Sacred Sins

closed his eyes. “Just give me ten, Lou. Mullendore takes it in an hour anyway.”
    With his partner snoring lightly, Roderick kept watch.

    T ESS was learning the fine points of canasta from Lowenstein when the phone rang. The relaxed girl talk ended with a snap. “Okay, you answer it. If it's him, keep calm. Stall if you can, agree to meet him if you have to. See if you can pin him down to a location.”
    “All right.” Though her throat dried up, Tess picked up the receiver and spoke naturally. “Dr. Court.”
    “Doctor, this is Detective Roderick.”
    “Oh, Detective.” Her muscles went limp as she turned and shook her head at Lowenstein. “Yes? Is there any news?”
    “We've got him, Dr. Court. Ben picked him up less than two blocks from your building.”
    “Ben? Is he all right?”
    “Yes, don't worry. It's nothing serious. He wrenched his shoulder some during the arrest. He asked me to call you and let you know you can relax. Ed's taking him to the hospital.”
    “Hospital.” She remembered the tray with the blood-soaked bandages. “Which one? I want to go.”
    “He's being taken to Georgetown, Doctor, but he didn't want you to bother.”

    “No, it's no bother. I'll leave right away.” Remembering the woman breathing down her neck, Tess turned to Lowenstein. “You should talk to Detective Lowenstein. I appreciate you calling.”
    “We're all just glad it's over.”
    “Yes.” She squeezed her eyes shut a moment, then handed the phone to Lowenstein. “He's been caught.” Then she dashed into the bedroom for her purse and car keys. When she hurried back in for her coat, Lowenstein was still pulling details out of Roderick. Impatient, Tess tossed her coat over her arm and waited.
    “Sounds like a clean collar,” Lowenstein said when she hung up. “Ben and Ed decided to do a few more sweeps of the area and saw this guy come out of an alley and head toward your building. He had his coat open. They could see he was wearing a cassock. He didn't protest when they stopped him, but when Ben found the amice in his pocket, he apparently lost it, started fighting and calling for you.”
    “Oh, God.” She wanted to see him, talk to him. But Ben was on his way to the hospital, and Ben came first.
    “Lou said Ben got a little banged up, doesn't sound serious.”
    “I'll feel better when I see for myself.” “I know what you mean. Do you want me to take you to the hospital?”
    “No, I'm sure you want to get back to the station and tie up the loose ends. It doesn't look as though I need police protection any longer.”
    “No, but I'll walk you down to your car anyway. Tell Ben I said good work.”

    A S Ben crossed the parking lot to the station house, Logan pulled in behind him and hurried out of his car.

    “Ben.” Hatless, gloveless, dressed as he rarely was in a cassock, he caught up with them on the steps. “I was hoping I'd find you here.”
    “Not a good night for priests to go walking around, Tim. We got a lot of nervous cops out tonight. You could find yourself cuffed.”
    “I was saying late Mass for the sisters and didn't have time to change. I think I have something.”
    “Inside,” Ed said, pushing open the door. “Your fingers are going to fall off.”
    “I was in such a hurry.” Absently, Logan began to rub his fingers together for warmth. “For days I've been going over everything. I knew you were fixed on the use of the name Reverend Francis Moore and were checking it out, but I couldn't get my mind off the Frank Moore I'd known at the seminary.”
    “We're still digging there.” Impatient, Ben looked at his watch.
    “I know, but I was with him, you see, I knew that he bordered between being a saint and a fanatic. Then I remembered a seminarian who'd been under him and had left after a celebrated row with Moore. I remembered him because the young man had gone on to become a well-known writer. Stephen Mathias.”
    “I've heard of him.” As excitement began to drum, Ben edged closer. “You think Mathias—”

    “No, no.” Frustrated by his inability to speak quickly or coherently enough, Logan took a deep breath. “I didn't even know Mathias personally, since I was already established in the university when all that went on. But I remembered the gossip that there was nothing, and no one, Mathias didn't know about in the seminary. In fact, he used plenty of inside stuff for his first couple of books. The more I thought about that, the more things clicked.