American Heroes Series - 01 - Resurrection (22 page)

“Is the door locked?”

“The front door has two big bolts on it. You’re safe, Olivia. I promise.”

She didn’t say anything as she pulled the sheet up and snuggled down.  As Christophe left the room, he could hear the distinct sound of tears.

***

The first flight they could get out of Los Angeles International Airport direct to Paris was an AirFrance flight that departed at three-thirty in the afternoon the next day.  It was a flight with a stopover in New York before continuing on to Paris.  Cydney was frantic that it would be two days before she got to her daughter, but it was the best they could do.  J.D. booked himself, Ethan, Cydney and two other special agents onto the flight.

The day was busy with preparations for the coming trip. Cydney had been forced to let Milt in on what had happened because she needed to request immediate time off.  Milt had been greatly disturbed but seemed more concerned that word would leak to the press about the abduction. 

It was bad enough that the news of the museum heist had spread all over the world and the Bristol Museum of Antiquities was extremely unhappy that The Lucius Robe had been the target of the theft, so Milt and Anne-Michelle had been thrust to the forefront of damage control for the incident. The abduction of Cydney’s daughter only added to Milt’s stress. He gave the time off without a fight. 

Cydney’s second task of the day was to check up on Stu, who was recovering from surgery at Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, just a stone’s throw from the museum. He was in good spirits, hated the hospital food, and was upset because Cydney was going to Paris while he was stuck in a hospital. Cydney mentioned she was going with four FBI agents and he seemed better with that. At least she was adequately protected.  But when he found out that Ethan was one of the agents, he grew inordinately quiet. Cydney suspected that she knew why but she let it go.  Stu was a dear friend and, to her, that was all he would ever be.

The rest of the day before she left was spent packing. She packed a big bag for Olivia and a massive suitcase for herself. Ethan had spent the entire day with her, watching her do laundry and make herself busy in preparation for the trip. He knew her anxiety was making her rush around like a mad woman, anxious to reach her child, so he helped her as much as he could and didn’t say a word when she packed the biggest suitcase he had ever seen. She had enough clothes for a six month sojourn.

Somewhere towards mid-afternoon, Kyle and Megan came over and Ethan used that time to return home so he could take a shower, change clothes and pack.  He didn’t want to leave Cydney alone and was grateful for Kyle’s appearance. He left Cydney with a delicious kiss, not missed by Kyle or Megan. While Megan grinned happily, Kyle looked as if his sister had just been kissed by an ape.

But Megan made her husband keep his mouth shut.  It was the first time in eight years that Cydney had a boyfriend and she refused to let him ruin what appeared to be a very happy circumstance. 

When Kyle wanted to go to Paris also, Cydney firmly shut him down. She appreciated the offer, but she suspected that Kyle would be so concerned for Olivia that it might interfere with what the police were attempting to accomplish and perhaps the case in general. He was overprotective of his only niece so Cydney, very nicely, convinced him to stay home and wait for their return.  With a begrudging agreement, Kyle went into the kitchen to find the chips and salsa while Megan helped Cydney finish packing.

Ethan had jetted home in record time. Arriving at his townhome in Glendale, he parked in the underground structure of the modern townhomes and raced to his front door. 

Entering the home he had lived in for seven years, he realized that it felt very empty and bleak. Although the decor was his taste and he’d spent a good deal of money and time decorating it in grays, blacks and fine artwork, it suddenly felt very cold to him.  He’d only spent two days in Cydney’s warm and lovely home and already, he missed it. He missed
her
. 

Taking the stairs to his second floor master bedroom with its giant king bed and giant black silk comforter, he stripped off his clothes and turned on the shower.  As he pulled out his shaving cream, he began to realize there was a certain scent about. He could smell it, vaguely, but couldn’t quite make it out. Then he smelled his hands and realized he could smell Cydney on his flesh. She was all over him. He sniffed all down his arms and his hands again, inhaling her sweet, musky scent.  It sent his heart fluttering madly.  The hot shower turned into a long cold one.

Freshly cleaned and shaved, he turned on the television as he began to pack his black leather Kenneth Cole suitcase.  The top story on the four o’clock news was about yesterday’s museum heist and he watched it as he packed, realizing it was the first time he had seen the news story.  As he listened to the newscaster’s dramatic take on the subject, his cell phone rang.  He looked at the incoming number and quickly answered.

“Hey, Ty,” he stopped what he was doing and sat on the edge of the bed. “How are you?”

On the other end of the line was the voice of a boy verging on manhood. “Hi, Dad. I’m good.”

Ethan felt indescribably joy at the sound of his son’s voice. “What’s up? Long time, no see.”

“I know,” Tyler Serreaux replied. “That’s why I called. I wanted to remind you that I have Spring Break next week. Mom wanted to know what the travel plans were.”

Ethan’s joy was replaced by the dull thump of disappointment.  “Spring break is next week?”

“Yeah,” Tyler answered. “Remember? I gave you the dates last fall.”

“Oh, right,” Ethan felt like a fool. “I didn’t forget, Ty, but I’ve got a problem. Something’s come up with work and I’m going to be out of town for a while. I’m not sure when I’m getting back.”

“Oh,” Tyler’s disappointment was obvious. “Where are you going?”

“Paris,” Ethan replied. “I’m really sorry, buddy. It’s out of my hands.”

“I know,” Tyler replied, although he didn’t mean it. He only got to see his dad on major school breaks and during the summer and his disappointment was extreme. “Well, I guess I’ll just stick around here then. The weather’s been good; some of my friends are talking about going to Myrtle Beach but I don’t think mom will let me go with them. No parents to chaperone.”

Ethan listened to his son pretend their missed time together didn’t matter, but the truth was, it mattered very much to them both. Ethan didn’t want to miss time with his son and his mind was working quickly as he thought of a solution.

“I can do better than Myrtle Beach,” he said. “How would you like to come to Paris with me?”

“Really?” Tyler perked up immediately. “That’s cool. I’ll go.”

“When do you get out for Break?”

“Thursday.”

Two days away.  Ethan suspected it wouldn’t be that big of an issue to take Tyler out of school a day early; more than that, he wouldn’t be working the entire time he was in Paris. He would have some time to spend with Cydney and Olivia, and now especially Tyler. He found himself looking forward to introducing the ladies to his son. It was one of the most joyful things he could imagine.

“Put your mother on the phone,” he told his son. “I need to make some arrangements with her.”

Tyler passed off the phone to Kimberly Serreaux, who agreed to take Tyler out of school a day early and make sure he got to New York for his flight to Paris.  Oddly, Ethan didn’t feel any emotion while speaking to his ex-wife. Normally, he felt a great degree of bitterness and anger, even after all these years.  Kimberly noticed that Ethan wasn’t even remotely brusque with her, which was surprising.  She wondered what could make the man change after all these years and truthfully had no idea. But she was glad nonetheless.

So Tyler joined Ethan, Cydney, J.D. and two other agents on AirFrance Flight Sixty-Five departing John F. Kennedy airport at nine forty-seven pm on Wednesday night.  He sat by the window as Ethan sat in the middle seat between his son and Cydney. Although it was extremely uncomfortable for a man of his height to sit not only in a middle seat, but a non-exit row aisle, he could bear it.  With Cydney on one side and Tyler on the other, Ethan couldn’t imagine a more perfect situation. He was in heaven.

J.D. sat behind the three of them and snored like a bear the entire way to Paris.

***

They were in their hotel suite at the Hilton situated along the Seine River. After a day and night of searching for their escapee, Nat had been forced to call Cardinal Wildegrav and inform the man that their hostage had escaped.  The Cardinal did not take the news well and after a search failed to turn up Olivia, he made a few phone calls and put Nat in touch with an informant of the Prefecture of Police in Paris.  Nat was waiting for the man to call him back.

Overshadowing the fact that the American teenager had escaped, the Cardinal was nonetheless thrilled that they had the Robe in their possession. Olivia Hetherington was secondary and, in fact, no longer vitally important to what they were doing. The only reason the Cardinal thought it would be better to find her was because, thanks to her three captors, she knew the inner workings of what they were attempting to accomplish. It would be better to have the girl until all was said and done and Joseph seemed particularly concerned that she was out running around a strange city.  The fact remained however that they had what they wanted. They had The Lucius Robe.

“Paris is a big city,” Joseph said softly. “I don’t think we’re going to find her.”

Coral was a weeping mess. “Where could she have gone?”

“Who knows?” Nat was sucking on a cigarette, pacing the room. He jabbed a finger at Coral. “It’s your fault that she’s gone. You’re absolutely useless.”

Coral was weeping mostly because Nat had been brow-beating her since Olivia’s escape.  Joseph didn’t even try to intervene; he was more concerned about Olivia. She was such a pretty young thing, now alone in a strange city. He cursed himself for being stupid enough to leave her alone with the weak and ineffectual Coral.

“No,” Joseph muttered. “It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have left the car.”

Nat wriggled his eyebrows in agreement but said nothing. He continued to drag on the cigarette. And he also kept glancing at the large black suitcase they had propped up against the wall.  He’d been eyeing it or the better part of the afternoon.  Finally, he put the cigarette down.

Going to the suitcase, he laid it on its side and unzipped it.  Joseph noticed what he was doing and went over to stand next to him as he opened the case and pulled forth a large sealed garment bag.  Nat took the bag to the small dining table and turned on the light. 

By this time, Coral was up and wiping the mascara and tears from her face.  She wandered to the table and stood behind Joseph as Nat unzipped the garment bag.  Under the weak light of the sixty watt bulb, the faded remains of The Lucius Robe were revealed.

“I didn’t even look at it when we put it in there,” Joseph said, somewhat in awe as he gazed at the garment. “Was it damaged when we grabbed it?”

Nat pushed the garment bag to the floor and carefully laid the Robe on the table. “I don’t know,” he muttered, gazing down at the faded cloth. “Look at it; this is the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen.”

Coral dared to move up alongside Joseph and inspect the Robe for herself.  Her smudged blue eyes moved over the collar line and she gingerly touched the fabric, feeling the rough fibers against her fingers. It was a truly magical moment and the most prevalent sense was that of the smell. It smelled like dust and mold and, perhaps, smoke. It was a strong, musty scent that hinted of the centuries that had passed beneath it. Touching the ancient fabric gave her chills.

“La Vestaglia di Lucius,” she mumbled.

Nat ignored her as he moved the Robe around, lifting the sleeves, opening up the front. The interior of the Robe was lined with coarse linen, faded brown spots near the neck.  Suddenly, he paused as if fixed on something; reaching out, he pulled something free of the fabric.  It actually came loose with a small pop.  He held the object up to the light as Joseph and Coral strained to see what it was.

The soft bulb revealed the target of their fascination.  Nat smiled.

“A tooth,” he muttered. “I’ll be damned. It really
is
a tooth.”

Coral suddenly turned away, whispering furious prayers. Joseph took the tooth from Nat and put it in the palm of his hand, inspecting it closely.

“It’s got two roots on it,” he said as he flipped it over. “I wonder what kind of tooth it is?”

“A molar, I guess,” Nat said, still eyeing the prize. “His Eminence will be extremely pleased to hear that what the girl told us was true.”

“Maybe so, but what does he intend on doing with it?” Joseph ventured. “Another Holy Relic for the Vatican archives?”

“Maybe the Holy Relic to end all Holy Relics,” Nat said. “It might even be possible to extract DNA from the tooth.”

Joseph looked at him, curious. “For what purpose?”

Nat’s dark eyes glittered as an idea took hold. “Think about it,” he said. “Perhaps science and theology has been wrong all along. Perhaps we really can create God.”

Joseph’s brow furrowed with confusion. “What are you talking about?”

A smile joined Nat’s wondrous expression. “Cloning, Joe. The DNA can be used to clone,” he looked back at the tooth, almost crazed with delight. “I’m not a scientist, but if DNA can be extracted, then perhaps it can be used in the laboratory to clone a human being.”

Joseph looked at him as if he was out of his mind. “How would you do that?”

Nat shrugged, taking the tooth from Joseph and looking at it again. “I think you need an unfertilized human egg to do it.” He suddenly looked up at Joseph. “Like one that a fifteen year old girl could provide.”

Joseph’s horror grew. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. You’re not scientist; you said so yourself. You have no idea about cloning.”

Nat shook his head, not at all disturbed by Joseph’s words. “No, I really don’t,” he said slowly. “But there are a lot of people who do. I think His Eminence will be very interested to know my thoughts on the matter.”