Page 26 of Go Now
‘Both Ashworth and Vasquez featured in a majorTimemagazine piece in 2022, entitled “All Hail The Iconoclasts”.It showcased the work and ideas of six controversial artists.’Marcus consulted his notes.‘The Catholic Morality Foundation and the Christian Values League joined forces to sue the publication and the individual artists.They lost the case and a lot of money… which could be an angle.Both organisations are known to have wealthy backers, the sort of people who don’t like losing.’
‘We need to talk to the other four artists,’ Kate said.‘It’s possible the killer’s going to target them.’
'It's on the To-Do list,' Chen confirmed.'Last up… last year, both artists appeared in a feature-length documentary called 'The Shock of the New'. The film picked up tons of awards.'Chen shook her head. 'Beats me why – it's almost 200 minutes long, and a whole chunk of it seems to be them and a couple of other artists arguing with Helen Morrison.'
‘Who is she?’
'Controversial art historian at Columbia.A very vocal critic of the sort of work Ashworth and Vasquez are best known for.She published a paper citing their work, amongst others, as the systemic undermining of Western Christian values.And she's another one who mounted an unsuccessful lawsuit – this time against the film-makers, arguing that they'd edited key sections to make her seem like a religious nut.'
‘Sounds like… I don’t know, guys, does she sound particularlydangerousto you?’
Marcus started typing on his laptop.‘The most controversial scene from the documentary has been shared eleven thousand times.Have a look.’
They were on a popular video-sharing site.The footage was shaky and dark, filmed at close quarters, the camera operator creeping up on someone who plainly wasn’t aware of it.That someone was a woman with waist-length, dark hair, kneeling at prayer. She was muttering to herself, the audio so indistinct that the film-maker had seen fit to add captions.
I hate them.Destroy them.Smash their mocking faces in.Grind them into dust.
Kate stood up, started to put on her coat.‘It’s time we went back to school.’
+ + + + + +
If you had a map of the campus, you would see that there were half a dozen ways to reach Columbia University’s Faculty of Art History, and not one of them required you to walk up the famous ‘Low Steps’ that led to the library.That didn’t stop Marcus and Kate from seizing the opportunity to pick their way through the crowds of students eating their lunch al fresco in the midday sun.As Kate said, to go there andnotwalk up the famous ‘Spiderman’ stairs would be like visiting Paris without crossing the Seine, or going to the movies and not eating popcorn.Marcus didn’t disagree.He even took her photograph as a memento of their visit; a much-needed bit of levity to counteract the grimness of their mission.
That was howtheysaw it, anyway.Others took a different view.
‘Hey, you guys want one together?’asked a freckled girl in a sweatshirt.
‘We’re good, thanks,’ Marcus replied.
But the girl insisted, handing her half-eaten bagel to a friend beside her on the steps.
‘C’mon, you gotta,’ said the girl.‘You’re such a beautiful couple!’
‘No, we’re-’
Somehow, by sheer force of will, she prised the phone from Marcus’s grip, his protestations unheard.‘Sorry,’ he whispered, as he shuffled alongside Kate on the step.
‘At least put your arm round the poor girl!’the girl commanded.‘What’s the matter with you?’She was relentless.Kate felt Marcus’s strong arm around her shoulders, his touch hesitant. They spent hours together as part of their job.They’d shared desks, bathrooms, a bed on a couple of occasions, all with mutual respect and good humor.So why was this different?
It wasn’t, for her.But Marcus wasblushing.
Freed from their ordeal by camera, they hurried to the top of the steps in silence. He stopped by one of the central pillars.‘Hey, I’m sorry about that girl,’ he said.
‘Marcus, it’s cool.She thought we were a couple.It was a photograph.You can delete it if you want.’
He looked strangely hurt.‘I wouldn’t delete it,’ he said.
‘Ok.Send it me, then.’
She stood and watched him as he buried himself in the campus map.‘We need to go in and go up the staircase on the left,’ he said, looking slightly over her head.
‘Lead the way.’
He nodded and walked on.She followed, puzzled.What was all that about?
The Faculty smelt of old books, polished floors, and privilege.A girl in a velvet cloche hat pointed them in the direction of Dr Morrison's office.Morrison turned out to be a tall, athletic-looking woman with a face that was almost handsome.The waist-length mass of dark curls was kept in check by a plaited cord of leather, matching the earth tones of her suit and blouse. It should be no surprise, Kate thought, that an art historian would have an eye for colour, yet somehow she hadn't expected it. She thought all academics were like her mother, who these days always dressed for a muddy dog-walk, no matter the occasion.
Morrison greeted them cordially enough and showed no surprise at their visit.
