Both Templars stared at him blankly. ‘Well, I’d have never got that,’ Caster admitted.
‘That’s the whole point: no one would have got it except me and a couple of other people. I’ve known David for years ever since the university put on a biotech exhibition in 2006, and we borrowed some exhibits from the museum. I organised that directly with him, and we’ve kept in touch ever since. The world of archaeology is no different to any other. It pays to have as many contacts as possible.’
‘So he must have the second relic, then, but how did he get it?’ Lusic sounded just as excited as Harker felt.
‘It was Archie Dwyer who introduced him to the university. Archie always knew David better than I did, so he must have left the relic with him for me to collect.’ Harker placed the crown of thorns back in his pocket, much to the displeasure of Lusic, who began aggressively tugging at his beard.
‘Well done, Professor. But, seeing as you’ve now figured out the clue, I can’t see any reason why you should keep hold of the crown.’
‘Why?’ Harker suddenly felt revitalised, and his confidence returned with a vengeance. ‘I’m keeping it because your boss entrusted it to my care, and he also made me swear to find the second relic and ensure that neither would fall into the hands of the Magi.’ Harker pulled out his iPhone and tapped the recall button. ‘And I’m going to make sure that’s exactly what happens.’
Caster gestured to the mobile, now pressed against Harker’s ear. ‘And who exactly are you calling?’
‘A friend, his name’s Thomas Lercher. He’s a dean at Cambridge University. The Natural History museum will be closed, but he can arrange special passes for us with security.’
‘Won’t this David Blix be off site once the museum’s shut?’ the lawyer asked.
Harker gave his question a shake of the head. ‘We’ll have to chance that, but, so far, Archie hasn’t left any part of his paper trail to chance, and I’ve no reason to think this occasion will be any different.’
His mobile suddenly crackled into life with a voice echoing from the earpiece.
‘Hello, Dean Lercher speaking.’ The reception was terrible, and the faulty feedback caused Harker to instinctively pull away.
‘Doggie, it’s Alex.’
‘Attics? Attics who?’
‘No, Doggie, it’s Alex.’
‘Alex! Where the hell are you? I’ve been worried sick. The Italian authorities told me you’d been taken to the British Consulate, but when I phoned them, they knew nothing about you. Frankly, they were as helpful as a kick in the teeth, so I …’
‘Harker cut him off, knowing how Doggie could rattle on whenever he was anxious.’
‘Tom, listen. I need a favour, and I need it now.’
Chapter 24
The cold evening air stung in Genges’s lungs as he ushered the remaining members of his hit squad into the dank, dripping drainage outlet that acted as a back entrance to the Rome observatory’s basement. ‘Get yourselves cleaned up,’ he barked, ‘and remain on standby in case you’re needed later.’
Genges slammed shut the side door of the black transit van and followed his masked hit squad through the murky fifteen-metre-long entrance tunnel. This old drainage pipe hadn’t been used in years, and dark, wet patches of moss and spreading cracks proved its age. Up ahead, a door swung open, flooding the entire passage in a bright yellow fluorescent light. A seven-foot-high steel cage surrounded the inner doorway, and two Magi guards, wearing black Kevlar combat suits, each equipped with an MP5 machine gun, stood guard at either side. Once the crew had been identified, one guard swiped his key card across the lock, and with a green flash from an LED light, the cage door popped open.
Genges pushed past without a word and headed along a series of narrow pinewood-panelled corridors towards the war room. There his elder brother would be waiting, no doubt eager for an update. Their assault had gone as planned, catching Brulet and his followers off guard, but to allow Harker and the precious item to slip through their fingers was inexcusable.
He stopped outside the office itself and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. His brother would be livid, but, so long as they had someone on the inside, this Professor Harker wouldn’t be hard to track. He glanced down at his wristwatch and noted the hands at 23.00. Good, they still had time, and his brother would surely be mollified by the news of Brulet’s death.
Genges thumped his fist heavily against the door before heading inside without waiting for an answer. He found Balthasar sitting at his brass-trimmed oval desk, sporting a deeply unhappy grimace and, with his complexion, an unhealthy shade of grey.
‘What happened, Genges? Things did not go as they should have. Explain.’ He pointed to the frayed leather-covered armchair in front of the desk, and Genges dutifully slid on to the seat, its wooden legs creaking in dismay under the weight of his body armour.
‘Brother, the assault went well with three Templars being dispatched.’
The Magi chief relaxed his thick shoulders and settled back deeply into his armchair, one eyebrow raised knowingly. ‘But it wasn’t without loss, Genges. Four valuable warriors have been lost to us.’
The prince swallowed hard under the piercing stare of his older brother.
‘And Harker and the item got away from you, didn’t they?’
The remark caused Genges to swallow nervously. ‘Unfortunately, yes. I see you’ve been in contact with our man on the inside then.’
Lord Balthasar nodded, emitting a weak gasp. He pulled a white handkerchief from his pocket, pressed it to his mouth, and let out a cough, which spattered dark red specks of blood on to its white cotton fabric.
Genges was already making his way solicitously around the table when he saw a rigid finger directing him back to his seat.
‘I’m OK,’ Balthasar croaked as he grabbed for the glass tumbler of iced water standing next to him and took a deep sip, his lips leaving red wisps of blood fusing with the contents like dancing ribbons. He retrieved a silver pillbox from his pocket, shook out two pink-coloured tablets, and wolfed them down.
‘Yes, I received a call from our man. It appears the second relic is in London, and they’re on their way to retrieve it as we speak.’
Genges was already on his feet, tapping at his iPhone before his brother again motioned him back to his seat.
‘No, Brother, I’ve already sent the giant to intercept them. He’s already in the air.’
By his expression, the Magi prince made no effort to hide his displeasure at this news, but he kept quiet. His brother already knew of the misgivings he had about using that brash oaf, but, seeing as he’d just lost the opportunity to bag the crown himself, he was in no position to complain. ‘Very well. I suppose, as long as you trust the giant.’
Balthasar scoffed at the comment. ‘You know I do. You must be mindful of your prejudices, Genges, and not forget your place in all this.’
The younger brother nodded dutifully and pulled an imaginary zipper across his lips.
‘Good. Now tell me of Brulet and his men.’
Genges relished getting the chance to elaborate on the good news. ‘We ambushed the building as planned, and before they knew what was happening, we had ended two of them before driving Brulet into a corner.’
Balthasar was already losing himself in the joy of hearing about his arch-nemesis’s suffering, and the stabbing pain in his lungs momentarily eased.
‘And what then?’
‘We threw in a few frag grenades and collapsed the roof, squashing him like a grapefruit. There wasn’t much left.’
The Magi lord clapped his hands, basking in the warm glow of such a victory. It had been almost five years since Brulet had murdered their father in such a cowardly way that even now recalling the event stirred up a powerful hatred within him. The Templar had received exactly what he had deserved, and to have accomplished his demise on tonight, of all nights, was surely a good omen.
‘And you left nothing at the scene?’
&
nbsp; Genges shook his head. ‘We gathered the bodies of ours and theirs with the exception of Brulet. I doubt that even his dental records would help identify him after a sandwiching like that. We then had the dead incinerated, once the blessing was performed as the code requires. The trail is clean.’
Balthasar dipped his head approvingly. Since the Templars and Magi were intertwined by history, and the discovery of one could lead a trail to the other, bodies from either side were always destroyed to guarantee that both organisations remained a secret from the outside world. It was a code that both sides had vigorously adhered to for hundreds of years.
‘I’m glad to hear it, my brother, because the cardinal was most displeased with our brazenly open attack on the Templars. It is of critical importance that the coming hours are handled with the same shrewdness our organisation so normally observes.’
Genges nodded. ‘Yes, My Lord. So what now?’
His sickly older brother coughed another bloody offering into his handkerchief. ‘Because of the unforeseen attack on Brulet, we must vacate the observatory as soon as possible. The Templars’ hideout is not far from here, and we cannot allow ourselves to become embroiled in any judicial entanglements. I want you to leave for the Vatican immediately and link up with the cardinal. Make sure that preparations are running smoothly for tonight’s summit, and I will meet you there in a few hours.’
‘You’re not coming with me?’
‘Not yet, Brother.’ Balthasar shook his head. ‘I want to oversee the clear-out of this observatory and make sure no trace of its use as a safe house is left behind. I fear some of our men have been getting a little sloppy of late.’ He shook his head in disappointment. ‘And now we wait for the giant to succeed where we have failed and, with that, the rebirth of the world.’ He let out another painful grunt. ‘As well as my own body.’
Chapter 25
‘No bodies? What the hell do you mean no bodies?’ Superintendent Perone shouted in disbelief. ‘Angelo, there’s blood everywhere, for Christ’s sake.’
His young subordinate could only shrug his shoulders. ‘We’ve searched the whole villa, sir. It’s huge, covered in bullet holes, and totally empty.’
Perone moved aside from the library doorway and allowed a couple of firemen to bustle past, each with his own personal fire extinguisher. ‘And what the hell are they doing here? This is a fucking murder enquiry, not arson.’
Detective Angelo Barbosa allowed himself a satisfying smirk as he watched the two fire fighters disappear into the depths of the building. The old man had been furious ever since those two embassy men had turned up and seized his prime suspect, so everyone was now giving the boss a wide birth. Of course, it was particularly difficult to keep out of the way when you were second-in-command.
At only twenty-six, Angelo Barbosa was one of the youngest officers in the Rome jurisdiction to make it to detective. On graduating from the academy, he’d immediately enlisted into the Guardia di Finanza, where he had spent the previous six years as part of a team dedicated to taking down three major families of the Sicilian mafia. During a time of great upheaval within the ranks of organised crime, violence had spilt out on to the streets with a string of high-profile murders, which had outraged the entire country. After that, the police had redoubled their efforts, and a crew of young fresh-faced cops, untainted by corruption, had been recruited to pursue the Sicilians with everything in their Italian arsenal.
Angelo had chased the assignment with all his energy and was eventually chosen because the rival candidate had recently got married, and it had been decided that all crew members should be single. It was considered far better to have a single man who only had to watch his own back and didn’t have the additional worry of a young wife who could easily be threatened.
Six long years of investigation had led to over one hundred arrests and a crippling of the main Mafia clans. Afterwards, Angelo had been given the option to pretty much choose where he was to be assigned next, and the Polizia di Stato division, based at the Questura in Rome, was rated as one of the most respected and incorruptible jurisdictions in the country. It also had a lot to do with the station’s most famous incumbent officer, Superintendent Rino Perone, one of the toughest cops on the force and renowned for being morally untouchable. Just the way Angelo liked it, even if his new boss was also a tremendous pain in the arse.
Perone’s husky voice snatched him from his thoughts. ‘Angelo, you fucking deaf? Why the firemen?’
‘Sorry, sir, but there’s a lot of smouldering plasterwork out the back, near the pantry. Looks like someone used an explosive device of some sort – we’ll know more about that soon. As for bodies, the boys have done a thorough sweep of the property, and there are no stiffs, despite the blood.’
The superintendent let out one of his typical growls as he pulled a Villager cigar from the top pocket of his Armani blazer and jammed it between his teeth. He then lit it with a match and tossed the smoking splinter to the floor, attracting a glare from a passing fireman.
‘Fuck! OK, what else have we got?’
‘There are surveillance cameras mounted all over the property. We checked the DVD storage disks, and they’re all empty so that’s a dead end. But …’
Perone’s frown turned to look of impatience. ‘But what? Tell me you got something for Christ’s sake.’
The young officer shot him a knowing glance. ‘Well, the internal surveillance is a washout but I checked the footage of a CCTV camera on the main road outside the front gates and found this.’ He thrust a black-and-white photograph into the superintendent’s hand and tapped the image of two black transit vans travelling in convoy. ‘The time’s about right, and there was no activity on the road until we got here, so I’d say those are our suspects.’
Perone brought the photo closer to his eyes and peered at the fuzzy licence plate of the lead vehicle. He really needed glasses, as his eyesight was getting worse year on year, but the idea of showing any physical weakness in front of his men was galling. He had considered contact lenses, but the prospect of inserting them in and taking them out every day convinced him otherwise. Anyway, surely, he still had a few years left in him before that would become necessary.
‘Can you blow up a copy of that licence plate?’ Perone grunted.
‘We’ve tried, but it’s too grainy, sir. I’ve got the tech guys checking all the cameras on their departure route, going from road to road, and if the van appears on them, we may be able to track them to their next location.’
Perone passed the surveillance photo back to his lieutenant and gave him a firm slap on the back. ‘Well, what the fuck are you waiting for? Get on to it right away.’
As the young detective headed for the main doorway, clutching the photograph in his hand, Perone took another puff of his cigar, mulling over dozens of unanswered questions – but one was at the top of his list. Who exactly was this Professor Alex Harker? And, more importantly, where the fuck was the officer who was fetching his cappuccino?
Chapter 26
Balthasar tapped the large glass aquarium with his fingertips and admired the two well-fed piranhas that were scouting the outer limits of their tank. The Magi leader loathed having to dispose of these pets that had brought him so much pleasure during his past few months of being locked away inside the observatory, but sneaking two flesh-eating piranhas into the Vatican was not an option. It was a shame to have to destroy them, but he could purchase a new pair. Balthasar smiled to himself, reflecting that there was no better way of instilling fear into one’s subordinates than the threat of losing a finger or two to these ravenous little eating machines. It was a lesson one of his associates had learnt first-hand, as it were, when he was disciplined for failing to track down the priest Vito Malpuso just a few days earlier. The task had then been assigned to Drazia Heldon but not before the red bellies had munched their fill on the unfortunate man’s index finger.
The recollection was interrupted by a knock at the war-room door. ‘Enter.’
Marko Lupis came in and stood to attention. ‘Sir, the safe house is almost clean. Another hour, and no one will know we were ever here.’
‘Good.’ Balthasar gave an approving nod. ‘Once we’re finished, you and Toledo head off to Munich and wait for further instructions. Oh, and make sure these fish are burnt to a crisp.’ He signalled towards the aquarium. ‘Their bellies could still contain traces of DNA – not something I wish for anyone to find.’
Lupis instinctively rubbed his fingers together and winced. ‘Yes, My Lord, I will have them properly disposed of.’
The young Magi officer was already making his way out of the room when the piercing, high-pitched shrill of an electric buzzer reverberated from a grey unit linked directly to the observatory entrance. Both men locked eyes, each thinking the same thought, which preceded a single word: ‘Who?’
Lupis didn’t need his master to bark an order and was already heading through the grey concrete bunker and into the main observatory by the time a second buzz had sounded. On reaching the entrance, he took a moment to compose himself before unlocking it and then pulling open the heavy wooden door to find a rain-soaked man holding a newspaper over his head.
‘Open up, my friend,’ Detective Angelo Barbosa ordered, pushing his way into the observatory’s reception area and wiping the rain from his thick black hair. ‘There’s a bloody downpour out there. I should have brought a mac.’
The young officer had barely taken a step inside before Lupis was already waving his hands in protest.
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