Graham Masterton - Death Trance

'Not if they don't make every effort to control Mictantecutli ,' said Mr Evelith, darkly.

'There's another point. Mr Wardwell isn't going to deliver Mictantecutli to you straight away, like he promised. He's decided to take a good look at it first, to see what it is that you want so badly.'

'He'll be torn to pieces,' said Mr Evelith. 'Is he mad?! He'll be torn to pieces! Doesn't he know what Mictantecutli is, even now? You must stop him! Mr Trenton, you must do everything you can to stop him!'

I shook my head. 'I've already tried, Mr Evelith. He's made up his mind. Wreck first, Mictantecutli second, open the copper vessel third. Gilly — that's Miss McCormick — Gilly says he won't be swayed.'

Duglass Evelith was extremely agitated. He walked around the table, and then back again, and then he closed all the books he had opened, one after the other, in a succession of snaps. At last he looked up at me and said, 'You must dive on the David Dark very first thing tomorrow morning. You must bring up that copper vessel at all costs. Otherwise, my God, the world will see such havoc as has never been seen in nine life-times.'

'That's what I was going to propose,' I told him. 'A quick dive, first thing tomorrow, with a couple of crowbars and a winch.'

'You think crowbars will be adequate?' Duglass Evelith asked me. 'Look here.'

He shuffled through his heaps of papers until he found a sketch-map of the Mary Rose which he had been studying in an effort to understand the problems that faced us with the David Dark . 'The copper vessel is in the hold,' he said. 'That means, even if the ship is lying at an angle of 30 degrees, you will still have to penetrate your way through three decks and God knows how many tons of silt before you reach it. I can understand why Mr Wardwell is so reluctant to bring it up in a hurry. The only way to reach it in anything like a reasonable length of time is to tear the decks wide apart. The copper vessel in fact is so long that it is quite possible that part of each deck was lifted at the time to accommodate it, and then fastened down again once it was securely stowed.'

Then how the hell am I going to get it out of there in one morning's diving?' I wanted to know.

'Simple,' said old man Evelith. 'I have an old friend who has a demolition business at Lexington. Quamus will drive over there now and collect two cases of dynamite, and some underwater fuses.'

'Dynamite? I've never used dynamite in my life. You mean you want me to blow the David Dark to pieces?'

'Can you think of another way to reach Mictantecutli before the wreck is registered, and the coastguard prevent anybody from going near?'

'I — ' I began, and then raised my hands in resignation.

'You mustn't worry,' said Duglass Evelith. 'Quamus is an expert diver, and he will swim with you. He knows Mr Walcott of the Salem Salvage Company; years ago they used to dive together. Mr Walcott will let us use his boat and all his equipment. I will ask Quamus to call him as soon as he returns from Lexington.'

'Do you think Quamus is up to it?' I asked. 'He must be at least 60 years old.'

'Quamus has been here at Billington ever since I was a child,' said Duglass Evelith. 'My father used to talk about the rides that Quamus gave him on his back when he was a child.'

'Are you serious? That would make him- '

'Well over 100 years old,' Duglass Evelith nodded.

'Yes. I have often thought about it myself. But it is not a question which one can put to Quamus. He would never answer; and it is quite likely that he would walk out and I would never see him again. But it is interesting to note that there is a Quamus mentioned in Joseph Evelith's diary of 1689.'

I stayed silent. In Duglass Evelith's house, I felt myself to be on strange and almost magical territory. It wasn't altogether a frightening sensation: but I felt that I had to conduct myself with caution. There was great influence here, influence that couldn't be explained in logical or scientific terms, and as long as I behaved wisely, I would probably be able to use it for my own benefit.

'It would be sensible for you to get some sleep now,' said Duglass Evelith. 'I will have Quamus wake you at six o'clock. Over breakfast, I will explain how you will use the dynamite on the David Dark .'

I got up. 'Goodnight, then,' I said. 'And thank you again for putting me up here.'

'A question of mutual interests,' said old man Evelith, and went back to reading one of his books before I could say anything else. It was only when I was halfway up the dark staircase, on the way up to bed, that I realized what I had actually let myself in for. An illegal underwater demolition job, despite the fact that I had scarcely any experience of diving, and no experience whatsoever with dynamite.

Gilly was sitting up in bed when I came in; and there was a warm fragrance of perfume around. She was reading A History of Oceanic Geology. I sat down on the end of the bed, and stripped off my necktie. 'Good?' I asked her, nodding towards the book.

'Riveting,' she said. 'What kept you so long?'

'Old man Evelith and his mouldy old documents. No, I shouldn't say that. He's fascinating, especially when it comes to the occult history of Salem and Granitehead. Do you know what he told me about Quamus?'

'Quamus gives me the creeps.'

'Quamus gives you the creeps? I found out tonight that Quamus is nearly 300 years old.'

'How much of that brandy did you have?'

'Not enough.'

I undressed, washed my teeth, and then climbed into bed. I had already showered once that evening, and the noise of the pipework had been enough to frighten me off showers forever. Rattling, and groaning, and letting out echoing shrieks.

Gilly lay back, and reached out for me, gently parting her thighs. I climbed astride her, kissing her forehead and her eyes and her neck, and then her shoulders, and her soft pink nipples. We made love silently, as if it were a midnight ritual; prolonging each moment until it was impossible to prolong it any more. I looked down, and saw my hardness enclosed by her tight and succulent lips, and fear and anxiety and grisly manifestations seemed very far away, like an off key orchestra playing in another part of the house.

'Maybe I ought to talk to Edward again,' I said, when the lights were switched off, and we lay in the unfamiliar darkness. 'Maybe he won't be so pigheaded after all.'

'You could try. Do you want me to mention it to him?'

I was quiet for a moment, as if I was thinking about it. The truth was, I was trying to allay any possible fears that Edward might have that I would dive on the wreck before he registered it. If Gilly were to go back to him and suggest that he and I should have a friendly discussion about the raising of the copper vessel, say in a day or so, then he would hardly be likely to suspect that I would try to sneak down there while the David Dark was still unmarked and unprotected.

Quamus woke me at 5:55, when Gilly was still asleep. She lay with her hair spread out on the pillow, one breast bare, and I discreetly covered her up before I tiptoed out. My clothes were already laid out for me in the drawing-room, and Quamus whispered, 'Breakfast right away, Mr Trenton.'

When I went downstairs to the oak-panelled dining room, the sunlight was already penetrating the French doors at the far end, and sparkling on the silverware and the Spode plates. There were lightly-scrambled eggs, muffins, and coffee. Mr Evelith had ordered that I should not be served the full breakfast today because I was swimming.

I ate on my own for five or ten minutes, until Duglass Evelith came into the room in a bronze quilted dressing-gown, smoking a small cigar. He sat down opposite me and watched as I buttered my muffin, and then he waved the blue cigar smoke away, and said, 'I hope this doesn't bother you. It's a repulsive old habit of mine; six o'clock every morning. How do you feel?'