17. Chapter Sixteen Savannah
Chapter Sixteen: Savannah
The moment Voss realizes I’m not as useless as he thought, he puts me to work.
For the remainder of the flight, I look over the copies he had made, searching for hints to the sapphire’s hidden location.
He’s missing certain verses, ones I already saw, and the pieces come together for me with a brilliant clarity.
Combing through page after page, I catch various clues, and they all seem to confirm Istanbul, Turkey, is the spot. Certain references like how the characters drink “a cistern of Turkish tea” scream we’re on the right path.
Whoever copied the pages did a crappy job and didn’t pay any attention to chapter order.
While trying to set them back to rights, I find myself reading the part where Alice wanders into the royal garden.
The Queen of Hearts is hosting her chaotic game of croquet using live flamingos and hedgehogs and continually yelling for executions.
Except, instead of a royal garden, it’s a Byzantine garden and the Queen of Hearts has Roman numerals painted on her roses.
All subtle clues, easily noticed by someone like me who has read this beloved story more times than I can count.
Glancing over at Voss, I can easily picture him blowing his top like the bad-tempered queen. I’m just hoping I can make myself useful enough to keep my own head.
The story culminates in a nonsensical trial where the Knave of Hearts is accused of stealing—not the Queen’s tarts like in the true story—but the Queen’s blue gem.
The Heart of Azure.
I do my best not to show my excitement. The clues scream Istanbul. It really couldn’t be any clearer.
Shuffling through a new set of pages, my pulse speeds up when I see another poem that’s been altered.
Normally, it’s about a crocodile and how he improves his shiny tail, which, of course, is by pouring waters of the Nile on every golden scale.
But this is completely different and doesn’t even bother rhyming.
It asks how does a peacock improve his weeping tail.
And the answer is by pouring water from the cistern on every feather.
What in the world? So random. Much like Wonderland, it makes no sense. At least not to me. Although…
My mind races back through countless random rabbit holes I’ve gone down over the years.
I wish I had access to the internet so I could do a search and confirm my theory, but Voss won’t let me get online.
Probably paranoid I’d contact Rhys and somehow give him an unfair advantage in all of this.
But even without the vast resources of the internet at my fingertips, I’m nearly one-hundred percent positive the sapphire is hidden at the Basilica Cistern.
And I have a damn good theory where to look first.
Who knew being a bookworm would save the day?
I want to pat myself on the back, but I play it cool until I decide how much I want to reveal to Voss.
My poker face must be terrible, because he’s staring at me intently, then asks, “What did you figure out?” I hesitate, and his dark eyes narrow.
“If you hold out on me, there will be consequences.”
Releasing a sigh, I decide it’s best to be transparent, especially since lives are on the line—Rhys’s and mine.
Now isn’t the time to play games. So, instead of lying, I show him the swapped-out words and how they all seem to point to the famous underground cistern.
But when it comes to the gem’s exact location, I don’t say a word.
“And you think the sapphire is there?”
“Possibly. I can’t say for sure, but all the clues seem to point there.”
“But where exactly is it hidden?” he presses, sounding frustrated.
Wouldn’t you love to know? But that little tidbit is for me only. I give a slight shrug. “You don’t have all the pages here. I need the book.” The lie slips out easier than I thought. Making him think I need more clues will buy us some time.
He taps a finger on the back of my chair, no doubt contemplating his next step, then returns to his seat. From the corner of my eye, I watch as he glances down at his watch then calls over one his henchman. “Text Laurent,” he orders. “Tell him to be at the Basilica Cistern tonight at eight.”
My heart speeds up. I’m going to see Rhys soon. We’re going to figure out a way to beat Voss and escape with the sapphire. Because I’d be willing to bet my last penny it’s where I’m thinking.
“I have to say this whole journey has been…inspiring,” Voss states, and I don’t miss the undercurrent of anticipation rolling through his voice. “Almost like life imitating art. Very anti-mimesis.”
I’m surprised he’s familiar with that term, which was popularized by Oscar Wilde in The Decay of Lying. Knowing Voss, he probably had someone steal the original essay for him. Instead of commenting, I wait for his big announcement. I know it’s coming. He’s too arrogant not to make one.
“My favorite part of Alice’s bizarre adventure is when she picks up the little bottle with the words, ‘Drink Me,’ on it. Of course, she does, and then grows in size.”
“The first time, she actually shrinks,” I correct him dryly, pretty sure he’s probably only seen the movie. “The second time, she grows.”
“Whatever. That’s not the point.” I can tell he’s annoyed by my knowledge, and I smother a smile. “The point is, she had no idea what was in the bottle. Yet she drank it anyway. Seems rather foolish.”
“It’s just a story.” If he knew it at all, he’d know she did look to see if the bottle was marked with a poison label.
“Is it?” He reaches into his suit jacket and removes a small bottle of his own. A tag dangles from it with the same words, and I stiffen. “What if it was poison? What if there was no antidote? What if poor Alice died?”
“I’d say that’s a bit dark for a children’s story.” I’m doing my best not to appear frazzled, but I have no idea what’s in that bottle or what he intends to do with it. And if it really is poison, that’s not a good thing. Not at all.
He chuckles, but there’s nothing humorous in his tone, and goosebumps prickle my skin. “Let’s call this motivation.” He tucks it away. “A little something I had concocted to make sure everyone cooperates.”
Shit. By everyone, I know he means me and Rhys. And that can only mean one thing—the bottle definitely contains poison.
For the rest of the flight, I mentally catalogue and review every clue I’ve found.
Each changed passage confirms we’re heading to the correct location, and by the time we land, I’m debating how to keep the rest of what I’ve figured out a secret without making Voss suspicious.
I refuse to let him walk away with the sapphire, but I also know Rhys’s life and mine are more important than the gem.
Once we disembark, I’m ushered into the back of an SUV with blacked-out windows. Voss sits beside me, but I ignore him, looking out the tinted glass at the passing sights.
I’ve never been much of a traveler, always too focused on learning the restaurant business and opening my own place.
So much for that. But I have traveled quite extensively through my books.
Lost in endless stories, I’ve pretty much been everywhere and done everything.
So, in a way, I suppose I am vaguely familiar with Istanbul.
I’m hoping whatever knowledge I possess continues to help me.
After a twenty minute drive, we arrive at a luxury high-rise apartment building.
Voss’s goons—who I now mentally refer to as a Tweedledum and Tweedledee—escort us straight up to the top floor and into a fancy penthouse.
From what I can tell, it takes up at least three floors and one side is made completely of glass, overlooking the city.
A spread of food already waits on the table, and Voss invites me to eat.
“No, thank you.” I’m not hungry, and my stomach turns queasy when I think about what might happen tonight.
“Suit yourself.” He picks up a date from a lavish spread of fruit and cheese and proceeds to ignore me.
Spinning away from the stunning city view, I cross my arms and look around the amazing apartment.
Much like his mansion, it feels unlived in and more like a museum.
Precious objects and art fill display cabinets and pedestals.
I’d be willing to bet he bought the ones he could, because he seems like the kind of man who wants people to know he has money.
And the ones he couldn’t buy, he obtained by shady means.
“Why are you doing this?” I ask bluntly. “Don’t you have everything you could possibly want already?”
“I’ll never have enough. There are far too many treasures out there.”
“So it’s just about adding another trinket to your collection?” I make a face. “You’re going to an awful lot of trouble for some sapphire.”
“It isn’t just any sapphire. It’s a stunning statement piece and it belongs in my collection.”
Glancing around, trying to decide if I should make a break for it, I clock the guards by the front door. Tweedledum and Tweedledee aren’t overly tall, but they’re beefy and remind me of bulldogs. They won’t be easy to sneak past.
“Don’t even think about it,” Voss says as though reading my mind. “There’s nowhere you can run that I won’t find you. Because you, my little bookworm, are going to help me find The Heart of Azure.”
Hmmm. We’ll see about that.
I wisely bite my tongue and do the only thing I can—I wait. Sitting down on the edge of the couch, I find comfort reading through the dog-eared pages copied from my favorite story, hoping the magic will allow me to escape my current prison.