He shook his head once, his face changing. “I don’t know. I can’t rid myself of the notion that there is danger under our noses. It may be nothing but thirty years of Vatican maneuvering speaking, but I would recommend caution.” He signaled one of the sixty waiters for another two glasses of champagne. “I must be getting old, and jumping at shadows because my eyesight is failing.”
Dame Leonie shook her head. “If you’ll forgive me, Cardinal Cadini, your eyesight is keener than most, and well you know it.”
He shrugged. “My tall Texan friend is better than I am.”
“Your tall Texan friend is in Houston, and he is probably relying on your report for this evening,” said Dame Leonie with asperity. She took the second flute of champagne from the waiter but kept her attention on Cardinal Cadini.
“He will be gone for another six days. I admit that I would prefer he was here.” He accepted his second glass of champagne and once again offered a casual toast to Dame Leonie. “Let me tell you, you have my respect and admiration, Dame Leonie. And I hope you come through your divorce as unscathed as is possible.”
This time she allowed herself to respond more candidly. “I think that’s more in Sir Arthur’s hands than mine, don’t you?”
“Only to a point,” said Cardinal Cadini thoughtfully. “If you permit yourself to be dragged into his ploys and his schemes, you will not do well. He wants to cause damage and you do not. You’re wise to keep well out of it.”
“I have very capable attorneys,” said Dame Leonie, glancing around once to be certain that no one was listening.
Cardinal Cadini caught this motion and knew its meaning. “Don’t worry. Most of them are more interested in finding out the latest gossip—your divorce is old news for them.” He shoved himself to his feet. “And I fear I ought to do my part. Thank you again for having me at this…celebration?”
“That’s as good a word as any,” said Dame Leonie cautiously.
“It is an excellent word,” Cardinal Cadini declared, very pleased with himself. “And I see that my old friend Professor Bell is here. I ought to have a word or two with him.” He started away from the three settees. “Incidentally,” he said, turning back, “you will want to speak with Sergios, Cardinal Phinees. Another masterful stroke, I must say, inviting him. Everyone wants to meet the new Cardinal.”
“Pope An requested it,” said Dame Leonie.
“Of course she did. He is her first Cardinal,” said Cardinal Cadini. “Only thirty-six, and from Cyprus. I am impressed.” He winked at her, then ambled away into the crowd.
Dame Leonie watched him, her eyes distant. How many of the others here, she asked herself, were aware of the many currents flowing through this gathering? And how many of those currents did she recognize? Mightn’t there be some she knew nothing of? What if the Eurocops had not anticipated danger? It was reassuring to have Axel Maetrich, wearing a Roman collar, coordinating half the security staff, but what if their precautions were not sufficient? The notion disturbed her, and she took a little more champagne. In another moment she would have to get back onto her aching feet and continue to circulate through her guests.
“I’ve missed you.” Willie Foot leaned over the back of the settee and took her free hand, lifting it quickly to his lips, turning it rapidly so that he could kiss her palm instead of the knuckles.
She turned, startled and pleased at once. “Willie.”
He looked down at her, his eyes alive with his passion for her. “If you tell me this isn’t wise—”
“No one is paying any attention,” she said, paying little attention to the rest herself.
“Even if they are, you’re going to be a free woman soon. What you and I do won’t matter then. Will it?” He wore his dinner jacket with the slouchy ease of long habit. “How much longer, do you think?”
“My attorneys haven’t advised me yet,” she said softly. “As soon as Arthur agrees to a settlement, I’ll—”
“Do you think he will agree?” Willie cut in, frowning.
“Yes. After everything he’s said in the press, he can’t refuse. He’s labeled me with every despicable name he can think of. He can’t remain married to me after this. If he won’t settle, he’ll compromise himself too badly.” Recklessly she finished her champagne.
Willie’s eyes narrowed. “I could flay him for what he’s said.”
“That would make things better, wouldn’t it?” Her sarcasm was lightened by her hand coming to rest on his. Her eyes pleaded with him, mixing anxiety and trust. “We have to be patient a while longer.”
“And what then?” he asked, leaning a little closer to her. His voice was so low that she had to concentrate to hear it. “Will you live with me? Will you marry me, finally? I don’t want any more of this backstairs nonsense. I don’t want to have to be discreet. I want to lie beside you every night. I want to wake up with you. I want to be able to touch you without damaging your reputation. I don’t want to have to sneak about and lie any longer.”
She made a small gesture to silence him though she wanted him to say more. “I…I can’t now. I want everything you want, but not here.” She forced herself to break away from him, to get back on her sore feet. She smoothed her long dress and adjusted her smile.
“We’ll talk later,” Willie promised her, and obligingly moved on to the world-famous director who had just finished a tremendous film about the Knights Templar.
Dame Leonie glanced swiftly at her watch: Pope An would arrive in twenty minutes. It was time to alert Axel Maetrich so that he could position his staff. She was grateful that Pope An had been willing to augment Vatican Security with Eurocops, for a gathering like this one was more than Stelo’s people were used to handling. She had almost reached Maetrich, standing with one of the catering staff and an angular, anonymous gentleman with restless eyes, when she felt a hand on her arm.
“Dame Leonie,” said Dmitri Karodin, giving her a slight bow. “Quite a splendid gathering.”
She stared at the head of the KGB, recognizing him at once and trying to think of something to say beyond an automatic, “Thank you.” All her experience gave her the necessary small-talk. “I had no idea you were in Rome.”
“I am here with colleagues,” he said smoothly, paying no attention to her shock. “A whim, this visit, nothing more.” His clear, penetrating gaze rested on her face, then flicked away. “How could I stay away? The opportunity to meet a woman I very much admire.” He brought his eyes back to her face and smiled at her. “Pope An.”
“You admire her?” Dame Leonie was having difficulty following him.
“Oh, profoundly. She is unique, and not for the reasons everyone cites. How many humane reformers have there been in the past? Usually we have had to settle for one—humane or reformer, but not both in the same person. Those who were humane were usually corruptible and those who were reformers were also intolerant zealots. Not much of a choice between them. But this woman—at least so far—has been both. How remarkable. I consider myself privileged to be able—” He stopped abruptly as Cardinal Gemme came up to Dame Leonie.
Cardinal Gemme paid no attention to Karodin; he planted himself in front of his hostess. “I must talk with you. It is urgent. I regret the interruption.” This last afterthought was nothing more than a formality.
Dame Leonie nodded, looking at Karodin, a faint line between her brows. “Perhaps—” she began, not wanting to offend him. She tried to block out the pain of her feet; she would have to change shoes.
Karodin gave an equivocal smile, his eyes on hers, then moved away without a word.
“I have to speak with Pope An as soon as she arrives,” said Cardinal Gemme without apology. “She is in danger, and I can identify the danger.”
“Oh?” Dame Leonie knew better than to reveal the sudden apprehension that seized her.
“You doubt me?” Cardinal Gemme demanded.
“I don’t know how to answer that, Cardinal,” she said at her most reasonable. “Don’t you
think it would be better to tell this to Dionigi Stelo or one of the Eurocops?”
“No!” This outburst attracted stares, and he forced his voice lower. He had come to hate being stared at; stares reminded him of how ruined his face was. “I have to speak to the Pope. Only to her. As soon as she arrives. You must arrange it. I won’t be responsible for what happens if you fail me.”
“Cardinal Gemme,” Dame Leonie warned, “you don’t—”
“There is danger, I tell you. I must warn her. It is up to you to do this for me.” He started to say something more, then changed his mind. “You see to it, Madame. I am depending on you. I won’t answer for what happens if you don’t.” He took a step back and trod on the shawl of the Polish Ambassador’s wife. He said a brusque word to her, then addressed Dame Leonie once more. “When Pope An arrives, you make sure I may speak with her at once.” With that he moved away into the crowd.
As Dame Leonie stared after him in consternation, a soft voice spoke at her elbow. “I think you ought to know: he is carrying explosives.”
She spun around and found Dmitri Karodin beside her once again. “What?”
“Under his jacket. It is the very latest plastic, about the size of a small book. The fuse is two-phase, and he knows how to use it.” There was amusement in his eyes now, and a trace of sympathy. “I have one or two assistants with me. They discovered the Cardinal’s little surprise shortly after he arrived.” He studied the back of his hand. “I don’t think it would be appropriate for me to speak to your security people.”
“No,” she agreed distantly, too astonished to say anything else.
He still did not meet her eyes with his. “It is unfortunate. Cardinal Gemme. More than his body was damaged in that riot. He is not the man he was.”
Dame Leonie gave a quick look into the crowd but could not spot Cardinal Gemme. “No, he’s not,” she said quietly.
Finally he stared at her once more. “It would be a shame if he had to suffer any more embarrassment.”
“Yes,” she repeated. “I’ll…speak to—”
He cut her off “Someone appropriate, I’m sure.” Once again he faded into the throng of guests.
A moment later Dame Leonie pulled Axel Maetrich aside. “I fear.…” This suddenly felt very difficult. How could she accuse Cardinal Gemme of carrying explosives? She began again. “I have reason to believe that…one of my guests is…possibly—” She stopped. What if Karodin was lying? What if his intention was to divert attention from a real threat by this accusation?
“What is it?” Maetrich asked, sensing her distress.
“Do you have some way to check for weapons or…or explosives?” she asked, astonished at her own bluntness.
“Yes,” said Maetrich cautiously.
“How…how discreet is the check?” Her heart was beating faster and more urgently. She was frightened. Her feet were forgotten.
“We have equipment in the kitchen.” They had gone over everything the caterers had brought, and those waiters who were not part of the security staff had been screened thoroughly with their equipment. He looked toward the kitchen door. “If there is someone, or…?”
“If you can do this without drawing attention to what you’re doing, have one of your men check Cardinal Gemme.” She spoke very quickly, breathlessly. Now that she had given the order, she was appalled. How could she consider such a possibility? But how could she not consider it?
“Cardinal Gemme?” Maetrich repeated. “Are you certain?”
“No, I’m not,” she replied. “That is why your man must be as circumspect as possible. If the…information I have is in error.…” She glanced nervously at her watch. “It must be done quickly.”
“Before the Pope arrives?” said Maetrich, not expecting an answer.
“Yes,” said Dame Leonie. “Without fuss.”
“We’ll attend to it,” said Maetrich, and went off purposefully toward the kitchen.
Dame Leonie stood alone for the better part of a minute, the noise and bustle of her party lost on her. She could only think what could happen if it turned out that Dmitri Karodin was right. Marc-Luc, Cardinal Gemme carrying explosives at a party! It was ludicrous. Unless it was true. Her hand went to her throat. How could she warn Pope An? To reach the Pope’s personal Swiss Guard, she would have to use the telephone or the radios, and either could be overheard. If news leaked out that there had been direct and personal danger for Pope An.…
“What’s the matter, Leonie?” Willie Foot asked her as he came to her side. “You look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
“A goose must have walked over my grave,” she said with a shaky laugh.
“Something’s wrong,” Willie said in a manner that allowed no argument. “What is it?”
She shook her head, not trusting herself to accept his support. “I can’t.” She took a step away from him. “Not now.”
There was more concern in his demeanor. “What is it?” he insisted. “Leonie!”
Her eyes widened and she made a gesture to bar him from her. “Please, Willie. I’ll tell you later.”
Now he was seriously worried. “My God, what’s happened?” As she started away from him, he went after her.
“Nothing,” she said hastily. “Not yet.”
He could not accept that. He pursued her, determined to find out what had distressed her. “Leonie.”
“No.” She read hurt in his eyes and relented. “As soon as it’s taken care of, I’ll tell you all about it.” Then she broke away from him and started toward the kitchen door, wanting to reach Maetrich before his men went to work.
Three waiters emerged from the kitchen, two of them pushing a cart laden with chafing dishes and a bain de Marie. They moved in a swift but erratic course through the gathering, bound for the far side of the main room, to where a small bar was set up. One of the waiters held a bouquet of serving utensils, and the one at the front of the cart kept motioning people aside.
A few of the guests flocked after the cart, but most only moved out of the way and continued their conversations; the waiters reached their destination and two of them began to set up for serving. The third waiter headed back toward the kitchen, pausing only to say a few words to another member of the serving staff before vanishing into the rear of the crowd.
Watching this exchange, Dame Leonie felt a cold fist close in her viscera. Both the third waiter and the man to whom he had spoken were part of the security staff. Without intention she moved toward Axel Maetrich for the confirmation she sensed was waiting, only to be blocked by the ponderous bulk of Sylvestre, Cardinal Jung, resplendent in his satin cassock.
“I want to offer you my felicitations,” said Cardinal Jung. “You have contrived a most attractive diversion.”
This double-edged compliment caught her attention. “Why, how kind of you, Cardinal,” she said, responding with sincerity to equal his own.
“I confess—we’re still permitted to confess, aren’t we?—that I was amazed that you had the gall to offer such an entertainment when your disgrace has been flaunted through the world news services, but I see now that you have succeeded in a very clever ploy. Who will speak ill of you when you have done so much to smooth the way of the Chinese woman?” He folded his arms as if daring her to spar with him.
Under other circumstances Dame Leonie might have been tempted to take up the challenge, but now she paid no heed. “If you are not enjoying yourself, Cardinal Jung, pray do not feel compelled to stay.”
He had been prepared for any number of reactions, but not her cool response. His color heightened. “Dame Leonie—”
She stepped aside. “Please excuse me, Cardinal. There is a matter that requires my immediate attention.”
Axel Maetrich had seen her approach, and now drew her aside. He lowered his head and his voice. “He is carrying explosives.”
Although this was what Dame Leonie expected, hearing the words spoken was more than she could endure. She took two quick, sharp breaths before
she was able to speak calmly. “Find a way to remove him. Before Pope An arrives.”
“That might be difficult,” Maetrich said quietly, with a swift, significant look around the crowd.
Dame Leonie followed his glance. “You mean that the guests could be in danger.” She had not permitted herself to consider this until now. “But surely he wouldn’t do—”
“We don’t know what he’ll do,” said Maetrich steadily. “No one does.”
“No, I suppose not,” said Dame Leonie. “All right; what do you recommend?”
“I’d recommend removing the Cardinal as quietly and quickly as possible,” said Maetrich, his features set uncompromisingly. “I don’t think it would be wise to risk confronting him among all these guests.”
“Because of the explosives,” said Dame Leonie, needing no answer.
“We could request the Pope delay her arrival, but.…” Maetrich’s gesture indicated he realized that Pope An might not be willing to follow their suggestion.
“And he may have…associates here,” said Dame Leonie. Saying the words aloud made the possibility more real, but that did not terrify her, not as much as her first ill-formed worries had. “We don’t want to alarm them, in case there are others carrying weapons or—”
“Yes,” admitted Maetrich. “We have to make that assumption.”
Dame Leonie’s lips quirked into a mirthless smile. There were so few alternatives, and they were so obvious. “You don’t want to claim that there has been a bomb scare as an excuse to evacuate the building.”
“We would prefer not,” said Maetrich stiffly.
She nodded. “I would rather not, as well.” There were truly so few options available, she thought. “Then I suppose it would be best for me to find a reason to move him away from.…” She gestured to indicate the festivities around them.
Maetrich hesitated for an instant. “It could be risky.”
She was able to chuckle once. “Are you saying that having a Cardinal armed with a bomb in the middle of this isn’t risky?” She gave Maetrich no opportunity to answer. “Better a threat to three or four than a hundred, wouldn’t you say?”
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