As Mama and the tour guide chatted about the library, perusing some of the shelves, I quickly accessed how the books were organized, and I was relieved to see that they were displayed by the last name of the author. To look for a book written by Sir Charles Warren, I went to the farthest corner of the room to find the Ws.
I had to work quickly, yet I didn’t want to draw unwanted attention from our tour guide.
My heart pounded hard when I sawUnderground Jerusalemby Sir Charles Warren on the shelf, tucked into the corner. It had the same red cloth cover and gold lettering as the one in the Masonic research library.
Gently, I removed the book from the shelf and leafed through it, praying the notes were still inside.
When I was about a fourth of the way through, where Sir Warren named the members of the group who went with him in 1874, a loose leaf of paper stuck out. It was folded in half and yellowed with time, but I could see it was a handwritten note.
With a quick glance over my shoulder, I saw that Mama and Mr. Griffin were deep in discussion about one of the books the guide was holding, so I slipped the note out ofJerusalem Undergroundand set the book aside.
As I scanned the page, I realized it wasn’t field notes, but a letter that Sir Warren had written to Prince Albert Victor, shortly after Sir Warren’s return from the trip that had cost Austen’s parents their lives. As I read the revealing letter, I held my breath.
Your Royal Highness,
May 10, 1874
I’m sure that by now you have heard the distressing news concerning Brother Sir Robert Baird and his wife, Madeline. Their deaths, though tragic, were a necessary sacrifice to ensure the safety of the Book. I have spoken to their orphan, Austen, who is now secured at Eton under the watchful eye of several brothers who will ensure he speaks to no one about what he might know. When he comes of age, we will fold him into the Brotherhood, and he may pick up the work his father left off.
You are probably most concerned about the mission, and that is why I am writing to you. Though it was compromised, Brother Baird gave his life to ensure it was completed successfully. I spent years, not to mention thousands of dollars, searching for the Book. I am happy to inform you that we have finally found it in the Temple Mount and brought it safely to England. I thought it best to separate it among the men on our trip, so it returned in five sections. Each brother will keep his section carefully guarded and has pledged that he will protect it at all costs. I think it best if we keep it separate at this time, until we know the identity of our adversary who tried to take it from Brother Baird and ultimately took his life, instead.
Unfortunately, given the circumstances of the deaths of Brother Baird and his wife, the knowledge of the Book was made known to four of the women on our trip. The only one who does not know the contents of the book is Brother Sir Bernard Kelly’s wife, who was ill during much of our time in Jerusalem and was not in the Temple Mount during theincident. Since the other women are not bound to the Oath of the Brotherhood, we cannot be certain of their loyalty or silence. There are plans in place to deal with each of them, should they make trouble.
Once our enemy is defeated, we will commence plans to reunite all five sections of the Book and take it to the secure location you have indicated at WC, where it will remain under the King’s guard in perpetuity. I will inform you when this is done.
I remain your faithful and humble servant,
Brother Sir Charles Warren
“So you see, Mrs. Voland,” Mr. Griffin said as he and Mama approached me, “Robert Louis Stevenson was a favorite of King Edward VII, and that is why he has a first edition, signed copy ofThe Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.”
“What a treasure,” Mama said.
I quickly folded the letter and returned it toJerusalem Undergroundbefore closing the book and putting it back on the shelf. My heart was still pounding hard after everything I’d read, but I had to pretend to be unaffected.
The book Mary had found, the one that had put her in danger, was most likely one section of the Book Sir Charles Warren referenced. My father had brought it back from Jerusalem, but he was still in possession of it fourteen years later. Which meant that Sir Warren was still looking for the identity of the adversary who took the Bairds’ lives. And, if that was the case, was the unknown adversary responsible for killing Polly, Annie, Elizabeth, and Catherine in Whitechapel, because they knew about the Book? Or was it someone working in tandem with Jack? And where was WC? There were a few towns and villages in England with WC for the abbreviation, like Welbourne Common and Wells Cross. Whitechapel could also be abbreviated to WC. But it wouldn’tmake sense for the Book to be kept there under the King’s guard. The King’s guard was reserved for royalty, which meant that WC probably stood for Windsor Castle.
“Did you find something of interest?” Mr. Griffin asked.
“I did,” I said with a forced smile. “A book by Sir Charles Warren, the man who was the metropolitan police commissioner in 1888 when Jack the Ripper was active.”
“Ah, yes,” he said with a nod. “The reason you’re in London. Some say that Jack knew Sir Warren personally, and it was a cat and mouse game between them. They say that Jack was taunting Warren and that he wanted Warren to lose his job as police commissioner, which is ultimately what happened.”
Was Jack taunting Sir Warren? The murders of each woman in Whitechapel had similarities with Freemason rituals and legends. The way in which the victims were killed reflected the ways in which Jubela, Jubelo, and Jubelum were executed. The apron taken from Catherine Eddowes and left under the chalk graffito on Goulston Street might have ties to the aprons the Freemasons wore during their meetings. And the message on the wall had referenced the Juwes. There were other things I’d discovered in my research, clues and evidence that tied the killings to Freemasonry, but had been destroyed, overlooked, or left out of official reports. It was becoming more and more obvious that Jack was sending a message to Sir Warren, one of the most renowned Freemasons in England.
But what did it have to do with the Book?
“Shall we continue our tour?” the guide asked as he motioned for us to precede him out of the library.
Mama glanced at me, questions in her eyes, but I couldn’t tell her about my discovery. Not yet.
First, I needed to speak to Mary and beg her to tell me what was written in the Book.
We only had five days left.
21
London, England
