Papal decree

41

Everything that exists is perfect and sacred because it was created by God in His great glory for the use of those who believe in Him, amen.

He believed this blindly, so he needed nothing more than he already had. He met her at the same time for lunch, grilled dorado with sauteed vegetables and an original touch of two tiger shrimps, also grilled.

She asked him about the verse of the day, which she almost chanted with respect and explained its meaning as he had done when he left the verses each week on her bedside table. It was the LORD who made this, and it is marvelous in our eyes. Everyone should be required to read the Bible, but that reading should never be done in private or independently. It should be done with the aid of a priest or theologian to understand what is not clear and to avoid bringing mistaken ideas to the Holy Scriptures. The unguided reading of the Word of the Lord was an evil that the church had always combated, not as severely as it should, in his opinion, and spread erroneous opinions about what God really had proclaimed. God wanted everyone to read the holy text without misunderstanding or difficulty.

He savored the dorado, vegetables, and shrimp frugally, along with a glass of white Frascati ’98, with a slightly sweet aftertaste that went down well. She drank water, since the blood of Christ was exclusively for men and denied to women, whose obligation was to subordinate themselves to a man and do what he ordered, or so taught the great Saint Paul, the father of the church, on a par with Peter.

After lunch she took the dishes from the table to the kitchen to wash them, as was her duty. He wasn’t long in joining her and putting his arms around her as she ran the dishes through soapy water. He whispered in her ear, ordering her to go to the bedroom. She put down the plates, turned off the faucet, and went.

The syringe expelled the sedative drug into her veins, and two minutes later she lost consciousness. He positioned himself over her inanimate body and enjoyed his carnal pleasure. It didn’t take long, two or three minutes, to empty himself in a quick climax that left him feeling disgusted with himself and her. He bathed, scrubbed himself well to wash the stains from his body, the weakness of the flesh. He felt nausea. When he was finished, she was still sleeping. It was time to go back to work.

A third of the order had been completed. Two names remained. Rafael Santini and the other. He wasn’t interested in who they were or what they did. If God had called them, it was because their hour had come, and no one could escape his hour. The message said that Rafael’s hour had come, so he would try him first. He always worked one name at a time.

He decided to take the cell phone. He opened it, took out the battery and programming card, and inserted another. He put in the battery and started the phone. As soon as it was on, he entered a code: MONITASECRETA.

The call was placed automatically without his doing anything. Seconds later the screen showed a phrase: Call completed. He wrote, Deus vocat.

In a moment a word appeared: Nomini.

He entered, Rafael Santini.

The reply did not take long: Tonight. Via dei Soldati. Wait for instructions.

He disconnected. He opened the Bible at random and put his finger on a verse. He read it and smiled.