Nevermore

Chapter 30

N I C H O L A S

There was a large coast, thirty minutes away from the Berrington University. Nicholas and his friends had always wanted to visit the beach, but each time they planned on going there, they changed their mind and went to town instead, watching a movie or going to a pub in the end.

    With his rental bicycle, Nicholas rode across town until he reached the coast, where the address was leading him. He could sense the humidity rising the closer he got to the heaving waters, the searing scent of the sea growing vivid.

    Nicholas rode down a winding and narrow dirt road which was stretched out to the sea. He was surprised to see that at this part of the coast there was no sign of humans; no tourists, no visitors or swimmers, and no fishermen. Only a thin sandy shore beside the water, wide cliffs that ran alongside the shore for as far as the eye could see, and a small cottage in the distance.

    His heart giving an excited lurch, Nicholas realized that this had to be where Walter Elmore lived. He stopped his bicycle at the end of the lane and walked the rest of the way across the cold sands, until he reached the house's door.

    To still the rapid beating of his heart, Nicholas took in a few deep breaths, before knocking at the wooden door. He waited and waited, yet no one answered the door. He knocked a second time, and then a third, starting to worry that he had come to the wrong address.

    But before he could even turn around to leave, a deep and cold voice behind him said, "Who are you?"

    Turning around briskly, Nicholas saw a man standing there, his figure outlined against the sky and his face darkened by the sinking sun behind him.

    Nicholas blinked a few times, trying to retrieve his vision from the blinding sunlight, before looking back at the figure in front of him again. The man looked to be in his late sixties, with brown eyes and dark brows. His thick goatee beard and mustache were grey and white, and he was wearing a woolen flat cap. The man was old, full of wrinkles that were scarred upon his face by time's sharp dagger.

    "Who are you, boy?" He repeated himself sternly when Nicholas failed to answer him the first time.

    "I..." Nicholas began to say, but the man's sharp gaze held him on the spot like a knife at his throat.

    He raised a brow at him. "You don't even know who you are?"

    Nicholas cleared his throat, trying to regain himself. "My name is Nicholas, sir. Nicholas Pierce."

    "And may I ask what you're doing here, Nicholas Pierce?" He spoke calmly, his voice measured, but the man intimidated Nicholas in a way he could not explain.

    "I actually came here to see you, sir."

    "You came here to see me," he repeated. There was no question in his tone. "I might be old, but I don't remember inviting you here."

    "I apologize for coming here without an invitation, Mr. Elmore, but I really wanted to speak to you about your book, if you allow it."

    "How do you know who I am?" The Man frowned and his expression suddenly changed for the first time, narrowing his eyes at him. "How did you find me?"

    Nicholas managed to give him a charming smile. "I'm the chief editor of Berrington University's newspaper, sir. I have my ways."

    Amused by the young boy's wit and daring, Mr. Elmore walked past Nicholas and opened the door to his home, stepping inside without another word. Although he left the door open, and so Nicholas took it as his permission to enter.