Iris Johansen - Deadlock

PAULEY WAS COMING OUT OF the farmhouse when they reached it. "Are you being chased? Should I come to your rescue?"

Emily skidded to a stop and tried to get her breath. "No. Just a lit¬tle morning constitutional."

"What a disappointment." He smiled. "I'm really getting into this James Bond stuff. Though Garrett said that he'd strangle me if I didn't quit making cracks." He looked at Irana. "I'll introduce myself, since Emily is having trouble with breath control. I'm Mark Pauley, computer genius extraordinary and part-time lookout man. Not so ex¬traordinary."

"Irana Povak." She shook her head. "And I'm not extraordinary at all. But I'm a very good doctor."

"They must think you're extraordinary. Garrett paid me a fortune to find you." He studied her and slowly nodded. "You know, I think they may be right."

"Have you loaded the suitcases in the car, Pauley?" Garrett had come out of the house.

"Yes, I was just coming back in to tell you when I stopped to see if I was needed to rescue Emily." He gazed at Garrett accusingly. "You didn't let me go along last night. You just used my brilliant brain and expertise and sent me off to bed. That wasn't fair, Garrett."

"Fair? Good God, have I created a monster?"

"It serves you right. I didn't want to go with you to Babin's house. But I didn't realize what a rush it could be taking a risk like that. I have a curious nature. I want to explore it again."

Garrett sighed. "It's not a computer game, Pauley."

"No, it's different, but it may be more fun." He nodded. "Now I think I'll go inside and get Dardon stirring. He's feeling a little too su¬perior at the moment. I want to tell him not only that I'm a mental gi¬ant, but what a superb help I was to you at Babin's the other night. Better than he could do."

Emily looked after him in surprise. The venture with Garrett had evidently formed a bond between them that had overcome Garrett's annoyance with him. Not only that, but it had opened a door for Pauley she had not expected.

"Dardon may just crush his head," Garrett murmured. "Oh, well, Pauley's got to learn."

"You sound almost paternal," Emily said.

"I'm nobody's father. Not Pauley. Not you." He turned to Irana. "Am I, Irana?"

"You'd make a very good father," Irana said. "It would just take practice and opportunity."

Emily changed the subject. "What did Pauley say about the trans¬lation?"

"He'll do it… reluctantly."

"But it's not as much fun as being James Bond." Emily added, deadpan. "However, I'm sure he agreed after you had a fatherly talk with him."

Garrett gave her a glance. "I'll get you for that." He went on, "Fer¬guson called and gave me a report on the three industrialists who dealt with Babin. I told him the only one we're interested in now is Joslyn." He paused. "He told me that I was barking up the wrong tree."

"Why?"

"Joslyn is an absolutely sterling character. Squeaky-clean. He has a wife and two college-age kids who are also squeaky-clean. His business transactions are aboveboard and fair. He's extremely religious, a pillar of his church. He donates a good portion of his income to the church and to charity. He took a sabbatical two years ago and went to Ethiopia with a mission group for four months. He worked so hard there that his immune system failed, and he became ill with fever. They had to ship him home."

Emily shook her head. "Then Babin didn't tell you the truth. It must be one of the other men."

"Perhaps," Garrett said. "But I don't think so. I worked hard to make sure Babin was very scared indeed. I don't believe he would have lied to me. And I have enough experience to tell the difference if he tried."

"Joslyn seems unlikely," Irana said. "It's one thing to give money to the unfortunate, it's another to actually go and minister to them."

"Or someone very clever," Garrett said. "And willing to go to the final length to keep up his image. I'm going to bank on what Babin told me. If I get shot down, then I'll go down another path."

Shot down. Emily didn't like that phrase. It brought back all the worry and imagery that had plagued her during the last forty-eight hours. Garrett shot. Garrett dead. Staunton hovering over all of them like a hideous gargoyle. "Perhaps he didn't know what Babin was do-ing?

"He's evidently a smart man, or he wouldn't be so successful. He'd be hard to fool unless he deliberately closed his eyes. He was the one who authorized Babin to make the deal with Nicholas Zelov for the book and the amulets." He added, "And the Book of Living led them to the hammer. Or at least the place where the hammer was sup¬posed to be."

"But if he's a very rich man, why would he go after more?"

"Nicholas's escape fund was worth billions, remember? Billions equal power. Some men can never have enough money. Are you ready to leave?"

"As soon as I throw my clothes into my suitcase."

"I've already done that. I thought we'd buy some clothes for Irana somewhere on the road." He glanced at Irana. "You won't change your mind?"

She shook her head, and said quietly, "I'm coming with you all the way, Garrett."

"That's what I was afraid of." He shrugged. "Then I'll go rescue Pauley… or Dardon, and we'll get out of here."

"So we're going to see Joslyn?" Irana asked.

"Not now. I want to try to see if we can get something out of that Book of Living that we can use to make him want to talk to us. And I want to know how Bishop Dimitri figures in this."

Emily frowned. "Joslyn already has the original book. He must al¬ready know everything in it."

"But he may not want us to know what was in it that made him want the book so badly."

"It's over a hundred years old. There's nothing in it that could af¬fect Joslyn now. It has to be the Tsar's treasure drawing him."

"Does it? I never take anything for granted."

"So where are we going?"

"I think we should be close to Joslyn. His factories and main of¬fices are in Ekaterinaburg. We'll find a house or inn near there." "Ekaterinaburg," Irana repeated. He glanced at her. "You know about it?"

She nodded. "I was there years ago. I thought it my duty. I never wanted to go back."

"Why not?" Emily asked. "What's in Ekaterinaburg besides Joslyn's factories?"

"For one thing, the museum where the hammer and the rest of the farm equipment were on exhibit for all those decades," Garrett said. "And it's also the place where Nicholas II and his entire family were massacred."

Her eyes widened. "Dear God."

"Rather a curious coincidence that Joslyn is located there, isn't it?" Garrett asked. "Would it interest you to know that Bishop Dimitri also has his residency and jurisdiction in the same city?"

"Yes."

"That's what I thought," Garrett said as he turned to go back into the house. "And that's another reason why Ferguson may be wrong about Mr. Squeaky-Clean."

THEY REACHED EKATERINABURG just before dark that evening.

Emily didn't know what she had expected, but it wasn't a large, bustling city. It might be totally unreasonable, but it seemed as if there should be a pall hanging over the town.

Irana nodded as she read her expression. "I know what you're feel¬ing. It was the same for me the first time I came here. I'd read what happened, and all I could think of was Nicholas, Alexandra, and their children. Ekaterinaburg is actually the third-largest city in Russia. It came as a shock that the royal family was even brought here. You'd ex¬pect them to be held in some remote spot where there wasn't any po¬tential for them to be rescued."

"Evidently not much potential," Emily said.

"Talk about potential." Garrett pointed at a huge factory with steam pouring out of the smokestacks. "That's Joslyn Plastics."

"It's enormous," Dardon said.