The Milestone Protocol Ernest Dempsey (best short novels of all time .txt) 📖

awesome in a weird way. Sean found himself a little jealous about his own origins as she relayed the tale of how a sect of Shinobi had trained her family down through the ages to be the warriors against the scourge of the Fellowship of Thoth.

Everything made sense now, in Sean’s mind. That included some things he wished weren’t true. There was no fighting the truth at this point. Billions of lives were at stake, and this wasn’t something he could ignore and wait out on the sidelines. He and his wife made an unlikely couple in that two extreme scenarios had to play out before they would have had any chance to meet. But those events had happened, and fate brought them together.

When he’d mentioned that before finally falling into a shallow slumber, she explained to him the way her master had; that fate brings you decisions that lead you on the path of your destiny. You make the choices you make, and that directs your path until your last breath—the ultimate destiny for all.

The biting cold slapped Sean and the others across the face the second they stepped out of the rental car. He’d been in a daze thinking about the conversation with his wife. It consumed him at the moment, and he knew he needed to stay alert.

The group cinched their coats against the harsh breeze. Snow dust sprayed over them and cut against their exposed faces. Across the street, the golden domes of the Epiphany Cathedral of Yelokhovo gleamed in the bright morning sunlight.

“That’s an interesting color choice,” Sean said, staring at the white and seafoam-green exterior of the church.

“Definitely not a quiet look,” Tommy quipped. “And not as big as I would have imagined.”

Behind them, another building was painted in similar colors. Several of the shops along the street featured ostentatious color schemes, tributes to the village’s past before the communist era swept away all vibrancy from the nation to replace it with bland, colorless, uniform architecture.

After the Soviets took over, many of the churches were closed or even destroyed. The lucky few that survived were turned into museums or kept around merely for historical perspective. With Christianity and religion in general banned, it was a wonder places like this had survived at all.

Construction on the Yelokhovo Cathedral was completed in 1731, and like most older buildings in the world, it had received several additions and renovations throughout the decades. The last major additions were done in the mid-nineteenth century, giving it the look it still displayed.

“You think they’re open?” Tommy asked to no one in particular.

“They are,” Adriana answered. “But we’re going to have to come back when things die down.”

“Why is that?” Tabitha wondered, facing the other woman.

“Because,” Adriana said, keeping her eyes on the building, “it’s easier to steal something when no one’s around.”

“Steal?”

Adriana turned to the MI6 agent and winked. “You don’t think they’re going to just let us borrow it, do you?”

At a loss for words, Tabitha could only offer a confused and disapproving stare.

“It’s for the greater good,” Sean added. “Or we could just let the Cult of Thoth have it and wipe out two-thirds of the planet’s population.”

He pivoted on his heels and started up the sidewalk to the nearest intersection. Adriana and Tommy followed, leaving Tabitha behind for a second. She finally sighed and hurried to catch up to the others before the light changed.

When given the signal, the four walked across the street and around to the entrance of the cathedral where several other visitors had gathered in a line to enter the building.

Most of the people were locals, or at least Russian—based on their language. There were a few tourists sprinkled in from other parts of the world as well, and Sean hoped none of them were American—simply because he didn’t want to strike up a conversation with some talkative type.

Sean wasn’t sure how other Americans knew he was one too, but it had happened more than once, and every time it was with someone who couldn’t figure out how to shut up.

Fortunately, no one seemed to recognize his nationality, and as they entered the cathedral, he felt a trickle of relief.

Once through the doors and into the building, the cold from outside melted away with the warmth the cathedral offered. The smell of incense washed over them, its tendrils pulling them forward like invisible fingers.

A priest stood to the right, welcoming people and accepting donations in a gilded box. He nodded and bowed in thanks to visitors who dropped coins or bills into the slot. Straight ahead, another priest—this one dressed in flowing white and golden robes—welcomed everyone with smiles and nods. He held a higher office than the priest at the door, and Sean realized it was probably the bishop.

As the group proceeded deeper into the confines of the cathedral, the other visitors splintered off into different areas.

Tommy halted in the center of the room, overwhelmed by the assault on his senses.

All around them, the curved archways, ceilings, walls, and columns were all gilded with gold, or at least made to look like real gold. Images of saints and great religious leaders from throughout the centuries gleamed from behind shining glass, framed with more golden filigree. Everywhere they looked, homages to honored men of the Russian Orthodox Church filled nearly every space.

Straight ahead, the main portion of the sanctuary opened up wide. The gilded walls, covered with more pictures of influential religious figures, climbed high to the towering dome above.

“Should we ask someone where the relics of Saint Alexius are?” Adriana reckoned.

“Good idea,” Sean agreed. “Although considering what we’re here to do, it might be better if the priests don’t have a face to go with the crime.”

“They won’t even know it happened.” She passed him an insistent look. It was a silent message he’d received before, and Sean knew better than to question it. With a snorting laugh, he nodded and ambled over to the bishop—a portly man in his mid-forties with