Bartimaeus: The Golem’s Eye (28 page)

“I know why you have come!” The voice erupted from the magician’s mouth with all the force of a river in spate. It was defiant, aggrieved, endlessly weary. “You do not need to tell me. It is the manuscript! Of course! How could it be anything else, when I have applied my all to its mysteries for the last six months? It has eaten up my life during this time; see—it has robbed me of my youth! My skin shrivels with every scratch of the pen. The manuscript! It could be nothing else!”

Nathaniel was taken aback. “A manuscript? Well, possibly. But let me make myself cl—”

“I have been sworn to secrecy,” Mr. Kavka continued; “I have been threatened with death—but what do I care now? Once was quite enough. Twice—that is impossible for any single man. See how my energy has withered—” He held up his bound wrists against the light; they were sticklike and shaking, the skin so thin the light shone through between the bones.
“That
is what he has done to me. Before this, I burned with life.”

“Yes—but what—”

“I know exactly who you are,” the man continued, speaking over my master as if he did not exist. “An agent of the British government. I expected you in time, though not, I admit, someone so young and hopelessly inexperienced. If you had arrived a month ago, you might have saved me. As it is, it means little enough. I care not.” He gave a heartfelt sigh. “It is behind you, on the table.”

The boy looked back, reached out and picked up a paper. As he did so, he cried out in sudden pain; dropped it instantly. “Aahh! It’s charged! A trick—”

“Don’t show your youth and inexperience,” I said. “You’re embarrassing me. Can’t you see what that
is?
Anyone with eyes could tell you it’s the center of all the magical activity in Prague. It’s no wonder it gave you a shock. Use that poncy handkerchief in your pocket and study it more closely. Then tell me what it is.”

I knew already, of course. I’d seen such things before. But it did me good to see that trumped-up boy shivering with fright, too startled to disobey my instructions, wrapping his hand in his flouncy handkerchief, and picking the document up again with the utmost care. It was a large-scale manuscript, cut from calfskin, no doubt stretched and dried in accordance with the old methods—a thick, creamy parchment, beautifully smooth and crackling with power. This power came, not from the material, but from the words upon it. They were written in an unusual ink, equal parts red and black,
⁹
and flowed beautifully from right to left, from the base of the page up toward the top; line upon line of intricate, calligraphic runes. The boy’s eyes were wide with wonder. He sensed the artistry, the labor that had gone into this work, even if he could not read the marks. Perhaps he would have articulated this astonishment if he’d been able to get a word in. But the magician, old Kavka, was still singing like a canary, good and true.

“It isn’t finished yet,” he said. “You can see that. Another half-line needs to be added. A full night’s work before me: a night that will be my last in any case, since he will surely kill me, if the ink itself does not drain my blood. You see the space at the top—that small, square box? His employer will write his own name there. That is the only blood
he
needs to expend to control the creature. It works out very well for
him,
oh yes. Less so for poor Kavka.”

“What
is
his name?” I asked. Best to get right to the point, I find.

“The employer?” Kavka laughed—a harsh sound, like an insane old bird. “I do not know. I have never met him.”

The boy was still staring at the manuscript in a daze. “This is for another golem” he said slowly. “It’ll be put in its mouth to animate it. He’s giving the paper his lifeblood, which will feed into the golem….” He looked up at Kavka, with horrified wonder on his face.
“Why
are you doing this?” he asked. “It’s killing you.”

I made an urgent gesture. “That’s not what we need to know,” I said. “We’ve got to find out
who.
Time’s running out and dawn’s not far off.”

But the magician was talking again, a faint dullness in his gaze suggesting he no longer saw us clearly. “Because of Karl, of course,” he said. “And Mia. I have been promised their safe return if I create these things. You must understand that I do not
believe
this, but I cannot give up the one small hope I have. Perhaps he will honor it. Perhaps not. Probably they are already dead.” He broke into a hideous, wracking cough. “In truth—I fear this must be so,”

The boy was blank. “Karl, Mia? I don’t understand.”

“They are the only family I have,” the magician said. “How sad it is they have been lost. It is an unjust world. But when you are offered a chink of light, you climb toward it—even you, a cursed Briton, must understand that. I could not ignore the only chance I had to see their faces again.”

“Where are they, your family?” Nathaniel asked.

“Hah!” The magician stirred at this; a brief light flared in his eyes. “How do I know? Some godforsaken prison ship? The Tower of London? Or are their bones already burned and buried? That is
your
province, English boy—you tell
me
. You
are
from the British government, I suppose?”

My master nodded.

“The person you seek wishes your government no good.” Kavka coughed again. “But then—you know this. That is why you are here.
My
government would kill me, if it knew what I had done. They do not want a new golem created in case it brings another Gladstone down upon Prague, wielding that terrible Staff.”

“I take it,” the boy said, “that your relatives are Czech spies? They went to England?”

The magician nodded. “And were captured. I heard nothing of them. Then a gentleman came calling, said his employer would restore them to me, alive, if I revealed the secrets of the golem, if I created the necessary parchment. What could I do? What would any father do?”

Uncharacteristically, my master was silent. Uncharacteristically, I was, too. I looked at Kavka’s emaciated face and hands, his dulling eyes, saw in them the endless hours spent stooped over his books and papers, saw him pouring his life into the page on the small off chance that his family might be returned to him.

“The first parchment I completed a month ago,” Kavka said. “That was when the messenger altered his demands.
Two
golems were required now. In vain, I argued that it would kill me, that I would not live to see Mia and Karl again…. Ah, he is cruel. He would not listen.”

“Tell us about this messenger,” the boy said suddenly, “and if your children are alive, I will return them to you. I guarantee it.”

The dying man made a great effort. His eyes focused on my master; their dimness was replaced by a searching strength. He appraised Nathaniel carefully. “You are very young to be making such promises,” he whispered.

“I am a respected member of the government,” Nathaniel said. “I have power—”

“Yes, but can you be trusted?” Kavka gave a heavy sigh. “You
are
British, after all. I will ask your demon—” He did not look away from Nathaniel as he spoke. “What do you say? Is he trustworthy?”

I puffed out my cheeks, blew hard. “Tricky one. He’s a magician. By definition he’d sell his own grandmother for soap. But he’s marginally less corrupt than some of them. Possibly. A bit.”

Nathaniel looked at me. “Thanks for that ringing endorsement, Bartimaeus.”

“You’re welcome.”

But rather to my surprise, Kavka was nodding. “Very well. I leave it to your conscience, boy. I will not live to see them in any case. In truth, I am worn away. I care not a fig for you
or
him—you can go on tearing each other’s throats out until all Britain lies ravaged. But I will tell you what I know, and let that be an end.” He began to cough weakly, his chin low against his chest. “Be assured of one thing. I will not complete this manuscript now. You will not have two golems enlivening the streets of London.”

“Now, that
is
a pity,” a deep voice said.

29

Q
uite how he had arrived there, Nathaniel could not have said. Neither external nexus had been triggered, and not one of them—Nathaniel, Kavka, even Bartimaeus—had heard him enter the house itself. Yet there he was, leaning casually against the loft ladder, brawny arms folded across his chest.

Nathaniel’s mouth opened. No words came out—nothing but a horrified gasp of recognition.

The bearded mercenary. Simon Lovelace’s hired assassin.

After the fighting at Heddleham Hall some two years earlier, the mercenary had evaded capture. Government agents had hunted for him high and low, in Britain and across the Continent, but without success—no trace was ever found. In time, the police moved on; they closed their files and gave up the search. But Nathaniel could not forget. One terrible image was seared on his memory: the mercenary emerging from the shadows of Lovelace’s study, carrying the Amulet of Samarkand, his coat stained with the blood of a murdered man. For years, the image had hung like a cloud in Nathaniel’s mind.

And now the assassin stood two meters away, cold eyes surveying them each in turn.

As before, he radiated a malign vitality. He was tall and muscular, blue-eyed and heavy of brow. He appeared to have trimmed his beard a little, but wore his black hair longer, halfway down his neck. His clothes were jet-black—a loose shirt, a padded tunic, trousers broad above the knee, high boots that swelled about the calf. His swaggering confidence battered against Nathaniel like a fist. Nathaniel was immediately conscious of his own paltry strength, of the weakness of his limbs.

“Don’t bother introducing us, Kavka,” the man said. His voice was lazy, deep, and slow. “We three are old acquaintances.”

The old man gave a long, sad sigh, which was hard to interpret. “It would be pointless in any case. I know none of your names.”

“Names have never been an issue for us.”

If the djinni was startled, it gave no sign. “You got your boots back, I see,” it said.

The dark brows knotted. “I
said
that you’d pay for that. And so you will. You
and
the boy.”

Until this moment, Nathaniel had been sitting on Kavka’s desk, transfixed by shock. Now, in a concerted effort to assert some authority, he pushed forward and stood upright, hands on hips.

“You’re under arrest,” he said, glaring fiercely at the mercenary as he spoke.

The man returned his gaze with such baleful unconcern that Nathaniel felt himself shrinking and cowering where he stood. In fury, he cleared his throat. “Did you hear what I said?”

The man’s arm moved—so fast that Nathaniel barely registered it—and a sword rested in his hand. It pointed lazily in Nathaniel’s direction. “Where is
your
weapon, child?”

Nathaniel jutted out his chin defiantly and jerked a thumb toward Bartimaeus. “There,” he said. “He’s an afrit at my sole command. One word from me and he’ll tear you apart.”

The djinni seemed a little taken aback. “Er, yes,” it said doubtfully. “That’s right.”

A glacial smile spread beneath the beard. “This is the creature you had with you before. It failed to kill me then. What makes you think it’ll have more luck this time?”

“Practice makes perfect,” the djinni said.

“How true.” Another flicker of movement, another blur about his person—and in his other hand he held an S-shaped metal disc. “I have practiced long with this,” the mercenary said. “It will cut through your essence and
still
return to my outstretched hand.”

“By that point, you wouldn’t have a hand left to catch
with,”
Nathaniel said. “He’s fast, my afrit is. Like a striking cobra. He’d have you before that thing left your grasp.” He glanced between djinni and mercenary. Neither looked overly convinced.

“No
demon is as fast as me,” the mercenary said.

“Is that so?” Nathaniel replied. “You just try him.”

Bartimaeus raised a hasty finger. “Now look here—”

“Give him your best shot.”

“I might just do that.”

“See what happens to you.”

“Hey, steady on,” the djinni said. “This macho posturing is all very well, but leave me out of it, please. Why don’t you two have an arm wrestle, or compare biceps or something? Work your tensions out that way.”

Nathaniel ignored him. “Bartimaeus,” he began, “I order you—”

At that moment something unexpected happened. Kavka stood up.

“Stay where you are!” The mercenary’s eyes swiveled, the sword point shifted.

Kavka did not seem to have heard. He swayed slightly where he was, then tottered forward, away from the sofa, across the paper-strewn floor. His bare feet made little crunching noises as he trod upon the parchments. In a couple of steps he had reached the table. A bone-thin arm shot out and seized the golem manuscript from Nathaniel’s loose grasp. He stood back, hugging it to his chest.

The mercenary made as if to hurl his disc, but paused. “Put that down, Kavka!” he growled. “Think of your family—think of Mia.”

Kavka’s eyes were closed; he was swaying again. He raised his face toward the ceiling. “Mia? She is lost to me.”

“Complete that paper tonight, and you will see her tomorrow, I swear it!”

The eyes opened. They were dull, but lucid. “What matter? I will be dead by dawn. My life force is already drained away.”

A look of intense irritation had appeared on the mercenary’s face. He was not the kind of man who enjoyed negotiation. “My employer assures me that they are safe and well,” he said. “We can remove them from prison tonight and fly them to Prague by morning. Think hard—do you wish
all
this work to be wasted?”

Nathaniel glanced at the djinni. It was shifting position slowly. The mercenary did not appear to have noticed. Nathaniel cleared his throat, sought to distract him further. “Don’t listen to him, Kavka,” he said. “He’s lying.”

The mercenary flashed Nathaniel a look. “It is a matter of intense displeasure to me,” he said, “that you were not caught this afternoon in the square. I gave the police the most careful instructions, yet
still
they bungled it. I should have tackled you myself.”

“You
knew
we were here?” Nathaniel said.

“Of course. Your timing was most inappropriate. Another day or two and it would have been irrelevant—I’d have been back in London with the completed manuscript. Your investigations would have come to nothing. As it was, I needed to keep you occupied. Hence my tip-off to the police.”

Nathaniel’s eyes narrowed. “
Who
told you I’d be coming?”

“My employer, of course,” the mercenary said. “I told the Czechs and they followed that bumbling British agent around all day, knowing he would eventually lead them to you. Incidentally, they believe you to be in Prague to plant a bomb. But all that is academic now. They let me down.”

He had the sword and disc outstretched as he spoke, his eyes flicking between Nathaniel and the magician. Nathaniel’s head was awhirl—hardly
anyone
had known he was coming to Prague, yet somehow the mercenary had been informed. Which meant … No, he had to concentrate. He saw Bartimaeus still inching sideways, subtle as a snail. A little farther and the djinni would be out of view, in just the right position to attack.

“I see you found another foul traitor to replace Lovelace,” he snapped.

“Lovelace?” The man’s brows flickered with mild amusement. “He was not my main employer even then. He was nothing but a sideshow, an amateur, much too eager for success. My master encouraged him, as far as it went, but Lovelace was not his only tool. Nor am I his only servant now.”

Nathaniel was beside himself with fury.
“Who
is it? Who do you work for?”

“Someone who pays well. Surely that is obvious. You are a strange little magician.”

At that moment, the djinni, which had shuffled successfully to the fringes of the mercenary’s gaze, raised its hand to strike. But in the same instant, Kavka acted. All this while, he had been standing beside Nathaniel, holding the golem parchment in his hands. Now, without a word, his eyes tight shut, he tensed suddenly, and ripped the manuscript in half.

The effect was unexpected.

An outpouring of magical force surged from the torn parchment and blasted around the cottage like an earthquake. Nathaniel was tossed into the air amid a maelstrom of flying objects: djinni, mercenary, table, sofa, paper, pens, splashing ink. For a split second Nathaniel could see the three visible planes shaking at different rates: everything was multiplied three times. The walls shuddered, the floor tipped. The electric light crackled and went out. Nathaniel crashed heavily against the floor.

The surge poured away, through the floorboards, down into the earth. The manuscript’s charge was gone. The planes steadied, the reverberations died. Nathaniel raised his head. He was slumped beneath the upturned sofa, looking toward the window. The lights of the city still shone through it, but seemed oddly higher than before. It took a moment to grasp what had happened. The entire cottage had tipped, and was perched right on the edge of the hill. The floorboards ran down in a gentle gradient toward the window. As he watched, many little objects came sliding past, to rest up against the tilted wall.

The room was quite dark and filled with the rustling noise of gently settling paper. Where was the mercenary? Where was Bartimaeus? Nathaniel lay very still beneath the sofa, eyes wide as a rabbit’s in the night.

He could see Kavka well enough. The old magician was lying faceup on his tilted sink with a dozen sheets of paper floating down upon him in a makeshift shroud. Even from a distance, Nathaniel could see that he was dead.

The weight of the sofa pressed heavily upon one of Nathaniel’s legs, pinning it to the floor. He dearly wanted to shift it off, but knew it was too risky. He lay quiet, watched and listened.

A footstep; a figure coming slowly into view. The mercenary paused beside the body on the sink, inspected it for a moment, uttered a quiet curse, and moved on to rummage through the scattered furniture near the window. He went slowly, legs tensed against the gradient of the floor. He no longer held his sword, but something silvery shone in his right hand.

Finding nothing among the debris, the mercenary began to climb back across the room, head swinging methodically from side to side, eyes squinting in the darkness. In horror, Nathaniel saw that he was drawing ever closer to the sofa. Nathaniel could not retreat: the sofa that protected him from view also trapped him. He bit his lip, trying to recall the words of an appropriate summoning.

The mercenary appeared to notice the upturned sofa for the first time. For two seconds, he stood very still. Then, silver disc in hand, he bent his knees and crouched down to lift the sofa from Nathaniel’s cringing head.

And Bartimaeus appeared behind him.

The Egyptian boy was floating above the tilted floor; its feet hung limp, its hand was outstretched. A silver nimbus played about its form, flashing upon the white cloth around its waist and shining darkly in its hair. The djinni whistled once, a jaunty sound. In a blur of movement the mercenary spun; the disc left his hand; it whistled through the air, cut through the radiance at Bartimaeus’s side and looped out across the room.

“Nah-nah, you missed,” the djinni said. An Inferno erupted from its fingers and engulfed the mercenary where he stood. A gobbet of flame enveloped his upper body; he cried out, clutching at his face. He stumbled forward, casting a red-yellow radiance on the room, glaring through his fiery clutching fingers.

The whistling disc reached the farthest point of the room; with a change of timbre, it doubled back, shooting toward the mercenary’s hand. En route it sliced through the Egyptian boy’s side. Nathaniel heard the djinni cry out; saw the boy’s form flicker and shake.

The disc returned to the burning hand.

Nathaniel pulled his leg clear of the sofa; he pushed it frantically from him and, stumbling on the uneven floor, clawed himself to his feet.

The Egyptian boy vanished. In its place, lit by the flames, a limping rat scurried into the shadows. The burning man stalked after it, eyes blinking in the heat. His clothes were blackening on his body; the disc glinted redly in his fingers.

Nathaniel tried to command his thoughts. Next to him was the loft ladder, which had toppled to lodge diagonally against the ceiling. He steadied himself against it.

The rat hurried across an aged parchment. The paper cracked loudly under its feet.

The disc sliced the parchment in half; the rat gave a squeak and rolled to the side.

Burning fingers moved; two more discs appeared in them. The rat scampered away frantically, but was not fast enough. A disc embedded itself in the floorboards, snaring the rat’s tail beneath a silver barb. The rat thrashed weakly, trying to pull itself free.

The mercenary stalked over. He raised a smoldering boot.

With a furious effort, Nathaniel dislodged the loft ladder, causing it to fall heavily upon the mercenary’s back. Caught off-guard, the man lost his balance and fell sideways in a shower of sparks. He landed on the cottage floor, setting light to manuscripts all around.