Julius and the Soulcatcher

Praise for
Julius and the Watchmaker

‘An exciting romp through time, full of wonderful characters and sinister possibilities.' Lian Tanner

‘Alternate worlds, time travel, mechanical horror, the demi monde of Victorian England and evil trickery all come together to make this novel a compelling read...a winner for those who love good fantasy.'
Reading Time

‘The ideas about time and time travel are intricate…they have been created, sorted and ingeniously assembled…Teen readers will also particularly enjoy the fight scenes, sly ironic humour and steampunked flights of fantasy.'
Australian

‘The alternate parallels into which Julius is hurled are rich and scary and strange…A compelling read…a classic in the making for ages twelve and up.'
Readings

‘A thoroughly absorbing read for twelve-year-olds, who can engage as much or as little as they like with the historical detail and lessons in time, while getting swept along in the adventures and fates of Julius, our likeable hero, and his slowly evolving band of friends.'
Big Issue

THE WATCHMAKER NOVELS

Book 1
Julius and the Watchmaker

Book 2
Julius and the Soulcatcher

Tim Hehir lives in Melbourne and writes short stories and plays.
Julius and the Soulcatcher
is his second novel.

The Text Publishing Company

Swann House

22 William Street

Melbourne Victoria 3000

Australia

textpublishing.com.au

Copyright © Tim Hehir 2016

The moral rights of the author have been asserted.

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright above, no part of this publication shall be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior permission of both the copyright owner and the publisher of this book.

First published by The Text Publishing Company, 2016

Cover & papercut art by W.H. Chong

Page design by Imogen Stubbs & W. H. Chong

Typeset by J & M Typesetting

National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry

Author: Hehir, Tim.

Title: Julius and the soulcatcher / by Tim Hehir.

ISBN: 9781925240177 (paperback)

ISBN: 9781925095975 (ebook)

Target Audience: For young adults.

Subjects: Time travel—Fiction.

Dewey Number: A823.4

CHAPTER 1

LONDON

Thursday 18th January 1838

5:56 PM

Julius Higgins heard the rattle and creak of a hansom cab. But there was nothing to see, only darkness.

‘What is it?' said Crimper McCready.

The clatter of horses hooves grew louder.

Julius hunched his shoulders against the bone-shattering cold as he strained to see down the alleyway.

There's nothing there, Higgins.

The sound grew to a torrent.

‘Move, move,' he called out to Crimper. ‘Run, damn you.'

Julius pushed Crimper out of the alleyway into Lawrence Lane and jumped aside. The deafening rumble cascaded over him like a storm wave.

The hansom cab shot past them, its wheels skidding as it lurched hard to the right. The cabbie, high on his perch at the back, flicked his whip.

‘Oi, mate,' called out Crimper. ‘Light your lamp so folk can see you. You're a bleeding menace. I'll have the law on you.'

The cabbie pulled back on the reins and the cab halted. He twisted around to look at the two boys. His spine was bent in a half moon and his head and chin were thrust forward from his domed shoulders. He put Julius in mind of a heron wearing a billycock hat.

Uh-oh, thought Julius.

He heard a whimper from low in Crimper McCready's throat.

Julius swallowed.

Make a run for it, Higgins.

‘Sorry,' said Crimper. The sound was too weak to make it far from his face.

The cabbie's eyes were unreadable in the shadow of his hat's rim as he looked down on them from his perch. The breath from his nose misted with each exhalation.

‘What is it? Do you see her?' called out a voice from inside the cab. ‘Do you? Do you?'

‘No, sir,' said the cabbie. He snapped the whip. The horse whinnied and the cab clattered down the street and out of sight.

Julius felt as if his body was turning to liquid and
forming a puddle where he stood.

‘Good job he took off,' said Crimper. ‘Else I'd have shown him.'

‘Yes,' said Julius. ‘Lucky for him.'

After a few hurried twists and turns through the London streets Julius and Crimper arrived at the top of Ironmonger Lane.

Nearly home, Higgins
.
A hot meal and a warm fire await.

Lamps burned over doorways along each side of the narrow street. They didn't give much light, but they showed the way. A few more paces and Julius saw the sign for his grandfather's bookshop.
Higgins' Booksellers: Rare and Difficult to Find Books a Specialty
.

At the window, Julius stopped and looked inside. A smartly dressed girl reached across the counter accepting a coin from his grandfather. She curtsied a little stiffly, as if she were still learning how to do it. Then she dropped the coin into her purse, pulled a veil over the front of her bonnet and turned towards the door.

Julius remained at the window, watching.

The shop bell tinkled as the girl stepped out onto the footpath. She stopped, startled to see the two boys. The veil over her face moved like a ripple on water as she breathed.

Julius estimated her to be twelve or thirteen from her height, and well-to-do from her polished ankle boots and fur-lined cape. He could not see her eyes
but he knew she was staring at him.

Julius marked the seconds by his heartbeats, as regular as the ticking of a clock.

He knew who she was.

She had changed in every way since the last time he had seen her, but it was still her. She was taller now, certainly better dressed, and she carried herself, if not like a lady, at least like a well-trained lady's maid.

Despite the cold, Julius felt a warmth within. He opened his mouth to say her name, but she turned and ran.

‘Who was that?' asked Crimper.

‘Someone I used to know,' said Julius.

But she didn't want to know you, Higgins.

‘Who? Higgins, I'm talking to you.'

‘It doesn't matter.'

‘Higgins?' said Crimper.

‘Hmm…what?' said Julius.

‘The book?'

‘Book?'

‘Latin, remember?'

Julius felt the warmth drain away.

They went into the shop and stood near the crackling fire unwinding their scarves. Mr Higgins looked up from the book he was reading as the two boys unbuttoned their coats.

‘What is the meaning of this, young Caesar?' said Mr Higgins.

‘Of what, Grandfather?' replied Julius.

‘The lateness of the hour. Where have you been?'

‘At the extra history class, Grandfather. I told you about it.'

‘Ah, yes, I recall. And is Master McCready a history scholar, too?' said Mr Higgins, studying the large, pudding-faced boy for any sign of a budding historian.

‘Me? No fear, Mr Higgins, I'm here to borrow a Latin grammar book,' said Crimper.

‘Borrow?
Borrow?
Books are made to be bought and sold, my boy, not
borrowed
,' said Mr Higgins. ‘Where is the profit in that? Whatever next? Will you be
borrowing
a cup of tea, perchance? Would you like to
borrow
some candlelight?

‘Er…'

‘Take no notice, Crimper,' said Julius. ‘Grandfather's only joking.' He tossed the book to Crimper, who mumbled a thanks and hurried out the door.

‘Grandfather?' said Julius.

‘Yes, young Caesar?'

‘The girl who was here just now?'

‘Which girl?'

One of the many things that Julius found irritating about his grandfather was his strategic coyness.

‘The one with the veil.'