The Five-Day Dig (11 page)

Thanking her, Winnie got into the elevator and pushed the button for the lobby. “I don’t think it will come to that, but it’s good to have the option. On a brighter note, I also wanted to tell you that I’m staying in
Italy
for two extra weeks. It’s bizarre, but I’ve been asked to translate inscriptions for an episode of ‘The Five-Day Dig.’ ”

“That’s fantastic!” Liz sounded excited. “I know you were hoping to come up with a project while you’re here. And my flight home isn’t until Friday, so now you and I will have time to do some sightseeing.”

“I’d love that.”
 
She watched the floor numbers light up and go out as the elevator descended. “What do you think about the opportunity, though? Have you seen the show?”

“I’ve watched it a few times, but, frankly, their methods bother me. They cut corners, and I’m sure they damage artifacts in their rush to uncover ‘high-status’ finds on each episode.”

Winnie bit her lower lip. “I got that impression, too. Of course, Chaz and I will try to prevent that sort of carelessness, if we witness it. He’s doing the show with me.”

“I’ll feel better with you two keeping an eye on them.” Her friend paused. “It will be nice to have your TA working with you, especially such a cute one.”

She couldn’t seem to come up with a response. Her lack of one made her look suspicious.

Liz laughed. “Is there something going on between you two?”

“Of course not.
He’s too young for me.”

“Cougars are fashionable these days.”

“Ugh. I’m sure the thought would repulse him.” The elevator doors opened, and she stepped into the lobby, glancing around to make sure no one was within earshot. “If I have time to flirt with anyone during the filming, it’ll be Domenico Rentino.”

“I approve of that plan, too. How does he fit into the picture?”

Winnie filled her in on the details about the excavation, then hung up and went to the breakfast room.

Chaz sat in a corner with a cup of cappuccino, thumb-typing into his smart phone. Just spotting his black mop of hair gave her a thrill, followed instantly by a rush of shame.

Sensing her gaze, he looked up and smiled. He put his phone away and got up to join her at the breakfast buffet. “I was just e-mailing my mum. She wants to see me, so she’s paying for my flight home tomorrow. I’ll be back in a week.”

“Oh, great.”
She felt relieved. The time away from him would do her good.

While they looked over a selection of baked goods, fruit and yogurt, she considered offering him a ride to the airport, but setting up a dramatic good-bye scene seemed unwise. Maybe after a week apart, she could relent on her self-imposed restrictions and pick him up.

As if reading her mind, he said, “Dr. Farber is leaving at the same time, and he offered me a ride in his limo.” He grinned at her. “I’ll miss the Punto, though.”

She laughed. “Then it will be all the sweeter next week when I pick you up in it.”

“That will indeed be sweet. Thank you.”

They chose breakfast items and sat down to talk about the details Dunk had e-mailed about the filming. After they’d gone over the information, she asked Chaz to tell her about his favorite episodes of “The Dig,” as he referred to it.

He described several shows that revolved around fascinating Roman sites. All had all taken place in the early days of the program, she noticed. She suspected his enthusiasm for it hinged on getting his first glimpses into an era that captivated him, but she kept the thought to herself. Her opinion of the show didn’t change.

As they wrapped up their meal, the party from Weiland U came in. Liz rushed over to their table. “I’m glad we caught you. I forgot to tell you we’re meeting in the lobby at seven tonight.” She turned to Chaz. “Are you coming with us? The more, the merrier.”

He looked at Winnie, his expression curious.

She faltered. If not for her crush on him, she would have seconded the invitation without hesitation – not that she would have expected him to go. He probably had something better lined up for his last night in
Italy
.

The realization eased her mind, and she smiled. “We’re going to do the
Pompeii
night tour. It’s touristy, not scholarly, and I know that you worked on the site one summer, so I guess it’s probably not worth your while.”

“I’d love to go.” He looked back at Liz, missing the surprised reaction from Winnie. “I spent a little time documenting the site, but ... it’s
Pompeii
.
You never stop learning from a place like that.”

Liz smiled. “Fabulous. We’ll see you both tonight.”

Winnie drew in a deep breath. At least they’d be with a group, not alone.

“If we’re going out tonight, I’d better get my packing done now.” Chaz got up and addressed Winnie. “Are you going upstairs?”

 
“I think I’m going shopping. Now that I’m extending my stay, I need a few things.”

They left the dining area, and he headed for his room while she asked the front-desk clerk about local stores. He told her about a volcano-shaped mall in nearby Nola. Tickled by the idea, she decided to drive to
Il Volcano Buono
for the day.

When she got to the mall, she laughed to herself. The replica building, partly covered in sod, looked reasonably realistic, but the concept had a whiff of hubris about it. If she’d had any faith in volcano deities, she would have expected Vesuvius to bury the place and show everyone who was boss.

Wishing she had someone to share the sight with, she paused to snap a photo with her phone. She accidentally hit the Send button and saw Chaz’s name in her contact list. He would find it hilarious.

She sent it to him and almost instantly got an LOL message back.

With Fortuna’s blessings, she finished her errands without an eruption and made it back to the hotel safely.

On the way out that evening, a different type of disaster threatened when Will Farber spotted the
Pompeii
party in front of the hotel and asked where they were going. While Chaz explained, Winnie dreaded the prospect of her boss tagging along.

“Would you like to join us?” Nico asked him, to her dismay.

Luckily, he declined the invitation. “The
Pompeii
night tour is a load of schlock cooked up for tourists. It’s hardly the way I’d spend my last night in
Italy
. I have a dinner meeting at the Grande Albergo Vesuvio in
Naples
. And since Charles and I are leaving early tomorrow,
addio
to those of you I won’t see again.”

Winnie tried not to look too pleased.
“
Buon viaggio
.”

As he went inside and the rest of them climbed into Liz’s car, her spirits soared. No more Farber until the next in-service day, a month and an ocean away. She still had other concerns, but suddenly life felt brighter.

In the backseat, she ended up on the hump squeezed between Chaz and Luca.
“ ‘A
load of schlock,’ ” she quoted Farber, once everyone was inside. “Never let it be said that my department chair minces words.”

Liz laughed and backed the car out of the parking spot. “Schlock might be a fair assessment of this extravaganza. We’ll see.”

 
Winnie glanced at Chaz. “I guess this isn’t how you’d like to spend your last night in
Italy
either.”

Seeing a break in traffic, Liz yanked the car into the road with a lurch, and Winnie fell against his chest.

He looked down at her and grinned. “I have no complaints.”

She sat back up and didn’t dare respond. In the rearview mirror, she caught Liz’s laughing eyes watching her.
Very funny.

To her relief, it was a short drive, and her companions had plenty to say about their anticipation of the tour.

At the start of the program outside the town walls, it looked like Farber’s assessment might have some merit. The recorded sounds of splashing and laughter emanating from speakers on the Suburban Bathhouse were more cheesy than informative, but they did help transport the group back to the time when
Pompeii
teemed with life. As they entered the Marine Gate and walked up the moonlit Via Abbondanza, the atmosphere felt electric.

Liz paused to peer down a side street. “The darkness camouflages some of the flaws in the buildings. When you look toward the far end of the street, the last 2,000 years fade away.”

“Except if you look in the opposite direction and see the volcano looming above that end,” Chaz said wryly. “Then the eruption and its devastation all come flooding back to mind.”

 
That was the paradox of the place, Winnie thought. The remarkably preserved architecture and interiors carried you back in a way that beguiled you. But around the next corner, you saw the volcano – or, worse yet, one of the plaster-cast bodies racked with despair – and the tragedy of the site came down on you like volcanic debris.

“Whatever direction you look in, the experience is intense,” she said.

When they stepped onto the grounds of the
Temple
of
Apollo
, the ominous silhouette of Vesuvius dominated the view. A wispy cloud clung to the summit. She tapped Luca on the shoulder and pointed to it. “Is that steam coming out of the volcano?”

He smiled. “Just a cloud formed by the wind stirring as it strikes the mountain.”

“OK.” She stared at the peak for another moment. Part of her didn’t quite believe him – not that she thought the volcano was erupting, but she had seen photos of steam vents in the crater. Hot gas was escaping all the time. She suspected the seeping energy had something to do with that cloud.

She walked back toward the temple gate and noticed Chaz tossing a coin into a pedestaled basin of water. As he turned away from it, she approached him. “Did you make a wish?” she teased him.

“I’m just leaving a modest offering at a sacred site. You might say I’m performing a bit of experimental archaeology of my own for my dissertation.”

Studying his profile, she tried to decide whether or not he was serious. She hoped not. “The
Pompeians
sacrificed at public temples, street shrines and household
lararia
, but all that devotion
didn’t help them in the end,” she said.

He shrugged. “It probably made them feel good at the time.”

She considered his argument. Routine did provide comfort, and religious rites offered routine at life’s most emotional moments. It hadn’t been enough for her, but hers was an unusual case, one she didn’t want to dwell on tonight.
“Fair point.”

Their tour guide, an older Italian woman, ushered them across the street to the Basilica. After a look around there, they moved into the
Temple
of
Venus
.

“Before the Romans took over
Pompeii
in the first century BCE, the
Samnites
had a temple to the goddess Mephitis here,” the guide told the group.