Chapter 56 (Part - B) end of chatper


“I want to know the same thing we’ve asked you every night…where are the cubes!” the man’s mouth being the only expression under the blond mustache he could read.
“I’m sorry sir, I don’t know what you’re talking about” Tintin said sincerely.
The tall man smiled and walked closer quickly grabbing the back of Tintin’s head.
“My patience grows very, very, thin…” he whispered.
“Your brother has been very uncooperative and we’ve had to punish him…if you don’t cooperate, you will be too” the man said tilting Tintin’s head back to look at his covered eyes.

“What is this place?” Tintin finally asked.
“You really try my patience!” the man said grabbing Tintin’s jaw with his other hand.

“I don’t remember anything! Honestly!” Tintin pleaded and his words distorted.
The man let go of him and quickly came around with a backhand knocking him and the chair backward. Everything became dark once again. Tintin was in a stairwell until a steel door was at the bottom. It took all of his strength to open it. Down the dim lit hall were six doors with small sliding windows. Tintin quietly crept down the creepy hallway quietly looking into the rooms. The first two were empty, but the third and fourth rooms were occupied each with a boy his age. When he checked the window of the fifth room, his brother sat on his bed in his pajamas, night cap, and slippers.

“Benton!” Tintin whispered.
“Fenton!” his brother was excited to hear his voice.
“Shh…we’re getting out of here and going home” Tintin whispered pulling a key out of his pocket which what he was doing and saying were now involuntary.
Tintin unlocked the door and mustered all of his strength to pull the door open. Benton came running out.

“We have to get the other two boys out, they’ve been doing horrible things to them as well” Benton said gravely.
Tintin quickly unlocked the other two doors freeing the other boys.
“Where are we going?” one of the boys asked anxiously.
“We’re getting out of here” Benton said.
“I want to go home” the other boy cried.
“Don’t worry, my brother and I discovered a secret exit, follow us” Benton said as he and Tintin led the others back to the stairwell opening up an air vent.
“That’s scary down there” one of the boys commented.
“It’s scarier here, now go!” Benton whispered.

The four boys went in the air duct system as Tintin closed the grate behind them. Shortly after, sirens began sounding and the memory began to fade once again.
This time Tintin was on a train in a compartment with his brother and two other boys sitting across from them with the shades drawn shut. The scene was only momentary and changed once again, and they were in a dark shadowy forest with a full moon shining its luminescent light through the canopy.

“I hope the other two are able to find their way” Benton replied as they moved.
“Do you remember how much further it is?” Tintin asked.
“Shouldn’t be too far aheead, our safe place is nearby which means we should be no more than a half hour’s hike away” Benton explained.

The forest looked creepy at night. It felt as if there were a thousand eyes watching the two of them. Night owls were hooting and distant howls could be heard. Tintin had part of a broken branch in his hand like his brother as they moved through briars and brush when they couldn’t find a suitable path. They both walked quietly not speaking for a couple minutes until Tintin could hear voices off in the distance.

“Shh…don’t move” Tintin warned his brother.
After a minute of not moving and listening intently, Tintin could hear the unmistakable German language being spoken.
“They’ve found us!” Benton gasped quietly.
“Come on, we have to run!” Tintin prompted his brother.
They dashed through the woods occasionally receiving a scratch form the passing briars. Tintin turned around to look and listen again.
"Come on, they'll find us, we got to keep moving!" He looked anxiously around. Tintin could hear dogs and the men's voices now.

"They're coming!" the Benton cried. Tintin kept up as quickly as he could. The briars were cutting up his face, hands, and Sunday looking jacket and the pajamas the boy leading him was wearing were getting small tares and rips all over. "They won't find our safe place, we just got to make it there!" the Benton gasped for air as they kept running.

A strong feeling of fear and anxiety overwhelmed his senses. All he knew was that it wouldn't be good if he and his brother were to get caught. Suddenly the ground gave way and they both fell into an old sink hole. They both hit the bottom with a hard thud. "We got to climb out of here before they find us!" the boy said climbing roots and vines sticking out of the ground.

Tintin followed his same route climbing out of the hole desperately trying to keep up with his brother. When he got out he saw two men and one had his brother struggling to get free with one hand over his mouth. "We're not going to hurt you boy" one man said walking closer to him. This time Tintin could see the man’s face. It was the man with the blond hair and mustache. The other boy bit the other guy's hand, "Run brother! Run! Don't let them get you!" he screamed. Tintin turned to run but almost fell back into the sink hole.

“Run if you like, but you won’t escape!” the blond haired man laughed taking off his shades.
Tintin looked back as he saw his brother able to wiggle his way free and disappear through a thicket.
“Get them!” the blond haired man said setting the two dogs loose.
Tintin was running as fast as his little feet could carry him. He wanted to rejoin his brother, but that option didn’t seem available at the moment. This time the fogginess of the surroundings was not present and he could see many different paths he could take to evade.

"Get back here you little rat!" the man shouted.
He could hear a dog barking ferociously several yards behind him. Tintin's small body allowed him to go and craw through places which the man pursuing him could not access so easily. It was almost as if he knew these woods. Faster and more nimble, his feet carried him as he went through patches of brush. The dog had problems burrowing through. The dog seemed to be further behind than the man. Tintin noticed a small clearing up ahead as there were a few large trees sitting in a semi-circle. He quickly climbed up one of the large trees finding a small hallow just big enough for him to get in and hide as the heavy foliage seemed to block most of the view from below.

It wasn't much longer afterwards the man and the dog arrived in the small clearing.
"Find him!" he ordered the dog. Tintin could not see as he was crouched in the hollow.
"You stupid dog! Find him!" the man shouted with much frustration. After a couple of moments of searching the area frantically, he heard the dog and the man scamper off.

He began to try to climb down the tree but his foot got caught between two strong twigs on one of the branches. He frantically reached for another branch to grab onto but missed. He began falling but fortunately was able to grab another branch and swing down onto the ground.

Tintin listened and went the opposite direction of the barking and the voices. The full moon was shining illuminating a familiar path that somehow he seemed to know. Suddenly he heard a sudden rush of movement not far behind him and as soon as he turned around someone bumped right into him.
"Fenton!" a young boy's voice whispered.

"Brother? How did you escape?!" Tintin whispered back.
"Yes it's me…no time to lose we must get back to our safe place" his brother told him.
Tintin had no idea exactly what would happen next so he followed his brother wearing a long night shirt and slippers through the woods. His brother seemed to know where they were going. They finally found a small hill where a set of ruins were in the middle of the forest. It looked as if it were the remains of some old tower outpost from days gone by. There were old vines and many trees secluding its presence. The walls of the tower were no higher than eight feet around in some places where it still stood. The grey stones were riddled with cracks and covered with vines and the full moon gave it an eerie glow through the tall trees. Thickets, vines, and brush seem to mask them to those who weren’t looking for them specifically.

"Where are we now brother?" Tintin asked.

"Help me move these branches and bushes" his brother instructed.
Tintin helped him shuffle things around until an old wooden trap door was found. Benton pulled some of the branches back on top of the trap door taking the padlock that lied on top and locked it securely once they were inside.
"What is this place?" Tintin asked curiously.

"Don't be silly brother, it's our safe place remember?" his brother whispered.
"No I don't remember anything brother" Tintin said sadly.
There was a narrow stairway that went down a couple of flights and it was completely dark.
"Benton, I can't see anything" Tintin whispered.
"Hold on to my shirt, I remember the path in my sleep" he whispered back.
Benton led him through a series of twist and turn until they both saw a luminous blue light up ahead.
"What is that?!" Tintin exclaimed.
"That's why those horrible men are after us Fenton" his brother said leading him into a circular room where a cubed dark stone with bright glowing blue sigils were illuminating the room.

"Brother what is this glowing stone?" Tintin asked.
"Don't you already know that brother? Those men didn't do stuff to you already did they?" Benton gasped.
"I don't know… I don't remember any of this" Tintin lamented.
"It doesn't matter; no one will get us here, not even the man with the evil eye. We're safe here…this is our safe place brother, don't forget it!" Benton said in the bright illuminating blue light.
“Benton! Fenton!” a woman’s voice could be heard echoing through the hidden underground ruins.

“It’s mom?” Tintin looked a bit confused.
“…but she doesn’t have a key, I took the padlock and locked it from the inside” Benton said just as confused.
The young looking woman with a long lavender dress and auburn hair became visible in the flowing blue light.
“Mom! What are you doing here!? Where’s dad?!” Benton ran to her.
“He’s getting help” she answered with concern.
“How did you find us?” Benton asked with amazement.

“You’re father told me where to find you” she answered quickly.
Tintin looked at her and something just didn’t seem right.
“More importantly, how did you get in?” Tintin began his line of questioning.
“That’s not important…tell me what direction you got here from the house” his mother asked.

“You found the place, so why are you asking us now?” Tintin asked suspiciously.
“Brother! Don’t talk to our mom like that!” Benton seemed a bit shocked by his brother’s sudden suspicious attitude.
“Because, she’s not our mother” Tintin declared.
“How can you say that?!” Benton was flabbergasted.
“What’s our father’s name then?” Tintin asked.
“Why Tintin…I mean Fenton, I don’t think this is the time or place. You should just tell me how to get here from the house so I can bring your father here” she explained a bit hesitantly.

“Wait a minute! You’ve never called Fenton by that name before!” Benton said a bit shocked looking back at his mother.
Within a moment, the disguise melted away revealing a long black haired lady with piercing green eyes. She wore a long black dress that came down to her ankles.
“If you know what is good you will tell us how to find this place” the woman’s voice changed.

“We won’t tell you anything!” Tintin said defiantly.
Everything melted away and a bright light was turned on and both Tintin and Benton woke up strapped to a cot in a dark room. Their arms and legs were restrained and the woman who appeared to them in their dream state was sitting between them waking from her state of subconscious as well.
“That was not a very bright move for you to make Tintin” Allan commented lighting up a cigarette.
“You will tell us where that cube is” Rastapopoulos said sternly.
“We will tell you nothing!” Benton spat.
“On the contrary, the more time it takes for us to dig it out of your altered memories, the more time your friends will suffer” Herr Wagner said quietly seated behind an altar that Tintin could barely see when he could turn his head to his left.

“The Detectives! Chang! Snowy!” Tintin exclaimed.
“Yes, I assure you, that all of them are not having a pleasant time with our person in charge of the torturing…” Herr Wagner said quietly.
“What did you do with those Asian girls!” Benton demanded.
“They are with him as well” Herr Wagner yawned.
“Asian girls?” Tintin turned his head to look at his brother.
“Yes, these perverts abduct young ladies for their sickly pleasures” Benton blurted out.

“We’re not the perverts, that’s Gaspar you want!” Lento quickly corrected.
Tintin or Benton could not see everyone who was talking.
“Gaspar is here!” Tintin gasped.
“Which color was the cube my lady” Herr Wagner asked.
“It was the blue one” Lady Ravena confirmed.
“Great job, but we’ll save that conversation for later we have an idea where another cube may be located” Herr Wagner said confidently.
“What do you need these cubes for anyways?” Tintin suddenly demanded to know.

“We will tell you when you tell us what you did with the corner of the yellow cube” Herr Wagner offered as everyone else watched in silence.
“We gave it to the other two whom you murdered on our boat” Tintin said accusingly.
“Hmm…how do we know he’s not lying” Rastapopoulos interjected.
“He didn’t have it on him nor did the others when we searched them” Allan confirmed.

“So you had a cube as well?” Benton turned to look at his brother.
“No, someone else close to me had it. I had no knowledge of its existence. The cube wasn’t whole when they stole it, I discovered the last piece in the market back home” Tintin mentioned.
“All of that is true…I was there” Dr. Mueller nodded.
“So are you going to tell us why you need these strange stones?!” Benton asked sarcastically.

“You’d do well to tone your attitude down, you’ll only make it more difficult for your friends” Herr Wagner warned ominously.
“What are you doing to them?!” Tintin asked with great concern.
“You two should concern yourself with digging in those mind altered memories of yours and tell me where this blue cube can be found; and to answer your question, maybe you should ask your mother and father what they are used for” Herr Wagner said evoking laughter out of everyone in the room.
“My mother and father?!” Tintin suddenly tried to lift his head.

“Where are they?! Are they alive?!” Tintin asked with a burning desire to know. Benton too was trying to look.
The more this situation went on, the more intriguing and dangerous it became. The prospect of Tintin possibly finding his mother and father only made his desire to escape even stronger. Some of the memories that had been blocked for years were finally coming back to Tintin and Benton. Time that seemed to have been stolen from them was beginning to seep back as the present situation, key words, and the invasive dream probing were filling in missing pieces of a giant jigsaw puzzle that had been scrambled for so many years.

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