The Atlantis Keystone (29 page)

“Let’s try the British Library website then and see if we can find the reference there.” Erik typed in the numbers in the library catalogue search engine and clicked search. Nothing.

“I think we might have more luck searching in person. Come on, it’s not far from here!”

U
nlike Erik, Emma was very familiar with the modern building near Kings Cross which housed a large proportion of the British Library collection. Although the building from the outside looked like any other contemporary construction, she explained to him that it was the largest public building erected in the UK in the 20th century and that the basements extended to a depth of 24.5 metres, housing millions of items. Emma, as a university student, luckily had the required Reader Pass to be able to gain access to the reading rooms and collections. The library was of significant importance. It housed treasures such as the Magna Carta, Leonardo da Vinci’s Notebook and the Gutenberg Bible. For this reason, security was key and it sometimes appeared to be more difficult to borrow a book there than to break into the Bank of England.

“Can I help you?” the librarian in the reception enquired with a friendly tone.

“Yes, we’re looking for a particular reference and were wondering how we would go about finding it: 2004.a.24452.” To their relief she didn’t ask any questions but immediately put the number into her computer noting:

“I see, you are looking for
‘En las Cortes de Ca´diz’,
by Alfonso Manuel Rodríguez.” Erik was taken aback and bewildered by this.

Emma reacted quickly, keeping her cool and answered: “Yep, that’s the one!”

“You would need to take the lift through that gate up to the second floor. You can ask one of the attendants there to collect it for you.”

They thanked her and went off to discuss their next move.

“What does the title mean?” Erik asked. “I don’t speak Spanish unfortunately. All I got was ‘Cadiz’.”

“It means something like
‘In the parliament of Cadiz
by
‘Alfonso Manuel
Rodriguez’.”

“What on earth was Paul thinking when he chose that book?”

“Well, the only part of the message which makes any sense is the reference to Cadiz.”

“Yes, of course it could simply be a clue to where Paul is hiding. His yacht was found abandoned in Southern Spain, very near Cadiz.”

“Perhaps. That’s certainly a thought. Maybe that’s it. He was simply trying to reveal where he is. A professor lost in the parliament of Cadiz… Perhaps there’s no secret or hidden message…. This could be the end of the trail,” Emma said sarcastically.

“Well, there’s only one way to find out – to look in the book and see if there’s anything more to it.”

Erik, who didn’t have a Reader Pass, had to stay downstairs whilst Emma ventured up the lift in search of the strange Spanish book which Paul had led them to. He wished her good luck and saw her disappear through the lift doors, blowing him a kiss. Erik laughed and blew her a kiss back but she had already gone and didn’t see it. He casually diverted his hand to his hair mid kiss. He wasn’t sure what she had meant by the gesture but he suspected that it meant nothing more than friendship. She clearly still had feelings for Paul and he didn’t let himself think about what would happen in a possible reunion between them. It would be complicated but he was prepared to continue his quest to win her over. As for the message, he had no idea what any of it meant. The trail Paul had left was becoming more obscure by the hour! Could he have hidden or communicated something in that Spanish book. Could he have deciphered or at least made progress at deciphering Linear A and left his workings for Emma to find? Or was this, as they had discussed, the end of the trail, simply leading them to Cadiz to where Paul was hiding?

▪ ▪ ▪

Erik had been waiting nearly two hours and there was still no sign of Emma. He started to get worried though he knew that rationally there was probably very little that could happen to her in a library. He dialled her mobile number for the fifth time but again it went straight to voicemail. He suspected that there was no coverage where she was or that she had been required to turn her phone off. Unable to sit and wait any longer, he walked up to the reception desk.

“I was wondering whether it would be possible to gain access to the reading rooms today please.”

“Yes, certainly. Please go through there to complete our PC based application form. It is there on the upper ground floor,” she said pointing at some stairs. He had just started to walk in the direction of the stairs when she shouted after him: “I assume you have two forms of identification bearing proof of your signature and home address?” He walked back.

“I do have two forms of identification, my driving licence and my passport but I do not have proof of my address unfortunately.”

“Then I’m afraid you would need to come back another day.”

Erik waived his arms in frustration. “I’m sorry but my friend is up there looking for a book and she’s been away for nearly two hours. I’m getting worried something may have happened to her.”

“Well, I wouldn’t worry too much. Not all documents are available on open shelves in the reading rooms. Actually most items are kept in storage and it normally takes about seventy minutes to deliver books from the storage areas downstairs to the reading rooms.” Erik looked at his watch. She continued: “And even then, after your friend has had the book delivered, she will not be able to take it with her. It’s not possible to borrow books from any of our reading rooms. She would have to take copies or read it there and then. Depending on the book, that could take time of course.”

Erik was surprised at the stringent application of the library’s rules and the difficulty by which the facility’s immense and impressive resources could be used. He was unsure what to do next. Having thanked the receptionist again for her advice, Erik decided to give Emma another hour and sat down on one of the less than comfortable sofas near the lifts. She had not returned when another hour had passed. Three hours he had been waiting. Something was wrong. He knew it. He walked up to the reception desk again.

“My friend has still not returned and I’m worried that something may have happened to her up there. She went to the reading room on the second floor. Would it be possible for you to check with one of your colleagues up there if she’s alright?” He gave her the exact shelf reference, the name of the book and Emma’s name.

“Alright. There is not much that could happen to be honest. We don’t have many accidents around here but I’ll check if it will settle your nerves.” She smiled sweetly in a motherly sort of way and added: “Wait here and I’ll make a call.” When she came back two minutes later she had reassuring news: “Your friend is still in the reading room. I guess you’ll just have to wait.”

“Of course, thank you again.” There was no use trying to fake address details or sneak upstairs. Like the librarian had said, he would just have to wait, however much he hated it right at that moment. What on earth was Emma doing up there? He was just about to go back to the reception desk again when a familiar face exited one of the lifts. It was Emma. She had been crying and had mascara on her cheeks but was smiling more brightly than he had ever seen. He went over to her and in spite of being angry with her for taking so long he was incredibly relieved.

“Where have you been? What took you so long?” he blurted out.

“I have so much to tell you!” she said with an ecstatic shriek. “Let’s go and find somewhere to talk.” They found a quiet corner and a couple of chairs near the entrance. Emma looked around a number of times to ensure that there was no one around to eavesdrop on their conversation. When she was sure they were alone she leaned closer and said in a hushed voice: “Are you ready?”

“Yes, never more so. Please tell me what you found.” Erik assumed that it must have been something astonishing to merit such a reaction and precautionary measures.

“I don’t know where to start.” She hesitated, leaving him in suspense. He was getting impatient.

“Was there something in the book or did you meet someone? Surely Paul wasn’t hiding inside it,” Erik said with a dry laugh, almost spitting.

“It was the book. True to form, Paul had left something in the book for us to find. You won’t believe what it was!” Her voice was still hushed and she was smiling widely, almost teasing.

“Come on, what was it?” He was as good as jumping off his chair from anticipation.

“Paul has the other half of the tablet!” she hissed as quietly as she possibly could.

Erik stood up. It simply couldn’t be true. “What! Surely he couldn’t have hidden the half tablet in the book?” Erik whispered half joking, half in disbelief. “There is no way he could have the half tablet!”

“No, it’s true. I can’t believe it myself! Hidden inside the hard back binder of the book was a photograph of the Linear A side of the missing half tablet!”

“That’s absolutely fantastic! But….”

“Yes, this could mean that he’s guilty of something. It’s very strange. He clearly didn’t get hold of it from the burglar as the chest had not been opened when we found it and there was nothing outside of the chest in the space in the wall when we looked inside it.”

“But when?”

“Well, this is the part that really bothers me. According to the British Library records, the book in question had not been used since September 2004, when it was first published. And there was no evidence at all that the book had ever been taken out by Paul. He could have managed to get hold of the book without registering it. But in any event, it seems to me that Paul may have had the tablet all this time, for several months, and he has not told me about it! That’s what really upset me up there. He could have told me! Instead, he’s been working away, trying to decipher Linear A, probably laughing behind my back at my vain attempts at writing my dissertation and going through hundreds of items on Crete. This also explains what Mary suspected, that it seemed as if he had made some progress. He has not told me about any of it!”

“He did leave you the message to find it though. But it’s very strange. I suppose he didn’t want to incriminate you in any way,” Erik suggested.

“Or could someone else have sent me the message with the anagram which started all this off?” Emma was suddenly unsure. “No, it must have been him, or else someone who knew him extremely well and could write Linear A.”

“What were you doing up there for so long?”

“First waiting to get the book. Then reading some of the book, which was mainly in Spanish. Then being utterly confused for a while, somewhat mystified about the stories about the Napoleonic wars and the role played by the national legislative body in Cadiz, wondering if Paul had gone mad. And my Spanish is not as good as it used to be. This was how I spent most of my time up there. But then, when I was this close to giving up,” she illustrated just how close with her fingers, “I decided that there must have been more to it than that. I examined the book closely and found a small gap in its lining. Hiding in a quiet corner of the room I carefully opened it up and found this photo.” She handed it to him discretely, looking around nervously. It was in colour and taken close up, making it possible to read the text.

He was overwhelmed and confused by the sight of it. “What about the text. Did you also spend some time looking at the text of the tablet?”

“No, I didn’t get a chance to. That’s going to take me a bit of time. I had already been away for three hours when I found the photo. And besides, this is only one side. We still miss the other Egyptian part. I will be able to use it and make a start but it will be limited. Anyway, I can’t describe what I felt when I saw the picture; the item I have been searching for; the key to my dream, my one desire, of deciphering Linear A! I was confused. I panicked but was also excited. I cried and laughed at the same time and managed to get told off by the old man sitting a few desks away. At that point I figured it was time to leave.”

“I still don’t understand how Paul could have got hold of it and when. And why was he keeping quiet about it, letting us continue our search? It doesn’t make much sense, unless he committed a crime obtaining it. That could also explain his absence.” They sat quiet for a moment; contemplating the possibilities.

“Yes, he could have been in hiding, knowing that he had committed a crime obtaining the tablet.” She shrugged. “I don’t know but perhaps we should focus on the tablet and what it reveals in terms of clues for my dissertation. We’re sitting here with a picture of the forever lost half tablet – we could be a few hours away from knowing whether it’s possible to use it to decipher Linear A!” Emma stood up quickly. “It’s already afternoon and it’s been a long day but let’s go and see what that tablet has to say,” she said as she grabbed his arm and dragged him towards the exit as if she had no time to lose. Erik followed her like a little dog, without knowing where they were heading. After a few minutes she revealed their destination: “I can’t wait to have a proper look at it. I suggest we head back to the British Museum. I wouldn’t mind sitting in the Paul Hamlyn library. That would give me some peace and quiet and allow me to easily refer to the other half of the tablet from the museum reference book.”

A few minutes later they reached the museum stairs by the entrance. Erik knew that he would be superfluous to requirements in the translation exercise. He therefore suggested that he instead would go to an internet café and research about Cadiz to establish whether the book title had any significance, either as a hiding place for Paul or for another unknown reason. Emma agreed.