Morbus Dei: The Sign of Aries. Matthias Bauer

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      Alain was silent.

      Elisabeth waited, but the mercenary didn’t seem to want to take the bait.

      Lay out some more.

      ‘Perhaps you’d rather I didn’t tell you about the disease, you think you’ll find out soon enough–’

      ‘What’s that supposed to mean?’

      ‘Your skin will turn pale and burn easily in the sun. Branching black veins will spread across your body and perhaps even your face. You might be able to stand the daylight or you might only be able to go out at night. Other people will avoid you, if you’re lucky, but most probably they’ll cast you out or even hunt you down because they don’t understand what’s wrong with you. At some point, you’ll–‘

      ‘Cut it out,’ interrupted Alain. ‘I can imagine it for myself. And anyway, how is it you don’t seem to be so affected?’

      ‘The disease takes different forms in different people, I don’t know why. All I know is, I won’t let myself go under.’

      ‘What are you thinking of doing then? Disobedience will–’

      ‘It only counts as disobedience if you’re duty bound towards someone. We’re prisoners. And prisoners aren’t duty bound to anyone–except themselves,’ whispered Elisabeth, triumphantly. He had taken the bait.

      ‘You want to escape?’ he asked.

      ‘No, I don’t want to,’ she said. ‘I have to.’

      XIII

      ‘I swear by almighty God,’ said Lieutenant Wolff, taking his hand from the beautiful, leather-bound bible.

      Sovinos Adlatus snatched it from him as if he were afraid it might get dirty and wrapped it up again in the red velvet.

      ‘God’s blessing upon you!’ said Antonio Sovino, making the sign of the cross over the Lieutenant.

      They were standing on the ravelin in front of Kärntner Tor, between the glacis and the city wall. Behind Sovino and his assistant, the Black Guard were standing to attention in a semi-circle, and behind Wolff there were thirteen men , all battle-tried and hand-picked by him, mounted on white Andalusian horses. They were dressed in light green tunics and had only basic field packs with them. Each of them was armed with a sabre and a musket with a stone flintlock.

      ‘May the Lord God protect you from the wickedness of the world on your journey,’ said Sovino to Wolff.

      ‘Well, with one of his most trusty disciples blessing me …’ commented Wolff drily.

      Sovino stopped short. Then he gave a smile and walked up closer to Wolff. He examined the Lieutenant coldly. ’Just do your job and leave the smart talk to others, understood?’ he said in a low voice.

      Wolff nodded without a word, but he didn’t step back.

      The visitator turned round and strode towards Kärntner Tor, followed by his Guard. Wolff watched them, then he turned his eyes towards the massive defence fortifications of Vienna. He was oppressed by the feeling that he would never see his native Vienna again; nor his sweethearts.

      He cleared his throat loudly, wrenched himself away and leapt onto his white horse. ‘God be with us,’ he shouted, turning and galloping across the bridge towards the glacis.

      His men followed him.

      XIV

      Since their departure before the crack of dawn that morning, Johann had tried to be gentler on his horse and let it set its own pace. He knew he had driven it too hard the day before. If one of their horses had collapsed, it would not have been easy to find a replacement. Not on account of the cost–Count von Binden had given them a substantial amount of money to take with them–but because it was hard to find good horses.

      Gottendorf, Rohrau and Prukh were behind them now. They had been riding through fields and forests for miles, on difficult ground that was drenched and water-logged after yesterday’s storm.

      It wasn’t until they had got to Traskirch that they started to make enquiries about the waggon convoy. No one knew anything about it. Johann could feel his tension rise as, one by one, the residents shook their heads and shrugged their shoulders. Had von Binden been taken in by a scoundrel who had given him the wrong information? What if Gamelin was in fact heading along St. James’s Way towards Salzburg and getting further away from him by the second?

      Johann’s heart began to pound.

      What if Gamelin’s cover had been blown and the local population had made short shrift of him? And all the sick too? And if not, would Elisabeth be able to survive the journey anyway?

      His horse snorted and he looked ahead. They were heading towards a wide road, running from north to south, known as the lower Way of St. James.

      As they reached it, they spurred their horses and rode towards the midday sun.