“Where’s the sample?” Michael demanded. “And your passports?”
“They’re in my shoulder bag,” Daniel responded.
“Good!” Michael snapped. “Keep your shoulder bags, but leave the rest! Later, I’ll have the U.S. consulate try to deal with the remainder of your belongings and forward it to wherever you are going beyond London. Come on!” He tugged at Daniel’s arm while pointing away from the counter.
Daniel looked over the top of the loaded cart just in time to see Monsignor Mansoni grab the arm of one of the uniformed policemen and point in their direction. With mounting urgency, Daniel switched his attention to Stephanie. “I think we better do as he says.”
“Fine! We’ll leave the bags.” Stephanie responded with resignation by throwing up her arms.
“Follow me!” Michael barked. As rapidly as he could, he led the way away from the luggage cart. Travelers in the immediate area who were pressed together in their queues parted reluctantly and sluggishly. While repeating “scusi” over and over, Michael was forced to push people aside and trip over hand luggage resting on the floor. Daniel and Stephanie followed in his footsteps as if Michael were blazing a trail through a jungle of human beings. It was frustratingly hard going, and the effort reminded Stephanie of a nightmare she’d been having when Daniel awakened her an hour and a half earlier.
Cries of “alt!” coming from behind them spurred them on to greater efforts. Breaking free from the crowds surrounding the check-in counters, their progress was significantly easier, but Michael restrained them from running.
“It would be one thing if we were running into the terminal,” Michael explained. “Running out will attract too much attention. Just walk quickly!”
All at once, directly ahead, two youthful-looking policemen appeared, hurrying toward them with their machine guns unslung from their shoulders.
“Oh, no!” Daniel moaned. He slowed.
“Keep going!” Michael said between clenched teeth. Behind them, there was now an audible commotion with unintelligible shouts.
Heading on a collision course, the two groups closed in on each other rapidly. Both Daniel and Stephanie were sure the policemen were coming to apprehend them, and it wasn’t until the last minute that they realized they weren’t. Both sighed with relief as the policemen swept by without a glance, presumably rushing toward the furor at the check-in area.
Other travelers began stopping to stare at the policemen, with varying degrees of fear registered on their faces. After 9/11, disturbances at an airport anyplace in the world, no matter what the cause, put people on edge.
“My car is at arrivals on the lower level,” Michael explained, as he directed them toward the stairs. “There was no way I could leave it even for a moment on the departure level.”
They descended the stairs as rapidly as they could. Below the terminal was relatively deserted, since incoming flights had yet to arrive. The only people in evidence were a handful of airport employees preparing for the onslaught of passengers and baggage, and rent-a-car agents readying their kiosks.
“It’s even more important now not to rush,” Michael said under his breath. A few people glanced in their direction, but only for a moment, before going back to their respective tasks. Michael led Daniel and Stephanie to the main doors, which opened automatically. They quickly exited, but then Michael halted. With his arms out to his sides, he stopped the others as well.
“This does not look good.” Michael moaned. “Unfortunately, that’s my rent-a-car up there.”
About fifty feet ahead, a tan Fiat van with its blinkers flashing was parked by the curb. Immediately behind it was a blue-and-white police car with its blue light flashing. The heads of two officers were silhouetted in the front seat.
“What should we do?” Daniel asked urgently. “What about renting another?”
“I don’t think the rent-a-car concessions are open yet,” Michael retorted. “It would take too long.”
“What about a taxi?” Stephanie offered. “We have to get away from this airport. We could rent a car in town.”
“That’s a thought,” Michael said. He looked at the empty taxi line. “The problem is, there won’t be taxis down here until the first flight arrives, and I don’t know when that will be. For us to get a cab, we’d have to go back upstairs, which I hardly feel is a good idea. I think we have to risk taking my car. These are Vigli Urbani, or municipal traffic police. I doubt they are specifically looking for us, at least not yet. They’re probably waiting for a tow truck.”
“What will you say?”
“I’m not sure,” Michael admitted. “There’s no time to be particularly creative. I’ll just try to take advantage of my status as a priest.” He took a breath to fortify himself. “Come on! When we get to the car, just get in. I’ll do the talking.”
“I don’t like this,” Stephanie said.
“Nor do I,” Michael admitted. He urged everyone forward. “But I think it is our best shot. In a few minutes, every security person here at the airport is going to be searching for all of us high and low. Monsignor Mansoni caught sight of me.”
“You two know each other?” Stephanie asked.
“Let’s say we are acquaintances,” Michael responded.
There was no more talking as the group walked quickly and deliberately toward the Fiat Ulysse. Michael went around behind the police car to pass on the driver’s side. When he got to the Fiat, he keyed it open and slid in behind the wheel as if he hadn’t even noticed the police car. Stephanie and Daniel arrived at the passenger side and immediately climbed into the backseat.
“Padre!” one of the policeman yelled. He’d alighted from his car when he’d caught sight of Michael getting into the Fiat. The second policeman stayed in the car.
Michael had not yet closed the car door when the policeman called. He climbed back out of the car and stood up.
Daniel and Stephanie watched from inside. The policeman walked up to Michael. He was dressed in a two-tone blue uniform with a white belt and a white holster. He was a slightly built fellow who spoke in a rapid staccato fashion, as did Michael. The conversation was accompanied by lots of gesticulations culminating in the policeman pointing ahead and then making sweeping motions with his hand. At that point, Michael climbed back into the car and started the engine. A moment later, the Fiat emerged from beneath the departure ramp and headed for the airport exit.
“What happened?” Stephanie questioned nervously. She looked out the back window to make sure they were not being followed.
“Luckily, he was mildly cowed by my being a priest.”
“What did you say?” Daniel asked.
“I just apologized and said it was an emergency. Then I asked where the nearest hospital was, which apparently he bought. From then on, all he was doing was giving me directions.”
“You speak fluent Italian?” Stephanie asked.
“It’s not too bad. I went to the seminary in Rome.”
As soon as he could, Michael left the main thoroughfare to drive along a small country road. After driving a short distance, they were in a rural setting.
“Where are we going?” Daniel asked. He looked out the window with obvious concern.
“We are going to stay off the autostradas,” Michael said. “It will be safer. To tell you the truth, I don’t know the extent to which they will search for you people. But I just don’t want to risk going through the tollbooths.”
When an opportunity presented itself, Michael pulled off onto the shoulder and stopped the car. With the engine running, he got out of the car and disappeared for a few minutes into the darkness of the bushes. The sun had yet to come up, but it was light.