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statement.”
    “Anti-Christ?”
    Cardinal
Balbás cleared his throat. “ En tiempos bíblico, la serpiente fue el el agente de Satanás.”
    “We
recognized the Effigy as a physical manifestation of the Feathered Serpent,
Quetzalcoatl,” Father Ruiz explained. “You may recall it was Satan manifested
as a serpent who convinced Eve to eat the forbidden
fruit,” Father Ruiz explained. “However, Genesis 3:15 proclaims God’s triumph
over Satan when the serpent is crushed by the heel of Jesus Christ. So to hang
an image of the pagan feathered serpent in Christ’s place upon the cross is
blasphemous.”
    Peet
considered the priest’s words a moment. Despite the museum’s evidence, John
would never even consider using the Effigy to violate the chapel this way.
    However,
he knew someone who would.
    “This
reminds me of a religious experiment that was conducted in Salt Lake City,” Peet said. “Professor Matt
Webb from Brigham
Young University
wanted to expose similarities between religions, so he took items of importance
from different religious communities and scattered them amongst themselves. For
example, he placed a Jewish Torah in a Muslim mosque, he put the Book of Mormon in a Baptist sanctuary. He even placed a Catholic
crucifix in a Jewish synagogue. All to witness the reaction
of each religious sect.”
    “What
were the results?” Father Ruiz asked.
    “Just what you might expect. There were a lot of
upset people, to say the least. Instead of bringing the religions together with
their similarities, his experiment merely highlighted their intolerance for
each other. The problem was , he went so far as to
place a copy of the Koran in his own Mormon Tabernacle. That move cost him his
job at BYU.”
    “So
this profesor could have placed an image of the Quetzalcoatl deity onto our
crucifix?”
    Peet
shrugged. “It’s a long shot but there is a possibility. Matt was a professor in
anthropology with a particular interest in the Mayan culture. He spends a lot
of time digging in Yucatan.”
    Father
Ruiz shared a glance with Cardinal Balbás.
    “So
your friend has contacts among the Maya people, possibly?” Father Ruiz asked.
    Peet
frowned, confused. “I don’t know for a fact, but I would assume that he’s worked
with the Maya as he studied their culture.”
    “Senor
Peet,” the archbishop said. “I wonder if you might ayúdeme, ah—assist me.”
    Peet
was taken aback. “You need my help?”
    Cardinal
Balbás swept across the enclosed chapel to a collection of small paintings near
the main altar. “There are reliquias here dating as far back as this chapel’s
construcción in 1615.”
    “So
the Effigy was left as a reliquary relic?” Peet asked.
    Cardinal
Balbás shook his head. “After the Effigy was returned to the museo, one of the
auxiliary bishops re-sanctified the capilla. It was then that he noticed
something amiss with one of the reliquaries on the predella.”
    The
archbishop removed a small painting, revealing a hidden compartment behind it. “This
reliquia is vacant, no? No cruz.”
    Despite
the poor lighting, Peet could see that indeed, the small, dark compartment was
empty.
    “Could
it be your profesor friend traded the Effigy for the reliquia cross? Maybe he
plans to deposit the cross elsewhere?”
    Peet
felt hesitant. “You’re missing a cross and nothing more?”
    Again,
the priest caught the archbishop’s eye. “Nothing more.”
    Peet
shrugged. “I suppose its possible Matt may be extending his religious
experiment here, but you must receive a lot of visitors. A tourist could have
just as easily taken your cross as a souvenir.”
    The
archbishop shook his head. “Impossible. This is one of the few capillas we do
not allow turistas. It remains locked. Only I have the key.”
    “Could
someone have picked the lock?”
    “The
engineer,” Father Ruiz interrupted.
    Peet
hesitated. “An engineer?”
    “Structural engineer. Much of Mexico City is built over
a dry lake bed.