Heksenat
- b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år siden
»Alkymi er skabelseshistorien fortalt kemisk. Væsener er kemi plus biologi.«
»Jamen, da Ashmole 782 blev skrevet, vidste de ikke noget om biologi eller havde din sans for kemi.«
Matthew kneb øjnene sammen til smalle sprækker.»Diana Bishop, jeg er chokeret over dit snæversyn.« Og han mente det. »De væsener, der lavede manuskriptet, vidste ganske vist ikke noget om dna, men har du nogen beviser for, at de ikke stillede de samme spørgsmål om skabelse som en moderne forsker?«
»Alkymistiske tekster er allegorier, ikke brugsanvisninger.« Jeg rettede de seneste dages frygt og frustration mod ham. »Det er muligt, at de kommer med forblommede hentydninger til større sandheder, men man kan ikke opbygge et pålideligt eksperiment efter dem.«
»Det har jeg heller aldrig sagt, at man kunne,« svarede han med øjne, der stadig var mørke af undertrykt vrede. »Men vi taler om potentielle læsere, der er hekse, dæmoner og vampyrer. Lidt overnaturligt læsestof, en smule ujordisk kreativitet og nogle gamle minder til at fylde hullerne kunne give væsener nogle oplysninger, som vi ikke vil have, at de får.«
»Oplysninger, som du ikke vil have, at de får!« Jeg huskede mit løfte til Agatha Wilson, og min stemme steg i styrke. »Du er lige så slem som Knox. Du vil have Ashmole 782 for at tilfredsstille din egen nysgerrighed.« Det prikkede i mine hænder, da jeg snuppede mine ting.
»Tag det roligt.« Der var noget hårdt i hans stemme, som jeg ikke brød mig om.
»Hold op med at fortælle mig, hvad jeg skal og ikke skal.« Den prikkende fornemmelse blev stærkere."Alchemy is the story of Creation told chemically. Beings are chemistry plus biology.«
"Well, when Ashmole 782 was written, they didn't know anything about biology or had your sense of chemistry.«
Matthew squinted his eyes together into narrow crevices."Diana Bishop, I am shocked by your narrow-mindedness."And he meant it. "Admittedly, the beings who made the manuscript did not know anything about dna, but do you have any evidence that they did not ask the same questions about creation as a modern researcher?«
"Alchemical texts are allegories, not instructions for use."I directed the fears and frustrations of the past few days at him. "It is possible that they make veiled allusions to greater truths, but a reliable experiment cannot be built on them.«
"I never said You could either," he replied with eyes still dark with suppressed anger. "But we are talking about potential readers who are witches, demons and vampires. A little supernatural reading material, a bit of unearthly creativity and some old memories to fill the gaps could give beings some information that we don't want them to get.«
"Information that you don't want them to get!"I remembered my promise to Agatha Wilson, and my voice increased in strength. "You're as bad as Knox. You want Ashmole 782 to satisfy your own curiosity."My hands tingled when I grabbed my things.
"Take it easy. There was something in his voice that I didn't like.
"Stop telling me what to do and what not to do."The tingling sensation became stronger. - b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år siden»Det kan godt være, at Knox truer mig, Matthew, men han ville ikke gøre noget dumt for øjnene af så mange vidner.«
»Du skal bo i Woodstock i et par dage. Jeg vil have dig væk fra Knox – ikke flere tilfældige møder på universitetet, ikke noget med at gå forbi ham i Bodleian.«
»Knox havde ret: Jeg kan ikke få manuskriptet tilbage. Han vil ikke ofre mig mere opmærksomhed.«
»Det er ønsketænkning, Diana. Knox er lige så interesseret i at forstå hemmelighederne i Ashmole 782 som du og jeg.« Matthews ellers ulastelige udseende var flosset. Han havde strøget hænderne gennem håret, så det strittede til alle sider.
»Hvordan kan I begge to være så sikre på, at der er hemmeligheder i den skjulte tekst?« spurgte jeg og gik hen mod kaminen. »Det er en bog om alkymi. Måske er der ikke andet i den.«"It may well be that Knox threatens me, Matthew, but he would not do anything stupid in the eyes of so many witnesses.«
"You're going to live in Woodstock for a few days. I want you away from Knox – no more chance encounters at the university, no more walking past him in the Bodleian.«
"Knox was right: I can't get the script back. He will not sacrifice me more attention.«
"That's wishful thinking, Diana. Knox is as interested in understanding the secrets of Ashmole 782 as you and I are. Matthew's otherwise immaculate appearance was frayed. He had stroked his hands through his hair so that it streaked on all sides.
"How can you both be so sure that there are secrets in the hidden text?"I asked and walked towards the fireplace. "It's a book about alchemy. Perhaps there is nothing else in it.« - b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år siden»Hvorfor kunne jeg ikke få manuskriptet anden gang?« Jeg var rystet over, at Knox havde vist sig at have ret.
»Jeg burde have fulgt min intuition.« Matthew stod henne ved vinduet og knyttede og løsnede højre hånd og ofrede mig ikke den ringeste opmærksomhed. »Vi forstår ikke din forbindelse til besværgelsen. Du har været i alvorlig fare, lige siden du så Ashmole 782.«"Why couldn't I get the script the second time?"I was shocked that Knox had turned out to be right.
"I should have followed my intuition."Matthew was standing by the window, clenching and unclenching his right hand and offering me not the slightest attention. "We don't understand your connection to the spell. You've been in grave danger ever since you saw Ashmole 782.« - b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år sidenMatthew smed sine nøgler på skænken og anbragte mig uden dikkedarer i sofaen. Han forsvandt ud i køkkenet og kom tilbage med et glas vand. Han rakte det til mig, og jeg sad med det uden at drikke, indtil han skulede så mørkt, at jeg tog en slurk og var ved at kløjes i den.
Matthew threw his keys on the sideboard and, no frills, put me on the sofa. He disappeared into the kitchen and came back with a glass of water. He handed it to me, and I sat with it without drinking until he shuddered so darkly that I took a sip and was about to gorge on it.
- b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år siden»Der er ikke så langt,« sagde han og knugede lidt hårdere om min hånd.
Matthew slap mig ikke ved vagtstuen, og han nikkede kort til portneren på vej til sin lejlighed. Vi gik op ad trappen til hans taglejlighed, der var lige så varm og hyggelig, som den havde været lørdag aften."It's not that far," he said, clutching my hand a little harder.
Matthew didn't let me by the guard room, and he nodded briefly to the concierge on the way to his apartment. We walked up the stairs to his penthouse, which was just as warm and cozy as it had been on Saturday night. - b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år sidenKnox lo foragteligt. »Der skal mere end det til, at hun er i sikkerhed, Clairmont. Hun leverer manuskriptet tilbage til os. Det skal vi nok sørge for.«
Uden et ord førte Matthew mig gennem gården og ud på det brede, brolagte fortov, der omgav Radcliffe Camera. Han så på All Souls’ lukkede jernlåger, bandede hurtigt og inderligt og trak mig videre i retning High Street.Knox laughed contemptuously. "It takes more than that for her to be safe, Clairmont. She returns the script to us. We'll make sure of that.«
Without a word, Matthew led me through the courtyard and onto the wide, paved sidewalk that surrounded the Radcliffe Camera. He looked at All Souls’ closed iron gates, cursed quickly and fervently, and pulled me further in the direction of the High Street. - b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år sidenKnox skar ansigt. »Aldrig i livet. Hun tilhører os, ikke dig. Og det samme gør manuskriptet.«
»Matthew,« gentog jeg mere indtrængende. En menneskedreng på omkring tretten år med ring i næsen og uren hud studerede ham nu interesseret. »Menneskene stirrer.«
Han rakte bagud og tog min hånd. Chokket over kold hud mod varm og den fornemmelse, at jeg var tøjret til ham, kom samtidig. Han trak mig frem, så jeg blev presset mod hans skulder.Knox cut face. "Never in life. She belongs to us, not you. And so does the script.«
"Matthew," I repeated more insistently. A human boy of about thirteen years old with a ring in his nose and Impure skin was now studying him with interest. "People are staring.«
He reached back and took my hand. The shock of cold skin versus hot and the feeling that I was tethered to him came at the same time. He pulled me forward so that I was pressed against his shoulder. - b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år sidenEn heks bør ikke have hemmeligheder for andre hekse. Der sker slemme ting, hvis hun har det. Gillians stemme gav genlyd i mit hoved, og Bodleians mure rykkede nærmere. Jeg bekæmpede den panik, der strømmede op til overfladen.
»Hvis du truer hende igen, slår jeg dig ihjel lige på stedet.« Matthews stemme var rolig, men en forbipasserende turists stivnede udtryk tydede på, at hans ansigt viste stærkere følelser.
»Matthew,« sagde jeg dæmpet. »Ikke her.«
»Slår du nu hekse ihjel, Clairmont?« sagde Knox hånligt. »Er du løbet tør for vampyrer og mennesker, du kan gøre fortræd?«
»Lad hende være.« Matthews stemme var stadig rolig, men hans krop var klar til at slå til, hvis Knox så meget som løftede en hånd mod mig.A witch should not have secrets from other witches. Bad things happen if she has it. Gillian's voice echoed in my head, and the walls of Bodleian drew closer. I fought the panic that flowed to the surface.
"If you threaten her again, I will kill you right on the spot."Matthew's voice was calm, but the stiffened expression of a passing tourist indicated that his face showed stronger emotions.
"Matthew," I said softly. "Not here.«
"Do you kill witches, Clairmont?"Knox said mockingly. "Have you run out of vampires and people you can hurt?«
"Leave her be."Matthew's voice was still calm, but his body was ready to strike if Knox even raised a hand against me. - b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år siden»Hvorfor det?«
»Fordi vi ikke kan lade vores historie falde i hænderne på et dyr som ham. Hekse og vampyrer blander sig ikke med hinanden. Det er der nogle fortræffelige grunde til. Husk, hvem De er. Hvis De ikke gør det, vil De fortryde det.«"Why is that?«
"Because we can't let our story fall into the hands of an animal like him. Vampires and witches don't mix. There are some excellent reasons for that. Remember who they are. If they don't, they will regret it.« - b2315560411har citeretfor 2 år sidenMatthew vrængede, men sagde ikke noget. Han forsøgte at lade være med at lægge sig imellem to hekse, men han ville ikke i al evighed kunne modstå trangen til at kvæle Knox.
»Det er forsvundet. Min mor var talentfuld, men hun var ikke en blodhund.« Jeg rejste børster, og Matthew løftede hånden en anelse for at berolige mig.
»Det har været forsvundet,« sagde Knox. »De fandt det alligevel. Men det er godt, at det ikke lykkedes Dem at ophæve besværgelsen igen.«Matthew shrugged, but said nothing. He tried not to put himself between two witches, but he would never be able to resist the urge to strangle Knox.
"It has disappeared. My mother was talented, but she was not a bloodhound."I raised brushes, and Matthew raised his hand slightly to calm me down.
"It's been gone," Knox said. "They found it anyway. But it's good that they did not manage to lift the spell again.«
