WHEN GREGORY EVANS finished telling them his story, which stretched from the meeting he had had with the director after the funeral, until the moment he woke up in the secret vault of the Velez chapel, both Antonia and the lawyer remained silent for a few seconds, trying to absorb the facts in a coherent manner.
They were in a private area of the hotel cafeteria, having a drink, sitting around a table. In that secluded setting, it was possible to enjoy a certain amount of privacy. Because of this, no one paid attention to the group chatting in the far corner of the room.
It was Colmenares who broke the silence, reproving the other's attitude:
— What really strikes me as strange is that you're still alive — he said with barely concealed harshness. — How did you even think of involving more people in something so dangerous...? Now, Geovanna and her uncle, that architect you told us so much about, could be exposed to the same fate as Clarice and Viana... — He twisted his mouth and looked at the ceiling for a moment, then provoked:
— For God's sake, Greg! Can't you understand that these people aren't joking?
— I don't think this is the best time to criticize his decision — Antonia added, ready to give her opinion on such a confusing matter. — Now what we have to do is, together, find a solution to the problem.
— I agree with that — the detective said, making it clear that he disagreed with Nicolas's disapproval. — The time we're wasting here discussing something that's irreparable only serves to make the situation worse. Umbert and Geovanna have been kidnapped. The most basic thing we can do for them is to start looking for them.
— First of all, we need to plan a line of investigation — Nicolas proposed. — I don't know if you'll think what I'm about to say is crazy, but I think we'll have to go back down to that underground crypt where he was attacked and take a look.
— That won't be necessary... — Greg triumphantly took the DVD he had recorded from his pants pocket and placed it on the table.
— Here it is. The images of all seven rooms and the vast majority of the inscriptions.
Antonia was surprised that he had something so valuable in his possession, and even more so when, according to his own words, his attackers had stolen his camera and notebook while he was unconscious. Considering all this, she wanted to ask for an explanation.
— But you said that...
He didn't finish the sentence. He waited for the person concerned to do so himself.
— Coincidentally, I had put in the DVD disc but didn't start recording...
— That doesn't make any sense.
— Of course you do — Greg said with a smile on his face. — After all, I have hyperthymesia.
— And what the hell is that?
— The ability to remember everything — the lawyer said, interrupting them — now it makes sense, since if the footage fell into the wrong hands, everything would be lost, but being in Greg's shrewd mind, the secret would be in good hands, or buried for good.
— What they took in the digital camera will be of no use to them... ah... — he laughed pretentiously — it's blank!
— In any case, we'll have to go down there if we want to find the diary... — insisted the lawyer, then thought for a moment, before adding with a little less enthusiasm — ... if it's still there.
— First, I'd like Antonia to take a look at what I found there. If she's an expert in alchemical symbology, something I don't doubt, I'm sure she'll be able to evaluate the different designs printed on the walls. Who knows, maybe we'll even be able to agree on something.
— Can you tell what? — Antonia was surprised that he showed so much confidence in her.
— First, I want you to see this— he replied seriously.
— Perhaps I'm mistaken, and it's all a figment of my imagination. That's why I need your opinion after examining the inscriptions.
— What you say sounds very mysterious.
The tone of her voice made Gregory Evans feel flattered. He wasn't sure, but he seemed to detect a touch of intemperance in her statement, as if she were genuinely eager to see for herself the secret language of medieval stonemasons.
— Will you be able to decipher them? — Colmenares' question was directed at Antonia.
— Cliptographic symbolism is one of my strengths — she acknowledged, turning to the lawyer. Most ancient builders used a secret language based on alchemical characters or glyphs, something that spread clandestinely throughout Europe, so that its secrets remained hidden for centuries, even within the Catholic Church itself. The Church would not have permitted this heresy if it had known that the Master Masons felt more identified with science and knowledge than with the prayers of the bishop, who defrayed the costs of building the cathedral with the people's money.
— Hence the fact that these are secular — Greg observed. — The stone sculptures attempt to keep primordial knowledge safe from the ignorance of skeptics.
— Correct, the so-called prisca sapientia — the expert added. — Saint Bernard used to say that art was nothing more than a useful instrument for the simple and ignorant, at the same time useless and even harmful to the wise and perfect... — She was surprised that Evans had mastered the iconographic interpretation of temples, so she asked him, — ...how do you know that? Have you read Fulcanelli?
— Among others... — he answered, to ask again — ..., but tell me, Antonia... what do you know about the Trivium and the Quadrivium.
— Something that's not lost on anyone who's studied at a university, namely, the Liberal Arts... — Perplexed, she arched her thin, well-plucked eyebrows. — What's with that now?
This had nothing to do with the petroglyphs she'd expected to encounter in her description of her memories. Gregory Evans allowed himself a wry smile. He figured he was going to surprise her.
— I think it's time to find out — he replied confidentially.
Once the seven rooms had been drawn and described, the three sat down to begin analyzing the images. The first thing that appeared on the screen were the masonry marks and the initials of Iacobus of Carthage, inscribed on the buttresses that jutted into the shaft.
Antonia recognized the characteristics of alchemical time:
D aqua regis...
Do acidum aereum...
From the Masonic square...
And those belonging to the seven planets known in the Middle Ages: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, the Moon and the Sun.
He then sketched the narrow corridor they had to enter to access the main room. They were able to analyze every detail engraved on the walls, the stepped pyramid in the center, and the door leading to the second room.
Little by little, they began to admire the concentric circles engraved on the wall — and the occasional geometric figure — which concealed some vital information, likely unknown to the layman. New mysteries arose with the phrases in Latin, medieval Castilian, and Hebrew, also inscribed on the walls. And Antonia, increasingly interested, tried to unravel the mystery of the characters and the hidden language of letters and numbers. Nicolas, who found himself at a disadvantage, simply observed attentively before launching into a long series of questions to satisfy his infinite curiosity.
He approached the sheet of paper and pointed to a phrase beneath a Star of David painted on one of the walls of the fifth room. It bore the following inscription:
— Can you translate this? — asked Colmenares, who wasn't entirely sure his companion knew Hebrew.
Without paying any attention, Antonia read aloud:
— Vayomer ki iad al kisé Yahveh.
— Please, in Spanish — the lawyer insisted. She looked at him condescendingly.
— It says something like this: 'Because the hand of God is upon his Throne...'— he observed his companions' reaction, but they didn't know what it was. — It's a phrase from the Talmud... does that mean anything to you?
They both shook their heads.
— The truth is that the walls are covered in incoherent phrases and difficult-to-understand characters — Gregory acknowledged, touching his nose with a gesture. — But there was one detail that finally caught my interest: the bells hanging at the entrance to each room. Their size decreased according to the size of the room, as did the sound they emit when struck by the clapper. I saw it myself.
— Like the seven musical notes... — Antonia began to think that this was starting to make sense.
— And that's all — the detective continued. — If you look closely, inscribed on the walls are several phrases in different languages, as well as numbers and geometric figures, as well as glyphs related to astronomy. This led me to believe there must be a connection between these inscriptions and the ancient Masonic arts used by cathedral builders.
Colmenares still didn't understand anything about the conversation, but he remained attentive to the experts' reflections. Antonia looked back at the paper.
— Grammar... rhetoric... dialectic... arithmetic... geometry... music... astronomy... — the young woman whispered, completely enchanted. — Good heavens, Greg...! You're right. We're standing before a compendium of knowledge, a pedagogical shrine to the Liberal Arts. It's simply astonishing!
Antônia's praise made Nicolas feel a slight pang of jealousy, as her interest in the detective's deductions was enough to effectively nullify his influence as the company's financial advisor. He sought to regain his leading role and believed he could achieve this by insisting on the importance of finding the diary.
— I suppose this discovery won't stop us from carrying out our mission... — he said, his expression very serious, staring at Antonia, waiting for an intelligent response. — I remind you that we're here to recover the mason's book.
— Did you ever see the Toledo manuscript? — Gregory Evans asked. — Tell me... before she died, did Clarice allow you to read it?
— I didn't have the opportunity to do so — replied Colmenares, sadly.
— What's the reason for this question? — asked Antonia, who was secretly hiding a copy of the document in her suitcase.
— You will see... — Evans began. — There is a paragraph in the cryptogram deciphered by Viana in which Iacobus claims to know the art and technique of cathedral builders, based on the transmission of feelings through popular iconography. As he himself says:
— My hands chisel words in stone that the people read and understand...
— If that is indeed the case, we would be faced with an allegorical insinuation, a metaphor, behind which their most secret knowledge would be hidden.
Antonia silently considered the detective's observation, nodding in agreement as she began to understand the true meaning of those phrases written in the different languages of science, the planetary and alchemical glyphs, the geometric designs painted on the walls, and the various bells that hung at the entrance to each room.
— The primordial language and the music of the spheres... — the attractive redhead whispered to herself, astonished by the discovery.
The lawyer, sensing that he was losing something of utmost importance, decided to insist on his desire to recover the manuscript, thus justifying his need for relevance.
— I still think we should start searching for the diary as soon as possible — he said, although it didn't seem like they were paying attention to what he was saying.
— I don't think there's any need — said Antonia, without taking her eyes off the page.
— I see you understand — Gregory Evans added, pleased that he wasn't the only one who had noticed.
— That's incredible! I just hope you can explain yourself well — Colmenares grumbled indignantly. The last thing he expected was for her to speak out against the work their superiors had imposed on them.
— My dear friend... — Antonia turned to face the irritated lawyer. — If I'm not mistaken, we've already found the controversial diary of Iacobus of Carthage. In fact, it's right here, before your eyes!