The Napoleon Affair

For nearly two thousand years, the Catholic Church has revered and protected its priceless, sprawling inventory of holy relics. From the bones of apostles to pieces of the cross Jesus died on, Catholics worldwide have long viewed their cherished relics as sacred-reminders of the possibility of miracles, of the power of the Almighty. But some of the holiest relics in all of Christendom have been lost down through the centuries to war, thieves, or worse. And the Catholic Church has spent untold blood and treasure to recover them-often to no avail. So, when a high-ranking cardinal is murdered in his Vatican apartment over clues he might possess to the whereabouts of a relic considered truly divine, the Vatican calls in the experts. They enlist former secret agent Sean Wyatt; his wife, Adriana; and his best friend, the renowned archaeologist Tommy Schultz, to help find both the cardinal's killer and, if at all possible, the missing relic, thought to have been hidden by Napoléon Bonaparte two hundred years ago. This relic-a ring worn by John the Baptist-is rumored to possess unfathomable power, rendering its wearer nearly invincible, able to wield the very power of God. And the grand master of a once-powerful order of medieval Catholic knights wants it to help his twisted holy warriors regain their former glory. They'll stop at nothing until they possess the ring, kill Wyatt and his friends, overthrow the pope, and enlist believers worldwide into their unholy New Crusade. USA Today best-selling author Ernest Dempsey delivers his most taught thriller to date. The Napoléon Affair will keep you guessing until all of its secrets are finally revealed.