House of Acerbi

some very powerful people.”

“Tell me about it. We walked right into a very tidy little trap.”

“So basically, you’re saying that we’re all now international fugitives.”

“Exactly. Acerbi played us perfectly. Rescuing Sarah led him right to us. He probably guessed that we had something on him and moved to eliminate us. We’re dealing with a totally ruthless individual who apparently has no conscience.”

“Any news on the spread of the pathogen?” Leo asked.

“It seems to have stopped spreading for now. There’s still no sign of it yet in Israel.”

Leo leaned back in his seat and stared out at the water. “Finally, some good news.”

“There’s more,” Lev said. “Dr. Diaz wants to obtain a sample of the virus.”

“What on earth for?”

“I have no idea, but I don’t want it anywhere near us. Even though Diaz has the expertise to study a lethal virus, we don’t have the facilities. We’d need a level 4 biohazard lab for something like that.”

“Diaz is a strange man, but he’s also a brilliant molecular biologist. I wonder what’s on his mind.”

“I’m sure we’ll hear from him again after we dock.” Lev lit a cigar and glanced over at the Carmela’s captain.

“Keep the boat at full speed, Alex. Make sure we stay in international waters until we’re directly off the coast of Israel … then make a run straight for the harbor.”

In the muted lighting of the conference room, Acerbi’s dark eyes glowered at the men who had failed him. “What the hell was the Bible Code Team doing here in France? And how could they have escaped completely undetected?”

“Apparently, there was an extensive tunnel system beneath the castle, sir. I’m afraid they’re long gone by now.”

“I know they’re long gone, you idiot!”

Looking down the long executive table, Acerbi saw that no one dared to make eye contact with him. They all seemed to be staring off into space at some invisible object hovering just beyond their field of vision. The room practically vibrated with fear.

“I want to know what that Catholic Cardinal and his Jew friends are up to.” Acerbi emphasized the word Catholic, as though the mere pronunciation of the word filled his mouth with an evil taste.

“They’re not Jews … they’re Christians, sir.”

“Whatever! I thought we had seen the last of these people last year. If it wasn’t for them we would still have the book and the power it possessed … it’s nothing but ashes now.”

Acerbi paused. He held his hands together as though he were praying before he leaned back in his chair and stared up at the ceiling. “At least we still have its words.”

Suddenly he leaned forward. His eyes blazed and he slammed his closed fists down on the table. “Until we can discredit or eliminate this Catholic and his friends, I want them moved to the top of the threat list. We have no idea what they know about us, but their presence here in France was no coincidence. I find that coincidences are usually linked to a larger truth with an invisible thread.”

Acerbi looked around the room. “What do we know about the two employees who helped the girl escape?”

A tall security man in a gray suit cleared his throat. “They were just common help, sir … hired to maintain the chateau. He was a gardener and she worked in the laundry. They’ve been employed by us for almost two years. We did a complete background check on both of them, and I went back over the tapes of their interviews. They didn’t appear to be that bright.”

“Spies never appear bright, which makes me wonder about some of the people sitting at this table. Bright people attract attention, especially the needy ones. I want your men to find out as much as they can about these two domestic servants. I think you’ll find that their true identities are much more impressive. Let’s start by putting a price on their heads … say, a million Euros apiece. Also, have our people in Europol put out warrants for their arrest. Even if we can’t find them, we might be able to learn who they’re really working for.”

“On what charges?” the man asked.

“What?”

“You said to have warrants issued for their arrest. What crime do we charge them with?”

Acerbi’s voice became progressively lower, a sure indication to those who knew him well that his patience was wearing thin. “Who cares? That’s your problem. Be creative.”

“What about the pathogen?”

“What about it?”

“Should we continue to disseminate it, sir?”

“The next man who asks me a question like that will live to regret it.”

A scholarly-looking man at the end of the table started to speak but changed his mind when he saw the darkening red color in Acerbi’s face.

Acerbi ran his hand around the inside of his collar and wiped away the beads of sweat that had formed on his upper lip. He blinked at the faces staring back at him. They were out of focus. He blinked again, but the faces looked even more distorted as he shook his head with the realization that his vision was becoming blurred, a psychologically induced physical manifestation resulting from an overload of built-up anger. It was a problem Rene Acerbi had experienced since childhood. His ears were ringing and he was beginning to sweat even more. He paused to take some deep, cleansing breaths, as he had been taught to do by his nanny, until finally he could see the faces around the table return to focus.

Acerbi took in another deep breath. He felt the strength returning to his body. “Has anyone here taken the time to read The Art of War? If not, I suggest you find a copy and read it cover to cover before our next meeting. There is a time to be aggressive and a time to be cautious. This is a time for caution. Allowing the girl to escape has caused an especially bright and inquisitive light to shine down upon us. As we sit here, some very powerful people are now watching … people we have no influence over. There will be no further dissemination of the virus until I give the order to continue.”

Acerbi glanced at the security man in the gray suit. The man seemed to be pushing himself back into the padding of his chair in a futile effort to make himself invisible.

“Are you positive Dr. Diaz is with them?”

“As far as we know … yes, Mr. Acerbi.”

Acerbi’s vision blurred once again. “I can’t believe it. The one man who can unravel our secret, and he’s with that Catholic Cardinal. He and all his Jew friends should be dead by now. We’ve missed two opportunities to take them out. We won’t miss a third.”

CHAPTER 41

It was just after midnight when the Carmela turned into the channel leading to the ancient port of Caesarea. Above and behind them, a dark gray UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter emerged from the darkness and flew directly overhead, rattling the windows on the bridge.

Alex handed Lev a cordless microphone. “The chopper is calling for you by name on the radio.”

“This is Lev Wasserman, go ahead.”

“Hello, Professor … welcome home.” The female voice sounded vaguely familiar.

“It’s good to be home. Who am I talking to?”

“This is Gabriella, sir.”

Lev grinned. Gabriella had once been Nava’s co-pilot in the Israeli Air Force, but had chosen to stay in the military after Nava finished her tour of duty and went to work fulltime for Lev.

“Gabriella! My beautiful little dove. What are you doing flying around out here in the middle of the