He pushed the twin throttle levers forward, eased off the brake and felt the plane lurch as the twin props caught the cold night air and pull him forward across the tarmac. Over to his left a big passenger jet was waiting at the end of the main runway. It was pointing in the same direction. This meant the wind was ahead of him, so if he did have to take off without proper clearance he’d at least be heading in the same direction as the rest of the traffic.
The C-123 bounced over the ground, picking up speed as it lumbered towards the head of runway two. The patrol truck had parked now and someone in uniform was climbing out of the driver’s door.
The scratchy sound of a voice snapped him to attention. ‘Romeo — niner — eight — one — zero — Quebec,’ it squawked through the static and clattering engine. ‘You are cleared to depart, runway two. Taxi into position and hold. Over.’
Gabriel felt his hands relax on the steering column. He confirmed the order and pulled back on the throttle, easing the aircraft further away from the drama unfolding behind him.
To his left he could see the passenger jet picking up speed down the main runway. He would be next. He’d left the Inspector lying just inside the warehouse with his badge lying open on his chest. That way they’d find him quickly and call the medics. He had no idea how much Ketamine he’d pumped into him. Too much, probably. The last thing he wanted was the Inspector’s death on his conscience.
The metallic voice crackled loudly in his headset. ‘Romeo — niner — eight — one — zero — Quebec,’ it said, as over to his left the passenger jet lifted off and pulled up its wheels. ‘You are cleared for immediate takeoff. Over.’
‘Roger that,’ Gabriel responded. He released the wheel brakes and pushed the throttle most of the way forward. The sudden thrust pressed him back into his seat until the nose lifted and the wheels let go of the runway with a loud bump. He reached for the landing gear control then decided to leave the wheels down. Now he was airborne he would get to the Citadel well before his mother and the extra drag would reduce his airspeed.
He cleared the perimeter fence and Gabriel dipped the port wing. Over in the distance he saw the Taurus mountains rising up from the plain. Within them he could see a glow bouncing off the underside of the clouds showing him where Ruin was. He continued to climb, describing a wide circle that took him over the mountains until he was approaching the ancient city from the north. He kept the plane steady, fighting the rising winds from the mountain peaks, until they fell away to reveal the shallow bowl containing the ancient city, with the line of the great northern boulevard pointing straight towards a ragged patch of darkness at its centre. He dialled a heading into the autopilot that would take the plane directly over the Citadel and on to the coast beyond. There was fuel for about forty-five minutes of flight time — enough to carry the plane well out to sea before it came down.
He checked his direction one last time then engaged the autopilot, taking his hands off the steering column as ghostly hands took over, adjusting flaps, throttle and rudder to keep the plane on course. He let the autopilot fly the plane for a few minutes, watching the patch of darkness creep closer until it disappeared below the nose of the plane. Finally satisfied that the autopilot was working and the course was steady, he unclipped his seat belt, slid from the pilot’s chair and headed into the hold to prepare.
Chapter 132
Cornelius stepped through the stone entrance and into the chapel of the Sacrament.
After the roaring brightness of the forge it was dark with an unnatural blackness that clung tightly to whatever secrets it held. A few candles flickered in a cluster by the door barely illuminating the shelf upon which they rested, guttering now as the Sanctus guard stepped past and moved through the darkness towards the far end of the room. Cornelius scanned the darkness and saw something lying on the floor in the centre of the chapel. The guard slowed as he drew near and let the girl slide from his shoulder and on to the ground next to it. It was the body of Brother Samuel, his feet pointing towards the dark end of the room, his arms stretched out on either side to form the sign of the Tau.
The guard reached down, grabbed Samuel’s arms and dragged him over to the far wall, where he dumped him without ceremony, before turning his attention back to the girl. He dragged her feet round to point down into the darkness at the far end of the chapel, took her arms and stretched them out until she formed the shape her brother had so recently held.
‘Thank you, Septus,’ the Abbot said. ‘You may leave us now. But stay close by.’
The monk nodded and sent the candles fluttering again as he swept from the chapel.
Cornelius felt the Abbot take his arm and lead him forward. ‘Come closer,’ he said.
Cornelius drifted along, his eyes fixed on a spot ahead, where the darkness was beginning to take form beyond the figure of the girl. He took another step and felt his wounds start to itch, as if ants were crawling along the sliced edges of his flesh. He looked down and saw the skin closing up, like hot wax running together. Looked up again. Saw the thing in the darkness at the end of the room solidifying into form with every step he took, rising up from the altar, a shape both familiar and strange. Then he saw something else, something so unexpected that he stumbled backwards at the shock of it.
The Abbot gripped his elbow tighter. Steadied him. Leaned in closer. ‘Yes,’ he whispered ‘Now you see. The Sacrament. The greatest secret of our order, and our greatest shame. And tonight you will witness its end.’
Chapter 133
Bright headlamps swept across the grey concrete wall of the multi-storey car park as Kathryn turned into the alley. At the far end she could see the medieval wall, marking the boundary of the old town, rising up above the modern buildings.
She pulled to a stop by the heavy steel shutter and reached out through her open window, swiping the electronic key card Gabriel had taken from the dead monk. She waited, listening to the low throb of the van’s engine echoing down the night-blackened walls of the alley. Nothing happened.
She glanced up at the thin rectangle of sky framed by the high walls of the multi-storey car parks. Her son was up there, somewhere, heading this way. An image of Oscar’s twisted body flashed into her mind and she screwed her eyes shut to push it back. Now was not the time to grieve. She was in shock, she knew that. She also knew it was all going to come crashing down on her at some point — but not now. She had to be strong, for the sake of her son. Her actions now would help him stay alive. He had to live. She couldn’t lose him.
She jumped as a loud clang sounded inside the steel door and the shutter started to rise, creeping upwards like the opening mouth of a grave. When it reached the top it clanged to a stop, echoing again against the low rumble of the engine.
She glanced up one last time at the dark patch of sky then slipped the van into gear and entered the tunnel.
Chapter 134
The empty hold of the C-123 felt like it was shaking itself to pieces as Gabriel pulled himself along the ribs of the plane towards the point in the floor where it angled upwards. He reached it and hooked his right leg and arm into the cargo net lining the fuse-lage, then braced himself for the suction and hit the red punch button to lower the ramp.
A loud clunk punctuated the thunderous clatter of the engines and a thin horizontal crack appeared at the back of the plane pulling the air from the fuselage as the ramp started to lower. Gabriel held on, felt the howling wind tug at the flaps of his wing-suit until another loud clunk told him the ramp had locked fully open. Outside he could see the reflected glow of the city on the underside of the tail. He pulled the skydiver goggles over his eyes and crawled towards the edge. He peered over the side and through the arctic blast of outside air. Below him, nearly
