The Doomsday Testament(40)

‘So, the opposition, but which part of the opposition?’

‘Is it significant that they were Chinese?’ The man at the other end of the phone frowned. It was very significant, but Frederick would never know that. Frederick was commander of the society’s military wing, like his father before him. But the ideals that drove him were old-fashioned and, in his leader’s view, no longer relevant in the twenty-first century. He had a very different agenda. Frederick, and the men like him, were a means to an end. Nothing more. The Tibetan casket wasn’t Frederick’s problem. It appeared that the men in Beijing who believed they were the rightful owners of the casket were much better placed than he had realized. Someone had done him a favour, but that same someone might very well have the opposite effect in the future.

‘I’ll instigate some investigations at this end. In the meantime, are we still on Saintclair?’

‘He should be boarding the Air Berlin flight to Paderborn with his girlfriend in exactly five minutes.’

‘Girlfriend? The file said no significant others.’

‘It appears she is new on the scene. We are checking her out.’

‘Do that, and get back to me. I don’t like loose ends.’

‘Hey, could that be it?’

Jamie leaned across so that he had a view from Sarah’s window as they made their final approach to Paderborn-Lippstadt airport. Through the shimmering translucent disc of the propeller he made out the regular street patterns of a small German town scattered around a wooded height. On the summit of the hill stood an enormous, oddly shaped castle constructed of grey stone. It had been built in the shape of an elongated triangle, with a large twin-towered building across the apex and two wings that converged on what looked like a huge drum. At first glance it reminded Jamie of the Starship Enterprise. He stayed a little longer than he needed to, enjoying the proximity of the slim body and the fragrance of the perfume she wore.

‘That’s it. Wewelsburg Castle. The centre of Himmler’s empire.’

He gave her a reassuring smile and leaned back in his seat ready for landing. The knuckles on her left hand showed white where she gripped the rest between them. Most Americans he’d met treated flying the same way Londoners did the Tube, as a necessary inconvenience that brought them closer than they liked to people they’d never met and probably didn’t want to. Sarah Grant was different. She’d taken one look at the twin turbo-prop plane and almost refused to board.

‘I came across on a 747 and I didn’t like that much. You’re not getting me on a boxkite the Wright brothers flew in. I’ll wait until something bigger comes along, huh?’

Eventually, Jamie persuaded her it was all part of the big adventure and once they were in the air she’d opened her eyes and almost relaxed. Now they were approaching the runway she closed them again. ‘Wake me when we’ve landed,’ she ordered.

Wewelsburg lay less than two miles from the airport, but Jamie resisted her suggestion that they take an immediate look at the castle and, instead, drove the hire car to Paderborn, where they were staying at a cheap hotel on the outskirts.

‘I’ve booked us in for three nights, so we’ll have plenty of time. No need to rush things,’ he said airily, ignoring the look of suspicion she directed at him. The look told him everything he needed to know about the coming seventy-two hours. This was going to be a strictly professional trip. He forced his libido back into cold storage and concentrated on getting them the nine miles to the town.

But she had another surprise as they checked in that had him questioning everything he thought he knew about women. He had booked them adjoining rooms, but she made a point of asking if they were connecting and the look she gave him made his stomach lurch. In the corridor there was a moment when he thought she was waiting to be invited inside, but it passed before he could take advantage.

‘We’ll split the bill, OK?’ she insisted. ‘I told you I’d pay my way. I’d like to freshen up; maybe we can meet downstairs in an hour and go into town for something to eat?’

‘Of course, but I thought you wanted to see the castle later?’

‘No point, it’s Monday and the castle’s not open on Mondays.’

He looked at her in surprise. ‘How do you know that?’

She grinned and waved a tourist brochure she’d picked up at reception. ‘You gotta be prepared, Jamie, isn’t that what you Boy Scouts say. Or maybe you weren’t in the Boy Scouts?’

When the door closed behind her he hesitated for a few seconds, struggling to break the invisible elastic cord that drew him towards it. He’d been in the Scouts for four years, but it seemed he hadn’t learned one damned thing that was worthwhile.