Blind Alley - Iris Johansen [81]
“Possibly. The scholars still don't have a clue about what happened to all those people. The entire town was buried in volcanic matter over sixty-five feet deep. And the intense heat of the flow played tricks. Carbonizing some items and leaving others unscathed. In some houses wax tablets were actually left undamaged. It was freaky.”
“But the scrolls in Julius's library weren't damaged.”
“That tunnel was far outside town and in a different direction from Herculaneum. It wouldn't have received the full force of the flow. Besides, the scrolls were protected in bronze tubes.”
“Did you see any sign in that tunnel that the earth had broken open and lava rushed in?”
“No, but we didn't get much past the library. As I said, it was slow going and Guido got greedy.” He paused. “Why?”
“I was just curious.” No, she couldn't pull off casual curiosity. Not if she wanted to find out what she needed. “Trevor, I really want to know about the theater.”
“Because it's part of her.”
“And I want to know exactly what those scrolls told you about Cira. You were very vague.”
“I can only tell you about her from Julius's point of view. And from the viewpoint of a few of the scribes he had writing his descriptions of her.”
“Were they the same?”
“Not really. I believe the scribes did what all ghostwriters do if not reined in. They tell their own story, with their own impressions.”
“What did they say?”
“I believe I'll leave that for another day.”
“Bastard.”
He laughed. “Such language for a youngster. Don't Quinn and Eve ever reprove you?”
“No. They don't believe in censorship and anyway it was too late to change me by the time I came to live with them. And you shouldn't call the kettle black.”
“I'll keep that in mind. I'll call you tomorrow evening.”
“What shall I tell Eve about Sontag?”
“That I'll handle it. Good night.”
She went back inside the cottage after she hung up. “He said he'd handle it,” she said to Eve. “Don't ask me how. We probably don't want to know.”
Eve nodded. “I wouldn't be surprised. I just checked the Rome Web site. Tonight it mentions a leading British archaeologist who's quoted as saying this may be the most exciting discovery since King Tut. If he's going to handle it, he'd better do it damn fast. Sontag's not the only archaeologist at Herculaneum, but he's the best known and he's going to be asked questions.”
“But a denial might not be a disaster. Trevor said that most archaeologists are secretive about their work.”
“Unless he opens his mouth about the phone call from Ted Carpenter.”
Jane shrugged. “Then I guess we'll have to trust Trevor to come through. We don't have much choice.”
Sontag's office occupied the first floor of a small warehouse on the waterfront and was surprisingly luxurious. A low velvet couch and kilim carpet vied with an obviously antique desk for elegant prominence.
“Professor Sontag?” Trevor said. “May I come in?”
Herbert Sontag looked up with a frown. “Who are you? I'm busy. Speak to my assistant.”
“He seems to have stepped out. My name is Mark Trevor.” He came into the room and shut the door behind him. “And I'm sure that you wouldn't want your assistant to hear our discussion anyway. We have some negotiating to do.”
“Get out.” He rose to his feet, his cheeks flushed with anger. “Whatever you're selling, I'm not buying.”
“No, you don't buy, you sell. And at a nice tidy profit. Of course, if you had the proper contacts you'd have done much better. I could have increased your take a hundred percent.”
“I don't know what you're talking about,” Sontag said coldly. “But if you don't leave at once I'm calling the security guard.”
“Do you really want him to know about the Girl and the Dolphin?”
Sontag froze. “I beg your pardon.”
“An exquisite statue that survived the eruption. You discovered it eleven years ago here in the marina.”
“Bullshit.”
“It's quite small and you must have had no problem keeping the find secret. From what I found out about you during that period of your career, you were much more hands-on. As soon as you thought there