Cover illustration: William Bonhotal Under the direction of Romain Lizé, CEO, Magnificat Editor, Magnificat: Isabelle Galmiche Editor, Ignatius: Vivian Dudro Proofreaders: Kathleen Hollenbeck, Samuel Wigutow Layout Designers: Élisabeth Hebert, Magali Meunier Layout: Text’Oh Production: Thierry Dubus, Audrey Bord
Sophie de Mullenheim Sophie de Mullenheim Translated by Janet Chevrier
Contents Prologue. ............................................................................... 7 I - A Big Announcement........................................................ 11 II - A Fateful Night................................................................ 15 III - The Big Day................................................................... 21 IV - Best Friends.................................................................... 25 V - The Surprise Gift............................................................. 29 VI - Without a Sound............................................................ 35 VII - Whether He Likes It or Not.......................................... 39 VIII - A Mission.................................................................... 45 IX - Among the Dead............................................................ 49 X - Absent.............................................................................. 55 XI - Quick!............................................................................ 59 XII - The Chase..................................................................... 65 XIII - The Right Address. ...................................................... 71 XIV - Caput. ......................................................................... 75 XV - A Monkey Tale.............................................................. 81 XVI - A Minor Victory.......................................................... 85 XVII - Caution...................................................................... 87 XVIII - A Slip of the Tongue.................................................. 89 XIX - Agreed. ........................................................................ 93 XX - A Confession................................................................. 97 XXI - A Monkey!................................................................... 103 XXII - Time for Reflection..................................................... 105 XXIII - Teamwork. ................................................................ 107 XXIV - In the Catacombs...................................................... 113 XXV - The Interrogation. ...................................................... 117 XXVI - Underground. ........................................................... 123
XXVII - Denounced!............................................................. 127 XXVIII - A Crisis of Conscience............................................ 133 XXIX - Confrontation........................................................... 137 XXX - Orders. ....................................................................... 141 XXXI - A Strange Visitor....................................................... 147 XXXII - Preparations............................................................. 151 XXXIII - A Deal.................................................................... 153 XXXIV - Indecision............................................................... 157 XXXV - Feverish Activity....................................................... 159 XXXVI - In the Night............................................................ 161 XXXVII - Prayer Vigil............................................................ 165 XXXVIII - A Killer on One’s Heels........................................ 169 XXXIX - Debriefing. ............................................................. 171 XL - The Final Blow.............................................................. 175 XLI - The Next Day. ............................................................. 179 XLII - Betrayal....................................................................... 183 XLIII - Peter and Paul............................................................ 189 XLIV - A Bottomless Pit of Grief........................................... 193 XLV - Where Peter Lies . ....................................................... 195 XLVI - Courage..................................................................... 201 XLVII - Loved and Forgiven.................................................. 205 Author’s Note. ....................................................................... 207
7 Prologue Rome, one night in A.D. 258 The man stared at the sky, carefully studying the movement of the clouds. At last, he raised his hand. That was the signal. A long, dark cloud had just moved across the moon, plunging the site into darkness. The moonlight would remain hidden for a short time. The man stepped from his hiding place, followed by two other men. Their joints cracked as they stood up. Their muscles were cramped. They had been holed up in their hiding place for almost two hours, waiting for the right moment. “We have to act fast,” he warned. “If the wind rises, the cloud will pass quickly.” The three men moved noiselessly out into the night. They knew exactly where they were going. They had been staking out the site for several days now. “There it is,” the first man whispered, spotting the little stone pile. He showed the two others where to dig. As they set to work, he spread out a magnificent red cloth woven with gold threads. It belonged to a wealthy senator, one of their group, who had insisted on offering it for the occasion. It was his way of contributing to the project.
8 The men dug faster, all three of them now, careful not to make the slightest noise. If they were discovered, their lives would be in great danger. Suddenly, one man motioned for the others to stop. They all froze and strained to hear. “There!” he said, pointing into the shadows. The three scanned the darkness, trying to see what lay hidden in the night. Shovels suspended at their sides, they stood on the lookout when a slight noise made them jump. Hearts pounding, they held fast to their tools. If there was the slightest doubt, they would make a run for it. Suddenly, a figure emerged, barely perceptible in the darkness... A dog! A stray dog! The men gave a sigh of relief and set back to work. The cloud slowly drifted away from the moon just as their metal shovels struck something. They squatted down and frantically clawed at the earth with their fingertips. Within seconds, they pulled the first bone out of the hole they had dug... and then another. The man leading the little group began reverently placing the bones, one after the other, on the red-and-gold fabric. It was a painstaking operation. They had to make sure they didn’t miss anything. “That’s everything,” whispered one of the men, leaning over the hole. “But where’s the skull?” asked the leader with astonishment. “You haven’t handed me the skull yet!” The two others looked at each other blankly. Each thought the other had found it, but both shook their heads. The skull remained to be found. They plunged their hands back into the earth. At that moment, there was a break in the cloud and moonlight flooded the field with a gentle white light.
9 “Keep looking!” the leader ordered, aware of the danger. “We can’t stop now!” The three men feverishly searched the ground with their fingertips. “The skull, the skull! We must find it!” they all thought, in a panic. “I’ve got it!” one of them at last cried in triumph as his fingers touched a smooth, curved, cold object. He reverently pulled out the skull and placed it on the cloth. A sense of relief flooded the three men. But now they had to hurry. The moonlight was growing brighter, and if they were caught, it would be a disaster. The leader tightly rolled up the bones in the cloth so they would be easier to carry. He worked quickly but with profound respect for the precious items. Meanwhile, the other two refilled the hole with dirt. Then the men separated, each one going his own way to avoid attracting attention. As they went, each of them pitched his shovel into the bushes. “We’ll meet up again back there,” said the leader.
11 I A Big Announcement Rome, 45 years later in a.d. 303 “Well? So, what’s this big news?” Maximus asked on arriving at his friend Titus’ house. Titus gave him a coy look, enjoying the effect his invitation was having. “Well, just imagine, I’m going to—” He paused and looked at Maximus, who hung on his every word. It must be said, Titus had done all he could to arouse his friend’s curiosity. For three days now, he had been telling him over and over that he would soon have big news to announce. Maximus had imagined all sorts of possibilities. He and Titus had been friends for so long now that they knew each other down to the fingertips, and Maximus was a bit annoyed that he hadn’t been able to figure out Titus’ secret. Next to them, Aghiles, Maximus’ slave, watched with amusement. He knew Maximus’ lively, impatient character. Titus’ delaying tactic was driving the boy crazy. Aghiles knew Titus was a smooth talker, and he had a flair for the dramatic as well. Despite his efforts to create suspense, his news might be nothing special after all. But Aghiles was curious to know what it was all about. “I’m going to...”
12 Titus looked at Maximus, wrinkled his nose and paused again. “I don’t know if I should...” “Oh, just get on with it, Titus!” Maximus exclaimed with exasperation. “Stop teasing us! You know you’ll tell me in the end!” Titus pretended to think about it a bit more before he at last spilled it out: “I’m about to take the toga virilis.”1 Maximus’ jaw dropped in surprise. Aghiles, too, had expected anything but that. “The toga virilis?” Maximus repeated, thinking perhaps he had misunderstood. Titus gave a broad smile, delighted with the effect of his surprise. “Yes, my toga virilis!” he crowed proudly. “Isn’t that great?” “Absolutely astonishing...” replied Maximus. In fact, this announcement put his nose out of joint. He was the older of the two, even though he was smaller, for Maximus was quite small and delicate for his age. By rights, it should be he who received his toga virilis before his friend. It was an important rite of passage. The day a boy took the toga virilis, he officially became a citizen, a man in the eyes of Rome. Of course, he remained under the authority of his father, but he was more or less an adult, and considered so by others. It was a real mark of recognition that Maximus had hoped to receive before his friend. Coming in second after Titus, Maximus would not feel the same special something about reaching that milestone. In Rome, the taking of the toga virilis happened when a boy was between fourteen and seventeen. And Titus had only just celebrated his fifteenth birthday. 1. The toga virilis was the clothing worn by an adult male citizen of Rome.
13 “It’s my father who decided the ceremony should take place,” Titus explained, puffing up his chest. “He clearly has decided I’m ready.” There was such a note of pride in Titus’ voice that Maximus felt stung. His own father hadn’t yet even suggested it. “Congratulations, Titus!” cried Aghiles, while watching Maximus out of the corner of his eye. He knew what Maximus must be thinking. “Thank you, Aghiles! I hope that you’ll come to the celebration,” replied Titus. Aghiles couldn’t speak in Maximus’ place. It wasn’t up to him to decide; he had no rights in the matter. He stared intensely at Maximus, his eyes begging him to respond. Under Aghiles’ disapproving look, Maximus forgot his wounded pride. “Of course, we’ll come!” cried Maximus, feigning delight. “We’ll be the first ones there!” He was forcing himself to show happiness for his friend, but seeing Titus’ smiling face brought him back to reason. He had no right to be jealous. It wasn’t Titus’ fault if Maximus’ own father still hadn’t suggested that he take the toga virilis. “When is it?” asked Maximus, giving his full attention to his friend. “In two weeks. In the meantime, there’s much to prepare. You know my father: he isn’t one to skimp on a celebration.” Titus’ father, Flavius Octavius, was a rich dealer in wild animals. His business was thriving, and his reputation extended well beyond Rome. His animals were reputed to be more beautiful and impressive than those of any of his few rivals. When the emperor wished to put on a spectacle with rhinoceroses or buffalos, he would turn to Flavius Octavius. When a rich senator wanted to offer his wife a rare bird or a giraffe, he would visit Flavius Octavius. There was no order too extravagant for
14 Titus’ father to fulfill. To keep up his stock of wild beasts, Flavius Octavius organized regular expeditions in which he would most often personally take part. He would then care for his animals with almost motherly love. Several times, he had even taken an animal back from a customer when he wasn’t satisfied it was getting good care. To celebrate his son’s taking of the toga, no expense would be too great for Flavius Octavius, especially since Titus was his only son. “The toga virilis,” mused Maximus, staring into the distance. “That’s amazing.” Titus picked up on his friend’s melancholy tone and at last realized what he must be feeling. He suddenly felt guilty for having made such a big song and dance about his announcement over the past few days. “Oh, you know,” he said, now trying to play it down, “it won’t really change life much!” “Who knows...” Maximus wondered, deep in thought.
207 Author’s Note Saint Peter was martyred in A.D. 64, during the reign of Emperor Nero. Initially, he was buried just a few steps from the place of his execution in the Circus of Caligula. At first, his tomb was marked only by a few tiles. Later, a shrine was erected over his tomb. Named the Trophy of Gaius, it was flanked by two small marble columns supporting a stone canopy. In 258, at the time of the persecutions of Emperor Valerian, the remains of Saint Peter were transferred to the Catacombs of Saint Sebastian on the outskirts of the city, in the hope of protecting his body from profanation. It is thought that Saint Peter’s relics were once again transferred to their original resting place in the year 336. It was over this tomb that Constantine built a church in honor of Saint Peter. On top of this now stands the present-day Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome. In the 1970s, new excavations beneath Saint Peter’s led to the discovery of bones within a tomb. The relics, wrapped in red fabric stitched with threads of gold, belonged to “a man of robust constitution, between sixty and seventy years of age,” the forensic analysis specifies. On the wall of the tomb, graffiti reads: “Peter lies here within.”
Original French edition: Le secret de la pierre gravée © Mame, Paris, 2019. © 2022 by Magnificat, New York • Ignatius Press, San Francisco All rights reserved. ISBN Magnificat 978-1-63967-010-9 • ISBN Ignatius Press 978-1-62164-600-6 Ebook ISBN: 978-1-63967-017-8 Printed in June 2022 by Rotolito, Italy Job number MGN22020 Printed in compliance with the Consumer Protection Safety Act, 2008
The man stared at the sky, carefully studying the movement of the clouds. At last, he raised his hand. That was the signal. A long, dark cloud had just moved across the moon, plunging the site into darkness. The moonlight would remain hidden for a short time. The man stepped from his hiding place, followed by two other men.... “We have to act fast,” he warned. “If the wind rises, the cloud will pass quickly.” The three men moved noiselessly out into the night. They knew exactly where they were going. They had been staking out the site for several days now. “There it is,” the first man whispered, spotting the little stone pile. He showed the two others where to dig. Titus’ father thinks his son is a coward and arranges a few days’ stay with the police tomake aman out of him. Soon, Titus nds himself hunting down Christians and trying to discover where they have hidden the body of Peter, Apostle of Jesus, who died nearly 250 years earlier. Meanwhile, his friend Maximus, a recent convert, is given the mission of nding Peter’s tomb before it is destroyed. Will their friendship survive this test of their loyalties? Being a Christian in ancient Rome was very dangerous. To spread the faith and stay alive, you had to live in the shadows… The Secret Tomb, book ve of the In the Shadows of Rome series
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