Read Online The Peregrine Omnibus Volume One by Barry Reese - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Barry Reese
Tags: Fiction
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politely to Josh and Nettie as you go… and then you will refuse to follow up any more leads related to my son. Do you understand?”
“Sheriff?”
The sheriff jumped, whirling about to see Josh and Nettie watching him with fearful expressions. The sheriff looked around for Max’s father but there was no sign of him. Hitching up his belt and trying to calm the pounding of his heart, the lawman answered “Just getting’ ready to head back to the station. Tell Mr. Davies and his father that I’m sorry for the trouble.”
Josh watched the man’s back as he hurried out the door, a dumbfounded look upon his face. “Mr. Davies… and his father? What the heck was that about?”
“Don’t ask me,” Nettie answered. “Mr. Davies’ daddy died a long, long time ago.”
“Maybe it was a ghost.”
“Don’t you be startin’ on about ghosts,” Nettie warned. “Plenty of strangeness in this world without bringin’ in ghosts. They need to stay where they be and let the livin’ do the livin’.”
CHAPTER XV
Tomb of Horrors
Jacob Trench wiped the sweat from his brow. He had grown used to pain and discomfort over the past few years, but even he felt the stifling air settling into his lungs, making him long for fresh air. The German workers he’d been given were laboring hard, most of them having dispatched their shirts to keep cool.
When he’d first entered the area beneath the Druselturm, Trench had enjoyed the cool air and the moist smell of earth… but as soon as the work began, the setting became more and more oppressive. The only thing that gave him any solace was the knowledge that Max Davies was probably suffering through even worse times. Even if he managed to evade the police back in Atlanta, there were creatures given the singular task of preventing him from reaching Germany.
“How goes it, Mr. Trench?”
Jacob turned to see his agent in the Reich, Schmidt, approaching. Much to Jacob’s chagrin, Schmidt looked fresh as a daisy. “They’ve moved away a lot of earth with their shovels and revealed a sealed doorway of some kind. One of them is lining the area with dynamite now. As soon as it’s blown open, we’re inside.”
Schmidt smiled, showing perfectly straight teeth. “You make it sound so easy. That is something I have noticed about you Americans—no matter how incredible the task, it is always something that can be overcome by your… ingenuity.”
“Our work ethic is second to none,” Trench replied, all too aware that he was standing to the side, sweating, while the Germans did the backbreaking labor. “I’m sure you’ll get a medal for your role in this. Hitler loves anything related to the occult, doesn’t he?”
“He does not view this as some sort of hobby, Mr. Trench. He values things that might help him and the German people.”
“Right.” Trench relaxed a bit as one of the foremen stepped up to him. Trench had forgotten the man’s name but he had been in charge of setting the explosives. “Are we ready?”
The other man nodded, answering in fractured English. “Ready to go boom. Back away.”
Trench did so, aware of Schmidt at his side. K’ntu had disappeared, which wasn’t unusual. The Asian had a tendency to vanish for weeks at a time, reappearing just when it was most inconvenient for Jacob.
Kneeling in the dirt, Trench heard the men counting slowly in German. He glanced up at the ceiling, hoping they knew their explosives as well as they thought they did. The last thing he wanted was to join Rosenkreuz in a tomb beneath the Druselturm.
The explosion made his ears ring and sent dust flying. Jacob coughed, burying his face in his hands until the cloud began to fade. He moved forward, even before he could see the gaping hole the dynamite had left behind. A new odor was drifting into the room, one that carried the weight of ages.
He paused in the newly-revealed doorway, staring into a complicated series of passageways, all adorned with runes that carried
“Sheriff?”
The sheriff jumped, whirling about to see Josh and Nettie watching him with fearful expressions. The sheriff looked around for Max’s father but there was no sign of him. Hitching up his belt and trying to calm the pounding of his heart, the lawman answered “Just getting’ ready to head back to the station. Tell Mr. Davies and his father that I’m sorry for the trouble.”
Josh watched the man’s back as he hurried out the door, a dumbfounded look upon his face. “Mr. Davies… and his father? What the heck was that about?”
“Don’t ask me,” Nettie answered. “Mr. Davies’ daddy died a long, long time ago.”
“Maybe it was a ghost.”
“Don’t you be startin’ on about ghosts,” Nettie warned. “Plenty of strangeness in this world without bringin’ in ghosts. They need to stay where they be and let the livin’ do the livin’.”
CHAPTER XV
Tomb of Horrors
Jacob Trench wiped the sweat from his brow. He had grown used to pain and discomfort over the past few years, but even he felt the stifling air settling into his lungs, making him long for fresh air. The German workers he’d been given were laboring hard, most of them having dispatched their shirts to keep cool.
When he’d first entered the area beneath the Druselturm, Trench had enjoyed the cool air and the moist smell of earth… but as soon as the work began, the setting became more and more oppressive. The only thing that gave him any solace was the knowledge that Max Davies was probably suffering through even worse times. Even if he managed to evade the police back in Atlanta, there were creatures given the singular task of preventing him from reaching Germany.
“How goes it, Mr. Trench?”
Jacob turned to see his agent in the Reich, Schmidt, approaching. Much to Jacob’s chagrin, Schmidt looked fresh as a daisy. “They’ve moved away a lot of earth with their shovels and revealed a sealed doorway of some kind. One of them is lining the area with dynamite now. As soon as it’s blown open, we’re inside.”
Schmidt smiled, showing perfectly straight teeth. “You make it sound so easy. That is something I have noticed about you Americans—no matter how incredible the task, it is always something that can be overcome by your… ingenuity.”
“Our work ethic is second to none,” Trench replied, all too aware that he was standing to the side, sweating, while the Germans did the backbreaking labor. “I’m sure you’ll get a medal for your role in this. Hitler loves anything related to the occult, doesn’t he?”
“He does not view this as some sort of hobby, Mr. Trench. He values things that might help him and the German people.”
“Right.” Trench relaxed a bit as one of the foremen stepped up to him. Trench had forgotten the man’s name but he had been in charge of setting the explosives. “Are we ready?”
The other man nodded, answering in fractured English. “Ready to go boom. Back away.”
Trench did so, aware of Schmidt at his side. K’ntu had disappeared, which wasn’t unusual. The Asian had a tendency to vanish for weeks at a time, reappearing just when it was most inconvenient for Jacob.
Kneeling in the dirt, Trench heard the men counting slowly in German. He glanced up at the ceiling, hoping they knew their explosives as well as they thought they did. The last thing he wanted was to join Rosenkreuz in a tomb beneath the Druselturm.
The explosion made his ears ring and sent dust flying. Jacob coughed, burying his face in his hands until the cloud began to fade. He moved forward, even before he could see the gaping hole the dynamite had left behind. A new odor was drifting into the room, one that carried the weight of ages.
He paused in the newly-revealed doorway, staring into a complicated series of passageways, all adorned with runes that carried
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