The Gods' Gambit (22 page)

His call was transferred twice before reaching the
department his friend worked in. After a short delay, a secretary informed him,
“Senior Mancini is busy and unable to speak.”

“I’d like you to give him a message, would you?” James
asked. “Please, tell him that I understand. He must know that he’s not alone.”

James almost instantly felt his heart begin to beat
normally. His mind cleared. The flashing thoughts and emotions did not dominate
him anymore. They were still inside him, but he didn’t feel lost among them.
Because he had made a decision.

He dialled another number. “Hi, Irina. I need to travel
urgently. We won’t be able to see each other tomorrow before you fly home. I
wondered if you could meet me this evening.”

“What a coincidence. I was just picking up the phone to call
you,” responded Irina. “I’m staying late at the office tonight. Could you drop
by?”

“I’ll be there in about an hour and a half.”

“Wonderful.”

* * *

In the late afternoon, the road to Brighton was already
busy. James drove above the speed limit and overtook a number of vehicles. A
dark blue BMW kept up with him at a distance. James noticed it and deliberately
made some quick and rather hazardous manoeuvres. The dark blue car invariably
followed suit.

It remained behind James on the streets of Brighton, too. He
turned sharply into the road where the MI5 headquarters building was situated
and pulled up outside. He saw the BMW appear in his mirror. It was moving
slowly. Suddenly, it picked up speed and drove away.

* * *

Irina pointed to the table and four chairs which filled
almost half of her small office. “Take a seat,” she said. She stood up and
walked towards the coffee machine holding a mug. “Coffee?”

“Yes, please. With milk.”

Irina brought over the coffee and sat opposite James. He
told her about his meetings with Stockton and Peter Oliver. “You understand
that I and the superintendent met unofficially,” he added.

“Don’t worry. In fact, I wanted to discuss the same topic
with you … among other things.”

“Peter told me you had troubles.”

Irina waved her hand. “Some people tried to bitter my stay
in this country. Unsuccessfully, though.”

“If there’s something I can do … I’d be glad to help.”

“Your testimony to the police already helped me. I’m more
worried about you. You should be, too. You must be alert and take care of yourself,”
she said insistently.

James peered at her for a long moment. His smile was sad but
his expression was stern. “I’ve finished hiding. They can’t do anything worse
to me. It’s time to hit back.”

“In any other case I’d tell you to leave it to the police.
But now I’m not sure that’s the best advice. And I don’t think you’d listen
anyway.”

“You’re right. I’m not being a victim anymore.”

“What do you intend to do?”

“I’ll investigate. I’ve got some advantages over the police.
I know what they know and I know things they don’t know, or don’t want to know.
Furthermore, I’m not bound by their rules.”

Irina gave him a meaningful look. “You must be ready to put
aside your deepest feelings in the name of objectivity. If you want to get
results.”

“What do you mean?”

“If I were you I’d dig into Miss Eden’s past. That may hurt.
She was the first target of those people. And very likely the string that led
them to you. I don’t advocate the assumption that she was engaged with
radicals. Yet she might have run into something by chance. It’s even possible
she was covering somebody else’s secret. You’ll need to question relatives and
friends.”

A light smile crossed James’ face. “All that wouldn’t stop
me from seeking out the bastards. Although I don’t need to do any one of those
things. There’s no point.”

“That’s what I was talking about. It’s difficult to be
objective in your situation.”

“You see, sometimes personal involvement can be of great
help. I can categorically neglect your objective approach. I know in advance
where it would take me. In no way was Elizabeth connected to that kind of
people. Neither did she hide any secret information.”

Irina could not agree with him but she admired his trust in
his loved one. “The police with all their resources haven’t advanced much in
their attempts to identify this clandestine organization.”

“The police waste effort looking in the wrong direction.”

“You mentioned you knew something the police don’t know. And
that’s what will lead you to these people.”

“Yes.”

“If you have valuable information, you have to share it with
the police.”

“They wouldn’t pay any attention to speculation and hunches.
Especially if they come from a discredited – in their eyes – person like me.”

“You’re probably right. However—”

“I intend to share this information with you,” he
interrupted. “I owe you.”

“Appreciated.”

“I believe we’ve run into something much bigger than we
expected. Until now we’ve only seen the tip of the iceberg. Everything that
those people do is part of a strategy formed way back in the past. Those people
are not Islamist at all. They have access to huge financial resources…” James
took Irina through Lino’s notes.

She listened to the story with full attention. “In your
opinion, what’s the common ground of the murders of Costov and Vebber and what
happened to your fiancée and to you?” she asked when he had finished.

“One thing is clear. All, including me, have been obstacles
in their path. Why? Well, that’s what I’m determined to discover. I’ll find out
when I meet them face to face,” James explained. He thought for a while and
added, “Sooner or later I’ll find them. Or rather, they’ll come to me.”

Irina was worried. “You think they haven’t given up chasing
you?”

“Yes. On my way here a car followed me. I’m sure it was
them.”

“You have to report this to the police. Ask for protection.
Hire bodyguards. It would be best if you went away for some time,” Irina
suggested.

James shook his head. “You’re not listening to me. I’m not
going to remain passive. I’m not relying on anybody to do the job but me.”

Irina realized that her words had actually hurt him. “I’m
sorry. I suppose you have a plan for action ready.”

“I need to find out as much as possible about this cult
first. I have a friend who knows more about them than anybody. I’m going to
meet him.”

“This is the man from whom you got all this information.”

“Yes. He needs my support right now. I’m sure the cult has
tried to silence him.”

Irina rested against the back of her chair. Her expression
was thoughtful and concentrated. “All this is serious and dangerous,” she said.
“I don’t want to obtrude my advice. But it will be difficult to stand up
against such a mighty organization on your own. You’ll need help. Luckily, I
can offer you help.”

James looked surprised, yet he did not respond.

“I propose we unite our efforts,” said Irina. “We have the
same goal. I want to shed light on their deeds – so do you. I want them to pay
for their crimes – so do you.”

“You said you were leaving.”

“I’ll postpone it. It’ll be in the interest of the
investigation.”

“I couldn’t dream of a better partner than you. However, my
motives are personal … mostly. If I have to play against the rules, I’ll do it
– with no hesitation. You, on the other hand, are professionally bound by
them.”

“I won’t try to control you. You’re free to follow your
heart. Me too. It’s quite probable I’ll fly home as soon as we’ve spoken with
your friend—”

James didn’t let her finish. “That’s what we can’t do. If I
involve the police – I mean you – without his permission, it would be hard for
him.”

“I’ll not involve his name in any way without his prior
consent. If he decides to become a witness against the cult, I’ll guarantee
police protection for him,” Irina insisted.

Her arguments were convincing. They made James change his
decision. Apart from that, he owed her, as he had admitted. He also felt close
to her. He had known her for only a few days, but the intensity of what they
had gone through together had resulted in a closeness that usually only comes
after years of friendship.

“All right,” he said. “I intend to pay him a surprise visit
in Italy. I could tell him about you when I meet him. It’ll be up to him from
there on.”

“Okay. We’ll fly together to Italy,” she said. “Due to the
circumstances we must leave as quickly as possible.”

James shrugged his shoulders in a gesture of acceptance. “As
you wish. I’m going to visit Pema. Then I’ll go home to pack my suitcase and
talk to Lao and Malee. All that will take about three hours.”

“We’re taking on an anonymous, highly resourceful enemy,”
said Irina, giving him a serious, almost harsh look. “We have to be very
cautious. It’d be best if you didn’t mention to anybody the details of our
trip.”

“That sounds reasonable,” James agreed.

“Did you speak on the phone with your Italian friend?”

“Broadband.”

Irina nodded approvingly.

“I suggest we don’t waste time, then. Let’s find a plane
tonight,” James continued.

“Of course. I have news for you first. After Algeria I
contacted the Interpol Bureau in Sofia. I asked them to search in every
possible way for murders with even small similarities to those of Costov and
Vebber. There was a positive result.”

“Another murder?”

“Several, actually. The data on most of them was too poor,
so I concentrated on just one. It happened in India eleven years ago.”

“The cult has spread its roots everywhere,” James commented.
“Is there any information about the victim?”

“There were three victims. Their bodies were found in a
forest half-eaten by wild animals. A swastika had been carved on the chest of
one of the corpses. That part had been eaten on the other two bodies. It’s
possible that they had also been marked in the same manner.” Irina lifted her
hand, the index finger pointing upwards. “Now, listen. The corpse with the
swastika had been stabbed in the chest. The police concluded it had been done
with a spear.”

“It could have been by a horn.”

Irina nodded.

“Any other similarities? I mean with Costov’s murder.”

“The report of the Indian police is a bit brief. It does
mention traces of signs on the ground, though, but doesn’t specify what kind of
signs. The killers weren’t found. The hypothesis is that this was a killing
done by an outlawed sect – rakshasa worshippers. The rakshasas are evil
creatures from Hindu mythology as far as I know. Right?”

“That is the popular depiction of those creatures. I’ve read
about three types of rakshasa. The so-called yakshasas are rather good
creatures, attendants of the gods. The second type is a kind of titan. The
third type is truly evil: ugly black demons that eat human flesh. They were
probably the ones mentioned.”

“I suppose. The police report stated that this sect had been
accused of cannibalism. It was mentioned because some of the wounds on the
corpses resembled human bite marks.”

James’ expression became sceptical. He was thoughtful for a
moment. “Our MI5 people and Stockton won’t accept that the three cases are
connected to one international organization. Because of these unclear facts and
the time gap.”

Irina looked as if she shared his conclusion completely. “My
intuition tells me it was their doing. Unfortunately, there is one thing that
supports the opposite thesis. The victims’ profiles are different. We have an
eighty-four-year-old man from an unknown Indian village, a ten-year-old girl
from another village, and a French youngster – a tourist. Nothing connects one
with the others. They disappeared in different parts of India.”

“Which one had the swastika?”

“The child.”

“It’s not somebody who had demonstrated intellectual
capabilities like Costov or Vebber.”

“Exactly.”

James knitted his brow. “I see two possibilities,” he said.
“One – the killings in India had nothing to do with the cult. Two – we’re
mistaken to accept that there’s a common profile for all the cult’s victims.”

“I bet on the second,” said Irina. “However, we should be
careful now not to stray from the cult’s trace.”

“You could pull strings and go to India, as we did with the
Algerian case,” James suggested.

Irina frowned. “You don’t know how much bureaucracy and
politics is behind such a move. We were lucky with Algeria. It’s also possible
such a trip will be a waste of time. If we find the answers we’re looking for
from your friend.”

Yes, Lino… He holds the short cut to the snake’s den, James
thought. I hope I don’t make a muddle of your life, my friend.

Dorje Ling Monastery, Nepal

The muted chanting and drumming of the three adepts had
echoed continuously for three days. Sometimes all three could be heard;
sometimes only one or two of them. But there had been no gaps in the melody.
The adepts were performing a rite called the ‘Invocation of Buddhas and
Spiritual Protectors of Dharma’. Normally, this rite was used in difficult
times when Buddhist teaching was in decline or under persecution.

Sitting on a bench next to the chapel where the ceremony was
taking place, Nyma wondered why lama Tenzin had invited those three monks to
make the Invocation. Dorje Ling monastery was not in decline. On the contrary,
it had many sponsors and not long ago new buildings were added to it. By and
large, Buddhist Vajrayana teaching was on the up. The number of its followers
was growing all over the world; even in Tibet, the Chinese authorities had
softened their attitude towards the religion.

Nyma did not approve of the presence of the three monks,
because they belonged to a different school that was famous for practising
magic. People feared members of that school because of the powers they
possessed. Nyma would have preferred to stay at a distance from them. But
unfortunately this was not possible because lama Tenzin had given him the task
of supplying the monks with food and water, as the chapel was situated about a
kilometre from the main monastery complex. It was built at the very end of the
plateau, close to the foothills of the mountains, on a piece of land ‘bought’
from the local spirits with special ceremonies and offerings. It was a
single-roomed square building with a pointed roof covered with green wooden
shingles. It had two windows and a double-winged door, which had been kept open
since the Invocation rite started. Just inside the entrance on the left was an
altar upon which stood a golden bust of Buddha Shakyamuny. The walls were
covered with pictures of fearsome angry deities.