“Good, you’re here. I worried you might have already left,” she said, descending the stair to the street. “Are you coming?”
“Good evening to you as well,” I said, stepping out into the cold and locking the door behind me. “I didn’t expect to see you before the ritual.”
“You wanted me to come here with any information I gathered,” she said. That certainly caught my attention. “We’ll talk about it on the way. You know where we’re going, I take it?”
“Of course.” From a pocket I produced the hair I took from George Cecil Jones the night before. I gathered will, and with a few words, kindled the finding spell. The hair disappeared in a flash of blue flame, and I felt a pull toward the west. I started down the street and she fell into step beside me.
“Others in the city received copies of those drawings,” she said as we turned onto Strand.
I halted in my tracks, and she stumbled a bit as she did the same. “Who else?”
“Maybe a dozen others, all members of Parliament as well as the Golden Dawn.” She narrowed her eyes. “The person who gave them out asked the recipients to support a joint effort with the Egyptians to search the ruins and bring any findings back to London.”
My mind raced through the implications. The Knight Mages guarded the Nameless City, but if Parliament and the Egyptians came to an agreement, that would end and leave the Book of Thoth unguarded.
“Who made the request?”
Elaine shook her head. “I don’t know. I couldn’t get my hands on any of the letters. But Mathers received his like all the rest.”
“Damn it all to bloody hell,” I said as we started down Strand again. “If we don’t stop him, they’re not only going to bring it here, but it’ll be legal.”
“Bring what here?” Elaine asked. “And don’t tell me you can’t say. Those drawings scare you out of your mind. I want to help you stop this, but you need to tell me what we’re stopping.”
Tell her, Aleister. Vex said before I could respond. You cannot handle this alone, and she has proven herself resourceful already. You need her aid.
“Fine, fine,” I said to both of them. “The ruins in those drawings are in a forgotten part of Egypt. Precious few writings exist about it, yet all refer to it as the Nameless City. No one knows who built it, or why. Those same writings claim the city lies underground, and runs so deep, you’ll reach Hell before the bottom. In its darkest depths lies a sarcophagus, its lid carved in the shape of a man with the head of an Ibis. Egyptians know him as Thoth, the god of wisdom, writing, and most importantly, magic. Inside, you’ll find no body. Only a book.”
“A book?” she scoffed. “All of this over a book?”
“The Book of Thoth is a grimoire. A book of magic,” I said. “Common enough among those with real power, though legend claims The Book of Thoth is the most powerful grimoire ever written.”
“Legend?” She leaned closer, her rapt attention on me.
“Not all believe the Book exists.” I said as we passed the Somerset House. “Many say the legend makes us strive for greater heights.”
“But you believe?”
“I do.”
“Why?”
“That is a story for another time.”
For a moment, I thought Elaine would argue, but she shrugged and said, “So, someone wants to get their hands on this book, and you think they’re using the Golden Dawn to do it.”
“In essence, yes.”
“Do you think Mathers is behind this?” she asked.
I shook my head. “I suspected him, but we found those sketches and letter in an office I wager he never expected anyone to find. No, I believe the one we’re looking for simply wishes to use his influence.”
“Then our mystery man or woman remains as such. But we have an advantage.”
I raised an eyebrow at her. “And what’s that?”
“They don’t know we’re on their trail, but we know they’ll be present at the ritual tonight.” She grinned at me. “We just have to keep our eyes open.”
“Aye,” I said with a smirk. “That we do.”
We fell into a comfortable silence after that. My spell pulled westward, and after nearly an hour, I finally caught sight of our target. George Cecil Jones stood upon the front steps of the beautifully crafted Mark Mason’s Hall. It seemed to loom over us as we approached, and I frowned. I’d not thought the Golden Dawn related to the Freemasons.
“Good evening, Mr. Jones,” I said as I neared.
His eyes snapped up, and his face split into a handsome grin. He placed his watch in his waistcoat pocket and descended the steps to meet us, his hand outstretched. I took it, and we shook. “Good evening to you as well, sir. I didn’t expect you for some time.” He noticed Elaine next to me and blinked in surprise. “And Miss Simpson as well. I take it the two of you are on better terms now?”
“We found common ground,” Elaine said, holding out her hand.
He took it and kissed the back. “Splendid. Well, no sense in staying out here in the cold. Follow me.” Jones turned, and Elaine and I fell into step behind him.
“I thought the Golden Dawn its own entity, not under the thumb of the Masons,” Elaine said as we made our way along St. James Street. She’d noticed as well. My respect for her grew by the minute.
“We aren’t, though Lord Mathers did seek for those of like mind and skill among their ranks at first. When
