‘Do you know where he’s staying?’ Jones wondered.
He shook his head. ‘Orvieto is pretty small. You shouldn’t have any trouble finding him.’ He retrieved a book written by Boyd from the closest shelf. ‘Do you know what he looks like?’
Payne nodded. ‘We have one picture from when Winston Churchill was still alive.’
‘Most likely his annual from Oxford. It amazes me that he was willing to sit still for it. He’s something of a recluse when it comes to cameras.’
The kid flipped over the book and showed them the back photo. It must’ve been taken during one of Boyd’s lectures, for he was standing in front of a chalkboard with a pointer in his hand. His face and physique looked pretty much the same, albeit thirty years older. The only thing that had changed was his comb-over hairstyle. He had finally opted to go bald instead.
Jones asked, ‘Do you mind if I keep this? I’d like to read his stuff.’
‘Not at all. Feel free to take whatever you’d like.’ The kid wrote his number on a scrap of paper and gave it to Jones. ‘Should you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to call.’
Payne said, ‘We won’t.’
‘Now, if you don’t mind, I’d like to trouble you mates for a favor.’ The kid finally cracked a smile. A devious little grin. ‘When you surprise Charles in Orvieto and do whatever you’re going to do to him, please tell him that I, Rupert Pencester the Fourth, said hello.’
18
Nick Dial knew that Cardinal Rose would honor his promise to get back in touch but doubted he’d get anything of substance within twenty-four hours. Thankfully, Cardinal Rose was full of surprises.
‘Here’s what I can tell you,’ Rose said when he called. ‘Father Erik Jansen came to the Vatican eight years ago from a tiny parish in Finland. Upon his arrival he filled a number of duties, everything from clerical to spiritual, yet nothing that stands out until a year ago.’
Dial leaned forward. ‘What happened then?’
‘He was reassigned to a new post with the Pontifical Biblical Commission.’
‘To do what?’
Rose sighed. ‘I’m not quite sure. Perhaps if I had some more time.’
‘I’ve heard of the PBC, but I’m clueless about them. What can you tell me?’
‘Where to start? Well, they’ve been around since the turn of the century. Make that last century. Somewhere around 1901 or 1902. It was founded by Pope Leo XIII and used to make crucial interpretations about the Bible.’
‘Such as?’
‘A few years ago they released a study that examined the correlation between the Hebrew Scriptures and the Christian Bible in hopes of bringing the two groups closer together.’
Dial stroked his chin. ‘Sounds controversial to me.’
‘You’re right about that. Then again, anytime the Vatican changes their interpretation of the Bible, it’s bound to cause a stir.’
‘So the PBC is like the American Supreme Court. They have the final say on things.’
Rose smiled at the comparison. ‘In a rudimentary way, I guess you’re right – only the PBC is much slower. Take the Hebrew study. It took them ten years to draft their position statement.’
‘Ten years? That’s a long time to wait for some answers.’
‘When you’re dealing with the Word of God, you don’t want to make mistakes.’
Dial shook his head as he wrote a few notes. ‘Any idea what they’re working on now?’
‘Sorry. That’s a closely guarded secret that only a select few would know.’
‘Would Jansen be one of those people?’
‘Most appointees are senior members of the Vatican, men who are even older than I am. I doubt they’d include such a young member of our community.’
‘Yet he still worked for them.’ Dial stared at his bulletin board and focused on a crime scene photo of Father Jansen. Even with a broken face, he appeared way too young to have a position on such a powerful committee. ‘Could he have been an intern or somebody’s assistant? I mean, you mentioned that he had experience with that type of stuff.’
Rose nodded. ‘That’d make more sense than a spiritual role.’
‘Could his nationality be a factor? Is anyone from Finland on the Commission?’
‘I can check.’
‘While you’re at it, see if there are any Danes. We still don’t know why Jansen was brought to Denmark. Maybe it was some kind of message to the PBC.’
‘You think that’s possible?’ Rose wondered.
‘The fact is Jansen worked for one of the most powerful committees at the Vatican. That’s reason enough to suspect his death was job-related. Throw in the fact that he was crucified and the killer left a note that quoted the Bible, and, well, you see where I’m going.’