The Time Hunters and the Box of Eternity (15 page)

Just then, Becky remembered Bruce
’
s words:
‘
This was some gangly dude with a thick walrus
moustache. Strange accent.
’

Scalpel Man!

Uncle Percy turned to face the man.
 
‘
And
I can only assume you
’
re another one of Emerson
’
s little errand boys, eh?
’

‘
I
’
m much more than that,
’
Scalpel Man replied
icily. Then his sunken black eyes fixed on Becky.
‘
My, my
…what-a-pretty-thing!
’
His hand drifted to her cheek.

Before he made contact, however, Becky slapped the hand away.
‘
Don
’
t touch me, freakoid!
’

Uncle Percy swelled with rage.
‘
Don
’
t you ever try and lay a finger on her again, do you understand me?
’

‘
Is that a threat?
’

‘
It
’
s considerably more
than that, I assure you,
’
Uncle Percy fired back.

 
Scalpel Man smiled coldly.
‘
How very exciting!
’
He glanced at Otto
Kruger.
‘
Mr
Kruger, entertaining though this affair has been, I think Mr Drake would prefer
it if we focused our attentions on the auction.
’

Kruger nodded.

Scalpel Man
’
s gaze fell again on Uncle Percy.
‘
I shall look forward to seeing you again, Mr
Halifax. I believe it
’
ll be sooner than you think.
’

Uncle Percy hesitated.
‘
Who are you?
’

‘
I have many names…
’
And with that,
Scalpel Man walked away.

Heart thumping, Becky watched him disappear into the bustling crowd
like a snake in long grass, quickly followed by Otto Kruger and the Associates.

For what seemed like an age, no one said a word, as if not one of
them dared voice what they were actually thinking, that they had just been in
the presence of something inhuman, something monstrous.
 
Absolute evil.

Chapter 15

Scars, Stars and Cadillac
Cars

‘
Who-was-that?
’
Joe breathed.

‘
No idea,
’
Uncle Percy said
quickly.
‘
Anyway,
we haven
’
t
got time to worry about him now, the auction
’
s about to start…
’

If Becky hadn
’
t felt so anxious, she knew the Grand Ballroom would have taken her
breath away; eight chandeliers, glittering with thousands of hand-cut crystals,
shed a warm flush over the tables below, sitting at which were stylishly
dressed people talking very loudly, as if mere volume alone would secure their
standing in the cream of Chicago society.

Uncle Percy escorted them to a front table where a satin-trimmed
place card read
‘
The Halifax Party.
’

As Becky sat down, she felt like she was being watched. Looking to
the back of the room, she saw Scalpel Man studying her, a strange, ugly glint
in his eyes. A shiver shot down her spine.
 
She nudged Uncle Percy and whispered,
‘
At the back.
’

Uncle Percy didn
’
t have to look.
‘
I know,
’
he said calmly.
‘
But don
’
t worry, they won
’
t start any trouble here. And between you and me, I have prepared
for certain eventualities.
’

‘
What d
’
you mean?
’

Uncle Percy
’
s response was lost amidst an excited round of applause, as a
skinny, dark haired man with a head that narrowed to a point so he resembled a
pencil, mounted a raised podium. He picked up a gavel and brought it down three
times, bringing the room to a hush.

‘
Good morning, Ladies
and Gentlemen, or should I say -
’
The auctioneer
’
s voice turned into a snarl.
‘
- AHOY, ME HEARTIES.
’
 
The room rang with laughter.
‘
I
’
m Timothy Cheeseman
and on behalf of Christie
’
s, I bid you welcome to the
‘
Taste of the Caribbean
’
Charity Auction. And
what an honour it is to be here in such a salubrious setting as the Palmer
House Hotel
’
s Grand Ballroom. Anyway, without any more ado, I say we stop
shivering our timbers and travel back two hundred years on a daring quest for
hidden gems.
’
He paused for effect.
‘
Let the auction commence …
’

Although each lot drew loud, appreciative reactions from the room,
Becky remained silent throughout. She couldn
’
t relax. Uncle Percy, on the other hand, seemed
to have forgotten any worries he may have had and was thoroughly enjoying
himself. His eyes twinkled at the array of objects paraded before them. To
Becky
’
s
surprise, he even bid on a few; these included an unopened keg of rum that
supposedly belonged to Mo Baggely also known (to Joe
’
s delight) as
Gingerbeard; a stuffed blue parrot nailed crudely to a plinth, the beloved pet
of Norwegian pirate, Magnus Magnerson; and a gigantic iron anchor from the
pirate ship, The Bigby Hind.

It was twenty minutes in, when two burley assistants heaved the
portrait of Blackbeard onto the platform. The sound of approving gasps filled
the room.

Cheeseman seemed particularly happy with the impact it had made.
‘
Yes, you
’
re quite right, ladies
and gentleman. This is a wonderful item. It
’
s the only known portrait of Edward Teach,
otherwise known as the most famous buccaneer of them all, Blackbeard. This lot
is one of a kind. The artist was Blackbeard
’
s trusted lieutenant and sail master, Israel
Hands. Now, it may not be Da-Vinci, but it is an impressive piece and certainly
one for the collectors. So dig deep, and let
’
s see where the bidding takes us. There
’
s a guide price of
four hundred dollars, so shall we start at - what … two hundred?
’

Becky glanced behind. With a slight turn of his head, Scalpel Man
acknowledged her and smiled cruelly. Then she looked at Uncle Percy, who winked
roguishly back, before shouting at the top of his voice.

‘
FIVE HUNDRED THOUSAND
DOLLARS!
’

A loud gasp stunned through the room.

Cheeseman looked bewildered.
‘
I
’
m sorry, sir,
’
he panted.
‘
C-can I confirm you said five hundred thousand dollars?
’

‘
You can, and I did.
’

‘
But…
’
Cheeseman
’
s voice became little
more than a squeak.
‘
Er, very well. I can only assume that will be the first and final
bid on -
’

‘
Six hundred thousand
dollars!
’

Even though she expected it, Becky
’
s stomach churned. Scalpel Man
’
s hand hovered high in
the air.

The crowd went wild. Riotous applause and deafening cheers echoed on
all sides.

‘
Seven hundred thousand
dollars,
’
Uncle Percy pressed.

The crowd didn
’
t have time to respond, when Scalpel Man bellowed,
‘
Eight hundred
thousand!
’

As the crowd went crazy again, Uncle Percy fell silent. For a
moment, it looked like he
’
d given up. Then he turned, stared with disdain at Scalpel Man, and
his mouth formed the words,
‘
Nine-hundred-thousand-dollars!
’

‘
One million dollars!
’
Scalpel Man spat
back.

The room exploded. Amid the uproar, Becky saw a wide, bull-like man
to the left of Otto Kruger leave his seat and stride purposefully towards them,
his features shrouded by a cloud of smoke that rose from the giant cigar in his
right hand. Then Becky saw something that filled her with dread. Each person
the man passed stopped clapping and gawped at him with a mixture of surprise
and horror. Even Cheeseman noticed, his eyes widening.

The man reached their table, stared coolly at Uncle Percy and said,
‘
The bidding stops now.
’

Uncle Percy looked up and his expression morphed into one of dismay.

And then Becky saw why. On the left hand side of the man
’
s face, just visible
beneath a fine layer of talcum powder were three deep scars of various lengths.
She remembered Joe
’
s earlier enthusiasm for a certain nickname:
Scarface
.

Al Capone had joined them at the table.

*

‘
A-any advance on a
million dollars?
’
Cheeseman stuttered, his gaze never leaving Capone.

Uncle Percy stared at the painting and shook his head miserably.

Flustered, his hand trembling, Cheeseman slammed down his gavel.
‘
Sold for one million
dollars,
’
he said quickly.
‘
Now I think we all deserve a break. The auction will recommence in
thirty minutes.
’
And with that, he scrambled off the podium and disappeared from
sight.

‘
It seems you and your
friends over there got your wish, Mr Capone,
’
Uncle Percy said calmly, nodding at Scalpel
Man.

‘
I always get my wish,
’
Capone said.

‘
You have no idea what
you
’
re
getting yourself into.
’

Capone laughed coldly.
‘
Limey, you
’
ve no idea what yer already in. Now, my boys are on every door and I
’
ve a nickel plated .38
Special that says you
’
re all gonna come with me now.
’
Capone opened his jacket to reveal a gun.
‘
And in case you ain
’
t noticed, I could
plug you full of holes right now and not one person in this joint would see a
thing, know what I mean? He gestured for them to follow.
‘
Get movin
’
...
’

Petrified, Becky got to her feet, as the others did the same. She
looked at Uncle Percy, fully expecting him to feel as concerned as she did.
Instead, she saw him glance furtively across the room to give a small but
distinct nod to Keith Pickleton, who nodded back, before burying his head in an
auction brochure.

The group weaved through the tables and before Becky knew it, they
were standing before Scalpel Man.

‘
Very good, Mr Capone,
’
Scalpel Man said.
‘
Mr Drake will be
pleased.
’

‘
You just make sure he
delivers the cash as agreed,
Chapman
.
’

‘
He is a man of his
word, I assure you,
’
Scalpel Man replied. He turned to Uncle Percy.
‘
Well, that was
exhilarating.
’

But Uncle Percy hadn
’
t heard him.
‘
Chapman?
’
he breathed.
‘
George Chapman?
’

Becky looked at him and fear shot through her. She had never seen
him so scared. Will and Joe had noticed, too.

‘
I see you
’
ve heard of me.
’

‘
But that
’
s impossible,
’
Uncle Percy said.
‘
You
’
re dead. They hung you
in 1903.
’

Delight spread across Chapman
’
s face.
‘
I
’
m afraid not, Mr Halifax. Certainly the authorities declared as
such, but I trust that was to save a measure of face, wouldn
’
t you agree?
’

Uncle Percy was stunned to silence.

‘
Anyway, Mr Capone, I
believe it
’
s time to leave.
’
Chapman leaned into Uncle Percy
’
s ear and whispered,
‘
You see, I
’
ve arranged a little
surprise for you. Mr Drake informs me that history can be changed. I want to
test that theory…
’
He turned to the Associate on his left and handed over his briefcase.
‘
Pay for
the portrait and take it to the rendezvous point. I shall see you there in one
hour. Mr Capone, if you would lead the way …
’
Capone grunted and moved away, tracked by
Chapman, Kruger and the remaining Associates.

Becky, Joe, Uncle Percy and Will were suddenly surrounded by five of
Capone
’
s
men, a number of whom tapped their jackets to emphasise they, too, were armed.
Uncle Percy sighed and moved towards the door.

Becky rushed to his left, keeping her voice down.
‘
What
’
s going on? Who
’
s George Chapman? What
did he say to you?
’

Uncle Percy said nothing. Instead, he glanced at Will and the two of
them exchanged a curious look.

Becky didn
’
t appreciate being ignored.
‘
Will you answer me?
’

‘
We
’
ll discuss it later,
Becky,
’
Uncle Percy said.
‘
Just don
’
t worry.
’