The Five-Day Dig (36 page)

“We must find Enza!” Domenico shouted.

They dug frantically, each person working in a different area.

“Here she is!” Chaz pulled a chunk of plaster off the rubble and exposed Enza’s scratched and bleeding face. Her nose wrinkled with pain. “She’s alive!”

Her father rushed to her side. “Enza,
carina
! Speak to me.”

“Be very careful.” The paramedic knelt beside her and put a stethoscope to her chest while the others continued pulling chunks of brick and plaster away from her. “Stay still,
signorina
. We’ll get you out.”

Her eyes flickered open and focused on her father. “Papa. Have we uncovered great treasures?”

A tear rolled down his cheek and splashed on her face. “You are my treasure,
carina
. Hold on while we get you out of here.”

“Her blood pressure is very weak,” the paramedic said. “She’s going into shock.”

“I mean
real
treasure,” she said dreamily. “Jewelry, silver serving pieces, gold coins ... scrolls with lost texts.”

Domenico picked up her hand and held it. “Those things don’t matter. Stay awake,
tesorina
.”

“They do matter.” Her eyes closed. “This is why we exploded the grenades.”

Her father’s jaw dropped.

For a second, everyone stood still, looking at each other in disbelief.

“You’re dreaming, Enza. Stay awake for me.”

Her eyes opened briefly and closed. “Is Dr. Farber doing better?” she murmured.

“He is being treated at the hospital.” His voice cracked. “You’ll see him there.”

“We didn’t intend to hurt anyone. We just wanted to explore more ... and we only had one day left.”

“You may dig as long as you like, Enza. Stay with me.”

“The curse caught up with us.” Wincing, she lifted her head and looked around the room. “Did you get Dunk and Samuelo?”

Domenico frowned at her. “Who is Samuelo?”

“The engineer.” Her head dropped back. “He helped with the explosives.”

Hank and Chaz exchanged alarmed looks. Turning to opposite sides of the room, they started digging furiously again.

“We’ll find them,” Domenico said. “You rest now.”

The paramedic looked at Winnie. “Can you go tell the squad we need a back board? In fact, you better make it two – or three.”

She nodded and ran out of the room. On the way to the main chamber, she met with Amara leading two more paramedics carrying a board toward the library. “Your colleague says you’ll need three of those,” she told them. “
Abbiamo
bisogno
di
tre
di
quelli
.
”

One of the men returned to the main room with her and climbed back up the ladder for additional boards.

Figuring that the library held too many people already, she stayed in the main room. She probably could have climbed the ladder but didn’t want to leave without Chaz. Pacing back and forth, she tried to absorb the fact that Dunk was dead. It didn’t seem real. She wished Chaz would come out. She hoped Enza would be all right. What would Domenico do without his daughter?

As it was, she supposed the girl would face some kind of charges after this mess, though maybe the brunt of the blame would fall on the engineer. He and Dunk must have cooked up the plan to start blowing things up. A teenage girl wouldn’t come up with an idea like that, but she might well be influenced by a strong personality like Dunk’s. Winnie almost felt sorry for her; then she remembered that people’s lives were still at risk, and the conspirators lost her sympathy.

Amara returned from the library, her face wet and swollen with tears. “I can’t believe Dunk’s gone. That stupid, stupid man. I knew he was mad, but not quite as mad as this. I’m so angry with him – and with myself for not seeing this coming.”

Winnie put an arm around her. “You can’t blame yourself for not preventing someone else’s insanity. Even if you had known how bad he was, you couldn’t have controlled it anymore than he could.”

Fresh tears rolled from her eyes. “I should have known that Dunk and that engineer were up to something. They were always pulling each other aside and talking quietly. It struck me as odd, but Dunk has always had his eccentricities. I never imagined he was dangerous. That other lunatic – and that spoiled brat Enza – must have egged him on until he went over the edge. Why didn’t I stick my nose in and find out what they were up to? If I had, Dunk might still be alive.”

As Winnie patted her on the back and murmured reassurances, two paramedics entered carrying Enza on a board, Domenico behind them. Her eyes were closed, and her jaw slack.

While they painstakingly pulled her up the ladder, her father wrung his hands. “Why did I deny her?” he asked Winnie. “If I had allowed her the run of the estate, she and the others would be fine now.”

“You were right to limit the dig,” she said. “You were right about there being grenades here.”

His face etched with pain, he watched as the medics passed his daughter out into the night. Then he scrambled up the ladder after her.

Chaz entered and walked up to them. “They’ve got the engineer. He’s alive but delirious – not making sense.”

Two more medics came out carrying a second board. The engineer lay on it with his slick head immobilized in a neck brace. His sunglasses were missing. When Winnie saw his profile, the familiarity of it made her gasp. “Sam?”

Her brother slid his gaze her way and winced. “Hey, sis.”

She froze in shock, but it really was him. Fear for his life, mixed with disbelief that he could be involved, wrung her chest so tight she could barely breathe. Turning to one of the medics carrying him, she croaked, “How bad are his injuries?”

The man shook his head. “He will need tests, but I do not see any obvious cause for alarm.”

She gulped and looked back down at Sam, still not willing to accept the evidence. “What are you doing here?”

As the paramedics maneuvered him up the slope, he smiled weakly at her, then grimaced in pain. “I did it for Dad. And you. So your work could truly be a tribute worthy of him.”

“That’s insane. Sam, a man is dead. Your life could be in danger, too.” As the enormity of his recklessness sunk in, she choked on a sob. “You could have killed us all.”

He made a face at her. “We didn’t mean for anyone to get hurt. Things got out of hand. But to accomplish great things, you have to take risks. Dunk knew that – just like Dad. If we hadn’t tried the explosives, that’s what Dunk would have regretted.”

She stared as they pulled him toward the hole above.
He’s that far out of control,
she thought. Soul-crunching grief weighed down on her.
This is how Dad must have been in the end.

Just when she thought she couldn’t bear the pain, another emotion broke through: anger. For the first time ever, her father’s suicide infuriated her. If he didn’t care enough about himself to maintain a respectable life, why couldn’t he at least have considered how his behavior affected the rest of the family? If he hadn’t deserted them, maybe Sam wouldn’t be this bad off now. Mom wouldn’t be a recluse, Christina a holy roller.

And I wouldn’t be such a mess.
She clenched her fists.

Only when Chaz put his arm around her did she realize he was beside her. “That was your brother?” he asked gently as Sam disappeared into the darkness above.

“Yes.” She looked at the sky through the hole. “He’s responsible for Dunk’s death, and he doesn’t even care.”

He frowned. “We don’t know the whole story yet. And it’s clear Dunk played a big part in this scheme, perhaps led it.”

She held back a sob. “How could I have let this happen? How could I not have recognized him around the dig site?”

He just held her, saying nothing.

Amara stepped up beside them. “Winnie, you just told me that we can’t stop someone else’s madness. Heed your own advice. Somehow, Dunk and your brother found each other and validated each other’s madness until it spun out of control. You and I couldn’t see it, because we’re dwelling in the realm of the sane.”

“Are we?” Winnie blinked at her. “Am I?”

Chaz smoothed down her hair. “Of course you are.”

Lifting her chin, he made her look him in the eye. He pinned her gaze, confirming his confidence in her, assuring her that he cared about her regardless of her crazy brother. Then he kissed her.

Kissed her really well.

Letting her body relax in his arms, she kissed him back. Dizzy with gratitude and love for him – yes, it felt like love – she actually began to believe him.

V
ENTUNO

W
HEN THEY GOT
back to the villa, Winnie asked Signora Vaccula to call a cab for her. “We’ll pick up the Punto tomorrow. I can’t impose on Domenico’s hospitality one minute longer. Please tell him I’m horrified by the role my brother played in the explosions. I’ll offer my apologies in person in the morning at the hospital.”

“No, no, no!” The housekeeper held up both hands in a stop gesture. “I will not hear of your leaving. It is the last thing Signore Rentino would want.”

“You’re too kind, but I can’t stay.” She dragged her exhausted body onto the staircase. “In fact, I’ll call a cab myself. I don’t want to trouble you further.”

Chaz took her arm and climbed slowly with her. “Are you sure about this, Winnie? We’re all knackered, and it’s late.”

“After what my brother did, I don’t know how I can face everyone again.” She leaned into him, shaking from the trauma and lack of sleep.

By the time they reached the upstairs landing, Signora Vaccula caught up with them, holding a phone out to Winnie. “The signore wants to speak to you himself.”

She hesitated, then took the phone. “Domenico, I can’t tell you how sorry I am,” she blurted, her voice breaking up with anguish. “I wish I’d recognized Sam around the dig site. If only I’d realized he was capable of something like this –”

“Say no more,” he cut her off. “You could not have anticipated brother’s plans any more than I did my daughter’s. You had less chance, in fact, since you did not know he was here in
Italy
.”

His reassurances didn’t convince her, but she knew if she continued to apologize, he would just keep dismissing her concerns. She chose to let it stand. “How is Enza?”

“She’ll be fine. The doctors have sedated her. They say she will sleep through the night, so I am on my way home. I will check on your brother on the way out.”

As worried as she was about Sam, she couldn’t ask that of him. “That’s not necessary.”

“Consider it done. Also, I have given the police my statement affirming my belief that the three conspirators did not intend to harm anyone, only to uncover archaeological treasures. I am not sure Samuel and Enza can avoid a manslaughter charge, but of course I will use any influence I can to defend them.”