Stones of Fire

42

‘Ah yes. A square. Spot on,’ Cædmon enthused, smiling. ‘A quatrain is, after all, a poem with four lines.’

‘And Galen composed four quatrains,’ Edie added, the number four having been the giveaway.

‘Not to mention that the Ark of the Covenant was usually depicted in medieval art as a four-sided square.’ Still smiling, Cædmon winked at her. ‘You must excel at Sudoku. Now, what about this metaphorical square?’

Pleased that Cædmon wanted her input, she gave it her best shot. ‘I think Galen was trying to compose a chain of custody for the Ark of the Covenant. And he begins the chain right here in the first quatrain with Pharaoh Shishak taking the Ark from Solomon’s Temple. From what Sir Kenneth told us earlier today, we know that the pharaoh left an offering — the Ark — on the Plain of Esdraelon.’

‘Where it was happened upon some twenty-two centuries later by a roving band of Hospitaller knights led by Galen of Godmersham.’ He pointed to the second quatrain. ‘It would appear that the knights fought one another to the death over the treasure, Galen the lone man left standing on the field after the mêlée.’

Lips pursed, Edie stared at the last line of the quatrain in question. ‘What does this mean, “And with his show of valour, he kept the holy covenant”?’

‘It probably means that Galen of Godmersham became the self-appointed guardian of the Ark.’

‘So, we’re definitely on the right track, huh?’

‘I believe so.’

In all honesty Edie didn’t know how she felt about that. While excited that they were working their way through the verses, she was at the same time uneasy about the whole thing. A little voice inside her head kept saying, Leave it be. Over and over.

‘And it’s clear from the third quatrain that Galen took the Ark to England, specifically to the place of his birth, Godmersham,’ Cædmon continued, oblivious to her unease. ‘Correlating precisely with the information listed in the Feet of Fines property records. Now, this I find rather interesting,’ he said, pointing to the third line of the third quatrain. ‘“With open eyes he now saw the black plague that he wrought.”’

‘It could be that Galen believed the Ark was responsible for the plague that hit England in 1348.’

‘He had ample reason to think so, the pustules that erupted on faces and bodies during the plague uncannily similar to the lesions and boils that befell the Philistines. God’s punishment for the theft of the Ark.’

Cædmon’s last remark made Edie wonder at the punishment for finding the Ark of the Covenant. Normally, she wasn’t one to believe in curses or hexes, but the evidence was damning. Literally. The Old Testament Bible stories and Galen’s quatrains both came stamped with DANGER in big, bold, threatening type. Skull and crossbones included.

‘Perhaps Galen hid the darned thing in the hope that it would bring an end to the plague. Too bad he didn’t have the Stones of Fire to protect himself.’ Too bad they didn’t have the Stones of Fire, Edie silently added, her unease now laced with fear, the type of fear that made one double-check all the doors and sleep with a nightlight.

‘The last line of the third quatrain was probably composed while Galen was on his deathbed,’ Cædmon blithely continued, unintentionally throwing fuel onto the fire.

Knowing that the only way to combat fear was to take decisive action, Edie grabbed a sheet of blank paper.

‘Okay, let’s take our square analogy.’ Pencil in hand, she carefully drew a square. ‘And fill in the Ark’s chain of custody as detailed by Galen in the quatrains.’

‘That’s excellent.’ Clearly accustomed to being in a library, Cædmon managed to keep his enthusiasm to a hushed whisper. ‘You know, you were absolutely right. Galen did use his four quatrains as a poetic cryptogam. The Ark’s current whereabouts must be encoded in the lines of the fourth quatrain.’

She stared at the enigmatic fourth quatrain.

A trusted goose. A man with a fully devout heart. And the veil between two worlds.

‘This would be a whole heck of a lot easier if Galen had simply drawn an X-marks-the-spot treasure map,’ she muttered.

‘Had he done that, the Ark would have been unearthed centuries ago. Sir Kenneth mentioned that the encrypted quatrains have stumped more than one treasure hunter.’

‘While we’re on the topic, this might be a good time to mention that I’m starting to worry about Colonel MacFarlane having the Stones of Fire in his possession. You said it yourself: not only was the breastplate a protective shield, it was also used as a divination tool, enabling the wearer to communicate with God. Like a two-way radio. If MacFarlane finds the Ark of the Covenant, he’ll not only have the best intelligence device known to mankind — the Stones of Fire — he’ll also have an enormously powerful weapon. You can’t deny that makes for a deadly duo.’

For several long seconds, Cædmon held her gaze. ‘Then we’ll do all in our power to ensure that doesn’t happen.’ Although the words were quietly spoken, he had about him an air of fierce determination. For one brief, blurry second, she saw him decked out in chain mail, fighting to the death on the Plain of Esdraelon.

Returning his attention to the Edie’s diagram, Cædmon tapped his finger on the fourth side of the square. ‘This is where we get into really murky water.’

‘Actually, this is where we need to call it quits,’ she matter-of-factly announced, unable to keep the jet lag at bay one second longer.

Cædmon patted her on the back. ‘Come now. Time to brainstorm. Group dynamics and all that.’

She dolefully shook her head. ‘I need to refuel. How about we get grab some pub grub? If I remember correctly, they’re serving seafood salad and lentil soup at the Isis Room.’

‘Er, right. An excellent suggestion.’

Not for one second was Edie fooled, able to see the disappointment in Cædmon’s blue eyes. He might be able to manage an all-nighter, but there was no way she could tackle the fourth quatrain without some much-needed food. Followed by some much-needed sleep.

While Cædmon returned the leather-bound volumes and cotton gloves to the stern-faced librarian, Edie stuffed the pencils and notepaper into their flight bag.

A few minutes later, Cædmon’s protective arm around her shoulders, they made their way along the crowded pavement. Locals, heads ducked against the cold wet wind, scurried along. Casting a quick sideways glance down a shadowed alleyway, Edie had the sudden feeling that something malevolent, even deadly, lurked nearby.