Rafael and Derek stepped into the rectory. It was a relatively spacious room, furnished in baroque style and adorned with weapons hanging on the walls. Father Rafael sat down in an armchair; from a nearby table he picked up a pair of spectacles, which he perched on the bridge of his nose, and then reached for a book whose worn cover still bore, in faded gilt letters:
Bible
KJV
The priest leaned back, crossed his legs, and began to read.
"I am convinced he went into the temple," Derek said.
"What makes you so certain?" Rafael asked, glancing up from his pages.
Derek reclined against the back of his chair, his lips curling with disdain.
"To have ended up in that cenote, he must have entered somewhere… and it could only have been through the cursed pyramid."
"But we already saw there was nothing of worth inside. We nearly blew the damned temple to pieces, and all we got was a pile of jade… and bats."
"Perhaps. But what if there are still secret chambers? According to the legends of these people, long ago men from other lands hid treasures there." Derek paused. "Those who came before sought them… and now this one—"
"For Christ's sake, forget that chapter. We already have an industry here," Rafael cut him short. "I must prepare a sermon for the execution of this Lutheran."
Derek pressed his lips together and said:
"But it breaks my heart to think that we could be losing a great treasure right beneath our feet."
Rafael sighed, snapped his fingers, and the Maya girl entered with a bottle of wine. She poured into a pair of silver chalices, once consecrated for the altar, and then slipped out again, lingering in the corridor to listen.
"Calm yourself, Derek. Do not let greed rule you, nor allow wrath to blind you. Have faith in our Lord," Rafael said, taking a sip and leafing through the book. "Whatever his reason for being here, he is going nowhere. Sooner or later, he will tell us what we wish to hear…" He paused, lifting the silver cup. "What troubles me most is that this man may be an explorer sent by pirates eager to compete for the blue gold we draw from the cenotes. We must alert the base at Xul-Kan… Magdalena."
The young girl soon entered the room, bottle in hand.
"Write the following letter."
"I will, Father, but I must first receive my punishment at the hands of Brother Eddy, who even now waits in the corridor," she replied.
"Forget that!" Rafael roared. "Do as I command."
The girl set the bottle on a side cabinet, drew up a stool, and sat upon the floor.
"To whom shall I address it, Father?" she asked.
"To the Grand Inquisitor of Xul-Kan," Rafael replied. "Write that we have detained an agent suspected of working for a heretical faction that could endanger our mission. We shall dispose of him in due course, but they must remain vigilant against any possible incursion." He glanced at Derek as he spoke.
The girl wrote quickly on yellowed sheets. When finished, she handed them to Rafael. He examined the lines and gave a brief nod.
"Take it to Brian. I doubt Toby will arrive, so Brian will assign one of the boys," Derek said.
Magdalena made to depart. As she stepped into the corridor, Eddy stood waiting with a belt in his hand.
"Well then, the night is far spent… Tell me, how would you have it? Quick and hard, or slow and drawn out?" he said, licking his lips with obscene delight.
"I have news for you, Brother Eddy… the punishment is postponed, by Father Rafael's command," she answered, mocking him with her eyes.
The man glared at her, cursed under his breath, and strode into the rectory.
"Hey, Ralph… what's this about me not flogging that insolent brat?" he snarled.
Rafael sipped his wine while reading from the Bible.
"Dear Brother Eddy… first, you will address me by my name," he said without looking up. "And second, I have changed my ordinance." He peered at the man over the rim of his spectacles, utterly indifferent. "Any problem with that?"
"You cannot keep giving us orders and counter-orders—it confuses us, and the Indians outside as well."
"Eddy, I am the authority here… and I will tell you what you shall do and what you shall not do, as it pleases me," Rafael replied with perfect calm.
Eddy bristled, but Derek rose, towering over him by a head.
"Go to the barracks, Eddy," he ordered.
Eddy cursed beneath his breath, slapped his thigh with the belt, and stormed out.
Once alone again, Derek resumed his seat, cleared his throat, and spoke quietly.
"You are very indulgent with that girl… Magdalena."
"She is the cacique's daughter," Rafael replied. "It is wiser to keep them on our side… for now."
******
Meanwhile, the girl left the rectory and made her way to where Brian was dozing, to deliver the instruction. She handed him the letter, which he took from her hands, not without first winking at her and brushing her cheek with his fingers.
"I'll take care of it, sweetheart," he said with a pretentiously playful, seductive air.
She pulled away, frowning in annoyance. Passing by Hans—who was kneeling there, both hands chained to the post—the Jesuit met her gaze.
"Get out of here!" Brian barked.
The girl hurried off. Brian called over one of the village boys, gave him a few instructions, and sent him off with the letter, while Magdalena returned to the rectory. The young woman remained silent in the corridor, listening to the conversation.
"The documents he carries are closely related to the priest's," Derek was saying.
"I don't doubt it… It's something we must understand, perhaps they're connected," Rafael replied.
"Let's wait for the news from the Caribbean… Don't you miss being in Nassau?" Derek asked.
"I won't deny that women and rum are a great temptation the body longs for," Rafael admitted,
"but our mission here is far more profitable than smashing tankards in Kayona or Kingsport."
Magdalena frowned at the mention of those infamous pirate haunts and leaned in to listen further, when suddenly the watchtower bell rang, followed by the cry of the lookout:
"The convoy!"
Inside the rectory, everyone exchanged glances.
"Fortune has willed Toby's arrival," Rafael said.
"He should have been here yesterday… no doubt they overslept in the jungle," Derek muttered, flipping through an account book.
Magdalena went out to the plaza along with the other villagers, who had gathered to watch the convoy approach, torches blazing in the night. It was made up of a group of natives carrying bundles on their backs, escorting a cart drawn by two oxen. The vehicle bore several barrels lashed to its sides. The party was led by Toby Powell, a red-haired man with curls tied back in a queue and a leather hat. He rode on horseback, a musket slung across his back and a pair of pistols at his belt, and bore a haversack slung across his chest. He was accompanied by another rider, a tall, broad-shouldered African dressed in a worn linen shirt and a red kerchief on his head. He carried an old musket slung over his shoulder and, at his belt, another pair of pistols along with two knives. The man remained silent, as if speech were unnecessary for him to make his presence felt.
Toby dismounted before the rectory, as did his companion. He cast a quick glance at the man they had bound in the middle of the square, who returned the look. Then Toby unfastened a chest strapped behind his saddle and gave a few instructions to his companion, who at once began issuing orders to the natives to unload the barrels.
Toby stepped toward the rectory and, passing before the young Maya girl, asked:
"Who's that?"
"A stranger who was found inside a cenote," Magdalena answered.
"Which one?"
"The one near 'the tomb.'"
The newcomer let out a low whistle.
"Kwame… make sure none of those barrels fall," Toby ordered the African, who raised a hand to his forehead in a brief salute as he oversaw the unloading.
Then Toby clicked his tongue for the girl to step aside. Soon, the hurried footsteps of Brian could be heard approaching; the young woman knew well that Brian never missed a single scrap of gossip whenever they all gathered in Rafael's study.