"You are breaking my heart, James," shouted Carole. "So, how long has he been missing?"
James sat down. This conversation was going to be harder than he thought. "Two weeks. I did not want to alarm his friends until it was clear he was kidnapped."
Carole continued, "And, in Rome?" James could hardly answer. "Yes, he missed all his meetings, his audience with the Pope, everything. The police said they know by CTS cameras that Andrew was picked up at Fiumicino by a cab, an ordinary cab, but with a fake license. In the opinion of the police, Andrew was kidnapped. And, they claim there was a priest already in the cab, according to the CTS."
Carole sat down sideways on one of her office chairs. She was at her small "factory". "Who would kidnap Andrew and why? I mean, he is not that important is he?"
James did not answer. He could not share information which Andrew had given him alone, about a lobby underlined with violence, connected to many priests in America and Europe, a perverted lobby. James had known of this before. It was the stuff of novels, but Andrew had followed up on some of the death threats despite the discouragement of his lawyer and uncovered, almost by accident, an entire network of political lobbyists who wore the Roman collar. Some were known Marxists. The damage was done, but Andrew knew they would be working in Europe as well. He had sent his information ahead to the Pope. Pope Francis II had Andrew's large portfolio of information, much like the one given by the late Pope Emeritus to the last Francis I. Only, this information included espionage, murders, political positioning on a global scale. Some of it was already known to the Pope, but, when he read the contents, he immediately called the young priest to Rome, for his own protection. The Pope had underestimated the danger.
Now, the papal opinion was that this was a vendetta against the very priests and bishops who had been most outspoken, those who had encouraged the laity to stand firm against the Supreme Court decision and so on.
Pope Francis II personally grieved. He felt responsible for the disappearance of this young priest. He believed that this murder and the previous one of the old bishop were done out of pure spite, pure hatred for the Catholic Church. These actions were the physical reality of spiritual warfare; not murders of those who were involved in crimes, but those who were on their way to holiness. The Pope had paved the way for the rolls of the new martyrs.
"Carole, I cannot tell you anymore. I have no other facts, but I shall be going to Rome. The press is involved. Someone in the Roman police force leaked the news. It will hit American newspapers tomorrow. But, I am leaving in just a few hours. Carole, I am going to stay in Rome."
Tears came to Carole's eyes. "James, I have known for a long time what you would do when things became impossible. God bless you in your decisions."
"Thanks, Carole. I knew you would understand. I am disentangling myself from Washington and have been for two weeks. God bless you as well. And, your work. Goodbye, Sister in Christ."
"Goodbye, James."
To be continued...