Simon Green - The Man with the Golden Torc

"You don’t understand," said the broken man who used to be Malcolm Drood. "I haven’t left this place since I first came down here. All those years ago…This is the only place where I feel safe anymore. Just the thought of leaving here…is more than I can bear. You’re the first real, in the flesh visitors I’ve allowed in here since I first shut the door behind me and sealed myself off from the world." He managed a small smile. "You should feel honoured."

"No company, ever?" said Molly. "I heard rumours, but I never really thought…How do you stand it?"

"Because the alternatives are worse," said the Mole. "I live through my screens now, and on the Net. A virtual life, but better than none."

"All those years," I said. "Gathering and collating information, but you’ve never done anything to expose the truth about our family to any of the world’s media. Why not?"

"Because I’m not ready to die yet," said the Mole.

"So," I said to the Mole, "is there by any chance a back way out of this place? I’m really not too keen on fighting my way back through tunnels full of seriously pissed-off trolls just to get back to Blackfriars station. Which is probably swarming with unfriendly people on the lookout for Molly and me anyway."

"Of course there’s another way out," said the Mole. "You don’t think I’d allow myself to be trapped anywhere, even in my own lair, do you? I may be paranoid, agoraphobic, and unhealthily addicted to eBay, but I’m not stupid. No. I’ve always known that one day my many enemies will track me down, and then I will have to leave my comfortable little bolthole. Probably running. Yes. So, if you would care to make your way to the back of the chamber, preferably without knocking against or in any way upsetting my very delicate equipment, you’ll find an emergency elevator, ready and willing to take you straight to the surface."

"Where on the surface?" said Molly.

"Anywhere on the surface," the Mole said smugly. "Just tell the elevator where you want to go, and it will deliver you there."

"Anywhere in London?" said Molly.

"Anywhere in the world," said the Mole. "You always did think too small, Molly."

"An elevator to anywhere in the world?" I said. "How is that even possible?"

The Mole smiled on me pityingly. "You wouldn’t understand even if I did explain it to you. Let’s just say that quantum uncertainty is a wonderful thing and leave it at that. It was nice to meet you at last, Molly. And you, Edwin. But don’t come back. You’re just too dangerous to have around. Bye-bye. Safe journey. Why are you still here?"

Molly and I took the hint, nodded good-bye, and headed for the back of the cavern. Where there was indeed a perfectly ordinary elevator door set flush into the black basalt cavern wall. The door was polished steel, and beside it was a big red button, marked UP. I looked at Molly.

"On to the next rogue, I suppose. For want of anything better to do. You do know of another rogue?"

"Of course. Sebastian Drood. He has a nice little place in Knightsbridge, just down the road from you."

I may have blinked a few times. "I never knew that."

"Lot of things you don’t know that I do," said Molly. "You’d be amazed. Sebastian’s been around for ages, though he doesn’t bother to make the scene much. Likes to be thought of as a gentleman thief, but he’s really just a professional burglar with delusions of grandeur."

"Can’t say I know the name," I said. "Probably got scrubbed from the family history, like the Mole. And me."

"Sebastian’s a lot older than you," said Molly. "And though he’s not averse to involving himself in the odd plot or intrigue, he’s always been a behind-the-scenes kind of player. A real let’s you and him fight kind of guy. Never does anything unless there’s a profit in there somewhere for him. But he might help you…just to get back at the family that dared to outlaw him. Sebastian’s always been a great one for nursing a grudge."

She hit the UP button and announced the name of a street in upmarket Knightsbridge, and the elevator door hissed open. The interior looked just like any other elevator. We stepped inside, and the door shut quickly behind us. There was no control panel and no sensation of upward movement, but just a moment later the door opened to reveal a street I recognised that was only a few minutes’ walk from where I used to live. I stepped outside and looked around cautiously. There was no sign of any Drood agents. Whatever surveillance there was was probably concentrated around my old flat, just in case I was dumb enough to go back there.

The sun was high in the sky. Half a day gone, and damn all to show for it. It was hard to think, to plan properly, under such constant pressure. I looked back at Molly and wasn’t surprised to discover that the elevator door had disappeared behind her.

"How is it you know Sebastian?" I said. "Have you worked with him too?"

"You have got to be joking," said Molly, curling her lip. "I wouldn’t touch that man with a disinfected barge pole. He works alone because no one else trusts him. He’s a two-faced, treacherous little turd who’s screwed over pretty much everyone at one time or another. However…he can be the man to go to when you need to get your hands on a certain item that no one else can supply, legally or illegally. Sebastian can get you anything, for the right price, as long as it’s firmly understood that there isn’t going to be any provenance. Or any protection if the original owner discovers you’ve got it. You can also be absolutely sure that there won’t be any refund if the item in question turns out to be not entirely what you thought it was. It’s up to you to be sure before you hand over any money. Buyer beware, and carry a bloody big stick."

"And this is the man you thought might help me?" I said.

"I’d better phone ahead," said Molly, producing a bright pink phone with a Hello Kitty face on it. "Make sure he’s in and that he’ll agree to see us."

"Might not be wise, using my name over a standard phone, on an open line," I said. "My family have people who listen in on everything."

"Don’t teach your grandmother to throttle chickens," said Molly.

"I haven’t spoken over an open line in years. The angels themselves couldn’t listen in on one of my calls without actual divine intervention on their side."

She moved a few steps away while she punched in the number. I leaned back against an ornamental stone wall and considered my situation. I wasn’t impressed with the two rogues Molly had introduced me to so far. Oddly John had gone mad, and the Mole was well on his way in the same direction. Both of them trapped in prisons of their own making. And this Sebastian sounded like a real scumbag. How could I trust anything a man like that might tell me, even if I could persuade him to talk? But time was pressing, and I had to get answers from somewhere. If nothing else, I was pretty sure I’d know the truth once I heard it. That I would recognise it somehow. My left arm hurt like hell, even though I had my hand tucked into my belt to carry some of the weight. I massaged the muscles with my other hand, but it didn’t help. The pain beat sickly in my left shoulder and down into my chest. The strange matter was spreading inexorably through my system. Three days, Molly had said. Maybe four. Maybe not. I had to get my answers soon, while they were still some good to me.

Time was against me…

Molly turned off her phone and put it away. "He says he’ll see us, but only if we come over right away. It’s just a few minutes’ walk from here. But Eddie…try to be nice to Sebastian. He can be a real pain in the arse, but…he really does know things that no one else does. Is there anything you might know that you could offer him in exchange? Some family secret, perhaps, from after his time? Sebastian loves secrets. He can’t sell them on fast enough."