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reveled in victory. “My brethren used kites.”
    “Kites? How did that work?”
    “One monk stood at the bottom of the cliff and flew a kite high into the air. When the wind was right, he let it drift toward the top of the rock where another monk grabbed its tail. The long kite string was then tied to the end of a rope, allowing the monks to pull it up the cliff.”
    “That’s brilliant,” Dial admitted. “How did they come up with that?”
    Nicolas shrugged. “Give a man enough time to think and he can accomplish anything.”
    Dial smiled. He liked this guy. He had several more questions that he wanted to ask the monk, but he could see Nicolas was having trouble with the stairs. Out of respect, Dial stopped talking until they reached the top of the bell tower.
    “I’ve spent many days up here,” said the monk as he fought to catch his breath. He stared at one of the nearby peaks, ignoring the darkness and the fog that surrounded them. “This tower has the best view of the valley. And I should know. I’ve seen them all.”
    “How long have you lived here?”
    Nicolas shook his head. “I haven’t lived here for many years. Not since the decision.”
    “The decision?”
    “Holy Trinity was a working monastery for several centuries. Now it is a haven for tourists, and we are nothing but tour guides. Do you know how many monks live here?”
    Dial guessed. “Twenty.”
    “One,” said the monk. “And he is now dead.”
    “Only one? What about the other victims?”
    “What about them?”
    “If they weren’t residents, why were they here in the middle of the night?”
    Nicolas shrugged. “I have not been told.”
    Dial paused for a moment, trying to think things through. He had been under the impression that the killers had broken into the monastery and slaughtered all the monks who lived here. Now he knew that wasn’t the case. With the exception of one monk, all the other monks were late-night visitors. And the reason for their visit had been kept a secret. Suddenly, Dial realized that if he could figure out that reason, then he would be a whole lot closer to catching the killers.
    “So,” Dial asked, “who’s in charge of all the monasteries at Metéora?”
    “That would be the
hegumen
, the abbot.”
    “Can I talk to him?”
    “Unfortunately, that is not possible.”
    “Why? Is it against the rules?”
    Nicolas shook his head.
    “In that case, where can I find him?”
    “That depends. Where do you take the dead?”
    Dial groaned, completely mortified. “I am sorry. I didn’t know.”
    The monk remained silent as he stared into the distance.
    “When will a replacement be named?”
    “Once we have all the answers. There are still many questions that need to be asked.”
    Dial knew the feeling. “In the meantime, who’s in charge of Holy Trinity?”
    Nicolas turned toward Dial and pointed to himself. “I am here, so I am in charge. I will tend to this place until a successor is named.”
    “As luck should have it, I’m in charge, too.” Dial paused for a moment, thinking. “If you’re interested, maybe we can help each other out. I can answer some of your questions if you can answer some of mine.”
    The monk smiled for the first time that night. “Yes. I would like that very much.”

9

    J ones had spent several minutes analyzing the phone logs, focusing his attention on the coded sixth column while overlooking the simplest approach of all: dialing the number.
    “You know,” Payne joked. “For the smartest guy I know, you’re pretty stupid.”
    “Why didn’t you say something sooner?”
    “I did! I’ve been calling you stupid for years.”
    Jones sneered. “I meant about the phone.”
    “Honestly? I got caught up in all your excitement.”
    “In other words, you just thought of it yourself.”
    Payne shrugged. “Maybe.”
    “When you call,” Jones said, trying to shift the focus from himself, “remember to use the international code for Russia. It’s zero, one,