get a little tiresome without a war now and then,” Calvin said. “Nothing but harp playing and celestial choirs.”
Morris obviously wasn’t amused. “What I mean,” he said, “is that there might be a copy or two in some old trunksomewhere, but this is pretty nearly the Grail if you’re a Fourteen Carats collector. I had an offer of eighteen hundred dollars for it, but I turned it down.” He slipped it back into its plastic cover and laid it back into the drawer.
“What’s the gist of the piece? Trouble in New Cyprus?”
“That’s another one you could ask your uncle, although he might not have been out here then. There was trouble of some kind—a power play involving a casino owner out in Henderson who wanted to be Grand Master.”
“That would be de Charney? Of severed-head fame?”
“That’s right. Only in this case it’s de Charney the elder. He tried to buy New Cyprus outright. I mean the
whole
of New Cyprus. He challenged the deed that the Knights had been granted, which was essentially a land grant of some kind, written up fifty years earlier. The place allegedly wasn’t worth anything at all outside of the value of the houses themselves. Nothing around here was worth anything till twenty years ago or so. There were rumors, though, that there were mines under New Cyprus. A lot of nonsense, maybe, depending on who you talk to, but de Charney had to be after something.”
“Was there actually some kind of
battle
, or is the title just artistic?”
“According to the book, which was written by my father, there
was
a battle of some kind, but it was kept on the down-low. The last thing the Knights wanted was the authorities poking around.
Neither
side wanted that, and still don’t. The Knights are an independent crowd. That’s what got them in hot water with the Pope back when they burned de Molay and the rest of them at the stake.”
Calvin nodded. “Now you’re talking about the Knights Templar, the historical Knights Templar.”
“That’s just what I’m talking about.”
“All right. So let me guess. This challenge of de Charney’s failed, and so old de Charney and his crowd were out, and a few years later de Charney’s son made some kind of magical play for power involving the reenactment of the death of John the Baptist, which in this case was John Nazarite, the preacher from—where was it? Redlands or somewhere?”
‘That’s the long and the short of it. Old de Charney disappeared—maybe dead in the fighting, but there were rumors that his son murdered him, although it might have been your man Baldwin. Another story says he was struck by lightning, which is so perfect it might be true. Whatever happened back then, these people weren’t screwing around. I tell you that for your own good, because they’re
still
not screwing around. Something’s happening out there now, though. It’s all coming to pass.”
“And that’s why you were out on the island? You wanted to see what was coming to pass?”
“You could say that, although I already
know
what’s happening, or at least part of it. I know what it was they brought in, and I can tell you there’s a book in it—maybe a larger print run. The Templars are big news right now. Ten years ago nobody but historians and conspiracy nuts ever even heard of them, and now housewives know all there is to know, or at least think they do.”
Calvin found that his mind hadn’t moved on with the conversation, but had remained hovering around the phrase
what it was they brought in
. … “What kind of photos are you looking for?” he asked.
“I’m looking for anything out of the ordinary. Old things, maybe—antiquities out of the Holy Land, let’s say. Whatever. People say they hear things at night from up in the hills, like someone’s still working the stone. Nobodyever sees anyone. I’ve been up there half a dozen times, and
I’ve
heard things, but then there’s nothing there—just the standing stones, maybe a coyote
Morris obviously wasn’t amused. “What I mean,” he said, “is that there might be a copy or two in some old trunksomewhere, but this is pretty nearly the Grail if you’re a Fourteen Carats collector. I had an offer of eighteen hundred dollars for it, but I turned it down.” He slipped it back into its plastic cover and laid it back into the drawer.
“What’s the gist of the piece? Trouble in New Cyprus?”
“That’s another one you could ask your uncle, although he might not have been out here then. There was trouble of some kind—a power play involving a casino owner out in Henderson who wanted to be Grand Master.”
“That would be de Charney? Of severed-head fame?”
“That’s right. Only in this case it’s de Charney the elder. He tried to buy New Cyprus outright. I mean the
whole
of New Cyprus. He challenged the deed that the Knights had been granted, which was essentially a land grant of some kind, written up fifty years earlier. The place allegedly wasn’t worth anything at all outside of the value of the houses themselves. Nothing around here was worth anything till twenty years ago or so. There were rumors, though, that there were mines under New Cyprus. A lot of nonsense, maybe, depending on who you talk to, but de Charney had to be after something.”
“Was there actually some kind of
battle
, or is the title just artistic?”
“According to the book, which was written by my father, there
was
a battle of some kind, but it was kept on the down-low. The last thing the Knights wanted was the authorities poking around.
Neither
side wanted that, and still don’t. The Knights are an independent crowd. That’s what got them in hot water with the Pope back when they burned de Molay and the rest of them at the stake.”
Calvin nodded. “Now you’re talking about the Knights Templar, the historical Knights Templar.”
“That’s just what I’m talking about.”
“All right. So let me guess. This challenge of de Charney’s failed, and so old de Charney and his crowd were out, and a few years later de Charney’s son made some kind of magical play for power involving the reenactment of the death of John the Baptist, which in this case was John Nazarite, the preacher from—where was it? Redlands or somewhere?”
‘That’s the long and the short of it. Old de Charney disappeared—maybe dead in the fighting, but there were rumors that his son murdered him, although it might have been your man Baldwin. Another story says he was struck by lightning, which is so perfect it might be true. Whatever happened back then, these people weren’t screwing around. I tell you that for your own good, because they’re
still
not screwing around. Something’s happening out there now, though. It’s all coming to pass.”
“And that’s why you were out on the island? You wanted to see what was coming to pass?”
“You could say that, although I already
know
what’s happening, or at least part of it. I know what it was they brought in, and I can tell you there’s a book in it—maybe a larger print run. The Templars are big news right now. Ten years ago nobody but historians and conspiracy nuts ever even heard of them, and now housewives know all there is to know, or at least think they do.”
Calvin found that his mind hadn’t moved on with the conversation, but had remained hovering around the phrase
what it was they brought in
. … “What kind of photos are you looking for?” he asked.
“I’m looking for anything out of the ordinary. Old things, maybe—antiquities out of the Holy Land, let’s say. Whatever. People say they hear things at night from up in the hills, like someone’s still working the stone. Nobodyever sees anyone. I’ve been up there half a dozen times, and
I’ve
heard things, but then there’s nothing there—just the standing stones, maybe a coyote
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