passed through the door and Jake
slipped a ten pound note to the other. It was the most he could afford.
‘Lot 165. I wonder. Do you think you
could tell me the name of the buyer?’
The man returned the money with a
supercilious air.
‘I’m sorry sir. It is not our policy to
reveal the details of buyers without their express permission. I suggest you
wait after the auction and speak to the young lady yourself. Excuse me. I
have a job to do.’
‘Bastard!’ but Jake only said it to
himself. What size bribe would these jokers have taken?
And then he heard a cough from behind him
and Jake spun around. In a way he was not surprised to see Ben Tiferet
standing there.
‘The young lady’s name is Cherry Linford.
Come on. We have to talk.’
Friend or foe, there was no point in
resisting, and Jake followed the Professor in silence from the building and
towards Oxford Street. Soon, they reached a café with pavement seating and
Tiferet motioned for them to sit down.
‘I take it,’ Jake began once coffee had
been ordered, ‘That the girl does not work for you?’
Tiferet smiled and his amusement seemed
quite genuine.
‘Not at all but I know all about her. You
don’t trust me, do you?’
Jake did not reply.
‘I’ve no way of persuading you that I’m
not your enemy but I can only beg you to listen to me.’
‘All right, I’m listening.’
Listening but not believing.
‘Good. Now, about the girl. Maybe you’ve
heard of her.’
‘Cherry Linton, did you say?’
‘No, Linford. Cherry Linford. She’s an
artist. Her work’s quite well known.’
Jake thought about it. Yes, the name did
ring a bell. Hadn’t he read about her in one of the local papers? She had
made a name for herself painting angry abstracts or something. He tried to
remember the article.
‘I see you do know her. I need to know
why she wanted the cup so much. She could be the enemy but somehow I do not think
so. Did you notice another person bidding for it?’
‘Yes.’
‘He must be their agent. I am certain of
it. You saw that he stopped when the Linford girl made her final offer. That
worries me. I cannot imagine for one moment that they are on a limited
budget. It must mean that they have some other way of acquiring the cup. That
could put her in danger if she is innocent.’
This did not seem like the posture of a
guilty person but it could be an act, of course. Still, Tiferet had given an
opening, Jake would follow it up.
‘They... So there are others, are there?
Now come on. Tell me the truth. Who are they?’
‘Patience, young man. Patience. There is
a great deal happening here and this is an occasion when too much knowledge
could be a bad thing.’
‘No, listen to me, Tiferet. This has gone
on long enough. I’m fed up playing games. I’ve been threatened three times so
far. My uncle’s dead, you’re after my ring and...’
Tiferet’s eyes lit up.
‘You’ve been threatened. Tell me.’
Well, he’d done it now.
‘You don’t know?’
‘No, of course not.’
Jake looked at the other’s eyes. They
radiated conviction. Was it possible that he was telling the truth? If
Tiferet had been the culprit then his acting was perfect. All right, he would
tell him what had happened. See how he reacted.
Tiferet listened and, with an
uncharacteristic show of good manners, hardly interrupted
‘So, you say you believe that they have
your cuff-links. Yes, you could be right. They could be utilised in ritual
magic. How brave do you feel?’
‘Pardon.’
Tiferet was quite convincing. Maybe...
Shit. He had to know.
‘Listen to me,’ the other continued, ‘I
know how to counter the effect but I think it would be more sensible not to
alert them that you are able to fight them. Do you feel able to withstand
another attack?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘At the moment they cannot do you any
harm. It is all
slipped a ten pound note to the other. It was the most he could afford.
‘Lot 165. I wonder. Do you think you
could tell me the name of the buyer?’
The man returned the money with a
supercilious air.
‘I’m sorry sir. It is not our policy to
reveal the details of buyers without their express permission. I suggest you
wait after the auction and speak to the young lady yourself. Excuse me. I
have a job to do.’
‘Bastard!’ but Jake only said it to
himself. What size bribe would these jokers have taken?
And then he heard a cough from behind him
and Jake spun around. In a way he was not surprised to see Ben Tiferet
standing there.
‘The young lady’s name is Cherry Linford.
Come on. We have to talk.’
Friend or foe, there was no point in
resisting, and Jake followed the Professor in silence from the building and
towards Oxford Street. Soon, they reached a café with pavement seating and
Tiferet motioned for them to sit down.
‘I take it,’ Jake began once coffee had
been ordered, ‘That the girl does not work for you?’
Tiferet smiled and his amusement seemed
quite genuine.
‘Not at all but I know all about her. You
don’t trust me, do you?’
Jake did not reply.
‘I’ve no way of persuading you that I’m
not your enemy but I can only beg you to listen to me.’
‘All right, I’m listening.’
Listening but not believing.
‘Good. Now, about the girl. Maybe you’ve
heard of her.’
‘Cherry Linton, did you say?’
‘No, Linford. Cherry Linford. She’s an
artist. Her work’s quite well known.’
Jake thought about it. Yes, the name did
ring a bell. Hadn’t he read about her in one of the local papers? She had
made a name for herself painting angry abstracts or something. He tried to
remember the article.
‘I see you do know her. I need to know
why she wanted the cup so much. She could be the enemy but somehow I do not think
so. Did you notice another person bidding for it?’
‘Yes.’
‘He must be their agent. I am certain of
it. You saw that he stopped when the Linford girl made her final offer. That
worries me. I cannot imagine for one moment that they are on a limited
budget. It must mean that they have some other way of acquiring the cup. That
could put her in danger if she is innocent.’
This did not seem like the posture of a
guilty person but it could be an act, of course. Still, Tiferet had given an
opening, Jake would follow it up.
‘They... So there are others, are there?
Now come on. Tell me the truth. Who are they?’
‘Patience, young man. Patience. There is
a great deal happening here and this is an occasion when too much knowledge
could be a bad thing.’
‘No, listen to me, Tiferet. This has gone
on long enough. I’m fed up playing games. I’ve been threatened three times so
far. My uncle’s dead, you’re after my ring and...’
Tiferet’s eyes lit up.
‘You’ve been threatened. Tell me.’
Well, he’d done it now.
‘You don’t know?’
‘No, of course not.’
Jake looked at the other’s eyes. They
radiated conviction. Was it possible that he was telling the truth? If
Tiferet had been the culprit then his acting was perfect. All right, he would
tell him what had happened. See how he reacted.
Tiferet listened and, with an
uncharacteristic show of good manners, hardly interrupted
‘So, you say you believe that they have
your cuff-links. Yes, you could be right. They could be utilised in ritual
magic. How brave do you feel?’
‘Pardon.’
Tiferet was quite convincing. Maybe...
Shit. He had to know.
‘Listen to me,’ the other continued, ‘I
know how to counter the effect but I think it would be more sensible not to
alert them that you are able to fight them. Do you feel able to withstand
another attack?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘At the moment they cannot do you any
harm. It is all
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