The Testimonium (12 page)

Rossini spoke up. “There are two small villas and one larger hotel in Capri village,” he said. “However, I have a nice house with two large guest bedrooms, and plants in desperate need of watering! If you go down this evening, you are welcome to spend the night in my home—provided, Joshua, that you can keep this intemperate Scot from drinking all my good wine!”

MacDonald guffawed and made a tippling gesture. Josh smiled and said, “Don’t worry, sir, I’ll make sure he only drinks the cheap stuff.”

MacDonald replied, “Why not let Simone Apriceno go down with you, lad, and I’ll take the first night shift? Then Giuseppe’s precious wine cellar will be safe—for at least one more night.”

“You can work that out among yourselves,” said Isabella. “I need to make some calls, and I want to go through my laptop and make sure I have plenty of photographs and video to show to the Director and Dr. Guioccini. Hopefully we can have some security on-site here by mid-afternoon.”

“I am going to walk down to my home and get a change of clothes,” said Rossini. “Joshua, why don’t you accompany me and I will show you where my house is?” Josh nodded his assent and the two of them headed out the door of the lab toward the Via Tiberio.

Dr. Sforza watched them leave with some affection. Giuseppe’s place in her heart was permanent—he was a friend, a mentor, and in many ways, a father figure to her, especially since her own father had passed away not long after her husband had died. As for the young American—she was having a hard time sorting out her emotions about him.
Intrigued
, perhaps, was the best description of how she felt about him. He was so focused and passionate about his religious beliefs that she would have a hard time taking him seriously as a scientist—were it not for the fact that he obviously possessed a first-class intellect and some impressive academic skills. Physically—well, Isabella thought to herself, she might as well be honest with herself. She found him very attractive. To a small degree, he reminded her of her dear, departed husband—but only to a small degree. He was taller than Marc had been, and his eyes were a deep brown as opposed Marc’s steady gray—but he was slender, powerfully built, and had a certain steadiness about him. You got the feeling that if the ground under you began to shake, he would be a solid anchor to cling to. She shook her head at the thought. She’d known him less than twenty-four hours, after all, and should be more focused on the ongoing excavation than on his considerable physical and emotional charms.

“I see you and Isabella have hit it off rather well,” said Giuseppe as he and Josh began hiking down the trail toward Capri village.

“I hope so,” admitted Josh. “Although I’ll admit I’m not sure what she thinks of me. We were having a normal breakfast conversation one minute, the next minute she had me mounted on a hobby horse and riding like there was no tomorrow.”

Giuseppe looked at the young American with a furrowed brow. Although his conversational English was quite proficient, it pained him to admit that he had no idea what a “hobby horse” was. However, his pride was such that he didn’t really want to admit that to his companion. Josh saw his expression and chuckled. “Sorry, Professor,” he said. “Your English is so good I forget that cultural idioms don’t always translate smoothly. She asked me about a topic on which I have strong feelings—a ‘pet peeve,’ if you are familiar with that phrase. I became rather animated and fear I may have made a bit of a fool of myself.”

“And what topic was that?” asked Rossini.

“The way Evangelical Christians are portrayed in the American media,” replied Josh. “Every time I come to Europe I have to fight the stereotypes that have been fostered about us. But this time I found myself defending my beliefs to a person who I—” He paused and blushed, remembering Rossini’s earlier warning.

The older man laughed. “Someone on whom you wish to make a good impression?” he asked. Josh nodded ruefully. “Listen, my young friend, Isabella is very dear to me, but I understand that she is beautiful, single, and very attractive. Nothing would make me happier than to see her wind up with a young man who would treasure her and love her as she deserves. I am not angry at you for being interested in her. I just was concerned that your interest might be—well, less than honorable. The more I get to know you, the more unlikely that seems.”

Josh thought for a moment. “She fascinates me,” he said. “But I don’t want that fascination to get in the way of what we are doing here. This site, this find, is of tremendous significance, even if we find nothing beyond what we have already uncovered. But the potential is enormous. If we find the actual personal correspondence of a Roman emperor—not copies, but the original autographs—the whole history of the early Empire could be rewritten!”

“Not to mention the history of the Church.” said Rossini. “You can’t tell me it’s not lurking in the back of your mind. Tiberius was Emperor during the actual life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. Any mention of Jesus, of the early Church, or early Christian doctrine would be the earliest such documentation ever found.”

“You’re right,” said Joshua. “But how likely is it, after all? Tiberius died in 37 AD, only a few years after the crucifixion of Jesus. Christianity had not yet spread beyond Judea. The Apostle Paul had not even begun his ministry yet, and not a single book of the New Testament was written. I think that Christianity was still well below the Imperial radar at the time this chamber was sealed.”

“You are probably right,” said the older man. “You know, like most Italians, I was baptized and raised in the Catholic Church. I embraced my parents’ faith as a young man, but I have moved away from it somewhat over the years. But I have always been curious as to whether the simple carpenter from Galilee was something more than just a mortal man. It would be nice to find out.”

“Oh, I am certain He was more than a carpenter,” said Josh. “I have analyzed the Gospel narratives thoroughly, and studied every ancient source available. I am just as convinced that Jesus of Nazareth really was the Son of God as I am convinced that Caesar Augustus was the first Emperor of Rome.”

Rossini looked at him with curiosity. “Perhaps when I return from the mainland, you shall explain to me why you are so sure,” he said. “But for now, here is my home up ahead. Let’s go in and get it ready for guests.”

For the next hour they busied themselves with straightening up some items that Giuseppe had not had time to fix before climbing up to the Villa Jovis three days before. Then he showed Josh the linen closet and asked him to make the beds in the guest rooms while he took a long shower and put on some clean clothes. When he emerged, Dr. Rossini told Josh to use the shower while he walked down the street to the excellent restaurant where their food had come from the night before. As he ordered a full meal for three delivered to his home for 7 PM, the police chief came ambling in for his lunch break.

“Giuseppe,” he boomed. “Descending from the mountain like Moses! Did you leave the Ten Commandments at your house so you could have some of Mrs. Bustamante’s excellent cooking?”

“No, you fool; I left them in the Ark of the Covenant where Indiana Jones could keep an eye on them,” Rossini shot back. “Shouldn’t you be out arresting criminals somewhere?”

“I have it on good authority that dangerous international terrorists are going to kidnap Mrs. Bustamante and force her to reveal her recipe for chicken Marsala,” said the chief. “I am here as part of a complex sting operation to bring them to justice, and protect excellent cooking from scoundrels and evildoers.”

“And to take shameless advantage of my discount for police officer lunches,” said Antonia Bustamante over her shoulder as she bustled back into the kitchen. She was a middle-aged Spanish woman whose beauty had doubtless turned many heads in her day, and was still a handsome woman. Rossini had thought many times about asking her to go to the theater with him, but always held back at the last minute. She had been widowed for many years, far longer than him, but had never remarried. Every older, single man on the island had probably entertained the same thoughts that Giuseppe had about her at one time or another, but today he made up his mind that, when the business on top of the mountain was done, he would suck up his courage and invite her out for a night on the town in Naples.

“So,” Chief Rosario said after the restaurant owner made her exit, “what of the excavation? What remarkable discovery have you made up there?”

Rossini sighed. He hated to keep his friend in the dark any longer, and the Bureau of Antiquities would probably be announcing the discovery soon. As police chief over the entire island, Rosario had a right to know something, surely. “Well, old friend, I cannot tell you everything—not yet. But I think I can tell you something, provided you keep it in utmost confidence until the Bureau issues a press release. The earthquake opened a hidden chamber in the Villa Jovis. Inside we have found a cache of artifacts that date all the way back to the time of Tiberius. We are still cleaning and removing them, but you can appreciate the magnitude of such a discovery.”

The police chief let out a low whistle of amazement. “Congratulations, old friend. That is truly a great discovery. Now I understand why you were being so secretive. Fear not, I shall not mention it to a soul. But I still want a guided tour as soon as you can give me one. I am very proud for you, Giuseppe. May I buy your lunch?”

“Sadly, no, old friend. I am just gathering some personal effects and cleaning up so I can fly to the mainland in a little while. Isabella and I are meeting with our superiors to brief them on the discovery.” Rossini stood and tipped his hat to Mrs. Bustamante, who had just come out with a steaming plate of manicotti for Chief Rosario. “By the way, two members of the team will be staying in my home tonight, so don’t be surprised if you see the lights on this evening.
Bon journo
, Antonia.”

He found Josh dressed and toweling his hair dry. “The last shower I took was in Oklahoma,” Josh said. “You have no idea how good this feels. I just wish I’d brought my clean clothes down with me, but I’m going to change into them as soon as we get back to the Villa Jovis.”

As they walked back up the mountain, Giuseppe asked Josh about his own homeland. Josh explained how he had grown up moving every few years, and described the scorching, flat plains of North Central Texas, the rolling prairies and granite heights of eastern Oklahoma, and the beautiful Ouachita Mountains that straddled the border between Oklahoma and Arkansas. Rossini had visited the northern states a few times, but never the southeast, and the two of them talked about fishing, fossils, and artifacts all the way up the side of the mountain.

Isabella had gotten on her cell phone right after Josh and Giuseppe began their walk down the mountain. Dr. Guioccini had answered in person. “Marvelous work on translating the document so quickly, Dr. Sforza.” he said. “Your team seems to be working well together, and the new discovery sounds very promising.”

“They are a first-rate group,” she replied. “I would like to get some security up here on the peak so that they can actually stay in greater comfort down in the village at night. I also think that it is time for us to go public. We have shut down Capri’s best known tourist attraction for three days now, and the longer we go, the more likely some curious tourists are to ignore the roadblock and come wandering right up into our excavation.”

“I have been talking this over with the Bureau’s Director,” said Guioccini. “I think you are quite right, but we will need to have both some physical security as well as perhaps some docents who can direct the curious away from the dig while, at the same time, explaining enough of what we are doing to satisfy their curiosity. We will discuss it this afternoon. Would three o’clock give you adequate time to prepare?”

“Yes, sir,” she said. “As I mentioned in my email this morning, we have hit a temporary lull in the excavation process that provides a window for us to meet with the board and share our findings. I am bringing Dr. Rossini over with me—as the discoverer, I think he deserves the honor of presenting the artifacts to Signor Castolfo. Dr. Apriceno is busily clearing the dust and debris from the chamber so that tomorrow we can finish our inventory of the contents and begin removing the remainder of the artifacts.”

“Everything sounds in order,” the chief archeologist said. “I shall look forward to seeing both of you in a few hours.”

When Isabella got off the phone, she was surprised to see a rotund figure in a black robe carefully descending the stairs toward the site. She had almost forgotten about the friars in the Church of Santa Maria Del Soccorso. The one descending the steps was probably the youngest man there, but he was still at least seventy, and huffed and puffed as he descended the staircase. Isabella walked quickly up to meet him. “Father, is something wrong?” she said.

“Not in the least, my child,” he responded. “But we were told three days ago that the ruins had been damaged by the earthquake, and we have seen helicopters come and go, and now there is a campsite and a trailer set up less than a kilometer from our church. We did not take a vow to renounce curiosity when we donned our robes, so my brothers delegated me to come down and see what it is you good people are up to in Tiberius’ old playground.”

Isabella laughed. The clerics from the old church were the last group she would have suspected to be the first intruders on her site. But, she thought, they would be the easiest to deal with. Their contact with the outside world was virtually nonexistent, and they were unlikely to have much interest in the artifacts besides a bit of natural, academic curiosity.

“The earthquake uncovered a small, hidden chamber in the Villa Jovis,” she said, unconsciously using the same words Rossini would speak to Chief Rosario in Capri village an hour later. “There are a few artifacts in there dating to the time of Tiberius Caesar, and we are excavating them for further study.”

“Fascinating,” said the old monk. “Tiberius was a sad, lost soul, you know. The ancients portrayed him as a monster, but I always thought that he was more afraid than evil.”