The Sixth Station(71)

“Wait, was there motion on the far side of the old walnut tree?

“Nothing.

“I surveyed the ruins behind the house—what was left of the original monastery, a Templar stronghold during the fifteenth century.

“I looked down to the old cistern located between the house and the parking area. Nothing.

“That’s when I heard the footsteps, at least three sets of them. The intruders were neither running nor creeping; the steps were the leisurely paced footsteps of men—definitely men—in leather-soled shoes hitting the stone walkway in front of the house. They were close enough to attempt an attack on the Infant.

“Yet the cats lazing in the tree, which were particularly skittish, surely would have scampered away at the first sound of human footsteps. They were still lazing in the early dawn. What the hell was going on?

“The footsteps were getting closer. Soft-soled, probably Italian leather shoes, I surmised. Very good shoes on one of the intruders. Possibly sandals on another.

“The sacred site had been closed to visitors for over a year now for ‘renovations and refurbishing,’ and so it was theoretically impossible to breach.

“Then the beeper in Paulo’s vestment pocket began to vibrate.

“Sister whispered frantically, ‘Yusef! Yusef! Headquarters!’ Paulo slowly pulled it out—careful not to put the gun down nor inadvertently turn it toward Theo and the Infant.

“Only Headquarters had access to the beeper, which meant they were still, of course, watching us, guarding us, but nonetheless the possibility that we had been ‘made’—and, more important, that the greatest experiment in two millennia may have been discovered—was terrifying to the other two. To me it was much more personal.

“‘Who?’ I whispered as loudly as the situation would allow. ‘What do they advise?’

“‘What does it say? I can’t make it out.…’ Paulo said, holding the beeper up.

“‘Wake up, please, Theo.…’ Grethe whispered, shaking the Girl. The methadone had done its job. In a former time Grethe would probably have been a monk or a nun working in the herbarium of a cloistered order, but today she was a defrocked Catholic nun and board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist with a vast knowledge of modern medicine.

“We all had worked too hard, the experiment was too perfect for Headquarters to have allowed a breach.

“Grethe stroked Theo’s forehead, and the Girl opened her eyes halfway.

“After what seemed like a lifetime, Paulo called out, ‘No breach! They say to proceed.’ Then, ‘Damn! I’ve lost it.…’

“‘Tend to Demiel,’ I ordered the nun. I was there to protect the Girl and the Infant, but these two suddenly seemed frozen in fear. If I could have, I would have put a bullet into each of them. Nothing was as important as the Experiment. Another transmission beeped in.

“‘No breach! It says no breach,’ he choked.

“‘Are you sure?’ I whispered back. ‘Impossible. Bring it to me.…’

“I assumed the fool was so scared that he’d forgotten how to interpret the Phoenician lettering (which had been applied to an obscure form of Aramaic circa 600 BC).

“‘Please, Yusef, don’t do anything drastic. It says there was a power failure in Ephesus,’ he said, bringing the device to me where I was crouched at the window. ‘That’s what caused the problem!’

“‘Thank God. He’s safe!’ Grethe cried, carelessly raising her voice to a normal level again.

“‘Keep your voice down! We are not safe! I am in command and I will kill you if you do not assume your station,’ I threatened, now not completely trusting Headquarters over my own instincts. Father Paulo made the double sign of the cross in thanksgiving. In many ways he was worse. She was a woman—and shouldn’t have been given the assignment in the first place. This was a man’s job.

“Then through my headset I heard the footsteps begin again. Distinct, sure, unhurried.

“The bitch, ignoring my orders, placed Demiel back in His sleeping Mother’s arms, putting both the Baby and the Mother directly in harm’s way.

“Just then we heard the unmistakable harsh metal-upon-metal sound of the steel lockdown gate lifting up. Next the bolted, titanium-backed, bulletproof front door opened easily and smoothly.

“‘Dear God!’ screamed the nun. She gasped with one hand over her mouth, the other hand pointing toward the front door.

“Three men stood in the doorway with their arms out. The blinding light glinted off something metal they each held in their hands.”