揑 don抰 break into buildings, assault people, or set fire to priceless works of art.?
The abbess smiled. 揘ot all of the maidens are sent into the field. In fact, only a small percentage take training for that. The rest work here, at the motherhouse. I would envision that for you.?
She was both flattered and troubled. 揊orgive me, abbess, but you have a civil war brewing here. There might not be an order to join.?
揑 will deal with that, once this situation with the cardinal is resolved. I have faith that we can work through our differences. Your expertise in art is something we could definitely benefit from. And don抰 sell yourself short. From all reports you抳e handled yourself exceptionally well. I saw how you stayed calm with a gun to your head. That coolness is something that cannot be taught.?
She appreciated the compliments.
But at the moment her head was full of thoughts about Nick.
Hoping he was okay.
Fuentes tried to pray, but conflicting thoughts kept interfering. He could not help it. He was a planner. Always had been. Which explained his steady rise and why he, above all others, now found himself in this fortunate position.
Keeping this discovery to himself, sealing it away, and relying on the maidens to retain their secret had merits. They抎 done that for nearly two millennia and would surely continue, only now with Rome抯 blessing. That course might even prove useful with a few of the more pragmatic cardinals, who would appreciate his discretion, though recognizing the problems that such a revelation could evoke. But that would place the maidens right in the middle of the equation, granting them a position of power and influence, one they could exploit in the future.
That was bad.
More cardinals, himself included, would want its destruction, which would silence the maidens and completely protect Mary抯 legacy. No chance then of any questions being raised. The church would remain inviolate, popes infallible, and the Maidens of Saint-Michael just another convent.
That made the most sense.
Especially considering he wanted to be pope, and he did not want to inherit a job weakened by scandal or threatened by extortion. He liked that when it came to dogma a pope抯 word was the last word, incapable, by definition, of being wrong.
He definitely wanted that to remain.
A difficult debate. Good arguments on both sides. But the decision was his. He crossed himself and stood. No sense delaying.
He stepped back to the iron gate.
And called out for Rice.
Claire stood to one side, near the ashes of Joan of Arc, and watched as Friar Rice laid a backpack down on the dirt floor and removed a hammer. The Dominican then went to work obliterating the omega beneath the Virgin抯 resting place. The limestone easily chipped away and the symbol, carved so long ago, disappeared. He then chipped off the Greek epitaph. It hurt to watch such willful desecration. Maidens had labored for centuries to maintain what a fool with a hammer smashed in a matter of seconds.
揥as that necessary??she asked.
Fuentes nodded. 揇efinitely.?
She wanted to know, 揑s it that important to be right??
揑t抯 not about being right,?Fuentes said. 揑t抯 about preserving what exists. It抯 worked perfectly for a long, long time and I will not be responsible for its diminishment.?
揟he maidens and you have the same objective,?she noted. 揟o keep this place secret.?
揗aybe so. But the maidens have a distinct advantage in that partnership. Which could be used against Rome, if they so desired.?
揟hat抯 not our way.?
揑 prefer not to take any chances.?
Then the cardinal motioned and Rice replaced the tools and removed a canvas bag from the pack. The friar collected all of the bones from the Virgin抯 tomb, dropping each into the bag.
揟hey will be destroyed??Claire asked.
Fuentes nodded.
揥hat of Joan抯 ashes??she asked.
揟hey are not important.?
No surprise. Rome had milked everything it could from the Maid of Orl閍ns a long time ago.
Rice deposited the canvas bag with the bones into the backpack, then removed several bundles of a white, claylike material.
揑s that explosives??she asked. 揧ou plan to demolish this??
揑t has to be done. You said it yourself. Guarding this no longer makes any sense. So let it return to nature.?
Rice laid two bundles in the empty hollow of the Virgin抯 grave, then inserted a metal igniter into each with wires running to a small black box, which he activated by flicking a switch. Fuentes lifted the urn with Joan of Arc抯 ashes and set it into the Virgin抯 niche, near the bundles. Rice stepped out of the chamber and laid three more bundles with igniters near the iron gate.
揑 never intended for this to be destroyed,?she said, both to Fuentes and to the Virgin.