Echoes of a Violin

Chapter 4: A Pint of Bitter

"It's good, isn't it?" Neal waited expectantly for Peter to swallow his first mouthful of bitter and the resulting smile spread over his face. "I told you, you'd feel better once you had a pint in your hand."

Now that Peter was once again happy with the world, Neal could relax. The grouch who'd arrived at Heathrow Airport had been vanquished by British hops. 

Traveling economy class had been misery enough but to have it compounded by a companion who wanted to spend the flight discussing Neal's presentation was a special kind of hell. Honestly, who works on PowerPoint in the middle of the night? As soon as Neal heard the rumble of the jet engines, he was ready for some shuteye. Since they were in the cattle car, there was no reason to stay awake. Peter made a feeble stab at sleep but spent the rest of the night complaining that he couldn't. And whose fault was that? If he'd only let Neal upgrade their tickets, he would have luxuriated in a comfortable seat and slept through the flight.

Luckily today was set aside for traveling and no meetings were scheduled. Neal had soothed Peter during the taxi ride into London with descriptions of the pubs he'd lined up for them to visit. Once they arrived at their hotel, they retired to their rooms—Peter to sleep, and Neal to write up his notes for the presentation that somehow he hadn't gotten around to earlier. The Bureau knew how to take all the fun out of heist planning.

The FBI travel department had booked the hotel. It couldn't compare with the luxurious accommodations Neal had managed to procure. Nor was it as convenient to the headquarters of the National Crime Squad where they'd meet, a point Neal took great pleasure in pointing out on numerous occasions. He could guarantee that their present rooms cost at least as much as the rate he'd obtained. But he had to admit the complimentary high-speed internet throughout the hotel was a bonus, and the Tate was only a short walk away.

He'd suggested that Peter review his presentation in a pub. The Buckingham Arms was close by. It was early enough in the day that there would be few customers, and he predicted Peter would be much more tolerant after a pint or two. The pub had booths in the back where they'd have privacy and plenty of room to spread out. Neal even offered to forgo elegant dining in favor of simple pub fare on their first night in London. Peter's look of surprised delight was ample reward for his magnanimous gesture.

In the past, Peter harped on Neal for what he considered a lack of sufficient detail in his presentations. After the Keller sting last March, he signed Neal up for a couple of seminars on project planning. This time Neal was determined to be prepared. There would be no eye rolls from his demanding boss at his first presentation on the international stage with agents from across the globe in attendance.

Peter set down his glass and smacked his lips with satisfaction. "I think I'm starting to get the hang of traveling. On the walk over, you mentioned you'd tell me about the email you received from Scima."

"When I logged on this afternoon, I found a message from Alistair Chapman's office. I'm sure you remember him mentioning that my painting of the squid-faced assailant seemed familiar. He now wants to discuss it with me." Neal took a sip of his claret and waited for Peter's reaction.

"I'm not likely to forget that meeting. When Chapman referenced the Lovecraft story and commented on your similarity to the artist in 'The Haunter of the Dark,' I wondered if he could have ties to Azathoth."

"And when we discovered he could pronounce Cthulhu Mythos correctly and knew who Azathoth was, you were ready to arrest him."

Peter nodded. "We were close to being duped by yet another of Azathoth's tricks. This hoax, though, has continued to puzzle me. Why would he go to all the trouble of faking email correspondence to Scima to make them believe Parastone Pictures was interested in making the movie? Yes, the subject of the story implied a threat to you, but if he intended to threaten you, there are many far easier ways of achieving the same objective."