Maddock slipped down into the hole, which was only about two meters deep. He hit the ground and looked around. Walled by the same ancient rock that comprised the crypt above them, the passageway in which he now stood descended at a steep angle. Not waiting for the others, he moved on, working his way down until he reached a stone staircase. He paused at the top while the others caught up.
“You know, this underground passageway stuff is getting old,” Bones said.
“If the past few years are any indication, it’s our destiny to explore them all.”
“I guess. So what’s down there?”
The staircase led down into what appeared to be an antechamber with a tiled floor and a high ceiling. On the far side of the room stood a door, but it was not at all what Maddock had expected to find beneath an ancient crypt.
“Holy crap. That thing is high tech,” Bones said.
The door was modern, made of sturdy metal. On the wall to its left hung a security device, some sort of card reader by the look of it. And above the door a security camera looked down on the antechamber.
“I suppose if the Vatican really does keep their super secret books down here, they rely on more than puzzles and trapdoors to protect them.” Maddock turned to look at the others. “This changes things. Even if we can get past that door, we have to assume security will know we are here and will send men in after us.”
“And even if we get away, our faces will be captured on camera,” Dima said. “We will be international criminals.”
“I can get us past the door,” Stone said.
“And I can take care that camera if you’ve got some lipstick on you,” Bones said to Dima.
“How about lip balm?” Dima reached into her pocket and pulled out a tube of ChapStick. “I figured I wouldn’t need to try and look beautiful on this trip.”
“Like you even need to try.” Bones gave her a wink and took the tube of lip balm. “Perfect.” Bones moved to the far side of the staircase, hugged the wall, and hurried down. When he reached the antechamber he again pressed himself against the wall and circled the room, remaining out of sight of the camera as he made his way to the door. When he arrived at the door, he uncapped the lip balm, reached up, and coated the camera lens with the waxy substance.
“I’m sure that raised an alarm somewhere,” Maddock said. “We’d better hurry.”
Stone was down the stairs and across the antechamber in a flash, his long legs eating up the ground in great strides. He took out an object the size of a credit card with a short cord attached to it. He slid it into the security card reader and plugged the other end of the cord into a cell phone-sized object. He tapped a few buttons, the screen on his device flashed in a series of numbers scrolled across. Maddock held his breath until the light on the card reader flashed green and the door swung open.
“Tam can be a bear to work for,” Stone said, “but occasionally she gives us some great toys to play with.”
They stepped inside a small room, their way barred by a plexiglass wall with a small door set in the center.
“Climate controlled,” Dima said. “To help protect the documents.” She pushed the door open and stepped inside, the others following.
This room was tiny, no more than five meters square. A small wooden table and two chairs sat at the center and against the far wall stood a glass case containing perhaps forty books and scrolls, all of which looked very old and very fragile.
Dima hurried over to the case and let out a gasp. “I can’t believe this. The Gospel of Mary Magdalene, The Gospel of Judas…” She opened the case and reached for one of the scrolls but quickly pulled her hand back. “What am I thinking?” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a pair of cotton gloves which she slipped on before retrieving the scroll. She unrolled it enough to see the first line of text. “The Book of Lucifer,” she whispered. “I didn’t believe this one existed. Positively amazing.”
“Not to rush you or anything,” Stone said, but I have a feeling the Swiss Guard headed our way the moment we opened that door. Unless, of course, they noticed what Bones did to the security camera, in which case we have even less time.”
“I’m sorry, it’s just that these books… Never mind.” Dima hastily scanned the shelves, reached in, and took out a tiny leather bound volume. “This is bound in human skin,” she said, her face twisting into a grimace. She opened the cover and smiled. “This is it. Let’s go.”
They quickly exited the room, but Stone raised his hand immediately, bring them all to a halt. “It’s too late. The guard is coming.” Indeed, voices and footsteps echoed through the room. “You three hide. I’ll let myself get caught and you can sneak away once I’ve gone. Tam can get me out.”
“Thanks for that, but it might not be necessary,” Bones said. He didn’t explain, but turned and headed back inside the room. “Let’s play a game I like to call follow the conspiracy theorist.” He hurried to the small table and dropped to the ground. “According to one of my favorite web forums, the Templars had trapdoors and tunnels all around the Vatican, though nobody knows where they might lead. All of them were marked by the Templar cross.” He pointed to the large stone tile on the floor beneath the table. It was marked by the famed red cross.
“It wouldn’t be the first time this cross has shown us the way,” Maddock said. He joined Bones and the two of them tugged at the tile. It came free immediately, revealing a square shaft and a series of rusted iron rungs.
“Everybody down,” Bones said. “If we’re quick, I can have this thing back in place before the pajama patrol gets here.”
Dima went down first, followed by Stone, Maddock, and then Bones. They didn’t know how deep the shaft might be or whether the iron rungs would hold, but it was the best option available to them. They descended in the darkness until Dima announced that she had hit the bottom.
When Maddock’s feet hit solid ground, he stepped quickly to the side, but not before Bones shouted, “Look out!” Maddock hit the ground hard as his friend’s bulk landed atop him.
“Did you forget how to climb?” he grunted.
“The rung gave way. You must have weakened it. I keep telling you to lose weight Maddock.”
“You have got to stop falling on me.”
“Where are we?” Dima asked.
Bones looked around. “Ancient sewer system,” he said.
“And how do we get out?”
Bones grinned. “No clue.”
They began exploring the maze of tunnels that twisted and turned in the darkness far below the Vatican. Several times they hit dead ends and were forced to backtrack. These ancient tunnels were crumbling in places and water dripped from the ceiling. Maddock hoped everything would not come tumbling down on top of them.
“Are we lost?” Dima finally asked.
“Not at all,” Bones said. “We’re just eliminating all the dead-end passageways first. Once we’ve taken all the wrong turns, the only way left will be the way out.”
“That’s not very comforting,” she said, but she did not raise any more questions.
After two hours of exploring, or, more accurately, wandering, the passageway began to slope upward. Here, the walls were sturdier and showed no signs of leakage. Heartened, Maddock picked up the pace. They climbed and climbed until he was certain they must be approaching ground level.
“Do I hear voices?” Bones asked.
They stopped to listen. Sure enough the dull sound of conversation emanated from up ahead. They hurried on, turned a corner, and skidded to a halt in front of a blank wall.
“Holy crap. You’ve got to be kidding.” Bones lashed out with a vicious front kick, slamming his booted heel into the wall. With a loud crash, the aging mortar crumbled and several of the stones flew outward, opening a gap in the wall large enough for a man to fit through. Bright light and fresh air streamed in.
“I guess we found the way out.” Bones flashed a sheepish grin and then peered out the hole he had unintentionally made. “Uh oh.”
“What is it?” All of Maddock’s senses were on high alert. Had the Swiss Guard caught up with them, or perhaps the Trident?
“Just follow me. And run.” With that, Bones plunged through the hole and took off.
Dima and Stone followed, and Maddock brought up the rear. When he burst out into the open he was surprised to find himself looking up at the stands of an ancient arena. The years had been unkind, it still retained hints of its previous majesty. Even now, he had to marvel at the skill of the hands which crafted this ancient wonder. All around, tourists gaped at them. He didn’t waste time trying to explain. He just ran.
Leave it to Bones to bust a hole in the Colosseum.