Apocalypsis 1.04 Baphomet Read Online Free PDF

in Paris. They have always existed, throughout the centuries. Perhaps they beat us to it a long time ago.«
    Peter made a face. »Listen, Maria, I don’t have a Plan B. And I only have 24 hours to find something that might put my life right and perhaps even save the Vatican. Let’s just search for clues and hope for the best, okay?«
    »No problem,« she said sharply, »you go that way, and I’ll go this way. And in three hours we’ll meet back here for a situation report.«
    Peter sighed. »Oui, mon général.«
    The situation report turned out to be disappointing.
    »Did you find anything?«
    »Nope. No skull and crossbones, no Baphomet, no Templar seal, no gravestone inscriptions with the usual secret signs. I asked one of the tour guides, but he only shrugged his shoulders.«
    »Maybe we’ve overlooked something. The palace is huge. We should look again.«
    »Or we are on the wrong track and the document is not even here.« Peter looked at his Jaeger-LeCoultre. »Let’s go and have a bite to eat. Perhaps we’ll come up with a better idea.«
    The rain was taking a short breather when they came out of the palace. They walked to a little restaurant down a side street within sight of the palace and were lucky to snag the last table for two in a corner. They ordered fish and a Sauvignon Blanc. The bald-headed owner of the restaurant could not stop staring at Maria, who was fighting with a strand of hair that had slipped loose from her coif. Peter watched her as she was put the unruly hair back in its place with a hand movement that was as determined as it was eternally feminine.
    »Why are you staring at me? Is something wrong?«
    »Uh, no. Everything’s fine. I’m sorry. I was just thinking about something.«
    She didn’t believe him. »You think that I’m attracting too much attention, don’t you? A nun in her full habit.«
    Peter shrugged his shoulders. »Is there an alternative?«
    She looked at him as if she could read his mind.
    »No, there isn’t.«
    Peter was glad when their food was served so that he could focus on something other than Maria’s face and her eyes and her lips and her hands.
    This is not some frigging day trip, Romeo! Pull yourself together, damn it!
    The excellent fish and the cool Sauvignon were sufficient to make them feel a little bit more centered and relaxed.
    But if it were a day trip, it would be perfect.
    »What are you thinking right now?« she asked. »And don’t say ›Nothing!‹«
    »Perhaps they hid the document in a nearby monastery so that the Pope would not have immediate access to it.«
    »Do you have any idea how many monasteries there are in and around Avignon?«
    »Do you have a better idea?«
    She gave a resigned sigh and finished her wine.
    They asked for directions to the nearest internet café, a bleak and joyless place filled with adolescents staring at their screens. Peter paid for a computer and began to search.
    »Which religious order do you want me to look for?«
    »Bernard was a Cistercian, Maria thought aloud. »The Cistercians were originally the reform movement of the Benedictines. So, how many Benedictine and Cistercian monasteries are there in Avignon?«
    »Not a single one.«
    »Excuse me?«
    »Not within the city limits of Avignon. The nearest Cistercian monastery is in Senanque, 25 miles to the east. The nearest Benedictine monastery is the Sainte Madeleine du Barroux abbey in Le Barroux, 30 miles to the north.«
    Maria seemed disappointed. »Too far away. It has to be closer.«
    She thought for a while.
    »Look for Carthusian monasteries.«
    »Why the Carthusians?«
    »Because they are also a contemplative order and they were very close to the Cistercians.«
    Peter entered the keyword.
    »Well, hello! Look at that!«
    Villeneuve-les-Avignon was right across the Rhône River, opposite Avignon. The community with less than 12,000 inhabitants had always been a preferred residential area for the wealthier people of Avignon, as it offered the best views