Blake knocked again on Carla’s hotel room door. They had agreed to go for a walk together and afterwards get some lunch at the hotel restaurant. He stood there for several moments listening for movement on the other side.
An hour before, Blake had spoken to Eli Rubens on the phone. It was the most excited he had heard his friend for years. He could almost see the big smile lighting up Rubens’ face on the other end of the line. He had completed his analysis of both the book and Wren’s letter, and all his tests pointed to the authenticity of the documents. The book appeared breathtakingly old. Blake could hardly get a word in edgeways. ‘Email me the report and I’ll be over tomorrow to go through it,’ he had said before clicking off the call.
The report that Rubens sent over covered many aspects of the provenance testing that he had carried out on the documents: paper and pigment examinations, aging profiles, light refraction testing, language and writing form and contextual analysis. He had quickly scanned the report on his phone, but the appendix to Wren’s handwritten letter had caused his eyes to stop and linger. It was a summary of several supplementary internet searches that Rubens had conducted using keyword combinations for phrases found in the letter. Rubens had focused his analysis on the last enigmatic sentence of Wren’s commentary.
On the longest day, the glory of God will light the way to the Great Pyramid.
Rubens had created search criteria combining key elements of the sentence with other phrases used within the document. Two combinations using the phrase ‘Great Pyramid’ had especially piqued his attention.
Keyword Combination 14: Isaac Newton + Great Pyramid
Excerpt from www.pyramidconspiracy.com
The Great Pyramid of Giza is one of the most analysed and researched ancient structures in the world, yet even today it still retains an almost impenetrable veil of mystery. There are no historical records of its creation or its purpose. Up until recently, the conventional wisdom surrounding its function was that the Great Pyramid was built by Egypt’s 4th Dynasty Pharaoh Khufu as a tomb for himself. However, intense controversy surrounds both its purported age and purpose.
Persistent legends exist that the Great Pyramid of Giza and others located in present-day Iraq were built to memorialise certain sacred knowledge. Convinced of this fact, the celebrated scientist Isaac Newton commissioned a research party to travel to Egypt to survey the Great Pyramid, as he was convinced that within its proportions was coded some kind of secret meaning.
Since Newton’s day, the internal structure of the pyramid has been extensively surveyed. The discovery of a complex network of chambers, shafts and galleries has only fuelled speculations that there is more to this ancient wonder than was previously understood. The latest research from a team of American scientists has proved a direct alignment of one of the internal shafts of the pyramid with the star Sirius. It is postulated that the starlight was used in some kind of initiation rite within the pyramid itself.
Keyword Combination 132: St Paul’s Cathedral + Great Pyramid
Excerpt from www.LIFFoundation
The Lincoln’s Inn Fields Foundation is a charitable initiative to ensure the continued protection and enhancement of this historic London area.
Early History:
The creation of Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London’s largest public square, is a fascinating story filled with intrigue and shady business dealings. It was laid out in the early eighteenth century under the initiative of a local speculative builder and Freemason. Local legend has it that the dimensions of the square exactly match the size of the base of the Great Pyramid of Giza. Following the building of St Paul’s Cathedral, the headquarters of the Freemasons were relocated to the Freemasons’ Tavern, off Lincoln’s Inn Fields.
Blake’s visit to see his mother had been deeply troubling, and now the pyramid references in Rubens’ report gave him a further unsettling feeling. He rubbed his forehead. Things just wouldn’t line up; they didn’t make sense. Blake had lived in London for half his life and had yet to see a great pyramid anywhere in London.
His mind felt overwhelmed and fuzzy. Getting some fresh air with Carla might clear his thoughts and lift both their spirits. As he waited for Carla by her hotel door, he picked at his birthmark, a dark band of discolouration circling the base of his left index finger.
Eventually the door opened. Carla stood framed in the doorway; it looked like she had been crying.
‘You okay?’
‘I’ve been better.’ She leant forward and kissed Blake on both cheeks. Her scent filled his nostrils. ‘I’ll just be a few minutes,’ she said, gesturing him inside. ‘Oh, I almost forgot, did I leave my sunhat at your house?’
‘Damn, I’m sorry. You left it on the kitchen table,’ said Blake with a resigned tone.
‘Not to worry. Take a seat, I won’t be long,’ suggested Carla.
Blake took the seat by the window, and Carla disappeared into the bathroom. He sat there, staring at his hands. ‘Eli has completed his research,’ he said self-consciously, not sure if Carla could hear him.
Carla returned after several minutes, the corner of her eyes glistening with tears. ‘I’m sorry, Vincent,’ she said, trying to hide the tremor in her voice. ‘I feel so knotted up inside. I never wanted to see my father again. He brought all this on himself.’
Blake offered a sad smile and for a moment there was a heavy silence in the room.
Carla stared numbly out of the window. ‘There’s something else I haven’t told you.’
‘Okay,’ he said hesitantly.
‘He was involved with some strange people. Some kind of secret cult.’ She clenched her teeth.
‘Cult? You mean the Freemasons?’ said Blake, searching her face.
‘No, something else,’ she said, shaking her head resolutely. ‘Something against God’s law.’
A frown opened up on Blake’s face.
‘After my mother died, my father became involved with a secret group. They had private meetings in the house.’
‘What kind of meetings?’
‘They locked themselves in the library. They shuttered the windows. I had to leave the house.’ She shuddered. ‘I find it difficult to talk about it,’ said Carla as she tried to keep her voice steady.
Blake’s frown deepened. ‘This might be linked to your father’s death.’
‘I don’t want anything to do with him, dead or alive. Our relationship ended years ago.’
‘You must tell the police,’ said Blake, measuring his words.
There was pain in Carla’s face; her eyes brimmed with new tears. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, she began to cry. Blake reached out and tried to comfort her with a hand. She took it to her lap and gently squeezed it.
‘Thank you for being here,’ she said.
Blake joined her on the edge of the bed. There was gentle affection in his face.
‘You are a real friend,’ she said staring up at him. More tears welled up in her eyes. Blake brushed them away gently. She squeezed his hand again. ‘We’ve been through so much together.’ Blinking, Carla’s eyes almost sparkled in the light. ‘Sometimes I think trouble just seems to seek us out.’
‘You aren’t kidding,’ said Blake, touching her shoulder.
His hand lingered there for a moment. Blake was about to move it back, when Carla nuzzled it with her cheek. Her almond-like eyes searched his. She sank her head into his chest and Blake could feel the wetness of her tears against him.