I put her things in the spare bedroom and she laughed at me. “Don't you think they should go beside our bed?” She was still covered in dust and dirt and I was Leon Henry clean and smart but that didn't stop her from coming to me and putting her arms around me.
“You said it was our time now Mike so let’s not waste any of it. Twice it didn't work out for us and I'm sorry about that I've been sorry about it for far too long, but it will this time I promise.”
Ignoring her dishevelled state I drew her close to me and held her in silence for quite some time. I was desperately relieved that she had escaped from Hainsley-Sihl and was unharmed.
Getting older may make people wiser but it also makes them aware of their own fragility. Their awareness that those things in life that are of truly irreplaceable value are easy to lose if you don't protect them. I'd almost lost her and I just wanted to hold her and feel that she was safe.
Ten minutes saw her sat in my bath with a glass of wine and I sat on the edge of it as she went through the whole nightmare she had lived through in more detail and this time she didn't hide the emotional and spiritual experiences that she had undergone. Nor did she hide the emotional bond that had been forged between herself and Cherie Leclerc.
“She's different Mike. She has an otherworldly aura around her that you can feel when she is close.” I didn't know how to respond to that so I didn't.
I let her talk and enjoyed watching her soaking away her bruises whilst the wine went to work and helped her relax. I even managed to crack a joke or two and get a laugh from her.
Before she'd let me enter the bathroom with her wine she'd created enough bubbles to cover a dance floor but I was watching them pop with increasing interest.
“Your coat of many colours is evaporating.” I said.
“Are you complaining?”
“I'm a detective I notice things - especially when people try to conceal them from me.”
“And I'm a Pathologist and I notice things too, for instance your track suit wasn't designed to cover bulges.”
She was giggling as I leant down to kiss her. She could have been sixteen again.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
THE POWERS OF BUCKFAST ABBEY
We were on the Newton Abbot Road by seven forty five. Graeme had been bang on time and already had Leon Henry and Ann Taylor in the car when Juliet squeezed in the back with them.
“I did some investigating of my own last night.” Graeme told us. “Buckfast Abbey is about the same age as Torre Abbey, a thousand years would be a good round figure. The two of them were very wealthy until the Dissolution when Henry the Eight effectively stole the accumulated wealth of all of England’s Abbeys. They were both closed down and anything of value in them was carted off to London.”
He had to concentrate as we went around the Penn Inn roundabout and someone got their lanes wrong, almost colliding with us as they took the risk of forcing their way into our lane.
“There was a period when it fell into ruin but it's been rebuilt by various Orders of Monks over time and today it's one of the most respected Abbeys in Europe. Am I boring anyone?
We assured him he was not and he continued. “It's got a long history of German and French connections and it's been a place of study for all of that history.”
He was stopped by a School Crossing Patrol and a dozen children crossed the road in front of us before we were able to make our way around the old market place and onto the Stover Road.
“When Juliet told us that Cherie had mentioned The Ark of the Covenant I have to say, without any disrespect to yourself Juliet that I couldn't really give any credence to the idea that it could be here in England anywhere let alone in Torre Abbey. Westminster perhaps, or Canterbury, but Torre Abbey was stretching it too far for me so I spent some time last night looking at the internet and when you study the Britain of one thousand years ago you see a completely different picture.”
We were delayed in a queue as we went left at the roundabout to join the A380.
“The Abbeys of that time were poor and places of worship rather than trade but after the Crusades they seem to have accumulated real wealth and power. They owned more than half the land, employing huge workforces and both Torre Abbey and Buckfast Abbey were amongst the most commercially successful at that time. They were amongst the first people to make big money out of wool and also honey and herbs.”
We finally managed to get on to the A380 and Graeme was quickly into the outer lane, using his siren to help us make up lost time.
“When we were in the caves getting chocked to death yesterday we learned that there were tunnels going in every direction, loads of them, later Ivor Martin said there were loads more around Kents Cavern and someone suggested that Hainsley-Sihl had been tunnelling for years looking for the Ark. I thought about that but where did he put all the stone he quarried? He can't in modern times just dump it around one of the most expensive areas of real estate for fifty miles!”
“That’s right Graeme.” I said. “You couldn't dump an ice cream wrapper around there without someone reporting it but what's your point?”
“My first point is that we were all in those tunnels and most of them were ancient. Only the first bit under the mansion was newly cut. After that it was all much more primitive. Hainsley-Sihl isn't the only one that’s been digging tunnels under Torquay. The Monks have been digging them for a thousand years and if they really thought The Ark of The Covenant was down there they'd dig them for a thousand years more too!” He looked into the rear view mirror to see that everyone was following his thoughts.
“Long ago the Monks had the money, the workforce, the secretiveness and the motive and no one would have questioned them.”
Graeme looked over at me and he could see that I was still not getting his point clearly.
“Boss, if we believe that Hainsley-Sihl has been searching for the Ark for two hundred years then for two hundred years he's been in direct competition with the Monks!” He held up a finger “That's one point”
If we believe what Cherie told Juliet then the Ark has been beneath Torre Abbey for eight hundred years. We have two Abbeys both belonging to the same Order and just by chance they both happen to be eight hundred years old. They were both very poor and they both suddenly became very wealthy. That's my second point.”
He had all of our attention now and I told him to go on.
“They've both been ruined deliberately several times. That means there's always been external interest in their affairs. It doesn't matter what happens to them they always get rebuilt. The Monks are always there, for hundreds of years they have always been there.” He held up his finger again. “That's a third point. I spent most of the late hours thinking about it Mike and I'm amazed that you had to make an appointment to see the Father Abbot. I'm surprised he wasn’t knocking our door down to see you! This is their war not ours.”
He let that sink in and then looked at me hard. “There's one thing we can be certain of, we are not the only people trying to stop Hainsley-Sihl. We're like Blucher at Waterloo, late arrivals on the battlefield. The Satanists and the Monks have been fighting over Torre Abbey for eight hundred years. Why? That's my main point.”
He indicated and slid over into the inside lane ready to turn off the A380.
“Despite my doubts about Cherie's story the more I looked at the historical background, all the way from the Crusades to modern times, the more I believed that at the very least it could be true!” He shook his head and shrugged his shoulders and it was obvious he still wasn't convinced but he wasn't fighting it anymore either.
“If it's only half true the man we’re going to meet will do anything to stop Hainsley-Sihl from obtaining the Ark! We're not going in there to take him by surprise; my guess is he knows more about this case than we will ever know.”
Leon leant forward and put his head between Graeme and myself. “If we find The Ark of The Covenant under Torre Abbey you will need hotel rooms for ten million Christian
s making a new pilgrimage!”
“And if Hainsley-Sihl finds it every evil person on Earth will be coming here too!” Juliet sounded seriously concerned. “That's what he wants. To be the self-styled Emperor of an evil new age.”
The radio interrupted us. It was David Cooper still on duty after a long night of searching. He had found a hidden tunnel in Hainsley-Sihl's Mansion and followed it with the dogs. It had not gone far, it came out inside of Ilsham Chapel just three hundred metres away from the house. He told me the place was literally covered in blood and he thought he had found the place where the Christmas Day murder had taken place and that forensics were all over it.
“They definitely held some sort of Satanic Mass here Mike, all the paraphernalia are still here. Back candles, Altar, and decorations. I'd guess they have been using this place for a long time”
“OK David, that's great work and a real step forward for us all. Thank you. We'll be with you the moment we leave Buckfast Abbey.”
The rest of them had been listening so I didn't have to tell them. What I did tell them was that Ilsham Chapel was a thousand years old and had been built by the first Monks of Torre Abbey!
“That's the Chapel we went to the Museum to look up on the old print and the one that took Juliet to the Museum too.” Leon said to me.
“Yes, and I forgot about it when everything went pear shaped! They seem to be always ahead of us.”
“What do you expect when they have a thousand year head start? Leon looked at me and smiled. “We are catching up faster now. David has the evidence of the murder so Hainsley-Sihl is now officially a fugitive, wanted for murder. Graeme has just given us a clear historical perspective. This is not just our battle it's an old war and we are just a new regiment, but we can take the battle to Hainsley-Sihl now.
He sat back, “Let's hope that the Father Abbot can help.”
As we approached Buckfastleigh I sat quietly and thought about it. What if the only way the Father Abbot could help would mean he had to give up the Ark? Which would he chose? The Ark or the life of a fifteen year old girl? I didn't tell Leon what I was thinking.
What would happen if suddenly The Ark of The Covenant was to emerge into the modern light of day? The furore would be unprecedented! Everyone who'd ever said a prayer would want to claim it! Thank God I was retiring!
The Abbey is beautiful and impressive from the first moment you can see it. It's been rebuilt and restored and is skilfully managed and presented. It has an air of a place that is deeply cared for and as I got out of the car I wished that that influence would spread out and take in the whole County.
The surroundings are beautiful too. This is Devonshire at its very best. The river Dart is close by and the heights of Dartmoor rise above it. It crossed my mind that Bellever was somewhere above my head lost in the folds of the moors. I looked across at Juliet, a moorland girl; I hoped that being so close would help to revive her spirits; there had been tears for Cherie earlier when she woke.
We had parked in close proximity to the Gift Shop and were walking that way when we were called from the far end of it by a young Monk. He approached us, smiling and bid us welcome.
“The Father Abbot has requested that you join him in the Chapel of St Joseph. He guided us around the Gift Shop and we walked across the main courtyard towards the Abbey Church. As an irregular visitor to the Abbey I knew that a lot of restoration work had been taking place there for many years but I was impressed by the overall appearance of the Abbey Church.
Cleaned externally and repaired it looked magnificent now.
“I know its Easter weekend,” I said to the Monk, “I'll try not to keep the Father Abbot any longer than I have too.”
“He has to divide himself between many tasks Chief Inspector, some very old, some very new.”
He gave me a look that said he knew exactly what my business with the Father Abbot was.
“We should not talk here. It's not far.”
Entering the Abbey Church is always a pleasure, the transition from modern life to a different realm somehow. The Church has real ambience and tranquillity, not simply because it's large and old or beautiful but because it's been there so very long, you can feel how deep its roots are. I was struck once again by one of the things that always makes visiting The Abbey Church such a pleasure: Despite being sparsely decorated it's a colourful, cheerful Church, full of light and not heavy or dark at all.
I saw the Father Monk from a distance awaiting us towards the end of the Ambulatory. I hadn't really had any mental picture of him and was surprised when he appeared to be much younger than I had expected.
“Good morning Inspector. I was not expecting you to bring your complete team. There was clear unstated disapproval in his statement. He obviously wasn't going to mince his words.
“Allow me to introduce them, Father.” I said. “They all have different reasons for being present.”
“Come into the Chapel first.” He smiled and the smile was warm which made me think perhaps my earlier judgement had been wrong. This was simply a man who spoke his mind.
Inside he turned to us. “This is the Chapel of St Joseph; he is there in the stained glass window.” He pointed. “In the other window is Joseph of Arimathea who is reputed to have brought The Holy Grail to England. A subject which I suspect is not too far distant from your reason for calling, Chief Inspector.”
We sat and he took a seat opposite. I'd thought about this moment as Graeme was talking in the car and how I would handle it.
I introduced everyone and gave him the background of their reason for being present with the exception of Juliet who I introduced but told him she would speak for herself shortly. He did not interrupt me.
“I am a lifetime Policeman Father and I have never been on a case of such unusual characteristics, my personal reason for being here is to seek your advice about the possible motives and plans of the man I believe is responsible for a very unpleasant murder and for two subsequent kidnappings. It may also be that because of the close histories between your Abbey and Torre Abbey - you can help me to locate him from the place he has chosen to hide.”
“I'm not sure that I'll be much help in understanding the minds of criminals Chief Inspector. But I may be able to clarify something of this man's plans and ambitions; at least for the next forty eight hours. As to what I fear is his current location I'm afraid that place has long been lost to us” He spoke very quietly and then turned to Juliet.
“Your reason for coming here is known to us. I am relieved to see you safely here.”
He had taken us all by surprise and a ripple of movement and exchanged looks passed between us.
He had our complete attention but seemed to be in no hurry. He was clearly thinking about what he now wanted to say to us.
He turned and again pointed at the stained glass window in which was depicted Joseph of Arimathea. “There are things from the past that must by their nature be the concern of the present Inspector; responsibilities that have been passed down through the generations. Some of them are extremely onerous; they weigh very heavily upon those who have to bear the weight of them.”
He pointed up at Joseph. “You will be aware that modern fiction has placed the Holy Grail in the public spotlight: Popular films and books that fed the general imagination with some very tall stories.” He shrugged. “For a great many people those stories are the only contact they have had with the entire history of Christianity since they became adults.”
He looked at me and his head went over to one side as though he was trying to study me, see what I was thinking but not in any objectionable way. He was I thought trying to gauge my own religious feelings.
“The Grail is a Holy relic of great Importance but it is far from being the only one and Importantly Chief Inspector it is far from being what many might term the most powerful. The man you seek is looking for something that many learned people believe has the power to change the world: The Ark Of The Covenant. The Sect to which he bel
ongs and is currently the Grand Master of has sought the Ark for two thousand years or more in the hope that they may turn God’s power to their own evil use. They sought it before the Temple of David was erected or the City of Jerusalem founded. For every hour that they have sought it others,” He paused to look around the lovely Church, “have sought to protect it.”
Again he paused, looking in my eyes for confirmation that I understood his unspoken words and then I could see him thinking about how to continue. “Joseph,” he pointed again at the window, “was one of them. He was pursued upon his journey from the Holy Land by the same Sect that now seeks the Ark of the Covenant beneath Torre Abbey.”
He lowered his head and I thought for one moment that he was going to pray but he did not.
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