceiling too low. He perched on the edge of an armchair as if ready to flee at any moment.

"Sit down, sit down," ordered the Matron. "I’ll send for some tea and you can tell me all about it."

Emma seated herself on a large settee whilst Aidan remained stiff and upright.

Emma explained about Calizone and the Spell which she had put on the town and its people.

There was a knock on the door and a procession of girls came in carrying the tea things. They put them on a table, curtsied and left without saying a word.

"So," smiled the Matron, "What brings you and your friend here? Very few people return once they have left."

Emma carefully brushed her hair away from the scarred side of her face. Aidan had never seen the ugly red mark before. Emma had kept it carefully hidden. He felt a rush of sympathy for her, but said nothing.

Emma began. "Do you remember when this happened?" she asked.

Matron nodded. "You and that silly girl, Rachel, were arguing over who was the prettiest. The other girls chose you, and Rachel was so angry she slapped your face. That mark came up then."

Emma sniffed. "I was not arguing. It was Rachel and the other girls who were squabbling. I do not want to be the prettiest girl anywhere." She angrily brushed her hair back over the scar. "Anyway, I asked Calizone of the Dark Forest how to get rid of the mark. She said that the first thing I had to do was to find the girl who put it there."

"Ah," said Matron. "A bit of a sad story there, really. Rachel was too pretty. No-one wanted to offer her a position. All the folks who came looking for maids turned her down. Either they had young sons who might fall for such a lovely looking girl or they had husbands whom they did not trust."

"So, is she still here then?" asked Emma anxiously.

Matron shook her head. "No, in the end, she was offered a place in the Borderlands. The baron who gave her a job is almost blind and lives on his own in a castle with no wife and no sons. He could not even see how pretty she was."

Emma jumped up. "Then that is where we must go."

Matron protested. "Not now, my dear. It is getting late. Come and dine with me and stay the night. I know of a wagon going that way tomorrow. I am sure I can arrange a lift for you. The carter owes me a favour."

Emma agreed.

Aidan leant over and whispered to her, "Can you ask if there is somewhere outside where I can sleep? I really do not like being inside."

The Matron looked puzzled, but said that there was a barn where Aidan could spend the night.

She led them out into the corridor. As they followed her to the Dining Room a line of girls filed past. They were all dressed exactly the same, in grey dresses with white aprons. They all looked exactly the same too.

They looked for all the world like miniature copies of the Matron. They walked in absolute silence past Aidan. They were followed by a line of boys. They too were all dressed in identical clothes, cream coloured trousers and striped shirts. Not one of the children spoke, nor did they look at Aidan and Emma.

After eating, an older boy who was still dressed exactly like the younger ones led Aidan to a shed. It was full of straw and looked weatherproof. Aidan thanked the boy, but the lad did not speak.

A few minutes later Emma came out with a blanket for him.

"What is this place?" Aidan asked.

"It is a children’s home," said Emma. "It is a place where children who have no parents are sent. King Rolan set it up about 20 years ago. There was a big war and it left lots of children without families to look after them. The King lost his younger son and grandson in that war."

"But it is horrible," protested Aidan. "Bars on the windows, all wearing the same uniform, no one speaking, it is awful."

Emma snapped back. "It is better than starving on the streets, which is what happened before the King gave the money for this place to open. At least everyone has some clothes and food to eat. They learn to read and write. And they are taught a trade, so that when they have to leave at sixteen, they can earn a living. And they check up afterwards to make sure you are being treated properly at work."

Aidan sniffed. "Well, I still think it is an awful place." Then he sat down with a thud.

Emma rushed over to him. "Are you all right?"

"I had no parents, I would have been sent here. This is the ‘awful place’ my Nan warned me about." He looked around wildly. "I have to get away, they will keep me here."

Emma was rather sharp with him. "Don’t be silly, you are too old to be sent here." Then she stopped. "Remember what Calizone said. You had to find your ‘awful place’. Well, this is it. Your Nan was not warning you about somewhere terrible. You must have misheard her. She was telling you that you would be sent to an orphanage."

Aidan shook his head. "No, she definitely said that I would be sent to an awful place."

"Then perhaps she was confused and got it wrong," said Emma.

Aidan nodded slowly. "I suppose so."

Emma thought for a moment. "I don’t understand why Calizone was being nice though. She is not thought of as being helpful."

"I don’t think she is being nice just to be nice," said Aidan. "There is something she wants and sending us on this quest is just her way of finding it."

"But what does she want?" asked Emma.

Aidan reached into his pack. "After you spoke to her in the Café, she called me across. She gave me this." He handed Emma the piece of cloth.

Emma took it and immediately gave it back.

"Ooh, I do not like the feel of that."

Aidan carefully put it away. "She wants me to find her some more of this."

Emma was puzzled. "But why not just ask you to go and look? Why put a spell on the town? Why did she tell you to help me?"

Aidan replied, "I don’t know, but I think it is going to be very dangerous and that I am going to need your help to find it."

They set off again the next morning, riding on a Carter’s wagon. Aidan sat dangling his feet over the back while Emma sat with the driver and listened to him talk about his family, the road, and anything else that came to mind.