The Obsidian Chamber

30

Diogenes found Constance in her set of rooms on the second floor of the Riverside Drive mansion. A square-sided Louis Vuitton suitcase and a steamer trunk had been set up beside her bed. The suitcase, he saw, was already full of books, journals, incunabula, and a roll of what looked like old art canvases; the trunk was half filled with dresses, along with a few skirts and tops. Constance was facing away from him, very still, as if sculpted from marble. One hand was outstretched toward the open closet, pale fingers curling in midair. She was the very picture of indecision.

Diogenes’s heart leapt into his mouth. This would make what he had to say even more difficult.

He cleared his throat, announcing his presence. Immediately Constance turned toward him. Her eyes flashed with a fleeting emotion, quickly suppressed.

“Forgive the intrusion,” he said. “I merely wanted to tell you that all is ready. I have made the necessary preparations for our trip. Please tell me when I should call for you in the morning.”

Constance paused. Her eyes strayed toward the open trunk. “Eight o’clock should suffice.”

“Very good. Constance…” He hesitated. “Before I leave, I want you to hear a story. A true story about an evil man.”

Constance raised an eyebrow quizzically, but said nothing.

“His name is Lucius Garey. Six years ago, on Christmas Eve, he broke into the house of a Jacksonville doctor, interrupting the family as they were singing carols around their tree. The doctor had two teenage daughters. Garey raped each daughter, in turn, while forcing the parents to watch at gunpoint. This was followed by the brutalization of the mother, once again with the entire family as witnesses. Finally, he shot the parents, then cut the throats of the two girls.”

Constance spoke sharply. “Why in God’s name are you telling me this?”

“Please bear with me. It took the authorities a month to catch Garey. A police officer was killed in the resulting confrontation. Garey was found guilty of five murders and sentenced to die. Before being placed on death row, however, he managed to strangle another prisoner to death with his bare hands.”

He took a cautious step forward. “I’ve told you about Halcyon Key. I think you’ll find it even more marvelous than I have painted it for you — especially once you’re restored to your full youthful vigor. I’ve also told you about the arcanum. With a great deal of time, money, and research, I’ve been able to reformulate — almost — the old arcanum without resorting to the unfortunate necessity of extracting it from a human at the time of death.”

“Almost?”

“There is a complication. In order to complete the work, I need to prepare the original formulation one time only.”

“Why?”

“The explanation is complicated.”

“That answer doesn’t satisfy me at all. Are you saying you need to do an extraction from a human cauda equina?”

“Yes.”

“Then you can obtain the cauda equina you need from a corpse.”

Diogenes shook his head. “I’m afraid that wouldn’t work. The cauda equina needs to be fresh, you see — extremely fresh. Obtained at the very moment of death. The medical researchers I’ve employed have all come to the same conclusion.”

He saw a fury blaze across Constance’s face. She spoke quietly, with a razor’s edge to her voice. “You lied to me.”

“What I promised was that no human being has been harmed. And that is true — no human being has. The fact is, my research would have been far easier, and less expensive, if I had taken human lives. But I knew you would object. And… I am no longer a killer.”

“So you haven’t taken a human life yet, but now you will. How contemptible.”

“If you will let me explain, Constance. Please.”

Constance stared at him, saying nothing.

“It’s a life that would be taken anyway. You see, in three days, Lucius Garey will die by lethal injection, in a prison in southern Florida. He’s exhausted all his appeals, and the governor will not commute. Garey is a sociopath who’s expressed no remorse — on the contrary, he’s bragged of how much he enjoyed it. This horrible man, this sadistic killer and rapist, will die whether or not I lift a finger.”

He stopped, looking intently at Constance. She did not reply. That unreadable expression was once again on her face.

“Try to understand.” Diogenes spoke more quickly now. “I need the cauda equina, one very fresh cauda equina, for the chemical synthesis necessary to re-create the improved formula. A drug can’t be synthesized from nothing. You have to know its chemical structure. I need to have it analyzed and the chemical structure of certain compounds determined. We are talking about complex proteins and biochemical compounds that have millions of atoms within a single molecule, folded in complex ways. In the eighteen months I’ve had biochemists analyzing the problem, I’ve learned a great deal. As soon as I can obtain a sample of the original formulation, at long last my work will be done.”

Still Constance said nothing. Diogenes was unnerved by the opacity of her expression.

“Constance, I beg you — think this through. It’s a onetime process. After that, the synthesis of the arcanum will be free and clear. And nobody is being hurt: Garey is a dead man anyway.”

“And just how do you plan to obtain this man’s ‘fresh’ cauda equina?” Her voice was cold, cold.

“After an execution, a medical examiner must perform an autopsy. I will arrange to be that medical examiner. Once I have the cauda equina, I will extract what I need, bring the extraction to Halcyon, and biochemically synthesize it in the lab I’ve built there. Everything is prepared and in readiness — save for this. No more bodies needed. And you, my dear Constance, will get your youthful vitality, your health, restored in full. Please, Constance. Please.”

He fell silent, watching her very carefully. She remained still for what seemed an eternity, as if struggling with some inner conflict. Then — briefly, almost inaudibly — she said: “All right.”

Relief flooded through him. “Thank you,” he said. “Thank you for seeing the logic of the situation. I’ll leave you to your packing. Until eight tomorrow morning, then.”

And with a smile, he turned and left the room.