Necropolis

that's exactly how they'll expect us to travel."
    "Maybe they never saw the diary," Pedro said. "It was in the office of Se Salamanda. He could never have shown it to them."
    Richard was still unhappy. "It's too much of a risk. Anyway, they know about the door in St. Meredith's.
    Scarlett went through it. That's probably what started all this. They could be waiting for us there. I know it's boring, but I reckon we're much safer taking planes."
    "But Matt doesn't have a passport," Scott said.
    "The Nexus can get us into America," Richard replied. "I spoke to Nathalie Johnson this morning, and she's sending a private plane. It's already on its way. And she's been in touch with John Trelawney. The two of them have enough clout to get us through immigration. They can also get Matt a new passport.
    After all, they didn't have any difficulty getting one for Pedro. It'll take a couple of days, but we could be in England by Tuesday."
    Scott and Jamie had met Nathalie Johnson before they came to Peru. She was an American businesswoman who had made a fortune out of computers before she had been drawn into the Nexus.
    John Trelawney was the senator who had been fighting in the presidential election. The result was going to be announced in just one day, and he was still the favorite to win. The two of them were powerful friends.
    Jamie considered what Richard had said. "All right, then." He shrugged. "Let's go."
    "Not all of us," Matt said.
    There was a sudden silence around the table. All eyes were turned on him.
    "I think we should separate," he said.
    "Are you crazy…?" Scott said.
    "Why?" Pedro chimed in.

    "What do you mean, Matt?" Jamie asked.
    Everyone was talking at once. Matt wasn't surprised. Even as he had decided what he was going to do, he had known that the rest of them would be against it. They were supposed to stick together. Finding each other, coming together… it was what their lives were all about. Five Gatekeepers. So far, against all the odds, four of them had managed to do exactly that. They were one step away from finding the fifth. It seemed completely mad to split up now.
    "We've just got to be careful," Matt explained. "Richard and I were talking about it last night, before we were attacked. If all four of us get onto one plane and the Old Ones somehow manage to get control of it, they'll have us at their mercy. They'll be able to do anything with us. All four of us at once."
    "So what are you saying?" Jamie asked.
    "We can't stay here," Pedro added.
    "I'm going to London with Richard," Matt said. "We'll meet the Nexus as soon as we can and we'll meet Scarlett as soon as we know it's safe." He turned to Jamie. "I'd like you to come with us."
    Jamie opened his mouth but said nothing. He understood the implications of what Matt had just suggested.
    "You're leaving me behind," Scott muttered. His voice was low and sullen.
    "It's just for a few days. A week, no longer."
    "Is this because I messed up last night?"
    'You didn't mess up." Matt had to choose his words carefully. In a way, Scott was right. He might not be to blame, but he still couldn't be completely trusted either. Matt looked at him, sitting slumped back from the table with his hands in his pockets, and saw the cold anger in his face. And there was something else. A sort of cruelty. When Scott had lived ten thousand years ago, his name had been Flint and it suited him. Sitting in the garden, his eyes were as hard as stone.
    "Scott and I don't like being apart," Jamie said.
    "I know that and I'm sorry," Matt said. "It's true that we're stronger together. That's why I want to stay in pairs. Two and two. If anything goes wrong in London, I'll need someone to back us up."
    "So why not take Pedro?"

    "Because Pedro doesn't know London. He's never been to England."
    "Neither have I."
    Matt sighed. "Jamie…if you really don't like the idea, I'll go on my own. I don't mind doing that. I just don't think we should all go. That's all. I'm trying to do what's best for everyone."
    "And since when did you get to tell everyone what they should do?" Scott demanded. "I thought we were meant to be equal. Who put you in charge?"
    There was another long pause. Richard opened his mouth to say something, then changed his mind. The day was getting warmer as the sun climbed over the mountains, but the atmosphere right then was anything but.
    Matt looked across the lawn to the track that led back to the town of Nazca. He had been there a couple of days ago,