by David Wood
Stone led them back down the stairs and through the main level of the Basilica. From here, beneath a sign that read “Sepulcrum Sancti Petri Apostoli,” a tourist could get a limited view of the area designated as the tomb of Saint Peter, but Maddock and his friends were going to get a much closer look.
“We will first make our way down to the Vatican grotto,” Stone said in a perfect tour guide voice, “which lies one level above the remains of St. Peter.”
They descended an ornate staircase and passed through marble-lined hallways. As they walked, Maddock thought he could understand Bones’ discomfort with the obscene displays of wealth. Then again, such magnificence seemed fitting for what was essentially the capital city of one of the world’s major religions. When they descended into the lowest level, their surroundings changed. Here the walls were brick and stone and showed signs of great age.
Stone continued to play his role, speaking in a voice intended to carry to anyone within earshot. “The lowest level, called the Vatican Scavi, is sixteen-hundred years old. Also known as the Vatican Necropolis, the Tomb of the Dead, or St. Peter’s Tomb, this area was discovered in the 1940s when excavations were carried out in preparation for the burial of Pope Pius IX. Though this place had been long reputed to be the resting place of St. Peter, no one expected to find anything down here.”
Stone paused, but picked up the narrative almost immediately as two men in the multi-colored, striped uniform of the Swiss Guard strode past. To his credit, Bones did not so much as crack a smile. He knew as well as Maddock did that despite the absurd-looking uniform, these men were trained soldiers. Neither Maddock nor the others made eye contact with the guards, not wanting to be remembered should things go awry.
“As they dug, the archaeologists found a burial ground that dated back to the fourth century. They found the temporal of Emperor Constantine, and even ancient graffiti that translated to the phrase ‘Peter is here.’ Initially, the remains they found were not promising. Of the three human skeletons they located, the only one that was of appropriate age and build to be the apostle turned out to be the skeleton of a woman. They also found animal bones mixed in with those of humans.
“Eventually, a new set of remains was found in a hollow niche in the wall upon which the graffiti was written. These bones were determined to be of a robust man sixty to seventy years of age. The skeleton included bones from all parts of the body except for the feet, which would be consistent with the way a crucified body was treated, since it was common practice, after the victim expired, to cut the feet off when taking the body down from the cross. Furthermore, the bones were covered in Imperial Roman purple dye, which was typically reserved for the emperor and other high-ranking men. Finally they discovered a section of the wall near the place where the bones were found on which ‘Peter is within’ was inscribed in Greek.”
Stone paused, took a moment to listen, and then nodded. “Okay, enough of that. If we hear anyone coming I’ll start doing the tour guide stuff again.” He glanced at his watch. “We’ve got about forty minutes until we’re expected to be out of here, but I’d hate to cut it that close.”
“Agreed,” Maddock said. He turned to Dima. “Where do we start?”
“At the place where the bones of St. Peter were found,” she said. “At least, that’s what the legends say, for whatever that’s worth.”
Maddock and Bones had seen enough in their lives that they no longer automatically doubted legends. They stepped aside as Dima bent to examine the niche where the bones of the apostle had been found. She ran her fingers all over the wall, examining every inch. After a few minutes she stood and took a step back.
“I don’t see anything.”
“Maybe it’s in the floor,” Bones said. He knelt to examine the spot beneath the niche.
“It’s solid rock,” Stone said.
Bones brushed the ground at the base of the wall, frowned, and leaned in close until his nose was inches from the spot where the wall met the floor. He let out a puff of breath and then another. Next, he traced an invisible square with his fingernail, and then blew again.
“There’s something here. It’s hard to see but there’s definitely something.” He began working at the spot. Seconds passed, and then a minute. Stone kept checking his watch and looking around. Finally, Bones shook his head. “Screw this.” He drove the heel of his palm into the spot he’d been working. With a crack, a square section of rock came free. Bones looked up with a smile. “Sometimes you just need the proper tool to do the job right.” He removed the square and shone his Maglite into the opening. “Whoa. Check this out.”
Everyone moved closer and knelt down for a better look. Embedded in the wall of the dark recess was something that looked like a child’s puzzle. It was a rectangle containing three rows of tiles. Letters were carved into 15 of the tiles and two more were blank, leaving one empty space so that the squares could be rearranged.
“Like we really have time to do a puzzle,” Bones said.
“Lucky for you, I sort of have a knack for puzzles. It’s one of the reasons Tam hired me. Let me take a look.” Stone switched spots with Bones. He examined the puzzle for a minute and then a sly smile crept across his face. “It’s Latin, he said, “and since this is the tomb of Peter, let’s try this.” He reached inside and began shuffling the tiles, spelling out ‘super hanc petram.’ “Upon this rock,” he said as he slid the last tile into place.
There was no time to wonder if Stone’s solution was the correct one. The room began to shake. Maddock felt the floor move beneath his feet and he grabbed Dima and leaped back. Bones and Stone moved to the side and the four of them watched as a manhole sized circle, its edge invisible until this moment, slowly turned and descended, revealing an opening in the floor.
“I guess that was it,” Stone said.
“Nice job on the puzzle,” Maddock replied. “Now, let’s see what’s down there.”
Chapter 30
Maddock slipped down into the hole, which was only about two meters deep. He hit the ground and looked around. Walled by the same ancient rock that comprised the crypt above them, the passageway in which he now stood descended at a steep angle. Not waiting for the others, he moved on, working his way down until he reached a stone staircase. He paused at the top while the others caught up.
“You know, this underground passageway stuff is getting old,” Bones said.
“If the past few years are any indication, it’s our destiny to explore them all.”
“I guess. So what’s down there?”
The staircase led down into what appeared to be an antechamber with a tiled floor and a high ceiling. On the far side of the room stood a door, but it was not at all what Maddock had expected to find beneath an ancient crypt.
“Holy crap. That thing is high tech,” Bones said.
The door was modern, made of sturdy metal. On the wall to its left hung a security device, some sort of card reader by the look of it. And above the door a security camera looked down on the antechamber.
“I suppose if the Vatican really does keep their super secret books down here, they rely on more than puzzles and trapdoors to protect them.” Maddock turned to look at the others. “This changes things. Even if we can get past that door, we have to assume security will know we are here and will send men in after us.”
“And even if we get away, our faces will be captured on camera,” Dima said. “We will be international criminals.”
“I can get us past the door,” Stone said.
“And I can take care that camera if you’ve got some lipstick on you,” Bones said to Dima.
“How about lip balm?” Dima reached into her pocket and pulled out a tube of ChapStick. “I figured I wouldn’t need to try and look beautiful on this trip.”
“Like you even need to try.” Bones gave her a wink and took the tube of lip balm. “Perfect.” Bones moved to the far side of the staircase, hugged the wall, and hurried down. When he reached the antechamber he agai
n pressed himself against the wall and circled the room, remaining out of sight of the camera as he made his way to the door. When he arrived at the door, he uncapped the lip balm, reached up, and coated the camera lens with the waxy substance.
“I’m sure that raised an alarm somewhere,” Maddock said. “We’d better hurry.”
Stone was down the stairs and across the antechamber in a flash, his long legs eating up the ground in great strides. He took out an object the size of a credit card with a short cord attached to it. He slid it into the security card reader and plugged the other end of the cord into a cell phone-sized object. He tapped a few buttons, the screen on his device flashed in a series of numbers scrolled across. Maddock held his breath until the light on the card reader flashed green and the door swung open.
“Tam can be a bear to work for,” Stone said, “but occasionally she gives us some great toys to play with.”
They stepped inside a small room, their way barred by a plexiglass wall with a small door set in the center.
“Climate controlled,” Dima said. “To help protect the documents.” She pushed the door open and stepped inside, the others following.
This room was tiny, no more than five meters square. A small wooden table and two chairs sat at the center and against the far wall stood a glass case containing perhaps forty books and scrolls, all of which looked very old and very fragile.
Dima hurried over to the case and let out a gasp. “I can’t believe this. The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, The Gospel of Judas…” She opened the case and reached for one of the scrolls but quickly pulled her hand back. “What am I thinking?” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a pair of cotton gloves which she slipped on before retrieving the scroll. She unrolled it enough to see the first line of text. “The Book of Lucifer,” she whispered. “I didn’t believe this one existed. Positively amazing.”
“Not to rush you or anything,” Stone said, but I have a feeling the Swiss Guard headed our way the moment we opened that door. Unless, of course, they noticed what Bones did to the security camera, in which case we have even less time.”
“I’m sorry, it’s just that these books… Never mind.” Dima hastily scanned the shelves, reached in, and took out a tiny leather bound volume. “This is bound in human skin,” she said, her face twisting into a grimace. She opened the cover and smiled. “This is it. Let’s go.”
They quickly exited the room, but Stone raised his hand immediately, bring them all to a halt. “It’s too late. The guard is coming.” Indeed, voices and footsteps echoed through the room. “You three hide. I’ll let myself get caught and you can sneak away once I’ve gone. Tam can get me out.”
“Thanks for that, but it might not be necessary,” Bones said. He didn’t explain, but turned and headed back inside the room. “Let’s play a game I like to call follow the conspiracy theorist.” He hurried to the small table and dropped to the ground. “According to one of my favorite web forums, the Templars had trapdoors and tunnels all around the Vatican, though nobody knows where they might lead. All of them were marked by the Templar cross.” He pointed to the large stone tile on the floor beneath the table. It was marked by the famed red cross.
“It wouldn’t be the first time this cross has shown us the way,” Maddock said. He joined Bones and the two of them tugged at the tile. It came free immediately, revealing a square shaft and a series of rusted iron rungs.
“Everybody down,” Bones said. “If we’re quick, I can have this thing back in place before the pajama patrol gets here.”
Dima went down first, followed by Stone, Maddock, and then Bones. They didn’t know how deep the shaft might be or whether the iron rungs would hold, but it was the best option available to them. They descended in the darkness until Dima announced that she had hit the bottom.
When Maddock’s feet hit solid ground, he stepped quickly to the side, but not before Bones shouted, “Look out!” Maddock hit the ground hard as his friend’s bulk landed atop him.
“Did you forget how to climb?” he grunted.
“The rung gave way. You must have weakened it. I keep telling you to lose weight Maddock.”
“You have got to stop falling on me.”
“Where are we?” Dima asked.
Bones looked around. “Ancient sewer system,” he said.
“And how do we get out?”
Bones grinned. “No clue.”
They began exploring the maze of tunnels that twisted and turned in the darkness far below the Vatican. Several times they hit dead ends and were forced to backtrack. These ancient tunnels were crumbling in places and water dripped from the ceiling. Maddock hoped everything would not come tumbling down on top of them.
“Are we lost?” Dima finally asked.
“Not at all,” Bones said. “We’re just eliminating all the dead-end passageways first. Once we’ve taken all the wrong turns, the only way left will be the way out.”
“That’s not very comforting,” she said, but she did not raise any more questions.
After two hours of exploring, or, more accurately, wandering, the passageway began to slope upward. Here, the walls were sturdier and showed no signs of leakage. Heartened, Maddock picked up the pace. They climbed and climbed until he was certain they must be approaching ground level.
“Do I hear voices?” Bones asked.
They stopped to listen. Sure enough the dull sound of conversation emanated from up ahead. They hurried on, turned a corner, and skidded to a halt in front of a blank wall.
“Holy crap. You’ve got to be kidding.” Bones lashed out with a vicious front kick, slamming his booted heel into the wall. With a loud crash, the aging mortar crumbled and several of the stones flew outward, opening a gap in the wall large enough for a man to fit through. Bright light and fresh air streamed in.
“I guess we found the way out.” Bones flashed a sheepish grin and then peered out the hole he had unintentionally made. “Uh oh.”
“What is it?” All of Maddock’s senses were on high alert. Had the Swiss Guard caught up with them, or perhaps the Trident?
“Just follow me. And run.” With that, Bones plunged through the hole and took off.
Dima and Stone followed, and Maddock brought up the rear. When he burst out into the open he was surprised to find himself looking up at the stands of an ancient arena. The years had been unkind, it still retained hints of its previous majesty. Even now, he had to marvel at the skill of the hands which crafted this ancient wonder. All around, tourists gaped at them. He didn’t waste time trying to explain. He just ran.
Leave it to Bones to bust a hole in the Colosseum.
Chapter 31
Tyson navigated the throng of tourists outside St. Peter’s Basilica. He hated crowds, especially when he was in a hurry. The intel he had received indicated that Dima Zafrini had left Turkey on a flight to Rome. Also, he finally had names for the two men with whom she was traveling: Dane Maddock and Uriah Bonebrake. Both were former Navy SEALs who had turned to treasure hunting. Oddly, the Trident’s best men had been unable to learn much about their backgrounds. Great portions of their service records were locked down tightly, and bits of their civilian lives seem to have vanished. It was highly suspicious and suggested that they had powerful connections. He didn’t need a report, however, to realize Bonebrake was related to the old man whose family had protected the secret of the Noah Stone for so many years. That made this personal for Bonebrake, which meant the man would not be easily diverted. That was fine by Tyson. He looked forward to evening the score with the two men when he finally caught up to them.
“You think they’re here?” Ahmed asked, his hand resting too close to the spot where his pistol was concealed.
“A traffic camera spotted them heading in this direction.” Tyson never cease to be amazed at the sorts of connections the Trident had. They even had eyes among the Polizia in Rome. “Bonebrake stands out in a crowd. Once they picked him out, the other two were easy to recognize.”
> “I can’t wait to catch up to them,” Ahmed said. “I owe Maddock for what he did to Felipe.”
Tyson felt his hackles rise at the mention of their friend whom Maddock had taken down in the ice cave. Felipe was still hospitalized with a concussion. It further galled him that, once again, Zafrini had gotten away. If he and Ahmed didn’t catch them soon, things could get ugly.
“Any idea where they would have gone?” Ahmed asked, craning his head to see over the mass of humanity that milled about the famed basilica.
“I think the tomb of St. Peter makes the most sense considering its history.” Tyson had heard rumors of secret places beneath the ancient tomb. Perhaps Zafrini had found something more definite. “The rest of the place is like a museum, so it’s doubtful they’d bother with it.”
“We’ll have to hurry to catch them.”
Tyson shook his head. “The tomb area is a dead end so we should be able to trap them there.”
“Fine. Let’s get on with it. I’m tired of Zafrini’s narrow escapes. If we could just get these bloody tourists out of the way.” Ahmed shot an angry look at an elderly man with a walker who barred their way.
Growing impatient, Tyson forced his way forward until he reached the spot where the Scavi tour began. An annoyed-looking man in a Swiss Guard uniform moved to block his way. Tyson’s first reaction was to knock the fellow down, but nothing good would come of that.
“Excuse me, but we were supposed to meet some friends for the Scavi tour, and I’m afraid we are running late. Have you seen them? A tall American Indian, a blond man, and a Jordanian woman? Fairly attractive?”
The guard’s frown deepened until his eyebrows almost touched. “I think you should come with me, sir.”
Tyson was suddenly aware of the other guards milling about. He had been so focused on looking for Maddock’s party that he had failed to notice something was very wrong. All around him were the subtle signs of a major disturbance: men in suits interviewing witnesses; other men, hands pressed to their ears, speaking rapidly in Italian; members of the Swiss Guard in their colorful uniforms stalking back and forth, looking like caged dogs ready to be released for the hunt.