“You aren’t telling me that St. Francis came for your soul?”
“No.” His gaze dropped to the carpet of the plane. “But I saw my teacher.
“I thought I was dead, but I could hear voices. I could hear my teacher arguing with someone, arguing about my soul. And then, all of a sudden, my teacher said, ‘He is not dead.’ And I realized I was still alive.” William’s eyes lifted.
“You saw him?”
“I’d know him anywhere. I recognized his voice, his face. He was there. He spoke to me.” William stopped, momentarily overcome.
“I was given mercy—a second chance. When I opened my eyes, I was alone, lying on a table.
“I realize now I was in the hospital in Florence. But at that moment, I had no idea where I was. My memory of being a vampyre was completely gone. I couldn’t even remember listening to my teacher a moment earlier. All I could remember was his death and being in mourning in Fossanova. That’s where I thought I was.
“I was half-naked, so I wrapped a sheet around my body, determined to return to the monastery. I stumbled outside and collapsed in the street.
“I’m not sure how long I was there, but someone found me.” William hesitated.
“Who?”
“A Dominican. My mind was so scrambled, I couldn’t speak Italian or English. I could only speak Latin and Anglo-Norman. The brother thought I was mad and tried to take me back to the hospital, but I kept telling him I was a Dominican and my teacher had just died. I think he brought me to the Dominican House just to placate me.”#p#分页标题#e#
“But what about the Curia? Aren’t the Dominicans part of them?”
“Some of them are. But these brothers seemed to have no knowledge of what had transpired at the Duomo, and they certainly didn’t recognize me. The Dominican who rescued me took me to an older brother whose Latin was better, and I explained to him who I was.
“They gave me some clothes and some food. They gave me a place to sleep. It was clear they had no idea what to do with me, and I think several of them wanted to send me back to the hospital. But the old Dominican was adamant that I stay with them. Whatever they thought I was or what I was suffering, they knew I wasn’t a vampyre. There were relics all over the house.”
“Relics never bothered you anyway.”
“Not much, that’s true.”
“Why do you think that is?”
“I think the relics that belonged to my teacher never bothered me because he never rejected me.” Emotion colored William’s voice. “He prayed for me, hoping I would find my way back to God. He never lost that hope.”
“You believe, then? You believe in God again?”
“Yes, but I can say that I never stopped believing in him completely. You were the one who told me you thought my teacher would have compassion for me for reaching out to the Roman when I was in despair. Even as I took what he offered me, I regretted it. It wasn’t what I wanted; I just wanted my teacher. I begged him to help me, and I know now that he did.”
Raven shifted in her seat so she could see William more clearly. “The voice we heard during the exorcism, it said despair. What was that?”
“I’m not sure,” William hedged. “From the moment I transformed into a vampyre, I felt the darkness of despair surround me. It was like drinking what I’d thought was the water of life only to discover it was poisoned.”
“So vampirism was your punishment for giving in to despair?”
“No.” William shook his head emphatically. “The Roman offered me power, and wealth, and sonship. Because I had given up hope of having a good life without my teacher, I willingly took what the Roman offered. But I regretted the choice immediately. My teacher said the transformation was incomplete. Perhaps that’s why I could walk on holy ground and handle relics. I didn’t give in to despair entirely, and because of that and the prayers of my teacher, I never acquired the full nature of a vampyre.”
Raven pondered what he’d said. “I guess it wasn’t a coincidence you were found by a Dominican.”
William smiled. “I don’t think so. The brothers could have sent me back to the hospital. I’m sure the Curia was looking for my body. But the brothers kept me while I regained my strength. Then, several weeks later, they took me to Fossanova.
“I had no memory beyond 1274. One of the Dominicans thought it might help to bring me to the monastery where my teacher died. A few of the brothers traveled with me.
“When we arrived, it was as if I’d never left. I was so convinced my teacher’s body was there. I was so convinced my brothers were still there. Of course, they weren’t.