A Spirited Adventure

By Michael Thompson

For Tony, his plans, upon arrival in the city of Rome, was to use the clues he had received in the mail several months prior, and see where they might lead. For Isabella, her desire to clear an old relative's name of a dastardly deed motivated her to seek help from a soothsayer. Soon, she was circling into Tony's orbit, and together, their quest began, leading them to events of which they could never dream. Along the way, their physical attraction for one another grows immensely. Both are unaware of what is propelling them toward this deepening relationship.

Their search takes them to Castel Sant'Angelo where they shockingly discover a secret long buried. Their quest becomes both confusing and extremely complicated. And only the ghost of the Count of Cagliostro, their benefactor pulling all the strings, can point them in the right direction of where to go next.

As their journey continues to the north and through the streets of Paris, Tony and Bella are soon immersed in the historical relevance of what they have in their possession and the historical outcomes it fostered. There, they discover the unfortunate demise of nobility during the French Revolution and a clue as to where they must go to complete this final task, the return of a most precious item found in Castel Sant'Angelo. They will be forced to make one more intercontinental stop on their journey to complete this remarkable quest.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Aug 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9781098314996

Michael Thompson

Michael Thompson is the cofounder—along with his wife, Robin—of Zoweh. Based in Durham, North Carolina, the organization serves as a guide for the hearts of men, women, and marriages as they experience the transforming love of God. Thompson is also the author of Search and Rescue, The Heart of a Warrior, and other books. He and his wife have three grown daughters and one “son-in-love.”

Book preview

A Spirited Adventure

Michael Thompson

ISBN (Print Edition): 978-1-09831-498-9

ISBN (eBook Edition): 978-1-09831-499-6

© 2020. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Table of Contents

Dedication

Preface

Part 1

The Count and I

Part 2

The Queen and I

Notes from the Author

Acknowledgements

Dedication

to

Doug and Paul

For all the joy you bring me and your mom.

Preface

The blending of historical research with the present day has a way of making the plot pertinent with true facts. I encourage the reader to do some investigations of their own on the internet for a richer experience. As you read the story, a reference to a Google map of the city will help orient you to the specific journeys of the protagonists. If you can locate a detailed map, it may allow you to find the actual streets highlighted in the story as all of them are real. Businesses like the cafes, restaurants and the sites of the city involved in the story can be located with a bit of searching. I would like for this book to be more than just telling a story but educating the reader as well. Who knows? Perhaps you will be inspired to make a journey to one of these fabulous cities some day and stay at a hotel or eat at a restaurant I featured. In open disclosure, I did not receive any compensation from any business mentioned in this story.

Rome

Part 1

The Count and I

The journey down the narrow street seemed to go on forever for Tony, and because it was someplace he had never been, it was a little unsettling. This was his first day in the big city. The old cobblestones of the street looked as if they had been there for ages and Tony wondered precisely how long that was. Could they go back to ancient Roman times? Of course, they could. He was in Rome . . .

Rome never changes. Over the years, the buildings might have been updated and the residents were different, but the layout of the ancient streets never changed. Many people commented that, having been there once, you could always find your way around again with a little searching. If it was not down this way, perhaps it was down that way. And with each turn of the corner, there was always something to enchant the traveler.

At the next corner, one might encounter a small piazza, a welcome relief from the claustrophobic, congested streets and tall buildings that lined them. Here, people gathered, usually around a small, central fountain of some forgotten historical importance. There they sat and ate while the pigeons waited their turn to nab a piece of bread. The splashing of the water in the fountains provided a white noise that masked out all other sounds. The water was always crystal-clear in the fountains, being well-maintained by the city.

Sometimes, a cobbled street might lead to a space of magnificent proportions. Large piazzas could bring the traveler into the hustle / bustle world of the real-life Rome of today. Congestion from vehicles of all shapes and sizes contributed to the noise. There were blaring of horns and yelling that was common for a Roman driver. All motorists were vying for a different space in line, a faster exit to where they wanted to go, a place to park. And, as is so familiar with most Romans, a loss of patience was no more than a gearshift away! Blowing the horn might be an easy notice of complaint by the driver but the hand gestures that went with it were the frosting on the cake. Most often, they were proffered out the window or through the sunroof. Little did the drivers care that nobody paid attention to their irritability with someone else’s driving. After all, ‘When in Rome, do as the Romans!’ So, they all did it. Romans have broad shoulders! Everything rolls off them as they go their testy ways!

And everywhere, there seemed to be the pervasive smell of food! The aromas from the open trattorias and i panifici, the bakeries, wafted into the air, enticing passers-by. It overpowered the car exhausts along the sidewalks. It was as if the smells were free advertising for the wares within the shops. The scents of garlic pasta dishes or the fresh breads that were baked that morning, encircled and ensnared the passersby, encouraging him or her to stop in and sample something. Italians love their food and the walk home from work was an adventure in the culinary sense. One needed only to stop in and the gastronomic juices started flowing. The mouth became moist as the mind anticipated the taste of the food. The shops along the crowded streets were all small and family owned. Brightly stocked windows welcomed Romans and travelers alike to come in and sample their wares.

Tony, new to the city, enjoyed all of this and more. As he walked along the cobblestone street, he marveled at his good fortune. He came from a small, mid-west city in Iowa and had never been to Rome. As a man in his early thirties, Tony still had the physique of the young man who had worked long hours on his parents’ farm for years. He was muscular in all the right places. His blond hair framing his tanned face gave the appearance of an Adonis. His only flaw was his nose, having been broken while playing football in high school. Despite his good looks and easy-going personality, he still had not found just that right person to share his life, although he had come close several times. Most of the women he had come to know, turned out to be too emotionally or intellectually superficial for his tastes. He wanted to meet someone who had a love for life, but still took it seriously. It was always Tony who eventually backed away from any long-term commitment.

A guy from Iowa seldom thinks of a European escape. He is more apt to go to the Texas shores to escape the doldrums of prairie life. There, he could enjoy the ocean and the bars that catered to the younger crowds. And yet, here he was, in Rome.

He had never been out of the country until two days ago when he boarded a plane at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago and flew directly to Fiumicino Airport outside of Rome. The airport was Rome’s gateway to the world and it connected to the ‘Eternal City’ via the AutoStrade or a very efficient train system.

The reason for his trip was shrouded in a mystery that had thoroughly piqued Tony’s interest. Being a history professor in a community college in Ames, Iowa, anything historical was fascinating. It consumed him.

What had led him to this new adventure had begun two months earlier. One day, a letter had come to him that would lead to some life-changing events. It had no return address, but the postmark and stamp indicated Rome, Italy. He was puzzled as to why he would have received something like that. He did not know anyone in Rome.

The cryptic message inside was even more bizarre and had prompted him to do some research, resulting in the trip. He had wondered if this was a wise decision, but for some reason, he felt compelled to follow through with this journey.

Upon opening the letter, he found a small, folded piece of fragile paper. The parchment looked old and brittle, as if it could disintegrate in his hand, so he handled it with care. When unfolded, it revealed a series of numbers, written in Roman numeral style, I-II-V-VI-VII-VIII-IX, and below, the word Cagliostro in a flowery style of penmanship.

Tony had wondered why someone would send him a note with this name. What was he supposed to do with this? At first, he dismissed it as a prank. But, coming from Rome, that was quite a long-distance prank from so far away! The part of the note with the numbers was interesting. He was not sure if they represented a phone number, an address, a date or what. Tony made little sense of them.

But the word was something else and appeared to be a name. After much research on the internet, Tony was able to discover some information about the person.

The Count of Cagliostro was forty-two years old when he died after being imprisoned for six years in the Forte di San Leo by the Inquisition. Born Giuseppe Balsamo, his life was a colorful one that took him from Sicily to London to Russia to Paris and finally Rome. He was an occultist, believing in the supernatural, reincarnation and magic. He was a well-established magician and alchemist of his time, although, after his death, he was labeled a charlatan and a fraud. But the one thing he held fast to was that he would return someday as another person when his life was over.

Cagliostro’s formation of the Rite of High Egyptian Masonry gave rise to the Ancient and Primitive Rite of Memphis-Misraïm after his death. Among its many held beliefs and sacred symbols was a pyramid with the all-seeing eye placed atop it, sometimes called the Eye of Providence.

The day before, Tony had chosen to use the train system to shuttle him from the airport to the main train station in Rome. The short transfer into the city was interesting for Tony as the countryside and the sites of Rome flew by his window. Driving in Rome was a nightmare for anyone new to the city. He had heard horror stories of Roman drivers! So, he had opted not to rent a car. He had been advised it was best to leave the driving to someone else. He had booked a room in central Rome, in hopes of being able to walk most places or take the Metropolitana di Roma, the Metro subway.

The Leonardo Express train arrived at the Roma Termini, the central train station of Rome.