Despite the grave situation, Magdalena couldn’t suppress a slight smile. She knew that her father had always been driven by a boundless curiosity. Without a doubt, he wanted to find out what was really going on here in Bamberg-and until he did, he wouldn’t sleep soundly.
“Perhaps you could go over again everything you learned from Jeremias last night,” Simon said, turning to his father-in-law. “I must confess I haven’t been able to make sense of it all yet.”
Jakob cleared his throat, then briefly retold the story of Jeremias’s fate and what happened during the witch trials when he was known as Michael Binder, the executioner of Bamberg. He also mentioned Jeremias’s murder of the young prostitute. Meanwhile, Bartholomäus sat there thinking and sucking on a stick of kindling he’d broken off a piece of firewood.
“I’ve heard a bit about this Michael Binder,” he interrupted his brother while still chewing on the kindling. “He must have been a good hangman. Sometimes young people think I’m his son, because the job is usually passed down through the family. Well, whatever. .” He shrugged. “If law and order still prevail in this city, Jeremias will have to be hanged. I can’t say I’ll be glad to do it, but I probably won’t have any choice.”
“I’ve given him my word we won’t report him if he helps us,” Jakob replied. “Look at him-the man is a wreck. Scarred forever for his deeds-which he now wants to atone for, including the one that happened so long ago,” he added grimly.
“You mean torturing his fiancée?” Simon shuddered. “That is unpardonable. Even God cannot forgive that.”
“Just cut out this nonsense.” Jakob suddenly sprang up and glared angrily at Simon. He looked like a dark thunderhead towering above his son-in-law. “How can a no-account little medicus understand what’s going on in the minds of us hangmen? Have you ever hurt someone just because you had to? Because your hungry family was waiting for you out there and you would be stoned to death if you didn’t? Did you ever put a noose around a condemned man’s neck as he pleaded and cried, while your bloodlusting fellow citizens stared at you from behind? Have you?”
“No, you’re right, I haven’t,” Simon replied meekly. “I’m only a medicus who wants to heal.”
“Who is permitted to do that,” Jakob growled, then he sat down. “And now let us continue. Georg is right, there are in fact more important things to discuss.”
He told them about his hunch that all the victims were somehow connected, that they-or their husbands or older relatives-had many years ago been members of a Witches Commission that determined whether others would live or die and whether they would be tortured and burned.
“If we succeed in finding a document listing the members of this commission, we may be able to prevent further disaster. There are no doubt other people on the list, and, most importantly, the name of the accused.”
“But all that happened decades ago,” Bartholomäus interrupted, throwing a singed piece of kindling straight into the open fire. “Do you really believe there’s someone lurking around out there interested in such an old case?”
“I don’t know, but I’d like to find out, and Jeremias will help us.” Jakob lowered his voice and turned to Simon and Bartholomäus. “The old man told us about a half-buried passageway leading from the cathedral to the bishop’s archive in the next building. Apparently, in ancient times the cathedral faced northward, and it was then that the passageway between the two was built. It’s said to be a pretty weird place. The corridor is an ancient crypt with piles of bones and skulls.” He grinned. “I love skulls. At least they can tell you no lies.”
“Since our visit to the residence yesterday, the area around the cathedral square is crawling with guards,” Magdalena said in a worried voice. “Do you really think we can simply walk into the cathedral and enter the passageway without anyone asking what we’re up to?”
Jakob nodded. “I was worried about that, myself, but then it occurred to me that today is All Souls’ Day, and in Bamberg, just as in Schongau, there is always a high mass in the morning in memory of the dead. The cathedral will be more crowded than at any time except Easter.” Confidently, he looked around the table. “If we act during the mass, no one will notice us amid all the activity. We just have to get back on time.”
“And you intend to climb down into a crypt full of bones on the Day of the Dead?” Simon groaned. “I’m not sure if I-”
“Who said I wanted to take a little coward like you along with us?” Jakob growled. “You can just go back to your suffragan bishop possessed by the devil. Maybe you’ll learn something there pertaining to our case.” He shook his head. “No, Jeremias and I will do it alone, and in the meantime the rest of you can look for Barbara. After all the uproar, I hope she’s found someplace to hide in a barn or empty shed. Later, I’ll come to you, if you-”
There was a loud hammering on the front door, and Jakob stopped suddenly. A moment later the door flew open and an agitated Katharina rushed into the room. She was as pale as a corpse, her full head of hair was disheveled, and she was still wearing the splendid gown she’d had on the evening before, though it was now soiled from running through the street.
“Bartl,” she began breathlessly, “you. . you must help me. . my father. . has disappeared. Oh, God. .” She leaned against the wall, crying. Magdalena ran to help her, leading her to sit at the table near the warm stove and taking hold of her shaking hands.
“What happened?” she asked gently.
“This whole wedding is cursed,” Katharina blurted out. “Ever since Bartholomäus and I decided to get married, all these dreadful things have been happening. Perhaps the suffragan bishop was right after all when he disapproved of the ceremony. And now, he is a werewolf himself. Oh, I should never have gotten engaged to an executioner, and this is my punishment.”
“What nonsense you are talking, woman!” Bartholomäus shouted angrily. “The devil has robbed you of your senses.” He tried to modulate his voice. “But I’ll excuse you, because I see this is all too much for you. Tell us, now, what’s this about your father?”
“I lost sight of him last night after the terrible events,” she began, calmer now. “We were standing outside in the courtyard, and all around us people were screaming as more and more came rushing out of the hall, pushing their way past us. And suddenly he was gone. I waited for him, but it seemed like the earth had simply swallowed him up. Finally I went home, hoping to meet him there. But he wasn’t there, either-he was simply gone.” Again she broke out in tears. “I waited for him until this morning, but he never came. No one knows what happened to him. Perhaps. .”
Her words turned into a long wail. Magdalena looked anxiously at Simon, and he returned her gaze. He’d told the whole family about Hieronymus Hauser’s peculiar behavior, and Katharina had also told Magdalena that her father had been acting strangely in recent days.
“Did you notice anything unusual about your father yesterday?” she asked the tearful Katharina.
She looked up, troubled. “Well, he. . he was very anxious,” she mumbled. “During the play he kept looking around as if he expected to see someone he was very afraid of, but when I asked him about it, he wouldn’t answer.” Fearfully, she looked around the table. “Do you believe this werewolf took him away?”
“Believing is something you can do in church,” Jakob answered grimly. “What I want are facts. You should all get moving now, as fast as possible, to look for my Barbara and also Katharina’s father. What’s clear is that too many people are disappearing in this city.” He stood up and cracked his knuckles one last time. “And today, as a good Christian, I intend to go to mass. I’ll say three hallelujahs if I can finally get a bit closer to the truth.”