(Hillford Plot) The Talbott House

Matilda walks into the dining room and the first thing she sees is the painting. It is not one she has seen before. She sees Jimmy look at the painting, Before he moves away to see how Caleb is.

Matilda ignores Caleb as she looks at this painting, almost like she is admiring it and she just keeps looking at it, she knows it is an unremarkable painting.

The officer follows him out into the back garden.

Arthur comes into the dining room, sees Matilda, Caleb, and Jimmy ...

"Great, just who I need. Officer Simon saw someone out back, and we need back up!"

Dickens is holding a garden rake in one hand, looking a little sick. He looks anxious to get back to the officer, and indicates that they follow him out back through the kitchen.

Dickens looks at Caleb, smiles, "Sorry old man. Rats, and more rats. Dead, putrefied, bones .... and living ... and something else. But I need you. I need your strength. Will you come?"

Arthur needed him, needed him to help. Just like before. Maybe this time Arthur would come away with something to tease Caleb about.

Caleb seems to compose himself as he nods to Arthur and smiles at Matilda. He realises that he had grabbed Jimmy by the jacket collar. With an awkward smile he lets go and smoothes down the mans lapels.

'Sorry Jim, hope I didn't hurt you! Dunno what came over me? More rats you say Dickens,?well thats just bloody typical.' he takes his flask from Jimmy and swallows a good gulp of the rum.
'Onwards then brave companions!' he laughs, hoping he didn't sound as rattled as he actually was.

Caleb leaves the dinning for the kitchen.

Caleb pauses to produce his revolver and check that it is loaded. Happy that it is he steps out into the backyard. Waiting for the others to follow.

Caleb leaves the kitchen for the backyard.

Jimmy has no time to hang about and moves through the kitchen and out into the back yard

Seeing everyone move to the back garden. She follows them

It was amusing that she would say that, the portrait in the dining room makes a laughing sound that is audible through the house. The rat is flung out of her hair as she enters the kitchen and lands in the sink, but it still appears to want to murder her. Now there are what appear to be phantom rats watching her from every square inch of the kitchen. There is a terrible scratching racket coming from up in the attic and coming from the garden door.

She hears footsteps behind her, standing behind her is a man with midnight black leathery skin, hooves for feet, black eyes, black teeth, black clothing... everything is midnight black.

"It wasn't me dear, but as you called out to me. What have you summoned me here for?" He had a very alluring voice as he spoke to her, "Your friends seem to be in a... bind." The black man shifts a huge iron book from one arm to the other.

"I do not dabble in human relations and whether they are friends or not; friends is an insignificant concept in the greater universe." The black man taps his book, "Find others to sign the book, find others to worship me with you." He motions to the painting on the wall, "The green man is enjoying the ones in the garden, he is hungry and like a fly into a venus fly trap they have flown into poison."

With a wave of his hand the mice in the room suddenly explode and splatter blood and bits on the wall; the shadows of the rodents that started to creep in suddenly scurry away, "Someone has been messing with the dreamlands." The black man walks across the room to the potrait, his hooves clopping lightly against the old wood flooring.

The image of the green man starts to move, it looks agitated and wriggles around its vines at her attempting to look menacing; The Black Man holds up a hand and the painting freezes back in place as if a barrier is hovering over it. "Yes. We have a complicated affiliation." The painting suddenly goes blank and a solid white the moment The Black Man rests his palm against the canvas.