“It wasn’t really a picture, more like a stained-glass window.”
Her heart skipped a beat. “Like the ones you’d see in a church?”
“Yes, a bearded man surrounded by small animals.”
“St. Francis of Assisi, patron of animals,” she murmured. “St. Francis! Dear God in heaven.”
“I know it’s crazy. Anyway, I told you.”
“Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.” She was quickly keying St. Francis Cathedral into her GPS. “It’s not crazy. I have to hang up, Senator.”
“It’s not crazy?”
“The whole world’s crazy, but you’re calling to tell me this is the sanest act you’ve ever done.”
“I somehow thought I was doing the right thing. And it’s going to help you?”
“I hope it will. I pray it will.” She hung up and called Caleb. “It’s St. Francis Cathedral. How close are you?”
“Fifteen minutes. Are you sure?”
“I’m sure. I just got a call from the senator. I think Nancy Jo came through for us.” She looked at the GPS. “I’m twenty-five minutes away.”
“Jane is a good forty-five minutes from there. I’m not going to wait for either of you. I’ll see you at the cathedral.”
SIXTEEN
CALEB DREW UP A MAP OF the interior of St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral on his laptop, scanned it quickly, then took off across town.
The interior of the sanctuary of the church appeared to be as grand and rich as Jelak could wish for his final resurrection. Choir stall facing the altar. Two anterooms leading off the sanctuary. The meeting rooms were in an adjacent building linked by a covered walkway.
So where would Jelak keep Quinn?
Quinn had known he was in a church, so it would follow that he’d been aware of religious artifacts. Meeting rooms were usually for classes and less identifiable. The chances were that Quinn had been in the main part of the church. Choir chancel. Sanctuary. Anteroom.
Which one?
He’d start in the choir chancel and work down. It was located above the nave where the congregation sat and he’d be less likely to be noticed if he was up there looking down. Most people had a tendency to look straight ahead.
He parked a block from the cathedral and stared for a moment at the tall spires and medieval architecture.
He couldn’t sense Jelak, but the cathedral was surrounded by apartment buildings. Too many people, too much interference at this distance. He’d be fortunate if he could sense him ten yards away. But, then, Jelak wouldn’t be able to sense him either.
Both blind to each other. Level ground.
But they wouldn’t be on level ground once he found him in that cathedral.
The excitement he hadn’t allowed himself to feel was suddenly here, pounding in his veins. After all the years of hunting, Jelak was his.
He got out of the car and moved quickly down the block. No cars in the parking lot, but a small gray Honda was parked in readiness on the street in front of the huge doors of the main entrance.
“All set to go. You’re ready to take your final kill,” he murmured. “But are you ready for me, Jelak?”
HE WAS NOT IN the choir chancel.
But Caleb found the slumped body of a priest on the stairs leading up to it. Evidently the church had not been vacant as Eve had hoped. He stepped around the body and swiftly climbed the stairs.
No Jelak. But from this vantage point, Caleb could see the golden goblet set out on the altar, which was covered in scarlet velvet. Jelak was clearly planning on bringing Eve back from Allatoona for the ritual.
His gaze wandered around the sanctuary below him.
Jelak wasn’t in the sanctuary either.
Then one of the anterooms.
Which one? Left or right of the altar?
Choices.
He couldn’t risk going into the anterooms from the sanctuary. He’d have to go outside and around the church to see if there were any windows in the anterooms.
Fast.
He was only ten minutes ahead of Eve, and he wanted to try to get all this over before she arrived at the cathedral. Getting Quinn safely away from Jelak was their top priority.