The Seville Communion Read Free Page A

he wore his pastoral ring, took the document from Monsignor Spada, and handed it himself to Lorenzo Quart.
    "Read this."
    Quart obeyed the order, which was spoken in Italian with a guttural Polish accent. On the sheet of paper were these printed lines:
    Holy Father,
    My audacity is justified by the gravity of the matter. At times the Holy See seems very far away, beyond the reach of the voices of the humble.
    In Spain, in Seville, there is a place where merchants are threatening the house of God and where a small seventeenth-century church, neglected both by the power of the Church and the lay authorities, kills to defend itself I beg you, Your Holiness, as a pastor and priest, to cast your eyes upon the most humble sheep in your flock and demand an explanation from those who have abandoned them to their fate.
    I beg for your blessing, in the name of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
    "This appeared on the Pope's personal computer," explained Monsignor Spada when Quart had finished reading. "Anonymously."
    "Anonymously," echoed Quart. He was in the habit of repeating certain words aloud, like a helmsman or NCO repeating his superior's orders. As if he were giving himself, or others, the chance to think about what had been said. In his world, certain words, certain orders - sometimes no more than an inflection, a nuance, a smile - could turn out to be irreversible.
    "The intruder," the archbishop was saying, "cunningly hid his exact location. But our enquiries have confirmed that the message was sent from Seville, from a computer with a modem."
    Quart slowly reread the letter. "It mentions a church that. . ." He broke off, waiting for someone to finish the sentence for him. The part that followed sounded too ridiculous to speak aloud.
    "Yes," said Spada, "a church that kills to defend itself."
    "Appalling," said Iwaszkiewicz. He didn't specify whether he meant the notion or the church.
    The archbishop went on. "We've checked, and it does exist. The church." He glanced quickly at the cardinal and then ran his finger along the edge of the paperknife. "We've also found out about a couple of irregular and unpleasant occurrences."
    Quart put the document on the desk. The archbishop looked at it as if the thing was dangerous to touch. Cardinal Iwaszkiewicz picked up the paper, folded it, and slipped it into his pocket. He turned to Quart.
    "We want you to go to Seville and find out who sent it."
    He was very close. Quart could almost smell his breath. The proximity was unpleasant, but he locked eyes with the cardinal for a few seconds. Then, making an effort not to take a step back, he glanced over the cardinal's shoulder at Spada who smiled briefly, grateful to Quart for indicating his loyalty in such a way.
    "When His Eminence says *we'," the archbishop explained, "he is referring not only to himself and me but also, of course, to the will of the Holy Father."
    "Which is God's will," added Iwaszkiewicz, almost provocatively. He was still standing very close to Quart, his hard black eyes staring.
    "Which is, indeed, God's will," said Monsignor Spada without allowing the slightest hint of irony into his voice. Despite his power, the director of the IEA knew he could only go so far, and his look contained a warning to his subordinate - they were both swimming in dangerous waters.
    "I understand," said Quart and, again meeting the cardinal's eye, nodded briefly. Iwaszkicwicz seemed to relax slightly. Behind him Spada inclined his head approvingly.
    "I told you that Father Quart. . ."
    The Pole raised his hand - the one that bore his cardinal's ring - to interrupt the archbishop. "Yes, I know." He gave Quart a final glance and then moved back to the window. "A good soldier." His tone was weary, ironic. He looked out at the rain as if the matter no longer concerned him.
    Spada put the paperknife on his desk, opened a drawer, and took out a thick blue folder.
    "Finding out who sent the message is only part of the job," he said. "What do you gather