“Bring me a bowl of water,” he ordered. “I want to wash. And a clean shirt!”
Karl threw up his hands in horror. “You don’t want to go to that castle, do you? In your condition?”
“It is my last chance, and I should have grasped it much sooner.” Johann tried to laugh, but it came out as a hoarse cough. And yet he could feel his strength returning, slowly but steadily. “I am called Magister, Doctor, indeed, and still I can’t see the forest for the trees. Tonio, alias Gilles de Rais, is sitting in his web like a fat spider, and the center of the web is called Tiffauges! We’ve been nearing his home without knowing.”
“Even if Tiffauges used to be the home of Gilles de Rais—why should we go there?” asked Karl. “What are you hoping to find there?”
“Haven’t you been listening?” snapped Johann. “The bastard is still there, even if he’s called Tonio now. The missing children prove it. And there’s something else.” He thought of the old raven on the rooftop and the black birds that had been following him for weeks. They, too, had been harbingers. “I must defeat Tonio. I should have tried a long time ago. I’ve been running from him for far too long.” Johann nodded with grim determination. “He used to be my master, but at the end of the day he was always my archenemy, my nemesis. I must rise to the challenge once and for all. That is the only way to break this curse.”
“But that’s madness!” said Karl. “You’re sick. You need a physician. In Córdoba—”
“Stop going on about your goddamned Córdoba!” Johann wiped the empty bottle of theriac off the table with his good hand, and it shattered on the ground. “I visited the most learned scholar and then the greatest inventor in the known world, and neither one was able to help me. And why? Because only I can help myself ! I must challenge Tonio at Tiffauges and vanquish him!”
“You . . . you want to vanquish the devil?” asked Greta incredulously. “Are you serious? That is impossible.”
“I like people who strive for the impossible,” replied Johann with a smile.
He knew his plan was madness. But what other choice did he have?
“The devil is a good businessman. He always returns for his share,” he said, repeating Leonardo’s words. “But by God, you can cheat him good. I’ve done it once before, down in the crypt below Nuremberg. Why shouldn’t I do it again?” He gave Karl a challenging look. “The only question is whether I’m going on my own.”
No one spoke for a few moments. Then Karl stepped forward.
“I will come with you, Doctor,” he said quietly. “I’ve long traveled by your side, and if it is your belief that you must run straight into perdition, then I’ll just have to run with you.”
Johann saw John and Greta exchange furtive glances. Then the red-haired fellow jutted out his chin.
“Whoever is murdering those children in Brittany, be it devil or man, they are dangerous. Too dangerous for two weak bookworms. The least I can do is serve as your bodyguard.”
Greta seemed surprised; clearly she’d expected something else.
“John, are you sure you want to do this?” she asked.
“He’s your father, isn’t he? You can wait here in Amboise until it’s over. I’m sure it won’t take too—”
“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Greta’s eyes were flashing in a way Johann had always feared in his daughter. “How come you men always think you can make decisions for us? First my father and now you! If you feel like you have to act the hero, very well. But I’m certainly not going to sit here and wait for you.”
John frowned. “That means you . . . ?”
Johann groaned. He’d known Greta long enough to know that she would do as she pleased, no matter what. “Won’t you listen to reason, dear?” he said nonetheless. “It is my disease, and I made this pact with Tonio, not you. Go home and—”
“Home? And where is that supposed to be? I am your daughter, remember?” burst out Greta. “The daughter of the forever roaming Doctor Johann Georg Faustus! I have no home. And Tonio is part of my story, too. You could even say he is also my curse.”
Johann shook his head hard. “I don’t want you to come with me. It was a mistake to bring you here. It’s much too dangerous. Tonio knows that you’re my daughter. If I fail, he will take his revenge on you. Worse: he will use you for his evil goals. You’re still young, Greta! I have lived my life, and what a life it’s been.” He lowered his voice. “You’ve seen the lines in my hand. You know what they mean.”
“Didn’t you say yourself that they don’t necessarily have to mean death? And besides, I’m not leaving John.” Greta squeezed John’s hand. “We are together, and we’re just as inseparable as you and Karl. Where John goes, I go, too.”
Johann studied Greta’s companion coldly. “I don’t want you or your beloved John to come,” he said harshly.
John glared at him defiantly, his bright-red hair hanging into his eyes.
“Now listen to me, Herr Doctor, I am well aware of the fact that you don’t like me. But know that the barony of Retz is a dangerous corner. There aren’t just stories about an ogre, there are also other dangers. Huge wolves coming from the mountains, false tracks in the swamps, bands of robbers who live in the woods. The whole area hasn’t fully recovered from the long war against the English.” John continued in a lower voice. “I’ve heard stories about Tiffauges Castle. The current owner is in Italy, fighting for the king. And the steward who’s in charge in his absence, well . . .” He paused. “I don’t know any details, and I’m not a superstitious person. But it seems there really are strange things happening at that castle.”
“Tonio,” growled Johann. “It’s all connected to
