The American opened the bag and took out a leather-bound book. His eyes widened. ‘This is… indescribable,’ said Wainwright. He looked up at Nightingale. ‘Do you know what this is, Jack?’
‘Aleister Crowley’s diary,’ said Nightingale. He looked around but didn’t see an ashtray. ‘Is it okay to smoke in here?’
‘They block-book the suite for me all year round,’ said Wainwright. ‘We can set fire to the place if we want.’ He held up the book. ‘This isn’t just his diary. It’s not just a first edition. It’s a bound proof copy, with his corrections in ink. He held these pages and made corrections to them, corrections which were then made before the book proper was printed.’
‘But it’s still cursed?’ said Nightingale. He lit a cigarette.
‘I didn’t say it was cursed. I just said that whenever a copy was sold, the buyer and the seller died.’
‘That suggests a curse, doesn’t it?’
‘Not in the strict sense of what is usually meant by a curse,’ said the American. ‘Anyway, curse or no curse, this is beyond price, Jack. This is…’
‘Priceless?’ Nightingale finished for him.
‘I don’t know what to say to you,’ said Wainwright. ‘I had no idea that you’d be bringing me this. It’s…’ He shook his head, lost for words.
‘Bearing in mind what happens to those who sell it, I want you to accept it as a gift. With my compliments.’
‘I accept, of course,’ said Wainwright, holding the volume against his chest. ‘And I’ll be forever in your debt, Jack. Ask and you shall receive.’ He grinned. ‘Except for cold hard cash, of course.’ Wainwright swung his feet up onto an antique coffee table. ‘On the phone you said you wanted help with something.’
‘That’s right,’ said Nightingale. ‘I need to talk to Lucifuge Rofocale. The devil you said was Lucifer’s negotiator.’
Wainwright’s jaw dropped. ‘Say what?’
‘I need to know how to summon him. I have to talk to him.’
‘Jack…’
He nodded at the book. ‘You’ve got what you wanted; all I’m asking is that you give me what I want.’
‘I thought I explained how dangerous it can be to summon the upper echelons.’
‘Duly noted.’
‘You don’t have the experience. Or the power. I’m pretty darn good at it but I don’t have the power to call Lucifuge Rofocale, and even if I did, I wouldn’t. One slip, one sign of weakness and… puff! You’d be ashes. Or worse.’ He held up the book he was holding. ‘Crowley? Maybe he could have done it, at the height of his powers. But he was one of the greatest Satanists of the last century. You, Jack, what are you? A disgraced cop turned private eye.’
‘The “disgraced” label is a bit harsh, Josh.’
Wainwright smiled apologetically. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bite your head off, but I like you, Jack. I really do. And I wouldn’t want you to get sucked into something that could only end badly.’
‘I don’t have much of a choice,’ said Nightingale. ‘I need to resolve the situation with my sister, and he’s the only one who can do that.’
‘You want to do a deal with Lucifuge Rofocale?’
‘Not exactly. I just want to talk to him. Do you know how?’
Wainwright shook his head. ‘He’s way out of my league.’
Nightingale pulled a face. ‘That’s a pity,’ he said.
‘Well, not necessarily.’ Wainwright held up the book. ‘If anyone knew how to call up Lucifuge Rofocale, it was Aleister Crowley. The answer’s almost certainly here.’ He flicked through the pages, a thoughtful frown on his face, while Nightingale sat and smoked. Eventually Wainwright grinned and stabbed at a page. ‘There you are.’
Nightingale stood up, walked across to the American and looked over his shoulder.
‘This is what you have to do,’ said Wainwright. ‘But you have to follow his instructions to the letter. The letter, Jack.’
‘I understand.’
‘Are you sure that you do? Because one mistake, one slip, would mean certain death.’
Nightingale blew a smoke ring towards the ornate ceiling. ‘Everyone dies eventually, Josh,’ he said.
‘True,’ said the American. ‘But not everyone burns in Hell for all eternity.’
62
J enny had programmed the address of her parents’ house into his phone’s GPS system so Nightingale had no problems finding it. It was called Edmund House and it was signposted off the main road. Black railings bordered the estate and he drove onto the property and stopped out side a stone building with leaded windows. He smiled as he saw that it was much smaller than Gosling Manor. He was just about to climb out of his MGB when a uniformed security guard appeared and Nightingale realised that the building was the gatehouse.
‘Jack Nightingale,’ he said. ‘I’m here to see the McLeans.’
‘Yes, sir,’ said the guard, a heavy-set man in his fifties. ‘Just follow the road and park anywhere to the left of the main house.’
He was talking into a transceiver as Nightingale drove off. The driveway curved to the left and bordered a lake that was several hundred yards across. Then the road bent to the right and the MGB crested a small hill to reveal the house for the first time. Nightingale stopped the car and sat looking at it, shaking his head in wonder. It wasn’t a house, it wasn’t a mansion — it was a stately home that would give Buckingham Palace a run for its money. It was a severe building, grey stone and dark grey slated roof, the main entrance flanked by Corinthian pillars that went up two storeys. He counted a dozen chimneys, with wisps of smoke coming from half of them.
To the left of the house was a line of expensive cars. A black Bentley, a red Ferrari, four Range Rovers, a 7- Series BMW, a large Mercedes and Jenny’s Audi. Nightingale eased the car forward and drove towards the house. The closer he got the more immense it looked and he realised it must be at least five times as large as Gosling Manor.
He parked his car next to the Ferrari. As he was taking his suitcase out of the boot a liveried footman hurried over.
‘I’ll get that for you, sir,’ he said, in a broad Norfolk accent.
Nightingale let the man carry his case and followed him up a flight of steps to the double-height front door and into a huge hallway, where the walls were covered in gilt-framed works of art. A butler, slightly overweight and with a receding hairline was waiting for them. He nodded at Nightingale.
‘Dinner has already started, sir,’ said the butler. ‘You’re to go straight to the dining room unless you want to freshen up first.’
‘I’ll go straight in,’ said Nightingale. He took off his raincoat and gave it to the man holding his case.
‘Simon will put your things in your room, sir, and I’ll show you in. Please follow me.’
The butler strode down a wood-panelled corridor to a set of double oak doors, which he opened with a flourish. ‘Mr Nightingale has arrived,’ he said. He stepped to the side to allow Nightingale through, and then closed the doors behind him.
The dining room was panelled in a light wood with French windows overlooking the rear gardens. The table was set for ten, with three large silver candelabra and gleaming silverware. The guests had just finished their soup and a waitress in a black and white uniform was collecting the dishes. Jenny had twisted around in her chair and was smiling at him. He winked at her.
Sitting at one end of the table was a big man with an expensive tan and short curly hair. He was in his mid fifties and was wearing a charcoal-grey suit over a black silk shirt buttoned at the neck. He stood up and walked over to Nightingale, his arm outstretched. ‘James McLean,’ he said. ‘I’m so pleased to finally meet you, Jack. We were starting to worry that you might not actually exist.’
Nightingale shook McLean’s hand. ‘Oh I’m real enough,’ he said.
