'Greek church, one you call 'orthodox.' Is true! Who read ancient Greek better than another Greek, no? You are surprised I am here at center of Western church, no?'
Lang sat. 'Well, yes.'
Father Strentenoplis also sat. 'Is age of ecumenicalism! No longer argue over number of angels dancing on head of a pin. Your pope need expert in ancient and Coptic Greek, my patriarch in Istanbul want expert on medieval German, read heretic Luther. Even swap, yes?'
Lang nodded, the man's enthusiasm contagious. 'Sounds fair to me.'
The priest gave the doorway a surreptitious glance before he reached under the desk and produced a small pouch and a stack of rolling papers. For an instant, Lang thought he was about to roll a joint. He was relieved to see he was only preparing a cigarette. He rolled it with one hand, using the other to extend the tobacco and paper across the desk.
Lang shook his head… 'No thanks.'
The father lit up, instantly dispelling Lang's long-held belief that his friend Jacob smoked the foulest tobacco in the world.
'You come see me about ancient Greek, yes?'
Lang reached inside his shirt, producing the sheaf of papers. He peeled off one of the two copies. 'I was hoping you could translate.'
The priest held the cigarette between his lips, squinting through the rising column of smoke. Lang wondered how many times he had set his beard ablaze. He held the papers flat with one hand, producing a pair of half-moon glasses with the other. He scanned the first couple of pages.
'I have not seen before. Is gospel I read about, the one where man get killed in England, no?'
'Sir Eon, yes. The Gospel of James.'
The priest looked up from the papers, staring at Lang.
'I found where Sir Eon got that. The man who sold it to him made copies.'
Father Strentenoplis nodded slowly as though answering a question only he had heard. He exhaled, sending smoke into his beard where tendrils wafted upward as though from a brushfire. 'St. James first bishop of Jerusalem, first Eastern bishop. Is liked, esteemed, more by Eastern church than by Western.'
Lang resisted the temptation to fan away the smell of the cigarette. 'You can translate, read Egyptian with Greek letters?'
He was happy to see the butt finally stubbed out into a small ceramic dish. 'Is Greek, no? Should have by tomorrow morning.'
Lang left, certain he wouldn't get the smell of whatever tobacco the good father smoked out of his clothes for days.
If it was tobacco.
Lang was on his way to his room when a familiar buzz came from a pocket. Sara.
'Lang? The people at your condo are really getting annoyed.'
Why not? His unit had been a hole in the side of the building and now the interior hall was filling up with unwanted kitchen appliances.
'You did what I suggested?'
'Of course. I placed the charges in dispute with the credit card company. Just like you said, that got Home Depot's attention. They called yesterday and promised to come get the stove and hood. And deliver your oven.'
Why did he think the matter didn't end there? 'And?'
'Now there's a stove, a hood and a bidet sitting in your hall.'
IV.
The Vatican
Lang returned to his room the way he had come. After a sleepless night, the single beds looked inviting. But first…
He took out his BlackBerry and punched in Gurt's number. He was aware of Echelon, but what were the odds of this particular call being selected for a closer look or listen? Even less were the chances that whoever had killed Eon had a way to hack into that system.
He realized he was simply rationalizing a chance to speak to his son.
Manfred had spent the morning with his mother and grandfather, hiking in the nearby Schwartzwald, Black Forest. Lang smiled, recalling how much the Germans loved to tramp through the woods for no other reason than being there. He had often theorized two world wars might have started accidentally by what began as an overzealous stroll through the Ardennes.
Yes, he had had fun, but when was Daddy coming to take him back to Grumps?
Soon, Lang assured him.
With a child's insight, Manfred insisted on a specificity Lang was unable to give.
Gurt rescued Lang by taking the phone. 'I also would like to know when you will be able to come.'
Lang told her what had happened since their last conversation.
'You are without a clue,' she observed.
'I should know something more when I get the translation back tomorrow,' he said with an optimism he did not entirely feel.
The conversation ended with more promises to Manfred than Lang felt he could keep.
When he hit the end button, he sat morosely on the bed. When would he see his son again? Would Gurt legitimize the child by marrying him? With his home destroyed, where would they live? All of these seemed far more important than some ancient gospel the collators of the Bible had decided not to include. Lang wanted nothing more than a peaceful life with the family he had found so suddenly.
But there could be no peace as long as someone wanted him dead. Anger at these unknowns who had threatened not only him but his son began to grow, a rage made greater by lack of a specific target. The only real clue was the murders of Eon and Klaus, each with biblical overtones. Who but some fanatical religious group would take the pains to relate cold-blooded killings to the martyrdom of saints?
If only…
He forgot everything he had been thinking of and stared at one of the two small chests of drawers against the far wall. The pulls were plain, round copper or brass disks.
But one was slightly larger than the others.
Intrigued, he sat on the floor, staring at what, moments before, had been a mundane, ordinary piece of metal. He opened the drawer. Each pull was secured to the inside by a bracket and a screw. He fumbled in his pocket for a moment before he came up with a dime. It fitted the screw head well enough to turn it.
Moments later, he was looking closely at the bit of metal in his hand, a fine mesh rather than solid like the others. Using a thumbnail, Lang pried up part of the tiny screen. He was not surprised to see a miniaturized listening device.
He instinctively glanced around the room. The thing could have been installed at any time but the battery life on something that small would only be a day or so. It was a safe guess the very unknowns against whom he had been raging had put it there. He resisted the impulse to grind the tiny thing under his heel. To do so would only alert its installers it had been found and encourage replacement with one he might not locate.
Instead, he carefully reinstalled it.
Then he began a meticulous sweep of the room. The phone was dis- and reassembled. The plates on all three electrical sockets were removed and replaced. Even the overhead light fixture received attention. There are only a limited number of places a bug can be placed and escape notice.
Satisfied, he took another longing look at the beds. No nap now. With doors without locks and his unidentified enemies aware of his location, sleep could be suicidal. He yawned. One of the little bureaus could be placed in front of the door and… and what? Without a weapon, it mattered little whether he heard a potential assassin or not.
Then he remembered something Francis had said just before he left.
