It was a simple but sturdy elevator. The three of them skidded into it. From behind, they could hear the sound of footsteps running down the corridor. Abel yanked the lattice gate shut, and the elevator whirred into motion with a low sound. Finally they were lifted up and taken out of danger.
"What do we do now?" Christa seemed terrified. She was huddled up on the floor. "How are we going to get out of here? And what about my husband and this Cherubim you're looking for...?"
Abel looked up to the heavens. He didn't know how they were going to pull it off either. He wanted to ask the exact same questions. They only had a few hours left until the Department of Inquisition was supposed to arrive. Would they be able to get around the castle in that time?
While Abel was lost, puzzling over these problems, Antonio approached Christa and started rubbing her back. "It'll be okay, Senora Christa. I don't suppose you saw Alfonso d'Este in your travels? If we can take him as a hostage, we'll probably be able to escape."
"I might have seen him, but I don't know what he looks like so I wouldn't know." Christa shook her head. She was a rural aristocrat, so she wouldn't have had the chance to meet the central leaders. "I'm so sorry. I'm useless to you."
"No, you're not. Look, we're here."
The chime on the bell rang, and the gates opened. The door had opened up to reveal a wide, pleasant study. On the walls were lines of bookcases, filled with books. The room was being kept warm by a roaring fireplace. There was also a desk, which was almost entirely buried in a mountain of books.
"There was a lot of noise coming from downstairs. Did something happen, Friedrich?"
One of the two men standing in front of the desk turned round. There was a moment of shock and confusion on the man's winkled face and then there was realization. "Yo-you?!"
Alfonso knew Abel's face.
Beside Alfonso was another man, who now moved in front of Alfonso to shield him.
"What the hell are you two doing here?!" Alfonso yelled.
Antonio moved faster than Abel. He whipped out his gun. "Hey, don't move!" Antonio barked. "The Lord be praised. We've been lucky today. We've found the both of them!"
"The both of them..."
"Both of them? Then this is..." Abel looked at the man shielding Alfonso. It was an old man with diluted eyes. "This is Cherubim?!"
"Abel, cut the power off to the elevator. We don't want those guys downstairs getting up here. Senora Christa, tie Cherubim up."
Lost in his thoughts, Abel walked over to the elevator to cut off the main power.
Antonio handed Christa some cord, and she followed his instructions. Now that they had Cherubim and Alfonso, they didn't need to stay any longer. They would be able to use Alfonso as a negotiation tool to stop New Vatican from pursuing the townsfolk to the mountain. "Aaaah!"
Abel twirled round when he heard the scream. "Cardinal Borgia?! What are you doing?!" Abel couldn't believe his eyes. Cherubim's hands were tied. That was all good. Christa, on the other hand, was cowering against the wall. And Antonio was aiming the gun straight at her?! "Antonio. What are you...?"
"I'm really sorry that it had to come to this, Senora Christa." Antonio smiled. "This cheap play is over already. I think it's time for you to tell us who you really are. Come on, Countess Anhalt."
"I don't know what you're talking about, Father! What do you mean?" Christa cried back. Her face turned even whiter than usual. "I'm me! You know who I am!"
"You said that you didn't know Alfonso. So how did you know who to tie up?" Antonio wasn't cheerful anymore. He continued questioning Christa, all the while keeping his finger poised over the trigger. "I told you to tie up Cherubim. Without hesitation, you knew who I was talking about. How could that be? Unless you knew who Cherubim or Alfonso were in the first place. Am I wrong?"
"Ah." Abel's jaw dropped. His gaze slid over to Christa. Antonio was right. He wasn't finished yet, though.
"There are still things we don't know. I thought that you were a New Vatican spy or possibly one of Cardinal Medici's followers. But that wouldn't explain how you knew who Cherubim was... So, Countess, tell us who you really are."
Christa's head had dropped as the questions had continued. Her thin fingers fiddled with the fur on her coat, but she didn't tremble. "Hee hee... Idiot," she muttered so quietly that it could almost be mistaken for a sigh. Her sensuous lips curled into a cruel smile. "I worked hard on this miserable act, but you really are idiots."
Christa looked like a totally different person now. From under her skirt, she pulled a long, thin stick.
"Hey, don't move!" Antonio shouted. "I don't want to shoot a woman, but if you make me..."
Christa, or whatever her name was, lifted the wand she was holding and aimed straight at Antonio.
"Antonio! Get out of the way!" Abel tackled Antonio. A second later and Antonio might have been dead. The two of them rolled across the floor.
"Huh?"
There was a dull thud. Antonio and Abel looked up in horror. Something white loomed above them. Rising up the ceiling was a three-foot-tall pillar of ice.
Ice Witch waved her wand again.
"It will not be possible for you to succeed in your desire to rescue Sforza. I'll take Cherubim back to Rome for you. You can rest easy!"
A strange glowing ball of white light grew in the room.