Icefall (Dane Maddock Adventures) (5 page)

Privately, Niklas thought they should have taken the skulls with them in the first place, but the scarred man
’
s rage had been so overwhelming that he had refused to even look at them, and neither Niklas nor Ulrich w
as about to argue with him
. At least he had changed his mind. At worst, they would have something to show their superiors.

They slipped back inside the cathedral, the warm air a welcome after the chilly winter breeze.
Niklas
moved silently, more out of habit than necessity. It was after h
ours and they had dispatched
the few living men inside the Kölner Dom. There was no danger.

They rounded the corner of the transept, turned toward the nave, and froze. A man sat on the floor alongside the dead priests. His face was buried in his hands and he was speaking softly, the rhythm of his words indicating prayer.

The American held a finger to his lips. He motioned for Ulrich to keep watch at the main entrance and for Niklas to follow him. He moved like a shadow across the floor, impressive considering his bulk and awkward gait. He was on the praying man in an instant,
wrapping his thick arm
around the man
’
s throat like a python squeezing its prey, and lifting him up off the ground. The man kicked, flailed, and made squelching noises, but froze when the American spoke.

“
You answer my questions, you might live.
”
 

That was surely a lie, but it wasn
’
t Niklas
’
s
problem
.

“
You try anything at all and you die. Painfully. Understand?
”

The man nodded. He
kept his
eyes squeezed shut, as if he
could deny what was happening.

The American sat him down and the man dropped to his knees. He was shaking so hard he could barely remain upright.

“
Tell me what you know.
”

“
I... I know nothing. I come here to study...
”

Snap!
The American broke the man
’
s little finger
eliciting a shriek of agony
.

“
Shut up and listen.
”
His tone was enough to cut off their prisoner
’
s screams.
“
I can tell when you
’
re lying. I can tell when you leave things out. And I... don
’
t... care... how much I hurt you. I
’
ll cut your eyeballs out and eat a damn Big Mac while I do it. You got me?
”

Niklas
’
s limited knowledge of American cuisine did not include
‘
damn Big Mac
’
but the words seemed to do the job. He saw the paltry bit of resistance drain from the man as his shoulders sagged and his chin fell to his chest.

Torture was something only an exceptional person could endure for
any length of time. He had fac
ed his share as part of his training prior to induction into the Heilig Herrschaft. Maintaining one
’
s focus on the Most Holy was central to the denial of pain. Academics like the man who cowered before them usually broke quickly, for they had faith in nothing.

“
Tell me everything.
”

The prisoner nodded vigorously and launched into an explanation, his words coming in short, disjointed bursts, as if each phrase was trying to jostle the others out of the way so it could be heard first.

“
One priest was not dead. He made no sense. He said he had a secret. Mailänder Madonna. Dreihasenbild. He made no sense.
”

“
That can
’
t be everything.
”
The American reached for the knife at his waist, but the prisoner kept talking.

“
He tried to say something else, but he died. All he said was
‘
ewige
’
and then he died.
”
The prisoner stiffened as if waiting for something to happen. Indeed,
Niklas
expected the American to kill the man soon, if not now.
“
It is true. I swear it!
”
The man
’
s eyes remained firmly shut. This might be a bad dream, but it was one from which he would not wake.

The American looked around and froze.

“
Where are the skulls?
”
His voice was velvet soft, and it sent frozen fingers like the touch of a spirit down
Niklas
’
s spine.

The man hesitated and, for a moment,
Niklas
thought the fellow might try to hold something back, but courage apparently failed him.

“
The others took them. I was giving them a tour, and they took the skulls.
”

“
Did they hear the
priest
’
s
words?
”
Heat rose in the American
’
s voice.

“
Yes. They hear everything. Then they took the skulls and left. I stayed here to wait for die Polizei.
”

So the authorities were on their way. That changed things.
Niklas
looked around as if uniformed men lurked in the shadows.

“
I want names, and fast
.
”

“
I do not know them all. They introduced themselves quickly and then we saw the priests.
”
The man was
shaking;
clearly fearing this lack of knowledge would cost him his life.
“
One man was a red Indian. A big man, almost two meters tall. There was a woman, also a red Indian.  I do not remember their names. And there was another man and woman.
”

“
You
’
d better come up with at least one name or the remainder of your very short life will be filled with pain.
”

“
Verzeih mir,
”
the man whispered.
Forgive me.
“
Jade Ihara. She was a colleague...
”

“
Jade Ihara the archaeologist?
”

“
Ja.
”
The man nodded, his body quaking.

“
They are here!
”
Ulrich called.
“
They did not use their sirens. We have no time.
”

The American let out roar of rage and frustration
and clubbed the prisoner across the
temple, knocking him unconscious.

The three men dashed back to the transept and slipped outside, past the treasury, and across the street. Ten minutes later they were in their vehicle, driving along the Rhine. The American sat in the passenger side, muttering to himself.
Niklas
finally broke the silence.

“
This Jade Ihara, you know her?
”
He bit his lip, waiting for the explosion, but it did not come.

“
Oh yes. I know her well, and if I don
’
t miss my guess, I know the men she
’
s with. But they think I
’
m dead.
”

“
You have got to be kidding me.
”
Angel
’
s tone was as flat as her stare as she stepped back and regarded at the closed door.
“
I thought you guys were winding me up when you told me about your crazy adventures.
”

“
I wish.
”
Dane shone his light on the door and ran his fingers along its surface, but felt no switch or lever.
“
The good news is, there
’
s always a way out.
”

“
How can you be sure?
”
Angel didn
’
t sound doubtful
–
only curious.

“
You see any remains in here? Obviously, everyone who came in here left again. We just need to figure out how.
”
He continued to search.
“
Let
’
s start by looking for either the sign of the three hares or the wise virgins. This is a pagan temple, so I think the hares are more likely.
”

They spread out and continued the search. It wasn
’
t long before Jade called everyone over to the Bacchus frieze.

“
I found the hares!
”
She shone her light over a bunch of grapes.

Dane and the others circled around behind her and looked where she indicated. He frowned.

“
I don
’
t see anything but grapes.
”

“
You won
’
t at first. Step back and squint.
”
Jade turned and flashed a bright smile.
“
Tilt your head if you have to.
”

They must have made an odd-looking trio, the three of them leaning to and fro, looking from different angles, trying to see what Jade saw. She moved the side and shone her light across the carving, casting it in long shadows.

“
There it is!
”
Bones
’
voice was triumphant.
“
It
’
s like one of those weird posters where you have to let your vision go all fuzzy before you can see it.
”

Almost as soon as Bones had spoken, Dane saw it
too
. It wasn
’
t quite a stereogram, but some of the grapes were raised far above the others, and when seen in the proper light,
the image swam into focus, forming
a shape that resembled the three hares.

“
Give it a push.
”
Dane held his breath as Jade pressed her palm to the carving. He saw no seam that would indicate that the hare sign was anything other than a clever artistic detail, but after a moment, Jade
’
s hand slowly
moved forward as the hares slid
into the wall. Something snapped into place and the wall sank slowly into the floor, revealing an upward-sloping passageway, the twin of the one that had brought them here.

The
way was long and steep, but uneventful.
They finally came to a blank wall. The ceiling here was low, and even Jade had to duck to avoid banging her head. Dane shone his light on the ceiling. There were no hares or wise virgins here, only two handholds set in a square stone
as wide as his shoulders
. He reached for it
and
hesitated. What, or who, would they find on the other side?

“
Do you think we
’
re back at the cathedral?
”
Angel asked.

“
No. This tunnel was almost a straight shot moving away from the cathedral. I think we
’
re closer to the river.
”
The air was cooler hear and, he thought, just a touch more humid.

“
Does it really matter?
”
Bones stared up at the trapdoor as he spoke.
“
It
’
s not like there
’
s anywhere else to go.
”

“
True.
”
Dane nodded.
“
Tell you what. If we wind up in the middle of someone
’
s living room, you and Angel start talking in Cherokee and Jade can chime in with Japanese. Act confused and get the hell out of there.
”

“
What about you?
”
Bones eyed him, an amused smile on his lips.
“
What other language do you speak, Maddock?
”

Dane grinned. He knew a smattering of German and French, and enough Spanish to order drinks and a meal and to ask for directions to the bathroom, but none of those would help.
“
Pig Latin.
”