Next morning he was there again. Frederick ’s face was absolutely thunderous. We had had an acrimonious argument the day before, and I had to swear on everything sacred that I had not let Jim in on the secret. I don’t think Frederick believed me. He paid no attention to my statement that the whole village knew what we were doing, and that it was only a matter of time before the port authorities landed on us. He was almost beyond reason on this point. And when he saw Jim the second time, he didn’t even speak to him, he just went back into the house and slammed the door.
“We can’t go on meeting this way,” I said, as we walked along the path.
“I’m afraid you’re right,” said Jim. “Chris had a few things to say to me this morning.”
“Go back then.” I stopped. “This is silly.”
“On one condition. You go back too.”
“Oh, all right. I can’t have you lose your job on my account.”
We parted at the house.
“I may be here tomorrow and I may not,” Jim said. “I won’t ask you to promise-”
“I can’t promise. I’ll do my best.”
“Then so will I. You like honesty, Sandy. I’ll be honest. I intend to stop this somehow.”
“You mean, report Frederick?”
“I’ll do whatever I have to do.”
“So will I,” I said.
He didn’t kiss me good-bye.
Frederick and I had a little talk that evening. It was a humdinger. My voice must have been audible several hundred yards away. Frederick didn’t shout, he just got colder and meaner with every word. Losing my temper meant that I’d lost control of the argument. It took a direction I had not expected.
“What do you mean, betrayal?” I demanded at one point. “That’s a rather melodramatic word to use for a-”
“It is accurate. Your loyalty should have been to me, if for no other reason than because you promised me. The first adolescent male that comes along pawing at you-”
“Pawing!”
“I’ve seen him kiss you, put his arms around you. Disgusting, promiscuous-”
“That’s enough,” I said. I wasn’t angry anymore, I was appalled. “My God, is that the way you think? Is that the way you were with-”
I stopped just in time. There are some things you can’t say. Of course Frederick knew what I meant. It had an unexpected effect. Instead of getting madder, he calmed down. We were like two people whose furious combat has brought them to the edge of a cliff; we had to agree to a truce to keep from falling over.
“All right,” I said. “Let’s try to stick to the subject, shall we? Jim is worried about my swimming alone, and he has every right to worry. All I want from you is your word that you won’t leave me alone. You aren’t a lot of help, but you’re better than nothing.”
“Very well,” said Frederick. “I will agree to be present while you are in the water. Is that what you want?”
“That’s all. I want to be reasonable-”
“Then I must agree. I have no choice.” Frederick rose. “Have you any other demands?”
“I’m not making demands. I just-”
“Then we are agreed. Good night.”
It wasn’t a good night. I slept badly. There was no reason why I should have felt guilty. His attitude was completely unreasonable. But I did feel guilty-and upset. Mother had said she left Frederick because he cared only for his work. I had been pretty naïve to accept that. Had he hurled words like that at her every time she flirted a little or let a friend hold her hand longer than was strictly necessary?
When I finally fell asleep I dreamed, and a Freudian would have found the subject matter of the dream perfectly predictable. I was back in the foul den where the Minotaur waited, and Theseus stood ready to face him. Only Theseus wasn’t an anonymous Greek hero. He was Jim. I saw the sweaty pallor of his face and the way his eyebrows were drawn together, in a capital M. I was myself, and I was Ariadne, the Most Holy, sick with a complex of terrors no modern woman could wholly comprehend. Not only had I betrayed my father for the love of a stranger, an enemy; I had betrayed the goddess, whose priestess I was. The stranger would end the old worship. His barbaric people preferred male gods, and he was the son of Poseidon himself. The Earthshaker would do battle for his son; but which of his sons would he support? The Minotaur was born of the sacred bull, which was Poseidon’s incarnation… Then the stinkingdarkness in the heart of the maze moved, and the bull roar shattered the silence and shook the ground.
I woke with a shriek, to find Frederick shaking my shoulder. I shrank away from him, because he was the sea king, whom I had betrayed.
“What is the matter with you?” he asked irritably.
I swallowed.
“Bad dream,” I mumbled.
“Oh. Hurry and get up.”
We made our way along the path in a silence that was passive, if not amicable. I could tell by Frederick ’s expression and his occasional side-long glances that he had gotten over his anger and would have apologized, if he had been that sort of man. I let my eyes travel along the slope of the hill, with its multicolored strata of rock and gray-green veils of vegetation. The sky was a deep, cloudless blue and the sea below a pale emerald, deepening to sapphire farther out. It was a beautiful morning. I realized, with surprise, that I was going to miss some of this when I got home.
For the first time in days my buddy Alice wasn’t waiting for me. I looked around, and finally I saw the familiar blue-and-white shape. We went on together. I was almost in the exact center of the bay when I found the second amphora.
I was investigating a pile of fallen rock-lava fragments, by the look of them-when I saw the rounded curve of the side and a flash of brilliant color. The orange-red band was like the decoration on the first pot I had found. I brushed away drifted sand and the ornament of the lower part appeared-an octopus, sprawling brown-black tentacles around the flank.
The pot was wedged in by stones. It was a marvel it hadn’t broken, but so far as I could see, it appeared to be intact. The strain in my chest reminded me I was getting short of breath. I had been so excited by the discovery I had stayed down a little too long. I came up and blew the water out of my snorkel. When I looked for Frederick, he was gone.
I didn’t swear because I didn’t want to waste my breath. But I thought of a lot of bad words. I looked up toward the house and saw what I expected to see-the flash of light on a pair of binoculars. There was no doubt in my mind that Frederick knew the identity of the man in the villa and was reluctant to be seen by him.
Watcher or no watcher, Frederick or no Frederick, I had to dive once more. I had no intention of trying to remove the amphora, but I had to mark the site; you’d be surprised how easy it is to misplace an object the size of a jar in all that water. I had my nylon line and an inflatable buoy, which is rather like a balloon, only heavier, so I took a deep breath and went down. I should have attached the line and left; but I couldn’t go without seeing what else was down here. The amphora might be another isolated find, or it might be the most visible of a cache of treasures.
Alice hung around, peering myopically at me, while I pulled the stones away. I was in a hurry, I admit it. I wanted to see what was what, and get out of there. Careless haste causes accidents. But I know now that this accident would have happened sooner or later anyhow.
I had lifted one of the larger stones when it happened. I saw the flash and felt the sting at the same moment. That was what it felt like, just a sharp tingling sensation; it wasn’t very painful. Then the water started to cloud up.
I couldn’t believe it. I stared stupidly at the dark stain in the water. It was small at first, spreading out slow tentacles like a little octopus. But it wasn’t an animal, it was liquid, darker and heavier than the water. It was blood.