Ethan looked at Alec and smiled. ‘What a shame,’ he said. ‘Those ruins sound like they could be mighty interesting. But I guess old Coates’s word is law, huh?’ And he turned to follow the valet.
Alec finally had a chance to look at the piece of crumpled paper in his hand. He unfolded it carefully, not wanting to tear it. It had been folded and folded again, until it was a tiny square, but he eventually opened it out to reveal two words written on it in bold black ink. Alec stared at the message in surprise.
HELP ME, it read.
CHAPTER FOUR
Introductions
‘I DON’T BELIEVE I’ve let you talk me into this,’ said Coates glumly. He looked at Alec, a wary expression in his eyes. ‘It goes against everything your father said.’
It was two days later, a little before ten o’clock, and the three of them were back in the bustling harbour of Heraklion. From the moment he’d read Ariadne’s note, Alec had been determined that they would make the trip to Candia. He hadn’t mentioned the message to his companions. For one thing, he was pretty sure that any whiff of intrigue would completely ruin his chances of talking Coates into it; and for another, he didn’t quite know what to make of it himself. He only knew that there had been something in the girl’s dark-brown eyes that made him believe in her.
So, over the intervening day and a half, he had devoted his time to nagging, begging and pleading. Ethan had been easy enough, he was a restless spirit anyway, always happy to be moving on. Coates, on the other hand, had proved stubborn to the very last, but Alec was well versed in the art of wrapping the valet around his little finger and in the end, he’d got his own way.
Now, as they strolled towards the end of jetty number three, rucksacks over their shoulders, they saw that two men were already waiting there, together with a collection of large wooden crates. As they approached, the first man, an elderly gentleman in a totally inappropriate tweed suit, turned to meet them. Alec could see that he was sweating heavily and mopping at his face with a white silk handkerchief.
‘Good morning,’ he said, in what was clearly an English accent. ‘Are you here to get the boat to Candia?’
‘Apparently so,’ said Coates, not sounding very happy about it.
‘Excellent. I’m Professor Robin Isherwood.’ He indicated a much younger man who stood a short distance from him: tall, athletic looking, dressed in a more appropriate linen suit. ‘This is my son, Stephen.’
Alec judged Stephen to be in his early twenties as they all shook hands and made their own introductions.
‘You guys been to Wolfe’s island before?’ asked Ethan.
The two men shook their heads. ‘No, but I am assured it’s quite a spectacular place,’ said the professor. ‘I’ve been looking forward to seeing it.’
‘Don’t tell me you bumped into Wolfe at Knossos, like we did?’ said Alec.
The professor shook his head. ‘No, I first met him in a taverna last summer, here in Heraklion. He was at the table next to ours and we fell into conversation. When I told him what I did, he became very interested.’
There was a pause and everyone waited for the professor to explain, but then Stephen smiled and said, ‘My father’s an inventor.’
‘Really?’ said Alec. ‘Fantastic.’
The professor smiled. ‘Oh, I’ve had a few small successes,’ he said. ‘And some of them have actually made me a bit of money. But the thing that Mr Wolfe was interested in – that’s the one that could change my life.’
There was another pause, while everyone waited to hear more. Again, it was Stephen who took up the story. ‘Mr Wolfe is very interested in the idea of man-powered flight,’ he explained. ‘And when Father mentioned that this is what he was working on, he became very excited. In fact, he issued us with a challenge.’
‘A challenge?’ said Ethan.
‘Yes,’ said the professor. ‘He told me that if I could devise a system whereby a man could fly, without the aid of an engine, a distance of half a mile, he would pay me ten thousand pounds. He would even advance me a cheque to cover the costs of building and testing such a machine.’
Eyebrows were raised as everybody considered winning such a vast sum.
‘Incredible,’ said Ethan. ‘And you’ve . . . managed to do it?’
‘I’ve flown the system three times further than that,’ said Stephen with a smile. ‘The money’s as good as ours.’
The professor nodded. ‘I’m a little too old and frail to be the test pilot,’ he said, ‘but Stephen is very competent.’ He gestured to the pile of wooden crates and storage boxes that stood on the jetty beside him. ‘He will be the one to fly Daedalus.’
Alec gave a gasp of recognition. ‘But . . . that’s like . . .’
‘The myth of Daedalus and Icarus,’ finished the professor. ‘Yes, I know. Mr Wolfe commented on it when I first spoke to him. Apparently he is obsessed with Greek myths and legends.’
‘I can understand why you didn’t call the machine Icarus,’ commented Alec with a wry grin. ‘It might have been bad luck.’
The professor and his son exchanged amused looks. ‘We’re not really superstitious people,’ said Stephen. ‘But yes, we didn’t want to tempt fate. Don’t worry, we’re very careful. I didn’t fly the system until we were absolutely sure it was safe.’ He gave Alec a sly wink. ‘And there’s no wax used in the design. Only wood, aluminium and canvas.’
Ethan looked puzzled. ‘I don’t get it,’ he said.
‘It’s part of the myth,’ explained Alec. ‘King Minos imprisoned his inventor, Daedalus, to prevent him from telling anyone about the labyrinth he’d created. But Daedalus made wings of wax and feathers, for himself and his son, Icarus.’ Alec glanced at Stephen. ‘They flew off from a high tower, but Icarus went too high and got too close to the sun. The wax that held the feathers in place melted and he fell into the sea and was drowned.’
Ethan frowned but the professor waved a hand in dismissal. ‘Oh, don’t worry,’ he said. ‘We know what we’re doing. We’ve spent a year getting this right. We’ve made two machines, so we have a spare if anything should go wrong with the first. We’re going to win that money and we’re going to use it to fund our next project.’
Just as the professor finished speaking, somebody else came hurrying along the jetty: a petite, slim young woman dressed in a khaki jacket and skirt and a straw hat. From beneath the brim, a pair of cool green eyes surveyed the group of people on the jetty. Alec noticed that she too had a rucksack on her shoulder.
‘I hope I haven’t missed the boat,’ the girl said as she approached. Her accent was unmistakably American, and Ethan immediately started taking a lot of notice.
‘No, don’t worry,’ he assured her. ‘We’re all waiting for it too.’ He stepped forward and extended a hand to shake. ‘Ethan Wade,’ he said.
‘Ellen McBride,’ she replied, taking the hand and shaking it.
Once again, introductions were made. Alec noticed that when Stephen came up to shake her hand, he seemed every bit as interested as Ethan evidently was.
‘Excuse me, but don’t I know you?’ asked Stephen. ‘Aren’t you the Ellen McBride? The gymnast?’
Ellen smiled, but Alec thought she didn’t seem too pleased to have been recognized. ‘That’s right,’ she said.
Stephen glanced quickly around at the others before continuing. ‘I happened to see Miss McBride taking part in a gymnastics competition in America last summer,’ he explained.
‘Women compete in gymnastics?’ asked Coates, sounding quite offended.
‘They do,’ said Stephen. ‘And high time, I say.’ He turned to Ellen. ‘You were quite remarkable, I remember.’
‘Thank you.’ She shrugged dismissively as though this information was of no real value. ‘It was just a college event,’ she told the others. ‘No big deal.’
‘Nonsense! You completely outclassed the other competitors. There was a lot of talk at the time about women being allowed to compete at an international l
evel.’
‘Oh, that’s going to happen,’ she said. ‘It’s just been confirmed that we’ll be allowed to take part in the 1928 Olympics in Amsterdam.’
There were gasps of surprise all around at this information and everybody but Coates seemed delighted at the news.
‘Mind you, I’ve had a pretty serious setback,’ added Ellen grimly. ‘Only a month after you saw me in action, I fell and broke my leg.’
‘Oh dear,’ said Coates. ‘That must have been annoying.’
Ellen looked at him sharply as though she thought he was trying to be funny. ‘It was more than annoying,’ she told him icily. ‘It was devastating. For a while there, it looked as though it could be the end of my career.’
Coates looked extremely uncomfortable. ‘Oh, that . . . that would have been most unfortunate,’ he said. There was an awkward silence.
‘So . . . what brings you to Mr Wolfe’s island?’ asked Alec, forcing himself to speak in a brighter tone.
‘An offer,’ said Ellen. ‘I met Mr Wolfe in Santorini last year. I’d spent the last of my savings to go out there to recover from my injury. Mr Wolfe had also seen me competing in America.’ She paused for a moment as though remembering. ‘We fell into conversation. He asked me what my greatest ambition was and I told him I wanted to represent my country in Amsterdam. I explained to him how I desperately needed to find financial backing in order to participate. He told me about a project he had in mind and offered to provide the backing I needed, if I would come to his island this summer and take part in an event he’s organizing.’
Alec raised his eyebrows. ‘He’s staging his own Olympics?’ he asked.
Ellen shook her head. ‘Not exactly. What he has in mind is a more unorthodox event, but . . . well, it’s a means to an end. His fee will fund my training for the next three years and give me the chance to get into the Olympic team for the next Games. He gave me half the money up front and I get the other half after the event.’
Ethan shook his head. ‘I’m starting to feel like I’m missing out here,’ he complained. ‘Everybody else gets paid to visit Wolfe’s island. We’re just going to look at some old ruins.’
‘More than just ruins,’ said the professor. ‘If Mr Wolfe is to be believed, they are quite the most amazing Minoan remains in existence. Why, from some of the brief descriptions he’s given me, it’s clear his island is a treasure trove. You should feel honoured that you’re getting the chance to see what’s there.’
‘Oh, we do,’ said Coates flatly. ‘But I’m beginning to have my suspicions about this visit. On the one hand, he tells us he doesn’t want people visiting his island, then on the other we find that he’s invited every Tom, Dick and Harry in the civilized world.’ He glanced briefly at the others, realizing he’d said the wrong thing again. ‘No offence,’ he added.
‘None taken,’ the professor assured him. ‘But I’m sure you need have no worries about Mr Wolfe. After all, he is an Englishman and a gentleman.’
‘He’s Scottish,’ said Coates bluntly. ‘That’s entirely different. In my experience, Scotsmen frequently lack manners and good breeding. And whether he’s a gentleman remains to be seen.’ He pulled his fob watch from his pocket and peered at it. ‘To tell you the truth, I’m beginning to wonder if we’re all the victims of an elaborate hoax. It’s ten minutes past ten and there’s no sign of a boat.’
‘Maybe this is it now,’ said Alec. He pointed. On the glittering turquoise waters, a small vessel was puttering slowly towards them.
‘That can’t be it,’ said Ethan. ‘It’s just a little fishing boat. I figured he was gonna send that fancy yacht of his to pick us up.’
But sure enough, as the boat moved steadily towards them, Alec was able to make out a familiar figure – the Chinese man who had accompanied Wolfe and Ariadne to Knossos. He was standing in the prow, dressed from head to foot in black, his hands behind his back, his face impassive. When the fishing boat slid alongside the jetty, he jumped nimbly ashore and approached the group of passengers, leaving the ship’s pilot to tie the mooring rope. He bowed slightly from the waist and then ushered the passengers aboard, but he didn’t speak a word.
‘You’re ten minutes late,’ observed Coates and the man studied him for a moment, before bowing again.
‘So sorry,’ he said and then added, ‘I am Lee.’ With that he turned away and waved a couple of deck hands further down the jetty to come and help load the professor’s equipment. They obeyed instantly, leaving whatever they were already doing. Alec got the sense that Lee must command a lot of power here. A few minutes later, the crates and boxes were safely stowed aboard and the passengers had found themselves seats on the open deck. Lee reached into a pocket and took out a handful of coins, giving one each to the men who had helped. Then he leaped back aboard and gestured to the pilot that they were ready to go. The engine rattled into life and the fishing boat began to move away from the jetty.
Alec walked to the prow and leaned on the rail, staring eagerly at the shimmering blue horizon. As the boat moved into open water, he saw a couple of dark shapes breaking the surface up ahead of him and realized that he was looking at a school of dolphins cavorting playfully in front of the boat. He had read somewhere that to the ancient Greek mariners, this was always interpreted as a good omen, an indication that a voyage would be successful.
Coates came and stood beside him. ‘Looks like our American friend has found a new interest,’ he murmured.
Alec glanced over his shoulder and saw that both Ethan and Stephen were talking intently to Ellen McBride, who looked none too happy to be the subject of their attention. ‘Ethan always did have an eye for a pretty girl,’ he said.
‘Hmm. Dashed suspicious though, don’t you think?’
‘What is?’
‘This Wolfe character, going to such great lengths to get people over to his island – even offering them money. It makes me wonder what his game is.’
Alec shrugged. ‘You’re so suspicious of everyone, Coates. He said himself that he’s very rich. I suppose a man like that has to spend his money on something.’ He thought for a moment. ‘It sounds almost as though you’re disappointed he didn’t offer to pay us.’
Coates grunted. ‘Nonsense! I’m just saying, it’s damned odd if you ask me.’
But Alec wasn’t taking any notice. He was watching the sleek dark shapes of the dolphins as they raced through the crystal-clear water.
CHAPTER FIVE
The Island of Candia
AFTER SOME FORTY minutes of sailing, a faint outline appeared on the horizon. As the boat drew steadily nearer, they were able to make out the shape of the island. With each passing moment, they could discern more detail – a long ribbon of sandy beach, beyond which rose thickly forested slopes. Further inland they could see the shapes of grey stone crags that thrust up through the surrounding greenery in a series of jagged points. From this distance there was no sign of any form of habitation. As the boat neared the shore, there was a loud rumble off to the north and Alec saw that another plume of black smoke had erupted into the air. He was surprised to see how close it appeared. They were clearly a lot nearer to Santorini now.
Coates scowled. ‘That’s making me decidedly nervous,’ he said.
‘Stop worrying,’ said Alec. ‘I already told you, there hasn’t been a major eruption on Santorini since—’
‘I remember what you said,’ interrupted Coates. ‘It just makes me think that the next one is thousands of years overdue.’
‘You can be very pessimistic, Coates. Has anyone ever told you that?’
‘Many times. I merely point out to them that I’m a realist. In my experience, if things can go wrong, they generally will.’
Lee strode towards the front of the boat and Alec turned aside to speak to him. ‘Candia?’ he asked, pointing towards the approaching shore.
Lee nodded.
‘Will Mr Wolfe be meeting us?’
A slight shake of the head. ‘I take you to hi
m,’ he said.
‘You’re not really the most talkative of people, are you?’ observed Coates.
Lee just bowed, but his expression said nothing at all.
Professor Isherwood wandered over to join Alec and Coates. He nodded his head back to the rear of the boat where Ethan and Stephen were still talking animatedly to Ellen. ‘I’d say we’ve got a bit of rivalry developing over there,’ he said quietly. He winked at Alec. ‘I daresay you’re still a little too young for that kind of thing.’
‘I should say so,’ said Alec, but even as he spoke, an image flashed into his mind: Ariadne’s pretty face and the pleading expression in her eyes.
Coates had returned his attention to the island. ‘What do you know about this place?’ he asked.
‘Very little indeed,’ admitted the professor. ‘I only know what Mr Wolfe has told me. He protects his privacy very closely. Boats are forbidden to land here except by personal invitation.’
‘I can’t help feeling that Wolfe thinks of himself as some kind of king,’ observed Coates. ‘He certainly seems to act like one, summoning people like yourself and Miss McBride to satisfy his personal whims. Do we know how he came by his fortune?’
‘Not a clue,’ said the professor. ‘After meeting him for the first time, I set about trying to uncover more information about him, but there was nothing in any reference library I visited, no record of his name. When the Daedalus was ready, in order to make contact with him, I had to send a letter to a taverna in Crete. After a couple of weeks, I received one back giving me written instructions as to what to do, together with a cheque to cover all expenses for getting the Daedalus shipped over. There was no address on the letter, the boxes had to be delivered to the taverna and they were collected from there and transported to the jetty by a bunch of workmen who didn’t speak any English.’
Alec frowned. ‘And you trust Wolfe to pay you if you succeed?’ he asked.
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