Laura 02 The God Code (39 page)

Movement from Andrea pulls Laura’s attention back to her and the pistol in her hand. Andrea again raises her pistol, now aiming directly at Laura’s head. For a moment, their eyes meet, and then suddenly Andrea jerks back as Laura kicks her in the stomach as hard as she can. The kick causes Andrea to be pushed a foot backwards, changing the angle of the large sword. There is a sickening sound as the sword’s hilt drops to the floor while its edge is stuck in the tile floor. The sword slices Andrea in two from the neck down as it drops under its own weight. Guts and blood spill over the floor as the sword’s hilt comes down with a thud on the floor, causing the tip of the sword to break free and bounce up. Andrea’s body falls forward, and her head hits the end of the sword, embedding her skull into it, half cutting it open. Blood and brains spill out and mix with her guts on the floor.

Slowly, Laura looks up to the roof at the angel while saying, “Thank you.”

Laura gasps. Did the angel just smile at me? No it cannot be, it is a statue.

Suddenly the door to the room bursts into pieces as the Swiss guard blows it open and storms into the room. Even the hardiest of them look on in shock at the scene in front of them. Laura is still half covering the unconscious Pope; slowly she tries to get up, and pain fills her body causing her to roll over and lay next to the Pope. Immediately she is surrounded by guards and two medics while others quickly put the Pope on a stretcher and inspect his wounds. With concern, one of the medics attending to Laura looks at the bullet holes in her jacket and the blood on it. Slowly, he unbuttons the jacket and lifts up the bottom of her t-shirt. The shirt is sticking to her skin due to the blood, and he carefully pours fresh water from a canteen over her stomach to see the wounds. Fear fills Laura.

“How serious is it?” she asks weakly.

“You are very lucky,” the medic replies.

“I know. That sword could have pinned me to the ground as well.”

“No, I mean of the six bullets she fired, only one bullet missed your bulletproof vest, and it is merely a flesh wound. Although you will have some bruising from the impact of the bullets, and I think you broke two ribs, you will be okay once we stop the bleeding.”

“Bulletproof vest? But I don’t have one,” Laura replies puzzled.

“Well, this under jacket stopped the bullets. It’s technology I have never seen before.”

“The Pope gave it to me. It’s his jacket. He said I might need it as it can get cold in the archives.”

“I think he knew something you did not. Now lie back while we get you onto a stretcher and to a hospital.”

Laura lets the guard slowly lower her to the floor. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see the Pope already on a stretcher being taken away. He is awake and winks at her as she touches the jacket he gave her.

***

Three days later.

Pope John Paul II intently stares at the report in his hand, a puzzled look on his face. After a few minutes, he slowly looks up at Sergio in front of him, patiently waiting for the Pope.

“No damage at all?”

“None, your Holiness.”

A cold chill runs down the Pope’s back, slowly he glances down at the report again. There was no damage found on the hand of the angel statue that the sword fell from. The bullet fired by Andrea that ricocheted off the shield and around the room, was found in one of the walls.

“Did the sword’s hilt fit into the statue’s hand easily?”

“No your Holiness, we had to remove the hilt and reassemble the sword on the statue, just as it was made by its designers, the fit was perfect with no possibility of the sword slipping out. There are, however…”

“Yes?”

“There are cracks in the paint on the knuckles of the statue’s hand holding the sword,……as if it had opened and closed again.”

Holding the report out to Sergio, the Pope softly speaks. “A miracle in the Vatican, very interesting. Please file this in my personal archives. Anything else?”

Taking the paper from the Pope, Sergio pushes another paper forward on the Pope’s desk for his attention.

“We have a delicate matter that needs investigating. We need someone with discreet skills that is ready to do some travelling to dangerous locations, and that we can trust with the church’s most intimate secrets and dark past. Someone willing to overlook our failures and help us out of this crisis.”

The Pope looks up smiling after reading the note.

“I have just the right people in mind, and it seems angels are watching over them.”

“You mean Laura and Victor?”

“Yes, please invite them for dinner with me as soon as possible.”

“Yes your Holiness.”

John Paul II looks on as Sergio nods and turns to leave the room. Sitting back in his chair, the gravity of the situation takes him, the future of the Catholic Church and 1.2 billion people’s faith may well rest on the small shoulders of this remarkable woman, a woman who touched the Pope’s heart. Slowly, he opens a drawer and removes a letter and a thumb drive. With a smile, he rereads the letter.

Your Holiness,

This drive contains part of the decoded scrolls. The data will allow scientists to build small energy devices cheaply, that can give power to houses and small electric vehicles. I am keeping the rest of the data that shows how to harness the energy for larger powered devices safe, to prevent people from building massive destructive weapons.

May you find good use for it.

Laura

John Paul II smiles as he picks up the phone and addresses his new personal aid. “Angelino, please get me the European Organization for Nuclear Research in Geneva, Switzerland on the line, I have some information for them that they will surely be interested in.”

***

Laura slowly opens her eyes. Her body aches all over, and it hurts when she breathes. There is a small table at her feet, stacked with flowers and get-well cards. Laura sighs, not even the beautiful flowers can color the boring white of the hospital room. After the death of her parents, she started hating hospitals and see them as a place where one goes to die.

“Morning Laura, how are you feeling?” Victor’s voice in the corner jolts her out of her thoughts.

“Morning. Still very sore, but better. Were you here the whole night again?”

“Of course.”

“Thank you.” Laura smiles.

Laura looks at the television against the wall above Victor’s head. The sound is turned down, but it is easy to see that the news reporters are discussing the latest attempt on the Pope’s life.

“You are famous you know. Saving the Pope.”

“I don’t feel famous. I feel like a train went over me. Why did she want to kill the Pope anyway?”

“Their plan was to demoralize the people by removing their religious leader after causing war to break out. If there is no religious leader, then people would turn to the leaders of the strongest country to save them. In this case, whoever had the best technology still operating.”

“That doesn’t make sense.”

“Lunatics make lunatic plans Laura.” Victor laughs.

“No, I mean the church will just select another Pope.”

“I guess they did not think that far. Now, do you want something to drink?”

“Oh yes please, chocolate milkshake please.”

“One chocolate milkshake coming up. Want anything else from the cafeteria?” Victor asks as he walks to the door.

“No thanks, but can you please turn up the volume on the television before you leave?”

Victor smiles and walks over to the television, turning the volume up to enable Laura to listen to the news. Nodding to her, he leaves the room. Moments later a nurse enters, pushing a trolley with medicine on.

“Morning Laura, how do you feel?”

“Morning, sore.” Laura looks the nurse up and down. She does not recognize her.

“I hear you are being discharged today, that is good news.”

“Yes. Where is nurse Cuddy?”

“Oh, she is off sick today. I am filling in for her. Now let’s see, oh yes, here is your medication,” the nurse says as she picks up a small plastic cup and holds it out to Laura. Laura hesitantly takes the cup, but the pills look the same as the ones she was given previously, yet something tells her not to drink it. Wow, am I getting paranoid now, distrusting even a nurse? Laura throws the pills into her left hand and takes the cup of water the nurse is holding out to her, then swallows the pills. Laura’s nerves calm down as she tastes the familiar taste of the pills she was given three times a day since being admitted to the hospital. The nurse smiles and leaves the room with a “get some rest” comment.

Laura partially turns her attention to the television, but her mind cannot stop thinking about the Pope’s assassination attempt. Killing the Pope just does not make sense when one considers the extent of the people involved and the scale of their planning. It only makes sense if they kill all the Cardinals who would normally be selecting the new Pope.

“All the Cardinals from all over the world are coming together for a special meeting called for by Pope Jonn Paul II. The meeting will commence in two days.” The news commentator’s voice rips Laura from her thoughts. Her mouth falls open, and a cold chill runs up her spine. That’s it, that’s their plan. Kill the Pope and then wait for all the Cardinals to hold a meeting, and then kill them all. If world hysteria is their goal, then they may still go ahead with killing off all the top leaders in the church. I have to tell Victor.

Laura tries to get out of her bed, but her legs do not want to respond. Laura tries to pull the blankets from her, but her arms ignore her thoughts. Fear chokes Laura, and she struggles to breathe. What is happening to me? Everything starts to spin and Laura struggles to keep her eyes open, her vision becoming hazy. Oh no, I’ve been poisoned.

A figure appears at the door, and then quickly comes over to her side.

“Vict…” Laura’s tongue fails her, and she struggles to stay awake. A hand touches her arm, and then pulls the blankets from her. Laura tries to scream, but only manages a whisper. Strong arms lift her out of the bed. Arms with snakes tattooed on them. The darkness takes Laura as she is placed in a wheelchair.

***

(to be continued)