Читать книгу Comes the Dark Stranger - Jack Higgins, Justin Richards - Страница 9

When he alighted from a bus in front of the university the rain had almost stopped, but fog crouched at the ends of the streets and the outlines of the houses seemed to blur and become indistinct.

He crossed the road to the porter’s lodge at the main entrance and inquired for Adam Crowther. A small, red-faced man in a blue uniform with gold facings, directed him to the Archaeology Department in a side street across the road.

The area behind the university had obviously been a high-class residential quarter some forty or fifty years before. Many of the houses had circular carriage drives and stood in spacious gardens. Most of them seemed to be occupied by one university department or another.

Shane found the Archaeology Department with no trouble and mounted the steps to the entrance. It was dark and gloomy inside with walls painted green and beige. There was no carpet in the hall and as he moved forward, the polished floorboards creaked ominously.

He passed a large notice board and came to the office. He noticed another door a little further along the corridor and saw that Crowther’s name was neatly painted in white on a small wooden plaque. He knocked softly and went in.

Crowther was sitting at a desk by the long window, his back half turned to the door as he held a piece of flint up to the light. ‘Yes, what is it?’ he said and there was impatience in his voice. ‘I told you I didn’t want to be disturbed this afternoon.’