Dewaal and some of the others observed the buildings, only one of which seemed inhabited.
“Three cars in the back,” Prinsen reported.
“They might have heard our cars,” Dewaal said. “And I can’t depend on my informant. He might be dead anyway. This is where it all ends, as far as I’m concerned. Is that clear?”
“Yes ma’am,” said Prinsen.
“Veneman?”
“Chief?”
“Take four officers to the right. Set them up just inside the woods over there, so they can’t be seen from the cabins. Thijssen, take four others and do the same to our left flank. We’ll assume they’re still there, somewhere in those cabins. We’ll assume they don’t have a boat.”
“Too much ice on the water for a boat,” Van Gils said.
“Good. Move out, both teams.”
Veneman and Thijssen left.
“Is this the Dutch idea of a vacation retreat or what?” Eekhaut asked. “No wonder everybody takes their vacations in Spain.”
“All right, already,” Dewaal whispered urgently. She kept her eyes on the cabins. “Keep your eyes peeled. Everyone in position? Who’s got the megaphone? Ah, thanks.”
Her voice echoed over the lake. “Maxwell! This is the police. We have you surrounded. Give yourself up.”
They waited. Nothing happened. Some of the officers changed positions, but nothing else moved.
“Either they’re not there—” Van Gils said.
“They are. Or they fled into the woods earlier, on foot,” Dewaal said. “Either way, we’ll catch them.”
“We’re sitting on our hands, that’s what we’re doing,” Eekhaut grumbled. “Let’s move in.”
“What is the situation, Chief Inspector?” Colonel Al-Rahman asked, in English, unable to understand the Dutch spoken by the officers.
Eekhaut explained in a few words. “They’ll be armed,” he added.
“Perhaps we had better wait for reinforcements?” the colonel suggested.
“We catch them now, or we don’t,” Dewaal said.
“Baphomet, he is in there, in one of those cabins?”
“He is, Colonel. At least, that’s what we assume.” Dewaal considered her options. “Since we’re not going to sit on our hands any longer, Walter, we’ll have to move. Van Gils, Prinsen, three teams. Search every cabin, every shack.”
“Right, ma’am.”
The officers moved forward.
“You see what happens when we don’t have control of things?” Courier said. They’d been waiting in the cabin for more than an hour, waiting for Baphomet to decide. But that decision had not come, and now they were surrounded by police. The indecision angered Courier. The three novices clearly were nervous and kept a watchful eye on their master.
“Keep a lid on it,” Baphomet said. He didn’t sound angry, seemingly not in the least disturbed by the unfolding events. Jasper had taken Courier’s gun and sat on a chair by the window, with a partial view of the silhouettes of the AIVD officers all around the buildings. They knew the officers could not see them, since the lights were out. Just now a megaphoned female voice had told them they were surrounded. Nobody in the house had felt like responding, not even Baphomet.
“What’s our next move?” Courier insisted. “Baphomet? Don’t you see the madness in continuing? Why didn’t we leave an hour ago when there was still time?”
Baphomet seemed distant. He took a moment to respond. “There is no need for excitement, my brother and companion. Our sins have now been forgiven. Eternal peace awaits us. What happens here is of no importance.” He surveyed the room. “Aren’t we at peace, Nemeth, Toth, Jasper?”
The three young men agreed silently.
“And what is your plan?” Courier insisted.
Baphomet smiled indulgently. “There will be time for the last sacrifice, Courier,” he said. And he thought, You are too weak to understand the importance of all this. You were always a trusted companion, a follower of the cult. But in the end, those are just meaningless words: companion, cult, follower. All is now devoid of meaning.
He had a final plan. In the chaos and confusion that would soon erupt, he would disappear. His companions would have to find their own way out, however that might be. After this, both Maxwell and Baphomet would disappear.
At least for a while.
At least until the final reckoning would announce itself. Then he, the ultimate prophet, would claim his due, would claim his place in history.
Until then he would be a faceless man.
“It is the ultimate sacrifice,” he said. “When the police enter these cabins, we will unite with our Creator. This will save us from the humiliation of a trial and prison. How can we be judged by mere mortals, anyway? We will go where mortals have no power over us.”
He turned to Courier. “Or do you see yourself in a prison cell for years, Courier?”
Courier didn’t reply. He could imagine a fate worse than prison, but he would probably not have a choice.
Serena sat in an armchair in the corner of the living room and watched the men. Especially the three young followers, who seemed unmoved by Baphomet’s proposal. They were in his power, though, and would be until the end. They had been brainwashed and would follow him anywhere. They were afraid of him but more concerned about the purity of their souls.
Courier seemed to wake up. “What exactly do have you in mind, Baphomet? Another explosive device?”
“Unfortunately, a very ordinary bomb, yes,” Baphomet said. He opened a cupboard and slid out a package the size of a laptop computer. It looked ominous, black with a few wires connecting different parts and a small display on top. He pushed a recessed button. “It’s armed now. I couldn’t come up with anything better on such short notice. I will be forgiven for such a lack of imagination. But it will be effective.”
“They’re coming,” Jasper said.
Baphomet got up and joined him at the window. Dark figures, partially hidden by shrubs, shadows, and buildings closed in on them.
The two officers who first reached the building snuck around its corners toward the door and windows. They went slowly, keeping an eye on the other buildings.
“Too little experience,” Dewaal whispered to Eekhaut as she eyed their progress. “These men haven’t done much of this in a long time. And what about you?”
“I wouldn’t be a good example for them, at my age,” Eekhaut replied. “This wasn’t the sort of thing I did in Brussels. No SWAT or anything. We occasionally kicked in a door, but you need little training for that.”
They crouched behind a warped, rotten fence, observing the advancing officers. Eekhaut wondered about this place being a vacation camp. It was winter, but he couldn’t imagine this would look much better in summer, desolate and downtrodden as it seemed in the dark.
Dewaal spoke into her radio. “Thijssen?”
“Yes?”
“Keep two officers outside, the rest go in. Every room, every cupboard.”
“All right.”
“They’re armed, Thijssen.”
“I’m aware of that, Chief. So are we.”
“They won’t surrender,” Eekhaut whispered to Dewaal. “They’d rather commit suicide than be caught. They believe they’ll be reunited with their creator or whatever.”
“If that’s what they want, we can arrange it,” Dewaal said. “But try to concentrate, Walter. We move in, house by house.” She spoke into the radio again. “Move, Thijssen.” Then she got up and, followed by Eekhaut and other officers, headed for the nearest building.
Jasper whispered, “Here they come, Baphomet.” His voice was raw with excitement.
Baphomet said, “And what is happening at the other buildings?”
“There’s a number of cops moving toward the cabins on the east side. They’re going in. I see lights.”
“When they enter in here, we detonate the bomb,” Baphomet said. “You, Courier, are allowed to press the final countdown button. Here, this one
. It gives you ten seconds to consider your last sins.”
Serena stepped up to him and grabbed his arm. “We can’t go through with it, Baphomet,” she said. “There’s absolutely no sense in continuing this charade.”
He looked at her in surprise. “And where is that passion you had before, my companion? The passion and the certainty I so much admired in you? Do you doubt our destiny? Are you doubting all we stand for? Now, at this ultimate moment?”
“We’ve done what we set out to do, in Amsterdam,” Serena insisted. “That should be enough. We can be martyrs for our cause and explain our motives to the world at large, which is more important than dying here. Us dying here isn’t even a statement, Baphomet. We should live and speak openly about the things we believe in. Even at a trial, even in jail. The world is waiting for us. There is no sense in being dead martyrs if you can be live ones.”
“That does sound convincing,” he said, smiling at her. “Very convincing. But you’re on my turf now, girl. Living in shame, waiting for the end in the same way mere mortals do, that is not what we were meant to do.” His face changed, his smile disappeared. “Courier here knows what to do. I will retreat to the back room, for my last thoughts. The bomb is powerful enough and will leave nothing but . . .”
“It’s all a lie!” she exclaimed. And she pointed a small but efficient-looking gun at Baphomet’s head. “You’ve lived so long with this lie, Maxwell, too long. It will end here.”
Baphomet considered the weapon with a slight smile. “Prime the bomb, Courier,” he said.
“No, Courier,” Serena said. “Don’t touch the thing. You don’t want to die. Neither do I.”
“You wouldn’t want to live for a lie either,” Baphomet reasoned. “We will be in the news for a short while, during the trial, and then we go to prison for the rest of our lives, and we will be forgotten.”
“And rightfully so,” Serena said. “Except in the memory of those who lost their loved ones. They will not forget.” She looked at Courier. “He has brought us this far, Courier. Let us end this, but not as he intended. He is a madman. He condemns innocent people—”
“You were there as well, as I recall.” Baphomet said.
“Like the others, I was used. By you, Baphomet.”
Outside, police officers tried to get in, rattling the door and shutters. Voices demanded access. They heard pounding on the kitchen door.
“Courier!” Baphomet commanded.
“There was no sacrifice earlier today,” Serena said. “The bomb in the ArenA didn’t go off.”
“Of course it did,” Baphomet insisted.
But his face was pale now.
“I cut the wiring,” Serena said. “I made sure it couldn’t explode. There was no major sacrifice in Amsterdam today. I canceled your big event, Maxwell.”
His eyes narrowed. “Who the hell are you?”
“I’m an officer of Interpol, Maxwell. And you’re under arrest. And what a pleasure it is to say that!”
Baphomet didn’t move. Neither did any of the others.
Except for Courier.
When Eekhaut and Dewaal stepped into the room, they were confronted with an unexpected situation. A young woman kept Maxwell at gunpoint and was, in turn, being targeted by one of the others present, a surly-looking man in his fifties whose contorted expression made it clear he was serious about the standoff.
Eekhaut and Dewaal were followed by Prinsen and Al-Rahman. Six guns were pointing at human beings.
“This is not going to end well, Commissioner,” Courier said. “What we do is this: the girl and I step out with no interference on your part. We get into a car and drive away. She leaves her gun here, of course. Afterward, when I’m sure I’m not followed, I will leave her behind somewhere, and then I’ll disappear. How about that for a plan?”
Maxwell, meanwhile, said nothing. He no longer seemed interested in the proceedings.
The young woman gazed at the officers. “You’re late,” she said. “I had hoped you’d found this place earlier.”
“And who are you?” Dewaal inquired. She tried to focus on Maxwell and the thing on the table that might be a bomb.
Courier stepped toward the young woman and pushed his gun firmly under her chin. “Drop your weapon, bitch!” he hissed. “I’m fed up with all this.”
“You’d better drop yours,” Dewaal insisted. “You’re going nowhere. What do you expect? Where will you go? Germany? Denmark? Police will be waiting for you everywhere you go. And who’s the girl anyway?”
“I’m an Interpol officer, and I’m not a girl,” the woman said.
It was Maxwell who spoke next. “We have been purified, Courier. You do not need to run. We will accept whatever punishment the world imposes on us. That world will not last long anyway.”
But he sounded less certain, less inspired.
“Purified?” Eekhaut said. “You’re a bunch of psychopaths and murderers, that’s what you are. Your biggest plan failed. Everything you attempted, you and your Society of Fire, amounted to nothing.”
“We are—” Baphomet sputtered. “We will all die now, and you will be part of this last sacrifice. You and your sacrilegious . . . Jasper, the bomb!”
Colonel Al-Rahman moved quickly toward the surprised young man and took the package from the table. Jasper didn’t react.
“Master?” Courier inquired.
Baphomet turned his head toward him.
“Master, are we cleansed?”
“Yes, my dear, dear Courier, we are cleansed.”
“Thank you, master,” said Courier. He shoved his gun under his own chin and pulled the trigger.
55
SERENA MADE LITTLE EFFORT to wipe the blood off her face and neck. She didn’t seem to be bothered by it. She sat across from Eekhaut at the kitchen table and drank water from a tall glass he had found in the cupboard. But Eekhaut noticed the slight tremor of her hands. He saw her as tough, but her body was telling her she had endured enough.
Al-Rahman was leaning against the counter, arms folded over his chest. Dewaal had ordered them both to remain in the cabin with the young woman while the other officers escorted the zealots of the society to the cars. Both corpses, including the one found outside the house earlier, had been taken to an empty shed, for later evacuation.
“Interpol,” Eekhaut said approvingly. “Goddamn Interpol. And we weren’t even advised. Left in the dark and all that.”
Colonel Al-Rahman watched them both, impassively. Eekhaut wasn’t sure how much he’d understood, but he was sure the colonel had gotten the main drift of the story.
“And how did Interpol get involved?”
Serena carefully set the glass on the table. “We have been after Maxwell for quite a while, Chief Inspector. Ever since he founded the society. We were familiar with the activities of the church as well, but they had renounced their former crimes and no longer posed a threat. Before that, well—there was hardly anything to prove, but that’s old history. And then, well, you’re familiar with the story, so I heard.”
“You’re Dewaal’s informant.”
“No, that wasn’t me. He was in Maxwell’s organization before I got in. Actually, I had no idea who he was. He’s the man Courier shot earlier. You found his body outside. Nothing I could do for him, I’m afraid. We have been involved with the church for a long time. All this dates from before Interpol, when national security services tried to infiltrate the church. Tried but didn’t succeed. We shifted our attention to the apostates when the church changed its policy twenty years ago. The psychopaths, like Maxwell. We needed to know what they were up to. Oh, he’s smart, is he ever. We couldn’t pin anything on him. And for years we couldn’t get anyone in, until very recently.” She grinned maliciously. “Want to run an organization well, hire a psychopath. We knew Maxwell would amp up the activities of his little organization.”
“So, behind our backs—”
“Oh, no. The head of AIVD knew about us, of course. But since we we
ren’t sure about who in the Bureau could be trusted, we decided to keep it at that. Not even Dewaal knew about me.” She shrugged. “Basically, it’s the big boys talking to each other in their big-boy network. As if it ever was any different.”
“These things tend to get out of hand when we’re all orbiting around the same object, unaware of each other,” Eekhaut said. “What if we accidentally shot you?”
“Professional risks,” Serena said. “Undercover agents know that can happen. We at Interpol try to avoid situations like these, but on the other hand I’m glad I followed Maxwell this close. Saved us all a lot of aggravation, didn’t it?”
“How did you manage? To infiltrate, I mean?”
“Through one of his companies. He noticed me. Well, I made sure he would notice me. Me and my religious zeal. He was always on the lookout for new followers. His vanity, in the end, is what defeated him. That, and probably my looks too.”
Even under the circumstances, Eekhaut was aware of her good looks. “It was the informant that gave us the coordinates of the Ardennes site.”
“Yes. We got that one too late. The sacrifice, I mean. But we still had nothing on Maxwell.”
“So, we went on a wild goose chase, while Interpol and the head of AIVD were after Maxwell all the time.”
“Something like that, yes.”
Al-Rahman, who couldn’t follow what was being said, leaned in. “Can I assume,” he said confidentially, “that the matter is now definitely settled?”
“It is, Colonel,” Eekhaut replied, in English.
“We were wondering about your role,” Serena said to the colonel. “Were you sent here solely because of the prince’s murder?”
“Exactly, ma’am. I already explained to the chief inspector: the royal family was involved and much concerned, and therefore—”
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