Order of the Black Sun Box Set 9

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Order of the Black Sun Box Set 9 Page 12

by Preston William Child


  They went back up to the cathedral and got out of there as quickly as possible. The old lady greeting people at the entrance way, Barbara, waved to them and wished them a good day. She probably wouldn't have if she knew they had strangled her friend and knocked him out just downstairs. She probably wouldn't like them as much then.

  Their search of the Norwich Cathedral had been a failure. All they'd been able to do was choke out an old man and see some interesting old forks and spoons.

  Hopefully, Purdue and Galen were having better luck.

  Purdue was regretting his choice of company. Touring ancient weapon exhibits with Galen was like having an audio headset in a museum without asking for one. Rather than contemplate the displays for yourself, there was a constant stream of facts being dispensed into Purdue's ears. Things he didn't care about. Things that weren't relevant. Things that were only being said so Galen could show that he knew them. He didn't need to know the proper ways spears were supposed to be held. He didn't need to know what kind of bow was best to use when on horseback.

  None of those other weapons mattered—only the Spear of Destiny. But his real objective was nowhere to be found. Instead he was stuck with the Countless Spears of Unimportant Tangents that Galen was showing him.

  As annoying as it was, he had to admit that Galen's passion for weaponry was palpable and even a bit concerning. He examined every single weapon on display with the bright eyes of a small child. It didn't matter if it was a sword, an arrow, or a musket. They all fascinated the Irishman equally. He was reveling in the violent history around him.

  He didn't seem to be looking for the right spear at all.

  “So, you're going to let me see the real Excalibur when this is all done, Davy? Since apparently mine, which I paid good money for, is a fake.”

  “Depends on if this ever even gets done.”

  Galen let out a horse sound, like Purdue was being ridiculous. “You don't throw as much money as I have at something like this and not get results.”

  “Money can't unearth everything, Galen. It can only look so far and dig so deep.”

  “You're a poet,” Galen said mockingly. “Money always gets the job done if you're using it properly. Not all of us have billions to use. Us simple millionaires have to wield our fortunes wisely, like you would a sword.”

  “It always comes back around to blades and bullets for you, doesn't it? You've ignored every other exhibit in here.”

  Galen scoffed. “Because we're looking for a spear!” I'm not going to look in the history of yarn exhibit for that, am I!?”

  “You haven't changed a bit.”

  “Neither have you, Davy. You still think you know shit about everyone's shit. Well, sorry to say, old friend ... but you don't know shit.”

  “Striking vocabulary, you have.”

  “Aye,” Galen said with a wicked grin. “I'm a walking, talking dictionary.”

  “Limping, you mean.”

  The two of them broke out into laughs. They were like a bickering married couple who stop fighting when one of them trips. As much as they didn't like each other, they'd always shared a similar sense of humor. Whatever shared interests they had back in the day that made them friends, there was still a dim spark of it every now and then.

  They refocused back on the exhibit, looking at spears from all different time periods and ages. From different fallen empires. From all different kinds of materials. Spears that were thin and long that required a group of people to use them. Spears so short that they could hardly be called spears at all.

  “We have a general idea of what kind of spear we're looking for. It can't be too late into the Roman Empire's reign. Late first century at the latest if I had to hazard a guess.”

  “And you can spot the differences?”

  “Of course I can,” Galen said and puffed out his chest. “It's obvious.”

  Maybe it was for weapons expert Galen Fitzgerald, but it was far from obvious for David Purdue. All the spears in that room looked like long poles with pointy ends. That was it. Some were different colors and sizes, he supposed, but he had no idea how to tell where or when they were from.

  “So, what's the story with your lady friend? Dr. Gould.”

  “We're colleagues,” Purdue said.

  “Close colleagues?”

  Purdue knew where this was going, and he wasn't in the mood to start having a heart to heart chat about women with Galen of all people. Galen had been notorious for burning through women after giving them everything their hearts desired. He'd lure them in, seem to be in complete love, and then shatter their hearts and kicked them out to the curb.

  Even just asking about Nina set off just about every alarm in Purdue's head.

  “Whatever you're thinking,” Purdue said. “Don't bother. She's not your type.”

  “Alright, alright,” Galen laughed, raising his hands in surrender. “But is she your type? You find a nice, beautiful, educated woman for yourself?”

  “We're not talking about this,” Purdue said.

  A young woman approached them. “Anything I can help you with, gentlemen?”

  “I don't think so,” Purdue said. “We're just looking around.”

  The young woman clasped her hands together, realizing she might have just made this very awkward. “I just noticed you've been looking at this display for a while. Hoping to find something particular?”

  Purdue really wasn't in the mood to hear someone else talk about the history of spears. Galen was more than enough. An actual guide at the museum would probably be a bit better than Galen ... but still not ideal. “You're very helpful, miss, but—”

  “We are looking for something particular, actually. Something rather rare. The Spear of Destiny.”

  Galen's straightforwardness completely caught Purdue off guard. He turned to him, ready to smack him in the face but Galen looked perfectly comfortable giving this young woman that information. He shrugged at Purdue, like they were already out of options and this was the best course of action.

  “I'm sorry?” she asked with a raised brow. “I don't think I've heard of that. It's definitely not on display here. Here we have—”

  “I see what you have,” Galen said abruptly. “We're looking for something a bit more ... powerful? Divine? How would you describe the spear we're looking for, Davy?”

  “Perfectly normal, and nothing in particular. Please excuse my friend.” Purdue put his arm around Galen and led him aside away from the confused woman. “What is it you're doing?”

  “Trying to find the spear. As quickly as possible.”

  “So, you're just going to blab about what we're doing to the whole museum?” Purdue looked around and noticed a few other people looking over at them. The young woman who worked there had returned to another worker and the two were whispering among themselves, looking over at Purdue and Galen curiously. “What if the Eclipsed are here? What if they notify them?”

  “Now you're just being twitchy,” Galen said. “And if those bastards show themselves again, I'll beat them to death with this crutch. Relax. I'm just trying to stop beating around the bush. Maybe get as many people as we can to help look for it. Especially if it's in the city, maybe someone has seen something we can use.”

  “No,” Purdue said. “We keep this quiet.”

  “I don't see the problem. We could buy this museum and search every inch of it if we really wanted. Once we do that, all of these employees are then our employees, and we can pay them to look for it and keep it hush-hush. Everyone wins. I'll go give them my offer right now.”

  Galen made a move toward the help center but Purdue caught his arm. “I'm not going to let you blow this expedition up just because you have the patience of a baby.”

  Galen made a pouting face that didn't help distinguish him from a toddler. He and Purdue left, leaving behind some onlookers who were no doubt curious about the men who spent an hour looking at spears and then left shortly after speaking to a museum employee.

  It
probably didn't look good, but that didn't stop them from going to the next museum and doing the same thing.

  14

  The Waning Hopes After A Long Day

  The day was unsuccessful. All they accomplished was seeing some of the sights and attractions of Norwich. They weren't any more successful than every other tourist in the city. They regrouped at the Norwich Cathedral—which Galen complained the whole way there about, since the one with the injured leg was being forced to walk—and as they all stood in front of it, Purdue felt a little put out by their lack of finding anything. “Nothing. What a waste.”

  “We don't know that,” Nina said hopefully. “This is a big city. We're just looking in the wrong place. Tomorrow we'll cover more ground, look in other churches. Other museums.”

  “I'm not going into anymore museums with Davy,” Galen said. “Sucks all the fun out of 'em.”

  “You're not the best person to travel through history with either,” Purdue said. “In fact, I'd say you're pretty terrible. Only history you care about is military history.”

  Galen laughed. “That's because it's the only kind that makes any real difference.”

  “You guys did better than us,” Sam said. “Mr. Gun-For-Hire choked our tour guide.”

  “You what?” Galen gasped.

  “I told you,” Purdue said, clearly amused. “You can't take him anywhere without him causing a scene. You're lucky he didn't kill everyone in the church.”

  “No one saw, thank god,” Nina said. “But George really didn't deserve that.”

  “I was helping,” Maddox said. “Don't blame me that all of you aren't willing to go the extra steps to get this job done.”

  “Galen decided to ask one of the museum workers for directions to the Spear of Destiny,” Purdue said. “Made everyone in the place look at us funny.”

  “Everyone's always looking at you funny,” Galen countered. “Because you're a funny looking man, Davy.”

  They all shared what they'd seen but no one was overly thrilled. The recap of the day would have been much better if it ended with someone saying they had found the spear, or at least a clue to where it might possibly be.

  “Haven't slept a wink in days,” Galen said with a yawn. “We should sleep on it. Pick up the search in the morning.”

  No one could really argue with that. It was the best idea Galen had offered the entire journey.

  “I could buy us some nice rooms at—”

  “We'll stay at a motel,” Purdue interrupted. “Far less conspicuous.”

  “Conspicuous? You still on about us being followed? Nobody's coming. That bastard Julian is probably still on Rhodes, trying to glue his tooth back in after you punched his face in.”

  “It's the smartest move,” Sam said. “It may not be five stars or luxurious, but they'll at least have beds. And that's really all I want right now.”

  They all packed into a cab and asked to be brought to the closest motel. The car ride was crammed and smelly and everybody was pretty much sick of speaking to one another. They'd been through the ringer the past few days. Betrayed and captured in Jerusalem. Escaping from Julian Corvus and the Eclipsed in Rhodes. Now having a nice unproductive visit to Norwich.

  They pulled up to an unassuming rundown motel. It wasn't the best accommodation but it would have to do. They needed rest and sleep, but they also needed to keep out of view for any possibility that their former captors were on their trail. Purdue really hoped they’d left them in the dust on Rhodes, but he knew the Order of the Black Sun well enough to know that they were a determined bunch.

  “Think we'll be safe here?” Nina asked.

  “Who knows? The Black Sun has quite a reach. All we can hope is that this Eclipsed branch of theirs is a little less resourceful. And I wouldn't be too hopeful about that.”

  “That guy was scary,” Sam said. “I wouldn't put it past him to just massacre town after town until he finds us. And I don't really like the idea of being responsible for that many deaths.”

  “Will you shut your traps?” Galen exclaimed. “Those bastards are not coming. They'd have no idea where to even find us!”

  It was always a surprise when Galen had a valid point.

  “So, what's next?”

  “We hope that this lead is a bit more helpful than the last ones. Maybe this one will actually get us to the spear, instead of sending us somewhere else. Another step on this endless staircase. I say we check a few more churches and museums tomorrow. If we don't find anything in either of those, we should find where this Roysten Rosewell lived and head there as soon as possible.”

  Galen shook his head. “You forget that you don't call the shots here, Davy. I'm the one that started this search—”

  “Only because Julian Corvus wanted you to!” Purdue wasn't having anymore of Galen's nonsense. It was time for a reality check for the Irishman. “He set the bait when he sent you that scroll. You were just daft enough to take it without question. Stupid enough to think that this was all your brilliant idea when you were just a puppet for the Black Sun. I'm surprised you can't see the strings coming off of you.”

  “You choose your words more carefully,” Galen said.

  “You would have been dead if we hadn't saved your ass. As far as I'm concerned, you're tagging along only because we're letting you.”

  Galen was glowing red and fuming like a little boy who had been scolded by his father. They all braced themselves for one of his swear-filled tantrums that would end up just being him complaining that he never got the respect he deserved.

  “He's right,” Maddox said. “You brought Purdue's team into this because they know what they're doing. So, let them do what they've always done. What they do best.”

  Galen glowered at all of them. Nina thought he might even punch the wall or throw something across the room. He settled for just rolling his eyes and shaking his head some more. He pointed his crutch at Maddox. “I don't pay you to give me advice.”

  “Well, you should,” Maddox said with a shrug.

  Nina tried her best to diffuse the verbal bombs that were primed to explode the entire room. “We all need to get some rest. We've been running non-stop all day. We'll have much clearer heads in the morning and we can actually plan out what we're going to do.”

  Galen grudgingly agreed. He and Maddox retired to the room next door. Separating Galen and Purdue was definitely for the best. Otherwise, they were in for a whole night of back and forth jabs at one another over who was actually in charge.

  Purdue, Sam, and Nina shared their own room consisting of a television, some drawers, and two mattresses. Purdue was initially convinced that sleeping arrangements were obvious, thinking that Nina would be spending the night next to him. When she seemed a bit uncertain, he tried to lay on some charm to convince her. “It's up to you of course but speaking for myself, I would not complain if you wanted to share a bed with me.”

  “Shut up,” Nina said. “I'll fly solo tonight, I think. You two can cuddle up all you want in that bed.”

  Nina might have reconsidered if she knew how hard it was going to be to fall asleep that night. No matter which position she slept in or how many times she buried her head under the pillow, she just couldn't find sleep. Every time she tried, all she could think about was Julian Corvus and those terrifying gray eyes of his. The threats that had passed his lips so nonchalantly, like he was just discussing the weather of the day.

  That man was out there somewhere—and he was angry. They'd outsmarted him. Escaped from his grasp when he had tried so hard to keep them under his thumb. They had probably sunk of all his ambitions of taking over the Order of the Black Sun. His Eclipsed faction would remain exactly that, forever overshadowed by their superiors in that evil little society.

  To do that to someone like him was worrying. He had been scary enough when he was calm. Who knew what he could do when he was upset? Maybe Sam was right and Julian would just slaughter anyone in his way to get to them.

  She tried to
think of better things. How they were closer than ever to finding the Spear of Destiny. How smart Purdue had been in getting them away from Rhodes. How maybe things were going to turn out okay, and in the end, they'd be celebrating their latest find.

  Just when it seemed like she was feeling a little more relaxed, she'd seen Julian's cold gaze and feel a chill shake her body back awake.

  Julian was out there. He was angry. Maybe he was even on his way.

  Nina's fears seemed to be taking physical form—especially when the room's door knob shook violently.

  15

  No Vacancy

  Nina sat up in her bed, listening in the darkness while the knob started turning again. It was the Eclipsed. It had to be. They'd already found them, just like she knew they would. All of her worries were warranted. They should have kept moving, somehow thrown them off their trail.

  Nina chucked her pillow hard at the bed beside her, praying that it hit Purdue or Sam in the face. “Get up!” She said at a loud whisper. “Get up now! There's someone trying to get in!”

  Both men stirred in the dark and Purdue rolled out of bed, reaching for the old spearhead that he had on the bedside table.

  “We all need to head to the bathroom,” Purdue said. “Barricade ourselves inside.”

  They didn't even have a chance to do that. The door was kicked open, breaking the chain that was meant to stop intruders.

  An older man with a graying beard stepped into the room, flanked by two other silhouettes. He held a shotgun in front of him and he slowly aimed its barrel at all three of the room's occupants, looking them over carefully.

 

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