Chapter 11
The breathless priest hurried down the worn brick staircase at the back of the Vatican library. Turning a corner, he passed between tall canyons of books before reaching a hidden alcove that contained a small table with an old-style dial telephone. He looked and listened for signs of anyone nearby. He was alone-giddy with excitement. His master would be pleased.
After an additional quick look around, he dialed a number. It rang only twice before the familiar deep voice answered. “Speak, priest.”
“Morelli is dead, sir.”
“Are you sure?”
“I saw them carry the body out with my own eyes.”
“What about his papers and the computer? Did he leave anything behind?”
“Nothing, sir. We checked his room this morning … it was practically empty.”
The voice breathed in deeply. “What about his young assistant? Do you think he told him anything?”
“Uh, we can’t seem to locate him.”
The voice rose almost to a scream. “You what? Find him! And find that other priest. They know something; I’m certain of it.”
The priest felt the sweat begin to flow from the pores on his face and run down his neck. His Roman collar was stained with it. What else could he have done? His master was angry.
“Please don’t worry, sir. I have our people looking for them. They can’t get far without us knowing about it, that I can promise you.”
The voice descended to a whisper that sounded progressively more menacing. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, priest. You must not allow them to find it. This task is too important to let incompetence keep us from obtaining that which belongs to him.”
The line went dead. The priest stared at the phone for a few seconds before hanging up. He began to stand up but was dizzy with fear.
Soon his master would know how devoted he was. He would do whatever it took to make him happy again. He reached once again for the phone and dialed a number.
A strong male voice answered, “Yes, sir?”
“Have your men locate them and see where they go.”
“Yes, sir.”
“We need the information on Morelli’s computer. Keep looking for it and make sure they don’t leave Rome.”
Chapter 12
The traffic in Rome at this hour was beyond chaos. The weather had turned the sky dark as storm clouds began covering the city. The BMW inched through streets crammed with traffic in an effort to reach its destination as Leo and John scanned the environment, constantly looking in their rearview mirrors for any hint of a familiar car or face.
John was forced to deviate from a straight route to the airport by turning right and then left down the narrow side streets in an effort to see if they were being followed. No one turned in behind them. So far, so good. They snaked their way along the gridlocked streets until they reached the
Leaving the old part of the city, they traded the ancient beauty of Rome for the typical industrial look alongside the six-lane expressway. The car exited the A90 and sped west on the A91 toward Fiumicino and Leonardo da Vinci Airport.
The sign for Terminal C and all international flights shot past the right side of the car as they turned up the ramp and came to a stop at the departure entrance of the Euro futuristic-looking structure. Outside the terminal, the human and motorized traffic was frenzied.
“I’ll go inside and buy our tickets,” Leo said. “You park the car and join me inside.”
John was staring at the terminal. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“We can’t just leave it here,” Leo said, wondering why John was suddenly hesitant about parking the car.
“Look over there.” John motioned to the main entrance. “You see those two guys in suits? They’re Swiss Guard security men. I’ve seen them around before. We need to get out of here without being seen.”
Leo scanned the crowd in front of the terminal and ran through a mental checklist of their options.
“Wait, John, I’ve got an idea. When I say go, put the car in low gear and smoke the tires. Make a real show of it and drive away as fast as you can.”
“What are you thinking, Father?”
“Just do it. Once we’re out of sight of the terminal, drive back toward town.”
“Then what? Are we going to stay in Rome?”
“No, we’re getting out of here tonight … get ready and wait for my signal.”
The BMW inched forward as Leo watched the two Swiss Guard security men for any sign of recognition.
There. The shorter security man nudged the taller one next to him. Both fixed their gaze on the bright red car.
“Now! Go!” Leo shouted.
John pressed the gas pedal to the floor and lit up the tires, making a loud and smoky scene in front of the terminal. Pedestrians flew in all directions as the car rocketed forward, receiving the attention of not only the Vatican security men, but also the Italian police. In an instant, the car was speeding down the airport ramp away from the terminal.
John swerved the BMW to miss a slower car. “Care to tell me what you’re up to, Father?”
“I want them to think they scared us off. We’ll drive back to the city and park the car. Then we can take the train from the city back to the airport. I’m hoping our little show back there convinced those two men that we won’t go back to the airport anytime soon.”
“Where do you want to go first?”
“Head into the center of the city, John. I need some time to think right now. We’ll have to buy some different clothes so we won’t be spotted when we return to the airport. If we can make it through the terminal without being recognized, we can buy our tickets with cash, board the plane, and be out of Rome before they figure out we’ve left.”
“Not bad, Father. What books have you been reading? James Bond?”
Weaving through the traffic, Leo suddenly realized that, in their haste to get to the airport, they had forgotten to get cash. It was a chronic problem for him since he rarely had any money. He pulled the flash drive from his pocket, turning it over in his hand.
“Where can we find a computer?”
“How about the library?” John said. “We’re only about five blocks from one right now.”
“Let’s go.”
John swerved to the right and exited the ring freeway. He drove along the
John pulled to the side of the street under a huge tree full of birds seeking refuge just as a heavy rain started to fall. He flicked a switch to raise the top up on the car while Leo bolted across the park to the library and entered the massive stone building.
Leo ran his hands through his wet hair and glanced around before crossing the cavernous lobby to the main
