Crescent Dawn (Dirk Pitt 21)

“We’re just past high tide,” Kenfield replied. “Tidal range is fairly minimal here, a couple of feet or so.”

Pitt nodded with a slight smile, then turned to Gunn.

“Rudi, you’ve done some ocean modeling. How much of a change in sea level would you say the Mediterranean has witnessed in the last seventeen hundred years?”

Gunn scratched his head. “The sea level today is probably two to three meters higher than it was two thousand years ago. I can give you an accurate estimate if I check the NUMA database.”

“That’s not necessary,” Pitt replied. He gazed at the sea cave once more. “I think she’d just about fit,” he muttered.

“We really need to go retrieve the AUV now,” Gunn pleaded.

“Okay, but before you go, you’ll need to drop Summer and me in the Zodiac. Dirk, too, if you want to come.”

“No thanks, Dad,” Dirk replied. “I’ve had my share of goose chasing with Summer. I’ll help with the AUV.”

“But where are we going?” Summer asked.

“Why, to that cliff,” Pitt said, pointing to the shore with a smile. “Where else are we going to find ourselves a Roman galley?”

93

AS THE AEGE AN EXPLORER SLIPPED EASTWARD TO CHASE down the AUV, Pitt gunned the outboard on the new Zodiac and raced toward the shoreline. Summer sat on the bow, her long red hair blowing in the wind and a hopeful expression on her face, as they approached the sea cave. The low opening at water’s edge reflected little light, telling Pitt that the cave did indeed penetrate well into the cliff.

Drawing near, Pitt could see that the entrance was wide enough for the Zodiac to slip through. Though the tide was now lower, the wave action made clearing the opening a treacherous proposition. Spotting an exposed grouping of flat rocks to the right, he nudged the Zodiac alongside and waited for a wave to carry it. Summer quickly jumped out and wrapped a line around a boulder to secure the craft.

“Looks like we’re going to have to get wet,” Pitt said, grabbing a flashlight and hopping out of the Zodiac.

Summer followed him as he crept along the rocks until being forced to wade into the water near the cave’s entrance. A submerged layer of stones formed a crude ledge, which Pitt followed into the opening as a small wave rolled up to his neck. Flicking on the flashlight he held over his head, he could see the cave ran like a tunnel for at least twenty feet before expanding into the gloom beyond.

He stopped and waited as Summer navigated her way across the slippery rocks, grabbing his hand before almost falling under.

“Might be easier to swim,” she gasped.

“I see a dry ledge just up ahead,” Pitt replied, playing the light around.

Hugging the side wall, they worked their way forward, finding that the submerged ledge gradually rose until they stepped completely out of the water. Above their heads, the ceiling grew to enormous heights as the tunnel expanded into a large cavern. The water flowed through a curved channel in the shape of a large “U,” indicating that it looped back toward the sea. Pitt could see that the water didn’t appear stagnant but flowed with a mild current.

They followed the ledge a few yards farther as it led toward a large sandy rise. Pitt was surprised to see a soft, faint light bathing the interior cavern. Looking up, he could see where a few slim rays of sunlight slipped through a fissure in the cliff face.

Suddenly, Pitt felt Summer’s hand clench his arm.

“Dad!” she cried.

He saw she was staring wide-eyed ahead. Turning to look, he expected to see a flying bat or perhaps a snake on the ground. Instead, he saw the hull of an aged ship.

The vessel sat upright on a sandy ledge, appearing little damaged under the dim light. Stepping closer, Pitt could see that it was built of an ancient design. An angled prow rose in a high arch that curled back over the open deck. Dozens of small round holes dotted the sides above the waterline, which Pitt recognized as perforations for oars. There were no actual oars in sight, only a number of broken stubs that dangled from a few of the openings.

Approaching the dust-covered ship, they saw that its single mast had been shattered near the base, the thick pole now lying across the aft deck. Playing the flashlight beam across the high stern, Pitt could see the skeletal remains of a man draped over the wooden tiller.

“It’s a galley,” Pitt said with a grin. “An old one, by the looks of it. She probably snapped off her mast when she sailed through the cave entrance.”

Summer remained in silent awe. Stepping to the bow, she finally found the words to call her father.

“Dad, look at this.”

The galley’s prow was a crumpled mass of timber at the waterline. Looking closer, they could see several bent copper spikes protruding in a horizontal band on either side.

“The only real damage to the hull,” Summer noted. “They must have driven into the cliff face a few times before slipping into this grotto.”