Chapter 34 Charles had spent many years pondering his beliefs,
Or disbeliefs,
For sometimes he thought he believed in a God Almighty,
Just as Drury did,
And at others looked at the world around him,
Saw pain and suffering,
And was unable to understand how any God would allow it to happen.
At times he surveyed the beauty of the countryside,
Especially the valley in which he lived,
And felt it could not have occurred by chance,
The hand of someone or something must be behind it.
And the more Charles read his books and searched his heart,
The more confused he became.
Charles was no stranger to any of the religious theories,
Being familiar with both the Old and New Testaments,
And indeed inevitably found a similarity between all the religions he studied.
Yet he had not discovered his own truth.
Was God,
If indeed God existed,
To be found in a building or in the outside world?
Was He,
If indeed God was male,
An angry God or a sympathetic one?
Did Heaven exist?
Where was Hell?
Or did the world simply turn of its own accord,
Everything working together in a way which was beyond the understanding of mere mankind?
Who Charles could not help but think,
When surveying village life around him,
Were not quite as important as they liked to believe.
And so one evening,
With thoughts of Rose and her questions concerning the ruined chapel in his mind,
The moon dark and the night filled with stars and shadows,
Charles decided to visit the chapel to see what might be discovered there.
What's that?
Rose surveyed Davy,
Standing before her,
Shovel in hand.
I want to do a bit more digging.
But you've done all we need.
Rose bent and dipped her finger into the granite channel through which the holy water trickled.
Already the ground was beginning to dry,
And there was a definite change in energy when she placed her hands upon the altar.
The water in the holy well itself seemed to be flowing stronger than ever,
The marriage between stone and water working its magic.
It's that great slate slab.
Davy stuck his shovel into the earth and once again felt the jolt of metal upon stone.
I want to know what it is,
What's under it.
It's just a feeling I have,
He continued,
But I need to know,
It might be important.
But,
Look,
Davy sighed in exasperation and leaned on his shovel.
You have feelings and such like,
Don't you?
Well,
So do I,
And I have a feeling there's something important here.
He stuck his spade in once again and Rose knew from the determined expression on his face there was no arguing with him.
All right,
She conceded.
Davy had helped her often enough,
And this was no time to say he was wasting his time.
Go ahead,
Dig.
Davy pushed on his shovel and heard the dull thud once more.
Then he carefully shifted the mud and earth sideways,
Taking,
It seemed to Rose,
Infinite care,
As if he knew something special lay beneath.
After a while,
An oblong slate lay before them,
Embedded in the earth between the holy well and the one remaining section of wall of the ruined chapel.
What is it?
Rose's voice was hushed now.
Perhaps it was to do with the mist,
Which was rising from the river on smoky fingers in the dim light of early evening,
Swirling around them like smoke,
Causing the sound of the shovel and their voices to fall bluntly into the night air.
But Rose had a feeling now,
An inkling they were about to discover something which had been hidden for a very long time,
And she was unsure if it should be disturbed.
Davy had no such qualms.
Hand me the bar iron,
He commanded,
And Rose heaved it across to him.
With a lot of grunting,
Pushing and poking,
Davy finally managed to lift the stone a fraction.
Once,
Twice it lifted,
Exposing a gaping black hole beneath.
Then,
At the third attempt,
He managed to heave it right over,
And it fell backwards with a loud thud.
By the light of the flickering lamp,
Davy and Rose gazed into the hole and stared.
They debated for a long time about what to do,
Until the mist from the river encompassed them,
And night truly arrived,
Casting a cloak of darkness all around.
Finally Davy shifted the heavy slate back into position and scattered some earth on top.
I think it's for the best,
Commented Rose.
We can always come back another time,
Agreed Davy,
Reluctant to think the episode would be forgotten.
But right now I have to set some traps.
Will you be alright?
Rose nodded.
I'll head back in a minute,
She replied.
You carry on.
Davy disappeared into the darkness,
Leaving Rose in the silence.
But after a while she had the distinct impression she was no longer alone.
Perhaps it was the great white owl,
The brown stoat or the water vole which frequented the chapel ruins.
Or maybe,
She told herself she was being fanciful,
But could not help wondering,
The spirits of the place,
The long-ago guardians she had seen in her visions.
Rose shivered,
The night air chilling her,
And decided this was no time to sit and ponder on their find.
Her warm bed beckoned,
And she would think about it all in the morning.
It was then she heard a soft movement nearby,
No more than the scrape of shewer-pond stone,
But enough to alert her to the fact someone was near.
Who's there?
Perhaps she should have remained silent and immediately regretted her action.
Maybe the other person was unaware she was sitting amongst the shadows,
But it was too late now.
Rose turned this way and that,
Hoping to find Davy jumping down from a piece of masonry,
Laughing because he had given her a fright.
But again,
Silence.
Rose picked up her basket.
Perhaps she was mistaken.
Maybe there was no one at all,
For who except herself and Davy would be out on a night such as this?
The mist had increased to a thick fog,
Sounds falling heavy and muted in the night air.
But as she picked her way carefully over the trickle of the stream and moss-covered stones,
Her foot slipped and she stumbled,
Only to be saved by a swift hand beneath her elbow.
Careful.
Rose turned to find Charles standing beside her.
Sorry,
I didn't mean to frighten you.
His voice was muted in the fog as he held her arm,
Steadying her.
It's all right.
Rose breathed a sigh of relief.
But what?
Her words were cut off by a sudden cry in the night,
Piercing through the fog,
And they both froze.
Charles' hand tightened on Rose's arm.
What was that?
Whispered Charles.
It sounded human.
And Rose,
Hearing it again,
Felt a rush of fear sweep over her.
It is,
She replied,
Her voice rising in panic.
It's Davy.
