Part 64 (2/2)
”Then no, I don't. Why?”
”Just a little hope I had.”
”How many Trinities can there be?” he said. ”It shouldn't be that hard to find out.”
”Where from? Abernethy?”
”I could start with him,” Grillo said. ”He's a G.o.dfearing man. Or at least he claims to be. Is it that important?”
”At this stage everything's important,” she said.
”I'll get on to it,” he replied, ”if the phone lines are still working. You just want to know-”
”Anything about the Trinity. Anything. ”
”Hard facts, that's what I like,” he said. ”Hard facts.”
He headed off down the stairs. As he did so Tesla heard Jaffe mutter: ”Look away, Tommy. Just look away-”
He'd closed his eyes. Now he began to shake.
”Can you see them?” she said to him.
”It's so dark.”
”Can you see them?”
”I can see something moving. Something huge. So huge. Why don't you move, boy? Get away before they see you. Move!”
His eyes suddenly sprang open.
”Enough!” he said.
”Have you lost him?” Tesla said.
”I told you: enough!”
”He's not dead?”
”No, he's...he's riding the waves.”
”Surfing on Quiddity?” she said.
”Doing his d.a.m.nedest.”
”And the Iad?”
”Are behind him. I was right, the tide has changed. They're coming.”
”Describe what you saw,” she said.
”I told you. They're vast.”
”That's all?”
”Like mountains, moving. Mountains covered in locusts, or fleas. Big and small. I don't know. None of it makes much sense.”
”Well we just have to close the schism as quickly as we can. Mountains I can take. But let's keep the fleas out, huh?”
Hotchkiss was at the front door when they got down there. Grillo had already spoken to him about the Trinity, and he had a better idea than asking Abernethy.
”There's a book store in the Mall,” he said. ”Do you want me to go look up Trinities there?”
”It can't hurt,” Tesla said. ”If the Trinity scared Kissoon, maybe it'll scare his paymasters. Where's Grillo?”
”Out looking for a car. He'll take you up the Hill. That's where you're both going?” He glanced in Jaffe's direction, repugnance on his face.
”That's where we're going,” Tesla said. ”And that's where we'll stay. So you know where to find us.”
”Right to the end?” Hotchkiss said, not taking his eyes off Jaffe.
”Right to the end.”
Grillo had found and hot-wired a car that had been left in the motel lot.
”Where'd you learn to do that?” she asked him as they drove up towards the Hill. The Jaff sat slumped on the back seat, his eyes closed.
”I did a piece, way back in my investigative phase-”
”On car thieves?”
”That's right. I picked up a few tricks of the trade, and I've never forgotten them. I'm a mine of useless information. Always something new out of Grillo.”
”But nothing about Trinity?”
”You keep coming back to that.”
”Desperation,” she said. ”We haven't got much else to hold on to.”
”Maybe it's something to do with what D'Amour said, about the Savior.”
”A last-minute intervention from on high?” Tesla said. ”I'm not going to hold my breath waiting.”
”s.h.i.+t.”
”Problem?”
<script>