The Hunt for The Red Cardinal

by Bradley Sinor

  Montaigne thought a moment. “Take me to the church and I will talk to the priest. We may be able to work something out.”

  ∞ ∞ ∞

  “Allais, I must speak with you for a moment,” Montaigne said as he was let into the warehouse. He motioned D’Artagnan to follow him to a corner away from the others.

  “We need to move, and move quickly. Gaston’s men have been given LeBeq’s name, and even if he denies knowing me, they won’t give up. I talked to him earlier, and he suggested a safer place to hide. Our skills in fighting may be called upon, though.”

  “Where is this place, and why might we have to fight,” D’Artagnan inquired.

  “His priest talked to him yesterday, asking for help in defending his church. LeBeq swears that neither he nor the priest has any love for Gaston, and we could be hidden in the cellars of the church long enough for those men to leave town. Then we could plan our route to avoid them if they go in the same direction we will be going.”

  “Have you been there and talked to the priest?”

  “I have just returned from there. The priest, Father Jean, is sincere in his fear of attack. And I was shown the cellars.” He shrugged. “They’re cellars. What would you expect? But they would do for the time being. Father Jean promises to hide us, feed us, and take care of our ill companion.”

  D’Artagnan began to protest, but Montaigne assured him that the priest had never been farther east than Rennes and had no idea what the cardinal looked like.

  “Even if he had a suspicion of the true identity of Brother Etienne, he would not betray us. I am sure of that. It’s not far from here; we can walk to it. We can take Brother Etienne over in the cart, which we can hide in the church stable along with the horse. Also, we should leave after dark. He said it would be safer then.”

  “Do you think we should leave tonight? We don’t have much and could be ready to go quickly. But what about the bed? We would have to leave it here.”

  “We could break it down the same as when we brought it here. We will need to bring everything and leave the place completely empty. We should probably sprinkle dirt around so it will look as dirty as before. But we must talk to the others first.”

  They placed the tables and chairs close to Brother Etienne’s bed and gathered everyone around.

  “We will be leaving tonight, but not the city. We will be relocating to a safer place until Gaston’s men have left. This warehouse is no longer safe. Montaigne has been told of a small church nearby that is being threatened if money is not given to those who are threatening it. We will move to it and stay in the cellar. If the church is attacked, we will defend it. We will need to take everything with us, including the cart and its horse. They will be stored there until we leave. The rest of the horses will remain in the city stable until then,” D’Artagnan told the rest.

  Montaigne picked up the story. “I will go get the cart horse and bring some food back with me. We will break down the bed and load it on the cart, along with as many of the pallets as will fit. That will be in the early evening. After it gets dark, Brother Etienne and Brother Xavier will go there along with our personal possessions. Then the cart will return here for the remaining items. By morning we will all be in the church and this warehouse will be empty and, we hope, as dirty as it was when I first came here.”

  “I know you have questions, but please keep them until later. We have to do this, and we will figure out the situation as we go,” D’Artagnan added.

  This group of men had been travelling together for weeks and, having been trained to fight and move, knew exactly what to do. Nothing had to be done until Montaigne returned with the cart horse and food. Until then, each member of the group made sure that his own possessions were gathered and packed.

  Before long, Montaigne returned. The horse was brought inside and hitched to the cart. The food was spread out on the tables and everyone ate.

  When the food was gone, the cardinal was helped to rise and sit in a chair while the bed was broken down.

  “How are you feeling, Eminence?” asked Brother Xavier. “Does your knee still hurt?”

  “A little, but I’m sure it will soon be better. This wound on my side that you said I got when I was attacked by Gaston’s men outside Paris seems much better. It doesn’t really hurt anymore. I think I’ll be fine traveling tonight, and probably better when we leave the city.”

  “I’m so glad to hear that, Eminence. It won’t pain you to sit for a while in this chair, then?”

  “Not at all. I will enjoy watching my bed being taken apart. I do like to know how things are made.” He said in a softer voice to Brother Xavier, “If I hadn’t been promised to the church, maybe I would have been a carpenter, like Joseph.”

  Quickly, they packed the bedstead, tables and pallets in the cart, filling any gaps with smaller items. The sun had dropped below the horizon when the doors were opened and the cart pulled out by the horse. Montaigne, Porthos and Athos went with the cart, D’Artagnan and Aramis staying behind with the monks.

  Within an hour, Montaigne returned, driving the cart.

  “I left Gerard and Georges there putting the bed together. We can place this last pallet in the cart and lay Brother Etienne on it, covering him with the blankets. The chairs should fit around him. I will drive the cart to the church, entering the grounds a less visible way, and then bring it back for the rest of the furniture. That will be the last trip.”

  “Oh, but I can ride on the seat,” objected the cardinal.

  “Eminence, I don’t think you should try to climb that far up,” protested Brother Xavier. “You might hurt your knee again.”

  “He’s right, Eminence,” Montaigne said. “You ride in the back and I’ll drive.”

  The cardinal looked from one to the other, then nodded. “I’m sure you’re right.”

  Montaigne said to D’Artagnan, “Try to dirty the floor again. It should not look as though anyone has been here. I’ll walk back to guide you to the church when Brother Etienne has been settled.” At that he drove the cart out of the warehouse and disappeared from sight into the darkness.

  D’Artagnan and Aramis got busy sprinkling dirt on the floor and spreading it around. The lanterns would be the last of their possessions to go, since they needed them to light their work.

  “This has been quite a journey, hasn’t it?” Aramis said. “The day before we left to join you I wouldn’t have expected that I would be traveling this far with such an important passenger. And the trip isn’t over yet. Where will it end?”

  D’Artagnan replied, “It will end when we get to where we’re going. It shouldn’t be too much longer, though. We are taking him to safety and then we may leave and do whatever we need at that time.”

  They had finished their chore by the time Montaigne returned. They gathered the few things that were left and took a last look at the place they had stayed in for the last week, then the three friends walked away, closing the doors behind them.

  They shuttered one of the lanterns and extinguished the other. The shuttered lantern would give sufficient light for them to make their way to the church.

  “I have found a shorter way to get to the church on foot. If we’re quiet, we can go between the houses and shops.”

  The three friends walked as silently as they could along the road leading to the church. At one point, Montaigne directed them along the side of a small house.

  “This is a short cut I found earlier and will take us to the rear of the church grounds,” he said.

  Right then Aramis stepped in a depression in the ground, stumbling and uttering an epithet in too loud a voice. A dog began barking from a nearby house, causing the homeowner to run out of the house in his nightshirt, brandishing a pistol and shouting.

  “Who’s there?” he cried. “Leave my chickens alone, you thief!”

  That woke some of the neighbors, who ran from their homes, shouting.

  Montaigne, D’Artagnan and Aramis were able to avoid the irate h
omeowners by backtracking and crossing in front of the houses while the homeowners were searching behind.

  They arrived, out of breath, at the back of the church soon after and Montaigne used their signal knock at the door.

  “We are all finally here,” said Athos as he let them in. “Come with me. Father Jean wants to meet you.”

  After Montaigne introduced the new men as Allais and Emile, the priest said, “I want to thank you for agreeing to help me. This is an old but small church, and I don’t have much help. Certainly no one who can defend it against thieves.”

  “We are glad to do so, Father,” D’Artagnan said. “We needed a safe place to stay until we may leave Rennes without fear. But we can stay only until the men that King Gaston sent are gone.”

  “Of course. However, I think the men threatening the church will come back soon. That’s why I needed help now. But first, are you hungry? There is food saved from my dinner that you may have.”

  “Father, we can’t take your food. We ate just before leaving our former refuge,” said D’Artagnan.

  “I insist. I ate my fill; the rest might not keep until tomorrow. Why don’t all of you share what is left?”

  “Our thanks, Father.” D’Artagnan turned to Montaigne. “Let’s go check on the rest of the group.

  “Follow me,” Father Jean said after he had gathered up the leftover food, and he led them through a doorway in a small room and down a staircase. “Brother Etienne’s bed is down here in an alcove. He is resting comfortably with Brother Xavier in attendance. Your other friends have placed all the pallets nearby. I have some extra blankets for you, since it is colder in the cellar than in the upper part of the church.”

  They reached the cellar floor and were led through a corridor to a small room around a corner. The bed, with the cardinal in it, was set in a corner and the tables and chairs were set close to the opening to the room. The pallets were stacked in a vacant area.

  “About time you got here,” cried Porthos. “Is that food you’re carrying?”

  The rest of the men laughed, but Father Jean just looked at them questioningly.

  “Georges is famous for his appetite,” Athos said. “He is the one who always suggests that it is time to eat.”

  “Yes, it is food, but there isn’t much. It’s just what was left from my dinner tonight, but you are welcome to it.” He spread the food out on the table that had been brought from the warehouse.

  It wasn’t much, just some bread, cheese and a few vegetables. There was also a pitcher of red wine.

  “I suggest we give most of this to Brother Etienne,” D’Artagnan said.

  “No, no,” he protested. “I am not hungry. You all have done all the work; you should eat.”

  “I’ll take a bite of cheese,” said D’Artagnan. “Each of you take a bite of something, and the rest we will give to Brother Etienne.” He looked at the monk. “No argument. You have been ill and injured; you need to keep up your strength.”

  Brother Etienne bowed his head in acquiescence.

  After everyone finished eating and had drunk his share of the wine, D’Artagnan suggested sleeping arrangements.

  “Since Father Jean is expecting an attack tonight, two of us should sleep upstairs near the back door. I suspect they will come into the church that way. On the chance they try to come in from the front, two others should sleep near it.” He thought a moment, then turned to the priest.

  “Father, is there a chance they might break into your home to rob you?”

  “There may be a chance of that.”

  “Then, Montaigne, why don’t you stay in the rectory to protect him.”

  They all nodded agreement.

  “It is late, so let us all go to bed.”

  “But is it safe for Brother Etienne and me to be here alone?” Brother Xavier asked.

  “It’s doubtful that anyone will come down here during the night with the rest of us keeping watch upstairs,” said D’Artagnan. “Don’t worry. We will be down to check on you in the morning.”

  The rest of the night passed quietly. No one tried to break in the church or the rectory, and everyone slept well. Shortly after dawn, the five friends rejoined the monks, with Father Jean bringing their breakfast down with Montaigne’s help.

  “Since today is the Sabbath, I do not have much time to talk to you. I must prepare myself to say Mass. I just want to thank you again for guarding the church and the rectory. And if any of you wish to attend my service, you are certainly welcome.”

  “Thank you, Father. I think we will,” D’Artagnan said while looking at his friends as they nodded. “But I believe Brothers Etienne and Xavier should stay below. We have all brought our bedding back down, and they may use the blankets if they get cold.”

  “Wonderful. I’m delighted to have you join us. But please, leave your weaponry down here.”

  “Of course, although there is a chance of an attack during the service,” pointed out D’Artagnan. “Perhaps one of us should stay armed, and hold the weapons of the rest of us, but not be in the sanctuary.”

  “I will do that,” Montaigne offered. “I should be able to hear well enough from behind, where we entered last night.”

  “Very well,” Father Jean replied. “If you hear shouting or screaming, please come forth to inquire if we need you. I must go now.”

  “Are you sure you don’t mind?” Aramis asked Montaigne after the priest had left. “We have been able to attend very few services on our journey.”

  “Don’t worry about me,” Montaigne replied. “I can worship God wherever I am.”

  “I really think I should attend,” Brother Etienne said. “I know Brother Xavier would prefer to be up there during the service.”

  Aramis looked at the others before speaking. “Your Eminence, you are a cardinal. I’m sure you know the litany and can say the Mass with Brother Xavier’s help. I’m sure God will understand.”

  “But I don’t really remember it,” he said to the backs of the retreating members of the group. “Oh, well. You and I can do our best, Brother.”

  The service went peacefully. The musketeers and cardinal's guard felt renewed in their faith, ready to go on with their journey when the time was right.

  After all the parishioners had left for their midday dinners, Father Jean offered to bring meals to his protectors.

  “Gerard and I can help you,” D’Artagnan said to the priest. “Montaigne, would you and Georges stay behind up here, and will you, Gerard, stay with the car, er, Brother Etienne and Brother Xavier in case the attack comes before we return?”

  They all agreed and took their stations. D’Artagnan and Aramis followed Father Jean to the rectory.

  “My cook is a marvel in the kitchen. I’m a lucky man to have meals of such quality,” he told the two men. “Come in. I’m sure you won’t have to wait long.”

  The two friends found chairs in the foyer and sat. The priest went directly to the kitchen, calling out, “Madame LeBeau, is our repast ready? I will help preparing plates for our guests.”

  Aramis looked around nervously after the priest had left to help the cook. “I know he’s a priest, but are you sure that this isn’t a trap? Divided as we are, an attack by enough men could prove the end of our travels, and our lives.”

  “No, I can’t guarantee that we are completely safe, but I believe Montaigne wouldn’t lead us astray. Not that I doubt that LeBeq would, though. We must stay on our guard at all times.”

  After a short time, Father Jean and his cook brought two trays out and handed them to D’Artagnan and Aramis. He and Madame LeBeau followed with two more.

  “We’ll come back for the other three after these are delivered,” he said.

  Before the group arrived at the church, they were surrounded by six young men with swords.

  “Have you our money?” the apparent leader asked.

  D’Artagnan looked at the men threatening them, and thought to himself, this shouldn’t take long. He put the tray he
was carrying on the ground and motioned for the others to do the same. Then he whistled. It was the coded whistled they had used before.

  Inside the church, Montaigne and Porthos heard the whistle.

  “Is that what I think it is?” said Montaigne.

  Porthos peeked out the window which overlooked the back of the church.

  “It sounded like it,” he said. “Let’s go.”

  They gathered up the swords the others had left there and rushed out the door, leaving one behind for Athos.

  Montaigne looked around and said, “Well, what do we have here? More for dinner? I’m afraid we haven’t enough for six more.”

  “Who are you?” called the leader. “Go away. This is no concern of yours.”

  “No? We are guests of the good Father. I believe it is a concern of ours.”

  He tossed a sword to D’Artagnan while Porthos sent the other one to Aramis. Then the four of them stood in a ring around the priest and his cook.

  The leader of the gang laughed and said, sneeringly, “Four against six? You are not very good at arithmetic, are you?” Then he brandished his sword and lunged at Montaigne.

  Montaigne stepped back drawing his opponent out of the circle. The young man had been well trained, Montaigne thought as he disarmed him, leaving a deep slash on his right arm.

  “I may not know arithmetic, but you and your cohorts lack proficiency in swordsmanship,” he laughed. He picked up the young man’s sword and thrust it in the ground next to the priest, point down. “Now it is four against five.”

  The other youths threatened D’Artagnan, Aramis, and Porthos, who easily disarmed the rest of them.

  D’Artagnan told the priest to take the cook, go back inside the rectory, and lock the door securely.

  “Shall we go somewhere that is not holy ground to end this disagreement?” D’Artagnan suggested. “Somewhere secluded, where no one will find your bodies for days or weeks. Maybe years?”