Marc Chadbourn - The Devil in green

'You went to see Hipgrave this morning, didn't you?' Miller said curiously.

'Yes.' Mallory had known it was only a matter of time before Stefan did something to bolster his position, so he wasn't surprised to see him striding up to the dig with his fawning entourage.

'How is he?'

'Still locked in.'

Miller looked blank at this response, then said, 'Are you OK, Mallory? You seem a little distant today. Have I done something to offend you?'

'Nothing more than usual.'

They hushed as Stefan prepared to give an impromptu oration, only as he began to intone gravely, it was soon apparent that it wasn't impromptu at all: the words had been carefully crafted.

'I have an important announcement to make,' he said, after climbing atop a pile of masonry. 'We have had many hardships heaped upon us in recent times, and it would seem to me — and, I would think, to most people here — that we have been failing our Lord. We have not been devout enough… pure enough. We have not turned our hearts and minds to the teachings of the Lord God, our Father. We have not expunged the sins of our past lives. Rather, we have allowed them to grow fruitful on the vines of our souls, and to the Lord, that could only be an abomination. And so it is time for us to cleanse ourselves.'

Mallory tried to guess what tricks Stefan had planned, but the bishop was always cunning.

'Our sacred relic, which has made this cathedral so strong, is filled with God's power,' he continued. 'And through prayer, deep in the spirit, our Lord has illuminated me on its workings. It can, quite literally, see into the depths of a soul. It can find out your sins. We — the Chapter of Canons and myself — have decided to use that power to enable us all to cleanse ourselves… to make us closer to God in every way, so that we can overcome these trials presented to us. One by one, every brother shall be brought before the relic to have their sins divined. In the glorious light of true confession and personal revelation, we shall all find our earthly redemption.'

It took a while for the meaning of his words to filter through to the crowd's consciousness, and when it did it was not welcomed with the universal acclaim of the bishop's past orations. But that was clearly what he intended. It must have been in the planning for a while; Stefan had hinted at it on the previous evening. It was an undoubted masterstroke. In the eyes of the hardliners, everyone had sinned, and all the brothers knew it; somewhere in the deep recesses of the heart, everyone had a little unpleasantness tucked away. It might not be anything bad — a touch of jealousy, a wisp of pride, a hint of sloth, basic human flaws — but the Bible told them it was wrong and the programming of their religion made it impossible to shake that at the most basic level. Mallory had come to understand how the concept of sin was like a constant buzz in the background of everyday life for the devout.

And Stefan had pointedly failed to mention what he, or the inquisitors, or the other Church authorities would do once they knew everyone's dirty little secrets. Would they simply absolve everyone with a little prayer? Would they hold it in abeyance to gain leverage? Or would they pass judgment?

There was nothing so good for diverting peoples' attention from dissent as the contemplation of their own inner lives. Their security on earth and their chances of eternal reward — or eternal damnation — lay in the balance. How clever Stefan was.

'I wonder if the relic can actually do that, or if this is another of Stefan's little manipulations?' Mallory mused.

Miller appeared to have no views on the matter — he simply continued to watch the activity of the diggers — but Mallory guessed there would be very few others taking the news so calmly.

The digging continued at a frantic pace under the relentless insistence of Blaine and the Blues. No rest was allowed and when anyone flagged they were instantly replaced. Errors were pointed out harshly, so that work proceeded both quickly and with the utmost care. With the judicious use of the timber and masonry, they managed to avoid any further tunnel collapses, but the removal of the shale and gravel covering most of that area was backbreaking work. Even so, it appeared they would be through before the day was done.

However, the cancellation of lunch after the abandonment of breakfast caused a rising tide of concern, and when the evening mealtime approached with no sign of activity in the refectory, panic began to surface. Whatever denials were issued, everyone knew that the only explanation could be that supplies had finally been exhausted.

A large crowd gathered at the bishop's palace as night fell. There was anger, and fear, and raised voices. Stefan came out, and for the first time Mallory saw a hint of anxiety that events were running out of his control, that his hard-fought position was slipping away from him. But he controlled himself, as he always did, and told them there would be fresh supplies that very evening. The tunnel would be completed and food would be brought through from the adjoining camp; and it wouldn't be a thin diet of vegetables. It would be a time of celebration after all their hardship. They had his word on that.

That made the bishop a hostage to fortune at a time when he had so much to lose, but Mallory knew Stefan would never allow himself to fail. He was a consummate politician who would have succeeded whether his chosen sphere had been business, Parliament or anywhere else where hard, driven people could rise to the top.

Mallory saw it reflected in Stefan's expression as he turned to go: the bishop knew that, while his words had eased the minds of some of the protestors, there were others present who had set their hearts against him. That expression said so many things to Mallory, but most of all it showed a frightening determination that transcended basic human boundaries. Mallory was worried by what he saw there.

For that reason, he feared the worst when he was summoned to the bishop's palace as twilight fell. The lack of food had left his stomach aching as if he'd eaten sour apples, and the raw cold was eating its way into his bones. The snow had started falling again in the late afternoon, slowly bringing a pristine covering to the churned-up slush where the mob had waited outside the official residence.

Stefan's personal assistant, a man in his late fifties with a troubling smile and an oily nature, showed Mallory into the drawing room where a fire blazed. The warmth was such a relief that Mallory's heart leaped. He was instantly struck by the glitter of Christmas decorations: tinsel and streamers were strung across the wall and ceilings, and several small candles illuminated a well-worn Nativity scene laid out on the antique sideboard. It was so incongruous in the bitter air of hardship that hung over the entire cathedral compound that he wondered if Stefan had gone crazy from the stress.

Stefan sat in a high-backed leather armchair next to the fire, his face placid but his eyes alive with a disturbing passion. 'We must never forget our Lord's birth,' he said quietly, noticing the direction of Mallory's gaze, 'even amid all this pain and suffering. Especially because of it.'

Amid everything, Mallory hadn't once considered that Christmas was approaching.

Stefan appeared to read his thoughts. 'Compared with everything else that has been happening, Christmas might not seem important. But it is, it is. It is the reason why we must overcome, why even in the darkest hours there is always hope. It is a shining symbol that allows us to put into perspective all the passing misery of this dark world.'

Mallory watched Stefan cautiously, trying to see if this was the start of some manipulation. If it was, the bishop had hidden it well.

'I don't truly know you, Mr Mallory, but I know many like you,' he continued. 'You have an individual nature. You do not suffer fools gladly, and you have a strong disregard for authority. Unlike Mr Blaine, I do not believe that marks you out as a troublemaker. I am not so unconfident in my abilities that I feel the need to control everybody. Indeed, it is often healthy in any environment to have voices prepared to point out that the king has no clothes. Of course, that kind of commentary can only be allowed to go so far. It must never undermine the cohesiveness of any community.'