Never a Dull Day in Pompeii
A Tale of Ancient Pompeii and Herculaneum and modern discovery
by
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At last Agapeto seemed to have got to the right moment. “Bueno” he said as though he had reached a decision. “Please when I say now Sandra and James get down into the floor of the back as fast as you can. Malcolm you will not be able to get that low but crouch down as far as you can in the seat slide down on your bottom and lean into the back rest as far as you can and stay away from the window. I will be getting out of the car. I have been following a white Mercedes like this one (though not as fine as mine) at some distance. Very soon I will accelerate fast so please take your seatbelts off do not worry you will be pushed into your seats and not out of them, you will expect a sideways movement so be ready for that and now put you heads against the headrests so you do not suffer pain.” The three friends put their heads against the headrests in the car and prepared for whatever Agapeto had in mind. They had no idea what to expect and after several minutes were wondering if anything at all was going to happen. Suddenly the car accelerated fast, the force of the acceleration pushed the passengers back into their seats and indeed if they had not had their heads pushed against the headrests they would have had a very unpleasant jerk. The car turned a sharp right hand corner Agapeto said “Now!” Sandra and James quickly crouched down in the foot well of the back, Malcolm had got as low as he could in the front. Before the passengers had realized exactly what had happened the car was stationary, rocking slightly and Agapeto leapt out of the car and shut the door again. A few seconds passed and they heard the sound of a scooter buzzing past and receding into the distance. Sandra and James were about to get out of their uncomfortable position when Agapeto called in an urgent voice through the open window. “Wait there please!” They did as they were told. A whole minute passed and another engine note was heard approaching and receding. “His amigo” Agapeto explained through the open window. Another minute passed and Agapeto re-entered the car. “Most satisfactory” he said proudly. “I have not lost my skill” The three friends got out of their uncomfortable positions and Malcolm asked “What exactly happened then?” It all happened so fast only Agapeto could tell them which he proudly did as they drove off in the opposite direction. He had spotted Goran in a blue car about four cars behind the scooter, presumably to take over if the traffic sped up beyond the capabilities of the little scooter. He had followed the other white Mercedes at some distance until the traffic diminished to virtually no cars at all. He was pleased the other car was going far enough to make this possible. By this time at the outskirts of Napoli there were plenty of parking spaces at the side of the road. Just before the corner he had decided to try his luck and accelerated around the corner, taking advantage as the scooter slowed down as it waited for a car in front of it to clear the way. Agapeto sped down the side road, spotted a space between two other cars and skidded his own car through 180 degrees and into the parking space in one fluid move. He had got out of the car to crouch down beside it as he knew with the steering wheel he would never have been able to crouch down low enough. His main worry was the small cloud of smoke from the skid but the gentle breeze must have been just enough to dissipate it as Matko struggled to catch up with the other white Mercedes turning the corner at the bottom of the street. "I don't think I could have parked my car in that small a space on a normal day” Sandra was tense with the action. "Well done Agapeto, that was a brilliant bit of driving” James was also impressed "Five star driving if you ask me” Malcolm was patting Agapeto on the shoulder. “What worries me is how they picked us up again. Never mind, they must know where we are staying now. I hope you guys haven't left anything important in your room because as soon as they realize they are following the wrong car they will have time to go back and check out our rooms” "I think all the sensitive stuff is in my backpack” James was glad he had put the printouts of the Google Earth maps in his bag and there were no other copies of the co-ordinates except with the maps. "I will telephone to the hotel and ask Eleanor to secretly change your rooms, may I borrow a phone. I do not use one myself” "We can't ask you to do that” objected Sandra “I am sure that it will be alright.” "It is no problem” Agapeto waited for Malcolm to pass him the mobile “Eleanor is my niece as she will be very happy to oblige.” He spoke for several minutes into the phone in very fast Italian. They heard Malcolm Manston, Robert Carold and James Carold mentioned but apart from that not much else that made any sense to them. Agapeto then handed the phone back to Malcolm “There, it is done. Now mio amicos we must enjoy the rest of the beautiful day in this lovely Italian sunshine.”
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About the Book
A stranger introduces himself to James and Sandra Carold at the theatre. He explains to them that he is psychometric and can pick up vibrations from objects and can often “see” some of the history of the object, the people who owned it and the places it has been. Years before this story starts this stranger (Malcolm Manston) befriended James father on a train journey on the way to an archaeological dig in Pompeii. Together using Malcolm's talent they uncovered some of the secrets of the town that the ash from Vesuvius buried during the eruption of 79 AD. Malcolm's psychic gift has recently shown him of the whereabouts of a massive hoard of Roman coins and treasure in a secret room in a villa buried beneath the pumice on the slopes of Vesuvius. This gripping adventure story follows the fortunes of James, Sandra and Malcolm in their race to unearth the hoard. They find they are up against an unscrupulous millionaire determined to have the treasure for himself, a powerful crooked Italian official and even the Volcano itself whose rumblings warn of a possible repeat of the eruption in 79 A.D. As the tale unfolds James, Sandra and Malcolm find inner strengths, and new friends in Italy and England who with their various skills help them in their struggle.
About the Author
Jonathan was born in Malta in 1957 and has run his own Cabinet Making Business (Three Bells Furniture) for 25 years from his workshops in Norfolk. He holds an advanced scuba diving certificate, is a keen sailor and enjoys walking, magic (conjuring), archery, music (clarinet, saxophone, and guitar) painting (watercolour), and of course writing.