Page 207 of Atlas: The Story of Pa Salt
Kreeg raised an eyebrow. ‘The diamond is still in his possession?’
‘I swear it on my life.’
Kreeg seemed to waver for a moment before strengtheninghis grip on the wheel. ‘The fact he has not sold it does not exonerate him of the crime of murder.’
‘He did not murder your mother, Kreeg, it was the Bolshevik soldiers...’
‘Silence!’ Kreeg snarled. ‘I see he has corrupted your brain with his lies. Atlas Tanit is no more innocent than you are ugly.’
‘What are you going to do with me?’ Kreeg remained silent. ‘If you are going to kill me, I request that you make it quick.’
Eszu shook his head. ‘I have seen enough death now. There is no point in slaughter if it is needless.’
‘Then what’s your plan?’
‘You mentioned earlier that my aim is to cause as much harm as possible to Atlas.’
‘Yes?’
‘I am not going to kill you. I’m going to keep you.’
I am not ashamed to admit that I was openly weeping. ‘Kreeg. You have succeeded in your life’s work. You have taken everything from me.’
‘I know,’ he replied coldly.
‘Did she not see that by leaving with you, she killed me where I stood anyway?’
‘Perhaps. But it was her choice to make. I swore that, if she married me, I would no longer pursue you. I kept my word, as you know.’
‘Your son did not!’ I spat. ‘He has stalked my daughters as if they were game on a grouse shoot...’ A horrifying thought entered my head. ‘God! Tell me your son is not related to me?’
‘No. Zed is Ira’s child.’
My head was spinning. ‘The note from Elle... I’ve always kept it with me.’ With shaking hands, I reached into my pocket and produced the piece of paper.
Kreeg looked surprised. ‘What? How did you get that? As I told you, she dropped it on the dock.’
‘I recognised the blue paper bag. A boy threw it aboard the ship as it was departing.’
Kreeg snatched the note from me and examined it, his eyes straining in the fading light of the day. After a moment or two, his thin lips curled into a smile. ‘I think I have given you too much credit over the years, Atlas. The note is a message. “Knowing, Rest, Ever, Elle, Go...” Take the first letter of each and you get...’
My stomach churned. ‘Kreeg.’ He nodded. ‘But that means... She sent a letter to Horst and Astrid. Was that coded too? Oh God, what else have I missed over the years...?’ I clenched my fists and banged them against my knees. ‘I beg of you, tell me what happened to Elle.’
Kreeg leant back in his chair. ‘She died, about three years after we married.’
A deep pain shot through my core. ‘How?!’ I cried. ‘Tell me everything. I must know.’
Kreeg grimaced. ‘She was never the same after... the birth. She became weak. In the end, it was the flu which took her. The doctor said that a sick person must have thewillto recover. But she did not.’
‘The birth? So youdidhave a child together? Oh no.’ I put my head in my hands. ‘This is a nightmare.’
Kreeg stayed perfectly still. ‘No. We did not have a child together.’
I looked up. ‘What? So... that means...’
‘Yes. Soon after I took Elle from you, she discovered she was pregnant with your baby. Your Gypsy woman was correct.’
I hung on Kreeg’s every word. ‘What happened to our baby?’
