The Second Messiah (53 page)

“FOR TWENTY YEARS
I’ve lived with a lie. I’ve kept a dark secret I chose not to speak about. Do you know why?”

Jack was frozen, not knowing what he was about to hear. “No …”

“Because I knew my secret would tarnish the church. My own destiny didn’t matter, but the church mattered deeply to me. So I kept my silence.”

“Did you kill my parents?”

The pope’s mouth tightened as he said grimly, “I played my part in a conspiracy of lies, Jack.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Jack felt anger rise up in him like bile. He wanted to lash out, to strike Becket, but the man suddenly let out an anguished sigh and buried his face in his hands.

For a long time he remained like that. Then he looked at Jack again. “It means that I lied. That I was a party to a crime by remaining silent. But in the end, every one of our sins demands a price.”

“Who killed my parents? Who stole my father’s scroll? It
was
stolen, wasn’t it?”

Becket nodded. “Yes, it was stolen.”

“Why?”

“Because certain people believed its theft was for the good of the church.”

“How can you say that? How can you condone theft and murder?”

“I’m not, Jack. I’m merely stating fact.”

“Who killed my parents?”

The pope stared out at the fountain, then back again. “When your father discovered his scroll, he was baffled because part of the wording
he
read didn’t make sense. So he permitted Father Kubel to see it, who realized immediately that it was a coded text. Such scrolls contained a certain marker.”

“I know about the marker. Go on.”

The pope said, “Kubel was aware of what the marker meant. As the Vatican’s coordinator on the dig, his superiors had already made him aware that any coded scrolls could prove to be controversial. And that several had turned up at Dead Sea sites over the years and had been kept secret, with Israel’s consent.”

“Why?”

“For what seemed like perfectly good reasons. Neither the Vatican nor Israel wanted any controversy to rock the foundations of their religions.”

“Some of the scrolls contained controversial material?”

“Yes. Revelations, mysterious predictions, references to Jesus’ beliefs and the early church. Some of it with the potential to muddy the waters of religious dogma.”

“Tell me what Kubel did.”

The pope said, “Your father was incredibly excited by his find. He told Kubel that on his way to Jerusalem he intended to visit an old friend of his, a journalist with the
Post
, to show him the scroll. In Kubel’s mind, alarm bells went off as soon as he heard that statement.”

“Why?”

“He feared that by involving the newspapers there was a danger that the scroll’s content would be revealed.”

“What did Kubel do?”

The pope sighed. “He decided he had to gain possession of the scroll, no matter what the cost. It was all utter madness, of course, and went beyond all reason. But Kubel was always a hothead. There was no stopping him.”

“Go on.”

“He deliberately tried to loosen the pickup’s brake fluid line. To cause a slow leak, hoping the brakes would fail on the way to Jerusalem and that your father would crash. Kubel intended to follow the pickup.
In
his urgency to get his hands on the scroll he truly didn’t care if you all died. That was how reckless he was, a true religious fanatic.”

“So when Kubel arrived at the accident scene he’d already been following us. But you turned up also.”

The pope met Jack’s stare. “I saw Kubel follow your pickup. He had a deranged look on his face, a look I knew spelled trouble. So I drove after him and later heard the explosion and came across him at the accident scene. I saw the army truck had exploded. Whether it was a genuine accident or not, I’m afraid we will never know.”

“How did you learn about Kubel’s part in all of this?”

“Weeks later he asked me to be his confessor. Only when I listened to his admission of guilt did I learn the real story. But as a priest, I was duty-bound by my vows not to divulge Kubel’s confession, even to the police.”

“Even if it involved murder?”

“It was unclear that Kubel had committed murder. He didn’t know it himself. Theft, yes. But murder, it was uncertain. The police determined that the crash had been caused by the army truck.”

“Except Kubel intended to kill us all if he had to.”

“I believed that. So I sought clarity from my superiors. I was told that Kubel had committed no provable crime in the eyes of the law. His action had evil intent, certainly. But the results of his action were unclear.”

“That all sounds very convenient.”

“You’re right, of course.”

“What did your heart tell you?”

The pope sighed deeply. “Kubel had handed over the scroll to the Vatican and his superiors wanted to cover up his actions. All of which was wrong. I made a written statement condemning their stance. My statement was suppressed.”

“Why didn’t you follow your heart and tell that to the police? Why help cover up Kubel’s wrongdoing?”

The pope put the tips of his fingers to his lips as if in silent prayer. “I have wrestled with that question for the last twenty years, Jack. The
answer
I came to was that I should remain a priest. Only in that way could I one day try to change any wrongdoing from within the church.”

“That sounds like a very convenient answer.”

“No, Jack, it’s not. I did not ask to be made pope. I never sought the papacy. But I believe that I was chosen for a reason.”

“What reason is that?”

“To bring about a sea change. And that is what is about to happen. Very soon, the Vatican’s archives will be thrown open to the public, along with details of all its private dealings. There will be no more lies. No more secrets or duplicity. The course of the church’s future is about to be forever changed.”

Jack heard the sincerity in Becket’s voice and stared back at him. “You really mean that, don’t you?”

“Yes, I do. One other thing. Father Kubel died this morning after a long illness. His sister was a witness to his deathbed confession of his crime. I can arrange for you to meet and speak with her, if you wish.”

Jack considered. “Tell me this. Is the scroll’s revelation true? Was there really a second messiah?”

“Yes, it’s true. There are several other scrolls that mention this false messiah and cast doubt upon some of the real Jesus’ actions.”

Jack frowned. “How will you answer that? How will you stop the doubt from creating havoc?”

Becket didn’t flinch. “I don’t honestly know, Jack. I have been praying for an answer. But so far, one hasn’t come.”

“Has it altered your belief?”

Becket’s voice was firm with conviction. “No, it hasn’t. Every day I have witnessed God’s love and goodness. I have felt His presence. How could I not believe?”

“You’re a remarkable man, John Becket. I wish I had your faith.”

The powerful gaze of Becket’s blue eyes almost bored into Jack’s soul. “You do have my faith. We all have it in us. In some it’s simply buried deeper than others. But we all hear the echo of God’s voice. We are all remarkable creatures, Jack, touched by our Creator’s love and greatness. And because of that we can do incredible things.”

“Answer me honestly. Did the Vatican have anything to do with Professor Green’s death and the theft?”

“You have my honest word, I know nothing about that.”

“But if it
was
involved in any way, you’d have the authority to find out, right?”

“The Vatican has a reputation for secrecy and intrigue. If I have my way, that will cease. But in any large organization there are always groups who seek to have their way with power and cunning. I will try my utmost to find out for you, Jack.”

Becket gripped Jack’s hands in his. “I will pray that your soul finds peace. And that if you discover who stole the scroll, who killed the professor, you’ll try to find it in your heart to forgive them.”

“Why should I?”

“Because to forgive is the first step toward redeeming the sin.”

“I’m afraid that’s one pledge I can’t give a promise to.”

LELA SAT IN
the back of the stationary cab, Ari next to her. He clutched a pair of palm-sized binoculars and studied the monastery at the end of the street. “Did Cane say how long he’d be meeting the pope?”

Lela replied, “No. Ari, take my word. Cane didn’t kill Green. He’s innocent in all of this.”

“That’s for Weiss to decide.” Ari reached into his pocket for his pistol. “I have orders to take Cane back to Israel. Nothing’s going to change that. A word of advice: whatever happens next is going to happen hard and fast, so let me give you a friendly word of warning, Lela.”

“Meaning?”

“Keep your nose out of it and leave me and my men to do our job. Try to help Cane in any way and one of us is liable to put a bullet in you.”

Jack came down the few short steps of the monastery entrance. Behind him, Abbot Fabrio closed the oak doors. One of the armed guards unlocked the security gate and Jack stepped out onto the sunny pavement.

As he started to walk toward the café where he had left Lela, his cell phone rang. Jack checked the number. It was unfamiliar to him. He decided to take the call.

“Yes?”

“Mr. Cane.” A man’s voice, full of authority.

“Who is this?”

“No questions. Just listen and obey the orders I give you.”

“What—”

“
Listen
, Mr. Cane.”

It sounded as if the phone was being manhandled, then Yasmin’s voice came on the line, edged with fear. “Jack? Is that you?”

“Yasmin—”

“Jack, these—these people say they’ll kill me.”

“Which people?”

He heard panic in Yasmin’s voice. “They want the scroll, Jack. They want to—”

Yasmin was cut off mid-sentence and the man interrupted, “Where are you, Mr. Cane?”

“In Trastevere.”

“Do you know where the Trevi Fountain is?”

“Yes.”

“Go there. Across the plaza from the fountain you’ll see the Via del Lavatore. Stand on the corner and wait. Contact no one or the woman will be killed.”

“Listen—”

“You have twenty minutes to get there, Mr. Cane.”

“I can’t make it to the Trevi that quickly.”

“Twenty minutes, or don’t bother coming. She’ll be dead.”