'And this,' continued Prosper Marchand, indicating a tall, birdlike woman who had entered behind them, 'is Dr. Adrienne de Jonghe of the Coster Institute in Holland. We're members of the Ex Libris Society.'
'Dr. deJonghe waded on stork-thin legs in front of Blake and shook hands with the professor.
The porter, all smiles, asked the visitors to sign a register in front of them and then handed them each a clear plastic folder containing various conference materials and a guide to the college, on which he had marked the shortest routes to their rooms. Finally, he told them the access code to the library and other main buildings, before passing them their keys. The professors promptly gathered their things and left.
The porter let out a sigh as soon as the door was closed. 'Goodness, Blake, they've been arriving all day, they have. From all over the world. I've been run off my feet. Who'd have thought so many people would be interested in a few books?'
Blake was gazing out of the window. He could see the Dutch scholar bending down to stroke Mephistopheles, who curled seductively around her legs, but Prosper Marchand was nowhere to be seen. An engine soon revved in the street, however, and roared into the distance.
Bob was a short, stocky man in his mid-fifties, with just a smudge of a mustache beneath his nose. His shirtsleeves had been rolled up to reveal a dragon tattoo on one wrist and a spinach-green anchor on the other. He rubbed his hands together and grinned at the boy. 'Now then, Blake, what can I do for you?'
Blake glanced wistfully at the pigeonholes behind the counter. 'Is there a letter for me?' he asked, suddenly feeling hesitant and shy.
Even though his dad made a point of calling them every evening, he wanted to receive a special letter — something personal, in writing — to help him make sense of their present situation. His parents were barely speaking to each other and he needed some assurance that everything would be all right.
The porter gave him a sympathetic smile. 'I don't think so, but you never know. It's always worth another look.'
While Bob bent down to check the slot that had been temporarily assigned to 'Dr. Juliet Winters and Family,' Blake busied himself by studying the tags on the suitcases near the door: Australia, India, Russia, Japan…People from all over the world were converging on the college for the conference, while his dad — the only person he really cared to see — was thousands of miles away. It wasn't fair. They would never be a family without him.
'Well, wouldn't you know it,' said Bob, springing up again like a puppet. 'There's something for you after all. How did it find its way in there.?'
He winked at Blake, whose heart leaped at the discovery. The boy grabbed the letter.
Almost immediately, he knew it was not from home. There were no airmail stripes on the envelope and the handwriting was too fussy and feminine to be from his father. A graphic designer, Christopher Winters had distinctive lettering that reminded Blake of circus animals in a procession: his Js swung their trunks like elephants and his Qs sat like fat owls on branches. Everything he touched turned into a work of art.
Blake frowned. This letter was addressed to 'Dr. Juliet Somers & Child' and appeared to be an invitation to some formal engagement.
'Not what you wanted, eh?' said Bob, reading the look of disappointment on his face.
Blake didn't respond. He was having trouble swallowing. It didn't really surprise his that the envelope mentioned only one child — Duck was the obvious choice — but it upset him to think that his mother was using her maiden name here in Oxford. He wondered if there had been a mistake, but deep down he knew that she probably preferred it this way.
He glanced at the porter. 'No, not really. But maybe tomorrow,' he said, almost managing a smile.
3
'It's a reminder about the dinner tonight,' said Juliet Winters, reading the letter. 'You two are invited and so, it seems, is Sir Giles Bentley. He's the guest of honor.'
Duck skipped ahead, pleased to know she would get a chance to show off to the college professors, but Blake lagged behind. He didn't want to go to a stuffy old dinner and meet yet more grown-ups who were either impressed with his mother's books or else astonished by Duck's intelligence. As usual, he would spend most of the time unnoticed. What's more, he didn't want to be introduced to anyone as Dr. Somers' kid. It surprised him that his mother hadn't mentioned it.
'It says only one child on the envelope,' he tried. 'Do I have to go?'
'Of course you do. It's simply an oversight or a misprint; you know how these things happen.'
No, he didn't know how these things happened — but they seemed to happen to him an awful lot.
Juliet Winters noticed the skeptical expression on his face and waited for him to catch up. 'The college understands perfectly well that I have two children,' she said testily, putting an arm around him to speed him up. 'Everyone will be expecting you to come, just as I'll be expecting you to be on your best behavior.'
'Who is Giles Bentley?' asked Duck, skipping back to join them.
'Sir Giles,' her mother corrected her, 'was keeper of Books in the Bodleian Library for many years. He's retired now, but by all accounts is the same crotchety old curmudgeon he always was. I don't want you going anywhere near him.'
'Why?'
'Because I said so.'
Blake could tell that his mother didn't want to discuss the matter further, but Duck had already formed the next question on her lips.'
'Why don't you like him so much?'
'Oh, Duck, if you really must know,' said her mother, fighting to control her temper, 'he interfered with some research your father and I were doing when we were students. He acquired an important manuscript we needed to consult, but refused to let us see it.'
They were walking along a shady path near the back of the Fellows' Garden. At the sound of her voice a few timorous birds flew out from the undergrowth, shrilling their displeasure.
'It was an important document,' she said more softly. 'It could have made our careers. Yet still he kept it from us.'
'Why?'
'Oh, I don't know!' She scowled at a fir tree leaning over the other plants. 'Power, perhaps. Or greed. Sir Giles learned long ago that it was possible to make more money by purchasing rare books for his own collection than by sharing them with others.'
Juliet Winters motioned them towards an old wooden door set into a mossy wall. Savage spikes jutted above it in an iron crown. She reached into her pocket and withdrew a set of keys.
'Sir Giles' decision set me back — who knows how long — years, probably,' she said irritably. 'It was all I could do to scrape my way back, but your father…well, he just gave up.'
Blake was stunned. He was having a hard time imagining his parents agreeing on anything, let alone a research project, but now he wanted to know what they had hoped to accomplish. It sounded important.
His mother stabbed a key in the lock and twisted it. 'I'd still like to get my hands on the manuscript,' she said, forcing the door open with her shoulder.
They passed through onto a wide boulevard lined with trees that were gradually losing their leaves. Some had knobbly trunks with bumps and warts of wood; others jigsaws of gray and green bark. An old black-framed bicycle had been propped against a nearby post and Duck raced towards it. She couldn't resist ringing its bell. It let out a dry, rusty croak.
'What book was it?' asked Blake tactfully. 'The book you wanted, I mean.'
'It wasn't a book,' said his mother, ushering them towards the end of the road, where Blake could see the dark silver dome and spires of the city center. 'It was a manuscript belonging to a monk who lived in Oxford during the Middle Ages.'
Blake stopped. 'A monk?' he asked, remembering the mysterious book he had found in the library. It had looked hundreds of years old too. Perhaps the two were related?
A tremor of excitement crept through him.
