House of Acerbi

occasional forays deep into the forest to hunt for deer or fish for trout. Without the ability to use even a radio for communication, they had taken a giant step back in time to a simpler place, where the hours of the day were spent in idle talk around a fireplace instead of sitting in front of a computer screen that held the promise of instant response from a frantic world.

This must have been the way the Cathars had lived, Leo thought, after they had been persecuted by the Church and were in hiding from the evil men of the material world who had descended on their lands in search of even greater wealth. Apparently, life really hadn’t changed all that much in the past seven-hundred years. The only difference, it seemed, was that mankind had found quicker, more efficient means of killing large numbers of people, while employing more subtle ways for governments dominated by the rich to rob from the poor. The robbing and pillaging once conducted on horseback by men brandishing swords was now conducted in corporate boardrooms by men armed with nothing more fearsome than a Smartphone.

It was quickly becoming obvious to the others that Leo was beginning to enjoy their rustic existence. He had begun to reevaluate his life and his role in the world. Who needed a title to deliver God’s message of love to others? In the past year, he had actually found that the title of cardinal had separated him from the common man. He yearned for the days when he could rub elbows at the local watering hole with the working-class men and women of his hometown, hard-working people who sometimes worked two jobs just to pay their mortgages and send their kids to an overpriced college that offered no guarantee of a job after graduation.

Even the prospect of returning to the classroom as a professor of history no longer appealed to Leo. To him, the modern university had become nothing more than a scam perpetuated by a growing education industry that handed out PhD’s like they were Halloween candy to those who yearned for a better life. With profit now the driving force behind higher education, the validity of the degrees it bestowed on its graduates was seriously in doubt. A culture spawned by MBAs who lacked the historical perspective to go with their newfound knowledge of number- crunching had led the country down the rosy corporate path of outsourcing jobs that once went to those who were perfectly happy punching an industrial time clock every day if it gave them the ability to buy a home and put food on the table for their families. Leo knew that one day the country would have to start making things again, or the middle class, or what was left of it, would disappear completely.

For some of the others, especially the scientists and those who found themselves separated from family and friends, life was decidedly more difficult in their forest retreat. Through no fault of their own, they now found themselves outcasts from the world, a world that believed what Acerbi told them to believe, and some were beginning to doubt if things would ever be the same again. Obviously, the military option had been a complete failure and had only played into his hands, creating in him the image of the heroic victim who was only trying to save the world from a deadly disease. His plan had been so diabolically elegant and complex in its execution that it would take years to unravel his lies and prove to the world that the people who had tried to stop him were the true heroes.

On the morning of the tenth day of their third month in hiding, Leo and Evita were walking through the forest looking for mushrooms when they spotted a man wearing a black overcoat with a black fedora pulled low over his eyes. He was walking up the rocky trail that ran from the road below to the cabins in the grove above, and he seemed to know exactly where he was going.

Immediately they backed behind some overgrown brush and froze. Was he some kind of policeman, or worse, someone who worked for Acerbi who was following up on a lead?

By now, the man had closed to within a few yards of their hiding place. Evita slid her hand under her coat and pulled out a pistol, but Leo quickly covered the gun with his hand and lowered it. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Just in case.”

Leo watched the figure come closer. He could tell by the way the man moved that he was no outdoorsman. There was something vaguely familiar about the way he carried himself as he stopped to catch his breath and removed his hat to wipe the sweat of exertion from his brow.

Leo let out a gasp. “Anthony?”

The red-headed priest looked up and smiled. “Leo?”

CHAPTER 63

Anthony Morelli warmed himself by the fire as he tried to answer the barrage of non-stop questions coming at him all at once about what was happening in the world outside.

Leo handed Morelli a glass of wine and ushered him to a worn leather couch.

“The virus, Anthony … what’s happening?”

“Completely died out.”

A unified sigh of relief could be heard throughout the room.

“So the failsafe mechanism they included in the virus worked?” Diaz asked.

“That helped. At least it kept the virus from mutating in the first few outbreaks, but the main reason it hasn’t reappeared is the fact that Acerbi has taken credit for wiping out the virus with his vaccine … a vaccine that is totally worthless by the way. But people believe his vaccine is protecting them, and that makes him the most popular man on the planet right now. However, his fame has also placed him under the microscope of public scrutiny. As long as people look to him as the savior of the world, he doesn’t dare let his little demon out of the box again.”

“What about those governments his organization controls from behind the scenes? Surely someone on the inside knows about the stockpiles of the virus he threatened to release if they didn’t bow down to his demands.”

“Apparently, he’s insulated himself from outside suspicion. No one has any idea who’s really pulling the strings. Everything is done through intermediaries. It’s like dealing with a ghost, and those close to him know that if they try to expose him they will join the ranks of the disappeared. It’s much easier to just obey and grow rich.”

“But the wheat fields … we destroyed them, didn’t we? Without the genetically modified wheat to prime his victims, the pathogen is harmless.”

“That’s true. All the wheat fields we knew about were destroyed, but there is a high probability that there are others out there somewhere that we are unaware of. Besides, it doesn’t take all that long to grow a field of wheat. We all know from past experience that we’re dealing with a highly intelligent sociopath.”

“What about us?” Ariella asked. “When can we go home?”

“You’re still wanted fugitives, but with time we’ll come up with a solution.” Morelli sipped his wine and looked around the room. “I’m working on an especially interesting one that’s just come to my attention.”

“How did you find us, Anthony?” Leo asked.

“Your Cathar friends. They knew you needed to know what was happening in the outside world. They’ll be bringing you a shortwave radio later today.” Morelli raised an eyebrow. “I realize the longer you stay here the more anxious you are to take another swipe at Acerbi, but my suggestion to you would be to lay low for now. As I said before, there are plans in the works, but we’re dealing with a very cunning sociopath who’s capable of anything, so our next assault on him must be foolproof. I doubt very much we’ll get another chance if we fail again. Don’t do anything rash that could interfere with something that’s already in the works.”

“Has anyone talked to Eduardo yet?” Leo asked.

Morelli smiled. “I have.”

CHAPTER 64

Eduardo Acerbi stared out the window and watched as a line of black SUVs turned off the highway and