Master of Ceremonies by Donald B. Cozzens

Author:Donald B. Cozzens
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: In Extenso Press

The sister on phone duty rose from the reception desk to let Martin into the monastery. “Bishop Martin, welcome. Sister Miriam asked me to ring her when you arrived.”

Martin smiled, “Thanks, Sister. I’ll wait in the parlor.” He moved across the hall to a tastefully appointed sitting room, with French doors facing onto the cloister, and sat down on a brocaded love seat facing a framed print of Teresa of Avila in prayer. But the Carmel’s monastic tranquility didn’t hold. The Gunnison affair distracted him. Maybe a few hours at the monastery would give him some perspective. He reminded himself he had taken reasonable and discreet security measures for the Mass and dinner. Additional Baltimore policemen had been hired for security and traffic control outside the Basilica, and the hotel security chief had been directed to pay special attention to the well-being of the archbishop during the jubilee dinner. Still, the laser dots, Margaret Comiskey’s suspicions about Kempe’s special account, the rumors of Gunnison’s messing with young boys, and his own embarrassing encounter decades ago all left him on edge.

“Bryn, how are you?” Sister Miriam said as she entered.

“I’m fine, Miriam.”

The anxiety in his eyes and the tightness around his mouth gave a different response. They exchanged a brief hug. “A little time here will do me good. Things are hectic at the Catholic Center these days. It’s Archbishop Gunnison’s jubilee celebration.”

“I can imagine,” Sr. Miriam said with a slight raising of her brow. “Let me take you upstairs to your room. John is in the retreatant’s suite just down the hall from you. I told him you’d be here for part of the day. He was happy to hear that.”

Before leaving Martin to get settled, she added, “Nora was here not long ago with a colleague from the university, a history professor who was quite interested in our archives, especially the papers of one of our earliest chaplains, a Jesuit named Gilbert Combier.”

“Nora told me. And I’ve met him.” Martin hesitated. “I don’t mean Gilbert Combier,” he said with a grin. “Her colleague’s British and a specialist in medieval church history. A very interesting man.”

Miriam smiled, glad to confirm her impression that Nora seemed to find the Englishman very interesting indeed.

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