The Templar's Code (58 page)

“Oh, puh-leeze! This guy’s clearly delusional,” Edie scoffed, subtlety not her strong suit. “I don’t know why we’re even wasting our breath talking to you.”

“Perhaps because I am the one holding the gun.”

At hearing the ironic riposte, Edie openly glared.

“Do you by any chance know
how
the Genesis code works?” Caedmon politely inquired, hoping to smooth the rough waters. A calm sea might buy them more time.

“The Emerald Tablet is an ingeniously crafted cryptogram that unlocks the sequences of the Divine Harmonic,” Dr. Lyon replied, back to speaking in a measured professorial tone.

He raised a quizzical brow, unfamiliar with the term.

Using the index finger of his left hand as a pointer, Dr. Lyon indicated the circular wreath of intertwined characters. “The pictograph is fashioned from the letters of the Paleo-Hebrew alphabet. Each letter, when spoken aloud, has a specific tone that generates a unique pulse and vibration. Not only can sound and vibration alter physical matter, but it can
create
physical matter if correctly sequenced.”

Edie turned to him. “Tell me it ain’t so.”

“I cannot,” Caedmon honestly replied, grappling with this latest revelation. “Dr. Lyon’s claim is scientifically possible. Indeed, there is a branch of science known as cymatics that studies modal phenomenon, specifically examining the interaction of sound, vibration, and frequency. The results of these experiments tend to prove Dr. Lyon’s assertion that sound and vibration can affect physical matter.” He hesitated, well aware that the cymatic research had also proved something else. Something utterly astounding.

Dr. Lyon wordlessly lifted his chin in Caedmon’s direction, silently commanding him to continue.

“Right.” He took a deep breath, worried that rather than dousing the flame with a wet flannel, he was about to splash gasoline onto the fire. “The cymatic researchers also discovered that when the letters of the ancient Hebrew language are spoken aloud, the ensuing tonal vibration
alters
physical matter. This result could not be replicated with any modern-day language.” He shrugged, forced to capitulate under the onerous weight of the scientific evidence. “One can only speculate that there is a universal harmonic contained within the ancient Hebrew language that has the inherent ability to reconfigure physical reality.”

Edie snapped her fingers. “Yeah, don’t you remember? In
The Book of Moses,
Benjamin Franklin mentioned the Egyptian-styled ritual that he attended and the ‘ungodly chant’ that was sung.”

“Garbled polyglot without the encryption key.” Dr. Lyon dismissively shrugged. “The
order
of each vibratory sound is the key.”

“Holy crap!” Edie turned to him, wide-eyed. “That can only mean one thing—he’s got the encryption key.”

The older man opened his mouth. Then just as quickly closed it. Neither confirming nor denying.

“Come now. You are among friends. Or at least unarmed dinner companions,” Caedmon coaxed with forced humor.

“Yes, I have the encryption key,” Dr. Lyon finally confessed. “Some years back, I inherited a rare document that chronicles the entire history of the Emerald Tablet dating back to Atlantis and the high priest Thoth. Titled the
Luminarium
, it was composed by a Muslim
Ma’min
and a Jewish Kabbalist in the mid-twentieth century. Prior to their deportation to Auschwitz.”

“My God,” Edie murmured, like Caedmon, horrified. The mere mention of the place conjured a ghastly image.

“I’ve never heard of the
Luminarium
.”

“Only one copy of the manuscript exists. Within its pages, the secret of the Divine Harmonic is revealed.” Dr. Lyon paused, garnering their full attention. “As well as a detailed plan to end the violent depravity that permeates this world.”

Edie immediately swung her gaze toward the head of the table. “Why am I suddenly getting a
very
bad feeling?”

“The wise authors of the
Luminarium
knew that evil cannot be contained,” Dr. Lyon continued, an excited glimmer in his eyes. “It must be destroyed. Only then can our earthly souls ascend to the Lost Heaven, our true home. In the Lost Heaven, violence does not exist. There is only the Light. In all its purity and goodness.” Taking a deep breath, Dr. Lyon placed his palm upon the Emerald Tablet. His pose reminiscent of a witness swearing upon a Bible before taking the stand. “I intend to follow in Thoth’s hallowed footsteps. Just as the Atlantean high priest destroyed warmongering Atlantis twelve thousand years ago, I intend to use the Divine Harmonic to destroy this flawed creation.”

Hearing that, Edie gasped.

“God save me from overreaching zealots,” Caedmon muttered, the reality of Dr. Lyon’s scheme hitting him straight on. Like a fist of fives to the underbelly.

“All of which explains why Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson went to such lengths to hide the Emerald Tablet,” Edie exclaimed, her cheeks flushed with heated color. “So that people like
you
would not get it into their head to play God.”

“One cannot permit evil to exist if one has it in his power to eradicate that evil,” Dr. Lyon calmly replied.

“Making
you
the ultimate Decider. Oh,
that’s
rich!”

Dr. Lyon picked up the Emerald Tablet with his left hand and clasped it to his chest. “Unlike you, I have the courage of my convictions. And I will heal humankind by ending the violence and brutality. Once and for all. This is my
gift
to the planet, to reunite
every
living soul with the Light. Only then, can you and I and, indeed, every inhabitant of this battle-scarred planet be made whole.”

“I’d like to point out that good people do inhabit the planet.” Although damned difficult, he kept his tone neutral.

“And they shall inherit the Lost Heaven. I can think of no better reward. By initiating the harmonic sequence, I will liberate the suffering masses from this cesspool of evil.”

Edie derisively snorted. “Thank you, but I’d rather jump into the deep end of the cesspool than—”

“Surely the world is not so far gone that we need contemplate so drastic a solution,” Caedmon said over top of her. Well aware that Dr. Lyon’s gun was loaded, he didn’t think it wise to antagonize the man.

“Sadly, there’s no such thing as a utopian safe haven. No New Atlantis. No New Jerusalem. The dark fire burns too bright. Several miles from this very spot there’s a mass grave with the butchered remains of two hundred innocents . . . I rest my case.”

The professor’s startling declaration of intent cast a lunar shadow across the altar. In the pit of his tightening stomach, Caedmon feared that they were dealing with a mad man.

“So the solution is to kill
everyone
? That gives a whole new meaning to the word overkill.” Edie disgustedly shook her head.

“When you are free of this dark world, you will thank me.”

“For committing an act of radical nihilism? I think not,” Caedmon retorted, refusing to go an inch, let alone ride the full mile.

The older man smiled. “I prefer to think of it as
sacred
nihilism. Indeed, I could have done like everyone else and anesthetized the pain of existence with narcotics or alcohol or—” He stopped in midstream. Frowning, he stepped around the stone altar and peered down, directly into the gaping hole below.

Caedmon was able to see on Dr. Lyon’s face the
exact
moment that the recognition dawned.

As though the older man had been bitten by a snake and succumbed to paralysis the instant the poisonous venom entered his bloodstream, Merkür de Léon stood motionless. Totally and completely disoriented.

Then, just as Caedmon feared, he imploded.

Spinning on his heel, his hand violently shaking, he aimed the Smith & Wesson, first at Caedmon, then at Edie. Glaring.

Whether by accident or design, Dr. Lyon fired a shot, the bullet ricocheting off the wall near the entrance.

Afraid the next shot would hit its mark, Caedmon grabbed the lantern on the stone altar and flung it to the floor.

Plunging the sanctuary into primeval darkness.

Terrified, Edie shrieked.

The high-pitched sound reverberated off the stone walls. Endlessly echoing. Deafening even to her own ears.
Oh God!
She was totally disoriented. Pitch-black darkness, fear, and uncertainty all compressed into a painful cranial throb that felt like it would detonate at any moment.

A split second later, a second bullet discharged, whistling past her head, lodging in the pilaster behind her. She heard several pieces of stone, blasted free, pelt the ground.

“Hit the floor!” Caedmon ordered, his disembodied voice echoing off the sanctuary walls.

Gripped with terror, she reflexively dropped to the ground. On the other side of the sanctuary, she could hear Dr. Lyon’s erratic breathing. Or was that
her
erratic breathing? Edie held her breath, afraid Dr. Death would home in on her serrated exhalations.

Shifting into high gear, she crawled away from where Dr. Lyon had been standing.

At least, she
hoped
she was moving away from the monster. She couldn’t see a damned thing. Trying to make as little noise as possible, she winced every time the tip of her hiking boot scuffed the uneven stone surface.

“Three blind mice, see how they run,” Dr. Lyon taunted. Not sounding the least bit afraid. His courage no doubt bolstered by the fact that he had a loaded pistol clasped in his hands.

That or the crazy old coot could see in the dark.

Like she wasn’t scared enough,
that
thought sent a shiver of pure panic up her spine. Edie wondered how long they could play the avoidance game. Although the sanctuary was fairly large, with a diameter of some twenty-five feet, at some point, they were bound to bump into each other.

If she could just find Caedmon, maybe they could escape together before their would-be killer figured out they’d gone AWOL.

No sooner did that plan cross her mind than she brushed up against something warm.
A body!
She instinctively jerked, fell over, started to scurry away. A strong hand grabbed her ankle.

“It’s me, love.”

Relief instantly morphed into panic, another gunshot ringing out.

“You will both pay for the heinous crime that you committed,” Dr. Lyon announced.

Edie’s stomach painfully knotted. She frantically reached out, grabbing hold of the first thing that her hand came into contact with—Caedmon’s kneecap. Which one, she had no idea. “We have to turn the lantern back on!”

He leaned close to her, his nose bumping against her cheek. “I’m afraid that the lantern’s a lost cause,” he whispered in her ear.

“I have a second one in my duffel bag. It’s on the other side of the cave. All I have to do is crawl—”

“No!” he hissed, his warm breathing hitting her full in the face. “Any idea how many death traps are in the cave?”

“There are two of them—the one behind the altar and the one that I fell into earlier in the week.”

“Right. I want you to stay put while I go after the bastard.”

“Are you crazy? Not only are you handcuffed, but you have a broken hand.”

“Trust me, love, he
will
kill you.”

“Like you’re gonna get off with only a slap on the wrist. Not only do I have two good hands, but I’ve got a mean side kick in case you missed the earlier show. So I want you to stay—” Edie swept her arm to and fro across the stone floor.

Where before there had been a hard knee and a warm body, there was nothing but thin air.