Madrid, Atocha Station — Tuesday, 2:30 p.m.
Elsewhere in the world, Spain's secret investigation accelerated.
Inspector Javier Marquina reviewed the AVE train cameras with a knot in his stomach.
He had received a confidential report from the Vatican mentioning Rebeca Neuman…
and a boy named Lucas.
The cameras showed an empty train car.
Then, a white flash.
And then, for exactly 3 minutes and 33 seconds, every camera displayed the same
person:
Rebeca.
Seventeen different angles.
Marquina rewound the footage. Rebeca appeared, vanished, and reappeared
simultaneously in several cars, as if the video were corrupted.
But it wasn't.
The technician paled.
"Sir… this… this isn't a technical glitch."
Marquina knew that. He felt it deep in his spine, like an ancient warning.
He had seen something similar years ago, in Damascus.
He grabbed his phone and dialed a restricted number.
"Marquina here. Rebeca Neuman has resurfaced. And she's not alone. Send a team to
the Vatican. Now."
He hung up, took a long breath, and murmured:
"Rebeca… what the hell have you gotten yourself into?"