The Cup (6 page)

CHAPTER 13

Back in their room at the hotel, Selena carefully unrolled the scrolls and laid them out on a low coffee table. She photographed them and began working on a translation. Ronnie and Lamont were next door, catching up on sleep.

After a while she looked up and said, "No one has ever seen anything like this. The descriptions of the crucifixion in the Bible show minor variations, but they're all pretty much the same story. This one is similar up to a point, but then it's different."

"How so?"

"Because of what it says about Joseph of Arimathea."

"Who was he?"

"A rich follower of Jesus, one of the ruling council in Jerusalem. He donated his tomb for Christ's burial. Tradition says he purchased a shroud to wrap the body when they took it down from the cross. That's in here, but there's more."

She looked at him, her eyes wide.

"It says Joseph held a cup and caught Christ’s blood as He hung on the cross. You won't find that anywhere in the Bible."

"A cup?"

"There's only one cup like that. The Holy Grail."

"That's a legend. A story made up in the twelfth century. King Arthur, all that."

"That's what most people think. But this scroll changes that. My God, Nick, think about it!"

"What if it isn't authentic? There are plenty of phony relics out there, made up in the Middle Ages to encourage pilgrims. It could be one of those."

"I've seen a lot of documents from the first century. You get a feel for authenticity after a while. It would have to be tested, but I'd be surprised if this is a fake. The box must have been in a church ISIS looted. It's valuable because of the silver but the scrolls are worth far more than the box. I can't imagine what this would bring if it were auctioned off at one of the big houses."

"If it's real."

"Yes. It will create an uproar. It's sure to be attacked as a hoax. People have looked for the Grail for a thousand years. Emperors and kings. Napoleon. Hitler searched all over the world for it. It's part of the
Arma Christi.
"

"What's the Arma Christi?"

"The weapons of Christ, symbolic of how Christ defeated Satan. The Grail is one of them, along with the lance that pierced Christ's side and the nails from the cross."

"The lance is gone. We know it was destroyed."

"Nobody knows that except us. It doesn't matter anyway, when you're talking about the Grail."

"Even if this manuscript proves the Grail was real, nobody knows where it is or if it still exists."

"If this becomes public, people will start searching for it."

She began reading the second scroll.

"Oh, my."

"That doesn't sound good."

"There's a prophecy about the Grail," she said. "Simon repeats the story of the open tomb. Then he says that as he was praying in front of the tomb an angel appeared, dressed in robes of fire."

"Sure," Nick said. "Sometimes I think there must've been something in the water back then. Or maybe magic mushrooms in the soup."

Selena ignored him and began reading from the page.

As I prayed before the tomb, then did an angel of the Lord God appear to me in terrible beauty, wreathed in robes of flame. I fell to the ground in fear, daring not to look upon its face. The voice of the angel was not like the voice of men, but as a sound of thunder inside my head.

And the angel said, fear not: write of the trials of the Teacher and tell of the cup that caught His blood.

And the angel said, look: and before me appeared great cities where buildings of stone rose high as mountains into the heavens and crowds of people walked the streets. Then all vanished and the earth was covered with smoke and fire and the cries of the dying rose into the heavens.

And the angel said: a time will come when evil kings and their servants will rule the earth. Their hearts will be corrupt, filled with greed and darkness. They will speak with lying tongues of brotherly love and God and peace but plot war.

Then the angel said: war will come on wings of fire in the night and all that I had seen would come to pass, unless the cup was kept safe by just men.

And the angel said: that if the cup should come into the hands of the liars and the hypocrites, the final days of man would come to pass. But if the cup was kept safe by just men, then the Lord's judgment would be stayed.

"That's a hell of a prophecy," Nick said. "He's talking about the End of Days, isn't he? The Last Judgment?"

"It would be hard to see it as anything else," Selena said.

"Is that all he wrote?"

"Almost. There's one more short section."

And the angel said: go to Joseph of Arimathea and tell him of the Lord's message, for Joseph is chosen as guardian of the cup, until his time on earth is finished.

"If Joseph was the one chosen, how come the vision didn't appear to him?" Nick asked.

Selena looked at him and shook her head.

"Sometimes I really wonder about you, Nick."

CHAPTER 14

The next day Nick was on the phone again with Elizabeth.

"You found an eyewitness account of the crucifixion by the man who helped Christ carry the cross? Are you kidding me? That's what was in the box?"

"I know it sounds far-fetched. Selena is sure it's authentic. But that's not the best part."

"I can't wait to be surprised."

"The scrolls confirm the existence of the Holy Grail."

There was silence at the other end of the line.

"Are you still there, Director?"

"Did you really say that?"

"There's also a prophecy about the Grail."

Nick repeated what had been written on the scrolls.

"You said Selena thinks it's authentic?"

"That's what she says."

"This is going to cause a lot of trouble," Elizabeth said.

"That's what she said."

"I wonder if ISIS knows about this?"

"I don't think so," Nick said. "If they knew what was in those scrolls they wouldn't have sent them off with the rest of the looted artifacts."

"I have to think about this before I decide anything. What's the public reaction to the raid over there?"

"It's a big deal. There's a protest march being organized. The media is in a feeding frenzy. There are calls for criminal charges against Forsberg and an investigation of the KSI. Hussein is being painted by papers that follow the government line as an innocent victim of racial and religious prejudice. According to them, Forsberg is a trigger-happy fascist."

"And the rest of the media?"

"Demanding that the borders be closed and that the government send everyone back where they came from. Everything is black and white here, there's nothing in between."

"That sounds familiar," Elizabeth said. "What about your role in this? Has anyone got wind that you're involved?"

"Not yet, but it's only a question of time. What do you want us to do?"

"Stephanie found a call on that phone you discovered that went to a man named Bergstrom. She checked him out. He's a Chief Superintendent in the national police, stationed in Stockholm."

"Knowing a high ranking cop could come in handy if you were smuggling things into the country."

"It can't be a coincidence. Bergstrom has to be involved. You have to let the Swedes handle it."

"What if they decide to cover it up? They're certain to handle it internally but they might not want us to know about it."

"I'm not willing to ignore the connection," Elizabeth said. "Bergstrom is probably the man who sets up the exchange with the end buyers. We need to know who they are. He's not the buyer, he couldn't afford it on a cop's salary."

"What do you want me to do?"

"If they tell you what's on the phone, leave it alone. If they don't, I want you to pursue it. You won't have much time. They'll be embarrassed by discovering one of their own is involved. They'll tell you to leave and I won't be able to keep you there."

"I need information on Bergstrom."

"Steph is putting something together now. She'll send it to you in a few minutes."

"We're headed over to KSI in a few minutes," Nick said. "If they're going to come clean, it will be then."

"Good. Then you'll know where you stand. Keep me informed."

Harker broke the connection.

"What did she say?" Lamont asked.

Nick told them what Elizabeth had said about Bergstrom.

"So we're going to follow up on Bergstrom if the Swedes don't keep us in the loop?"

"That's about it. Steph is sending the info we need about him. It all depends on what happens at the meeting this morning."

The islands, lakes and waterways of Stockholm made the city an interesting and beautiful place. It had snowed the night before, but the morning was clear and sunny. The city looked like something out of a modern fairy tale.

Ronnie said, "Snow means water. Where I come from, water is a good thing."

"Sure is pretty out," Lamont said. "Makes me think of a Christmas card."

"It's a beautiful day," Selena said.

The good feeling evaporated inside KSI headquarters. Forsberg was in a bad mood. He was being called a closet Nazi and a fascist by the left-wing papers because of the raid on the refugee asylum.

Politics in Sweden wasn't much different than it was in America. When there was political capital to be made, the gloves came off. Control of the country's government was at stake in the upcoming election and the political rhetoric was heating up. The issue of immigration was tearing Sweden apart. The confrontation with Islamic militants at the asylum had thrown gasoline on a fire already burning out of control.

Forsberg was caught in the middle. Whenever things didn't go well for the politicians, someone had to pay. It wouldn't be them. Unless he was careful, it was going to be him.

"You've seen the papers?" he said.

Nick nodded. "Yes. I'm sorry you have to deal with this."

"It goes with the territory. If I do my job the right way, there's always some officious idiot that wants to criticize. Intelligence work and government oversight is a contrast in terms."

Selena laughed. "At least you broke up Hussein's operation. Have you found anything to connect it to ISIS?"

"Funny you should ask that."

Forsberg reached into his briefcase and pulled out a black flag with Arabic letters on it.

"We found this in his bedroom."

"No question whose flag that is," Nick said. "Those assholes have made sure it shows up on everyone's TV as often as possible."

"Hussein must've thought he was invulnerable to keep that around," Selena said.

"For all practical purposes, he was," Forsberg said. "The hands-off policy regarding Muslim immigrants has been in place for quite some time. Sweden has always been one of the most welcoming societies in the world. No one thought allowing refugees from war zones to enter would lead to this kind of chaos."

"What was Hussein planning to do with those weapons?" Nick asked.

"Attack polling stations throughout the country during the next election. We're still sorting through information recovered from the center."

"Was there anything on that phone I gave you?" Nick said. His voice was casual.

"No." Forsberg looked away. "Most of the calls were to a pizza parlor. There wasn't anything about what they were planning or about the smuggling operation."

"That's too bad. We were hoping to get a line on the buyers."

"We'll find out sooner or later," Forsberg said. "When we do, we'll let you know. In the meantime, I've been asked to convey the thanks of our government for your assistance. We'll forward everything we discover about ISIS to you when you're back in America."

"You're sending us home?"

"There's nothing left for you to do here, not in an official capacity. Why don't you take a day or two to enjoy Stockholm? I can recommend some excellent restaurants. Shopping is good, the museums are fascinating."

Selena said, "That sounds like a good idea." She turned to Nick. "Don't you think so?"

"Can you make us a list of those restaurants?" Nick said.

As they drove back to their hotel Lamont said, "They're kicking us out and that boy was lying in his teeth. I thought he was a straight shooter."

"It's not his fault," Nick said. "I got the feeling he wanted to tell us what was going on. Someone told him to keep quiet. The last thing he wants to do is make waves right now. The papers are looking for a sacrificial lamb and he'd be a good one. His only chance is to play by the rules."

"Just the same," Lamont said, "I'm kinda disappointed."