Veil - 02 - The Hammer of God (35 page)

“Who’s there?” Samuel asked, with a command in his voice that surprised the cardinal.

Cardinal Polletto lit a few more candles, and the boys’ faces were more visible.

“Cardinal Polletto?” asked Samuel, surprised.

“Yes,” answered the cardinal, “it’s me.” Samuel stood, and slowly approached, the other boys behind him.

“You look well, Samuel,” said the cardinal. “And I understand you’ve been quite active.”

Samuel’s maturity jumped out at the cardinal. “What’s going on here?” he demanded. “If you’re here, then you know why we’ve been taken.” The authority in his voice was staggering for a ten year old. The cardinal felt himself flinch.

“That’s why I’m here, to tell you why you’re here, for this celebration,” said the cardinal.

Felipe eased closer. “Célébration?”

Cardinal Polletto nodded. “We, Felipe, depuris te. For you. Tout le te. All of you.”

“Te dire sciocchezze,” said Eduardo, now shoulder-to-shoulder with his American brother. “You talk nonsense.” Samuel smiled. “We’re tired of the bullshit. So tell us the truth, or leave us alone.”

Cardinal Polletto stared at the three, each of them defiant, determined. “Let’s have a seat,” invited the cardinal, pulling up a chair.

The three boys remained standing directly in front of him. “What if I were to tell you, that each of you are royalty, destined for greatness?” he said, splattering his words in French, Italian and English. Neither boy moved or said a word; they stared back at the cardinal, eyes focused, concentrating. “Each one of you has been sanctified since birth, to change history and usher in a new world. I know it will be difficult to understand at first, but over time your minds will be illuminated.”

“How can we change history?” asked Samuel. “We’re children.”

“Yes, for now, but you’ll grow up to be men soon enough. Before that time, there’s much to be done, and much you have to learn.”

“What about our parents?” asked Eduardo, in Italian.

“They’re not our parents,” answered Samuel.

Cardinal Polletto smiled.
Yes, you’re the one, the first born.
“That’s correct, they’re not. Your real parents are here, in Italy. Eduardo and Felipe have already met your father, Father Charles Tolbert.” Samuel’s chin dropped, his eyes glued to the floor. He almost lost his balance, but caught himself. “How is that possible?” he asked, his voice cracked.

Cardinal Polletto watched Samuel as the truth did its work, bringing the boy under control. “I’ll explain it to you later, when you’re ready.” Samuel looked up, hate burning in his pupils. “What about my mother?”

“Alison Napier is of no consequence at this point in your life. None of the people you grew up with mean anything as we move forward.

You’ll have to learn to deal with life without them.” Samuel’s stern stance weakened. Felipe and Eduardo’s jaws quivered. Cardinal Polletto smiled. “Now, now, all of you have a new family now, a true family that will never leave or forsake you. I promise.” Samuel sniffled, his eyes and cheeks glistening with tears. “I don’t want a new family, I want my mother.”

“That’s not possible.”

“Then I won’t participate. None of us will.” The boys backed up and sat down.

The cardinal’s first impulse was to rush over, snatch and shake them into submission, but one look into Samuel’s eyes told him that would only drive them further away.

“I know this is a shock, and believe me, I understand. Anyone faced with such greatness would be foolish to run blindly into it.” Samuel rocked back and forth. “We don’t care about greatness. We want our old lives back.”

Cardinal Polletto stood, walked just short of the three, and stood over them, their faces determined, intense. “I can’t force you to do what you don’t want to,” he said. “But your mother, Alison, will be disappointed.

All of your surrogate parents will be.”

“I thought you said they weren’t important,” said Samuel.

“Not as important as your destiny,” the cardinal answered.

“I don’t believe you,” snapped Samuel, defiant. “My mother would never agree to this.”

Cardinal Polletto smiled, pulled a cell phone from inside his robe and dialed. Alison Napier answered and he handed the phone to Samuel.

“Hello,” said Samuel, somewhat sheepish.

Cardinal Polletto watched the tears roll down Samuel’s cheeks.

Felipe and Eduardo looked on, curious. Samuel hung up and gave back the phone.

“You see,” said the cardinal, “everything will work out fine. Come, let me show you the area we’ve set up.”

The cardinal extended a hand to Samuel, who took it and pulled himself up. Cardinal Polletto sighed with relief. Samuel’s acquiescence quieted the others, and like sheep, they followed his lead.

Yes, your time will come, but today, follow me.

S
amuel wiped his nose on his shirtsleeve and looked up at Cardinal Polletto, who gave him an encouraging nod and smile.
Moron!

Seeing Cardinal Polletto there at the castle surprised him, and talking to his mother, knowing she was a part of everything that had happened to him shook him to the bone. Once more, Cardinal Polletto’s words, that Father Tolbert was his father, didn’t make sense, and Samuel refused to believe it.

Samuel and his brothers had made a pact. They’d lost trust in everybody and were determined to escape, for good, even if it meant defying the people they loved most. Everybody had let them down. They were on their own.

Samuel took in as many details about the castle as he could, as they made their way along a dark, eerie hall, downstairs, and then outside.

Along the back of the castle were two sections of stadium seats, with large, bright lights shining down. Samuel stole a glance at his brothers, who, as planned, were taking in as much as they could remember too.

Eduardo nodded to Samuel’s right. Carefully, he turned and saw thick woods and brushes down a slope of rocks. Cardinal Polletto babbled on about their place in history, but Samuel had long since tuned him out.
I’m getting out of here. That’s all the history I need.

Yet, something stirred in his gut as they walked through the elaborate stages. When the cardinal first mentioned their royalty and place in the world, a surge of unfamiliar recollection engulfed him, and he felt truth in Cardinal Polletto’s words. Even now, as he looked out into the darkness and stared across the water, something raged inside him, fighting to burst out. A power he’d felt several times since he’d been taken away.

Samuel forced down the feelings, and fed the cardinal a few,

“Yeses,” and “Uh huhs,” but continued to scan the area, making mental notes every step of the way. Later, he and his brothers would devise a final strategy, and run away as far as they could.

As Cardinal Polletto droned on, the voice of Samuel’s mother forced its way into his mind. Hearing her speak was something he’d longed for since this entire ordeal began, but something was wrong.
How could she
allow this to happen to me? Why? And what about my father?

Samuel shook it off. Cardinal Polletto looked down at him.

“It’s one of the most important days in all the world,” said the cardinal. “Everyone coming will be your servant.” Samuel fixed his gaze hard on the cardinal. “How long have you been seeing my mother?”

He didn’t know where the words came from, but the look on Cardinal Polletto’s face told Samuel he’d hit his mark.

Cardinal Polletto cleared his throat. “I’ve known her for quite sometime. She’s been waiting for this day ever since I told her who you are.”

“Who am I?” asked Samuel.

“You’ll know soon enough.”

Samuel stepped forward. “Did you kill my father?” The cardinal’s face went ashen. “Absolutely not. Why would you ask such a thing?”

Samuel moved even closer. “If I am who you say I am, and I find out you’re lying, I’ll kill you.”

Cardinal Polletto slapped Samuel hard. “Don’t you ever speak to me that way again.”

Samuel let the blood flow from his nose. Felipe and Eduardo took his side. “So, you are lying.”

Cardinal Polletto snatched Samuel and pulled him back toward the castle. Felipe and Eduardo ran to keep up. When they reached the front door, Father Sin was waiting, and soon they were back in their room.

Deep into the night, the three boys whispered what they remembered about the area surrounding the castle. Samuel’s nose stung, but he didn’t care. As they talked and planned, his mind drifted.
Uncle Robert, where
are you?

R
obert paced the villa like a caged animal. Rinaldo and Dianora were the best lead they’d come up with since spotting Samuel at Torre Astura, and it had dissolved, leaving nothing behind, and nowhere to go.

Worst of all, he had watched Sister Isabella get shot and killed. Sister Isabella wanted to see Samuel rescued as much as he did, and her sacrifice to save Thorne only intensified his desire to rescue the boy, and destroy The Order for good.

Robert’s anger burned hot, but was nothing compared to that raging inside Thorne. Friends since thirteen, he knew her well, and watching her sit quietly, cleaning her weapons, told him she was boiling over, and that someone was going to pay big when the time came.

Father Kong and the others, according to the mandate set down for members of The Hammer of God, made final arrangements for Sister Isabella’s funeral and burial. It would be a private affair, attended by only members of the team. Morale was low. Her death had taken the fight out of all of them.

The phone rang. One of Father Kong’s aides answered, hung up, and whispered in the priest’s ear.

“Dianora lived,” said Father Kong. “She’s unconscious, but she’ll pull out of it.’

“Maybe we can talk to her again when she does,” said Thorne.

“It’s possible, but I’m sure she’ll be heavily guarded,” said Robert.

“So, let’s not count on it.”

Robert’s words deflated everyone further. Thorne cursed loudly, and didn’t apologize for it. The phone rang again, this time Father Kong answered it. His eyes widened.

“We’re on our way.” He looked over at Robert. “We have to go to the hospital immediately. Cardinal Maximilian is awake, and Bishop Ruini is dead.”

The hospital was even more crazed and abuzz with chaos when Robert and the others arrived, with twice the crowd at the front door.

Father Kong slowed down, but at the sight of a large contingent of police, kept going, and pulled around the corner. Robert and Thorne ducked down. Their pictures had been plastered on every television station in Rome, and the police had offered a reward for their capture.

“We’ll go inside and get the details,” said Father Kong. “You and Miss Thorne wait for us in the other car. I’ll call you when I can.” Robert and Thorne switched places with the men in the second car, parked in a barren alley, and waited. The phone call Father Kong received back at the villa delivered good news and bad. Cardinal Maximilian had awaked from his coma, but Bishop Ruini had fallen to his death from a fifth floor window. They weren’t sure if he was pushed or jumped.

“I wonder what this means?” Robert thought aloud.

“It means we’re close,” answered Thorne.

“But why kill Bishop Ruini?”

Thorne rolled down her window. “Maybe he wouldn’t talk.”

“Maybe, but why not kill Cardinal Maximilian too?” Thorne didn’t answer. She checked the ammo in her shotgun and counted the extra shells in her jacket pocket.

An hour passed, then two. Robert saw a car pulling up in the rear view mirror. It slowed down and eased up beside them. Robert and Thorne readied their weapons, but when the car stopped, Father Kong rolled down the passenger side window.

“Follow me back to the villa. I think we’ve found Samuel.”

“B
ishop Ruini was a mole,” said Father Kong, ashamed. “He’s been feeding information to The Order. For how long, we’re not sure.” The priest gave them more details, explaining that Cardinal Maximilian had awakened, and overheard bits and pieces of a conversation between Cardinal Polletto and the bishop. Evidently, Bishop Ruini was ordered to finish Cardinal Maximilian, but when the cardinal opened his eyes, the bishop broke down in tears, opened the window and jumped.

“The cardinal says he overheard Cardinal Polletto say everything was in order at Bracciano,” said Father Kong.

Bracciano.
The word caused Robert’s heart to thump hard against his chest. “And he thinks that’s where they’re keeping Samuel?” he asked.

“What does it matter?” asked Thorne. “It’s the best we’ve got, so let’s go with it.”

Father Kong pulled up information about Bracciano on the computer, complete with a layout of the castle there. “This is probably where they’re keeping him. It’s large, and will probably be heavily guarded, but we have an advantage.” Robert pulled a chair up next to the priest.

“These castles were designed, not only to keep enemies out, but to allow those inside a way of escape in case they were trapped for long periods of time,” said Father Kong. “Underneath Bracciano castle are several entrances accessible only under water.”

“Good,” said Robert. “Then let’s get everybody ready for a full assault. Thorne and I will approach the castle under water. When we’ve confirmed that Samuel is there, we’ll hit them hard and heavy.”

“And what happens after we get the boys?” asked Father Kong.

“Thorne and I will connect with Alison Napier, and take all of them to the American Embassy, where they’ll be safe,” said Robert.

Father Kong stood. “Cardinal Maximilian would like a chance to talk to the boys first.”

“He can have the other two, but Samuel’s going home,” snapped Robert. “And don’t give me that Anti-Christ rap, ‘cause I’m not going to hear it.”

“It’s the reason The Order took the boys, and why we’ve sacrificed so much to get them back.”

“Do you really believe Samuel is the Anti-Christ? That’s crazy.”

“Is it, Mr. Veil? How can you be so sure?”

“For the sake of argument,” said Thorne. “Let’s assume Samuel is who you say he is. If that’s true, there’s nothing you can do to stop it. So why try?”