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Authors: Eric Giacometti, Jacques Ravenne
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services before suddenly requesting a transfer to a simple Parisian precinct. An additional page specified that during his stint in intelligence, he attended a certain Freemason lodge that also had several members who were involved in a money-laundering scheme. He was divorced, had a ten-year-old son, paid his child support every month, and spent his spare time writing articles about Freemason history.
Darsan closed that file and opened Jade Zewinski’s. She boasted a remarkable career for someone her age with no family connections. She ranked in the top ten of her class at the military academy and did commando training, foreign intelligence, and two operations in the Middle East, followed by security in Afghanistan for visiting media and politicians. After that, she had been sent to Rome.
He went through another ten or so pages before a press clipping caught his attention. Her father had committed suicide after his business failed. Smiling, Darsan read the article twice. Apparently Jade Zewinski had at least one good reason to dislike the Freemasons. He closed the file and called his secretary.
17
A breeze carried the scent of the sea, which mingled with the fragrance of the pine trees. Five men and two women walked slowly, taking time to contemplate the beauty of the Croatian landscape just below the Hvar fortress. The tallest of them, a gray-haired man with a buzz cut, pointed to a small headland jutting out toward the sea, flanked by two crumbling stone walls rising from the rocky soil. To the left, near the cliff, a small chapel surrounded by three majestic yew trees bore a pale mineral sheen in the bright sunlight.
The group headed in the indicated direction, following an uphill path lined with aromatic herbs. It ended at a natural belvedere.
They sat down on a wooden bench facing the Adriatic Sea, which shimmered in the bright morning light.
One of them, a short sweaty man with a red face, turned to his neighbor and nodded toward the chapel, which was padlocked. “What a fabulous view. I’d love to live here. It’s perfect, an ode to the glory of nature. Why, then, did you leave that Christian building? We’ve owned this land forever and can do what we want with it.”
The gray-haired man sitting next to him smiled and patted his shoulder. His steely eyes were bright. “Patience. I assure you it is no longer in use, and I have set it aside for a rather special purpose. You will see, but first, let’s talk about what has brought us together. We now have the Tebah Stone, or at least it is in good hands. Sol should pick it up in Paris shortly. Unfortunately, the Rome operation was a failure. We don’t have the documents.”
Nobody reacted. Finally, a thin balding man with light brown eyes spoke up. “That’s regrettable. I remind you that we need three things to solve this mystery. The first has always been in our possession. The second is engraved on that Jewish stone, and the third, which you failed to get, remains in enemy hands. And now they will be on guard. The murders in Jerusalem and Rome bear our signature. That was your idea.”
“We will get them. I’ve already given the orders.”
“He’s right,” the short man chimed in. “I told you this operation could be dangerous and draw attention to us. What for? You and Sol have been leading us on a ghost hunt. Don’t forget that our enemies are powerful and have a sprawling network.”
“Enough. Let me remind you that the ritual surrounding their deaths fulfills a promise made by our ancestors.”
“I still think we are losing our focus with this folklore. We have more important goals. This is a minor operation.”
The man with the buzz cut glanced at the chapel, stood up, and softened his tone. “You’re right. I don’t know what came over me. The weather is excellent. Let’s not argue. I suggest we go commune in the chapel.”
The others stared at him, as if he had gone mad. He burst out laughing.
“Come with me. Let’s enter
Darsan closed that file and opened Jade Zewinski’s. She boasted a remarkable career for someone her age with no family connections. She ranked in the top ten of her class at the military academy and did commando training, foreign intelligence, and two operations in the Middle East, followed by security in Afghanistan for visiting media and politicians. After that, she had been sent to Rome.
He went through another ten or so pages before a press clipping caught his attention. Her father had committed suicide after his business failed. Smiling, Darsan read the article twice. Apparently Jade Zewinski had at least one good reason to dislike the Freemasons. He closed the file and called his secretary.
17
A breeze carried the scent of the sea, which mingled with the fragrance of the pine trees. Five men and two women walked slowly, taking time to contemplate the beauty of the Croatian landscape just below the Hvar fortress. The tallest of them, a gray-haired man with a buzz cut, pointed to a small headland jutting out toward the sea, flanked by two crumbling stone walls rising from the rocky soil. To the left, near the cliff, a small chapel surrounded by three majestic yew trees bore a pale mineral sheen in the bright sunlight.
The group headed in the indicated direction, following an uphill path lined with aromatic herbs. It ended at a natural belvedere.
They sat down on a wooden bench facing the Adriatic Sea, which shimmered in the bright morning light.
One of them, a short sweaty man with a red face, turned to his neighbor and nodded toward the chapel, which was padlocked. “What a fabulous view. I’d love to live here. It’s perfect, an ode to the glory of nature. Why, then, did you leave that Christian building? We’ve owned this land forever and can do what we want with it.”
The gray-haired man sitting next to him smiled and patted his shoulder. His steely eyes were bright. “Patience. I assure you it is no longer in use, and I have set it aside for a rather special purpose. You will see, but first, let’s talk about what has brought us together. We now have the Tebah Stone, or at least it is in good hands. Sol should pick it up in Paris shortly. Unfortunately, the Rome operation was a failure. We don’t have the documents.”
Nobody reacted. Finally, a thin balding man with light brown eyes spoke up. “That’s regrettable. I remind you that we need three things to solve this mystery. The first has always been in our possession. The second is engraved on that Jewish stone, and the third, which you failed to get, remains in enemy hands. And now they will be on guard. The murders in Jerusalem and Rome bear our signature. That was your idea.”
“We will get them. I’ve already given the orders.”
“He’s right,” the short man chimed in. “I told you this operation could be dangerous and draw attention to us. What for? You and Sol have been leading us on a ghost hunt. Don’t forget that our enemies are powerful and have a sprawling network.”
“Enough. Let me remind you that the ritual surrounding their deaths fulfills a promise made by our ancestors.”
“I still think we are losing our focus with this folklore. We have more important goals. This is a minor operation.”
The man with the buzz cut glanced at the chapel, stood up, and softened his tone. “You’re right. I don’t know what came over me. The weather is excellent. Let’s not argue. I suggest we go commune in the chapel.”
The others stared at him, as if he had gone mad. He burst out laughing.
“Come with me. Let’s enter
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