It Happened in the Vatican

However, the new pope's initiatives incur the deep resentment and opposition of some of the members of the Roman Curia, the administrative apparatus through which the pope governs the Church, led by the shady Cardinal Giorgio Tarrento. Together, some rogue members of the Curia plot the resignation of the pope, which they hope to accomplish by reason of drug-induced insanity. Meanwhile, the faithful members of the Curia, including Chadwick and his friends, are forced to deal with some very public and very scandalous situations within the Church-the death of a cardinal in a Paris brothel, a public marriage of a Vatican secretary, and the sex-change operation of a Curia official.

The pope's kidnappers fail to take into account the intelligence and tenacity of their other hostage, nurse Laura Woerner, who previously saved Chadwick's life. Can Laura, the pope, and the reputation of the Catholic Church be saved?