The schoolroom was devoid of life, the round table empty though dust free. Her chair of office was stowed against the back wall. How different from the cacophony that prevailed in this chamber during a meeting of the Concordance.
“We’re going to be leaving for the airport in a little while,” Cassie explained. “But we wanted to be here to... um...” The Pythia shot her companions a furtive look. “To say goodbye,” she finished brightly.
“Smooth.” Erik sounded sarcastic.
Faye’s suspicions were aroused. “What’s going on?” She peered at each of the three faces in turn. They all assumed blank expressions.
“Nothing,” Griffin said a bit too innocently. “Nothing at all. Please step this way.”
The old woman decided not to challenge their strange behavior. She allowed herself to be led to the elevator and down into Vault. When they disembarked, Faye made a move toward the Chatelaine’s office.
“No, not there,” Cassie blurted out.
The Paladin once more gave her a dirty look.
“But I have a meeting with Maddie,” Faye protested.
“Um... Maddie’s not in her office.” Cassie retorted quickly. “She told us to bring you someplace else.”
“I hope she isn’t in the chimney,” Faye protested. “I don’t believe my old legs are up to the challenge of that spiral staircase.”
“No, she’s not in the chimney,” Cassie countered. “There won’t be any stairs, scout’s honor.”
“Very well.” Faye knew something funny was going on but she decided to play along. “Lead on.”
They didn’t turn down the row of desks in the main Vault with its barking dogs, napping cats and squawking parrots. They didn’t head for the Continent rooms which housed the records of all the Arkana’s troves around the globe. In fact they turned their backs entirely on the main chamber with its trickling waterfalls and artificial sky.
The trio guided Faye down the corridor that led to Cassie’s office. The Pythia’s door was ajar and Faye glimpsed the quartz wall panels glowing softly over sheets of falling water but they didn’t stop there either. The little band continued farther on to another door and halted abruptly in front of it.
“Just a second.” Cassie came to stand behind Faye. She put her hands on the old woman’s shoulders and positioned her so she was facing the closed door. Then she placed her hands over Faye’s eyes. “No peeking,” she cautioned.
“What on earth...” the Memory Guardian murmured but didn’t resist.
“OK, guys.”
Faye could hear the door being opened and the flick of a light switch.
Cassie removed her hands. “Surprise!”
Faye blinked. “My goodness. What is this?”
“It’s your new home-away-from-home.” Cassie took her by the hand and drew her into the room. “You like?”
“It was Maddie’s idea,” Erik explained.
“Hannah’s presence at your home has made the farmhouse an inconvenient venue for our group meetings,” Griffin added. “Since the girl still doesn’t know about Erik and me, nor about the scope of the relic hunt, we’ve had to keep our distance. The only logical place to meet with you is here at the Vault. Although you have the reception room upstairs, Maddie thought you might like a space that’s less formal. A place you could call your own.”
Faye smiled. “Well, this certainly feels like home to me.”
The room was outfitted as a cozy parlor circa 1900. A plush purple armchair complete with antimacassar was angled in one corner of the room. It was flanked by a small occasional table. Behind it stood a brass floor lamp with a fringed shade.
Faye’s eyes were drawn to the two windows on the opposite wall. Daylight slanted warmly through lace curtains and left bright squares on the plush oriental carpet. “We’re still underground, aren’t we?” the old woman asked cautiously.
Cassie clapped her hands in delight. “Isn’t it fantastic? Same principle as the ceiling in the Central Archive. It’s set on a timer to mimic sunlight at this time of year but if you want a moonrise, you can have that too.” The Pythia walked over to the wall panel between the windows and twisted a dimmer switch. Immediately, the sun outside set and the floor was bathed in moonlight.
“Remarkable,” Faye murmured.
“In deference to your love of nature,” Griffin observed. “It seemed fitting that your parlor should have windows.”
Cassie readjusted the lighting and sunlight returned.
The old woman shifted her attention to the right of the armchair where a walnut mantel topped with porcelain figurines surrounded a fireplace.
Apparently noticing the direction of Faye’s gave, Cassie said, “It works and you don’t need to haul wood either. Just turn the key on the side. See.” The Pythia bent and turned a metal key protruding from the base of the mantel. Instantly, flames fanned out around the ceramic log.
“Oh my stars!” Faye exclaimed, impressed. “How convenient.”
Griffin drew her attention past the fireplace to a floor to ceiling bookcase sparsely filled with volumes. “We thought it best to leave the selection of reading material up to you,” he remarked.
The side of the room adjoining the bookcase was taken up by a large camelback sofa with mahogany ball and claw feet.
“Look familiar?” Erik grinned. “It’s almost like the one at your house. So’s the armchair.”
“You must have gone to a great deal of trouble to set this up,” Faye murmured. She crossed the thick carpet and ran her hand over the upholstered chair. “My goodness, this fabric feels like my chair at home.”
“It wasn’t easy,” Cassie said. “We had to go to the Merchandise Mart to get the pieces custom-made.”
“The idea of the room was Maddie’s,” Erik informed her. “But Cassie and I did most of the leg work to set it up with a little input from Griffin.”
“You did?” Faye wheeled on him in surprise.
The Paladin shrugged. “It’s not like we had anything exciting to do for the past couple of months.”
“Just hanging around waiting for our Scrivener here to finish his research.” Cassie sighed.
Faye lost no time in making herself at home. She lowered herself into the armchair and gestured for the trio to seat themselves on the sofa. Turning to Griffin, she asked, “Speaking of your research, where do things stand?”
“Aside from digesting everything in the Vault related to the Indian subcontinent, I’ve finally determined a starting point for our search. We’re ready to leave today. I must say the riddle wasn’t particularly helpful in guiding my efforts.”
“Ah, yes. The riddle inscribed on the golden bull.” Faye recollected the small figurine with a spangle of blue stones decorating its neck. “After our initial discussion at Maddie’s house, the verse completely slipped my mind. How does it go again, dear? Please refresh my memory.”
The Scrivener readily obliged, rattling off the lines from memory. “The sands behind, on an island tower she alights to drink, biding til her kindred fill the jaws of the lion.”
“When last we spoke about this, I recall you had a theory that the riddle points to somewhere in central India,” Faye said. “Is that still the case?”
Griffin nodded. “Yes, I’ve been having a devil of a time trying to locate the island tower though. I’m hopeful that we’ll find it in the vicinity of Mumbai.”
“That’s where we’re headed today,” Erik added.
“But we couldn’t leave until we showed you this.” Cassie said. “We wanted to see the look on your face.”
Faye chuckled. “I hope I was sufficiently surprised.”
“Absolutely.” The Pythia grinned with satisfaction.
“And I might add that I am very grateful for all the effort you expended on my behalf,” Faye added, beaming on them all.
Erik ducked his head shyly.
Griffin stood up. “It’s time we were leaving for the airport but now that the rightful owner has taken posses
sion, I move that we christen the room.”
“Let’s call it Faye’s Parlor,” Cassie suggested.
“That’s confusing” Erik objected. “She’s already got a parlor at home.”
“Faye’s Retreat?” Griffin looked at his two teammates for confirmation. They nodded.
“Right then. The motion carries unanimously.” Griffin cleared his throat importantly. “This chamber shall henceforth be known as ‘Faye’s Retreat’.”
“Yes,” the old woman agreed softly, stroking the arm of her chair. “I like the sound of that.”
***
After bidding the trio bon voyage, Faye was about to walk to Maddie’s office when the Chatelaine herself appeared in the doorway of Faye’s Retreat.
“Can I come in?”
“Please do.”
Maddie strode into the center of the room and surveyed the interior. “So what do you think of your new digs?”
“They made it very homey.” Faye smiled. “And thank you for suggesting the idea to them. That was most considerate of you.”
“I had an ulterior motive.” Maddie dismissed the compliment. “Cassie and Erik were in lame duck mode while Griffin was doing research. What with Cassie validating backlogged relics all day and Erik stuck at his desk filing reports, I had a real morale problem on my hands. They needed something to give them a boost so I thought of this.” She took a seat on the couch.
“Did you have a reason for arranging a meeting with me today, dear, or was it just a pretext to lure me to the Vault to view my lovely new haven?”
Maddie grew temporarily distracted as her eyes wandered around the chamber. “What?” She caught herself. “Oh, sorry, Faye. It’s just that the kids wouldn’t let me in here while they were working on this.” In wonderment, she added. “They did a really good job.” Switching gears, she sat forward and fixed her superior with a serious gaze. “The main reason I asked you to come out here today was because I wanted to run an idea past you.”
Faye braced herself for the worst. She remembered the last time Maddie had wanted to run something past her. Sending a spy to infiltrate the Nephilim compound was a suicide mission if ever there was one. “Is it about that spy business again?” she asked warily.
Maddie scowled, taken aback. “No, it’s got nothing to do with that. I haven’t had any luck finding somebody crazy enough to take the assignment. I promised you I wouldn’t assign anyone so I put out the word I was looking for a volunteer. It’s been a month and nobody’s come forward.”
“Apparently, your people have a fondness for remaining alive,” the old woman observed dryly.
The Chatelaine waved her hand airily. “I’ve back-burnered that project for a while anyway. More pressing business.”
Faye looked around distractedly. “I don’t suppose there’s a means to brew a pot of tea here, is there?”
“Way ahead of you. I already ordered a tray from the Vault kitchen. I had a feeling you’d want a pick-me-up.”
At that moment, a tyro walked through the open door bearing a tea tray. He silently placed it on the coffee table in front of Maddie, trembling slightly as he set it down. Giving a frightened nod, he scuttled out the door.
Faye chuckled at his behavior. “Maddie, dear, I’m afraid the tyros have amplified your reputation for fierceness ever since that war club incident.”
The Chatelaine shrugged matter-of-factly as she set about pouring tea. “Fine with me. At least they’re too scared to pester me every five minutes now.” She handed Faye a cup. “For future reference, the kitchen will prepare anything you want. Just pick up the phone.” She tilted her head, indicating the phone on the table next to Faye’s chair.
“I feel like a queen.” The Memory Guardian chuckled as she took a sip of tea. “Well, if it wasn’t about the spy mission then what was it you wanted to see me about, dear?”
“A trail of breadcrumbs,” the Chatelaine said enigmatically, spooning sugar into her cup and stirring it.
“Come again?”
“I want to find a way to keep Leroy Hunt out of our hair without making him suspicious. So far, I haven’t had to take action because luck’s been on our side. Right after the Africa trip, that lunkhead got into a bar fight and he’s been laid up ever since. I just received some intel that he’s back on his feet which means it won’t be long before Metcalf sets him after Hannah again.”
“Aren’t you at all concerned that he and Daniel might leave immediately for India?” Faye countered.
The Chatelaine shook her head. “Nope. I’ve got somebody permanently assigned to trailing Daniel. So far, he’s done nothing but catch up on his reading at the library. He’s been seen in research departments that aren’t remotely connected to the relic hunt. If I had to hazard a guess, I’d say he’s dragging his feet about cracking the next clue. It could be a month or more before he’ll be ready to hit the road.”
“Then I suppose our team has the luxury of some lead time for a change,” the old woman observed.
“They do,” Maddie agreed guardedly. “But that still leaves Hunt with free time on his hands. Free time that he’s going to use to track down Hannah.”
“Didn’t you destroy Hunt’s chances of finding her after you emptied the antique shop?”
Maddie sighed ruefully. “I might have been a little too efficient there. It didn’t occur to me til later that if I don’t give him something to chase he’s going to stumble around and maybe accidentally uncover some real information about where our little fugitive is hiding.”
“Good heavens!” Faye exclaimed. “The child is beginning her first year in a public school. Being out in the world for several hours each day, she’s more vulnerable than ever.”
“That’s the reason for my trail of breadcrumbs.”
Faye regarded the Chatelaine curiously but said nothing. She drank her tea, waiting for an explanation.
Maddie put down her cup and leaned back on the couch. “I want to plant some false clues that will send Hunt on a wild goose chase and get him out of the way for a while.”
“And just how do you plan to go about it?”
“I’ll start with the antique shop. It’s where he left off his search so I’m pretty sure that’s where he’ll pick it up again. Maybe this time he’ll find something that he overlooked before.”
Faye paused to consider Maddie’s plan. “You do realize you could permanently stop his search if you were to fake Hannah’s death.”
“I already thought of that.” The Chatelaine’s tone was rueful. “The problem is, if he doesn’t have Hannah to track, he’ll have more time to focus on the relic quest. I want him distracted and physically out of the way where he can’t muck up the works either for Hannah or for our field team.”
“I think we should still consider falsifying Hannah’s demise at some point,” the Memory Guardian demurred.
Maddie pondered the idea as she poured herself a second cup of tea. “Agreed. Once we’ve got the Sage Stone safely in the Vault and this whole business is wrapped up, we can arrange Hannah’s swan song. In the meantime...” she trailed off.
Faye raised her cup in a mock toast. “To breadcrumbs. I wish you great success in your endeavors.”
Maddie raised her cup. “To breadcrumbs. A whole loaf of them.”
Chapter 6—Good For What Ales You
Daniel was poring over a book in the public library when he felt a gentle tap on his shoulder. He wheeled about in alarm then relaxed immediately at the sight of Chris’s smiling face.
“Hey there, bookworm,” the librarian said playfully. “You really got lost in whatever you’re reading. You didn’t even hear me get off the elevator.”
Daniel shut the thick volume. “It’s a survey of the Buddhist religion meant for someone like me who has no prior knowledge of the topic.”
The Scion felt a twinge of guilt that he wasn’t actively working on the clue to the next relic but he knew he had the luxury of time on his side. Because the golden bull and its rid
dle were in his possession, the trio of thieves had to wait for him to make the first move. He also knew his father had gotten used to lengthy stints of research before each artifact recovery. Daniel calculated that he had at least two months to squander on other pursuits before the Diviner began to nag him for results.
In consequence, the Scion had decided to use this peaceful interval to further his education about the strange world of the Fallen. He wanted to know everything about their history, religion, politics, and culture. The fact that his best friend was a research librarian at the main branch of the Chicago Public Library made his pursuit of knowledge all that much easier. Chris knew exactly where to find the information Daniel was seeking.
The two men had fallen into a comfortable pattern. Each morning, Daniel would tell Chris what subject he wanted to study that day and the research librarian would guide him to the right section of the library. Then they would meet for lunch at which Daniel usually badgered Chris with questions prompted by his studies.
All of Daniel’s cares fell away during the hours he spent among the books. He could forget the relic quest. He could even forget the domestic drama at home. His third wife Annabeth was nearing her delivery date. She would soon have another child and an additional reason to lord it over his other wives. Daniel sighed at the thought of the future outrages she was likely to commit. He suppressed the thought and transferred his attention back to Chris who stood leaning over his desk.
The librarian glanced around the empty reading room. “It looks like today’s topic isn’t very popular with scholars. You’ve got the place to yourself. I came to tell you that it’s lunchtime if you can tear yourself away from Buddha for an hour.”
Daniel’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. “Lunchtime? Already?” He checked his watch. “But that means I’ve been reading for—”
“Three solid hours,” the librarian completed his sentence. “You need a break.”
Into The Jaws Of The Lion (The Arkana Archaeology Mystery Series Book 5) Page 3