The Island Pt. 01

Trawler apparently knew the way between the lighthouse and the island. He zigzagged in and then turned, slowed down, and began sailing along the coastline.

They scanned the shore. Not much to be seen. Heavy and thick vegetation between large trees seemed to cover everything from the ragged coastline and inwards. No place seemed to offer a place to land.

They rounded the island and the whole South side was definitely uninviting. On the East coast the chalk cliffs rose between three and five meters straight up from the sea. The debris at the foot did not look like it was an easy landing spot either.

On the North side they passed the high, black cliff that housed the bird colony.

Lots of activity with the birds flying back and forth and sitting in nests on the cliff and making a lot of noise.

They could see the offspring in some of the nests. Sitting with open beaks and waiting for food to be stuck down their beaks.

Finally, when they were almost back at the starting point on the West coast, Sunny lowered the binoculars and pointed: "There seems to be a small beach and a cave in there. Ask him if he can land!"

Bryn got up and had a short discussion, involving more money, before Trawler agreed, and turned to boat towards the small beach.

As soon as they felt the sand grinding against the bottom of the boat, they both jumped off and waded in the shallow water to dry land.

Trawler kept the motor running and did not look at ease.

"This seems to be a nice and dry cave, Sunny? We could start by camping here, make plans and store gear?"

"Exactly, it's a great place."

They ventured inside to the end of the cave.

"Look here, Sunny. Seems like someone has been here recently. Graffiti. A bit faded though."

"That's not recent. Must be very old." Sunny let her fingers follow some of the lines on the wall. "Maybe even pre-historic. Interesting!"

"Well. You're the archaeologist. So, I believe you. Can you see what it is supposed to look like?"

"No, I will have to get some equipment. An infrared and an ultraviolet lamp and

something to clean off the surface. We'll look at it later"

"OK. Trawler seems to be getting impatient. Let's have a look outside."

There seemed to be no way to get through the undergrowth and into the island itself. Both sides had thick, thorny bushes growing intertwined. On the right side it seemed like it would be slightly easier to clear a path, but they decided that it had to wait. Then they waded back to the boat and climbed on board. They both turned in their seat and watched the island as they departed.

Back at the Inn they parted. They thanked Trawler and he retired to his apparent

permanent spot in the corner, and the girls went to the same window table they had occupied last night and this morning.

They had more hot coffee and tried to get the cold out of their bodies.

"So, you want to buy an Island, Sunny?"

"Ahem. I suppose so. Looks like it is what we have been looking for. A place where we will be left in peace."

Bryn leafed through the small perm with the details: "Not very informative, and our expedition today did not give us much, but I'll be ready to take the chance if you will?"

Sunny pondered for a minute or two: "OK. Let's go see the Estate agent again, and see if we can get more info out of her!"

So, they did!

Of course, the Estate agent was all smiles. They were probably the only interested parties for the island in a very long time.

She became apparently uncomfortable when they started asking questions.

She had not much to add to the little they already knew:

The island had a rumour of ghosts and supernatural events. None specific though, but the waters around it was littered with many shipwrecks.

Even after the lighthouse had been erected, the treacherous undercurrents and the reefs had claimed a lot of victims.

The Estate woman finally lit up slightly as she leaned her meaty, white body in over the desk: "I have done some homework since yesterday:

the owner Elsa Mereungie was the second or third wife of a wealthy property developer much her senior. The 'assorted' children from his other marriages disliked Elsa with no exceptions.

When the developer died, he left everything to Elsa - including the island."

The Estate woman's voice turned to a whisper: "That definitely did not improve the relationship between them."

Both Bryn and Sunny listened and nodded in the appropriate places.

The woman leaned back and said in her usual voice: "Since Elsa just vanished one day without a trace, everyone had had to wait the "10-year Grace period" before a declaration of her death, and a certificate to that end could be issued.

Of course, the children tried every trick in the book to get their hands on the inheritance, but to avail.

So, they waited impatiently, and as soon as they had their hands on the inheritance, they immediately tried to cash in on all assets, including the island.

Now it has been two years and the children have gone through the money and assets at an alarming pace."

Bryn was sure the woman regretted her last sentence as it meant the children would be more than eager to get money in their greedy hands, and thus would be easier to negotiate a lower price than the one written on the papers.

There was no more to be gotten out of the Estate agent, so they rose and bid her farewell.

In the doorway, Bryn turned and gave the woman a bid for about half the price. Telling her to present it to the children and if it were accepted, to get the papers adjusted and ready for signature. They left her with their phone and e-mail details.

An hour later they drove the Land Rover up the mountain and away.

Chapter Eight - 5 Years Ago - Cold Turkey

by o_girl © 2024

Sometime late in the night the drugs began wearing off, and Elizabeth became restless.

Brynhild got up and wiped her sweating body with soft linen, held her when she shook in cramps, and cleaned the liquid vomit that came up at frequent, short intervals.

In the early hours of the morning, she tried to get a little soup into her and also some dry bread.

Of course, it came up again, but better to have something to throw up than having stomach cramps on an empty system.

After that Elizabeth seemed to sleep quietly. Brynhild tied her wrists and ankles with the silk restraints and went for an errand.

When she returned, Elizabeth was wide awake and shaking all over, but her pupils looked a little wider, and she was throwing her head from side to side now and then.

Brynhild threw a stack of morning papers on the bed: "Now. I am sure you will love the news this morning." She took the paper at the top of the heap and unfolded it. Then held it up for Elizabeth to see.

Half the front page was a blurred black and white photo, and most of the people in it had editorial black bars inserted over their eyes.

The headline read: "Scandal at The Whispering Pines.". The subtitle below was: "Doctor running asylum as a BDSM brothel"

Elizabeth actually smiled - and Brynhild laughed out loud as she untied the ribbons from her ankles and wrists.

For about an hour, she read out from the papers, all of them having screen shots from the CCTV footage at "The Pines" - and all of them very compromising.

There was also lots of pictures of Doctor Saddlemeyer and Nurse Patterson being led off in handcuffs.

Elizabeth had slowly moved to the end of the bed, and was sitting up. Her back resting against the headboard. Her face displayed deep concentration for a few minutes. Then she looked straight at Brynhild as she tried to get her mouth to follow her brain: "....How....t...this....ha..happen....?"

Brynhild laughed: "My hacker friend, Starfucker got into the surveillance system at "The Pines" a while back. He dumped most of the footage from the CCTV System to his own equipment. Yesterday I phoned him and told him to go ahead, so he sent selected parts to major papers, and the whole thing to the Police.

Of course, from a non-traceable internet address on the "TOR" network.

I am sure Doctor Shitmeyer and his cronies regret their fondness of surveillance now."

Brynhild laughed again.

--

The following week Elizabeth slowly got better. It was hard work for the both of them.

The washing machine ran on overtime, and Brynhild spend most of her time washing, feeding, and cuddling Elizabeth.

During the first days, Brynhild was worried as she had to pretend normality and go see her mother in the usual and regular intervals.

"The Pines" was still in operation although the closed ward and most of the main building had been sealed off by the police.

The 'inmates' had been moved to more suitable institutions and over time more than half of them were released as they had more or less shared Elizabeth's fate.

The paying residents in the regular wing and their families waited to see what would happen.

Fortunately, a fresh group of investors took over at the end of the week. They were going to renovate the closed ward as soon as the Police investigation was over, and bring peace and normality to the place.

Saddlemeyer and his gang had a long trial, but even the best and most expensive defence lawyers could not argue much against the photo documentation.

Some tried to prove that the footage had been tampered with, but in view of the overwhelming mass of it, and the testimony of some of the now released inmates from the closed ward, not much could be done.

A couple of very wealthy men and a few politicians fell from their elevated heights to disgrace and prison.

As an 'added bonus' the trial revealed that Saddlemeyer and most of the investors

involved in the closed ward had moved all of their assets to offshore accounts.

No one found it strange that these offshore transactions almost coincided with the exposure of Saddlemeyer and the investors, and that the money had only stayed for a few minutes at the first offshore account and then vanished in a string of accounts across cyberspace.

All thanks to a rather overweight, hermit going by the name of "Starfucker" to the people that knew him via the internet.

A fraud accusation was added to the long indictment.

At the end of the trial they all got long prison sentences.

--

Of course, the Police came by. Two very polite "Uniforms" landed in their patrol car one morning in front of Bryn's mother's summerhouse.

They were expected as Bryn had sold her own and her mother's apartment, and changed both of their addresses to the summer house.

Not quite legal as only her mother, being terminal ill and an old age pensioner, she had the right to a permanent address in this recreational area.

Bryhild's alert system worked perfectly, and before they had even gotten out of their car, she had run through the small hole in the fence and in through the back door.

She took a few deep breaths when they knocked and had a big smile when she opened the door.

She offered tea, but they politely refused.

Together they went over her last couple of visits to "The Pines".

In her mind she had made up the timeline a long time ago, and was sure her story was credible and watertight.

They left excusing taking her time and expressed sympathy and understanding for her and her mother's situation at the moment.

--

After a week Elizabeth had almost returned to the world.

She was now able to eat, the shakes only happened once or twice a day, and now the soups and pies that Brynhild made for her did not come up again.

As the shutters of the house were closed all the time so no passer-by would wonder about the light, Brynhild had begun to help her out on the back porch and wrap her in blankets to give her some light and fresh air during the day.

The silk scarves had gone and Sunny was able to rest and sleep without cramps or spasms.

They often sat for hours just watching the seagulls and the water.

One day Brynhild suddenly shouted "Yes!" as she browsed her laptop.

It startled Elizabeth and when she asked what was going on, Brynhild invited her to take a look at the news site she was on.

She pointed to an article, and just said: "Next step, my dear. Starfucker has done it again".

The article told of Jimmy, Elisabeth's ex-boyfriend who had been arrested after an anonymous tip, and that investigations into the deeper realms of his computer had revealed an amazing amount of child porn. He was now in custody and facing a long list of serious charges, although he claimed to be absolutely innocent.

Brynhild smiled at Elizabeth: "That sorted him out. I think it is going quite well, don't you?"

A small smile spread on Elizabeth's face: "I can't say I feel sorry for him. He caused me a lot of grief, and the worst thing was him testifying against me in court. I am sure my sweet brother and sister paid him handsomely for that."

"Well, he won't have much pleasure of that now, and oh! I forgot to tell you: he also seems to have moved all his money to offshore accounts. Not that I think he knows it himself...hehe..but he will have to take a Pro Bono lawyer as he is virtually bankrupt."

"I assume your friend with the active fingers on the keyboard has been doing his magic again?", Sunny said.

"Yes! You win the prize of the day, my dear! He did make some noises when I asked him to find some suitable child porn, but as he is on the Dark Net mostly, it turned out to be no problem. He did copy the membership list of the group he milked the pictures and film clips from and let the Police have it. Anonymously of course."

Brynhild closed the laptop: "I think it is time, you get out in the world, and meet

Starfucker among other things. Now we will get serious and go for your lovely siblings, and therefore we need to do some active preparations, but let's go sit outside and enjoy the day for a bit. You still need to rest a lot."

They dozed in the deck chairs outside for the rest of the day.

Chapter Nine - 200.000 BC - The Hairless Monkeys

by o_girl © 2024

The violent actions of the Earth had almost ceased.

Only one last, big natural ordeal remained, but it was definitely a big change for the island.

After the big catastrophe and the ashes and dust had settled, the Earth and the island had a long sequence of extremely hot summers, and a lot of violent storms.

In summer the sun often dried out most of the vegetation, and the wildlife diminished.

In spring and autumn some restoring and rebuilding took place.

Each time there was a sorting of species and a change in the balance of nature, not only on the island, but everywhere on Earth.

Then the summers started getting shorter and colder.

In the beginning it was hardly noticeable, but more rain fell in spring and autumn, as well as snowstorms became more frequent and wilder in the winter.

A plateau of ice around the island and out from the mainland coast developed during each mid-winter.

Finally, during one very long winter the ice connected the island with the mainland.

This resulted in carnivores like foxes and bears coming across.

The icy world had made it difficult for them to find food, so they ventured further and further afield, and eventually landed on the island.

The population of birds, penguins, and smaller animals all got reduced by the bigger hunters.

At the height of this cold period, another week-long snowstorm raged.

Visibility was down to almost nothing. Wind roared across the icy plain between the mainland and the island.

A group of five strange looking animals slowly worked their way across the ice.

They walked upright and looked a like a group of bears, all dark and furry.

At the front was a male. His face almost covered in icicles hanging from his red hair and beard.

His eyes were squeezed almost shut, leaving two small slits as he tried to look through the massive wall of snow.

Behind him and getting the little shelter that was possible from his body, walked two women and a few steps behind them another woman carrying a small bundle in her arms.

The last one in this little group was yet another and different looking woman.

They were easily mistaken for bears as their bodies were all wrapped in bearskin and they even had isolating fur wrapped tightly around their feet.

However, the last woman in the line had longer limbs, was slightly taller and thinner, and beneath her helmet of snow and ice, had black hair.

Their leader, Grkk stopped abruptly and pointed. Through the curtain of falling snow there was a larger shadow in front of them: Land! it seems of some kind.

Land meant shelter and maybe food.

He started walking again.

This time in a little faster pace against the storm.

As they came closer to land, it protected them from some of the forces of the blizzard.

They reached the shore and found shelter under some trees.

They snuggled close together. Even the odd woman was allowed close to help keep the whole bundle of them warm.

After Grkk had assured himself that his group was safe, he walked along the shore and disappeared in the snowfall.

Time passed, and the group started to get a little warmer. This was slightly better than being exposed to the wind and snow on the flat ice plain they had come across.

Grkk reappeared out of the snowfall and signalled them to get up and follow him. After a short walk along the shore they settled in a natural cave where they withdrew to the absolute end about 10-15 meters in.

A large snowdrift had piled up at the entrance, but at the back of the cave it was nice and dry.

Grkk turned to the odd woman: "You do magic, Adoel. I go get firewood. Now!"

The odd-looking woman crawled to the centre of the cave, and used her hands to scratch and scoop a hollow in the frozen sand.

She produced a small, leather bag from around her neck. Released the tendons that were tightly knotted around the top, and took out her utensils.

The rest of the group looked on in awe and respect. This was the reason they tolerated her even though she was very different from them.

She made a heap of dried lichen from her pouch on top of a stick that looked well-used.

Then took another round and worn stick from the pouch and began rolling it back and forth between her flat hands. The point drilling into the other piece of wood.

Grkk came back with a stack of dry and half rotten branches from the forest behind the cave, just as the moss began to emit a small pillar of smoke.

At exactly the right time, the woman took the two sticks away and bend over. Her head touching the ground. Carefully blowing till small flames appeared in the moss.

She only stopped blowing to bark out a few commands to Grkk, who handed her some very dry twigs he had broken off from the absolute lowest part on some of the pine trees outside.

Adoel made a tight bundle of these, by breaking and folding them with her hands.

Then she held them over the small flames till they had caught fire.

She kept instructing Grkk to hand her kindling until she had created a sustainable fire, as their shadows started dancing on the walls of the cave.

She turned and crawled to the side and sat up, resting her back to the wall.

As she had crawled by one of the other women, she was given a short kick.

She was just tolerated because she knew how to make fire.

They all moved closer and partly unwrapped and arranged their bearskin coats around their bodies. Leaving an opening towards the warming fire.

Cebna unwrapped her baby, Zikad. Then burst into a series of guttural screams.

Zikad was blue and dead. The storm had been too much for an almost new born baby.

The other women gathered round the little corpse and joined in the wailing.

They scraped ashes from the edge of the fire and rubbed it into their hair and faces.