Timeline - Michael Crichton [67]
And they never had.
Stern sat with the others on hard-backed chairs in a room with maps. Susan Gomez, the woman who had just returned in the machine, spoke in a crisp, quick manner that Stern found rushed.
“We are going,” she said, “to the Monastery of Sainte-Mère, on the Dordogne River, in southwestern France. We will arrive at 8:04 a.m. on the morning of Thursday, April 7, 1357—that’s the day of the Professor’s message. It’s fortunate for us, because there’s a tournament that day in Castelgard, and the spectacle will draw large crowds from the surrounding countryside, so we won’t be noticed.”
She tapped one map. “Just for orientation, the monastery is here. Castelgard is over here, across the river. And the fortress of La Roque is on the bluffs here, above the monastery. Questions so far?”
They shook their heads.
“All right. The situation in the area is a little unsettled. As you know, April of 1357 puts us roughly twenty years into the Hundred Years War. It’s seven months after the English victory at Poitiers, where they took the king of France prisoner. The French king is now being held for ransom. And France, without a king, is in an uproar.
“Right now, Castelgard is in the hands of Sir Oliver de Vannes, a British knight born in France. Oliver has also taken over La Roque, where he is strengthening the castle’s defenses. Sir Oliver’s an unpleasant character, with a famously bad temper. They call him the ‘Butcher of Crécy,’ for his excesses in that battle.”
“So Oliver is in control of both towns?” Marek said.
“At the moment, yes. However, a company of renegade knights, led by a defrocked priest called Arnaut de Cervole—”
“The Archpriest,” Marek said.
“Yes, exactly, the Archpriest—is moving into the area, and will undoubtedly attempt to take the castles from Oliver. We believe the Archpriest is still several days away. But fighting may break out at any time, so we will work quickly.”
She moved to another map, with a larger scale. It showed the monastery buildings.
“We arrive approximately here, at the edge of the Forêt de Sainte-Mère. From our arrival point, we should be able to look right down on the monastery. Since the Professor’s message came from the monastery, we will go directly there first. As you know, the monastery takes its main meal of the day at ten o’clock in the morning, and the Professor is likely to be present at that time. With luck, we’ll find him there and bring him back.”
Marek said, “How do you know all this? I thought nobody’s ever gone into the world.”
“That’s correct. No one has. But observers close to the machines have still brought back enough that we know the background at this particular time. Any other questions?”
They shook their heads no.
“All right. It is very important we recover the Professor while he is still at the monastery. If he moves to either Castelgard or La Roque, it will be much more difficult. We have a tight mission profile. I expect to be on the ground between two and three hours. We will stay together at all times. If any of us is separated from the others, use your earpieces to get together again. We will find the Professor, and come right back. Okay?”
“Got it.”
“You’ll have two escorts, myself and Victor Baretto, over there in the corner. Say hello, Vic.”
The second escort was a surly man who looked like an ex-marine—a tough and able man. Baretto’s period clothes were more peasantlike, loose-fitting, made of a fabric like burlap. He gave a nod and a slight wave. He seemed to be in a bad mood.
“Okay?” Gomez said. “Other questions.”
Chris said, “Professor Johnston has been there three days?”
“That’s right.”
“Who do the locals think he is?”
“We don’t know,” Gomez said. “We don’t know why he left the machine in the first place. He must have had a reason. But since he is in the world, the simplest thing for him would