The Nostradamus Scrolls

by Preston William Child

  Purdue's head was still throbbing, and he still felt off-balance, but that might have been just what he needed. His mind was too exhausted to bother with some clever lie or any other bit of deception.

  “What does it look like we're doing? We're getting the hell out of this horrible place. Don't want to stay here any longer than we have to, aye? And we don't have to anymore.”

  “What are you talking about?” The man growled. “We are under orders not to let you leave, not until you help us find the Nostradamus scrolls.”

  “We did find the scrolls,” Purdue said bluntly. “I burned them myself, watched them go up in flames.”

  “No you didn't,” the man snickered. “Turn around and keep looking. Get to it, and maybe I won't tell her about this piss-poor escape attempt.”

  “Go on and tell her,” Purdue said. “I doubt she will have much of a response. The Old Lady probably won't even hear you.”

  “What? What are you saying?” the man asked, looking a little nervous now.

  “I am saying that the Old Lady croaked, right after we found the scrolls. You are welcome to go check on her yourself, but it would be a waste of time, and it's such a long way down.”

  There was a mixture of confusion, disbelief, and anger brewing on all of those many faces. Purdue could see the loyalty that the Old Lady had from these people, and he just wished that it wasn't manifesting in such a potentially hostile way. There were far too many of them to fight against if it came to that.

  “That is...that is not possible.”

  “Why is it so hard to believe?” Purdue asked. “Because the Old Lady knew everything that was going to happen in the future? That is what you said to me when I was taking off in that plane, aye? Remember that? It was a scary thought, I'll give you that, but it wasn't entirely accurate. The Old Lady had ways of seeing what things were coming, but it wasn't a complete picture. It never was. It was only ever fragments. She was very good friends with a real seer, Mama May, but Mama May's visions weren't always true or guaranteed. She was helpful—she even helped me once or twice—but her warnings always came with some interpretation. So that was one way that the Old Lady knew about the future. She was just good at using those vague prophecies to her advantage. Then she had some pages from the lost scrolls of Nostradamus, but again, it wasn't complete. That's why she has you lot and me digging around all of these skulls down here. She needed the rest of the writings to get an actual clear view of the future.”

  His audience still looked ready to tear him limb from limb, but they also looked surprisingly engaged with what he was saying too. Considering his words seemed to be keeping their retribution at bay for now. He dared to continue.

  “Aye, that old bat knew some things, but she didn't know it all. She only made you think she did through fear and intimidation. And no offense, but you lot fell for it. She wasn't omnipotent or all-seeing. If she were, she would have seen that bullet coming.”

  They still looked like they were itching to hurt him, Nina, and Sam. They no doubt wanted to despite Purdue's attempt to offer explanations and reasons. It was hard to convince them that they would be unemployed now that their boss was dead.

  The one Purdue was already familiar with spoke again. “You killed her?”

  “Not me.”

  The man eyed Nina and Sam venomously. “One of your friends then.”

  “No,” Purdue said honestly. “The one who did it was far from my friend. I did bring him, though. His name is Julian Corvus. I didn't want him getting the scrolls either so I burned them as soon as I could after he killed the Old Lady and made his intentions clear.”

  They all looked sincerely sad abut the Old Lady's death, which surprised Purdue. He expected her leadership to have inspired nothing but fear and servitude. Maybe this was some heightened case of Stockholm Syndrome, or maybe they actually cared.

  “You all...you are upset by this, aren't you?”

  “Of course we are,” the man said. “She only forced a few people to work with her. Most of us did so by choice. We had a real reason to live helping her. Things we did suddenly had meaning once we joined her. Agatha gave us purpose.”

  Agatha. That was the first time Purdue heard the real name of the Old Lady. Almost immediately, the actual name made her seem like more of a person than a monster. She may have done terrible things, but this made it seem like she was human after all.

  “We were building a real future. She saw it so clearly...”

  “And did that future include us being dead?”

  The man nodded. “It did.”

  “And how about now?” Purdue asked. “Given the circumstances, is there much point in killing us now?” He nudged Remy's body hanging over Sam. “There has been enough death today, and there's no prize to even be won anymore. The lost scrolls of Nostradamus are long gone. This whole war we've been playing at is...the Order of the Black Sun against all of you...it's over as far as I can tell. Unless you want to keep dragging it out until we're all dead.”

  They all looked at one another, and there were even some whispers. After a long moment, the group in front of them stepped aside, clearing a path through the tunnel. Purdue almost couldn't believe his eyes, but he was sure to march right through the opening toward the visitors' portion of the catacombs where things wouldn't be quite so dreadful, damp, and dark.

  Maybe the threat of the Old Lady—Agatha—really was over. Unfortunately, he could no longer say the same thing about the renewed threat of Julian Corvus.

  19

  THE RISEN

  Despite losing to Julian, Purdue was so happy to be out of the catacombs. He sucked in a great breath of air and was glad it didn't taste like the dry, musty air that filled those old tunnels. It felt like life up here, instead of just inhaling death. He thought he would never get to experience that ever again after being that far below the earth. He hoped that he never had to go underground ever again. Even driving through a tunnel would be more difficult from now on. And he would probably be investing in some sort of night-light soon so he wouldn't have to sleep in the dark.

  Purdue looked at the city of Paris glowing in the night. The Eiffel Tower rose high above them. It was a quiet night, peaceful, and no one up here had any idea of the craziness that had just happened beneath them. They would never know about the Old Lady, who had pulled so many strings in the world, dying below their feet. They would never know that the lost works of Michel de Nostradame were set ablaze and burned out of existence in those tunnels below.

  The Old Lady was gone. She felt like a phantom threat that had been looming over Purdue and the Order of the Black Sun for so long, but now they were free of her. The invisible enemy that had plagued Purdue's dreams and become an obsession had been destroyed by a much more visible and known enemy. On one hand, maybe he should have thanked Julian Corvus for ridding the world of someone like the Old Lady, but on the other hand, she might have been the lesser threat in comparison to Julian. She seemed too powerful and untouchable, but after seeing her body laying there in a heap, he saw that the Old Lady wasn't the immortal one—Julian was.

  “What now?” Nina asked.

  “This has been a real mess,” Purdue said. “We need to start cleaning it up.”

  “Agreed,” Sam said. “But where are we supposed to start?”

  The Third Triumvirate made it out of the catacombs. They didn't know who else had, and they didn't care. They had no real loyalty to that old lady, her pet detective, or any of her underlings. They weren't part of their group, and they never had been. It was just a matter of convenience, and now it wasn't so convenient anymore. The Old Lady kept them out of prison, and they appreciated that, so they tried to help her out...but now they had. That debt was settled.

  They were all just happy to be back above the surface of the earth, not surrounded by rocks and bones. They took off their masks to better blend in with the rest of the outside world and started making their way through Paris.

  “Where are we going?”
Mr. Commodus boomed, towering over the others.

  “Who knows?” Mr. Nero replied. “We could go wherever we want now. I didn't think we would ever be able to do that again.”

  “We should kill her,” Miss Caligula said, still fuming about their run-in with Nina Gould. “That's twice now that she's made us look like fools. How are we ever supposed to achieve our goals if we can't even get rid of one person that's in our way?”

  “We will get retribution for this,” Mr. Nero said. “We just shouldn't right now. Things are too crazy down there. Let's let things settled, see who comes out of there alive. Maybe it will be Dr. Gould and David Purdue, or maybe it will be the Old Lady and that detective. Either way...we should get out of here and just wait to see what happens.”

  There was a sound behind them, and all three of them turned around.

  Inspector Amaro appeared, looking just as filthy as the three of them did—and just as defeated. He wasn't looking so confident and all-knowing anymore, but he still came up to them with that same awkwardness that he always had, like he wasn't sure how he should be carrying his posture.

  “A beautiful night in Paris, isn't it?”

  Miss Caligula considered just killing him on the spot. Dr. Nina Gould might have beaten them initially, but Inspector Amaro was the one who not only arrested them but then forced them to work for the Old Lady. They had practically become slaves for her, just tools for her to use however she pleased. Inspector Amaro had caused the Third Triumvirate enough damage to warrant some kind of special punishment too. Maybe that was exactly what the three of them needed to feel better about themselves after yet another defeat by Nina Gould.

  “What do you want?” Miss Caligula hissed. “You are stupid to show your face in front of us.”

  “Perhaps I am, though I've never really thought of myself as stupid,” Inspector Amaro said. “No, it is not stupidity. It is just that I have suddenly, miraculously, found myself without my purpose. As I told you all before, upholding the law is my career, but Agatha gave me something even more important to work for. That is gone. I know your little trio understands that...losing one's way and sense of meaning. The same thing happened to your glorious Third Triumvirate.”

  “Only because you helped take it away,” Miss Caligula said. “It hurts, doesn't it? I would be glad to relieve you of that pain if you wish.”

  Inspector Amaro let out a nervous laugh. “I am sure that I am not one of your favorite people at the moment, and I understand why, believe me, I do. Still, there must be something that I can do to make up for everything that has happened. Things could go very differently for all of us now that we are in the same boat.”

  “We're in the same boat?” Mr. Commodus let out a belly laugh. “That is strange. We must have walked up the wrong gangplank and boarded the wrong boat.”

  “Is pretending like we are the same the only reason you have for us not killing you right now?” Miss Caligula teased. “That is a weak argument to make. Very, very weak.”

  “It's not just that, no,” Inspector Amaro said. “I'm not pretending. I just know talent when I see it. I know potential when I see it, and you three have potential, especially now that you are out from under Agatha's thumb.”

  “And out from under yours,” Mr. Nero added. “And I don't think any of us want to be put there ever again.”

  “No,” Mr. Commodus growled.

  “Very understandable, yes, very understandable,” Inspector Amaro mused. “I am in no way suggesting anything of the sort, no, what I am suggesting is that since I no longer can help the 'old lady' achieve her goals, that I instead, as an alternative, help you achieve yours.”

  The three all looked at one another curiously, silently taking a vote on whether to hear him out or to just rip him apart right then and there. Amaro was weaving his fingers together nervously. It had been a trying, violent day for all of them, and more violence could easily be on the way. It was especially hard to read what kind of decision they were making when two of the three were still wearing masks, and Mr. Nero had a relatively passive face without one.

  Miss Caligula craned her head, her long hair hanging as she turned her attention to Inspector Amaro. “And how exactly do you intend to help us achieve our goals? You seemed very intent on stopping us back in Rome. You didn't believe in our cause then.”

  “No, I didn't,” Inspector Amaro said bluntly. “But I have seen what you are capable of firsthand. I have seen the passion that you fight with, even now. My fate is completely in your hands, but I want to remind you of something. I am from Rome, just like the rest of you. My bloodline also goes back a long way in history, perhaps even longer than yours. As for what I can do to help you...have you forgotten the kinds of resources I have? The connections I have made from my time working with Agatha? I assure you, my reach is far, almost as far as hers was. Now that she is dead, my reach might even extend further than hers ever did now. If you allow me to fight for your cause, to join the Third Triumvirate, you would be more powerful than ever. And the more power you have, the better your chance is to restore our homeland to the glory it used to enjoy. That's what you want, isn't it? What you really want? The dream that I helped take from you...I am offering it back to you. I should never have taken it to begin with. Let me make it right. From one Roman to another.”

  “So you want to join us?” Mr. Commodus bellowed like it was the funniest joke he had ever heard. “You? I could swat you like a fly now that you don't have us in handcuffs, and now that you don't have that old bitch helping you.”

  “As crass as he is, Mr. Commodus is right,” Mr. Nero said. “What do you expect to happen? We have you sign some papers and put you on payroll? Or perhaps you expect to take a new name and to be given one of our masks?”

  Inspector Amaro gave a crooked smile. “I would have to choose an emperor, wouldn't I? Well...Mr. Augustus has a nice ring to it, I suppose.”

  Mr. Nero wasn't amused by the joke, and Mr. Commodus looked ready to stomp Inspector Amaro into the dirt. Miss Caligula, on the other hand, wasn't so quick to cast aside the idea that Amaro was presenting.

  “Perhaps.” Mr. Nero and Mr. Commodus turned to her in surprise, and even Inspector Amaro looked baffled by the word. “You may be of some use to us, after all. But we will have to see how committed you are to our cause. Besides, the Third Triumvirate comprises of three people. A fourth might be too crowded.”

  Amaro shrugged. “Or might be exactly what you need.”

  Miss Caligula said the same word again. “Perhaps.”

  20

  LOST TROPHIES

  Purdue had to go back to New Orleans. After everything that happened, he had to check on Jean-Luc Gerard just to make sure everything was okay. All he could was hope that Jean had been able to come up with a reasonable alibi for Mama May's demise, and he also hoped that Jean had forgiven him for bringing all of this craziness back into his life, but he wasn't going to hold his breath about that one.

  Purdue stepped up to the book shop's door. A closed sign was hanging through the window, and Purdue peered inside. He could see Jean walking around the shop, putting books up on the shelves. He had probably received a new delivery of inventory and was getting things set up for tomorrow. Purdue contemplated just leaving a note or giving him a call later instead. He probably wasn't in the mood for any late-night visitors, but in the end, this had to be settled now, not later.

  Purdue tapped on the door and he saw Jean look over. He didn't look very pleased to see him but he came over and opened up the door. As Purdue stepped through, he heard the little bell ring above the doorway. Jean folded his arms. He very clearly wasn't in a good mood; things hadn't changed since Purdue left him with a dead body.

  “What do you want, Purdue?” Jean said. “I told you to get out of my shop, but here you are anyway. What can I do for you? Have any more acquaintances of mine that you want to stab in here? There's a bakery next door or a hotel across the street. You can grab one of them and bring them on over if
you want. Better now than later, I guess, since I just finished scrubbing all of Mama May's blood off the floor before you got here.”

  “Aye, I'm not going to say that I don't deserve any of your spite,” Purdue said, coming in the store a few steps more. “I know that I shouldn't have brought all of this shit back to you, and I know I shouldn't have even questioned if you would betray me...I just needed to know for sure. I didn't know that Mama May was going to try and kill me right in front of you.” He was very careful with his words, trying to emphasize the fact that he was simply defending himself when the violence happened. “I didn't know any of that was going to go down that way, eh?”

  “Of course you didn't,” Jean said with a shrug. “It's not like you can see the future.”

  “No,” Purdue said. “I can't. I'm not Mama May, and I'm not goddamn Nostradamus. I didn't intend for any of that to happen here. I shouldn't have involved you. What I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry for all of that. You got out and you wanted to keep away from the Order of the Black Sun. I understood that and I respect it...but I should have remembered that when I showed up asking you questions. Everything was just confusing at the time, and I didn't know what to think.”

  “A simple phone call would have sufficed,” Jean said. “Or a text, an e-mail, hell you could have sent me a letter in the mail and that would have been more than enough for me to respond to your questions. I would have. You didn't need to come strolling in here to turn my life upside down again. Like you said, I'm out of all of that. I don't want anything to do with secret societies, immortal people, or Mayan temples that can teleport across the planet. I don't want any of it. I just want to be here, in my store, with the books and knowledge that I have studied my whole life. This is my place, an escape from all of the rest of the crazy world out there.”