Free Out of the Ashes by Lori Dillon

you’ve unearthed?”
    Giovanni raised his head and turned to her.
    “ Sì , although I will have to admit that Signorina Pisano did assist a little with the excavation.”
    “ Maledicali ! That’s my find, Giovanni, and you know it.”
    She lunged at him, wanting to claw out his eyes, but Heberto grabbed her by the arm before she nearly trampled the silver cup.
    Giovanni shook his head at her.
    “Poor Serafina. I warned Signore Moretti that you might do this.” He turned to the director. “She has been upset lately, since she has yet to make a significant find of her own.”
    She lunged again, nearly breaking free of Heberto’s grip. He held her with the strength of a young man, even though he was old enough to be her grandfather.
    “You son-of-a—”
    “There now.” Moretti patted her shoulder as if he were consoling a child. “You will have your chance to make your own discoveries, Serafina. For now, let Giovanni do his work.”
    “But—”
    “You heard the director,” Giovanni smiled, but his obvious lack of respect for her showed in his eyes. “Why don’t you go find your own little hole to dig in, and leave the serious archeology to men with more experience?”
    She reeled, the impact of her own words thrown back in her face felt like a physical slap.
    How dare he do this to her?
    Heberto turned Serafina and started walking her away.
    “Take heart, little one. Everything will work out for the best. There are greater things for you to discover. I am certain of it.”
    Serafina barely heard the older man’s kind words. She looked back over her shoulder, unable to believe what had happened.
    Giovanni Ragusa had just stolen her find.
    * * *
     
    David Corbin walked up to the main entrance of Pompeii, his heart in his throat.
    So far, so good.
    No one seemed to pay him any attention. With his civilian clothing, black hair, and dark features, he blended in easily with the Italian people on the street. It was one of the reasons he had been hand-picked for this assignment. That, and the fact that he spoke fluent Italian and passable German. They were skills that kept him from the front lines for the time being, much to his war-hero father’s disappointment.
    The old man might be proud of him, if he knew what David was doing and where he was. But he didn’t. No one did, except for David’s unit stationed far away on the coast of Africa.
    Sent to spy on the Germans encamped near Pompeii, he was to find out if the rumors were true that they were hiding munitions within the ruins. It was simple, really. Hire on at the dig site, observe their movements, and report back to headquarters when he located the hidden munitions.
    Simple, as long as he didn’t get shot along the way. Unfortunately, if anyone discovered he was an American on enemy soil, that’s just what might happen.
    His first sight of the ruins surprised him as he walked through the Porta Marina . He wasn’t sure what he had expected. Maybe a group of old men poking around a bunch of rocks with shovels in their hands. Certainly not a complete city with standing buildings and streets. Granted, the buildings had no roofs, and some were missing a wall or two, but it was a city nonetheless.
    Clusters of people milled about, and he picked up bits and pieces of their conversations. Tourists mostly, from what he could tell. A couple from Hungary stood to his right. Off to his left, a large group of Austrians was trying to figure out a map printed in Italian. And, of course, the Germans. Some were civilians, while others were soldiers in uniform strolling among the ruins. Apparently, even a war didn’t stop the tourist trade.
    Spotting one of the tour guides, David asked him where to go to find out about hiring on at the site. The man pointed toward a long, narrow street. The uneven cobblestones led David down an ancient road into the heart of the ruins.
    The deeper he walked into the city, the fewer tourists he encountered, since this area had hardly