‘She said it was her grandmother’s, and her grandmother’s grandmother’s before her and so on, that it had been a family tradition for the cross to be handed down from grandmother to granddaughter at the age of twelve and it has been so for many generations going back a few hundred years.’
‘Do you know exactly for how long?’
‘Not exactly Would you like to talk to my grandmother?’
‘Yes, we would. I would be grateful if you could arrange it.’
Aristo joined in. ‘But, Iraklios, won’t you tell us what it’s for? Why is the cross so important?’
‘That cross is not a usual cross. Look at it carefully.’
‘It looks valuable, but otherwise I don’t see anything special about it.’
‘If it is what we believe it is, that cross has a story. That cross was a gift to each newborn heir to the throne of Constantinople and we have evidence in historical accounts that shows drawings of that same cross.’
Katerina looked puzzled. ‘But couldn’t anyone who had seen those drawings or the cross itself have reproduced the design?’
‘It is possible, I suppose, and that’s why we need to speak with your grandmother. She may be able to shed light on this matter. But for verification we will need the cross to be examined by an expert, an archaeologist who specialises in this period and more specifically the Palaiologos dynasty and the last Emperor.’
Elli knew the answer. The thought passed through Katerina’s mind as well, but at that moment did not properly register. ‘Katerina, I think your brother would be the right person to examine the cross and confirm this.’
‘Giorgos?’ Katerina was still confused. ‘Yes, of course. You are right. But would he not have mentioned something about it all these years? After all I have been wearing it in full view for sixteen years.’ Katerina said, her tone pregnant with doubts, and a strange feeling of guilt she couldn’t shake, as if she did something wrong and she had to fix it.
She looked at Elli with eyes full of unanswered questions, hoping for a satisfactory explanation, for help to extricate herself from her predicament.
Elli saw Katerina’s suddenly furrowed brow and felt a bit uneasy for worrying this lovely young woman sitting opposite her, only a few minutes earlier relaxed and nonchalant making pleasant conversation. She wanted to try and put Katerina’s mind at some rest at least.
‘It is possible that he never paid real attention. He must have seen it just for what it was, a cross, a gift from your grandmother, a family heirloom. Like when we don’t notice something that is under our nose, perhaps it was the same with this and the thought never crossed his mind.’
‘But he’s always been extraordinarily observant and inquisitive. He would have asked to study it closely.’
‘Not necessarily. He must have become so accustomed to the sight of it that his curiosity was not aroused.’
‘It sounds plausible. I’ll call him and arrange a meeting. But Elli and Iraklios, you are not interested in it solely for its historical significance.’
Iraklios explained. ‘No. If it is what we believe it is, it could be the one worn by the last heir at the time of the fall of Constantinople in 1453. Almost four weeks before the fall of the city, the heir, a child of three years old at the time, was kidnapped from the Palace of Vlachernae. He was never found, nor was a body ever discovered. Nobody ever found out what happened to him. And he was, probably, wearing this cross when he disappeared.’
At the same time, at his apartment in Athens, Giorgos was on the phone to James Calvell in New York.
‘Giorgos, I’ve got the information we wanted.’
‘Already?’
‘I told you the guy was a genius.’
‘Well?’
‘I think he may have made a mistake. I’ll ask him to run the program again. It must have a bug or something.’
‘James, don’t play games. Just tell me. Come out with it.’
‘Giorgos, the donor of both icons was Ariana Paresteris.’
‘What? But that’s my grandmother’s name. It can’t be. It must be a coincidence.’
‘Giorgos, I’ve asked him to dig deeper. There’s no doubt. It was your grandmother.’
‘But how? It can’t be. It just can’t.’
‘Why not? Why do you find it so hard to believe?’
‘I don’t know. I guess I’m just surprised, that’s all.’
‘What will you do now?’
‘I need to speak to her. I need to see her. I need to know. Now. James, thank you. I have to go. I’ll call you in a couple of days.’
‘Alright. Call me, if you need anything else. I’ll help you with this.’
‘Yes, I know. I will call you in a couple of days when I will know more. I’ve got a feeling there’s more to this story. James, I just had a thought. The icon, the Imperial ring. Do you think all this may be connected to my project?’
‘It’s very possible.’
‘My God, do you know what this means? James, I have to go. You are a good friend. Speak to you later.’
Giorgos was on the first flight out of Athens Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport. He landed at Larnaca International Airport shortly after seven in the evening and took a taxi straight to Limassol and his grandmother’s house.
It was just before nine o’clock at night when Giorgos found himself knocking on his grandmother’s front door. She opened the door herself and, hiding her initial surprise, her face opened up with a huge smile for her grandson. She pulled him into the entrance hall and into her arms and they exchanged kisses.
‘My darling Giorgos. It’s so good to see you. When did you get back to Cyprus? And what are you doing here at this time?’
‘I arrived in Larnaca less than two hours ago and I’m back for good, or, at least, until the next project. And do I need a reason to visit my grandmother?’
‘You certainly don’t. You don’t need to give advance notice either. It’s just that I was not expecting you, that’s all.’
‘I’m not interrupting anything, am I?’
‘No, not at all. Come in. Go to the sitting room. I’ll ask Alina to prepare some coffee for us. I’ll only be a moment.’
Giorgos walked towards the sitting room and Ariana Paresteris turned to the direction of the kitchen where she found Alina busy preparing the marinade for the lamb that would be the following day’s centrepiece for lunch. Alina looked up as Ariana entered the kitchen.
‘Mrs Ariana, I thought I heard Giorgos’ voice. I thought he was still in Athens. I didn’t know he was back. Is everything alright?’
‘Yes. And it seems he may back for good. I know it’s late, but you know his crazy schedule. If he can spare a moment for his grandmother he will use it to visit me irrespective of the time and, perhaps, crossing a couple of continents in the process. And I am glad for that. You know how much I love him. He’s very precious to me. We’ll be in the sitting room. Alina, bring us some coffee, would you?’
‘Yes, Mrs Ariana.’
‘Thank you.’
Ariana left the kitchen and walked back to the entrance hall and from there to the sitting room. Upon entering she noticed Giorgos’ worried and pensive expression before he looked up and smiled at her giving her his full attention.
She walked briskly to the sofa facing Giorgos and sat down. She did not want to allow him the opportunity to hesitate as she sensed that he was debating with himself how to broach a difficult subject.
She decided to save time and to make it easy for him so she avoided further pleasantries and went straight for the jugular. Seated in the late evening coolness of the sitting room, Ariana turned to her grandson.
‘I raised you and I know you as if you were my own child. Something’s troubling you.’
‘Yes. You know about my project, don’t you?’
‘Your quest for the last Emperor’s tomb, yes.’
‘We found something in Cappadocia.’
‘Not the tomb? But why have you not told me before? Why has it not been on the news?’
‘We found a sarcophagus and a well-preserved body, but we don’t know yet for sure. But that’s not why I’m here. Do you remember James Calvell?’