The Templar Detective and the Unholy Exorcist by J. Robert Kennedy

Author:J. Robert Kennedy
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Action & Adventure
Publisher: J. Robert Kennedy
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

31

Outskirts of Paris, Kingdom of France

David held his hand up to shield his eyes, the snow coming down hard now, the wind whipping it into a blinding frenzy. He had checked half the churches on his portion of the map, and had come up empty at each one. As he urged his poor steed forward, he spotted the next church ahead, the dark, imposing stone standing out against the white of the snow, if only faintly.

He drew a quick breath in excitement as he caught a hint of something, an orange glow that could only be fire.

Someone was there.

He hunkered down, pushing forward, his heart hammering from the fear gripping him from the first winter storm of his adult life experienced outside of the safety of the farm, and from the unknown that lay ahead. His orders were to return and report what he found, and Marcus had specifically said not to take action. But he had to make sure it wasn’t simply vagrants taking shelter from the storm.

He crossed a small stone bridge, the church just ahead, the humble structure in apparent good shape from what he could see from this angle. The glow of torches or fires inside highlighted the cracks in the shutters covering the windows, and suggested the walls and roof were intact.

Would an abandoned church still have shutters?

He wouldn’t think so. If the other churches he had seen earlier were any indication, the edifices were stripped bare, even the stones taken like the archivist had apparently said. It made sense. He would assume the Church would take anything of value, then the locals would take anything left, and quarried stone was valuable.

Though this place appeared intact, or at least mostly so. He could now see that the spire that once held the cross had partially collapsed, and surprisingly, there wasn’t a new one in place. Wouldn’t a priest have made that one of his first priorities? Though perhaps, if this priest was who Father Brodeur thought he might be, he wasn’t a priest at all.

But he had certainly acted like one, at least in the brief encounter he and Jeremy had had with him.

I hope Jeremy is okay.

The storm, he was certain, would force the priest to seek shelter, and he would have the benefit of not being forced to be secretive. Jeremy would likely be forced to shelter outside, or risk losing the wagon should they depart while he slept.

I hope the fool doesn’t get too close.

He shivered against the cold and the thought of what might happen to his friend, his best friend, should he encounter the armed monks. His heart hammered as he realized how close he now was to the church.

Follow your own advice, idiot.

He had seen enough to know that someone was here. They could return in the morning and investigate in numbers should the others have not found what they were seeking.

He tugged on the reins and turned his horse around, then gasped as he found the bridge blocked by half a dozen men.

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