England, West Coast
Devonshire, Dartmoor
St George, Outer Fields
5 November 1898, 11:57 a.m.

As neither Dr Archer nor Kyle knew where the Jäger family lived, they had to seek help from the few villagers. They certainly noticed the suspicion that was evident in the attitude and facial expressions of the lady they had approached for directions. Apparently, the Jäger family really did not have a very good reputation. A narrow path, no more than trampled grass and earth, led away from the village and towards the forest.

The grass stood very tall here, unmown, and reached up to the seekers' calves. Long wild stalks scattered damp drops of dew or rainwater on their trousers and shoes immediately after they had taken the first steps on the path. Only a few late-blooming flowers put a few spots of colour in the sea of green and brown.

"That wolf yesterday, there's no way it was a normal animal." Said Kyle to Dr Archer, "There are spells that can enhance the physique of a body. But the beast attacked tactically and chose its victims specifically. There is no doubt that there is someone who controlled the monster." Of this Kyle was absolutely certain. Just at that moment, Dr Archer suddenly extended his arm and Kyle ran his crotch against it before looking at him questioningly. The doctor had stretched his neck, his gaze roaming over the stalks swaying in the wind in search of something.

"Did you hear that?" he asked, turning his ears away from the murmuring wind.

"No? What?"

As if he were a dog that had picked up a scent, Dr Archer suddenly turned off the path without answering him and bounded into the grass of the meadow. Hesitantly at first, then faster and faster, he began to slash his way through the sea of green. His body left a swathe in the grass that Kyle could step into to move forward more easily. At first, he didn't understand what made the doctor run so suddenly as if something had stung him. But then he heard it too. Splashing like water, gurgling and stifled sounds.

Then silence fell and the sound died away even as they made their way through the meadow." I heard a shout!" the doctor said, brushing aside a branch that slapped Kyle against the chest. Dr Archer must have good ears because he wouldn't have noticed it from a distance. Perhaps also because he had been too busy thinking about the cursed wolf. So they crossed a thin line of scrub and thicket, interspersed with a few thin trunks of sparse beech trees, and unexpectedly stood before a medium-sized pond.

Somewhere a frog leapt away in fright, its indignant croak lost between their rustling footsteps across the rustling forest floor. The water of the pond was brownish, especially at the edge it looked dirty and churned up. Ripples caused unrest on the otherwise smooth or even mirror-like surface.

Thick lichens, rows of ferns and foliage framed the brownish water. Larger stones lay scattered around the otherwise steeply sloping edge of the pond, surrounded by leaves and foliage that also covered part of the water's surface and floated on it like small boats. An old lime tree stretched its branches away over the oval shape and shrouded the scene in a dusky shadow. A few stones protruded from the water, caked with algae and thickly overgrown wet moss. A few large leaves of aquatic plants, perhaps water lilies, covered the whole area with small screens on which the gliding little ships of foliage could catch themselves. 

The splashing had stopped when the two of them saw what had been responsible for it. Strands of brown hair swayed like billowing algae in the soundless rhythm of the water. The small body could almost have been missed amidst the foliage and lily pads, for it was already sinking. Dark green clothes floated on the surface. Face in the water, hidden from their gaze, the lad remained in it motionless as if trying to blend into the scenery.

For an interminable second, the doctor and Kyle stared at this gruesome image. Then they started moving at the same moment. Kyle paused as he saw the Doctor furrow into the water, leaves and ripples rolling off the body and protesting splashes spilling over the edge of the pond. The doctor's strong hands gripped the rough woollen clothing. Soaked full, the comparatively small body was incredibly heavy.

Like a downpour, the large drops fell from the bodies back into the pond, spilling their tears. Brown soup of the filthy water ran down the chalky face of the lad, whose mouth stood slightly open and from which more liquid poured down his chin. In long strides, the doctor was back on the bank and Kyle helped pull the lifeless lad out while the doctor pushed out along the edge. Kyle laid the boy down on the grass, his ear on his small chest, and turned a little paler himself. The doctor jerked himself out of the water that was up to his chest. Mud and dirt oozed out from between his fingers, but he paid no attention to that. Instead, he bridged the distance between the pond and the boy and pushed Kyle aside. He felt for a pulse on the boy's neck, then immediately reached for the shirt and ripped it open. Buttons popped away and like little brown toads into the leaves and meadow. The doctor put his ear directly on the small chest this time, then his rough fingers grabbed at the small chin.

Kyle never felt so useless, he just managed to stare under his trundling heartbeat as the doctor opened his mouth and slid his fingers inside.

Dr Archer pushed the boy's tongue down and was relieved to find that it had not slipped back. But his fingers brushed against something rough and Dr Archer's brow furrowed deeply. Opening the child's mouth a little wider, he carefully slid his fingers down his throat and felt for the foreign object.

"Kyle!" he commanded the other seeker, pulling his index and middle fingers back out of his mouth. "My hand is too big. There's something stuck in his throat there. You have to pull it out!" at this he tilted the child's head back as far as he could to stretch the neck and make it easier for Kyle. The latter stared at him, aghast.

"I'm supposed to... what?!" the Seeker groaned out, but Dr Archer wasn't joking, nor did he seem up for it. "DO IT!" he barked instead, and Kyle winced before pulling a face. It had nothing to do with disgust, but fear. What if he did something wrong and made it worse!!! But Dr Archer was right. He couldn't sit there and do nothing!

Kyle hastily pulled on the glove of his right hand and threw it into the grass beside him. His fingers trembled as he slid them down the warm, damp throat. Sure enough, he felt something too and reached for it with his index and middle fingers. It took him a little more strength, but then it released from the child's throat and Kyle pulled. It hit the roof of his mouth and his teeth... and then he pulled a clump of leaves from the boy's maw. Bright yellow leaves with jagged edges, compressed and curled like a ball of sunshine-yellow yarn or a ball of gold.

"Was there more?" the doctor's voice inquired, and Kyle shook his head hastily. "I don't think so." He groaned out, sounding breathless as if the disgusting ball of yarn had lodged in his throat. That's exactly what it felt like. A sticky, oppressive lump in his throat that got worse with every second that passed. The doctor's hands settled on the child's chest, then he jerkily pushed down several times, then gave him a measured breath. He repeated this. Twice, three times. Kyle did not understand what he was doing, but he trusted the doctor.

The hair hung in tangled strands on the young face, it was caked with mud and hung in thick strands in the pale features. The clothes stuck to the small body. Soaked, it made him look that much scrawnier. Kyle's heart sank like a stone as he sat in the grass beside the doctor, staring at the pale features. He wanted to scream and shout. Why was there a child here all alone? What had happened? He didn't have the naivety to think it could be a coincidence or an accident between all the deaths. A child. This was a child, damn it! His fingers trembled as he clenched them into fists.

Then, all at once, a gasp. The doctor immediately turned the child to the side, who was now retching a torrent of brown pond water and vomit onto the lawn. Another leaf slipped from the child's throat, the little body writhed and the doctor held and helped it. The child's body trembled and shook, and then he began to sob and cry heartbreakingly and powerlessly for his mother. It was far too early to feel relief. Nevertheless, a huge weight fell from both their hearts. The boy was alive.

"It's all right. Do you hear? We're going to take you to your mother." Promised the doctor in a calm, firm voice. "What happened?" he inquired. Kyle peeled out of his coat and put it around the shivering child's shoulders.

The boy was confused and disoriented, hypothermic and they didn't expect an answer. He only pointed to the pond and thick tears welled up from his brown eyes. He only managed rattled, raspy words. Something about 'bumped', 'shimmering' and 'dragged down'.

The two seekers' gazes settled on the pond, and then met. While Kyle gently patted the boy's back and rubbed his shoulders, he spoke reassuringly to him and took him a little way away from the pond. Dr Archer's muscles tensed under his wet clothes as he stared at the brown surface of the water. Innocently, the water lay there. Quiet as if nothing could disturb its peace or as if it hadn't just tried to snatch a boy from life. Silently, the leaves sailed leisurely around again and a new one came down from one of the beeches. It trundled off a branch, only to finally leave small concentric circles on the surface. The doctor took a deep breath. His chest expanded, air flowed into his lungs and Archer held his breath. His heart drummed in his ears, counting the seconds. Then he dived into the opaque waters.

Cold slammed over him. Blinking, he tried to make out anything in the broth and groped into the darkness. His fingers felt the resistance of the water, then the muddy soft bottom. They bumped against rough surfaces of stone, and felt slippery moss, algae...

Above, the water was churning. Splashing, the pond swallowed the Doctor's form, leaving the churned surface for Kyle to stare at, also counting every second. They dragged on agonisingly. His heart pounded to his suddenly cold fingertips. Only with difficulty could he resist the urge to jump up. Yesterday they had narrowly escaped death because of a beast of a wolf. Just now the child had almost drowned. What if something escaped him and the doctor drowned there as well? The thought made his fingers even colder, his thoughts and pulse more agitated. Kyle stared. How long had the doctor been down there?

Then, suddenly, his body broke the surface. A gushing torrent of water fell on the doctor, pouring out of his hair and off his head. The doctor drew in the air sharply, blinking against the dirt and the burning in his eyes. He groped for the edge of the bank.

"Did you find anything?!" groaned Kyle impatiently. He made an effort to sound casual, at least not as curious. Above all, however, not as worried as he had been. He was only moderately successful because all these factors coloured his voice more harshly so that he had to clear his throat to cover it up.

Fortunately, the doctor didn't notice, because he braced himself out of the musty water and threw his find to the edge: no more than a lost, leather shoe. Kyle's gaze latched onto the child's feet: a shoe was missing. "Nothing." The doctor, ahead of Kyle's conclusion, as usual, groaned out in a frustrated tone, wiping back his dark strands. He looked sullen - And Kyle understood, despite the quiet relief he felt at Dr Archer's unharmed state.

Dr Archer carried the boy in his arms as they hurriedly made their way back to the village. The wetness made both the boy and the doctor shiver, for the cold wind bit unpleasantly through their soaked clothes. With long strides, they made their way along a new path of trampled grass towards the village, where the first people hurried to meet them. It didn't take long for Baltimore to arrive either. By now he looked tense and exhausted. Since the village had no doctor of its own, but Dr Archer immediately introduced himself as such, the worried parents asked him to join them in the parlour. Dr Archer brought the boy to the parents' house. He explained to the caring mother what she should do and meanwhile sent Kyle to bring his medical kit. Even though it went against the grain for Kyle to be ordered around like a servant, he grumbled and complied with the doctor's request.

Dr Archer took care of the boy's stability and initial care. He developed a high fever from the dirt, shock and cold and kept choking out some water. Only when Dr Archer could contribute nothing more for the boy did they say goodbye to return to the Skirrid Inn so that the doctor could get out of his now clammy clothes.

While Dr Archer changed, dried and briefly warmed up, Elly meekly apologised for her behaviour that morning. She said that she had never been superstitious, but that she had been afraid after the latest events. Since she had been so harsh with Mrs Jäger a few days ago, she was now afraid of possible consequences. After all, both Father and Mr Andrews had died in the meantime and Mrs Andrews was no longer here. So when the gentlemen were gone, she was all alone, which was intimidating for a young girl her age.

Tears shimmered in the big doe eyes as she begged the Seeker not to tell the old Mrs Jäger who had told them all these things. She was genuinely afraid, for trembling fingers rummaged restlessly in the apron stained by stew and vegetables. A little pity stirred in Kyle when he saw her like this.

Why was he so sensitive about it? Did it simply bother him because he had the impression that she did play some men a little now and then? Inwardly, Kyle wanted to pull his hair out. Outwardly, he put on a wry grin and waved it off. He wasn't usually like this and she didn't deserve him acting like an ass either.

"It's all right. You've been very helpful. We won't tell." Kyle, therefore, said, trying to accommodate the girl a little. It certainly wasn't easy to be responsible for everything all by himself now.

When Dr Archer finally stepped out into the corridor, Kyle asked Elly politely if she could wash his bloody clothes from the night before. Because of the blood, there were already fat blowflies hanging around his room, which were eating away at his clothes. Elly smiled again, relieved that her behaviour in the morning had not scared the gentlemen away, and Kyle handed the girl the key to his room. The two men then made their way to the Jäger family again. To the searchers, the image of the child in the pond and the bloodied body of Sandra Walsh pressed like the barrel of a gun into their backs. They might have been able to save the boy. But what if it went on like this?

There was no more time to lose.