Book of JUDAS

Chapter Twenty-Two-2

It’s getting close to the speeches now, she thought and nodded her agreement.

Simon noticed her lingering gaze as she scrutinised him for a moment longer.

“What is it?” he asked with a curious smile.

“You,” she replied with a grin. “Heather was right, you are a Prince and you do look very dashing tonight!”

Simon leaned over a kissed her quickly on the cheek. He wanted to say more but now was not the time.

“Let’s hope the speeches aren’t too long-winded!” he added, glancing around as the lights dimmed and the spotlight fell on the wooden lectern.

In the end they were thankful as the speeches did not take too long. They sat listening patiently until it was Theodore Grainger’s turn to address his guests. He was a good and confident speaker and Simon wondered why he chose to be so reclusive in his private life. Anna could hardly bear the suspense; she was now at the stage where she just wanted to get on with it and escape to the sanctuary of Heather’s apartment as soon as possible afterwards. After thirty minutes Theodore Grainger signed off to loud and spontaneous applause and the jazz band moved in and quickly took up their position on ready-made stage. The guests needed no second invitation and the dance floor soon filled up with party revellers. Just as Grainger was about to return to his seat and reengage Anna in conversation, Simon saw his chance and jumped in.

“Would you like to dance?” he asked, getting to his feet and stretching out his hand.

“I’d love to,” she replied, and Simon led her towards the dance floor. They paused briefly as they bumped into Grainger walking back towards them. Initially Simon thought he looked upset but as they got closer he broke into a wide grin.

“Enjoy yourselves!” he said generously and flamboyantly waving his arm in the air towards the jazz band.

“We will,” Anna shouted back as they pushed through the throng of people towards the middle of the dance floor.

As soon as they became an inconspicuous part of the crowd, Simon pointed towards the side exit and they both slipped off without giving rise to any unwanted interest.

Outside in the darkness of the estate grounds Philip looked at his watch; it was approaching eleven-thirty. He was bored and frustrated at being sat in the car for hours on end waiting for something to happen. Throughout his life, Philip had always liked to feel in control of the situation and this experience was firmly testing his resolve. Yawning as he checked his watch again, he decided to get some air and stretch his legs. Stepping out into the brisk evening air, he sauntered along the rows of cars nodding to some of the other chauffeurs in the car park who were leaning against their vehicles smoking and chatting to each other. The mansion, although impressive, had an eerie feel to it with the silhouettes of the towers and the stone statues etched out on the skyline carved by the battlements against the light of the full moon. Philip shuddered from the cold as he walked across the lawn with his hands in his pockets towards the house looking for telltale lights at the upstairs windows. The commotion from the lively party on the far side of the mansion could be heard in the background.

Inside the house, Anna tugged Simon’s jacket.

“This way,” she whispered. “Follow me, the exhibit rooms are on the third floor,” and she set off down one of the narrow corridors leading to a stone spiral staircase at the bottom of one of the elevated towers.

“We have to be quick − I think we’ve got between fifteen and twenty minutes before he notices we’re missing,” said Simon.

Anna led the way, travelling as quickly as she could. Holding her shoes and hitching up her dress, she climbed up the circular stone staircase. Suddenly they both heard a noise that made them freeze on the spot. The sound came from above them; it was the slow, deliberate sound of footsteps echoing down from the winding staircase above them. Anna gasped and stared at Simon in horror.

Simon didn’t have time to think, he had to react and he grabbed Anna’s hand and pulled her up the stairs. He felt they were close to the tower’s juncture with the second floor and if they could just get there in time they might have a chance to escape unnoticed. Anna followed instinctively despite Simon holding her arm so firmly that she almost fell over the last step.

They made it to the open arched doorway that led to another long corridor on the second floor of the mansion. Simon looked for somewhere to hide but there was no time, the steps were getting louder. We’ll have to take our chance, he thought. Quickly, he pressed his back into the corner where the corridor met the jutting-out brick of the stone archway. The steps were almost upon them as he pulled Anna hard around the waist so that she fell back against him. Anna held her breath – if the owner of the footsteps decided to exit at the second level and pass through the archway then the game was up. The constant click of heeled shoe against stone sound got louder and louder until the person was on their level, within a metre of where they were standing. Simon was holding Anna so tightly that he felt the shiver of relief run through her as the footsteps continued down the spiral staircase.

Still holding her waist, Simon peered around the edge of the archway and spied the back of the uniformed security guard disappearing into the darkness. They waited a few more minutes until the sound had faded.

“That was close,” Anna sighed as he released her from his grip.

“Come on, let’s get going,” whispered Simon and motioned to her to overtake him back up the spiral staircase.

“Don’t worry, I’m right behind you,” he added as she glanced back nervously at him.

They swiftly climbed one further storey before reaching the same stone archway leading into the pitch-black corridor of the third floor.

Simon reached into his pocket and pulled out two small but very powerful flashlights and handed one to her. The small windows in the tower had given them some natural light but once out into the passageway it was very difficult to see the way forward.

“This way,” said Anna, using the doors and the contours of the hallway to gauge her bearings and determine the correct path. The day she had visited the house many years ago was still etched on her memory and she could remember the grand, double-door entrance to the exhibition room through a circular atrium with a domed ceiling. The walls were taken up with large canvas portraits and in the middle of the atrium was a podium with a life-size replica statue of Michelangelo’s Venus.

“It must be this way,” she said, beckoning Simon to follow her and they moved quickly and quietly down another passageway. Although everything was still and quiet, the low-level hum from the booming party below filtered up from down below.

“This is it,” Anna whispered excitedly as she saw the shape of the atrium appear round the corner.

Moving around the statue, Simon reached for the handle of the door to the Exhibit Room. It was not locked and he pushed it open. He thanked his luck but at the same time was slightly suspicious. This is easier than I expected… Maybe a bit too easy, he thought privately to himself.

Once inside the exhibition chamber, Anna’s memory came flooding back. She recalled its size, the high ceiling and the width spanning most of the front of the house.

“Where do we begin?” asked Simon, bewildered by the scale of their task.

He stood motionless as he panned the dimmed torchlight around the hall to reveal row upon row of different sized display cases and tables, full of ancient relics, running in parallel to each other across the length of the wooden panelled floor.

“You start at that end,” she pointed, “and I’ll start down here. Be quick – we haven’t got much time left.”

Simon rushed to his starting point and, pointing the flashlight down at the showcases, he moved slowly along the line looking for any trace of the second arkheynia.

Outside, Philip had completed his first circumnavigation of the mansion and he stood in the shadows of a tree in the middle of the front lawn staring up at the house. As he wondered how they were getting on he thought he saw a flicker of light coming from the window on the third floor. Keeping his eyes trained on the same location he spotted the glimmer again. His senses heightened as he realised they must be searching for the arkheynia in the Exhibit Room at that very moment.

On the third floor, in their excitement to find the chamber and locate the second arkheynia they had been totally oblivious to the mechanical whirring of the camera that had been watching their progress.

“Anything yet?” hissed Simon loudly with a hint of desperation.

“No nothing…” replied Anna who suddenly stopped unable to finish her sentence.

“Oh my God, Simon, do you hear that?” she called anxiously.

Outside the chamber doors was the unmistakeable sound of voices coming from the atrium and they were getting louder.

With the feeling of panic rising, she turned to Simon.

“They’re coming in!” she cried in a hoarse whisper.

“Get down!” said Simon urgently, slipping behind a tall display cabinet for cover. If they come in now we’re done for, he thought, hoping against hope he was wrong.

The voices outside got louder until suddenly both doors were swung open violently by Theodore Grainger who promptly turned on the central lights and stood with his hands on his hips in an expectant manner flanked by two armed security guards.

“I think you can both come out now,” his voice boomed around the high ceiling of the exhibition chamber.

Outside Philip saw the light come on and immediately realised something must have gone dreadfully wrong. Why else would the light suddenly come on? Startled, he contemplated his options.

Inside the hall, Anna cautiously stood up from below the table under which she had been hiding and similarly Simon moved into view from behind the wooden cabinet. Despite the shock of being discovered, Simon maintained his wits and walked calmly to where Anna was standing. As he moved his eyes held the intense gaze of Theodore Grainger. Anna’s acute embarrassment at having been caught red-handed caused her to start fiddling busily with her white ball dress in an effort to pull it straight.

“I suppose you both know that you could go to jail for a very long time don’t you?” bellowed Grainger mercilessly, his face remaining deadpan. He reached into his jacket and pulled out a cheroot, which he began rolling in his fingers before lighting.

“About ten years for burglary, I believe,” he continued, blowing a great plume of smoke in the air and staring at them with an emotionless disdain. Neither Simon nor Anna said anything.

Is this it? thought Simon with a grimace. Has our quest for the Book of Judas already come to an end? There’s no way we can make an escape past those armed security guards. Anna stood alongside him like a cat caught in the headlights, her heart pounding in anticipation of what would happen next.

Outside in the shadows Philip had made up his mind. He was going to find out what was going on up on the third floor. Furtively, he moved towards a side entrance that was being used by the party caterers.

On the third floor Theodore Grainger, seemingly bristling with anger, took two steps towards them and subsequently, expecting the worse, they were caught totally by surprise. To their astonishment the hard craggy lines around Grainger’s face softened and disappeared as he broke into a warm smile. At first Simon thought he must be mistaken but then Grainger walked across the hall to a locked cabinet, opened it with a key and pulled something out.

“Is this what you’re looking for?” he asked and held up the second arkheynia with the distinctive, bright red tip shining at one end.

Confused, Anna stared at him. Grainger’s anger seemed to have evaporated – he actually seemed amused – and somehow Simon felt sure his new demeanour was genuine rather than some maniacal pretence.