The Cortés Enigma (6 page)

Standing behind the reception desk, Valeria examined the form the newcomer had just filled out. Based on the information he was
thirty-two, four years older than his cousin, and lived in a small town somewhere in
New Hampshire.

She knew enough about America to know it explained their accents.

Again she recognised the name. It was the same surname, Maloney. Different Christian name.

Ben.

Alone in the quietness of the inn’s 16th century lobby, the
Spanish
waitress finished her business with the newcomer’s entry and opened a black padded journal, located next to a half-finished cup of coffee. She had begun keeping a diary the day she had arrived, back when she was still treasure hunting. Seven years later, she was still writing. She opened it to the newest page and immediately began to write.

Valladolid, Spain, 9pm

The archives were deserted apart from them. Even though it was officially closed, their attendance was not questioned.

It had been sanctioned by the highest possible authority.

Assisted by the dim glow of the nearest lamp, the three men continued with their efforts to uncover the manuscript in question. They had searched high and low, here and other places, Spain and abroad.

They had searched relentlessly.

At just after 10pm, they finally found it, located in the place where the expert said it would be. The manuscript was old, and written on vellum. It was created at a time when materials were scarce.

But it had been made to survive.

The leader of the three took the cover and began reading the wording, which, as expected, was written in his native tongue and included diagrams.

He moved to the light, concentrating on the diagram. The answer was staring him in the face.

The answer was in the grave.

The First Day

4

6:30am

Ben was awake before the sun was up. The alarm clock on his bedside table, a small digital radio with a red display, was flashing and buzzing simultaneously, an annoying whining sound that he already hated.

He was used to being an early riser, but today he was in no mood to stay in bed. His mind was troubled, just as it had been when he heard the news. Still it failed to sink in. Ever since he was a small child, Dr Thomas Francis Maloney, the man his family knew as TF, had been the closest thing in his life to a role model. The news of the discovery had hit him hard, like a gun being fired at his head.

He had never before considered the possibility his ancestor had been murdered.

At 1am he had finally gone to bed, but despite the jet lag, sleep had refused to come easily. He had passed the flight reading the books his grandmother had lent him, each one of potential relevance to TF’s life and career.

The first was a diary, an account of his past voyages and explorations, ranging from a trip to Zambia with Livingstone to hiking in the glens of Scotland.

Ben guessed it wouldn’t be directly relevant to his present enquiries.

The second was a history book concentrating on Aztec mythology. Supposedly that had been TF’s forte: he had spent his career at Cambridge, writing and lecturing on European history, including the Spanish colonisation of the New World.

Rumour had it he uncovered a few things along the way.

The third was a 17th century biography of the English seafarer Sir Walter Raleigh. He looked the book up on Amazon and found no trace of it.

Judging by the binding, it was rare.

The final one was a notepad from which Ben was able to deduce that TF had been translating passages of a Medieval Latin chronicle. Ben knew the name, John Leland, but it wasn’t until he looked him up online that he fully understood who the man was. According to the Internet, he had travelled extensively around England in the 1500s, including the Scillies, cataloguing events and places.

Presumably there was something there TF had found of interest.

He still couldn’t get over the fifth book – until last night he was still to find proof it existed. His grandmother had spoken of it, but never owned it. It was the man’s final diary, the lost diary.

The book that would, hopefully, explain his final days.

Lying on the bed, his eyes at last fully open, Ben looked up at the ceiling and then at the horizon through the open curtains. Even without the LED display on the clock, he could tell it was still early. In the distance, the sun was slowly starting to rise. Vague hints of red, distorted by white cloud, shone brightly in all directions. The sea was calm, the gentle tide lapping under the gravity of the dying moon. Further away still, he could see the island of Tresco, the second largest of the Isles of Scilly.

One of over a hundred.

Ben sat up, removed the duvet from on top of his legs, and lowered his feet down onto the carpet. For the first time he took in the surroundings, he’d been too tired to do so the night before. Like most in the building he had seen so far, the walls were white with the usual furnishings, the decoration primarily nautical. A number of A5-sized prints hung from the walls, some depicting the history of the island as far back as the 1600s. Others were of the building itself, again from the same era. It had always been an inn – even before the English Civil War. Supposedly it had once been a favourite haunt of soldiers of the Crown.

He looked again at the clock, noticing three minutes had passed. He was in no mood to relax.

Adrian Nicholl had been thirty-seven when he purchased the Gibbous Moon. Once upon a time he had owned three pubs on the island, but in the last ten years that had fallen to two. Further back in time, he had made his name as a hotelier on the mainland, his empire stretching from Land’s End to Tintagel. He had made a mint selling up in time for the recession, and even more starting again when it finished. Rather than staying in Cornwall, he had crossed the sea to the Isles of Scilly.

Emigrated, some had said.

Now aged sixty-seven, he was semi-retired, prone to gout, and preferred fishing and whiskey to work. Officially, he was still the manager.

At least it was his name that still appeared above the door.

Nicholl was in his office at just after 7:30am. He looked up as he heard a light tap on the door, and espied a well-built man dressed in white trousers, a dark blue polo shirt, and with long dark hair that was neatly combed back and kept in place by some kind of gel or paste.

“Mr Nicholl?” the man asked, his accent clearly American. “May I bother you for a second?”

Nicholl tossed his pen on to his desk and placed his hand to his face. Like the man in front of him, he was bearded, though his was white and bushy as opposed to short stubble and effectively hid a small scar on his right cheek. The stranger had an air of a celebrity about him, though without the obvious glamour. More likely he was the kind of far-fetched new-age academic who valued being cool over intelligence, he mused. His polo shirt, despite its comfortable loose fit, flattered the tone of his biceps yet without resorting to tasteless vulgarity.

“My name is Ben Maloney. I checked in late last night. Guessing you were probably in bed at the time.”

Nicholl smiled at the newcomer. “A pleasure to meet you, Mr Maloney.” He offered his hand. “Didn’t I also have the pleasure of meeting your relative recently, too?”

“Probably,” Ben replied. “He’s never really been much of an early riser.”

“I’ve been reading up about your great-great-grandfather ever since the news broke.” He pointed to a photograph of TF’s remains in the local paper. Alongside it was a portrait of the academic at Cambridge in his heyday. “Now I’ve seen you in real life, I can honestly say I don’t see even the slightest resemblance.”

Ben grinned as Nicholl tossed the paper across the desk.

“I must say how sorry I am about everything that has happened this past week. It’s not every day you come across the remains of an ancestor.”

“Fortunately, after a hundred years, we’d given up hope of finding him alive!” Ben smiled, eyeing the interior. Like his bedroom on the second floor, the island’s seafaring tradition was the flavour, with countless keepsakes, prints, and original artwork decorating the brown wooden walls.

He guessed not much had changed recently.

“I hope your flight over was okay – the weather we’ve been having here of late has been truly shocking,” Nicholl said, gesturing again to the local newspaper, where reports of recent winds and floods featured prominently on the front cover. “Of course, had the weather been different, the boat would probably never have come loose. Incredible, isn’t it, how something so big can remain hidden for so long?”

“I really can’t wait to inspect the site myself.”

Nicholl smiled. “So what can I do for you, Mr Maloney?”

“Well, in all honesty, I was hoping you might be able to fill in a few gaps. I had thought that I would probably get to be the one to tell you this, but it seems you already know, my great-great-grandfather stayed in this very inn before he disappeared.”

Nicholl smiled. “Well, what can I say? You know, a hundred years ago travel between the Scillies and the mainland was a lot less common than it is today. It could take up to twenty-four hours just to cross to Penzance. Before the development of the trawlers, the Gibbous Moon had been one of only two inns on the island.”

“Matter of fact, he stayed here twice.”

“Is that a fact? Well, even in those days we always did like to please the customer.”

A wry smile. “Speaking of which, I was hoping I might be able to do a little research. Between you and me, I have my suspicions my great-great-grandfather’s death was not exactly accidental…are there any records, local stories about when my ancestor was here that you know of?”

“In truth, I only wish I knew. I understand Dr Maloney’s visit was really quite significant – it’s not every day an event of this magnitude occurs in this part of the world. We’re a peaceful little community on St Mary’s. Most of the fishermen are experienced, but our record for shipwrecks is sadly among the worst in the world. I understand the boat was found near St Lide’s.”

“If that’s its name. I’m really most grateful to your staff. Just now your night manager showed me the record of when he checked in. I recognised the signature from personal keepsakes my nana showed me. I was wondering if you still possess any of the personal letters of your past owners. I understand my great-great-grandfather corresponded with people on the island regularly.”

“Sorry to disappoint you, Mr Maloney,” the owner said, his accent distinctly Cornish, “but I’ve only been here thirty years. To tell you the truth, even back when I was running the place things were easily lost. These days, tasks like that I leave to the manager.” Nicholl looked at Ben, paying particular attention to his face. Despite being familiar with the story, he knew nothing of the man himself.

Nor the rest of his guests over his time here.

“Fortunately, for one reason or another, my family have long been famed hoarders; to my mind, I reckon among the best in New England.” Ben smiled. “I last spoke to my grandmother just before I left. She tells me her grandfather kept records of his seafaring activities.”

“So, he was a sailor?”

“As a matter of fact, he was both a scientist and an explorer. Word has it, he even assisted Livingstone on one of his trips to Zambia.”

“Wow. You confident you can be sure of that?”

Ben grinned. “You tell that to my nana. But I’m sure you’ll appreciate knowing he apparently spoke very kindly of the way he was treated here. From what your staff have been telling me, the room in which he stayed still exists. Your manager assures me I’ll even be able to stay there.”

“Room seven.” He nodded. “As I say, Mr Maloney, recent weather has been very bad. It’s really played havoc with our gutters.”

“I’m sure it has.” Ben moved slightly closer, enough to smell the weird scent coming from Nicholl’s neck. “I would really appreciate any information you might have. Anything that might help me understand what happened during his final days. Any letters. Any stories, folklore, press reports…”

“Tell me, are you the kind of man who likes folklore?”

Ben didn’t know what to say. “Well, that depends.”

“Depends on what?”

“Well, normally I like to see things and judge for myself.”

Nicholl smiled. “In that case, follow me.”