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"He must mean scurvy," said Lily.
"Ancient seamen rarely sailed more than a week or two without touching land," Pitt clarified. "Scurvy did not become common until the long voyages of the Spanish. Could be they died from any number of reasons."
Lily nodded at Redfem. "Sorry for interrupting. Please go on.
"We first stepped ashore on a large island inhabited by barbarians who resembled Scythians, but with darker skins. They proved friendly and willingly helped the fleet replenish our food and fresh water supplies.
"We sighted more islands, but the flagship sailed on.
Only Venator knew where the fleet was to land. At last we sighted a barren shore and came to the wide mouth of a river. We stood off for five days and nights until the winds blew to our advantage. Then we set sail up the river, rowing at times, until we reached the hills of Rome."
"The hills of Rome?" Lily repeated absently. "That's a twist."
"He must have meant it as a comparison," said Pitt.
"A tough riddle to crack," Redfem admitted.
"The slaves under the overseer Latiriius Macer dug into the hills above the river. Eight months later the fleet's cargo was carried from the ships to the hiding ground."
"Did he describe the 'hiding ground'?" asked Pitt.
Redfern picked up a tablet and compared it to Lily's copy. "Parts of the wording are indistinct. I'll have to fill in as best I can.
"Thus, the secret of the secrets lies within the hill inside a chamber dug by the slaves. The place cannot be seen because of the palisade.
After all was stored, the barbarian horde swarmed from the hills. I do not know if the chamber was sealed in time as I was busy helping my crew push the boat from the sand."
"Rufinus fails to record distances," said Pitt, disillusioned, and never'gives directions. Now we have an odds-on chance the barbarians, whoever the hell they were, robbed the store."
Redfem's expression turned grim. "We can't ignore the possibility. "
"I don't think the worst happened," said Lily optimistically. "An immense collection can't be erased as though it never existed. A few pieces would have eventually turned up."
"Depends on the area where the action took place," said Pitt"Fifty-eight days at an average speed of-say three and a half knots, a vessel designed along the adcient lines of the Serapis-might have sailed over four thousand nautical miles."
"Providing they sailed in a straight line," said Redfem. "Not a likely prospect. Rufinus merely states they sailed fifty-eight days before stepping ashore. Traveling in unknown waters, they probably hugged the coastlines."
"But traveling to where?" Lily asked.
"The southern coast of Western Africa is the most logical destination,"
answered Redfem. "A crew of Phoenicians sailed around Africa clockwise in the fifth century B.C. Quite a bit of it was charted by Rufinus's time. Stands to reason Venator would have turned his fleet south after passing through the Straits of Gibraltar."
"Never sell a jury," said Pitt. "Rufinus described islands."
"Could be the Madeira, Canary or Cape Verde Islands."
"Still won't sell. You can't explain how the Serapes ended up halfway across the globe from the tip of Africa to Greenland. You're talking a distance of eight thousand miles."
"That's true. I'm confused on that count."
"My vote goes for a northern course," said Lily. "The islands also might be the Shetlands or the Faroes. That would put the excavation site along the Norwegian coast or, better yet, Iceland."
"She makes a good case," Pitt agreed. "Her theory would explain how the Serapes came to be stranded in Greenland."
"What does Rufinus tell us after he escaped the barbarians?"
she asked.
