Nostradamus free e-book novel - The Greatest Sinner Ever

Okay, I’ll have to go down that impossibly steep cliff, he decided. Michel
placed his hands on the edge and swung his legs over. He felt around with
his feet for a place to put them, while his hands were threatening to start
slipping. They found something and using the utmost concentration, he
began the impossible descent. Isabelle was terrified, looking down into the
ravine from his back. Their pursuers were making rapid progress and soon
reached the same chasm. They discovered Nostradamus, who was
covering the last part of the sheer cliff twenty meters below them and then
disappeared into the shelter of the trees and bushes. The moon disappeared
behind the clouds and they could no longer follow him with their eyes.
The conspirators didn’t dare to try to go down the same way, especially
because it could not be done with their dogs. Some of the pursuers, who
knew the area like the back of their hands, pointed to some nearby
passages. The group split up and carried on with the chase. Miles ahead,
Michel had to choose between two paths: One going up and one going
down. Because of the tall trees, he couldn’t really get a good impression of
where either path led, and he took a gamble and chose the path going
down. Following the chosen route, he soon arrived at a passable fissure
which separated two plateaus from each other. A group of pursuers, who
had taken another route, had now found the same trail; the dogs could once
again be heard. Michel’s strength was beginning to diminish; he had
traversed an enormous distance and would not be able to keep this up
much longer. The moon came back and lit up an opening in the rocks that
was within reach. Almost feeling the townspeople’s hot breath on his
neck, the doctor decided to hide in the cave. Who knows, with a bit of
luck…? But the pariah was discovered again.
“There they go!” someone called out. Underneath the stone vault, Michel
frantically searched in his shoulder bag. He took out a candle and, quick as
a flash, lit it with a firestone. Light was indispensable here and carrying
his valuable load on his back, he strode through the cave, which led to an
underground network of paths.
“Damn, the flame is going out,” he swore, “walking too fast.” He lit the
candle again and continued on his way. He suddenly heard screaming
behind him.
Good heavens, they’re here already, we’re sure not having any luck at all,
he murmured to himself. The enemy entered the cave and the dogs’
barking now became frighteningly altered. This disoriented the beasts and
made it harder for them to keep following the trail. The attackers,
however, were not discouraged by this and immediately split into smaller
groups. After all, there were only a limited number of passages, one of
them knew. Divided into various groups, they continued on their way.
Nostradamus heard them come closer and tried to make as little sound as
possible. At one point, he saw a tunnel with shallow groundwater. This
would be his one chance to get rid of those dogs. They would completely
lose the scent here. Father felt around to make sure his daughter was still
firmly tied to his back and then began to wade through the tunnel.
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