The Beethoven Quandary

  Chapter Eight

  It was a chilly day, the wind gusting in sharp bursts. David shuddered against the cold.

  "We could take a cab, you know, Jeremy,” he said.

  “Not on my budget, my friend,” replied Jeremy, starting to walk a little faster. “The fees for my little European concert tour didn't do a lot more than cover my expenses.”

  The two walked for another half a block in silence.

  "So exactly what do you expect to hear from Morgenstern?" David asked.

  "Well, I don't expect him to make a full commitment to the manuscript today, if that's what you mean," responded Jeremy.

  "Really? I know nothing about these things. I assumed that you'd find out one way or another about the manuscript today."

  "No, it's not that simple. He's going to insist on having some scientific tests done on the manuscript. He made that clear when I first called him the other day."

  "What sort of tests?"

  "He'll let us know, I guess," Jeremy shivered and pulled his collar up closely around his neck. “God! It is freezing out. What's the temperature today anyway?"

  “Supposed to be in the thirties. But it feels worse.”

  “October’s not supposed to be winter yet,” Jeremy complained.

  "Say, Jeremy, I was thinking,” David said, rubbing his hands together briskly. "Are you completely sure that this Morgenstern is legit?"

  "Absolutely, his credentials are impeccable. I called a couple of auction houses and they both recommended him. Besides, I don't think he's really our big problem right now."

  "Really? And what is our big problem?"

  "The guy who’s been following us for the last two blocks."

  "You're kidding! What guy? I haven't noticed anyone."

  "He's not exactly wearing a clown costume and honking a horn."

  “Should I turn around?"

  “No! Not now. Wait a minute. Just keep walking.”

  The two picked up their pace.

  "How much time before we have to be there?” asked David, glancing at his phone.

  "Twenty minutes," replied Jeremy. "Only a couple of blocks to go.”

  "C'mon, let's turn into this shop. Right here… through this door.” David grabbed Jeremy's shoulder and directed him into a small bakery.

  Inside, Jeremy shook his head. "What's the point of this?" he asked peevishly.

  “You said somebody’s following us! We can’t let anybody do that.” David peered out the window intently, trying to see as far down the sidewalk as possible.

  “And this is going to solve the problem?”

  “Well, no…I don’t know. Why is this guy following us? You think it’s the manuscript?”

  “Maybe. Probably. Why else?”

  “Maybe he’s just a mugger. What does he look like?”

  “Short guy. In a long black coat. A mugger’s not going to hit us in broad daylight on a busy street.”

  “Short guy in a long black coat? Half the male population of Philadelphia under thirty could fit that description.”

  “I think this guy is older than that.”

  “Where is he now? I don’t see anything.”

  “He’s obviously not going to stroll by the window here. He’s out there somewhere.”

  “Are you sure that this isn’t just your over-active imagination?”

  “No, David. There’s a real person out there. Probably someone who knows that I have the rest of the manuscript in my possession.”

  “But who would know that?”

  “Did you really believe Wade and Danny the other night? Danny admitted he consulted his former boss at the music store about the manuscript. God knows who else he could have talked to.”

  “But Danny said that he didn’t use your name.”

  “Maybe…but somebody must know about the manuscript.”

  David frowned. “Well I’m not just going to stand here and wait.”

  “Nobody told you to. We would almost be there by now if you hadn’t pushed me in here. And the people behind the counter are starting to stare at us anyway.”

  You’re right.” said David. “We’re not just going to stand here and cower. We’re going to confront him.”

  “What?” Jeremy gasped. “Are you crazy?”

  “It’s like you said…it’s broad daylight on a busy street. What’s he going to do? Pull a knife?”

  “I don’t know, but I’m not at all interested in finding out. Now don’t be stupid. We’ll just leave now and quietly walk down the street toward our destination. I told you it isn’t far.”

  “I’m not going to slink away. I’m going to put an end to this right now.”

  Jeremy stared incredulously at David. "What are you going to do...arrest him?"

  “Of course not. I'm just going to tell him he can't follow us.”

  "So you're going to intimidate him? David, you're a musician. You're a pianist. You need your hands.”

  “I’m not going to intimidate him. Just let him know that we know he’s following us and we’re not afraid of him.”

  "He knows we know he's following us. He figured that out as soon as we ducked in here.”

  "So then I've got nothing to lose," David said firmly. He quickly grabbed the shop door handle, flung the door open, and stepped into the street.

  "David! Wait!" Jeremy protested.

  David quickly turned and started walking back down the sidewalk. His eyes scanned both sides of the street back and forth, but he saw no one in a long black coat. Most of the passersby were women or couples. There were few men walking alone.

  A few steps later, David shrugged and began to turn around. In that instance, out of the corner of his eye, he glimpsed the man in the long black coat, loitering back in a doorway about twenty feet away.

  The man turned toward him for a split second and then turned away. He quickly disappeared through the door behind him and into the drugstore beyond it.

  Jeremy came up behind David. “Please David, let’s get out of here. You’re just asking for trouble and I don’t want to be late for this appointment.”

  “I saw him,” said David quietly. “I really saw him. I half-thought you were kidding.”

  “Forget it,” said Jeremy, taking David by the arm. “Let’s just get out of here and go see Morgenstern.”

  Morgenstern’s outer office was extremely well appointed. The receptionist directed the two men into a couple of over-stuffed club chairs, where they sat—somewhat uncomfortably—for several minutes. Eventually they were summoned into Mr. Morgenstern’s office, where they sat for another two or three minutes before Morgenstern looked up and acknowledged their presence.

  “Which one of you is Jeremy West?” he asked coldly.

  Jeremy stood up, smiling nervously, a large portfolio clutched eagerly in his hand.

  “And you’ve got something for me to look at?” said Morgenstern. “Bring it over here. Please hurry. I’ve got a lot to get through today.”

  Jeremy hurried up to Morgenstern’s desk and gently placed the manuscript in front of him.

  “Missing something, is it?” he asked.

  “Yes,” said Jeremy. “As I mentioned in my email, the first two pages are temporarily unavailable.”

  “Pretty important…the first two pages, you know,” said Morgenstern.

  “I realize that. I’ll be getting them back in my possession soon.”

  “So who’s had a look at this?” asked Morgenstern, carefully examining the first few pages of the document.

  “Professor Norman Gray. He’s supposed to be one of the most famous Beethoven experts in the country.”

  “A musicologist? Huh,” Morgenstern grunted. “Those people have their own little games they like to play. But they don’t understand the value of a document, not what it’s worth on the market.”

  “That’s why we came to you, sir,” Jeremy said hopefully.

  “So what did your musicologist friend have to say about this?”

&nbsp
; “He agreed with me that the comments in the margins are by Beethoven. The actual music notes are by one of his copyists. It’s definitely a new composition by Beethoven.”

  David lifted his eyebrows.

  “Really?” Morgenstern said. “I’m surprised he committed himself like that. Musicologists are famous for equivocating.”

  Jeremy nodded. “Yes, I know. He did say that the style was unusual for Beethoven.”

  “Unusual?”

  “I don’t think Professor Gray fully realized that this symphony presents an important stylistic departure for Beethoven. He was clearly experimenting at that point in his career and this work represents one of the possible ways he could go forward. But ultimately he decided against pursuing this path. That’s why it’s so unlike his other compositions written in this period.”

  Morgenstern nodded faintly. “Well, I don’t comment on style. It’s not my area. And I’m not commenting on anything until we have a few tests done.”

  “What sort of tests?” asked David, edging a little forward in his seat.

  Morgenstern glanced over to David. “I’ve already discussed them with Mr. West. Watermark analysis, chemical composition of the ink. And we’ve got software that will compare the handwriting on the manuscript with Beethoven’s.”

  “Software? Really?” said David.

  “”No chance of subjective involvement,” said Morgenstern.

  “Will there be much damage to the manuscript?” asked Jeremy.

  “Hardly any,” Morgenstern said, turning back to face Jeremy. “We’ll scrape the ink from an inconspicuous part of the manuscript. Now you do understand, I presume, that we’re going to need some upfront money here. You know that, don’t you?”

  “How much?” Jeremy asked.

  We’ll need two thousand dollars to proceed from this point.”

  Jeremy swallowed. “Really? That’s a little more than I expected. Is that for the tests?”

  “And for my fee,” Morgenstern replied coolly.

  “And when this is proved authentic, you’ll be able to find buyers for it?”

  “I assume that’s why you came to me. I’ll make some phone calls. I already have a list of some people—people with money—who are looking for Beethoven documents. If I decide that it would be more lucrative to go to a special auction, we’ll do that. You do understand that I receive an additional percentage of the final sale either way.”

  Jeremy nodded. “Of course. How much do you think the manuscript will go for?”

  “I’ll know more when I see the first two pages. You say some of the most important comments appear on the first two pages?”

  “Right,” said Jeremy. “On the second page, Beethoven writes that the copyist is ruining his piece, making it clear that this really is a composition by Beethoven.”

  “If it’s proven to be a new, completely unknown composition by Beethoven, and a major work at that, it should fetch several million.”

  Jeremy smiled. “That’s what I was hoping you’d say.”

  “Well, in that case I think it’s time to get the process under way,” said Morgenstern. “When I get the results from the testing—they move quickly so it should be no more than two or three days—I’ll get in touch with you. Then we’ll have to set up a meeting time and plan our next steps.”

  “I’m eager to get started,” Jeremy said, “so we’ll leave you to it.” He stood up quickly and shook Morgenstern’s hand. David also rose and offered his hand but Morgenstern ignored it.

  “Alright then” said Jeremy. “We’ll be on our way. The check for two thousand dollars will be dropped off with your receptionist later today. And we’ll look forward to meeting with you soon.”

  Morgenstern grunted and turned away. Jeremy and David exited the office quickly.

  Leaving Morgenstern’s reception room, Jeremy paused for a few seconds. “Whew! That up-front money is a little more than I was expecting.”

  “I’ll say,” David said sympathetically. “Did you save enough from your recent tour to cover it?”

  “Are you kidding? I told you I didn’t make that much. I barely covered my flight home.”

  “So where are you going to get that kind of money?”

  “I don’t know,” Jeremy said, “but I’ll get it somewhere. And I’ve obviously got to get it fast.”