The Crusader ("The Crusader" Prequel to "Kingdom Come") (42 page)

Bud's
jaw dropped; he couldn't help it. "Christ," he hissed. "You
think that Rory stole the corpse is because we're smuggling grave artifacts
inside it? That's the craziest thing I've ever heard."

"Not
really," Corbin was cool. "After all, you Americans made the initial
find. And even though you have turned over the contents of the grave, how do we
know it's everything? How do we know you didn't withhold some things for
display in your university museum? Or, worse yet, to sell on the black market
to raise funds for your floundering archaeological department?"

"Floundering?"
Bud was outraged. "The University of San Marcos has an excellent
archaeological department."

Corbin
examined his nails, his cigarette. "Agreed. When I meant floundering, I
meant financially. I've received information that the university is suffering
from a few bad investments and that the archaeology department is in danger of
losing funding. With the closure of the Nahariya dig, future projects are in
question. Selling a few valuable artifacts would certainly help the situation,
wouldn't it?"

Bud's
cheeks were mottled red as he struggled to maintain his composure. "I'm an
archaeologist, Mr. Corbin, not a thief. What you're suggesting is nothing short
of slanderous and I refuse to dignify your theory with any sort of
rebuttal."

Inspector
Wolfe intervened before Bud and Corbin came to blows. "I've no interest in
this smuggling theory at the moment, gentlemen. The fact remains that Dr.
Osgrove is wanted for questioning for the break in at the morgue and the
subsequent abduction of Sir Kieran Hage's corpse. In fact, up until this point,
nothing's been proven against her. We've no eye-witness that saw her break in,
and we certainly have yet to find anyone that saw her lugging an ancient corpse
from the hospital. It's purely circumstantial, but we still need to talk to
her," he looked at Bud. "Do you understand me, Dr. Dietrich? We just
need to speak with your colleague at this point."

Corbin
frowned. "A nurse at the hospital saw her there around the time of the
break in. How can you disregard that testimony?"

Wolfe
sighed patiently. "Because the nurse said she saw the Dr. Osgrove with a
man. A
living
man. If you recall, Corbin, we're looking for an eight
hundred year old corpse. Had the nurse told us that she saw Dr. Osgrove
wheeling a loaded gurney, I might be more suspicious."

Corbin
sighed in exasperation. "We've all but got a confession, for Christ's
sake! Even Dietrich said she threatened to do it!"

"But
he didn't see her do it," Wolfe cast a long glance at the lawyer before
returning his attention to Bud. "Is Dr. Osgrove really coming back, Dr.
Dietrich? Or are we wasting our time?"

Bud
looked at Corbin. The inspector was calm and logical but still, he had promised
to buy Rory and Kieran enough to time reach safety. And two hours, in his
opinion, was not enough time to reach safety from Corbin. No matter what the
cops said, he knew the Hage family lawyer wouldn't rest until he found her. The
shocking fact that he believed Rory to be a smuggler only fueled his
determination to protect her.

Weakly,
he gestured at the suitcase. "Her luggage is still here," he said
quietly. "I..."

The
piercing ring of Corbin's cell phone filled the air. The lawyer ripped it from
his pocket, answering it harshly. But the moment the caller identified himself,
Corbin's eyes were glued to Bud like a cat watching a mouse. Bud returned the
man's gaze, wondering who was on the other end of the phone and knowing without
a doubt it had something to do with Rory. By the time Corbin ended the call,
Bud was ready to explode with apprehension.

"That
was Dr. Osgrove's uncle," Corbin turned to the inspectors. "She's
apparently at Heathrow. Her mother received a call about a half-hour ago
requesting that money be wired to her there."

Wolfe
and Turner looked at Dietrich. "Where is she going, Dr. Dietrich?"
Wolfe asked, perturbed with the evasiveness that had caused them to waste two
precious hours. "If you know, you'd better tell us or so help me I'll
throw you in jail for conspiracy."

Bud
heard the threat, but at the moment his attention was focused on Corbin.
"Becker?" he rasped. "He's been helping you all along?"

Corbin
put the cell phone in his pocket smugly. "Of course," he replied with
a faint smirk. "You really should have told him about his niece's trouble
yourself, Dietrich. He was quite surprised by the news of her crime spree and
when I offered my services to aid the poor girl, he was more than willing to
agree."

Bud's
cheeks were mottling again. "You dirty bastard. He thinks you're trying to
help her when you really want to see her hang for this."

Corbin
opened the door leading into the hall. "I simply want to see justice
served, Dr. Dietrich. Now answer the inspector's question; where is she
going?"

Bud
clamped his mouth shut. "You're so damn smart, you figure it out."

Corbin's
smile faded. "I already have. I would suspect that she's going back to the
scene of the crime. Am I correct?"

Bud
didn't reply. Wolfe and Turner, apparently unwilling to follow through on their
threat of throwing Bud in jail, quit the room with Corbin close behind.

Bud
listened to their footfalls fading down the hall, his entire body shaking with
emotion as he picked up the phone and placed a call to the airlines. Not
wanting to wait for the flight to Tel Aviv the next day, he booked himself on a
flight to Istanbul that departed in six hours. From there, he would find his
way to Nahariya.

Hanging
up on the airlines, he immediately placed an overseas call. If he couldn't make
it in time to save Rory and Kieran from Corbin's pursuit, then he would make
sure David did.

***

Kieran's
first experience on an airplane was even worse than the underground. Plastered
against his seat, he refused to move from the time the plane took off until the
moment it set down. The man didn't possess a cowardly bone in his body, but he
was having a difficult time adjusting to something Rory took for granted.

The
overhead reading light seemed to be the only gadget she could divert his
attention with, but even then he hardly paid attention to it. When the plane
landed in Rome for a short stopover and took off again, Rory gave up on the
light and squeezed his hand the entire flight to Tel Aviv.

It had
been an exhausting flight. Kieran was stiff as he disembarked the plane,
looking back at the phallic-shaped monster as if scarcely believing he had
survived the trip. But a journey that had taken months in his time had taken
less than a day and he couldn't decide if his amazement was stronger than his
airsickness.

The
miracle of modern travel aside, the real magic was yet to come. Rory was
shaking with apprehension as she went through customs, passing easily. Directly
behind her, Kieran handed the customs worker his passport, looking straight at
the man as the information was reviewed. As Rory bit her lip and struggled not
to collapse, the customs official hardly glanced at Kieran as he asked of his
business in Israel. When Kieran repeated his well-rehearsed reply, that he was
on his honeymoon, the man routinely stamped the passport and welcomed him to
Tel Aviv.

 And
that was it. No blood, no sweat, little hassle. Kieran smiled at a shaken Rory,
collecting his bag and kissing her hand as they moved through the terminal.
Bouncing back from their chaotic flight experience, they emerged into the
bright Israeli day and went in search of a taxi. But their search abruptly
ended when a familiar voice called to Rory from the curb and she looked over,
only to come face to face with the familiar features of David Peck.

"Dave!"
she squealed with delight, racing toward him and throwing herself into his
arms. "What are you doing here?"

Peck was
grinning from ear to ear, unusual for the normally taciturn man. "Bud
called," he said, holding her back to get a good look at her. His smile
faded. "He said you might be coming here and I called the airlines to see
when the flights were arriving from England. Jesus Christ, Rory, what in the
hell has been going on? Bud sounds like he's ready to collapse."

Rory
knew Kieran was directly behind her, undoubtedly sizing David up. She smiled
weakly at her colleague. "I don't even know where to begin, Dave. But I
think I'd better start by introducing you to Sir Kieran Hage."

Pulling
away from Peck, she grasped Kieran by the arm. Her eyes never left David's
face, expecting the same reaction from him that she had received from Bud.
Disbelief. Skepticism. Of everything David was, his logical character to his
surly tendencies, she was prepared to accept the brunt of it.

 Which
was why she was completely surprised when he did nothing she had expected. Eyes
behind the thin wire rims wide with shock, David took a step back as if
witnessing something from a Boris Karloff movie.

"My
God!" he gasped. "It... it's
him
!"

Rory was
surprised by David's reaction. Without a word of persuasion or assurance, the
man knew Kieran on sight. The man he had raised from the grave. As the knight
gazed down at David with his usual even expression, Rory reached out a hand to
steady the startled archaeologist.

"Dave,
it's all right," she said soothingly. The man looked like he was going to
faint. "We can explain, really. He's not a zombie."

"But...,"
Dave was still pointing at him. "He's
alive
!"

She let
go of Kieran, patting David's arm comfortingly. "Yes, Dave, he's alive.
But there's a logical explanation for it. You're not looking at a ghost."

David
was white. Kieran cocked an eyebrow and shook his head; he'd almost rather have
Bud's blatant disbelief than the naked fear of a coward.

"Jesus
Ch...," David swallowed, turning to look at Rory as she continued to pat
his arm. "But told me to expect the two of you, but I had no idea he
meant... well, hell, this is just crazy!"

Rory
shook her head patiently. "No, it's not. Dave, listen to me; Sir Kieran
wasn't dead when we found him. He was in a form of stasis brought on by an
alchemist's potion."

"A
potion?" David looked dazed. "Are you trying to tell me that some
sort of elixir did... this?"

"It
did," Rory maintained her calm voice. "Remember when I told you the
knight's journal referred to the crown of thorns? Well, I was right. It really
did. Sir Kieran was mortally wounded by assassins who wanted to get their hands
on it and an alchemist put him to sleep in the hope of saving his life. Now
that Sir Kieran is awake, he's determined to finish what he started."

"Started
what?"

"The
crown, Dave," Rory repeated softly. "That's why we've returned. He's
going to show us where he hid the crown."

David
simply shook his head, his entire expression awash with astonishment. "Bud
said... he told me not to shut down the dig just yet. Christ, is this what he
meant?"

Rory
nodded. "Exactly. You see, I...oh, hell, we really don't have time for
this right now. Are you well enough to drive?"

David
nodded weakly. The jeep was in the yellow zone next to the curb and Rory shoved
him toward the vehicle, practically lifting him into the driver's seat. But
David only seemed capable of staring at Kieran and with a frustrated grunt, Rory
pushed him into the passenger seat and took the wheel herself. Throwing it into
gear, they left the airport.

The arid
climate of Israel was as enticing as a warm caress as they headed out of the
city. Nahariya was a solid two hours away as they traveled over lands Kieran
had known well eight hundred years ago. But the knight was distracted from his
view of the Holy Land by David's staring. Unsure if the man's dazed expression
was a challenge, Kieran stared back.

"Start
explaining, Rory," David sounded calmer once they were on the highway.

She took
a deep breath and launched into her story. Every detail, every move they made.
Well, almost every move. When she elaborated on the part where Bud was only
just coming to believe in Kieran's existance, David merely shook his head.

"How
could he not believe?" he muttered, still gazing at the man in the back
seat as if envisioning the Holy Grail. "I mean,
look
at him; we
studied that body from head to toe and there's no doubt in my mind that this is
the man we excavated. And all that stuff about the alchemist... well, I've
heard some pretty strange things in my time. Thought your story about the crown
of thorns was the strangest until now."

Rory
grinned, glancing at him as the desert breeze whipped her hair about. "Dave,
you were the last person I expected to come around so quickly. What about all
your speeches about hard fact and evidence and myth-chasing?"

He
shrugged, studying the scars on Kieran's hands. "This is the hardest
evidence of all, Rory. I can't dispute a living, breathing man."

Rory
shook her head in disbelief; gladness, but disbelief all the same. "You
never truly believed in my crown. But you believe in a walking corpse?"