‘Heraklion?’ enquired Stephen and he looked around, as though searching for something. ‘Where is Heraklion?’
Nikos looked doubtful. He pointed towards the small window and then put his hands together and pulled them slowly apart. ‘Long . . . way,’ he said, remembering a couple of words of English. He thought for a moment, then pointed to the ground. ‘He . . . Vamos.’
Stephen nodded. He thought he’d heard of Vamos and figured that it lay some distance to the west of Heraklion, but he had no idea how much of a journey it was.
‘I must go Heraklion,’ he said. ‘Understand? I . . . go . . . Heraklion!’
Nikos nodded, as though he knew what Stephen was saying. ‘Heraklion,’ he repeated. ‘Yes.’ And again he pointed towards the window. ‘Long way.’
Stephen pointed at him and then himself. ‘You take me?’
Nikos shook his head, spread his hands helplessly. Stephen decided he was saying he had no way of taking him.
‘I must go!’ he gasped. ‘Very important! Please, you help?’
Nikos frowned. He seemed to be thinking. Then he nodded.
‘To . . . mo . . . tor . . .’ He shook his head, unable to make the word he was trying for.
‘Tomorrow?’ asked Stephen hopefully.
‘Ah!’ Nikos nodded eagerly. ‘To . . . morrow, I get . . .’ He made a motion with his hands, as though pulling at the reins of an invisible horse. ‘We go.’
Stephen nodded thankfully, aware that more precious time would slip away but equally aware that he was exhausted and on the verge of slipping back into unconsciousness. He pointed to the metal collar and made a tearing gesture with his hands. ‘I need to get this off,’ he said. ‘Understand? Take off!’
Nikos frowned. He went to a nearby table and unwrapped a piece of cloth, revealing a loaf and a hunk of cheese. He broke a piece of bread off and came back to Stephen, holding out the food to him, but Stephen could already feel his exhausted body shutting down on him. Again, he feebly tapped the collar. ‘Take . . . take off . . .’ he whispered. And then darkness seemed to close around him like a giant fist and the last thing he saw was Nikos’s puzzled face, staring down at him as he slipped back into unconsciousness.
Back in their quarters, Alec examined the wound in Ethan’s shoulder – an angry red puncture that was still pulsing fresh blood.
‘It’s pretty deep,’ he said. ‘It’s a wonder you can use your left arm at all.’
Ethan shrugged. He was slumped on a couch and, at the moment, was more concerned with gulping down goblets of water.
‘I guess I’ll survive,’ he croaked. ‘What a pity my aim was off with that axe.’
‘You could have hit Ariadne,’ Alec pointed out.
‘She was never in any danger,’ Ethan assured him. ‘But if nothing else, I threw a pretty good scare into Wolfe. Did you see his face? He thought he was safe up there on his throne, but another two inches to the right and he’d have had the biggest headache in history.’
‘He said he’d send somebody to tend to your wound,’ said Coates, who was standing just behind Alec. ‘Hopefully he won’t forget. The last thing we need is for the injury to become infected.’
Ethan snorted. ‘You think it makes any difference? That maniac is going to keep finding new challenges for us to do, and sooner or later, we’re going to fail one of them.’
‘It’s my turn tomorrow,’ said Alec apprehensively. ‘What do you suppose he’s got lined up for me?’
If Ethan or Coates had any idea about it, they didn’t say anything.
‘We have to find a way to get these collars off,’ said Alec. ‘As long as we wear them, he’s got complete control over us. Or rather, Lee has.’
‘We’ve tried that,’ Ethan reminded him. ‘And got precisely nowhere. Whoever invented these things was pretty thorough.’
‘If we could jump Lee,’ suggested Coates. ‘Knock him out before he has a chance to fiddle with whatever infernal contraption he has under his tunic, and grab whatever key he uses . . .’
‘Too risky,’ said Ethan. ‘We don’t even know there is a key. Can you see anywhere on these things where one would fit? Everything else seems to operate by remote control – maybe the lock works the same way. And for all we know, there’s some kind of failsafe built into it. Lee could hit a switch and choke the life out of all three of us before he even hit the ground.’
‘Then what do you suggest?’ asked Coates. ‘We can’t just sit around here and hope that help is on its way—’
He broke off as the door opened and Lee stepped into the room. He studied the three prisoners for a moment, ensuring that they were a safe distance away from him, and then he stepped aside. Ariadne came in, carrying a wooden tray that contained a bowl of hot water and what looked like large rolls of bandage.
‘I’ve come to dress your wound,’ she told Ethan as she set the tray down on a table beside the couch.
He stared at her. ‘I’m amazed,’ he said. ‘Wolfe has sent his own daughter to deal with it?’
Ariadne shook her head. ‘No,’ she corrected him. ‘This was my idea. Lee was instructing a servant girl to come and do it, but I insisted that I should take her place. I thought it was the least I could do. I’ve made Lee promise not to tell my father.’ She reached into the bowl, pulled out a white cloth and wrung it out. ‘If he knew I was here, he’d be furious.’ She approached Ethan and held the cloth to his wound, pressing it hard. Ethan gritted his teeth, but didn’t make a sound.
‘Don’t you think you’re taking a terrible chance?’ asked Alec. ‘What’s to stop us taking you hostage and demanding our release?’
Ariadne looked at him, and once again he felt the intensity of those dark brown eyes burning into him. ‘Two things,’ she said. ‘First of all, I already am a hostage too. My father holds me prisoner here, just as much as he holds you. Secondly . . .’ She glanced towards Lee, who was watching their every movement like a hawk. ‘I’m sure I don’t have to spell it out for you,’ she said. ‘Lee would flick the switch the moment one of you laid a finger on me. Actually, I’m amazed he even let me come in here. I think you’ve made a big impression on him, Alec,’ she added softly.
‘Me?’ Alec frowned. ‘Why would that be?’
‘It was when you offered to take the beating for him,’ she explained. ‘It impressed my father too. He couldn’t stop talking about it afterwards. He said it showed the kind of courage that he thought no longer existed.’
‘He has a very strange way of showing his admiration,’ said Coates. ‘He’s got one of his nasty little challenges lined up for Master Alec tomorrow.’
Ariadne frowned. ‘I wish you hadn’t come here,’ she told Alec.
‘What are you talking about?’ he cried. ‘You’re the reason I came! That message you slipped me in Knossos . . .’
‘That went badly wrong,’ she told him. ‘My father hardly ever allows me to leave this island and on the few occasions he does, he watches me like a hawk. I was determined to try and get help, but I had a matter of minutes alone in the ladies’ room to write some kind of message. I hoped that whoever I gave it to would have the sense to go to the police with it. The last thing I wanted or expected was that you’d just turn up here with the other guests.’
Alec stared at her. ‘Well, excuse me,’ he said.
‘No, please, don’t misunderstand me. I’m grateful you came, but . . . I didn’t want to involve you in my father’s little games.’
‘Little games?’ said Ethan, through gritted teeth, because Ariadne was still applying pressure to the wound. ‘That’s one name for them. Must be tough, having a cold-blooded killer for a father.’
Ariadne bowed her head and Alec thought for a moment that she might be about to burst into tears – but she recovered her composure. ‘You must understand,’ she said. ‘He wasn’t always like this. I think it is guilt that has made him the way he is – the fact that he made his millions from the deaths of so many innocent people. And of course, wh
en my mother died—’
‘Your mother?’ murmured Alec.
Ariadne nodded. ‘I barely knew her. She died when I was just a few years old. But from what Father has told me, the two of them were devoted to each other. They both had a fascination for Greek mythology and he bought this island so the two of them could live here. He began restoring the palace for her and I think he imagined they would live together as rulers of their own little kingdom, far from the brutal world where he had made his fortune. But in their second year on the island, my mother fell ill with a fever and never recovered. After that, my father’s interest in mythology became an obsession.’ Ariadne swapped the cloth for a towel and patted Ethan’s shoulder dry. She reached for a small pot of ointment that stood on the tray, scooped some up and applied it to the wound. ‘This is a healing salve,’ she said. ‘It’s very effective. Our gladiators use it to dress their wounds.’
‘Gladiators?’ Ethan stared at her. ‘So your father stages these fights on a regular basis?’
Ariadne bit her lip. Then, after a moment’s hesitation, she nodded. ‘He brings fighters in from around the world,’ she admitted. ‘Young men with no families and no prospects. At first they fought with wooden weapons, just trying to disarm each other. But that wasn’t enough for him. He decided he wanted them to fight to the death. I begged him not to do it, but he no longer listens to me.’
‘So it was after your mother’s death that your father came to believe he was a reincarnation of King Minos?’ asked Alec.
‘It didn’t happen overnight,’ said Ariadne. ‘As a young girl, I remember him being kind and considerate, just as you’d expect any father to be. It’s only over the last few years that the obsession has finally led him into . . .’ She hesitated.
‘Say it,’ said Coates. ‘Madness. There’s no other word that can explain what has happened to your father.’
‘But through it all, he is still my father!’ said Ariadne defiantly. ‘And much as I hate what he has become, I cannot bring myself to hate him, despite all the evil things he has done. Blood is thicker than water, Mr Coates.’
‘And I expect you’ve seen plenty of it over the past couple of years,’ said Coates flatly.
‘He makes me watch,’ said Ariadne, her voice filled with dread. ‘He tells me that one day I will be Queen of this island and I must make myself strong.’
‘And what will you think of him when he’s killed us?’ Alec asked her.
‘Hopefully it won’t come to that,’ said Ariadne. She picked up a gauze dressing from the tray and pressed it against Ethan’s wound. Then, taking a length of bandage, she began to wind it around his chest, holding the dressing in position. ‘Two of you have already survived a challenge. If Alec can survive tomorrow, I believe my father will grant the three of you your lives. You’ll still be his prisoners, of course, but at least he will allow you to live here in comfort.’
Coates snorted. ‘And we’re supposed to be happy with that?’ he cried.
‘I’m not expecting you to be happy,’ Ariadne assured him. ‘But surely it’s better than being dead, like so many others who have come here before you. My father has been genuinely impressed by the courage he has seen displayed by you so far. He respects courage and I think he may show mercy.’ She finished tying off the bandage and sat back. ‘There,’ she said. ‘That ought to heal up in no time at all.’
She went to pick up the tray, but Alec reached out and grabbed her arm. Lee took a threatening step forward and he released his grip, but he stared intently into Ariadne’s eyes. ‘Tell me what your father has in store for me tomorrow,’ he demanded.
She shrugged her shoulders. ‘He doesn’t tell me everything. All I know is it will involve the labyrinth.’
‘So there really is one?’
‘Oh yes, though I’ve never seen it. Father never allows me to go down there. It is his greatest secret.’
‘But others have been there before me? Other . . . captives.’
She nodded, but now she could not seem to look him in the eye. ‘Father says it is the ultimate test of a person’s character. But he has never told me what the challenge entails. I’m sorry, I wish I could be more help.’ Now she fixed Alec with a particularly intense look. ‘I’m going to leave these here in case you need to re-dress the wound,’ she said, and she set down a thick roll of bandages on the couch. Then picking up the tray, she got to her feet and headed towards the door. But she stopped for a moment and gazed back at Alec. ‘Good luck, tomorrow,’ she said and her eyes seemed to be sending him some kind of unspoken message. Then she went out of the door. Lee remained for a moment, looking thoughtfully at Alec. Then he followed Ariadne and the door closed behind him.
‘Well, what did you make of that?’ asked Coates. ‘The way that young lady talks, I begin to wonder if she isn’t as mad as her father.’
Alec shook his head. ‘I don’t think she’s mad,’ he said. ‘Just a victim, like most of the other people on this island.’
‘She did a good job with this dressing,’ said Ethan, buttoning his shirt. ‘Gave me the impression she gets plenty of practice.’
‘Hmm.’ Alec had picked up the roll of bandages that Ariadne had left and was gazing at it thoughtfully. Acting on impulse, he began to unroll it.
Ethan looked at Alec. ‘You OK, kid?’
Alec shrugged. ‘Just nervous about tomorrow,’ he said. ‘I’d be happier if I knew what I was going to find in that labyrinth. According to the legend, it’s a monstrous man with the head of a bull. But such a thing couldn’t exist, could it?’
‘Of course not,’ said Coates. ‘Now, I know it sounds like a tall order, but you’d better try and get some rest. Whatever Wolfe has in mind for you, you’re sure to need all your wits about you.’ He glanced sharply at Alec. ‘Why are you unrolling that ruddy bandage?’ he asked.
‘I’m not sure. Something in Ariadne’s expression when she mentioned it. I thought perhaps—’ He broke off as he realized that the bandage only comprised a thin layer over something else that was hidden within. The last layer came away and he was pleased, but not particularly surprised to find what had been concealed there. It was a large ball of twine.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Into the Maze
STEPHEN OPENED HIS eyes. It was morning and he was still slumped in the wooden chair. He shook his head to clear away the last traces of sleep and gazed quickly around the room. Something felt different, and for a few moments, he was unsure what it was. Then he realized that a weight had gone from around his neck. He lifted a hand and his fingers touched the bare flesh of his throat, raw and chafed by the metal collar.
He sat up and saw to his delight that the device was sitting on a low table beside his chair, and with it the tools that Nikos must have used to prise it open. He marvelled at how exhausted he must have been to be able to sleep through something like that. He remembered coming here last night and then a panic came over him as he realized how much time had already been wasted. He got to his feet and saw that Nikos had left out some clothes for him to change into – a rough woollen shirt and a pair of trousers. Gratefully, Stephen pulled off the tattered chiton and put the other clothes on. They were much too big for him, but at least he wouldn’t look quite so ridiculous when he finally got back to Heraklion.
He limped over to the barrel and helped himself to another drink of water. He felt stronger after his sleep, and the sting in his burned face had subsided a little, but at the same time, he felt helpless. He was stranded here, miles from civilization, and he had no idea where Nikos had got to. Probably out tending his goats, Stephen supposed.
He was just reaching for another dipper of water when he heard the sound of wheels on the road outside. He went to the door and threw it open. A pony and cart had just pulled up outside, and seated at the reins was Nikos. He grinned down at Stephen and lifted a hand. ‘Now we go Heraklion!’ he yelled.
Stephen needed no second bidding. He ran quickly back inside and grabbed the metal colla
r from the table. Then pulling the door shut behind him, he limped down the path to the cart and clambered into the back.
‘Thank you,’ he said. ‘Thank you so much.’
Nikos grinned. He cracked a whip and the pony sprang forward, bumping and shuddering the ancient cart along the rough dirt track. After only half a mile or so, they emerged at a crossroads and Nikos urged the pony to turn right onto a better road, flanked by cypress trees.
‘How far Heraklion?’ yelled Stephen, but for answer, Nikos just cracked the whip again, the pony lengthening its gait until they were speeding along at a canter. Stephen clung grimly on, hoping against hope that they wouldn’t be too late.
Alec woke to the sound of the door being unlocked. He sat up on the couch and felt a sense of apprehension blossom within him as he saw Lee standing grim-faced in the open doorway. It was time for his challenge.
He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the couch. Ethan and Coates were rousing themselves too, but Lee held out a hand to still them. ‘Just the boy,’ he said.
‘Surely one of us can accompany him?’ said Coates. ‘For goodness’ sake, he’s only seventeen.’
‘Just the boy,’ repeated Lee.
‘How can you be like this?’ cried Coates. ‘Do you have no shame?’ He got up from his couch and made as if to approach Lee, but Lee slipped a hand beneath his tunic and gave the valet a warning look. ‘You want to keep breathing, stay where you are!’ he snarled.
Coates stopped in his tracks and stood there in silence, his face a study in torment.
Ethan growled at Lee. ‘If he comes to any harm, I swear I’ll find you and I’ll kill you,’ he said. ‘That’s a promise.’
Lee shrugged his shoulders as though it was of no consequence. ‘I follow orders,’ he said.
‘Master Alec,’ said Coates. ‘Please be careful.’
‘I’ll be fine,’ he said, trying to sound confident and feeling anything but. He got to his feet and walked towards the door. He already had the ball of twine hidden inside his tunic. Lee stepped aside to allow him to pass, then backed out of the room, closing and locking the door behind him.
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