“Angelus domini nuntiavit Mariae With his right... “Angelus domini nuntiavit Mariae With his right hand he blew a kiss to the bas-relief crucifix
atop the stone archway and proceeded up the steps and through the huge doors of the cathedral,
aware that two robed priests eyed him with distasteI apologize for defiling your rich parish, you
tight-assed snobs, he thought as he lit a candle and placed it in the prayer rack, but Christ made it
clear that he preferred me to you‘The meek shall inherit the earth’—what you haven’t stolen of it
The old man moved cautiously down the center aisle, his right hand gripping the backs of
successive pews for balance, his left fingering the rim of his outsized collar and slipping down to
his tie so as to make sure the knot had not somehow come apartHis woman was so weak now that
she could barely fold the damn thing together, but, as in the old days, she insisted on putting the
finishing touches on his appearance before he went to workShe was still a good woman; they had
both laughed, remembering the time she swore at his cuff links over forty years ago because
black chanel handbags she
had put too much starch in his shirtThat night, so long ago, she had wanted him to look the proper
bureaucrat when he went to the whore-mongering Oberführer’s headquarters on the rue StLazare
carrying a briefcase—a briefcase that, left behind, had blown up half the blockAnd twenty years
later, one winter afternoon she’d had trouble making his stolen expensive overcoat hang properly
on his shoulders before he set off to rob the Grande Banque Louis IX on the Madeleine, run by an
educated but unappreciative former member of the Résistance who refused him a loanThose were
the good times, followed by bad times and bad health, which led to worse times—in truth, destitute
timesUntil a man came along, a strange man with an odd calling and an even odder unwritten
contractAfter that, respect returned in the form of sufficient money for decent food and acceptable
wine, for clothes that fit, making his woman look pretty again, and, most important, for the doctors
who made his woman feel betterThe suit and shirt he wore today had been dug out of a
silver chanel closetIn
many ways he and his woman were like the actors in a provincial touring companyThey had
costumes for their various rolesIt was their businessThis morning, with
the bells of the Angelus, was business
The old man awkwardly, only partially, genuflected in front of the holy cross and knelt down in
the first seat of the sixth row from the altar, his eyes on his watchTwo and a half minutes later he
raised his head and, as unobtrusively as possible, glanced aroundHis weakened sight had adjusted
to the dim light of the cathedral; he could see, not well but clearly enoughThere were no more
than twenty worshipers scattered about, most in prayer, the others staring in meditation at the
enormous gold crucifix on the altarYet these were not what he was looking for; and then he saw
what he was seeking and knew that everything was on scheduleA priest in a priestly black suit
walked down the far left aisle and disappeared beyond the dark red drapes of the apse
Robert Ludlum ?? THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM
57
The old man again looked at his watch, for
chanel purses everything now was timing; that was the way of the
monseigneur—that was the way of the JackalAgain two minutes passed and the aged courier got
unsteadily up from his pew, sidestepped into the aisle, genuflected as best his body would permit,
and made his way, step by imperfect step, to the second confessional booth on the leftHe pulled
back the curtain and went inside
“Angelus Domini,” he whispered, kneeling and repeating the words he had spoken several
hundred times over the past fifteen years
“Angelus Domini, child of God,” replied the unseen figure behind the black latticeworkThe
blessing was accompanied by a low rattling cough“Are your days comfortable?”
“Made more so by an unknown friend
“What does the doctor say about your woman?”
“He says to me what he does not say to her, thanks be for the mercy of ChristIt appears that
against the odds I will outlive herThe wasting sickness is spreadingHow long does she have?”
“A month, no more than twoSoon she will be confined to her bedSoon the contract between
us will be void
“Why is that?”
“You
prada borse will have no further obligations to me, and I accept thatYou’ve been good to us and I’ve
saved a little and my wants are fewFrankly, knowing what’s facing me, I’m feeling terribly
tired—”
“You insufferable ingrate!” whispered the voice behind the confessional screen“After all I’ve
done, all I’ve promised you!”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Would you die for me?”
“Of course, that’s our contract
“Then, conversely, you will live for me!”
“If that’s what you want, naturally I willI simply wanted you to know that soon I would no
longer be a burden to you
“Do not presume, never with me!” The anger erupted in a hollow cough, a cough that seemed to
confirm the rumor that had spread through the dark streets of ParisThe Jackal himself was ill,
perhaps deathly ill
“You are our life, our respectWhy should I do that?”
“You just didNevertheless, I have an assignment for you that will ease your woman’s
departure for both of youYou will have a holiday in a lovely part of the world, the two of you
togetherYou will pick up the papers and the money at the usual
louis vuitton backpacks plac