A peculiar tale

All This Time?

Jake's POV:

Zoe and I walk, hand in hand, along the cliffs. Back to the pub, back to where we will become insignificant again.

"Jake? Zoe? Oh, there you two are." Dad says coming over to us. Putting an arm around both our shoulders. "Thank God. When I heard they found a body, I freaked." We look over the cliff to see the body of Uncle Oggie lying on the rocks at the bottom.

We all make our way down to the beach, as we get closer I notice that Zoe tenses, as we both notice that he had his eyes missing. There is a Hollow here.

"Are there stray dogs around here?" Dad asks Kev.

"What are you talking about?" He asks.

"It's like, when they find an injured animal, they go for the soft parts first." Dad explains. "Same thing happened to my father."

"The police are on their way." John Lamont says, coming over.

"Look, dad. We've got to go." I say, pulling away from him. But he grabs mine and Zoe's wrists.

"What? No, you don't, Jake." He replies. "If this wasn't an accident, there's a lunatic on the island."

"I've known everyone on this island my whole life." Kev says coming over. "Except for you three, and him." He points to John. "But he's been the pub all afternoon."

"So have I, I was sleeping." Dad replies.

"What about the blind fellow?" John asks. "I mean I assume he was blind, gentleman with the dark glasses, arrived on the same ferry as me? I kept seeing him around." While he's talking dad loosens his grip, and Zoe and I step backwards. I look to Zoe and she nods, we both take off running.

"Jake? Zoe? Jake! Zoe!" Dad shouts, running after us. We keep running.

As we get to the loop entrance, we run through the entrance and take a moment to breathe.

"Hello?" John Lamont's voice sounds at the entrance of the cave. "Is that you, young man, young woman?"

"You came through- you're peculiar?" I stutter out. I notice Zoe looks like she's thinking hard about something.

"Oh, yes." He replies, walking closer. "And I'm extremely grateful to you. Terribly hard to find loops these days."

"Jake." Zoe says, I turn to her and she pulls me backwards.

"So, you followed us from the beach on purpose?" I ask, taking steps backwards.

"Oh, no. I've been following you much further than that." He says, and we walks into some shadows. When he emerges his face has changed.

"Dr Golan?" I ask.

"Sometimes, when it suits me." She replies. "The breadth of my peculiarity is purely limited by my imagination. The only thing I can change, is my eyes." She takes out these contacts, leaving the white eyes. She walks through another shadow, and comes out looking like Mr Barron. He had been following us, watching us for all this time.

"Mr Barron. How do you do?" He introduces with a nod of his head. "I saw you at your grandfathers, I was hoping to get Miss Peregrine's address from him, but alas my travelling companion got to him before I did. And as you know, there's just no stopping a hungry Hollowgast!" He adds with a laugh. I go to run past, but he whips his hand towards me, and it turns into a knife against my neck.

"Jake!" Zoe calls in worry.

"Speaking of my travelling companion, he's coming. And believe me when I say to you, you don't want to be here when he arrives. So, let us be on our way. Shall we?" He asks, and uses the knife to guide me. But before we walk, he turns to Zoe. "And you. What should I do with you? I don't need two hostages, I feel that Jake will be enough." I look to her in fear, but she looks unafraid. Mr Barron chuckles and then she looks to me. I look to her and she does moves her hand. She moves it in a way that I can understand.