He raised his weapon and I held my breath. I had to move now. I pictured myself lunging for the Beretta, and tensed, ready to pounce.
The unbearable swell of expectation was punctured by the sound of my phone ringing. It was on the floor by the chair I’d been bound to. Stadler looked down at it.
“Justine,” he said.
“Maybe we can convince her to tell us where they are,” Cardinal Peralta said. “Or get her to come here.”
“Don’t!” I said, but Stadler picked up the phone and answered the call.
“Hello?” he said. “Ms. Smith?
“She wants to be on speaker,” he explained shortly afterward.
“Justine, no!” I said, but Stadler silenced me with a kick, and Cardinal Peralta pressed the barrel of his gun against Luna’s temple and eyed me menacingly.
“I want to talk to Cardinal Peralta,” Justine said. “I want him to hear what I have to say. Check your right lapel, Cardinal.”
Peralta looked down, and as his eyes widened, I realized I’d missed something incredibly important. There, clinging to his lapel, was one of our micro-drones.
“We used Jack’s phone to find him when he didn’t show up for our meeting,” Justine revealed. “We couldn’t get the drone into the cellar until you and Mr. Stadler arrived. We flew it in with you. It has been streaming live footage to the Internet ever since you set foot in that room.”
Cardinal Peralta was horrified. Horror quickly turned to rage.
I knew what was coming and sprang as he turned his gun on me.
I grabbed the Beretta, rolled over, and shot the Cardinal in the gut twice before he could pull the trigger.
The wooden door exploded in a storm of splinters and I recognized some of Antonelli’s men as they ran through the dust and smoke, brandishing machine guns.
They yelled at the Dark Fates in Italian, and Milan Verde’s men had the good sense to realize they were beaten.
I hauled myself to my feet and walked over to Peralta, who lay bleeding on the stone floor.
“It’s over,” I said. “You and your friends,” I gestured at Milan Verde and Joseph Stadler, “will face justice. You will have years to consider how you’ve betrayed your faith.”
“Jack!”
I glanced round to see Justine, Sci, Mo-bot, and Faduma enter.
I hobbled over to Justine and we embraced and kissed. She felt me wince.
“Oh my God,” she said. “You need a doctor.”
I kissed her again.
“You have no idea how good it is to see you.” I looked at Faduma, Sci, and Mo-bot. “All of you. I’m already feeling so much better.”
CHAPTER100
FATE PUT ME in the same place as Matteo Ricci, in Fatebenefratelli Hospital on the Isola Tiberina, in a private room tucked away under the eaves.
Justine, Mo-bot, and Sci came to visit me during my five-day stay. Cardinal Peralta had shot me in the shoulder, but the bullet had passed through muscle and bone and hadn’t harmed anything vital. Although it was painful and my mobility would be impaired for a while, my prognosis was good.
I was also visited by Inspector Mia Esposito, who wanted my testimony and details of everything we’d uncovered during our investigation. No amount of power or money could save Cardinal Peralta or Joseph Stadler. In fact, Stadler was feeling so much pressure from the police there was already talk of him doing a deal with the prosecutor, giving up Propaganda Tre in exchange for a shorter prison sentence.
On my fifth day in the hospital, as the warm summer wind was blowing over the Tiber and in at my open attic window, bringing with it the glorious rich smells of the city, Dr. Farid Jalili entered, a frown on his face, a chart and pen held in his hand. He made a point of studying my records, but I knew it was for show. I had taken a shine to the charismatic, funny doctor.
“It’s good news, Mr. Morgan.” He broke into a grin. “It looks like you’re fit to go. I can discharge you.”
