Chiara – Revenge and Triumph (58 page)

Veronica also wanted to see it, but Alda declined. "I don’t like enclosed spaces, thanks."

Pepe suggested that they should go back to Cetona and return the next day with more baskets.

"Oh, no Pepe," protested Chiara, "I won’t leave this treasure alone overnight, just to discover that somebody else cleaned it out already. I’ll spend the night here, guarding it. Jacomo, will you stay with me? I think there’s enough food left for us for tonight."

He nodded. "Definitely."

"Pepe, you take Alda and Veronica down to the taverna and then come up tomorrow again … bring us a healthy breakfast."

"You really think that somebody might come up here during the night?" wondered Pepe.

"Possibly. The shepherd may have seen us. He’s a very curious man and he might tell somebody, or even try to steal something himself."

"Then maybe I should stay here too."

"No, I think two of us are enough. I would rather that you bring baskets up, as well as the blankets to protect the vases. I guess you’ll have to buy baskets. We need at least six, and you now know what sizes are needed."

"But it still gets chilly at night. You’ll be cold," said Alda.

"Don’t worry, Alda," replied Jacomo, "we’ll have a small fire going to keep us warm."

"Pepe, how about leaving us two of the horse blankets?"queried Chiara. "It won’t harm them to be without for a short time."

He immediately retrieved them from under the saddle of hers and Jacomo’s horses.

"And what do we tell Ser Paolo, if he wants to know where you two are?"

"That we have gone to Sarteano or whatever you like and would be back tomorrow. When you go looking for baskets, he will guess what we were doing. He may already know from the shepherd."

* * * 

The sun had disappeared behind Monte Cetona by the time Pepe and the two women started their descent.

"Jacomo, I’ll have another look." There was no need to tell him to be on the lookout for any unwanted visitors.

The air down there felt much better. This time she ventured into the vault itself. The sarcophagus was almost two feet long and a foot high and wide. Its cover was still in place. She recognized it as terra cotta. All four sides and its cover carried black paintings of animals and people. She had never seen the likes of it, but her father had once described a similar cinerary urn that he had seen in Rome. She wondered whether they would be able to get it out. Four amphoras were of similar size and design as the ones her father had displayed on Elba, two forming another pair, while the other four were smaller vases, each different in shape, but all carried intricate geometric patterns. In the alcove was a carved ivory goblet, a terra cotta pitcher, a delicately sculptured crater half filled with gemstones. She recognized two amber stones, a couple of garnets, an obsidian, an amethyst, an agate, and several tourmaline stones. In her mind, she already saw the places in Castello Nisporto where some of the vessels could be displayed to their best advantage and then suddenly felt the loss of her home as a real, physical pain. Without touching any of the pieces, she left the vault. When she came out, dusk was falling and the air became chilly. Jacomo was already starting a fire close to the wall.

"I thought that like this we could sit against the wall, protected from the wind and warmed by the fire," he said, as she climbed out of the hole.

Once the small fire was burning brightly, with sufficient wood supplies close by, they ate the remaining provisions from lunch, leaning against the wall.

"How did you think we should keep watch?" he asked.

"Each of us takes a turn. You want to go first?"

"I’d prefer to go second, but you don’t suggest simply remaining here, do you?"

"No, it would be better to be hidden in those bushes over there." She pointed to a group of trees and undergrowth about sixty feet to the side and slightly above the wall from where one had an unobstructed view of the site and much of the terrace. "Although, it will be chilly. I’ll go as soon as it’s completely dark."

Half an hour later, she took her bow and six arrows — she always carried at least four knives on her — to the bushes. She happened to look toward Monte Cetona, its black silhouette outlined against the dark mauve rim of the sky, when she saw the fleeting vision of a person hurrying across the terrace maybe four hundred feet higher up and disappear in the sparse forest.
Already,
she wondered and returned to Jacomo.

"There are people higher up."

"What’s your plan?"

"One of the tricks my father once used. We’ll arrange each horse blanket in such a way that it looks like somebody is sleeping underneath. Then we both crawl away to the bushes, and when they come, we pounce."

He smiled. "Sounds like good fun. But what if there are many?"

She shrugged her shoulders. "We’ll see what they look like and how they are armed."

It took them a few minutes to arrange the blankets. Then Jacomo fed the fire again, and they crawled away, sticking to the wall and then following a slight dip in the terrain that was likely to hide them from being seen from above. Once under the bushes, they hid behind a trunk, each having two arrows ready to shoot, with four more in the quiver slung on their back.

They had to wait a long time. The fire was already down to a few faltering flames and a heap of glowing coals, before the wind carried the faint rustling of several people walking through grass. And then they saw three silhouettes against the sky, carefully skirting around the wall on the far side. They waited a few seconds, until Chiara felt sure that there were no others. She ran light-footed to the top of the wall, just as one of the fellows swung an axe down on one of their decoys. He yelled in dismay as his whole arm was jarred when metal hit the stones underneath the blanket. He lost his grip and the axe catapulted away.

"Halt," Chiara shouted, her arrow aimed at the one she recognized as Ser Paolo. "Whoever moves, gets the arrow!"

The men froze, but the one who had lost his axe started running. From the corner of her eye Chiara saw Jacomo aim and a moment later the arrow stuck in the man’s bottom. Hollering, he fell flat on his face.

"Now, Ser Paolo and my dear little shepherd, slowly put down your weapons and then come to the wall."

The tavern keeper protested. "We only wanted to pay you a friendly visit, bring you some more wine."

"With axes and sword? To the wall, Ser Paolo. Now." The last word came out as a sharp ring. He almost jumped and approached the wall, so did the shepherd.

"All the way… Closer. And now place both your hands on the wall above your head. That’s good. Just stay there until I tell you."

She only had to nod to Jacomo, and he immediately understood. He removed the quiver with the extra arrows from his back and then jumped from the wall. When he had positioned himself behind them, an arrow ready in his bow, Chiara walked around the far side of the wall to the man still groaning on the ground. As she pulled the arrow from his buttocks, he screamed, its echo mocking him a moment later.

"Up! To the wall," she ordered. She lightly kicked his behind when he failed to react. Another scream and he got up. She pointed to the wall. He limped over next to the other two.

"Jacomo will now tie you up. Any false move, you’ll get an arrow, not in the buttocks, but between the shoulder blades. Got that? I can shoot three arrows within the count of ten."

Jacomo removed the shepherd’s cord around his tunic.

"Clever shepherd, put your hands behind your back," Chiara ordered.

He did without looking around. Jacomo tied his wrists and pushed him down into a sitting position.

Next Jacomo began unbuckling Ser Paolo’s belt. The man suddenly lurched aside and ran away, Jacomo right at his tail. After a few steps he caught up with him and kicked his foot, sending him sprawling to the ground, and then was on top of him, pressing his face into the dirt.

The wounded man turned slightly.

"Don’t even think of it!" Chiara cried. "Lie on the ground, face down!"

He did, groaning as he bent down.

"Now, Ser Paolo, slowly get up and come back to the wall. I have you covered. You were lucky that Jacomo protected you from my arrow."

A few minutes later, all three had their hands tied. While Ser Paolo and the shepherd sat against the wall, the wounded man lay on his side.

Chiara and Jacomo looked at each other, smiling.

"Yes, we understand each other and work well together, don’t we?"

"Yes, Chiara, we do," he replied, a proud grin on his face.

Ser Paolo glared at her. "You will not get away with that. Cetona’s prefect will have you arrested for plundering a burial site."

"Ser Paolo, I actually own this land, including the burial site. I happen to be the daughter of the gentleman from the coast whom you praised so much last time, Seignior da Narni. I guess that Messer Fabbriano has already informed you that the rent has increased to forty
solid
i. He claims that even at that rate, it is still a bargain. The sisters at the Santa Maria orphanage will be grateful for the additional money."

"You are an imposter. He won’t believe you, but me."

She only shrugged her shoulders.

"Jacomo, let’s tie their legs too."

They did and alternated watching over the three prisoners, while the other tried to rest. They kept the fire going at a low level all night.

* * * 

About an hour after the sun had risen over the hills on the other side of the Chiana, Pepe, Alda, and Veronica arrived, leading the three horses, each carrying two big baskets. Chiara and Jacomo hurriedly ate the bread and cheese Alda had brought for them. The prisoners went hungry.

It took them half the morning to remove the vases and other items, emptied of their contents, and safely pack them into the baskets. The smallest vas contained several silver and ivory utensils, as well as a golden spoon and golden cup. They wrapped these items in scarves and replaced them again in the vessel.

Chiara added the gemstones after letting Alda and Veronica admire them. Alda could not resist joking: "So there was a small treasures there anyway!"

"Oh, it is the sarcophagus and the amphoras that are the real treasure."

 Pepe measured whether it would be possible to shift the sarcophagus through the corridor and up the hole. After some head scratching he concluded that they should be able to do it. He figured that its weight would be the biggest problem. They carefully emptied the ashes and a few partially burned bones into the alcove and covered it with stones, building a small pyramid on top of it. Pepe first brought its cover up, and then the two men dragged the empty vessel through the corridor to the bottom of the hole. The hole was not wide enough for both Pepe and the sarcophagus.

It was Jacomo who came up with the solution — using two slender tree trunks, laid against the steep steps, as a ramp to pull it up. Poor Pepe was trapped behind the sarcophagus until Jacomo and Chiara had cut two saplings and made one side smooth for sliding the sarcophagus up on it. It then was only a matter of coordinating their combined strength to pull it out of the hole, much to Pepe’s relief. It fitted into the biggest basket they had purposely left empty, just in case.

They replaced the slab, put the stones back, packed in dirt and then covered the whole area again with a thick layer of dirt and much of the debris and cut bushes they had removed before.

When they were packed, Chiara had another talk to the innkeeper.

"Ser Paolo, as you see, we have emptied the crypt. So there is no point to disturb it again. You would find nothing of value left there, except the ashes of the diseased. Now, I give you a simple choice. You promise solemnly that you won’t try to cause us any further difficulties, and we set you free and will pretend that you came up here to help, and woe to you if you break your promise. I will have the Podestà of Chiusi charge you with attempted murder. Or alternatively, you don’t give us this promise and we will deliver you to that illustrious person straight away without stopping in Cetona. What’s your decision?"

The shepherd immediately said: "I promise, just let me go. I only came along because
il padrone
told me that I must."

"After you told him what you had seen us doing, and he promised you a big reward, isn’t that right?"

He started to protest, but was interrupted by Ser Paolo: "Don’t lie, you miserable scoundrel."

"Anyway, my clever shepherd, did you really believe that he would have honored the promise once he had the loot?" Then she turned to the innkeeper. "Ser Paolo, I’m still waiting for your answer."

"I’ll promise anything you want, just untie me."

"But you also know what that implies?"

"Yes."

She looked at him for a while. "Ser Paolo, why do I have difficulties believing you? … I’ll change the conditions. We’ll set you free, but Jacomo here will constantly be at your side and he can throw a knife at twenty paces and hit the bull’s eye. You see, he bears you are a real grudge, since you insulted him by trying to run away. Nobody has dared to do that ever." She saw Jacomo making an effort to suppress a guffaw, while Veronica put a hand to her mouth. "So he will make dead sure — and mind my word — dead sure that this doesn’t happen again. In Cetona, we’ll load our cart, pay you for the room and food and then you’ll accompany us halfway to Chiusi before you’re again totally your own man. You still want to cooperate?"

He nodded, casting her a hateful glance.

"I didn’t hear you, Ser Paolo."

"I’ll cooperate." He spat out the words.

23

On the road, March 1350

Dear Selva, the two vases in our hall behind, which you so often hide and then jump out giggling when somebody walks by, are part of the treasure we unearthed and brought safely back to Chianciano.

The day after having recovered the treasure, Jacomo and I rode into Monte Pulciano, my purpose to ask Signor Benincasa, who I felt had always treated me with kindness, whether he would be willing to look after it for the time being. When he heard of it, he was delighted and asked my permission to display the pieces in one of his parlors, to be admired by his visitors. I helped him arrange the amphoras similarly to how they had been in the vault, but in a wider arc to allow each to be admired individually from close up and as a whole from the entrance to the room. An ivory goblet, a terra cotta pitcher, and a delicately sculptured gold crater, together with some utensils were displayed on a raised shelf, covered by a black soft cloth. The gemstones that were in the crater were the only items I asked him to keep safely locked away.