The campaign is currently on a long hiatus, so this seemed a good time to post some stats.

Vol 7: Tales of Vengeance, Bk VI: Witchcraft, Ch 3-4

Chapter 3: Eyes of Esus

In the morning after mass Father Signoret and the Seigneur de Chambré met at the fashionable Place Royale apartments of Guy de Bourges. Tonight was the night for the next ritual killing, but this time they planned to be there ahead of the murderers. Bondy was on a main road to and from Paris and it was near the location that would complete the pentagram so they decided to use the Red Fox Inn in Bondy as a base. It was next to the highway which made it convenient for travel. The three traveled there in de Chambré’s coach. They were accompanied by their servants, Signoret by Claude, an old family retainer; Guy by his valet and apothecary Fabré; and de Chambré by his coachman Jean-Claude.  

On the way, Father Signoret shared with them the information he had obtained from his studies on witchcraft and ritual. He had consulted a number of Classical authorities. In the Pharsalia, Book I, the Roman poet Lucan mentioned the god Esus along with two other gods – Taranis and Teutates. Blood sacrifices were made to all three of these gods among the Ligurian and Treveri tribes of the Gauls. And there were indications in the areas around Paris of influence by the Treveri. The Jesuit told them that Esus was the god most associated with blood-sacrifice and hanging. In carvings Esus was usually depicted with three birds and a bull and once, in the crypts below the cathedral of Notre Dame, Signoret had even viewed a piece of old pagan statuary that depicted Esus.  

 

They ate lunch at the Red Fox. Afterwards they questioned the locals about any news in the area. The main topic of gossip was a recent murder. The previous day the body of a murdered gentleman had been found beside his broken-down carriage. He was found by his driver who had returned after walking to Bondy to get help to repair the coach. The driver said that they had been traveling late at night down farm lanes when the coach had broken down. They were met by an attractive dark haired woman who had flirted with his master and had pointed out the way to Bondy to the driver. She had stayed with the master while the driver went for assistance. The gentleman’s body was found at the foot of a post, the sort of post often used to hold a scarecrow. The victim’s heart had been torn out. It seemed to the heroes that the witch had claimed another victim.

Based on the association of several of the previous murders with standing stones and old pagan sites they asked whether there were any in the area, especially in the woods to the northeast. From a garrulous old man they learned that there was an old pagan site in the woods southeast of Nonneville known as the Eyes of Esus that consisted of an usual stone formation in the shape of a huge face. This was near the location the mathematician had predicted for the last point on the pentacle. 

The name of the sight made the connection to the beliefs of the ancient Gauls clear. Signoret quietly told the others some additional information about Esus. In pagan myth, Esus was the husband of Rosmerta and was identified with the Roman god Mercury (Hermes). Also in the ancient Gallic tongue Esus meant Lord or Master. Witches were known to worship Satan and to call him master which further confirmed a Satanic association to the murders.

They waited another hour for Gaston to arrive, they had asked him to meet them here in Bondy and he had said he would come as soon as his duties allowed. They decided to leave word for him at the inn and to spend the rest of the afternoon searching for the Eyes of Esus. They took de Chambré’s coach east along the highway. On either side they saw that the fields were recently planted with crops. Peasants still worked some of the fields. Scattered about were planted the still forms of scarecrows in an attempt to keep the scavengers away from the freshly planted seeds. Here and there trickles of smoke rose from isolated farmhouses and in the distance the smoke was visible from the villages of Bondy and Nonneville.

About a mile from Bondy they found the path that the old man had told them about. It led north to the Forest of Bondy. The path was narrow and rutted and not suitable for de Chambré’s fine carriage. He instructed his driver to park the coach beside the road near the path and to set up the colorful pavilion he had brought as well and to set out the cold supper for their return. The others ordered their servants to assist the driver and then to await their return. The three heroes proceeded on foot up the path to search for the pagan site.

They followed the path north. Once they entered the woods their pace slowed as they took time to follow every game trail or promising detour as they searched for the Eyes of Esus. Extensive logging had reduced the Forest of Bondy to barely a shadow of its former self, but as the heroes went deeper into the woods they could no longer see the fields outside. It became impossible to tell where the woods ended. They reached a place where the path sunk into a small bog. As they circled around the depression they found a clearing with an unusual rock formation shaped like a face half buried in the earth. The stones were unsettling and it was easy to imagine the thousand years of pagan ceremonies that must have taken place here. They had found the Eyes of Esus.

Since it was still light, they decided to explore the path to the north and they followed it to the other side of the wood. Exiting they could see Nonneville to the west. Tired from walking they decided to head for the village to see if they could hire horses to ride back to the coach or if not so they could get a bit of liquid refreshment. They were less than half way to the village when Guy noticed an odd looking small, black cloud. The black cloud moved faster than any other cloud and eerily it seemed to be heading straight for them.

---

Fabré did not normally lose his temper but trying to erect the Seigneur de Chambré’s outlandishly large, brightly colored pavilion would have been difficult for only three men under normal circumstances, but when one of the three men was Claude it was an unpleasant and severe form of penance. Just as they got the last ropes tied down, he noticed a strange looking black cloud approaching from the south. But when the cloud suddenly changed direction and dove straight for them he realized two things. First it was not a cloud but the largest swarm of birds he had ever seen and second he did not want to trust the hastily erected pavilion as refuge. He started to run for the coach when he noticed Claude standing still staring at the birds. Now that they were closer their noise was overwhelming. Not trusting that Claude would hear him over the noise, nor that if he did he would understand and act, Fabré grabbled him by the arm pulled him towards the coach. They just made it inside before the storm hit. 

The black birds were crows. Vicious, angry crows. They pecked at the horses until the tormented beasts broke their tethers and ran off. The torey holes in the pavilion and they scratched and clawed at the coach. The loud clamor of cawing was enough to drive one made. At first the heavy leather privacy curtains were thick enough to withstand the beaks and claws though it required at least two hands to hold down each curtain to keep it in place. But soon holes appeared where beaks had poked through and then claws tore at the holes to make rents. In another moment the crows would be at them. 

Over the crows’ cacophony they heard the sound of gunfire. As if the sound was a signal the crows ceased their attack though their noise increased. But another volley of gunfire sounded and the sound of the crows receded. Still no one was willing to look or go outside. It was not until Fabré heard a familiar voice ask, “Is there anyone alive in there?” that he opened the curtain.

---

Late that afternoon Gaston left Paris by the Porte Neuve to rendezvous with the others at the Red Fox Inn. His friends had asked for his assistance and he was determined they should have it. He didn’t not know what they would face, but his friends said previous attacks showed that the witch had allies powerful enough to smash doors and furniture into splinters and to bludgeon men to death. Gaston brought two of his Red Guards, Duval Delsarte and Francis Fontang. Each had been with Gaston on the hunt for the Wolf of Soissons. None were in uniform. Gaston wore his old buffcoat. All three were armed with pistol and sword, including a few silver bullets, and tucked in one saddle bag and wrapped in oilcloth Gaston carried a single grenade, just in case.

At the Red Fox he found that he had missed his friends by several hours, but they had left word that their destination was a place in the forest called the Eyes of Esus which he could reach by following the path that went north from the main road. As he trotted along the highroad, Gaston noticed that the farmland gradually sloped down to the north towards the wetland pastures west of Nonneville. To the south the road to Meux marked the northern boundary of the lands of the Abbey de Livry. To the east and west he saw the remains of the old forest of Bondy in which woodcutters still collected fallen branches in bundles to send to Paris to feed its hungry fireplaces. Tree branches were still half bare after the long winter. They showed only the first few bright green leaves of spring. There was gap between the east and west woods which, at its narrowest, was some two hundred yards in breadth. 

He could see the path a few hundred yards ahead. Parked beside it was a coach and past the coach stood a colorful pavilion. He thought it looked like something out of the tales of Orlando Furioso. Then his attention was attracted to an enormous swarm of crows that dove towards the pavilion. Even from several hundred yards away he could hear the raucous sound of the flock. He noticed several figures running towards the coach. They dove inside just as the flock struck. He didn’t think the coach would be any more shelter than the pavilion. I’ve heard crows are smart enough to avoid hunters with guns. Let’s hope that’s true. “Ready your pistols,” he said calmly. “We’re going to ride down there and scare away a lot of birds. Nothing to it lads. Together at a canter…forward!”

---

Signoret was the first to realize that the black cloud heading towards them was a huge swarm of crows. The swarm dove on them cawing, clawing, and pecking. Mobbed by dozens of the birds it was impossible even for skilled swordsmen to defend themselves so the heroes ran towards the path and back into the woods in hopes of leaving the crows behind. Their plan succeeded as the crows didn’t follow far beneath the branches. They traveled farther into the woods before they stopped so that Signoret could dress their wounds. Signoret crossed himself and said, “Thank the Lord that none of us lost an eye.”

“And thank the Lord my face was spared too,” de Chambré said. “But I’m afraid I need a new hat and suit. I suggest we all return to my coach for some refreshments.”

The sun began to set as they followed the forest path back south past the clearing. They reached the edge of the forest. Daylight was fading and the smoke from the farmhouses and villages was accompanied by lights twinkling in the gathering dusk. In vain they looked for the Seigneur’s brightly colored pavilion. It was with both confusion and relief that they saw Gaston and two others walking towards them. Guy and Signoret recognized Delsarte and Fontang as two of the survivors of past encounters with the supernatural. Gaston explained that after rescuing their servants from a swarm of attacking crows he had sent the frightened men back to Bondy for safety. Unfortunately the crows had destroyed the feast that de Chambré had ordered his servants to prepare, but Gaston told them that he had saved most of the wine as he pulled several bottles out of a large sack. 

Signoret led them back towards the clearing. The moon was not yet up and beneath the trees it was dark as pitch. They had to use the lanterns they had brought to see the path. Their lanterns were hooded so that they could either hide their light so as not to give their position away or uncover them to see in the darkness. At the Eyes of Esus they spread out in ambush to wait for the witch. 

Beneath the dark branches it was impossible to tell the passage of time with certainty but it seemed like hours before they noticed several figures appear. In front two large figures moved in an awkward, jerky fashion as they led a young girl towards the stone. They were followed by a woman in a dark cloak. Seeing that the young girl, who could have been no more than 12 or 13 years old was bound, de Chambré didn’t wait to act. He leapt out of the bushes to rescue her. As he did the large figures moved to attack. By the light of their lanterns the heroes saw that the large figures were scarecrows whose wooden limbs flexed and creaked to their jerky movements. Their unnatural motion was unsettling and in the darkness, frightening. More scarecrows creaked forward from among the trees. In the darkness it was difficult for the heroes to see their foes. On the other hand the scarecrows seemed to have no such difficulty as they unerringly headed to attack. Worse still the heroes soon found that their pistols and rapiers did little if any damage to their unnatural foes. 

Thinking quickly Guy fashioned a torch from a fallen branch. He yelled at Duval Delsarte who held a lantern to light it, then watched in horror as the brave guard coolly stood his ground as a scarecrow closed on him to light the torch. The torch lit just as Delsarte was crushed by a tremendous blow from one of the scarecrows wooden arms. Guy used his torch to burn the creature. After several strikes he was able to set its head on fire. Blinded or panicked by the flames the ungainly creature blindly lurched across the clearing and crashed into a tree.

Signoret also fashioned a torch which he used to set on fire a second scarecrow while de Chambré was kept busy defending the young girl from the scarecrows’ attacks. Gaston used the grenade he had brought to blow one scarecrow into splinters. Then he switched from his rapier to a large tree branch which he used to batter a scarecrow into wreckage. After igniting the one scarecrow Guy saw a human figure heading deeper into the woods. He followed. He thought it might be the witch and he was determined not to let her escape. Momentarily he saw a shadow of something that looked like a small animal, possibly a cat, but in the darkness he soon lost the figure in the woods.

After the battle the heroes found that they had destroyed five scarecrows. Neither rapiers nor pistols had much effect. Gaston’s improvised club had more effect and fire definitely harmed them, but the most effective weapon had been the grenade. Afterwards Gaston said, “Next time, grenades. And a bigger sword…or maybe even an axe.”

It was well after midnight when they returned to the Red Fox Inn where de Chambré arranged for a room for the rescued farm girl until her family came to fetch her. They brought the body of Gaston’s dead man with them so that he could have a proper burial. Then exhausted by the day’s events they went to sleep.

Chapter 4: Trail of the Witch

The next morning was April the 15^th. Gaston rose early. He left Françis Fontang with the body of the dead guard, Duval Delsarte, at the inn in Bondy while he rode alone past Paris to Saint Cloud. He wanted to scout the woods where the Red Brotherhood had set their meeting with the Baron-Saint Giron. He wanted to carefully prepare his apprehension of the Baron. He did not just want to catch Saint-Giron, he wanted to catch the murderer of Monsieur LeDroit and he wanted to destroy the Red Brotherhood. But the first step was to capture Saint-Giron red-handed. Then he could be kept under wraps and questioned while they watched the other members of the Red Brotherhood. Gaston had far to travel that day so he rode Delsarte’s horse while leading his own to keep it fresh. It was over twenty miles to Saint Cloud but he made the journey in just a few hours. 

As he rode he considered how he might discover if Don Martine’s newest second Alvarro Pietro de Santos was the Spanish sword master of the same name. To learn that he decided that he would visit the Scuola d’Agrippa. Named for the Milanese fencing master Camillo Agrippa, author of the 1553 fencing manual Trattato di Scientia d’Arme con un Dialogo di Filosofia, the salle d’armes of the Scuola d’Agrippa was located in the northern part of Paris on the Rue de Saint Martin, opposite the Priory of Saint Martin des Champs. The school was popular among devotees of the Spanish fencing style inspired by Agrippa and many Spanish students at the Université of Paris made the trip across town to study at the scuola. It seemed likely that de Santos would be known to the masters at that school.

Once Gaston reached the forest of Saint Cloud he carefully followed the directions that Guy had obtained from the deciphered note on the Spanish Ambassador’s desk. He reconnoitered the area around the site for the Red Brotherhood’s meeting with the Baron. He checked the sight lines, examined lines of retreat, and noted the presence and density of underbrush and other hiding places as he planned the best locations for his men both to observe the exchange and to effect an arrest. After this he entered Paris from the southwest and returned to the Louvre. 

Gaston ordered his lunch to be sent to his office in the Tour du Bois but before he had a chance to eat, one of his men arrived to tell him that he had visitors. Downstairs Gaston saw that his visitors consisted of Norbert’s servant Mel with a young girl and two children in tow. Mel’s explanations were often confusing and this time was no exception. However he was loyal to Gaston’s cousin so he held his impatience in check as he listened to a confused tale of long travel by public coach. When at last Gaston impatiently demanded to know why Mel was here, the oldest child a girl of about 14 or so stepped forward and held out a letter. It was addressed to him. He opened it and read.[i]

Most esteemed cousin,

I commend Mlle. Lisette and her brother and sister to your protection!

We found them safe at Valence. However, the Mlle. is no longer a child and her beauty and money makes it unsafe for her to stay alone in Valence without a male protector. I am sure you would want to see she was well cared for in Paris. Mlle. is especially concerned that her brother receive some kind of training for a profession. I am sure Mssr. Guy or the Father can help. My greetings to all our dear friends!

By the way, cousin, the evil landlord has not returned and the tavern is abandoned. The gypsies like the spot, though I don’t think they’ll be coming back soon.

By the way, cousin, please see that Mel is taken care of until my return, God willing. He is an excellent servant and bootblack. I’m sure he will be useful to you.

May God bless us all until we are reunited!

Your humble cousin,

Norbert (Thibeault)

By the way, Jacques and Cobweb still live.

By the way, everybody else too.

Yrs.

Gaston shook his head at the unique way his cousin had of expressing himself. He thought, That’s all I need. Three new problems. He glanced at Mel. Make that four problems. If they were soldiers they could stay in the barracks. But that won’t work for Mel much less three kids and two of them girls. To gain some time Gaston told Mel to take the children to his apartments in the Fauxbourg Sainte-Honoré. He gave Mel a note to show to his landlord should any questions be asked as well as a couple of livres to buy lunch and dinner for himself and the three children. He ordered the four of them to wait for him in the apartment. “I will probably be back very late. We will talk later and then I will decide what to do with all of you.”

---

Later that morning Signoret, Guy, and de Chambré returned to the Eyes of Esus on foot. Signoret circled the clearing and examined the many tracks. He found one set of footprints that he decided corresponded to the cloaked woman. On their arrival to the clearing her tracks were accompanied by several sets of the blocky inhuman prints he had found at several of the murder sites and which he now realized were made by the scarecrows. Then the woman’s tracks headed away from the clearing. He saw where her tracks stopped and where Guy’s tracks showed that he had walked right past her. He also saw a small set of feline footprints. He followed the woman’s tracks. They led in an arc through the woods to a game trail north of the clearing that eventually led back to the main path.

They followed her footprints north out of the woods to where the footprints left the path and entered the stream. On the other side footprints led south back towards the woods but these soon ended at a small patch of rocky ground. No other prints led away from that point. Signoret concluded the trail leading back south was a false one and that the witch had used the stream to conceal her true route. Since she had tried to lead them south, they followed the stream north. Just outside of the village of Coudray the Jesuit found new tracks leading from the stream to a riverside shed where it appeared the witch had rested for the night. Beyond Coudray her trail again disappeared on a country lane heading west towards the Paris-Chantilly highway. Since west was also in the direction of Dugny where they knew the witch had previously stayed at the Wild Grasses Inn, they went to Dugny and asked questions. At the inn they found a carter who told them that a woman matching the witch’s description had hitched a ride outside the village of Blancmesnil. He had dropped her off on the Paris-Chantilly highway where she had said she was heading for Paris. Guy was suspicious of this obvious clue. He decided that most probably she had gone north in the opposite direction. However with no more trail to follow the heroes returned to Paris.

---

Once he returned to the Jesuit House Father Signoret learned that Brother Philippe had tried to reach him and had left a message that he needed to speak to Signoret immediately. Before going to see Brother Phillipe, Signoret briefed the Provincial Father and Père Noir, his superiors in the Jesuit Order. As the source for much of his information, especially the information given to him by his cousin Guy, he cited an unnamed “trusted spy.” This anonymity was not satisfactory to Père Noir who insisted that he must know the name of the spy to properly assess his information. The Jesuit master of espionage requested that the Provincial Father order Signoret to divulge the identity of his spy. Compelled by his Jesuit oath of obedience, he revealed that the spy was actually his cousin Guy de Bourges. Père Noir, in his role as the Jesuit Spy Master for France, instructed Signoret to infiltrate the Red Brotherhood and to get either the original Step Rocket Plans or a copy for the Jesuit Order. And the Provincial Father heard Signoret’s confession and formally relieved him of the oath he had given to the Red Brotherhood.

Signoret went to see Brother Phillipe. He found the Knight of Malta at the Black Cross Club. Brother Phillipe told Signoret that his participation as a second in a duel against a Spanish noble like Don Martine would cause embarrassment to the Red Brotherhood and in the event that the duel caused the death or injury of Don Martine that could disturb the Brotherhood’s efforts to foster peace between France and Spain. Signoret told Brother Phillipe that he and Gaston Thibeault had fought several duels together. Then he thanked the knight for bringing these complications to his attention. He said that he now understood the issues and would act so as to satisfy his oaths. This left Brother Phillipe with the impression that Signoret intended to withdraw as a second even though the famous dueling Jesuit had no intention of missing a chance for a duel.

After he left the Black Cross Club, Signoret went to see Père Joseph. As he had agreed he briefed the Capuchin on his progress investigating the murders. Then he spent the rest of the day copying notes and performing other clerical tasks. It was late when he returned to the Jesuit Professed House. There he learned of the discovery of new murder. This one also seemed to be connected to the ritual killings. That morning, the body of a farmer and his hired hand were discovered at a farm near the Abbey de Livry. The farmer’s arms had been broken and his skull smashed. The hired hand had died from a massive wound that had torn open his entire chest.

---

[i] The events leading up to Mel’s arrival are described in the not yet published Volume 10: Swords in Exile: Book I: The Journey South, Chapter 6: “A Pox Upon You.” Previously, Norbert, Jacques, and Cobweb had sent Lisette and her siblings to Paris by public coach. The four departed Valence around April 4. Norbert assigned Mel to accompany them and see that they arrived safely and he wrote a letter of introduction to his cousin, Captain Gaston Thibeault, which he gave to Lisette, commending her to the Captain’s protection. It took them about a week and a half to reach Paris. So they arrived on Monday April 15. Mel has no money. He spent it all along the way. Lisette has 180L, which is what is left of her ‘dowry,’ the money she was given by Gaston, Guy, and Lucien.

Vol 7: Tales of Vengeance, Bk VI: Witchcraft, Ch 1-2

Book VI: Witchcraft

Chapter 1: The Mysterious Madame Corbeau

On April 12, while Guy returned to Paris, Father Signoret and the Seigneur de Chambré continued their investigation. They went to the site of the fourth murder. They learned that the victim was a 19-year old farm girl named Jeannette. She had been ritually murdered on a cliff above an island in the Little Rhone River near Ermenouville. Once they had scaled the cliff they saw that the rocky ground at the top still showed signs of a pentacle drawn in blood. When Signoret had investigated the body he had found bruises on herwrists where she had been cuffed or held along with several wooden splinters in her wrists at the site of the bruises. When the body had been found her feet had been secured with rope to a pair of unusual stones each with a single, smooth hole through it so that the stone could act as a ring bolt. The holes were smooth either from polishing or years of use. Clearly before she was killed her feet had been tied to the stones with rope while her hands had been held or bound with wood in some fashion.

Then they went to the cottage in the valley where Jeannette had lived to look for additional clues. It was clear someone or something had attacked the cottage. The front door was smashed, the inside was wrecked, and all other family members had been bludgeoned to death by unknown persons of great strength wielding what seemed to be branches or wooden clubs. The Jesuit was an experienced hunter and tracker. Outside the cottage he found three sets of blockish, inhuman footprints and one set of smaller footprints of a woman or youth. The inhuman footprints looked like those strange blockish footprints without heel or toe that he had found at the first murder site. Marks between two of the pairs of inhuman footprints showed where someone, probably Jeannette, had been dragged towards the cliff and her death. The Jesuit prayed that the young girl had been unconscious during the trip and afterward.

Another trail made by three sets of inhuman prints and the one set of the smaller footprints led away from the murder site. They followed those tracks south and east until they reached the toll bridge over the Rouillon River at Dugny. The bridge was stone which showed no tracks. Signoret and de Chambré asked about any unusual events or strangers both at the church in Dugny and at the local inn. At the inn they discovered that one stranger, a dark haired woman ho had stayed at the Auberge Les Herbes Folles (Wild Grasses Inn). The inn keeper told them that she had given the name Mme Corbeau. They returned to the bridge and questioned the toll keeper who remembered that a woman matching the description of Madame Corbeau had crossed the bridge and entered the village sometime after midnight. 

They returned to the inn where they ate a late lunch. While they were dining they noticed a noble house guard seated in the common room of the inn. De Chambré asked the innkeeper about the man and learned that he worked for a local noble. He and his companion accompanied their master who had stopped at the inn some five hours earlier. He had rented a room for his private amusements. De Chambré adopted a man of the world attitude as he continued his questions. He learned that the noble was named Charles de Machault and that he was the son and heir of the Seigneur of Ermenouville a château not far from the scene of the most recent murder. Machault had arrived that morning. He had spotted Mme Corbeau in the inn’s common room. The two had flirted for a while and then they retired to a room that Machault had rented on the spot. While de Chambré was speaking with the innkeeper a second house guard came down the stairs. He walked over to his companion, mentioned something about the insatiability of the woman, and told his fellow that the master wanted both of them back upstairs right away. 

While Mme Corbeau and the others were disporting themselves in the noble’s rented inn room, Signoret let himself into Corbeau’s room where he found a satchel filled with herbs. He took samples of the various herbs. From the innkeeper he learned that the village of Dugny had its own apothecary. He left de Chambré to keep an eye on things at the inn while he took the samples to be analyzed. The apothecary told him that most of the samples were herbs commonly used for headache remedies, simples, and treating wounds. However two of the samples were from plants that were unknown to him. Signoret thought he would ask Guy to have his man Fabré try to identify the two unknown herbs.

While Signoret was with the apothecary, de Chambré kept watch for Mme Corbeau. It was not long before the noble and his two guards came back downstairs and de Chambré introduced himself. His good manners and looks allowed him to easily ingratiate himself with Charles de Machault. Machault was a successful robe noble in his mid thirties. He held several offices and would, in time, inherit his father’s titles as well. Although married, he was quite open about being at the inn for amorous pursuits outside of wedlock. He mentioned an especially diverting and exhausting encounter he had already had that very day. From Machault, de Chambré obtained a more detailed description of Madame Corbeau. She was in her twenties, pretty with dark curly hair, and a single earring shaped like a claw in her right ear. She wore a green cloak accented with a feather and a ribbon fascinator on the left side of her head. While the two noblemen were talking a black cat ran down the stairs and out the inn’s open door.

When Signoret returned he and de Chambré went upstairs to question Mme Corbeau. They were surprised to find her room empty and her belongings gone. Somehow even though she was cornered in the inn she had escaped from right under de Chambré’s nose.[i] Signoret was perplexed at how de Chambré could have allowed the witch to escape and he berated him for his failure. Since Mme Corbeau was gone, the Jesuit tried but couldn’t find a new trail leaving the village. So he decided to stay overnight in hopes that he might find another clue in the morning. He located a Jesuit sympathizer in the village who allowed him to stay for the night for free while de Chambré, discouraged by his failure to spot the witch, returned to Paris.

Chapter 2: Return of the Left Hand of God

By the twelfth of April the Red Brotherhood had noticed that the Brothers Vitoria Bank was under observation. They sent men to follow the watchers and learned they were members of the Cardinal’s Red Guards. In response they shifted the focus of their operations away from the bank. That night the Spanish Ambassador was informed of the spying by the Red Guards. He decided that a response was necessary. He ordered his assassin, the Left Hand of God, to personally see to the elimination of the Captain of the Red Guards, “as a message not to interfere in our holy business.”

---

Late that night Guy received a report from his best agent. He had assigned Le Serpent to watch the Baron Saint-Giron and the little spy reported that earlier that evening Saint-Giron had visited the Seigneur le Renault at the latter’s home. Renault held a grudge against Guy for the conviction and execution of his only child on charges of poisoning. The little spy was able to overhear the words “Curse you Guy de Bourges!” repeated several times by the two men. It seemed likely to Le Serpent that the two nobles were forming an alliance against his Chief. 

After he left le Renault’s house, Saint-Giron went to the Black Cross Club. He was not a member of that club as he, like Guy, belonged to the Bishop’s Club. Le Serpent, not being a member, was unable to enter. He remained outside. Shortly after Saint-Giron's arrival the spy saw Brother Philippe enter the club. The little spy was unable to observe them inside so he could not conclusively report that the two had actually met, but the timing seemed suspicious. 

---

The next day was Saturday and Guy, Signoret, and de Chambré rode through the morning fog to the Sorbonne. They bribed the porter to let them onto the university grounds so that they could consult Master Dubert, a mathematician who Guy hoped could provide an analysis of any pattern to the previous murder sites so that they could predict the location of the next ritual murder and stop it. Based on the intervals between the ritual killings they expected that the next murder would occur Sunday night. Dubert was a slow, and painstaking scholar. Guy thought that the sites might form a pentagram and he guessed that the next spot was the Abbey of Notre-Dame de Livry. Dubert told Guy that he was off. He used various arcane looking measuring instruments, wrote down figures on a separate piece of paper, consulted the maps that Guy had provided, and pronounced that “if this followed a pentagrammical pattern then the next point would be in the woods near Nonneville northwest of the Abbey you have mentioned.”

---

Cardinal Richelieu traveled by coach through a dense morning fog to the Louvre. Today would be his first council meeting since his reappointment. As was often the case, Gaston led his escort. Neither Gaston nor the other guards in the escort were allowed in the council chambers so they waited for Richelieu in the Great Hall of the Louvre. There Gaston was accosted by a Spanish nobleman. The nobleman said, “Buenos dias, my name is Don Martin Santiago de Rodriguez y Alta-Marino. You killed my father.” Then he struck Gaston in the face with his glove and challenged him to a duel. 

Enraged at the assault, Gaston nearly struck the Spaniard in the face. He just managed to restrain his impulse since he was both on duty and in the Great Hall of the Louvre. Instead he said, “Monsieur your behavior surprises me, as does the fact that you actually knew who your father was. Still, I will be more than happy to have my seconds call on your seconds to arrange a time so that I may kill you.” Don Martin told him that his seconds could be found at the Spanish Embassy by asking for Don Roderigo Diego de Salamanca y Ribera. After this the Spaniard left the Great Hall.

By early afternoon the King and his Royal Council had finished their deliberations. They had come to a decision regarding the Flanders Frontier. Richelieu departed the Louvre to return to his apartments in the Place Royale. Gaston again led the escort. As the Cardinal’s coach slowly wended its way north towards the Rue de Saint Honoré, a quarrel flew towards the coach hitting Gaston and piercing his buffcoat.[ii]

The wound was agonizing and Gaston swayed in the saddle but despite the burning pain, he ordered the Cardinal’s coachman to drive at top speed for the Place Royal and ordered his men to surround the coach rather than chasing after the assassin. They escorted Richlieu directly to his hôtel. Once there, Gaston sent one of his men to Guy’s apartments for Fabré who soon arrived with the antidote that he had previously developed for the Spanish poison known as The Burning. Then he cleaned the wound and applied a healing poultice for the puncture. Gaston recalled all the Red Guards to duty and trebled the security around the Cardinal in case assassins should strike again.

Afterwards Guy, who had been informed by Fabré of Gaston’s wounding, arrived at the Cardinal’s residence. He updated Gaston on Baron Saint-Giron’s recent meetings with M. Renault and Brother Phillipe. In turn Gaston told Guy about his upcoming duel with Don Martine and asked him to act as one of his seconds. Gaston sent a letter to Father Signoret asking him to also act as his second.

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That evening Father Signoret and Guy went as Gaston’s seconds to the Spanish Embassy to speak to Don Martine’s second, Don Roderigo. They were accompanied by the Seigneur de Chambré. Guy had an ulterior motive in the visit which was why he had asked de Chambré to accompany them. While Signoret and de Chambré sipped Spanish wine and chatted with Don Roderigo, Guy excused himself for what he said was an urgent call of nature. While he was out of the room Guy found and broke into the Ambassador’s study. On the desk he found an enciphered message along with a deciphered version. He quickly read and memorized the message.

This Monday night at ten PM, travel by coach along the road from St. Cloud to the King’s hunting lodge at Versailles. Take the second path to the right after you enter the woods outside of Saint Cloud. Continue to the second crossing of the paths. Stop there and wait. You will be met.

Signoret found making small talk with the Ambassador’s aide difficult because the aide, Don Roderigo Diego de Salamanca y Ribera, was the brother of Colonel Don Alvaro Francisco de Salamanca y Ribera. The Colonel was known to Father Signoret and to several of his friends. Before the Siege of Bergen op Zoom Don Alvaro’s men had captured Signoret, Gaston, Guy, and the other members of the diplomatic mission to the Netherlands. They had escaped captivity but had been caught inside the town during the siege. Signoret had accompanied the envoy when he escaped the town. Gaston and the others had several additional encounters with the Spaniard. Don Alvaro’s men were several times defeated by men under the leadership of Gaston and the two had fought hand-to-hand twice—once during Don Alvaro’s assault on a redoubt that Gaston and his men were defending and once on the stairs to the town’s fortress wall. Don Alvaro had been forced to retreat at the redoubt. Gaston had kicked him off the redoubt wall into the ditch. On the stair Don Alvaro had been surrounded and forced to surrender to Gaston.

Fortunately the exquisite manners of the Seigneur de Chambré came to Signoret’s rescue as de Chambré engaged in a series of meaningless pleasantries with the Ambassador’s aide. This was just as Guy had anticipated. He soon returned from his necessary visit. Next Guy engaged in some verbal legerdemain with Don Roderigo. Delivered in perfect Castillian Guy initiated a confusing conversation about who’s the first second and who’s the second second. This had the effect of making Don Roderigo forget Guy’s absence. It also ended up dragging the Seigneur de Chambré into the mix of second seconds as a third second. Don Roderigo became flustered as he realized he needed to find at least one additional second for Don Martine. He excused himself.

After a time Don Roderigo returned with the other seconds. Señor Guzman was always intended to be one of Don Martine’s seconds. Now that there was a third second on Gaston’s side the Spaniards brought in a minor nobleman named Alvarro Pietro de Santos. De Santo was tall, with a weathered face scarred over the right eye and his long graying hair pulled back in a pony tail. He spoke not at all, but he moved with the feline grace of a master swordsman.

Now Guzman did the talking. He spoke at some length about the righteousness of Don Martine’s cause and how God would determine the victor. Meanwhile de Santos said nothing. Father Signoret suspected that de Santos didn’t even speak French. Guy was interested in Guzman. He suspected that the noble was actually the Spanish Assassin known as the Left Hand of God who, like Guy, was a master of disguise. But Guy knew he would recognize the eyes of the fanatic. He tried to get a good look at Guzman’s eyes, but the Spaniard seemed aware of his efforts. Throughout his speech Guzman kept his eyes either downcast or lifted up to heaven thus preventing Guy from getting a direct look. 

Because of their commitments to stop the ritual murders Gaston’s seconds were not available until the following Tuesday evening. Therefore after some discussion it was agreed that the duel would take place on Tuesday outside the city at Mont Parnasse at one hour after sundown. The principals and their seconds were to equip themselves with bull’s-eye lanterns.

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The second report was from Guy’s network of spies. In the morning, Brother Philippe left a letter on the steps in front of the Spanish Embassy. The message briefly sat there before it was picked up. After this Brother Phillipe went to the Temple. At noon he met Benedict LeVan the bank clerk and Spanish agent just outside the Temple. He passed LeVan a letter. Which LeVan took to the Brothers Vitoria Bank where he immediately went into the bank manager’s office undoubtedly to deliver the message.

The second report was from his network of spies. In the morning, Brother Philippe left a letter on the steps in front of the Spanish Embassy. The message briefly sat there before it was picked up. After this he went to the Temple. At noon he met Benedict LeVan the bank clerk and Spanish agent just outside the Temple. He passed LeVan a letter. Which LeVan took to the Brothers Vitoria Bank where he immediately went into the bank manager’s office.

Before he went to bed Guy wrote down a to-do list for himself.

1.  Sunday stop ritual sacrifice.

2.  Monday catch St Giron red handed in treason.

3.  Tuesday duel at Mont Parnasse as a second.

Yes, he thought. The next few days certainly are going to be busy.

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[i] Mme Corbeau used Walk Unseen to avoid de Chambre’s notice.

[ii] Crossbow bolt damage -2LB past buffcoat armor, -2LB for the poison, plus the pain of the Burning.