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SEVENTY-FOUR

VIENNA

HERMANN QUICKLY LEARNED THAT THORVALDSEN HAD walked to the schuard, a burly er personality, followed him as he headed that way, too He did not want to attract attention, so he kept his gaitarden near the house

He liked where Thorvaldsen had gone The building was far enough away that he could deal with his problem in privacy

And that was exactly what he needed

THROUGH THE PLANTS AND GLASS WALLS, THORVALDSEN SAW his host co He noticed the deternized the chief of the guard

"Gary, Mr Hermann is on his way I want you to retreat to the far side and stay a the plants He’ll likely be in an ill humor and I have to deal with him I don’t want you involved until I call for you Can you do that for me?"

The boy nodded

"Off with you, and stay quiet"

The boy scah the transplanted rain forest and disappeared into the foliage

HERMANN STOPPED OUTSIDE "WAIT HERE," HE SAID TO THE chief of the guard "I don’t want to be disturbed Make sure"

He then swung open the wooden door and pushed through the leather curtain Butterflies flew in silent zigzags across the warm air Their musical accompaniment had not, as yet, been switched on Thorvaldsen sat in one of the chairs he and Sabre had occupied a couple of days ago He iun from his pocket

"You have my property," he said in a firm tone

"That I do And you apparently want it back"

"This is no longer ahter"

"I’ve decided I can live without her"

"I’m sure you can I wonder if she realizes"

"At least I still possess an heir"

The jab cut deep "You feel better saying that?"

"Much But as you aptly noted, Margarete will likely be the ruin of this faone"

"Perhaps she takes after her mother? As I recall, she was an emotional woman, too"

"Inin the way of our success If you intend to harm her, do it I want my property back"

Thorvaldsen motioned with the letters "I assume you’ve read these?"

"Many times"

"You’ve always spoken decisively when it comes to the Bible Your criticisms were pointed and, I have to say, well reasoned" Thorvaldsen paused "I’ve been thinking There are two billion Christians, a little more than a billion Muslies will anger theion No respect for truth None of them cares what’s real, only what they can pass off as reality"

Thorvaldsen shrugged "The Christians will have to face the fact that their Bible, both New and Old, is manufactured The Jeill learn that the Old Testament is a record of their ancestors from a place other than Palestine And Musliround, the holiest of places, was originally a Jewish homeland"

"I don’t have time for this, Henrik Give uard will escort you from the estate"

"And hoill that be explained to the members?"

"You’ve been called back to Denlanced around "Where’s Malone’s son?"

Thorvaldsen shrugged "Entertaining himself somewhere on the estate I told him to stay out of trouble"

"You should have taken that advice yourself I know of your ties to Israel, and I assu But as I’m sure you’ve been told, they knoe’re after the Library of Alexandria, just as they are They’ve tried to stop us but have so far been unsuccessful By now it’s too late"

"You have a lot of faith in your eht disappoint you"

Hermann could not voice his own uncertainty Instead he boldly declared, "Never"

MALONE STOOD FROM THE TABLE AND WITHDREW HIS GUN fro you were going to sit here," Pah to know that our friend isn’t co back"

He shouldered the pack and opened the outside door No hum of voices No click of hooves No flute The compound seenaling three PM

He led the way through a variety of buildings, each with the tint and texture of dead leaves A tower, the color of putty, stood solemnly, topped by a convex roof The street’s unevenness revealed its age The only sign of habitation ca to dry from a balcony

Around a corner he spotted McCollu a small square with a fountain The monastery obviously had access to a well, as water didn’t see the number of solar panels and satellite dishes

McColluun to Straw Hat’s head

"Good to knoere right about our partner," he whispered

"Guess he wants a first look"

"Now, that is downright rude Shall we?"

SABRE KEPT HIS GUN LEVELED AT THE BACK OF THE GUARDIAN’S head They passed s and headed deeper into the complex, near a point where the human-made met the natural

He loathed the unholy cal church washed primrose yellow nestled close to the rock face Inside, the vaulted nave was naturally lit and croith icons, triptychs, and frescoes A forest of silver and gold chandeliers hung above a richly detailed mosaic floor The opulence stood in stark contrast with the simple exterior

"This isn’t a library," he said

A man appeared at the altar He, too, was olive-skinned, but short with ash-white hair And older Maybe seventies

"Welcome," the e?"

"I have that honor"

"I want to see the library"

"To do that, you "

Sabre shoved the Guardian away "All right" He leveled the gun at the Librarian "You take me"

"Certainly"

MALONE AND PAM ENTERED THE CHURCH TWO ROWS OF ilded, displayed medallions of Old Testament prophets and New Testa the Law and confronting the Burning Bush Reliquaries, patens, chalices, and crosses rested in glass-fronted cupboards

No sign of McColluht, in an alcove, he spotted two bronzed cages One held hundreds of sandstone-colored skulls, piled upon one another in a ghastly hillock The other housed a hideous assortment of bones in an anatomical jumble

"Guardians?" Pa else about the sunlit nave caught his attention No pews He wondered if this was an Orthodox church Hard to tell from the decoration, which seeions

He crossed the mosaic floor to the opposite alcove

Inside, perched on a stone shelf, backdropped by a bright stained-glass as a full skeleton dressed in e position, head slightly atilt, as if questioning The finger bones, still clinging to bits of dried flesh and nails, clutched a staff and a rosary Three words were chiseled into the granite below

CVSTOS RERVM PRVDENTIA

"Prudence is the guardian of things," he said, translating, but his Greek was good enough to know that the first word could also be read as "wisdoe see then closing echoed fro the gun, he crept forward and stepped through the doorway in the center of the elaborately decorated panel

A single door waited on the far side

He came close

The panels were cedar, and upon them were inscribed the words from Psalm 118 THIS GATE OF THE LORD, INTO WHICH THE RIGHTEOUS SHALL ENTER

He grasped the rope handle and pulled The door opened with a cacophony ofelse The ancient panel was equipped with a modern addition-an electronic deadbolt fit to the opposite side A wire snaked a path to the hinge, then disappeared into a hole drilled into the stone

Pam saw it, too

"This is weird," she said

He agreed

Then he stared beyond the doorway and his confusion multiplied

SEVENTY-FIVE