In The House Of Secret Enemies

'Never mind. You don't want to hear about it.'

What Garth meant was that he didn't want to talk about it. I asked him why.

'I'm not prepared to talk about it,' Garth said quietly, staring at the backs of his hands. 'At least not yet. I'll tell you, Mongo, you and I come from a background with a certain set of preconceptions that we call 'reality.' It's hard giving up those notions.'

'Hey, brother, you sound like you're starting to take this stuff pretty seriously. Are the practitioners of the Black Arts getting to you?'

'What do you know about magic?'

'I'm allergic to rabbits.'

'It isn't all black,' Garth said, ignoring my crack. 'Witchcraft, or Wicca, is recognized as an organized religion in New York State. The parent organization is called Friends of the Craft.'

'I'm not sure I get the point.'

Garth pressed his hands flat on the desk in front of him. He continued to stare at them. 'I'm not sure there is a point.'

I was growing a little impatient. 'What can you tell me about this Borrn character?'

'He's supposed to be a good astrologer, and there aren't that many good ones around. I don't know anything else, except that he's never been involved in any of our investigations. That's why I sent Peth to you.'

'What about a bunko angle? It's possible that Borrn could be milking Davidson. If he's using scare tactics, that's extortion.'

Garth threw up his hands. 'Then Davidson will just have to file a complaint. We're not running a baby-sitting service.' He thought about what I'd said for a few moments, then added, 'It's true that some of these guys arc bunko artists, con men. They get an impressionable type, come up with a few shrewd insights, scare the hell out of him with a lot of mumbo jumbo, then start giving bad advice.'

'Do any of them give good advice?'

Garth looked at me strangely. 'I've seen some things that are hard to explain, and I've heard of things that are impossible to explain. I know very little because I get told very little. The occult underground is a very secret society. Secrecy is part of the Witch's Pyramid.'

'There you go again.'

'Never mind again. If you want to know more you should talk to one of your colleagues at the university.'

I tried to think of one of my colleagues who might know something about the occult. I came up zero. 'Who would that be?'

'Dr. Jones.'

'Uranus Jones?'

'That's the one.'

Uranus was more than a colleague; she was a friend. She was also one of the most levelheaded, together people I'd ever met. I shook my head. 'You must have your signals crossed. Uranus isn't an astrologer, she's an astronomer. And one of the best in the business.'

Garth grunted. 'You may know her as an astronomer. In the circles I travel in lately, she's a living legend. She's cut an awful lot of corners for me, helping to track lost kids who get involved in the occult, that kind of thing. She's opened doors I wouldn't even be able to find on my own. Or wouldn't know existed. You wouldn't believe her reputation.' He stared off into space for a few moments, as though considering his next words. 'She's supposed to be psychic, and a materializing medium.'

'There you go-'

'You know what a psychic is. A materializing medium is a person who can make objects appear in another person's hand-by willing it.'

I found Uranus in her offices in the university's Hall of Sciences. The rooms were cluttered with charts, telescope parts, and other astronomical paraphernalia. Uranus was bent over a blowup of a new star cluster she had discovered. Her hair, strawberry blond in old photographs she had shared with me, was now a burnished silver. I knew she was fifty, but she had the face and body of a woman in her early thirties, and the eyes of a teenager.

She glanced up and smiled when I entered. 'Mongo! How nice to see you!'

'Hello, darlin'.' I went over to her desk and looked at the photograph. 'How do you think those stars are going to affect my behavior this year?'

Uranus casually pushed the photo to one side, leaned back in her chair, folded her hands in her lap and stared at me. 'Who have you been talking to?'

'A certain cop who's a little in awe of you. Didn't you know Garth is my brother?'

'I did.'

'Well, how come you never talked to me about any of these hidden talents of yours? Heaven knows we've sat through enough boring faculty parties together.'

'What would have been your reaction?'

I envisioned myself choking on a Scotch sour. She had a point, and I decided not to pursue it. 'Uranus, I'd like to ask you a few questions.'

'As a criminologist or private detective?'

'Private detective. I need some help.'

'All right. What do you want to know?'

'For openers, darlin', what's a nice astrologer like you doing in a place like this?'

That caught her off guard and she laughed. 'Astronomy evolved from astrology,' she said, pointing to the charts and photographs strewn around her office. 'The one is much older than the other.'

'I'm not sure what that means.'

'It may mean,' Uranus said easily, 'that any man who rejects out-of-hand the tools that other men have found useful for thousands of years is a fool.' She paused, then slowly drew a circle in the air with her index finger. 'We live in a circle of light that we call Science. Obviously, I believe in science. But I also know that the circle of light expands slowly, illuminating things that are in the surrounding darkness. The atom, the force of gravity, the fact that the earth is round-all were very 'unscientific' concepts at one time. There are still unbelievably powerful forces out in that darkness we temporarily call the Occult, Mongo. The ancients knew about and used these forces instinctively. Most modern men-at least in the West-are not so wise. Science can be thought of as a means of getting things done. But there are other ways. For example, taking an airplane is a perfectly reasonable and efficient means of getting to, say, Europe. There are men and women alive today who can make the same journey-and report their observations-without ever leaving their living rooms. It's called astral projection.'

'Are you one of those people?'

Uranus ignored the question. 'The Magi mentioned in the Bible were astrologers,' she said. 'Our word 'magician' comes from magi. The 'star' they saw in the east was actually an astrological configuration that they knew how to interpret. And look where it led them. Jesus may have been the greatest ceremonial magician who's ever lived. He-with his disciples-numbered thirteen, the classic number of the witch's coven. Each of the disciples displays the characteristics of one of the twelve signs of the Zodiac. The sign of the early Christians was the fish. Pisces is symbolized by fish, and Jesus lived in the age of Pisces.'

I meant to laugh; it came out a nervous chuckle. I remembered Garth's comment on preconceptions. 'You'd better not let your friendly neighborhood clergy hear you talking like that.'

Uranus smiled. 'Everything I've said is common knowledge to anyone who's done his theological homework. It's a matter of difference of opinion over interpretation.' She paused and touched my hand. 'In any case, you can no longer claim that I don't discuss these things with you. What did you want to see me about, Mongo?'

I took out the horoscope Peth had given me and handed it to her. 'I'd like you to read this for me.'

Uranus smoothed the paper flat on the desk and studied it. After a few moments she looked up at me. 'Is this yours, Mongo?'

I shook my head.

'I'm glad. I don't have time to do a thorough reading, but at a glance I'd say this person is in trouble.'

'How do you know that?'