Page 27 of The Medici Return

“This has been an eventful day,” Ascolani said. “More so than I ever imagined this morning when I woke. Cardinal Richter has been suspended and ordered to Munich until the trial is over. We, though, have an extremely delicate situation developing. We are going to have that much more detailed conversation now. One that, as you observed earlier, is troubling me.”

His host poured two generous measures of whiskey into tumblers and offered one to him.

“If you would indulge me,” Ascolani said. “I need to tell you a story that will help place things in context.”

In 1542 the growing Protestant Reformation made Catholic authorities more suspect than ever of new ideas. Eliminating heretics became complicated by the politics of Protestant powers, especially those in Northern Europe. The Catholic Church could no longer do as it pleased, especially in lands that had officially adopted Protestantism. So Pope Paul III established the Congregation of the Holy Office of the Inquisition to maintain and defend the integrity of the faith from all enemies. A Dominicannamed Miguel Ghislieri was summoned to Rome and charged with collecting information the Inquisition might need. Ghislieri lived a simple life in poverty and moved about on foot. His irreproachable conduct and uncompromising attitude were well known. Within a year over twelve hundred people were judged by Inquisitorial courts, more than two hundred of them being tortured, found guilty, and executed. In 1551 Ghislieri was promoted to head of the Inquisition. He quickly set about reorganizing the office and assembling a network of spies. Little to nothing happened in Rome, or within the Vatican, without him knowing. In 1557 Ghislieri was made a cardinal. By then he possessed so much confidential information on so many that no one challenged him.

Not even popes.

His “black monks” wreaked havoc.

But when Paul IV died suddenly in 1559, the cardinals became emboldened, hunting down Ghislieri’s spies and killing them all. The masses even attacked the palace where the Inquisition held its trials. Cardinal Ghislieri barely escaped with his life. Peace returned on Christmas Day 1559 when Cardinal Giovanni Angelo de’ Medici was elected pope as Pius IV. He was intent on purging all that had occurred through the Inquisition, so his first order of business was to send Ghislieri into exile and dissolve his network of black monks. Ghislieri took refuge in a Carthusian monastery, Santa Maria di Castello, and stayed there for six years until Pius IV died in 1565.

On January 7, 1566, Ghislieri was elected pope.

He chose the name Pius V.

By then everyone had grown terrified of the Protestant Reformation and wanted a pope who could take on the movement. Ghislieri’s experience at heading the Inquisition made him perfect for the job. He promptly created the Holy Alliance, the first official papal intelligence service, and turned it loose on the world. Pius V reigned for only six years, dying in 1572.

His war on Protestantism failed.

But the Holy Alliance lived on.

Ascolani reached for a pack of cigarettes on a side table and slipped one between his lips. He lit it and exhaled the smoke quickly, as if ridding himself of something unpleasant. “An odd name, wouldn’t you say? The Entity. I have no idea how that came about. Of course, since we never officially acknowledge it even exists, I suppose we could call it whatever we desire.”

Stefano was wondering why he was here. Most of what Ascolani had just said he knew. But he also knew to keep quiet and listen.

“I need you to find something for me,” Ascolani said.

Okay. Progress.

“When Giovanni Angelo de’ Medici was elected as Pius IV and banished Cardinal Ghislieri into exile, Ghislieri took with him all of the records of the Inquisition.”

He’d not known that.

Ascolani finished the cigarette and stubbed out the butt in a crystal ashtray, while exhaling a stream of blue smoke. “It has long been thought that Ghislieri took other documents, unrelated to the Inquisition, with him too. Especially those that a Medici pope might find important.” The older man assumed a deliberately casual and unconcerned pose. “Are you loyal, Father Giumenta? To the church? The pope? Me?”

He noticed the drop in tone, and the omission ofGod. Definitely an odd question. But add it to the list when dealing with this man, whom he regarded with a mixture of apprehension and admiration.

“I don’t think my loyalty to any of those you mentioned has ever been questioned.”

“We are about to embark on something that has far-reaching implications. Much farther than Eric Casaburi and his current political ambitions, though they remain a growing concern. Thankfully, though, the mission I am about to assign to you should resolve both matters.”

“I am at your disposal.”

“Yes, you are. So listen carefully.”

CHAPTER 17

COTTON APPROACHED THE TRAIN AND SIGHTED DOWN THE LENGTHof cars. A scattering of passengers had already boarded, more coming on.

The woman had to be aboard.

The doors hissed open and he stepped inside, the train throbbing, waiting anxiously to leave. A clanking of mechanical joints signaled an imminent departure. The German railway was famous for being on time. Today seemed no exception. The doors closed and the train moved without a sound, gliding from the station. No bells or whistles or announcements. Just moving. Slow at first, then gathering speed.

He sat down opposite a young couple, their eyes half closed, their heads together, hands touching lightly. They smiled, not looking at each other, obviously drawing strength from the other’s presence. He thought of Cassiopeia. He hadn’t seen her in a couple of weeks. He’d asked her to come along, but she’d been needed in France at her rebuilding site. What an effort. Erecting a thirteenth-century castle from the ground up using only the tools and materials of the era. She was passionate about the project and told him she needed to make up time from some recent setbacks. He admired her dedication. She was a smart, sassy, brave woman who’d saved his hide more than once. And he loved her.

As she did him.

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