Half choked; he grabbed the noose with both hands to save himself from being throttled. He had barely succeeded in loosening it a little before he was again surrounded and seized. His last hope of escape was gone.
Jostling and shouting, his captors pushed him along the road, then across the coarse grassland towards the pyramid. It was now deserted, but they took him round behind it. There, as he had supposed from the bright glow he had seen, a big fire of brushwood was burning. Above it, spitted on long poles supported by trestles, the torn carcasses of the two pigs were being roasted. Beyond the fire stood a long, low barn and Adam was taken into it.
Evidently it was there that the priest had changed into his Indian robes and feathered head dress. Still wearing them, he and several older men who had not joined in the chase were in the barn seated at a rough table drinking tequila from thick tumblers. As Adam was dragged in front of them they rose to their feet and glowered at him.
During the past few minutes he had again recovered his breath and, although his body was bruised all over, he had suffered no
serious injury. Owing to his height none of the blows aimed at him had reached his face and, as he had hit the tree stump with the side of his head, his features remained unmarred. A loud grunt caused him to glance towards the corner of the barn from where it had come. Like himself, the pig had evidently been recaptured, as a man stood there holding it by a rope round its neck.
As he faced his captors, Adam felt sick with fear. There could be no disguising the fact that he had been a witness to the abominable rites that had been performed not much more than a quarter of an hour earlier. Although he was not a Catholic, the celebration of a Mass as a prelude to a pagan sacrifice had seemed to him a most appalling sacrilege. They must assume that even an accidental spectator of such a scene would report it, which must lead to the high authorities both of the Church and the police taking drastic action. Therefore, they could not possibly afford to let him go. For their own protection they must silence him, and the only certain way to do that was to kill him.
Their faces dark with anger, the priest and his companions stared at Adam from time to time while arguing in low voices. From the few words he caught, he realised that they were divided. Some of them were set upon his death; the others were fearful of killing him because he was not simply an uninitiated citizen of San Luis Caliente but obviously a foreigner and probably a tourist; so his disappearance was certain to result in an investigation which might prove their ruin.
At length they decided to take a vote, whether he should be killed there and then or made to swear the most awful oaths to keep their secret, with the threat that, should he afterwards betray them, he would never escape their vengeance. At that he took new heart, feeling fairly confident that they would not dare risk a police enquiry. But his relief was short lived. Each of them had scribbled on a scrap of paper torn from a single sheet, then passed it to the priest. Having sorted them into two piles, he said in a hoarse voice, `Four for reprieve, seven for death.' Then, addressing the men who were holding Adam by the arms, he added, `This is an opportunity to show the gods our complete faith in them. Take him up to the top of the pyramid.'
Adam went as white as a sheet. He had all he could do to prevent himself from trembling. But in that moment inspiration came to him. So far he had not spoken. Now, half forgotten words of Nahuatl suddenly flowed into his mind. Drawing himself to his full height, he frowned and said
`What folly is this to which I have listened with patience? Kill me and your cause is lost. I came here only to assess the loyalty of
my followers. Without warning I was attacked. Being now in the form of a human being I was forced to defend myself. Otherwise I would have been sent back prematurely to the place whence I come to lead again my people out of bondage. Do you not recognise me? I am Quetzalcoatl.'
Sitting back, they gasped and stared at him. With new perception they took in his height, his red gold hair and beard. After a moment of tense silence the priest stammered
`It must be… Only a week back I received word that the Man God had returned to us… was here in Mexico… Come again to give us joy and prosperity.'
Standing up, the priest came round from behind the table, followed by his companions. Kneeling, they prostrated themselves before Adam. The men who had been holding him had swiftly stepped away and were now also on their knees, banging their foreheads on the ground.
There followed an awkward silence. Adam was terribly tempted to say, 'Now, for God's sake, let me go. Get me a car if it's possible or, failing that, I'll walk back to San Luis.' But he dared not. He could only await developments and hope to reap the best advantage from them.
At last the priest raised his head and said, `Mighty Lord, the third pig was caught. I beg that you will not refuse us the honour of sacrificing it in the presence of us, your slaves.'
A lump rose in Adam's throat, but he saw no alternative to agreeing, and gave a silent nod.
Taking off his rich garments, the priest humbly offered them and Adam put them on. Messengers were sent out to assemble the congregation and the pig was led away. During the quarter of an hour that followed, those who remained in the barn stole covert glances in Adam's direction and were evidently too filled with awe to dare address him. He maintained an aloof silence, his stomach rising at the thought of having to slaughter the pig; but he feared that if he failed to go through with it they might decide that he was an impostor, which could yet cost him his life. His limbs were aching; he felt very tired and would have given a lot to sit down. But he decided that, as he was supposed to be a god, he must show no sign of weakness.
At last the men who had left the barn returned. The priest, now again in his clerical garb, made a deep obeisance and said, `Exalted One, I pray you to precede me.'
Leaving the barn, Adam led the way up the grass covered rear slope of the pyramid. As he appeared on the top, there came a low murmur from the congregation down below, then a hushed
silence. The priest addressed the people but spoke only a few sentences, his harsh voice now betrayed his agitation. Again there came the murmur as the people went down on their knees, then lowered their faces to the ground.
From their midst emerged four men who had remained upright. Each holding a leg of the pig, they lugged it up the steps of the pyramid, lifted it on to the altar table and held it there on its back. With a bow, the priest handed Adam the sacrificial knife.
He was already feeling nausea from the smell of the blood of the pigs that had been slaughtered there half an hour earlier. For a moment he shut his eyes and swallowed hard. With a great effort he pulled himself together and stepped forward.
As he raised the knife he was terribly tempted to plunge it hard into the breast of the pig, so as to put it swiftly out of its agony; but he knew that to be the one thing he must not do. Exerting all his will to make his arm obey him, he stuck the knife into the pig's belly, and drew it upward. The blade was as sharp as a razor, so the skin and flesh parted easily.
The minutes that followed exceeded the horror of any nightmare he had ever experienced. The animal squealed and squealed on a high pitched note that resembled the screams of a human in the utmost agony. Somehow, Adam forced himself to thrust his hands into the cavity he had made and, as the blood spurted out up to his elbows, fish around until he found the heart. Now obsessed with the thought of getting the awful business over as swiftly as possible, he tore at it frantically, lugged it out and held it aloft.
His gesture was followed by a thunderous roar of applause from the congregation. Crazy with excitement, they shouted themselves hoarse and were still doing so as Adam was solemnly escorted down the far side of the pyramid. Then he was led back to the barn and bowed to a seat at the head of the table. His urge to get away from the evil men who surrounded him was almost uncontrollable. But he fought it down because he felt sure that the diabolical ceremony would not be completed until they had feasted on the sacrificed pigs and that, to play out his role, he must participate.