The Columbus Affair

Not really.

“He had on board a Regiomontanus Ephemerides printed in Nuremberg around 1490 that contained predictions of eclipses for thirty years ahead. He discovered that a total eclipse was going to occur in three days’ time, February 29, 1504. So he summoned the local chiefs and told them that his God in heaven was angry with them for withholding food. He told them the moon would rise bloody and inflamed that night—which, of course, it did thanks to the eclipse. Then, he told them, the moon would vanish. Of course, that’s also what happened. The Tainos panicked and begged Columbus to make it stop.”

Béne listened as Tre explained how Columbus retired to his cabin supposedly to pray to his God for their forgiveness. But what he really did was use his half-hour glass to measure the eclipse’s duration so that he could calculate Jamaica’s longitude.

“He came back out just as the eclipse was ending and told the Tainos that his God had forgiven them and the moon would be restored, provided they kept supplying food. The moon reappeared and there were no more problems with the locals. And that calculation of longitude was only off by half a degree, which was remarkable for the time.”

Béne wondered about the point of the story. He hated anything and everything to do with the Spanish.

“Columbus,” Halliburton said, “understood navigation. He was good with the stars and knew their relationship to time and geography. Last night I went back into the archives and discovered some things your thief missed.”

Tre opened the briefcase and removed a pad of paper.

“I found this written on another sheet that went with the first one concerning the lawsuit settlement between the Cohen brothers.”

Enter at an open land near a 01: 94:01: a. 01. on the coast of 01 .aa .94 .66 a of right against the Island a a .01 .94 .61. 01 .94 66.13 .01 The prime formula which are to be called upon by word 24. 19. p.p. 000. nl pp. pp. 66. pp are the 11 .61 94 .61.91 1 or 22. 4. 85. or the Portugals will show you there .61 .61 .01 .60. nl 85.

“This is what Abraham Cohen had to provide to his brother, Moses, as part of the settlement. The governor conducting the trial recorded this information in a report he made to Spain about the dispute. It seems there was a lot of interest among the Spanish about anything pertaining to the lost mine.”

Béne had already told Halliburton about the hooked X in the cave Frank Clarke had shown him, and about Columbus’ signature.

Tre pointed back toward the sea and said, “Columbus hiked inland from somewhere along the shore and found the mine. To mark his way he used navigational points. That’s what those numbers are on the pad. But we have no way of knowing what they refer to. It’s a code. What we do know, Béne, is that the 420 acres Abraham Cohen bought in 1670 is down there, below us, in that valley. I found plenty of geographic landmarks on maps. If it exists, the mine is there.”

He stared out at the palms, ferns, and luxuriant vegetation several hundred feet below, which extended all the way to the sea. No houses, towns, or farms were in sight.

“The good thing,” Tre said, “is that it’s uncultivated Maroon land.”

Which meant there’d been little outside interference. Maroons guarded their land with a known ferocity. Permission was needed to explore.

“What now?” he asked.

“I’m getting a list of caves for this area. The Geological Society of Jamaica has most of them mapped. I want to see what’s here.”

That was sound thinking. “But it couldn’t be in any known cave, could it?”

“It’s a starting point.”

“You don’t think I’m so crazy anymore, do you?” he asked.

“All I know, Béne, is that this island wasn’t noted for gold. There was a little here and there in the streams, but Jamaica’s worth was its soil and location. We sat right in the middle of the trade routes, and this dirt can grow just about anything. The Spanish never recognized that, and Ferdinand never believed in any lost mine. That’s why he gave the island to the Columbus heirs. He considered this place worthless. The legend came later. Ceding Jamaica was the easy way to get the Columbus family off his back. He was done with them. Finally.”

“I have men who can scour that valley,” Béne said.

“Not yet. Let’s see if we can narrow things down. I’ve checked the deed you found. The rivers and streams mentioned are by their Spanish names, but we know what those translate to today. I think I can limit the search area.”

He heard something else in Halliburton’s voice. “What is it?”

“There’s another source of documents, Béne. From the Spanish time. The curator in the archives last night reminded me about them. Few have ever seen them, but they could prove helpful. It’s held privately.”

“Where?”

“Cuba.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

ALLE ENTERED ST. STEPHEN’S AND IMMEDIATELY SPOTTED ZACHARIAH standing a couple of hundred feet away, at the far end of the nave.

She walked toward him.

He was dressed impeccably, as always, standing tall and straight, not a hint of concern on his bearded face. He stood in the center of the transept. She came to within a few feet and stopped.

“Are you all right?” he immediately asked.

“Why did you want me dead?”

“Is that what they told you? I wanted you dead.”

“Your man took me off into the woods with orders to kill me.”

He shook his head. “Alle, he was not working for me. He worked for Brian Jamison. That man disappeared yesterday from my estate. He was Jamison’s spy.”

She knew that to be true, but wondered how he knew.

“I am here,” Zachariah said, “because of your father. He did not keep his end of the deal in Florida and insisted we meet. Jamison’s employer contacted me yesterday and told me they had you. They wanted to get to me through you. So they took you, and lied about me.”

“Who does Brian work for?”

“A man named Béne Rowe, whom I should have never dealt with, if only for the reason that he placed you in jeopardy.”

“Where’s Rócha?”

“I know you are upset about the video. I am dealing with Rócha on that. It will not go unpunished. But it did cause your father to act.”

Which was true.

“I tried to tell you several times that there are people who will want to stop our quest. Béne Rowe and Jamison are two of those. They are interfering in what we were doing—”

“I saw what happened in Florida when you went after my father.”

“You saw?”

“A camera was there.”

“There was no choice. I had to confront him. But when he asked for a meeting here to make the trade, I agreed.”

“Where is he?” she asked.

“Right here.”

She turned, as did Zachariah.

Her father stood a few feet away.

———

TOM STUDIED HIS DAUGHTER. HER DARK HAIR HUNG LONGER than a few years ago, but was still wavy. Her swarthy skin and compact frame came from him, as did her blunt nose, high cheeks, and rounded jaw. The brown eyes were her mother’s. Like him, she wore no eyeglasses or other jewelry. She was dressed in jeans, a pullover shirt, and flat-soled boots. Watching her, he instantly thought of Michele. Truly her mother’s daughter.

“Mr. Sagan,” Simon said. “Here she is, as promised. Now, can I have what is mine?”

He faced Alle. “You all right?”

She nodded but offered nothing more. What bothered him was the fact that she and Simon had arrived separately and spoken calmly, as if they were familiar with each other.

“Mr. Sagan,” Simon said. “I want what you have.”

“And what are you going to do if I don’t give it to you?”

“Your daughter is here, as I promised. Can not our business be concluded?”

Something wasn’t right. Alle displayed none of the emotion he would have expected from someone who’d been tied to a bed and molested by strangers. He searched her eyes, looking for anything that might explain his misgivings, but she offered nothing.

“Give him what he wants,” she finally said to him.

“Your grandfather would not want me to do that.”

“How would you know?”

“I read what he left in his grave.”

He saw she was curious, but he did not elaborate. Instead, he removed a folded piece of paper from his pocket and handed it to Simon. “This is it. A note to me.”