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There aren't?
No, Paul snapped, begi
Charlie chuckled. No one in the West. The Arabs figured it out two hundred years before your guy wrote his book.
Paul began rifling through his papers. Thinking the matter was settled, I turned to go. I gotta run. I'll see you guys later.
But just as I moved toward the hallway, Paul found what he'd been looking for: the Latin he'd translated weeks earlier, the text of Colo
The Arab doctor, he said. Was his name Ibn al-Nafis?
Charlie nodded. That's the one.
Paul was all excitement. Francesco must've gotten the text from Andrea Alpago.
Who?
The man he mentions in the message. Disciple of the venerable Ibn al-Nafis. Before either of us could speak, Paul was talking to himself. What's Latin for lung? Pulmo?
I made for the door.
You're not going to wait to see what it says? he asked, looking up.
I'm supposed to be at Katie's in ten minutes.
This'll only take fifteen. Maybe thirty.
I think it occurred to him only at that moment how much things had changed.
I'll see you guys in the morning, I said.
Charlie, who understood, smiled and wished me luck.
It was a signal night for Paul, I think. He realized he'd lost me for good. He also sensed that no matter what Colo
always assumed was filler, must in reality contain more ciphered text. And whatever consolation Paul took in Charlie's medical knowledge, or in having solved the fifth riddle, it dissipated quickly when he saw Colo
I fear for you, reader, as I fear for myself. As you have perceived, it was my intention at the begi
Now, however, I find that I have not faith enough in my own creation to continue in this ma
It is as a defense to you then, reader, that I pursue my present course. Where you have become accustomed to finding a riddle within my chapters, you will henceforth find no riddles at all, and no solutions to lead you. I will employ only my Rule of Four for the duration of Poliphilos journey, but I will offer you no suggestion of its nature. Only your intellect will guide you now. May God and genius, friend, shepherd you aright.
It was confidence alone, I think, that prevented Paul from sensing his abandonment until many days had passed. I had left him; Colo
Then a week passed, and another. I was begi
Everything Paul had learned about Colo
Chapter 19
On the way back to Dod, I shuffle through Katie's pictures of Princeton Battlefield. In shot after shot I've caught her in midmotion, ru
When I get back to the room, I expect to find Paul at his desk, but his bunk is still empty, and now the books on his dresser are gone. Taped to the top of the door frame is a note, this one in large red letters.
Tom—
Where are you? Came back looking for you. Figured out 4S-10E-2N-6W! Gone to pick up topo atlas at Firestone, then down to McCosh. Vincent says he has the blueprint. 10:15.
— P.
I read the message again, piecing it together. The basement of McCosh Hall is the location of Taft's office on campus. But the last line leaves me cold: Vincent says he has the blueprint. I pick up the phone and call the squad house. Charlie's on the line in a matter of seconds.
What's up, Tom?
Paul went to see Taft.
What? I thought he was going to talk to the dean about Stein.
We need to find him. Can you get someone to cover for y-
Before I can even finish, a muffled sound interrupts the call, and I hear Charlie talking to someone on the other end.
When did Paul leave? he says, returning to the line.
Ten minutes ago.
I'm on my way. We'll catch up to him.
Charlie's 1973 Volkswagen Karma
What took you so long? I ask.
A reporter showed up at the squad room when I was leaving, he said. She wanted to talk to me about last night.
So?
Someone at the police department told her what Taft said in his interrogation. We pull onto Elm Drive, where little crests of slush give the asphalt a choppy surface, like ocean water at night. Didn't you tell me Taft knew Richard Curry a long time ago?
Yeah. Why?
Because he told the cops he only knew Curry through Paul.
Just as we enter north campus, I spot Paul in the courtyard between the library and the history department, walking toward McCosh.
Paul! I call out the window.
What are you doing? Charlie snaps at him, pulling up to the curb.
I solved it! Paul says, surprised to see us. The whole thing. I just need the blueprint. Tom, you're not going to believe this. It's the most amaz-