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The Ristorante Torquemada had been recommended to Maddock and Bones by locals and so far the food did not disappoint. They decided to grab a real meal and come up with a game plan before heading back to their ship. They chose a table in the open air dining area, and now Maddock was halfway through his linguini with clams, and Bones his spaghetti, wisps of steam still streaming up from the hot plates. Maddock had tried to explain Bones that spaghetti was about as Italian as hot dogs and mustard, but Bones cared not a whit. The light chatter of other diners punctuated by the cooing of nearby pigeons was the ambient soundtrack as the two ate. After a while Bones narrowed his eyes and quickly turned his head back toward Maddock.
“Have these people never seen a red man before or what?”
Maddock looked casually about and then back to Bones. “Maybe just not such an ugly one.”
“Screw you, Maddock.”
They heard a chuckle nearby and turned to see a server who had clearly overheard them. Upon seeing they were watching him, he stepped over to their table. “Please forgive me, but it’s just that, in Italy, we are very stylish.” He cast a meaningful look at Bones’ leather jacket and jeans.
Bones shrugged. “I make this look good. Besides, the chicks still like me. That’s what matters, right?” Two girls at a nearby table giggled and he gave them a wink. The server’s face creased in a disapproving frown, and he hastily departed. Bones then turned his attention back to Maddock, who was already back to swiping through articles on his smartphone.
“You learn anything new about this treasure?” Bones attacked another forkful of spaghetti while Maddock looked up from his phone.
“So far I’ve pretty much just corroborated what Lina told us.” He tapped his screen, navigating to another page.
“Speaking of Lina, I noticed you chose your words carefully when she asked us not to look for the treasure.” He flashed a knowing grin.
“I didn’t lie. I told her she didn’t need to worry about us, which is true. We can take care of ourselves.”
“I’m glad to see I’ve rubbed off on you.”
Maddock feigned an injured expression. “That hurts. Besides, I didn’t say I wanted to actually search for the treasure. I’m just interested in learning more about it.”
“Whatever.” Bones frowned, his fork hovering over his plate. “There’s something I want to know. After all this time, wouldn’t the natural erosion caused by the river have uncovered the tomb by now?”
Maddock shook his head and explained. “Believe it or not, in the last 1,500 years the river bed has actually risen by about almost two meters, so his tomb could be up to eight meters below ground by now.”
Doubt lingered in Bones’ expression. “Do people take the legend seriously?”
“Yes, plenty of searches have been done.”
“For example?” Bones dug back into his plate.
Maddock sipped from his glass of red wine before answering. “During the mid-18th century, a huge project took place to unearth the tomb of Alaric, but nothing was found. Then, in the early 19th century, writer and traveler Alexandre Dumas visited Cosenza after a major earthquake had drained the Busento River. Dumas reported that numerous people began fervently digging for the Roman treasure, but once again no treasure or tomb was unearthed.”
Bones looked like he was choking down a mouthful of pasta in order to say something, but Maddock continued. “That’s not all. In the 1900s, the accounts of the treasure attracted the attention of Adolf Hitler and Heinrich Himmler, who ordered an extensive search for the hidden loot. But they too came back empty handed.” Now finished, Maddock speared a clam with his fork while Bones responded.
“I don’t like our chances,” he said simply.
Maddock thought about it for a bit. “What if they were all looking in the wrong place?”
Bones’ eyes widened. He nodded to the women who had giggled earlier as they stood and left their table, then said to Maddock, “So then where should we look?”
Maddock exhaled heavily and dropped his fork onto his plate. “I don’t actually know, and it might not be worth the trouble, considering all the red tape and treasure trove laws.”
Bones took a swig of his Birra Moretti beer and said, “How much treasure do you really think we’re talking about here?”
Maddock went back to his phone and scrolled down a web page, emitting a long, low whistle. “Up to twenty-five tons of gold—that’s fifty thousand pounds—along with assorted silver and gems.”
Bones raised his eyebrows. “I suppose that would be worth the trouble.”
“We told Lina we wouldn’t look for it.”
Bones was about to reply when two men walked up to their table. One wore a suit and tie while the other was dressed in a uniform. Maddock was pretty sure he knew what kind of uniform it was, but the badge that man presented removed all doubt.
“Gentlemen, we need to talk.”