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Rochelle,’ Caedmon said thoughtfully. Then, frowning, he posed the obvious: ‘So why didn’t Brother Fortes pull up anchor and elude capture while he still had a chance to save himself?’
    ‘I wondered the same thing,’ Gita replied as she opened a paper packet and dropped a sugar cube into her tea cup. ‘That’s the reason why I contacted the Vatican Secret Archives. Since the archives are only open to scholars and researchers, I used my museum credentials to make an official request for the Inquisition records pertaining to Fortes de Pinós.’
    ‘In your request, did you happen to mention the Maharaja plate or the Evangelium Gaspar ?’
    In the process of raising the cup to her lips, Gita instead lowered it to the table. ‘I mentioned both of them at length,’ she informed him, her brows drawing together.
    ‘Back up a minute,’ Edie said, inserting herself into the conversation. ‘If the archives are secret, how can someone request, let alone examine, the records?’
    Shifting his hips slightly, Caedmon turned in her direction. ‘The name is misleading. Although the Archivo Segreto Vaticano is the repository for all records pertaining to the Holy See, it’s merely “secret” in the medieval sense of the word, meaning that those records are the personal property of the Pope. In fact, the archives have been opened to scholars since the late nineteenth century.’ He returned his attention to Gita. ‘Did anyone at the Vatican Secret Archives answer your request?’
    ‘Not exactly.’ A strange look crept into her eyes. ‘While I did receive the requested Inquisition records, it wasn’t sent by anyone at the Vatican. It was forwarded by an unaffiliated person named Irenaeus.’
    Caedmon took a moment to consider the admittedly odd twist. ‘A tongue-in-cheek alias, I’ll warrant. St Irenaeus was the early Church Father who decreed which gospels would be included in the official canon. He believed, rightly or wrongly, that because there were four corners of the earth, there could only be four authentic gospels. All other gospels, of which there were scores, were condemned as “heretical”.’ His jaw tightened. In the aftermath of that sweeping ban, books were burned and whole libraries destroyed. ‘And I wouldn’t jump to the conclusion that the records weren’t sent by someone at the Vatican,’ he added, wondering if the Church was still trying to root out the Templar heresy. If so, it meant the clerics in Rome not only had a long memory, but a very long reach.
    Just what the hell was contained in the Evangelium Gaspar ?
    ‘ When did you receive the Inquisition records?’
    ‘The records were sent to me on t he same day that Anala was abducted.’ Tears welling in her eyes, Gita wrapped both hands around her tea cup, the trembling having recommenced. ‘The email stated that Anala was being held for ransom and that she wouldn’t be released until I found the Evangelium Gaspar. ’ Sniffling softly, she snatched a paper napkin from the table and swiped at an errant tear.
    ‘ Did you bring the Inquisition records with you?’ Caedmon asked in a neutral tone, hoping to put a wet flannel on Gita before she combusted.
    Still sniffling, she said, ‘I have it on my laptop. Irenaeus sent both the Latin original and a translated copy.’
    ‘What a considerate bastard. Did you reply to his email?’
    Gita nodded shakily. ‘ I informed Irenaeus that I couldn’t possibly locate the Evangelium Gaspar based on the Inquisition transcript that he sent to me.’ She spun the notebook computer in her direction and pulled up a new file. ‘Although I begged him to send additional information, he sent only a five word reply: “Find it or she dies.”. Which is when, out of sheer desperation, I immediately booked a flight to Paris.’
    ‘ Right. Let’s see what we’ve got.’ Caedmon swiveled the computer so that he and Edie could read the transcript.
     
     
    Chinon Castle, 15 March, 1308
    In the name of