“I saw boats,” said Felipe, pointing to the area along the shore just outside the woods. “Maybe we can use one.”
“I saw too,” added Eduardo. “Row boats.” Samuel didn’t see the boats. He was too busy trying not to give himself away to Cardinal Polletto, but he believed his brothers. “Good, then we’ll try for a boat, but be ready to swim.” Felipe and Eduardo looked worried. “What’s wrong?” he asked.
“If we get caught, what we do?” stammered Felipe. “Cardinal Polletto will hurt us.”
“Yes,” added Eduardo. “And what of Father Sin? He’ll kill us.” Samuel gritted his teeth. “Don’t worry,” he told them, staring hard into their eyes, “we won’t fail, I promise you, but you must believe.” He smiled, then laughed. Felipe and Eduardo wiped their faces and joined him.
“Yes,” cried Eduardo, determination now in his voice, “we will make it. I believe you.”
The three boys hugged. Samuel slipped on his shoe, picked up the candle and plate, and placed them on the table, the vision of his mother elbowing its way into his thoughts. Her image made his knees weak, his legs rubbery. He shook his head, forcing her away, focusing instead on the task he needed to complete.
“I miss you,” he whispered under his breath. “But I have to do this.” Samuel couldn’t explain it, but somehow in his mind, he knew he wouldn’t, couldn’t die. I can make it. I know I can.
Felipe and Eduardo flopped down on their cots and stared at the ceiling, smiles on their faces, occasionally stealing glimpses at Samuel, who made sure he maintained the picture of confidence. If they were going to escape, they had to do it together. As far as Samuel was concerned, Felipe and Eduardo were his only family now, and he wasn’t going to count on anybody but them.
Samuel eased down on his own bed and closed his eyes. The one person he hoped he could count on appeared before him; his godfather, Robert Veil. Samuel wondered if his Uncle Robert and Aunt Nikki were still searching for him, or if they’d simply given up. If they were alive, he knew they’d be looking, and Samuel hoped that they’d find him, but didn’t plan on it. It’s just the three of us, he told himself. That’s all we can count on, us. Again, he forced all thoughts, except their escape, from his mind and drifted into a light sleep.
Soon, he was back in Chicago at a Cubs game with his father. They ate hot dogs, guzzled soft drinks, and stuffed their faces with popcorn.
Samuel looked into his father’s face and smiled. He was free.
The chamber door unlatched. Samuel left his dreams behind. When his eyes focused, Felipe and Eduardo were already on their feet. He joined them. Sister Bravo walked inside and lit the candle. Father Sin stood silent in the doorway.
“It’s time,” said Sister Bravo. She handed each of them a bundle of clothing and black soft sole shoes.
“Time for what?” asked Samuel, his voice edgy, demanding.
Father Sin stepped forward, but said nothing, with no sign of anger or meanness on his face. Sister Bravo walked over to Felipe and Eduardo and kissed them each on the cheek. Both of them stepped back and wiped their faces, defiant and unmoved. Sister Bravo smiled, looked down at Samuel, and stroked his face.
“I’m sorry for putting you through so much,” she told him. “But it was necessary to get you this far.” Samuel stood quiet, fighting the urge to lash out. “I understand Cardinal Polletto told you of your true father,” she continued. “The one from whom your seeds came.” Samuel clinched his fists, but again said nothing. “What you don’t know,” she continued,
“is that I have just been given permission to tell you who bore you for nine months. Brought you into this world and gave you life.” Sister Bravo kissed both sides of his cheeks. Samuel flinched. When she pulled away, her eyes were wet, her face proud. “I’m the one who carried you, Samuel. I’m your mother, and the three of you are my sons.” Samuel stood transfixed. He stared hard at Sister Bravo, her words reverberating through his head. She repeated what she said in French and Italian, but Felipe and Eduardo’s faces were already twisted with disbelief.
“You’re not our mother,” growled Samuel, his eyes boring into hers.
“I know this comes as a shock,” Sister Bravo said, still smiling, leaning close.
Samuel swung as hard as he could, slapping her, knocking her to the floor. Father Sin ran over and helped Sister Bravo to her feet. Felipe and Eduardo eased closer to Samuel’s side, heads high, determined.
“You’re not our mother and you never will be,” sneered Samuel.
“Never say that to me again.”
Father Sin pulled the tearful nun back towards the door, both their faces etched with fear.
“Now, if you’ll leave us, we’ll get dressed,” Samuel ordered, turning his back and heading for his bed.
Father Sin and Sister Bravo left the room and locked the door; the nun’s sobs audible. Samuel, tense, but under control, directed his brothers to get dressed, and unbundled the blood red vestment and black pants she had given them. He quickly dressed, then grabbed the forks and butter knives they’d hidden under their mattresses to use as weapons. For the first time in his life, Samuel knew he could kill.
The three boys sat on the edge of their cots and waited. Samuel closed his eyes. Who am I?
64
R obert let his eyes roam around the crowded villa, a new location on the opposite side of Rome; a precaution taken at Father Kong’s suggestion.
Thorne and Nelson were on the other side of the living room, taking inventory of the equipment they’d use during the incursion, including scuba gear and the underwater sea scooters that would pull them underwater from the shore to the castle. Several new faces Father Kong added to the effort were assisting them, making sure every piece of equipment was operational.
After several intense discussions, Robert and Father Kong had finally come to a compromise on whom and how many people would be involved in the rescue effort. Robert insisted on hiring a team of armed professionals to help encircle the area around the castle, ready to rush in on Robert’s call. He suggested a team of fifty, but Father Kong convinced him that too many might be difficult to insert without notice, so Robert settled for twenty well-armed soldiers with hostage training, all of whom either he or Thorne had worked with in the past.
The rest of the team was rounded out by twenty-five priests and nuns, all dressed in black assault gear and leather jackets, each with a silver crucifix hanging from their necks, and each hand picked by Father Kong, with Cardinal Maximilian’s blessing. They were trusted members of The Hammer of God, and all were prepared to sacrifice their lives for the moment at hand.
They were unlike any group Robert had ever seen, which was a tall order, given what he’d witnessed around the world. All of them, nineteen men and six women, were well conditioned, and just as in shape as any of Robert’s people. But their manner was quiet, humble, almost serene, even in the face of obvious danger, where none of them would be armed with so much as a slingshot. Robert admired their faith, but questioned Father Kong’s decision not to carry weapons.
“We’ll carry the sword of faith,” the priest had told him.
“I’d rather you totted a machine gun,” Robert had said, but the priest only smiled and assured Robert that they’d be armed with something much greater than bullets.
“In the spirit, more of them are with us then there are with them,” Father Kong said.
Robert took another look at the Bracciano Castle floor plans Father Kong had retrieved from the Vatican Archives. To his surprise, it not only gave a complete outline of every nook and secret passage in the building, but also included a series of diagrams, outlining an extensive underground system of tunnels, including three entrances accessible underwater.