s doomed to
eternal damnation if he did not overcome his doubts, had set out on a
pilgrimage to Rome. But Rome had fallen on evil days, its streets turned
into battlefields by the Ghibellini followers of the vile Hohenstaufens,
and Father Kyril found no peace there. He decided to ask the prayers of
the pope himself at Orvieto. That decision was rewarded before he even
reached here. Two months ago, while saying mass at Bolsena, on his way
to Orvieto, and praying that his doubts be resolved, Father Kyril raised
the Sacred Host over his head after the Consecration, and hundreds of
witnesses saw drops of blood fall from it to the cloth spread on the
altar.

And now--Pope Urban gestured to the cloth spread above the altar--we can
behold with our own eyes the blood of Christ Himself and see this
proof--which, having faith, we should not need to see--that Jesus lives
in the Blessed Sacrament.

"We propose to offer triple thanks to God for His generosity in granting
us this miracle," said Pope Urban. "First, let the day on which Father
Kyril saw the Host bleed be celebrated henceforward as the feast of the
Body of Christ, Corpus Christi. Let this be proclaimed throughout
Christendom.

"Second, to house and display this most sacred relic, the blood of Our
Savior Himself, let a great and beautiful new cathedral be built here at
Orvieto, which will forever be the center for the veneration of the body
of Christ."

Daoud sighed inwardly at the thought of still another great building
dedicated to idolatry.

Yet the chapel at Chateau Langmuir had been such a lovely and quiet
place.

As the pontiff's words were repeated, the murmuring grew louder.
Someone near Daoud said, "But the miracle happened in Bolsena." Someone
else hushed the person who protested.

_I should not wonder if these cities went to war with each other over
such a relic_, thought Daoud.

"Finally," said Pope Urban, oblivious of the discontent his previous
proclamation had caused among the citizens of Bolsena, "we command that
all priests of Holy Church shall read a special office on the feast of
Corpus Christi of each year, commemorating this miracle. God has willed
that there should be dwelling with us here at Orvieto the most gifted
scholar and writer of this age, Fra Tomasso d'Aquino."

Daoud saw that Fra Tomasso's face was almost as bright a red as a
cardinal's hat.

"And we charge our beloved and most gloriously gifted son, Fra Tomasso,
with the du