The Secret of Fatima (7 page)

Kevin raised an eyebrow. The Vatican has been involved in many world events, but the possibility of the Church taking a role in a Middle East war was preposterous, borderline wacky. Kevin remained reticent, nodding for the cardinal to continue.

“No doubt you're wondering what it has to do with us. Simply put, this war could be nuclear, hence, apocalyptic. There are predictions in the Bible as well as in various Revelations about such an apocalypse opening a new era for Christianity. The official position of the Church is that when the time comes, God will tell us how to proceed.”

Very interesting
, Kevin thought.
An apocalypse? Are we being serious?
Glancing over at Drotti, he noted his eyes were wide open and his mouth slightly agog.

“I know what you're thinking, gentlemen,” Porter said. “You're thinking this is strange. But hear me out.” The cardinal walked over to the floor-to-ceiling cabinet of rare books. Up on his tiptoes, he reached, retrieved a leather Bible, blew off a thin film of dust, and flipped through the pages.

“Here it is,” he said without looking up. “Matthew 24.”

Porter began to read:

“
And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when shall these things be? And what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?
'

“
And Jesus answered and said unto them, ‘Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying
, I am Christ;
and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in diverse places
.'”

Flipping the page, Cardinal Porter continued. “
And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many
.”

Porter closed the book.

Drotti and Kevin looked at each other, puzzled.

Porter smiled. “You're not understanding?”

“Not really,” Drotti said. “My personal recollection of Matthew 24 is the ending in which he talks about the weeping and gnashing of teeth, which I always found somewhat colorful.”

“What does this have to do with us?” asked Kevin. “More specifically, what does it have to do with me?”

“The group, Opus Mundi, believes today's Catholic Church has strayed from its original teachings. They contend the Church is being led by a ‘false prophet.' In this case, His Holiness, Quintus II. As the passage suggests, ‘nations shall rise against nations,' resulting in a war. Simply put, a war will fulfill the prophecy, and then the false prophet will be replaced. See where this is heading?”

As the men looked at each other, a loaded silence followed. In the hallway, a clock chimed. Everything seemed surreal. Kevin felt as though time had stopped. Finally he spoke. “Are you saying they're going to kill the pope?”

Cardinal Porter shrugged. “That's possible. Wouldn't be the first time.”

“How does the pope feel about all of this?” asked Drotti.

“The pontiff is aware of it,” said Porter. “But he insists on ‘business as usual,' on keeping his schedule. However, security has been heightened.”

“Well, even if the Pope dies, Opus Mundi can't replace him,” Drotti said. “Only the College of Cardinals can elect a new pope. Am I missing something here?”

“We don't have all the answers,” the Cardinal said. “That's why Kevin is here and on the case. We believe Kevin has the resources and gumption to find the answers we're looking for.”

“I'll do my best,” said Kevin.
Good God, what did this mean? Would he have to eliminate the would-be assassin?
“How did you learn of this, Eminence?”

“Here at the Vatican, we have a special IT team monitoring the online flow of communications 24/7 for chatter related to crimes against the Vatican and the pope. They search for keywords and other data that might be relevant. The IT team is modeled after the National Security Agency in the States, but nowhere near their capability. In any event, in recent days our internal security has reported increased Opus Mundi chatter online, which could mean a major operation is brewing—especially after your attack this morning.”

Resting his elbows on the table, the cardinal unfolded his hands, then folded them again. There were lines around his blue eyes, highlighting his worry and fatigue. “We intercepted one message possibly related to Opus Mundi's plans. It's in code. We don't entirely understand it. I'm going to share it with you in the strictest confidence.” The cardinal looked over at Drotti, whose eyes were transfixed on the paper in Porter's hand.

“I understand,” said Drotti.

Kevin nodded. Over the years, he'd heard rumors about Opus Mundi. Those in Opus Mundi were fanatics who held to some catastrophic worldview. They'd been around for over a hundred years. If the Masons had deep secrets and an aura of mystery surrounding them, well, they paled next to Opus Mundi. According to legends, and documents uncovered over the years, Opus Mundi believed that a false messenger of God would appear threatening the Church. The advent of this false messenger's reign would be preceded by a major calamity, like a world war … or an apocalypse. How was the Colombo group connected to Opus Mundi? He'd have to do some research to connect the dots.

Cardinal Porter handed the paper to Kevin and he read:

Transcription intercepted 5/22 NSA 43T/29QA

VISITOR 5/29 BEIRUT. TRIGGER SALE

SATIN PO$ 6/2

(Note: unsure of correct translation but nothing better found)

Kevin shrugged his shoulders. “I have no idea what this means.” He handed the note to Drotti.

The cryptic message meant little to Kevin, but he'd figure it out. He took out a piece of paper and a pen from his pocket, and started jotting down a list.

Cardinal Porter said, “Visitor is the pseudonym—the code name—for the leader of Opus Mundi; that much we know. Beirut is a mystery unless Visitor or his designee is going there or expecting someone from there. The next words don't make sense. We tried variations of
satin
since the Church uses that fabric extensively; nothing came up.”

“Sir, give me a little time with this. I'll work on it. Get some help if I need it.” As he finished his list, Kevin stroked his chin.

Cardinal Porter nodded. “Certainly. Anything else you need?”

“I made a list.” Kevin handed the cardinal his piece of paper.

“Ammunition, a secure cell phone, a Taser gun? Goodness, Kevin! I hope you don't need all these things. Sounds like you're going to war.”

Kevin half-smiled, raising his eyebrows. “You never know.”

“Did you forget a knife?” Drotti smirked.

“I brought my own,” Kevin replied.

“I cannot overstate the gravity of this, Kevin,” Cardinal Porter said. His voice was grave.

“Of course,” said Kevin.

“Believe me,” said Drotti. “Kevin will know what to do with this stuff. I've seen him in action.”

“I know,” said Cardinal Porter. “That's why he's here. And, gentlemen, in Vatican Security parlance, we believe this is a ‘Code Red.'”

“A James Bond movie?”

“I'm being serious, Kevin. To us, it means that Opus Mundi has entered into the Action Phase of their mission to annihilate the Catholic Church.” He looked pointedly at Kevin. “Kevin, they must be stopped. By any means necessary. I hope I've made myself clear.”

By any means necessary? That's why they picked me
.

“I understand.” Kevin nodded his head. “Give me a couple of days to put all this together and get back to you with a plan.”

“Don't take too long. That attempt on your life this morning won't be the last.”

“I'll do my best,” said Kevin. He swallowed hard. This was no game.

“And I'll help in any way I can,” added Drotti.

“I knew I could count on the two of you,” said the cardinal. “Now, come. I'll let you two get some rest tonight. You can get busy first thing in the morning. If you need anything, Kevin, call my direct line. Max has my number.”

“Thank you for having confidence in me,” said Kevin.

“Of course, old friend.”

The cardinal rose from his chair and Kevin and Drotti followed quietly out of the room.

“Thank you for coming, Kevin, and you, too, Max.” The men shook hands.

Cardinal Porter turned to Kevin and repeated, “I'm counting on you.”

“Thank you, sir. I won't let you down.”

Once outside, they could see the sun setting in spheres of red and yellow, creating a golden orb in the spring air.

As they headed towards Kevin's apartment at the Villa Domenica, Kevin asked, “Max, what do you know about this Opus Mundi group?”

“You probably know as much as I do. They're crazy. Been around for a long time. They're a group of far-right conservative Catholics who think the Church is plagued by false prophets. Their solution is to insinuate themselves into the pulse of the church, to exorcise the ever false prophets.”

“That's what I've always heard about them.”

“The thing is, Kevin, they'll stop at nothing. Once they decide the pope is the false prophet, they'll eliminate him. They're our Hezbollah and just as dangerous.”

“Where did they get these ideas about false prophets, anyway?” Kevin walked slowly along the ancient stone path, taking in the scent of fresh basil wafting through the air. Being a resident of the Vatican had its delicious advantages.

Drotti shrugged. “As you've just heard from Cardinal Porter, it's from the Bible. Some say it's in the prophecies, and the appearances of the Virgin Mary through the centuries.”

“Strange that this group has lasted all these years underground.”

“Indeed,” Drotti added. “They are small, secretive, and invisible, though they're international. This isn't Opus Dei, who may be conservative, but are in line with Church doctrine. This group is more secretive than the Masons. Their secrets and rituals are more deadly.”

The two men continued their brisk walk to the executive suite.

Suddenly, Drotti stopped to face Kevin. “We suspect this Opus Mundi was responsible for the 1981 assassination attempt on John Paul II.”

“Really? That's one hell of an accusation.”

Drotti nodded. “I know. Sounds crazy, doesn't it? But it gets more interesting. John Paul II was shot by a Turkish man, Mehmet Ali Agca on May 13, 1981, in St. Peter's Square. If you recall, the square was especially crowded that day; it happened only seconds before the pope was going to read the third secret of Fatima. The date chosen for the reading and the assassination was the anniversary of Mary's first appearance to the children at Fatima.”

The children of Fatima
. Kevin reached back in his memory. In 1917, the Virgin Mary appeared six times to three children in the small village of Fatima in Portugal. Drotti was right on the mark. The first of these appearances was indeed on May 13th.

“You're right. I remember it now,” Kevin said. “In 1978, after only 33 days in office, John Paul I died. Then his successor, John Paul II, was shot in front of St. Peter's in 1981. So, what's the connection?”

Drotti didn't respond. He knew more, but wouldn't reveal it to Kevin just yet.

“And now you guys think a secret group within the church is trying to kill this current pope?”

Drotti nodded, his brows furrowed. “Opus Mundi believes the current Church leadership, meaning the pope, is leading us to hell—literally. They're out to kill the false messiahs.” Drotti looked to the sky, pointing his finger. “And they're taking their fanaticism from their reading of the scriptures!”

“Will they try again—to kill the pope, I mean?” Kevin asked.

“Here's what I'm worried about,” Drotti responded. “The current pope is rumored to be making an announcement in the next few days that'll mandate a major change in Catholic doctrine. It'll incense the conservatives.”

“Do you know what he's going to say?” Kevin asked.

“I have an idea, yes, but I'm going to keep it to myself.”

“Sure,” said Kevin. “But if it could help us with our job in this, let me know.”

“I will,” said Drotti.

The men strolled quietly for a few minutes, until they came upon Villa Domenica.

Kevin took his key from his pocket. “Max, please don't plan anything for me Thursday or Friday. I'll have visitors in town.”

“Your lady friend?” Drotti smiled.

“Just visitors, OK?” said Kevin, irritated. Drotti seemed to know everything about him.

“We don't have much time to figure this out, Kevin,” said Drotti.

“Don't worry,” said Kevin, “I'll be working all the time. I have resources. If you don't mind, I'll need a little privacy.”

Drotti nodded. “Sure. You have my number. Oh, and the cardinal's.”

“Thanks,” said Kevin. “I appreciate it. And thanks for everything.”

“No problem. I'll have everything on your list delivered tomorrow. Have a good night, Kevin.” With that, Drotti turned, leaving Kevin alone for the evening.

Once inside the executive suite, Kevin noticed right away that his laptop was open and the screen on. Who'd been using it? He was sure he'd closed it before leaving.
What the hell?
He approached the desk and sat down. He looked at the screen. A message scrolled across the screen in large, black letters. The message: GO HOME.

A threat? Had someone from Colombo been here? Opus Mundi? Maybe they're playing hardball
, Kevin thought.
No matter. It's one game I know how to play, too
.