Out of the Ashes (29 page)

“What did you two think you were doing?”

Hershel clutched at his chest, and Marsha had to cover her mouth to stifle a scream that could have brought every officer in the building stampeding into the room.

“Mr.
Smithers
?”

“Yes. Care to tell me what’s been going on down here?”

Marsha fiddled nervously with the pearl buttons down the front of her dress.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“Yes, you do.”
Smithers
stood and walked around the desk, the judge’s rotund body shifting into
Smither’s
tall, lean form with each step. Crossing his arms, he leaned a hip casually on the edge of the desk and pinned them with a piercing stare from behind the familiar black-framed glasses now perched on his nose. “How about tampering with Free Will for starters? How could you poison Judge
Buscelli
?”

“We didn’t poison him,” Marsha huffed. “We merely made sure he had all his favorite foods available.”

“So that his ulcer would flare up and keep him in bed for a month? You might as well have poisoned him.”

Hershel came to his wife’s defense.

“We had to stall things. That dratted public prosecutor insisted on poking into David’s background. We couldn’t let that happen.”

“I realize that. And I’ve bought you some time with the report, once again. But the prosecutor is going to keep asking for that background information, and the real Judge
Buscelli
is going to recover and show up eventually.”
Smithers
looked pointedly back and forth between them. “You need to get David and Serafina out of Italy as soon as you can.”

Hershel scratched behind his ear, his brow wrinkled in confusion.

“But you just told him not to leave town.”

“
That
was for the officers’ benefit. It’s what the real judge would have said. You two need to get them out of town, and soon.”

“Why?” Marsha asked.

“Because if you don’t, someone is going to die.”

“What? Aren’t you glad to see me?” David laughed at the surprised expression on Frank’s face.

His friend visibly shook himself as he
propped
his bicycle against a leaning tombstone in the town’s main cemetery.

“No. I am. I am. It’s just that…”

“Expecting someone prettier, I suppose? Someone with gorgeous blue eyes and a fiery Italian temper?”

David crossed his arms over his chest and shifted his weight on the granite sarcophagus where he’d been sitting. The burial tomb was ancient, its carved letters erased by weather and time. Anybody who might remember who was entombed there was probably long gone, too, so he figured the old guy wouldn’t mind the company. He’d been sitting here for a quarter of an hour, waiting for Frank to show up at the rendezvous he’d set up with Sera last week.

His friend smiled and shook his head.

“You’ll have to admit, she is a little easier on the eye than your sorry ass.”

“Don’t I know it.” That beautiful face haunted his every waking minute. It was all that had gotten him through the lonely nights in his jail cell.

Frank hesitated briefly, then grabbed David and pulled him into a giant bear hug. Just as quickly, he released him and stepped back.

“When did you get out?”

“Yesterday.” It had taken Sera and the
Angelicos
two days to come up with the money to pay his fine, and for that he was eternally grateful. He couldn’t believe how good it felt to be out of that stinking, cramped cell.

“But how?” Frank stammered. “The last time I talked with Sera, things looked pretty hopeless at getting you released. She said the report from Naples was due any day. A report that might just get you a one-way trip to a firing squad.”

“The report still hasn’t arrived.”

“So, why’d they let you go? I figured your goose was as good as cooked.”

“So did I. It was like waiting for a ticking bomb to explode.” David blew out a heavy breath, still trying to make sense of everything that had happened. “But then the judge showed up with sworn affidavits from witnesses swearing it was self-defense. I, for the life of me, can’t remember anyone else in the arena when it happened.” He shook his head as the reality of what he just said hit him. “Of course, I was a little busy at the time.”

Frank snorted. “That’s the understatement of the year.”

“Unfortunately, that report from Naples is still out there, somewhere. I’m living on borrowed time.”

Frank’s disposition sobered instantly. “More than you know, man.”

David tensed at the seriousness in Frank’s tone. “What’s going on?”

“The Germans are digging their heels in deep now that Italy has surrendered. They’re disarming all Italians and shooting anyone who resists. The Allies have already landed troops at Salerno and Taranto. We’re trying to advance, but it’s slow moving.”

A sinking feeling pooled in David’s gut. The time bomb started ticking louder.

“There are going to be massive air strikes to try to break the Axis hold and chase the Germans out before Hitler can get more forces down here.” Frank turned to look David right in the eye. “This is to be the last rendezvous. The mission is over. I’ve been ordered to pull out, with or without you.”

David felt momentarily confused. Too many weeks alone in the jail cell had him feeling lost. Sera hadn’t been able to tell him much without risking others overhearing the reports Frank gave her.

“If that’s the case, then the German camp still needs to be kept under observation, now more than ever.”

“Not for long. There’s a scheduled air raid on Pompeii tomorrow night. I was told if I could get you out, you’re ordered back to base, effective immediately.”

“
What?
” The bomb went off. Suddenly David’s borrowed time shortened to seconds. “But there aren’t any munitions hidden in the ruins. I’ve looked. They aren’t there.”

“Doesn’t matter. They’re going to strike the camp before Hitler can mobilize them.”

David shoved his fingers through his hair, nearly pulling it out by the roots.

“Shit. Does Sera know about this?”

“No. And she can’t know. We can’t risk it leaking to the Germans and warning them in advance of the strike.”

David could already guess what Sera’s reaction would be to an air raid so close to the ruins.

“But the camp is right beside Pompeii. You and I both know those flyboys aren’t always on target when they drop their loads. The bombs could hit the ruins.”

“Sorry. Nothing you or I can do about it. A pile of crumbling rocks and a few old statues don’t mean much when it comes to winning the war.”

“I have to tell Sera.”

Frank shook his head. “There’s no time. You shouldn’t even go back to your place for your things. We have to get back to base camp right away.”

David couldn’t believe this was happening. Not now.

“You can’t do this to me, Frank. I can’t leave Sera like this. I have to get her out of danger.”

“It can’t be helped. The civilians will be warned right before the strike so they can evacuate in time, but just barely. She can get out with the others.”

“Look, give me one more day. Tell them I haven’t been released yet. Tell them I’m still in jail.
Tell them anything
.”

“I can’t do that, David. It’s against orders. We could both be court-martialed.”

“Not if they don’t find out.” He hated the pleading tone of his voice, but it couldn’t be helped. Right now, he’d sell his soul to the devil if it meant one more day with Sera. “Just one day, Frank. Please.”

Frank looked like he might argue. Hell, he wouldn’t be surprised if Frank pulled out a forty-five and took him back at gunpoint.

“All right. It’s your ass. I just hope she’s worth it.”

“She is.”

David had never been more certain of anything in his life.

* * *

David felt cheated.

One day. He had only one day to be with Sera before he had to leave. It didn’t seem fair, after all the time they’d lost with him behind bars.

As he rode his bicycle back through town, he wondered how he was going to tell her about the air raid. Hell, that was the easy part.

How was he going to tell her goodbye? As if conjured by his thoughts, Sera was suddenly there, waiting on the doorstep to his apartment building. She looked lovely in a rust-colored dress, the tailored outfit hugging feminine curves he’d only seen glimpses of in unflattering trousers. A matching hat sat cocked on her head, a stark contrast to the floppy straw one she always wore at the ruins. Having rarely seen her in anything other than dirty pants and baggy men’s shirts, she never looked more beautiful to him than she did right then.

“David! I was just coming to find you.”

As she approached him, her face lit up in a blinding smile that made his chest tighten. He hadn’t seen her stop smiling since he walked out of that damn jail yesterday. But that would all change when she learned what the Allies planned to do so close to her precious ruins.

“You were?” He tried to act nonchalant, as if he didn’t have a care in the world. The act was a hard one to pull off when it felt like the whole world was conspiring against him.

“Yes. I want to show you something. Can you spend the rest of the day with me?”

He wanted nothing more. If it were possible, his chest constricted even tighter. He figured his heart was about the size of a raisin right about now. Little did she know that it would be their last day together. Come tomorrow, she would hate him, along with all other Americans for what they were going to do to her beloved ruins.

“Sure. What is it?”

“It’s a surprise.”

He stowed his bicycle in his flat, and when he returned to the front stoop, she linked her arm through his and grinned like a kid on Christmas. As she towed him through the town streets, he fought back the knowledge that at some point he was going to have to tell her about the air raid. Frank could rant and rave all he wanted, but Sera had a right to know what was going to happen, even though there was nothing any of them could do to stop it. He wanted to prepare her. He wanted her to hear the news from him, even if she hated him for it.

He let her lead him through town, and before he knew it, they were on a bus bound for Naples. The ancient vehicle ground gears past vineyards and small cottages, reminding him that each passing minute was one less he had left to spend with her.

“You’re very quiet today,” she remarked, pulling his attention from the scenic countryside.

“Am I?”
Probably because the one thing I need to talk to you about, I can’t bring myself to say.

And even if he wanted to, the bus was crowded with people. He couldn’t risk anyone overhearing their conversation. At least, that’s what he kept telling himself.

In truth, he wanted to spend as much time with her as he could before he had to leave, and he didn’t want her angry or upset one more minute than was necessary.

He tried to put on a happy face for her. She wanted to do something special for him today. Even if it killed him, he needed to act like he was having a good time.

“So, are you going to tell me where we’re going?”

“No.” She gave him a smug smile. “But I’m sure you’ll figure it out soon enough.”

“Soon enough” came about thirty minutes later, when the bus pulled to a stop at
Pugliano
. “This is our stop.”

Mildly surprised that they weren’t continuing on to Naples, David followed her off the bus. They walked a few steps, and she directed him toward an electric carriage waiting in the crowded street. It reminded him of the trolley cars in San Francisco, which he’d seen in pictures but never ridden. As they boarded, he noticed the sign over the driver’s windshield said “
Vesuvio
.”

“We’re going to Vesuvius?” he asked as he took his place beside her on one of the long bench seats that ran the width of the car.

“Yes. You’ve never been, have you?”

“No. Climbing an active volcano isn’t my idea of a smart thing to do.”

 
“The volcano hasn’t erupted since 1929. But there was some significant volcanic activity while you were—” She stopped herself abruptly. After all, they both knew where he’d been. He watched her attempt a forced smile to cover up the unwelcome memory. “I’m curious to see what’s going on up there.”

David arched a brow at her. “Curiosity killed the cat, remember?”

That brought a genuine smile to her face. She patted his hand where it rested on his thigh.

“Relax. They wouldn’t allow tourists on the mountain if they thought it wasn’t safe.”

As the tramway lurched and started moving, he didn’t miss that she kept her hand on his. He turned his over, lacing their fingers together, wanting to hold onto her as long as he could. If he could ignore the war and stay behind the walls of the ruins with her for the rest of his life, he would. But he didn’t have that choice. His life belonged to the army right now.

The one-car train wound its way slowly around the lower shoulders of the mountain, zigzagging up the slight grade like a side-winding snake. Out the open window, vineyards, orchards, and vegetable gardens rolled by, no doubt benefiting from the rich volcanic ash mixed in the fertile soil on the mountainside.

Lost in the calming scenery, he was startled when the tram jolted, nearly stopping before it lurched once again on its way. He threw one arm around Sera’s shoulders and the other against the seat in front of them to brace himself.

“What the hell was that?”

She laughed.

“The grade is going to get steeper from here on out, so the train just went into five-wheel drive.”

“You’re kidding.” David had never heard of such a thing.

“The rail line has a cogged center track to help the tram make it up the slope from here to the lower station.”

After a few minutes, the train slowed to a stop outside a large stone and plaster building. As they disembarked, Sera pointed out a few of the smaller buildings.

“There’s a restaurant, a telegraph office, storage buildings for the equipment and trains, and a small tavern nearby.”

David shook his head at the wonder of it all.

“It’s like a mini-city on the side of a volcano.”

Looping her arm through his, she guided him into the station.

“Yes, I suppose it is.”

Once inside, they took stairs to a lower level. A single track led into the cavernous area, with a pit to the side containing giant gears and wheels attached to thick cables.

But the impressive machinations weren’t what astounded him. It was the odd-looking trolley-type carriage that awaited them.

“Are we supposed to ride up the mountain in that?”

“It’s called a
funicular
, and you’ll see why it’s made this way as soon as we start up the mountain.”

Sliding onto one of the bench seats, David thought the
funicular
was the oddest thing he’d ever seen. The car, painted a bright buttercup yellow, was constructed on an angle, with each bench sitting higher than the next, like seats in a stadium. After the two of them boarded the tram along with a dozen other tourists, the giant gears next to it sprang to life, groaning and straining as the cable pulled the train out of the station.