C15 Chapter 15

As might have been expected, young Gabriel was the first one to revive. He stretched his limbs, which seemed stiff, and his head was like lead. It was early morning and the birds were chirping away.

A car? He was in a car and it was a bit on the chilly side. It had been evening. But that was another day, when ...

When what?

Oh, now he remembered. He had fallen asleep, but so had the others.

He had another pressing need. He needed to relieve himself. Could he do that here? Gabriel was a modest and rather shy boy.

Yes, there was forest everywhere.

The door was locked, and Marco and Tova were in the front seat. But where were Nataniel and Ellen?

No, that was right. They had gone back south.

Nightmare ...? He had a vague recollection, but dreams tend to disappear into nothing. Even the worst ones, thankfully. All that was left was a vague memory of unpleasantness. He tapped Marco’s shoulder but his friend didn’t wake up.

A hoarse whisper: “Tova!”

She didn’t react either. They were probably tired, so it wasn’t worth waking them up. Gabriel unlocked the car door and slipped out, stiff all over. Ugh, he had a headache! Better to go in among the tree trunks. But not too far.

A discussion was being held nearby.

“No, I’m not going back to that car. Hell, no! They had two, big, German shepherd dogs with them.”

“They weren’t German shepherd dogs. Surely you know that? They were ... huskies? Or Irish wolfhounds.”

“Nothing like!” said a third voice. “There’s a Belgian breed of dog that looks just like that.”

A fourth voice said: “Oh, cut all the crap! I bet they were giant wolves.”

“It’s easy for you to say that when you didn’t see them. Anyway, we managed to get back to our cars.”

“My God, it was so blustery a while ago. It was absolutely crazy!”

“If you’ve finished talking, let’s get back there.”

“To that car? Hell, no!”

“Sssh! Look! One of them is staggering out of the forest. It’s that young lad. Let’s seize him!”

Gabriel stopped abruptly. Retreating to the car was impossible.

He instinctively realized that flight would be better than fight. He managed to shout Marco’s name once; then he turned around and ran back into the forest again. If he could just outwit them ...

But there were many of them, and his body seemed dead from sleep. His legs didn’t seem to obey him; his pursuers were gaining on him.

He pushed his way forward through the shrubs and prickly fir trees. He was trying all the time to run in a big circle so that he could get back to the car again, but the pursuers had already figured that out.

He felt horror pulsating in his throat. Mum and Dad, help ...!

Suddenly, he stopped so abruptly that his pursuers almost banged into his back. Because he was so terrified, he hadn’t noticed the roar from the waters of the Gudbrandsdalslågen.

In front of him was a dizzying precipice, and far below the river roared in white cascades. Gabriel tried to whirl around, but he was at the very edge. He groped for a fir branch nearby ...

“Now we have him,” shouted one of the men. “Throw him over the precipice!”

Gabriel felt a hard push and the slope offered no support. He screamed terribly as he tumbled down.

“That was the first one,” said one of the men, brushing his hands. “Now there are only four left.”

Nataniel was the next one to wake up.

His headache made him moan quietly. Then he looked about. “Linde-Lou, it’s always so nice to see your kind eyes. But why are you here?”

Linde-Lou smiled gently: “Things have been lively around you this evening. One after the other of Tengel the Evil’s scum has been here. Anyway, your ancestor Typhoon and I have kept a watchful eye on things.”

Nataniel quickly got to his feet. “I’ve wasted far too much time! What am I to do? Tell me what’s happened!”

After a long discussion, they agreed that he should call Rikard Brink and explain his delay.

Since Nataniel hadn’t got very far on the motorbike before he stopped, he was still near the big village. He thanked Linde-Lou for his assistance and sought a telephone kiosk.

Rikard was at home; actually, he hadn’t been planning to get up yet, but he was awake immediately. Nataniel told him briefly how he had had to sleep and that he was still in Gudbrandsdalen. “The other four are on their way north to complete the journey,” he said at last.

“You’re wrong,” said Rikard. “Ellen’s here. Do you want to speak to her?”

“What?” said Nataniel, and then Ellen’s lively, happy voice was on the telephone.

“Hi, Nataniel. Guess what Morahan and I have done?”

“Wait a moment. How did you get there? How long have I actually been sleeping, and who’s Morahan? That name sounds very Celtic!”

“It is. I caught a flight immediately after you had left and we’ve been in “Kornblomsten” and eliminated Tengel the Evil.”

“No, stop now ...”

Then Nataniel got the whole story. Well, almost, because he ran out of coins and Ellen only had time to shout: “I got a promise from the pilot that he would fly me back again. Can I bring Morahan with me? He wants to go to Nordland.”

“Bring anybody you fancy,” Nataniel shouted weakly. “You don’t really imagine, do you, that you’ve broken Teng ... oh, bother. We’ve been cut off!”

Nataniel put down the receiver. I don’t believe that, he muttered to himself. This can never have happened! Tengel the Evil felt lonely and wanted to sleep? It doesn’t make sense to me! Oh, well. I’ll have to wait for her at the airport.

He stopped some young people who were on their way to work and they told him how to get to the airport.

Nataniel sat by a hangar and waited. Linde-Lou also came, silently and noiselessly. Nataniel regarded him as one of his best friends.

Marco knew very well that he should wake up, but opening his eyes seemed to require a superhuman effort. He heard harsh voices nearby, and somebody was tugging at the car door.

At last, he managed to lift his head. Tova ... She was sleeping in her seat. Gabriel? He turned around and felt cold with fright.

Gabriel was gone.

One of the coarse voices said: “The back door’s open. This is easy.”

A man tore open the back door. Marco’s hand shot out and grabbed him by the wrist so that the man thought it was an iron fist that was holding him. He gave a piercing yell, because until now he’d never really known what strength was. At the same time, the others outside screamed. They were terrified.

“The wolves! Those damn wolves have come back! Run!”

The man at the car door was left by himself. Meanwhile, Tova had woken up and she grasped the situation immediately. She got out on the other side and ran around the car, squeezing the door in on the poor man so that he was under fire from three sides: Marco, Tova and a wolf.

While Tova held the back door as hard as she could, Marco climbed out. He told her that she could let go. The man fell to the ground and the wolf was over him immediately.

“Where’s Gabriel? Where’s the boy?” Marco shouted, and Tova had never known that he had such flashing eyes!

The man was staring straight into a wolf’s mouth and thought it best to stammer out: “We chased him!”

“He’s wetting his trousers,” Tova said with a disgusting look at the man, who was lying down. “Now show us where you chased the boy to!”

They got the man to his feet, and, sobbing and trembling, he led them through the forest. The wolf was at his heels all the time. Finally, he stopped. “Somewhere over there,” he sobbed.

“No, thank you. You’re going to show us properly!” Marco ordered.

“Please let me go!” cried the man. “I know that you’ll push me over the edge as well!”

“Push you? The roaring river ... no!” Marco whispered. He turned to the wolf. “Send this pig off wherever you want. Anywhere, and then please go back to the car! Keep an eye on it until we get back!”

The wolf barked at the man, who ran away among the trees with the wild beast at his heels. Marco and Tova had no time for them. They were already on their way to the precipice.

They wept inside. They hardly dared to look down.

“Oh, Gabriel,” Tova moaned.

Marco took a deep breath and lay down on his stomach. She had turned away. She couldn’t bear it anymore.

Marco said in an empty tone: “Tova. Come here and look!”

“What? What do you mean?” she stuttered, but she lay down next to him.

They hadn’t come to quite the right place. Far below, down there, they could see a small bundle hanging on a miserably narrow ledge. A giant of a man sat next to him, watching over him. It was Ulvhedin.

With the same expressionless voice, Marco said: “We don’t know whether Gabriel’s alive. Since he’s not related to the black angels, they can’t intervene, and now I’m more of a human being than a black angel my abilities are much reduced. But I must try to get him up.”

“Of course, I’ll lend a helping hand.”

“No, Tova” Marco said seriously, putting his hand under her chin. “Now you must be good. You must take the car. Drive to the village and fetch assistance! Get hold of some men and explain to them where we are! But you mustn’t return here. It will take too much time, you see. You’re the only one who can continue northwards immediately. We’re in a hurry. You know that. You must head to the Valley of the Ice People – alone! Shira’s clear water has to be taken there. And please get hold of another car for me – now!”

“But you’re my only helper and protector!” she said.

“I’ll follow you as soon as I can – perhaps I’ll overtake you, you never know. In the meantime, you ought to have a protector. I agree with you!”

“Halkatla!” she said straightaway.

Marco pondered. “Yes, Halkatla is a good choice. She fits in very nicely. We must try her – you and I trust her loyalty, don’t we?”

“Absolutely!”

“I’ll see to it that she comes. And please hurry up! Please find a doctor too!”

“Yes, Marco. Do you mind if I give you a hug? Even though I’m as ugly as sin?”

“No, I don’t mind at all,” he said tenderly, drawing her close briefly. “And you’re not ugly! You’re Tova!”

Then he began his descent.

Halkatla was standing by the car together with the wolf when Tova came running up. The blonde, curly-haired witch looked utterly confused.

She pointed at the car and asked. “What on earth is that? What’s it made of? And what’s it used for?”

“You’ll soon find out.”

Tova told the wolf what Marco had said and the animal immediately went to the fall to guard the place.

Tova gave a broad smile. “Hi, Halkatla. How did you get here?”

“Marco called Sol, who is the provider of witches, as you know.” The girl laughed. She had never been allowed to live a happy life, but had resided in evil for six centuries. “Sol told me to come here. I think she would have liked to join me.”

“I can well believe that. Her time will soon come. Anyway, now you’re to keep an eye on me, which won’t be that easy. Jump in the car!”

“Into that? Not on my life!”

“Actually, you’ll be quite comfortable. Now please get into the car next to me. It doesn’t bite!”

“Why are we sitting down? Aren’t we supposed to be heading for the Valley of the Ice People? No, stop, I don’t want to sit in that monster!”

Finally, Tova managed to get her peculiar friend into the car. The two understood each other perfectly and got on excellently in each other’s company. Halkatla looked on in amazement when Tova put the key in the lock but yelled and jumped in the air as she started the engine.

“You won’t die,” Tova said flatly, and Halkatla certainly didn’t. That was something she had done six centuries ago.

As the car began to move, she was astounded and didn’t say a word. She held tightly onto all the handles she could find. When they rolled onto the main road towards the village, Halkatla exclaimed: “This is damn practical!”

“Yes, it’s a fine invention. But when we reach our destination, you must let me do the talking. None of your tricks, no matter how tempting they might be!”

Halkatla promised: “I’ll behave like a little lamb!”

She certainly had problems keeping her promise once she saw the houses, the traffic and all the thousands of things that didn’t exist in the Valley of the Ice People in the 1300s. Several times each minute, she would yell in surprise, delight or horror. Tova decided to let her sit in the car while she herself attended to her errands. Tova wanted to be on the safe side.

The boys at the petrol station, which was open day and night, shot admiring glances at Halkatla in the car, and Tova was nervous when she saw how much this pleased the witch. Tova hurriedly told them what she needed them for. The boys were compassionate and immediately went off to help Marco and young Gabriel. Marco also needed to rent a car.

When Tova got into the car to continue the journey, she got a slight shock. “Halkatla: those boys could see you!”

“I wanted them to,” replied the witch breezily.

“Then I suppose they’ll also see Ulvhedin?”

“Not if he doesn’t want them to. In this matter, we do as we please. Oh, Tova, it’s such fun to live again! There’s so much to see! And experience!”

She let out a new yell of sheer joy.

As they were driving northwards from the village, Tova caught sight of the motorbike by the airport fence. She stopped the car so abruptly that Halkatla was thrown forwards.

“That’s our motorbike!” she exclaimed, “And Nataniel is sitting over there. What on earth is he doing there? Well, of course, he must also have fallen asleep. But why is he sitting there?”

“He – and Linde-Lou.”

“I can’t see him. Come, let’s run inside!”

“Make yourself visible, Linde-Lou,” called Halkatla.

Tova told Nataniel and Linde-Lou what had happened. So did Nataniel, and he said the plane was expected at any time. It was now half past seven in the morning and it had been light for quite some time.

“Too much is going on!” Nataniel moaned. “Too much all at the same time. Young Gabriel ... I can’t sit here ... but I have to wait for Ellen. What are we to do?”

“Do you believe Ellen’s story?” asked Tova. “Do you believe that Tengel the Evil really wanted to sleep? That it’s really all over?”

“I don’t believe anything, I’m completely shocked and confused. I can’t think clearly ...”

“It’s the poison that was in the chocolate. Now I’ll wait till the plane arrives,” Tova decided. “Then we’ll hear more about it.”

Nataniel hesitated. “Yes, if we don’t have to wait for too long. Somebody has to get going northwards now because we still have to find the water of evil, no matter whether or not Tengel has vanished forever. You’re the only one who’s ready to travel. I’ll wait for Ellen and I want to know how Gabriel is.”

“I’m not so worried about him,” said Tova. “He has Marco and Ulvhedin, and people from the village, and a doctor, are on their way there.”

“Yes, if he’s alive,” said Nataniel grimly. “We don’t know anything about that. How on earth are we to tell Karine ... Oh, I wish that plane would soon arrive!”

“Have you got your bottle with the water?”

“Yes, I’m carrying it right now. Do you know where Ellen’s bottle is?”

Tova pointed and explained.

Nataniel nodded and said: “What a good thing that it’s close by.”

They waited for a while in silence. Then Tova said: “Have you noticed something?”

“No, what?”

“The attacks have stopped.”

“Yes, you’re right. Are we to believe what Ellen was boasting about after all? That she of all people succeeded in saving us from a curse that has lasted for centuries?”

“It certainly seems so.”

Then, at long last, they heard the sound of an engine.

“Thank goodness,” said Nataniel. “There’s the plane. Linde-Lou and Halkatla: don’t let the new arrivals see you!”

Rikard had telephoned everybody in the whole family about the glad tidings. Now we can throw off the yoke. Now we can celebrate with a big feast, and Ellen will be guest of honour. All they needed was to reach the Valley of the Ice People and pour the clear water into the water of evil so that the latter didn’t contaminate the environment. So the five could look forward to a free passage and the journey would go swimmingly.

The entire family was thrilled. They couldn’t believe it was true!

But Rikard had confirmed that Tengel the Evil had dissolved into nothingness. Now they could relax and stop worrying!

Marco had reached pretty far down the cliff wall above the Gudbrandsdalen. But not far enough. So he was grateful that the men from the village had brought a rope with them. He tied it around his waist and prepared to continue.

The doctor asked the others up at the top: “Is the boy alive?”

“We don’t know,” they replied. “Poor child. All alone down there!”

Because they couldn’t see Ulvhedin, who sat by Gabriel on the outer side of the ledge. All they saw was a miserable little creature on a dangerously narrow shelf and a plucky man on his way down to him. They would never have dared to go down!

Marco was now so close to Gabriel that he could clearly see every single detail of the young boy’s body. Deep below them, the river roared and foam drifted upwards, covering Marco’s clothes like a dewy film.

His heart felt heavy. No matter how much he strained his eyes, he couldn’t see the slightest sign of life in Gabriel.

The small aircraft had landed.

Ellen was delighted, telling them in the minutest detail what had happened when Tengel the Evil made it clear to her that he was tired and lost in an alien world and just wanted to rest. They had thanked and paid the pilot and were on their way to the spot where she had buried her bottle.

Nataniel didn’t say very much. He was only happy to see Ellen again and later on he would take stock of Tengel’s sudden U-turn. But most of all, he thought that if it was true that the danger had really gone away – well, then he could finally show Ellen how much he loved her. Take her in his arms, as he had been dreaming of doing for many months.

Tova contemplated Morahan, who was walking a bit in front of her. She knew that he was terminally ill. She could well understand why Ellen had let him come with her on the flight, because Tova would have done the same. You couldn’t help liking this dynamic physical labourer, not just because the course of his life had been clipped so brutally. There was so much about him that Tova liked. His discreet silence while they discussed their problems, his politeness and kindness.

They had decided that he was to join them in the car going north. But first of all, they would return to the precipice, because everybody’s thoughts were focused on Gabriel. They walked briskly while Ellen chatted away. They were anxious for the boy, but he had Marco. This thought inspired them with confidence.

“Do you know what makes me believe that I’m right about Tengel the Evil?” asked Ellen. “It was that Villemo wasn’t there to protect me. There was no need for her to protect me!”

“That’s wrong,” said Tova. “Halkatla told me that Villemo wasn’t allowed into ‘Kornblomsten’. Tengel the Evil’s will was stronger than hers. He wanted Ellen and Morahan to himself so that they could be his obedient tools. But all this could mean that he wanted peace, as Ellen says. Good heavens, what are those fools doing there?”

Four or five of the brutes that had previously tried to attack them had walked onto the small airstrip. For now, they were far away.

“What idiots!” Ellen moaned. “Of course, they don’t know that the struggle is over and their master is gone. They’re continuing on their own!”

Nataniel said quickly: “Tova, take Morahan with you and run to the car! Drive northwards as fast as you can: you must get your bottle to the Valley of the Ice People. Ellen and I will come on the motorbike later on. We need to fetch her bottle and find Gabriel and Marco. But first of all, we need to stop those men!”

Ellen was in despair. “Are we to have even more trouble? Now that everything seems all right?”

Nataniel didn’t speak. He knew that Linde-Lou was guarding him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tova and Morahan disappearing behind the hangar to get to the car that way. He himself walked straight up to the assailants.

“Go into the hangar, Ellen. I don’t want you here for this! Wait for me there!”

“But ...”

His gesture was sufficiently authoritative. She obeyed, very hesitantly and anxious. From the corner of her eye, she saw her helper Villemo giving a trembling smile.

Nataniel walked towards the men. “The struggle is over,” he shouted. “You don’t have a master anymore.”

Like robots, they walked straight up to Nataniel. He could see their resolute faces, which certainly didn’t inspire confidence. Tengel the Evil knew how to choose his henchmen!

There was one in particular whom he couldn’t stand the sight of. What sort of man was he? Something so ... Nataniel had never seen such a horrible, living creature as him!

“Ready!” the man shouted to the others.

“Everything ready, Number One,” one of them replied.

Oh, so he was the Number One that Tova and Marco had talked about. He who they all feared. Nataniel understood that was not without reason.

In the very next second, he had something else to think about. These men weren’t armed with knives. They had guns! The bullets whistled around him.

Nataniel ran back to the door of the hangar because he was unarmed. In a split second, he managed to register an immense tornado, a whirlwind, whirring towards the men like a dark column over the open space. It avoided the hangar and the plane, which probably couldn’t have resisted it, but small benches and other, loose objects were mercilessly sucked up into the air. Nataniel thought: Typhoon and his storm demons again. They are still here!

Just as he threw himself into the hangar, he heard the screams from the thugs and he saw a few of them flying past, completely helpless. For a moment, Nataniel felt nauseous. They would fall to the ground somewhere, totally helpless ...

Then he was in the hangar. Ellen came running towards him.

He managed to say: “The danger is over,” then he caught her in his arms, drawing her closer, and held her in a tight embrace.

“Dearest Nataniel,” she whispered. “I was so scared.” He took her face between his hands and for the first time, he felt her soft lips against his. He thought that he was drowning in a wonderful dream. Finally, they were allowed to show their feelings. Nothing could stop them anymore.

At first, they didn’t react to the warning shout. They thought it came from Villemo, but otherwise they were focused only on themselves and their intense love. Then Linde-Lou also began to shout and Ellen opened her eyes.

All she managed to see was the horrible man they called Number One enter the hangar and lift a hand grenade. She screamed. Nataniel turned around in surprise. Everything happened in a split second – then she felt a sharp pain and a dazzling, white light lit up the hangar. Ellen felt Nataniel give a jerk and then everything became so strange.

She sailed through the immense room, slowly as in a trick film; she didn’t know anything else, who or where she was. She lost all contact with the roaring reality and was falling, falling down in a jet-black abyss. Nataniel! Let Nataniel live! That was her final thought.

Her painful knowledge that by giving in to her love for Nataniel she might have killed him no longer hurt. It was extinguished, extinguished by a merciful void.

The bottomless pit in which she was alone, alone, whirled slowly around.

Nataniel woke up for a moment. He could feel an unbearable pain in his whole body; he also registered these deep vibrations, this dark void, which was death. His arms, which had held Ellen, were empty. She was gone. Linde-Lou’s voice said something about “The Great Abyss” ...

Tova was driving northwards fast. She thought she had heard shots and then she saw a dark whirlwind heading towards the airstrip just as she was turning onto the road. A harsh smile played around her mouth. The storm demons were on guard!

They had probably driven a couple of miles when Morahan, sitting beside her, turned around.

“We’re being followed,” he said flatly.

“Those damned idiots. Will they never know when the going is good?” she hissed between clenched teeth. “We’re free now. Haven’t those fatheads got that into their heads?”

She accelerated, but so did the fast car behind them. It came closer and closer.

Then came the shot, the first one. The bullet whistled past but more shots followed. Morahan had crouched, and Tova made herself as small as possible.

The car suddenly swerved. “Oh, hell,” she hissed. “They hit the right rear wheel. Jump out and hurry into the forest, they mustn’t get us!”

A few seconds later, they were on their way into a dense spruce forest. They heard their pursuers stop.

“I’ll never manage this,” Morahan said, short of breath. “You just run. I’ll stop here.”

“Hell no, come on!” said Tova, taking his hand. “I’m not going without you. Let’s move!”

Heavy steps crashed their way into the forest behind them.

Marco was almost right down by the lifeless Gabriel when a man suddenly came rushing through the forest up on the slope. The men who stood there were fully focused on what was happening down below on the ledge. They were beginning to hope that they might be able to pull the boy up safely. Whether he was alive, was another question.

This was why they didn’t see the man coming. He carried an axe in his hand, and with a single blow he severed the rope, which was tied to a spruce tree and which Marco was hanging on. The rope slithered like an eel over the cliff and very nearly pulled a couple of men down with it. They saved their own lives – but Marco fell headlong down towards the foaming river. There wasn’t another ledge that could stop his fall.

The doorbell rang at Linden Avenue.

Mali answered the door.

A bony man stood outside, with thin hair combed over the top from a parting far down on the left side of his head. He was well dressed, with a bow tie, camel-hair coat and white spats. Mali thought that he seemed slightly arrogant, but on the other hand quite polite. Although his sunglasses seemed out of place.

What she didn’t like was the strong perfume he wore, which, sadly, was unable to hide a faint, unpleasant odour.

“Hello, my name’s Per Olav Winger. I’m a representative of this vacuum cleaner company.” (He produced a card.) “I heard that your vacuum cleaner was broken and that you might be interested in purchasing a new one?”

“Oh,” said Mali. She was confused. “I know nothing about that. But wait a moment and I’ll ask my mother-in-law.”

She turned around but then remembered what politeness required. “Please come in.” Then she left him.

“Benedikte,” she called. “Have you said something about a defective vacuum cleaner? There’s a man here, who ... Benedikte? No, that’s right, she went out into the garden. If you’ll excuse me for a moment, Mr Winger ...”

Mali’s voice died away in the inner regions of the house.

Per Olav Winger stepped over the threshold. He took off his sunglasses and revealed his eyes. Narrow slits of a filthy, yellow, lifeless colour, as if it had developed itself through hundreds of years.

He smiled an abominable, triumphant smile. Finally, at long last, he was in Linden Avenue, the Ice People’s stronghold!