Michael Cordy - The Source

Bang.

Another report. Then silence.

He turned, horrified, and ran back to the antechamber.

Why would anyone be firing a high-powered rifle in the garden?

Moments earlier For an orphan bastard born in the gutters of Naples, Leonardo Torino had experienced many triumphs in his life, not least the day he became Superior General of the order that had moulded him. Nothing, however, came close to the elation he felt now. After stumbling through caves filled with bat filth and sulphur, he breathed in the fresh, scented air, wiped his stinging eyes and stared. Everywhere he looked there were plants from the Voynich and before him the circular lake described in Falcon's testimony, the forbidden caves too. An ecstatic tremor ran through him. Father Orlando's mythic garden existed and Torino would claim it for the Holy Mother Church. He would save the Church that had saved him. The whole world would bow down before her majesty and power, and depend on her for their salvation.

Torino turned to the soldiers. All were staring, open-mouthed, struggling to believe the vision before them.

'What is this place?' asked Fleischer.

Torino smiled. 'This, Feldwebel, is what we must claim for the Holy Mother Church. This is the Garden of God.'

Weber, the soldier who had followed Ross's party, raised his rifle. 'They're over there, to the right of the lake, and they've seen us.'

Torino raised his binoculars and saw a man and two women three hundred yards away. One was the red-haired student from America, the other the nun, Sister Chantal, but he didn't recognize the man. Ross Kelly wasn't with them. They were standing by a pile of backpacks, preparing to leave. He had got here just in time.

'They're armed,' said Fleischer, shouldering his weapon.

Torino saw the man bend to the backpacks, then pull out a revolver and a rifle. He handed the revolver to the red-haired woman and raised his rifle. Torino imagined how threatening armed soldiers must look, appearing suddenly in this isolated place.

'What are your orders?' said Fleischer.

Torino took in the situation. He could easily defuse matters. Tell the soldiers to lower their weapons, approach Kelly's party and show them the legal documents granting him possession of the garden. But then what? He couldn't let them leave. Aside from the soldiers, they were the only people who knew of this place's existence. They would undoubtedly tell others about it. Kelly certainly wouldn't go quietly, not without a cure for his wife and the opportunity to tell the world of his geological discovery. It wasn't in the Vatican's interests for anyone to know about the garden yet, not until Torino had learnt more about its power and decided how best to use it. Far better to stoke the conflict. Use his superior force to cow and control Kelly and his friends.

'These people are dangerous and can't be trusted,' he said. 'You must disarm them. Take no chances. Fire a warning shot.'

Weber did so. The man stood his ground and gestured for the women to run to the caves.

Weber fired another shot but the man still didn't flee or return fire. He edged backwards, gun raised, covering the women's retreat.

Weber pulled the rifle closer into his shoulder, peered down the sight and squeezed his finger on the trigger. 'I can disarm him from here.'

Torino raised his binoculars and scanned the garden for Kelly. He couldn't see him or anyone else. 'No, leave him. Let them gather in the caves. It'll make it easier to round them up.'

'It might be difficult to flush them out,' said Fleischer.

Torino smiled to himself. 'That won't be a problem, Feldwebel. Trust me.' He walked into the garden and headed for the caves. 'Come. Let's do God's work.'

The first thing Ross saw when he scrambled out of the tunnel was Mendoza crouching by the antechamber's small waterfall, gripping his rifle. 'Where the hell have you been?' he hissed.

Ross pointed back to the tunnel. 'I've been trying to find out what's behind this place. You won't believe what's up there.' He glanced anxiously to the back of the cave where the nymphs watched from the shadows. 'What were you shooting at?'

Mendoza shook his head. 'It wasn't me.' He pointed to the cave's entrance. 'Seems we've got company. We were packing to leave, getting a last look at the place, and I came to fetch you. These guys appeared out of nowhere.'

Ross crouched behind a boulder and peered out. Zeb and Sister Chantal were running towards him as fast as they could, Zeb clutching Hackett's revolver in her right hand. Hackett covered the rear, rifle raised, retreating at a more dignified pace towards the cave. Ross couldn't see who they were running from so he stood up. His blood ran cold. 'How the hell did he get here?' he muttered.

Father General Leonardo Torino looked different out of his robes but Ross knew him instantly. Dressed in thick boots, canvas trousers, a white cotton shirt and sleeveless jacket, he was flanked by four uniformed men, all armed and carrying large backpacks. They were clearly confident that their quarry couldn't escape.

When Zeb and Chantal reached Ross, they slumped down, panting, behind the next boulder. 'Give me the gun,' Ross said. Zeb was only too happy to hand it over. She looked scared but Sister Chantal's face was white with fury. Just as she had been about to fulfil her vow and surrender her responsibility for the garden, everything she had striven for, every sacrifice she had made, had come to nothing.

Hackett rushed in, cradling his rifle. He crouched beside Ross. 'Is our visitor your dodgy priest?'

'Father General Leonardo Torino.'

'What's he doing here?' Sister Chantal hissed. 'How did he find this place?'

'We must have led him,' Ross said.

'But how?' demanded Hackett. 'I thought we'd lost him when Osvaldo killed his pirates on the river.'

'I don't know,' said Ross. 'What happened out there? They just appeared?'

'Out of nowhere and began firing.'

'If they'd wanted to shoot you, you'd have been hit by now,' said Mendoza, from deeper within the cave. 'They wanted to contain us here.'

Hackett turned and glanced round the cave. 'Is there another way out?' He pointed to the tunnel. 'Where does that lead?'

'You don't want to go up there,' said Ross. He thought of the exit across the magma pool behind the antechamber. 'There's a possible way out at the back of the cave but it's not a route I'd recommend.'

'What do we do?' said Zeb. 'Fight them?'

Hackett grimaced. 'Those soldiers are well armed. And judging by their backpacks they've brought a mini arsenal with them.'

'We can't just let them take over this place,' said Sister Chantal.

Torino's voice boomed out across the lake. 'Dr Kelly, you and your party are trespassing.' He held up a leather attache case. 'I have the required legal documentation to claim this land. We mean you no harm but these soldiers are here to enforce my rightful claim.' The priest approached the forbidden caves, flanked by the soldiers. 'Show yourself. You have nothing to fear from us.'

Yeah, right, thought Ross. As he looked at the men's hard faces and weapons, the exit across the magma pool seemed more appealing. As Torino neared them, Hackett raised his rifle and Ross fingered his Glock. It seemed so puny. This was madness. They couldn't win. They'd only be killed. They had to accept defeat. Behind him, he heard the metallic click of Mendoza's rifle bolt engaging and Ross remembered how he had dispatched the three bandits on the river.

'Put your guns down or I'll shoot,' Mendoza ordered.

'You're a bit hopeful,' said Hackett, peering out of the cave. 'And you'll have to speak a lot louder than that if you want them to hear you.'

'Not them. You.'

Ross turned. Mendoza's rifle was trained on his chest. 'What?'