Mariah Mundi and the Ghost Diamonds (24 page)

‘Not too sure about that – look.’ The man pointed to a set of footprints edged in white powder that went from the bed towards the window. ‘Someone’s been here,’ he said as he looked up at the ceiling and saw the plaster crowns had been torn from their place. ‘He was right – a lamp.’

Hidden by the long sideboard was a smouldering lamp. A spurt of spiralling smoke twisted upwards to scent the room.

‘Just been snuffed,’ the man said in a sudden whisper as he looked about the room. ‘Could still be here.’

The drapes at the window moved slightly and caught the gaze of both men. The older of the two pulled a short cudgel from his belt. He gripped it in his hand, ready to strike.

‘Best be coming out,’ he said as he raised his arm. ‘Best be coming out as quick as you can.’

The drapes moved slowly as the breeze streamed in through the window. The man hesitated and then nodded to his companion as they both prepared their attack.

‘Never give another chance, whoever you may be,’ the man said softly as he took a step towards the covered window.

In a flash the man was on the floor holding his face. His companion jumped back, startled. The thud came again, even quicker than before. The crack of the diamonds in the pillowcase as they hit him echoed in the room.

‘Run Mariah!’ Charity shouted as they leapt from cover and dashed towards the door.

Mariah leapt the two groaning bodies that writhed on the floor. He jumped over the bed as if it were a horse fence. As Charity turned Mariah caught the smile on his face.

‘Onwards!’ Charity screamed as if he were leading a charge in the desert, the pillowcase stuffed with diamonds held close by his side.

The shrill sound of a police whistle came from the room. It blasted the alarm over and over seeping into the street below.

‘They’re on to us!’ Mariah shouted as they ran together along the corridor and down the stairs.

‘A copper on every door,’ Charity replied, thinking as he ran. ‘They’ll be on us before we know it.’

‘The cellar – the sea doors,’ Mariah said breathlessly as he tried to keep pace. ‘It’s our only chance.’

‘The balcony by the restaurant and then to the sea,’ Charity said as he turned the corner of the landing. Far behind the sound of heavy footsteps followed them. They were relentless, evenly paced like the beating of army drums. As they came closer they gathered in number until they pounded as one.

‘They’ll catch us,’ Mariah pleaded as he lost pace.

‘Keep with me,’ Charity shouted desperately in reply. He stopped and turned.

Mariah was gone. He had vanished. It was as if he had been snatched by the night. Something or someone had taken him. Charity ran back along the passageway. It was empty. There were no doors, no way of escape. Mariah had to be near, Charity thought as he searched for him. He pressed the walls for any sign of a secret place, knowing there were many passageways hidden in the walls that were still undiscovered. He looked back and forth in disbelief. It was then that he smelt a sweet scent of apples and roses. It came like a fleeting cloud and then was gone.

‘Mariah … Mariah!’ he pleaded hopelessly for the missing boy.

All he could hear was the sound of the beating footsteps coming closer. Charity waited, hoping that Mariah would reappear as quickly as he had vanished.

‘Mariah -don’t play tricks,’ he said for the last time as the footsteps broke out from the twisting staircase and into the passageway.

Charity looked back. He could see the dull and distant shapes of several policemen getting closer.

‘Ahead!’ one of them shouted as they saw the man they chased for the first time.

The pursuers began to run. Charity ran, gaining speed with each step. He pushed through the doors and onto the balcony that skirted the Prince Regent above the cliff and the sea below.

‘Take him!’ a man shouted as the pursuers ran towards him, his voice almost lost in the gale.

Charity looked back. He had nowhere to run. Far below was the full tide. It beat against the sea doors. Waves broke upon the rocks. He gripped the diamonds tightly as he stood on the low balustrade. One of his pursuers reached out for him and grabbed Charity by the sleeve of his coat. Charity pulled against him as the waves ripped against the beach.

In an instant he was gone – falling faster and faster.

‘No!’ screamed the copper as he clutched a torn piece of fabric in his hand.

They watched as Charity fell towards the sea. A large wave rolled in towards the cliff face and swelled the water high against the rocks. Charity was gone – consumed by the darkness and the tide, lost without a trace.

‘He’s dead now,’ said the peeler as he shrugged his rain-drenched shoulders and shone his lantern to the wind-blown sea far below. ‘Twice drowned in the day,’ he smirked. ‘It was Charity for sure. Best be telling Walpole.’

‘I
T
won’t be long before you can see me,’ Zogel said as Mariah felt himself moving slowly from side to side. ‘The chloroform should wear off within the hour.’

The words seemed distant. It was as if he had heard them in a dream. Mariah tried to open his eyes and lift his head from the hard pillow, but he could do nothing. His body was like lead. It was cold and numb. His hands ached from where they had been held in a tight spasm-like grip. When he breathed his lungs burnt. Slowly, very slowly, his heart beat in his chest and his neck pulsed nervously.

‘Jack …’ he said, asking for his friend.

‘Quite safe,’ Zogel went on in his Carolina drawl. ‘He made a dramatic escape. Leapt from the balcony of the Prince Regent like a bird. My men were on the beach. They followed Captain Charity to the Golden Kipper. Well, after he had swum to the shore and struggled from the waves. I watched it myself. I have the most amazing telescope, it makes the night as clear as day. I’ll take you on deck and you can see it. Tell me – why should he go to see a Mister Quadlibett before going to the Golden Kipper?’

‘What happened to me?’ Mariah muttered, his tongue parched like an old sole.

‘Poisoned … Well, I should say anaesthetised. I have always had an interest in chloroform. It has become quite a habit.’

‘Sacha, I saw Sacha …’ Mariah said, stumbling over his words.

‘She is here. My guest. Just like you. Some people were going to do her harm. I had to bring her here.’

‘But you drugged me – you said you would help,’ Mariah said, still unable to open his eyes.

‘You wouldn’t have come here freely, Jack Charity would have seen to that. The Bureau and I have never seen things the same way. He thinks I’m a thief.’

‘Why kidnap me?’ Mariah asked as he again tried to open his heavy eyes.

‘I needed to talk to you alone. Ask you a question that I know will be answered truthfully.’ Zogel shuffled closer to Mariah and whispered in his ear. ‘The Ghost Diamonds – I believe you have them.’

‘Is that why you came here?’ Mariah asked, his hand beginning to shake as the blood rushed to his fingertips.

‘Not at first. Shall I say I stumbled upon them?’ Zogel replied as he sat in the high-backed chair next to the bed. ‘I had some business with a few people. Unpaid debts to be recovered, that sort of everyday thing.’ Zogel paused then leant forward. ‘Did you find the diamonds?’

Mariah thought for a moment. He didn’t know how to answer. His head was split with pain as his body came back to life. It was hard to think as he drifted between waking and sleeping.

‘I don’t have them,’ he replied hesitantly.

‘Captain Jack – did
he
find them?’ Zogel asked.

Mariah didn’t reply. He knew he should keep silent. Painfully

he lifted his hand to his forehead and brushed away dried, crusted sand.

‘I take it he did,’ Zogel said as he rubbed his beard.

‘Will you let me go?’ Mariah asked.

‘Will you tell me the truth?’ Zogel replied.

‘I saw Lucius at the Towers – you’re helping Bardolph.’

Zogel laughed loudly. ‘You are a wild one, Mariah Mundi. Lucius said he’d been followed … It
was
you. We help no one – especially Bardolph.’

‘But you’re a part of the Society of Truth,’ Mariah replied.

‘Did Charity tell you that?’ Zogel asked, smiling to himself wolfishly.

‘I saw the ring on your finger. It is the same as the one Walpole carries and he works for Bardolph.’ Mariah groaned as he managed to open his eyes and looked at the room for the first time.

‘Skull and bones, young Mariah, that is all I am. The Society of Truth isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. They think they control the world, but who controls them? I work for myself. Skull and bones … That’s all you need in this life for real power.’

‘They want the diamonds,’ Mariah said.

‘I know. That’s what the deal was all about. I came to this place because of people who owed me money. I then heard about the diamonds. Bardolph thought that it was the Ghost Diamonds that brought me here. He wanted to strike a deal. Told Lucius all about them.’ Zogel stopped speaking as Mariah tried to sit up. ‘I love diamonds – don’t you, Mariah?’ He pulled the cuff of his crisp white shirt and twisted the gold linking chains.

The door to the state room opened and Lucius stepped inside. Mariah looked at him through eyes half closed. He sensed he was in a large, shadowy room. He could make out only the shapes of those around him and the burning light far to his left.

‘Dedalus,’ Lucius said softly. ‘I think you have told him too much.’

‘Not in the slightest, Lucius,’ Zogel said with a grin. ‘I wish to tell him everything, every sordid detail of why we are here.’

‘Would that be wise?’ asked the dwarf.

‘Not at all. Wisdom is for the foolish,’ Zogel replied.

‘But the exchange? I have already sent word to Charity.’

‘Has he replied?’ Zogel asked as his eyes widened in anticipation.

Lucius didn’t speak. He looked at Mariah and then to Zogel. He gave a gruff cough as if to clear his throat and then turned and left the room.

‘Perhaps I’ll get a chance to tell you more before you leave,’ Zogel continued.

‘I can go?’ Mariah asked.

‘There was never any doubt. You are to be traded for the diamonds. You are the one thing that Charity will not give up. It was when you said, “It’s a family business” – the day we met – that’s when I knew I had you. Thought then that Charity had a weakness and the weakness was you – his godson. Once I have the diamonds, then the
Irenzee
will be gone.’

‘Do you always get what you want?’ Mariah asked.

‘Always,’ Zogel replied as he curled his moustache with the tips of his fingers. ‘That’s why I’m the richest man in the world. The Society of Truth will have to wait for their money. To think – they expected me to take the diamonds to Notre-Dame in Paris on their behalf. Now I’ll just take them for myself.’

‘So that’s what Sacha’s father was going to do – allow the ship to leave without a warrant,’ Mariah said as he focused his eyes. Above him he could make out the faint shape of a vaulted roof. He felt sick to the stomach and breathed deeply.

‘You are one step ahead,’ Zogel replied as he stood up to

leave. ‘I didn’t like the idea of them being killed. Pointless, really. I’m going to take them with me and let them go when the heat is off. She’s a good girl – told me all about you. In fact, without her I would never have known where to look. She led us straight to you and told us how to get in the passage without being seen. Sacha has been working for me for quite a while.’

‘Working for you?’ Mariah asked incredulously, his words sharp and half shouted.

‘Don’t be so surprised. It’s not a bad thing. How else did we know so much about the hotel? Can’t blame someone for taking care of themselves, can we? I trust you would have done the same.’

Zogel began to walk from the state room with his arms folded behind his back. Mariah watched his every step.

‘So when can I go?’ he asked.

‘As soon as we hear that Charity is prepared to exchange the diamonds for you. I have had to tell him that I will kill you if he doesn’t do what I want. And he has been led to believe that it is Bardolph who is asking. So I do think he’ll agree.’

‘Won’t Bardolph stop you?’ Mariah asked. ‘He wants the diamonds.’

‘Bardolph is not my problem … He will be taken care of.’ Zogel stopped as he got to the door and turned. His voice changed and he lost his smile. ‘You have the free run of the ship. If a door is locked, it is so for a reason – leave it that way. Apart from that you can do and go as you please. I suggest you are not seen on deck. The ship is being watched.’

With that, Zogel was gone.

Mariah edged his way from the bed and gazed around the room. He still felt as if he was asleep. It looked more like the inside of a luxurious castle than the cabin of a ship. The bed was made of rich, dark oak and carved with frogs. The door stood open and he could see the long passageway that stretched

out into the distance. To each side of him, pressed against the walls, were two large sofas, and on the walls were paintings of ships. There were no windows, just a light in the corner pinned to the wall on a swinging hinge. He could hear the engine far below. It reminded him of the Prince Regent. There was the gentle vibration that shook everything so that the whole ship trembled slightly.

He tried to walk. His feet were heavy. The deck moved with the waves, causing him to stumble. Everything spun in his head as the chloroform left him. Then there was a gentle tapping on the door.

‘I couldn’t tell you,’ Sacha blurted as she stepped inside the cabin. ‘I’d promised Dedalus.’

‘First names, eh, Sacha?’ Mariah snapped.

‘It’s not like that. You know Walpole was going to kill my father. Dedalus Zogel promised to help us – he said I should tell no one, not even you.’

‘Fine thing that is. Get you from the castle, save your life and you run straight to him.’

‘My father needed me,’ she protested.

‘If he were honest this would never have happened.’

‘We can’t change what is done,’ she replied.

‘You can’t choose your family – but you
can
choose your friends,’ he snarled. ‘You lied, Sacha. You lied again and again and now I am here because you told him how to find me.’

‘He said he wouldn’t hurt you. Told me that you wouldn’t listen to him. He had to bring you here. If he gets the diamonds then he’ll be gone.’

‘Can you trust him to tell the truth? All the man wants is money and he doesn’t care how he gets it. For all we know he could be lying to us and working with Walpole to kill Captain Jack. Did you think of that before you snitched on me? You took him at his word. He’s a liar – he’s American.’

Sacha folded her arms and shrugged her shoulders. For so long he had wanted to see her, and now he wished she were gone from his life for good.

‘It’s all about money, Sacha. You father was prepared to cheat and look where it has got you. They’ll still kill you – you can never come back here. When this boat leaves, you leave with it – for ever. The only way you can stay is if we find out who murdered the guests at the Prince Regent and clear Captain Jack – think about it.’

Sacha stared at the floor. She had no words for him. She knew he was right. Her father would have turned an eye and taken the money. A shiver ran through her until her foot shook angrily against the floor.

‘So what will you do?’ she said calmly.

‘Get off the ship and find Jack,’ Mariah said churlishly as his eyes dismissed her.

‘But you’ll be off tonight. I heard what Zogel said. If he swaps you for the diamonds you’ll be gone,’ she replied, ignoring his unspoken demand.

‘The Bureau wants the diamonds and I work for the Bureau,’ he said coldly, unable to look at her. ‘Whatever I say you’ll just go and tell him – so why don’t you?’

‘There’s no way you can escape – it’s impossible to get on the deck.’

‘Zogel said I could go where I liked,’ Mariah replied.

‘But not through any locked doors. And every door on this deck is locked. We were brought down here and told the same thing. You’re a prisoner.’

Heavy footsteps pressed against the floor in the corridor and a door slammed in the distance. Lucius stumbled in, ahead of a guard. He walked briskly, falling over his feet as the ship rocked from side to side.

‘A slight change of plan,’ he said to Mariah as he smiled deliciously

at Sacha. ‘Mister Zogel will keep you here until the morning and then you’ll be free.’

Mariah wasn’t listening. He stared at the guard. There was something familiar about his face. Although it was ordinary and in no way remarkable, the face of a man that could be seen across the world in every country and on every street corner, yet Mariah knew he had seen the man before.

He closed his eyes and held his hands to his face. In the darkness he could see him. It was the night of the explosions. Mariah was back at the midnight ball. There was Hoetzendorf and his wife. There was the waiter.

‘I know,’ Mariah said out loud, unable to keep his words to himself. ‘I know –’

‘What?’ asked the dwarf.

‘Can’t think,’ Mariah said quickly. ‘Must be when I was poisoned.’

‘Zogel wants to see you both in the dining room, by way of an apology. He has a surprise.’

Lucius gestured for them to follow. Mariah looked at the guard. There was no doubt. This was the man he had seen in the Prince Regent. It
was
him –
he
was the murderer. The guard was the man who had blown up the Ambassador and the others with hexogenamite.

Suddenly, what Zogel had said began to make sense. The bad debts had been settled. Hoetzendorf and the others had paid with their lives. Zogel had them murdered – but why? Charity would know why Zogel killed them and what linked them all together. He had to see Charity, tell him what he had found. These thoughts made Mariah want to escape even more. He could feel the panic rising in his chest as his heart beat faster.

Mariah tried to clear his mind as he followed Lucius along the oak-panelled corridor while the ship yawed from side to side. It smelt of caustic soap and beeswax. Through the small brass

portholes that ran the length of the ship Mariah could see the outline of the town moving up and down. It seemed far away. The sea and sky were black against the lights of the town hall and the houses that gripped to the hillside beneath the castle.

‘All is well … all will be well,’ Mariah whispered to himself. Sacha turned and tried to smile at him. He caught her eyes for just a moment and then looked away, stiff-faced.

The guard walked behind them. He didn’t speak, but just looked at Mariah as if he knew what he was thinking. Mariah bowed his head and followed silently through several doors and up two flights of steps.

Lucius unlocked every door and the guard locked them again as the procession went on. A door would never be left open. Mariah noticed the guard try every door after he had locked it, to make sure.