Rather than head south for Rome, Father Rodrigo of Salamanca turned north. Taking the Alpine pass he headed into France and the Court of King Charles in the Loire Valley. Here Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere had fled aiming to foment strife between France and the Borgia Pope.
Given the inclement weather, Father Rodrigo’s journey was arduous, made worse when one windswept afternoon he was waylaid by bravados. Undeterred, he called down fire and brimstone upon their heads and as luck would have it, his curses were answered by torrential rain, which poured forth their fury amidst a thunder clap so loud a horse belonging to one of the bandits keeled over dead and the others bolted. The bandits were so awestruck by this display of divine retribution they fell to their knees and begged forgivene
