Chasing Rome: A Novel by John Gray

Author:John Gray
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Paraclete Press
Published: 2022-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 18 Call You Odysseus

That night, as everyone slept soundly after such a busy day, the thermometer dipped sharply in Italy and on the islands off her shores. On one of them, Brother Levi woke to the sensation of cold air rushing into his room. He rose from his bed at five in the morning, hoping to find the source of the chill. It was the front door, wide open, in the home he shared with a dozen other monks. Footprints were visible on top of the fresh snow, so Levi threw on a coat and scarf and set out to make sure everything was okay.

There was a small work shed that stood between the main house and five wooden docks that poked out like fingers into the Tyrrhenian Sea. There, in that shed, Levi found a lantern turned on and a man with his back to the door, fiddling with something.

“Strange time to be working on a project,” Levi called out, startling him.

The man, without turning, answered back, “It’s just me, Tommaso.”

“What are you doing up?” Levi asked.

Tommaso turned to meet his eyes, saying, “I could ask you the same question.”

Levi replied, “Do you remember when you first came to live with us, I told you that front door needed to be pulled hard or the lock wouldn’t click?”

Tommaso gave him a bewildered look, then replied. “Not really.”

“Well,” Levi pressed on, “you didn’t shut it tight, so the door blew open.”

“Sorry about that,” Tommaso said remorsefully.

Levi walked into the shed to get closer to Tommaso, answering, “No big deal, you just gave the house a chill.”

Levi noticed a small brass item in Tommaso’s hands, asking, “What’s that there?”

Tommaso held it up in the light, answering, “An old compass. It didn’t work, so I popped the glass off and cleaned the pin.”

“How did it get dirty?” Levi asked with curiosity.

“Moisture got in and caused it to rust,” Tommaso answered. “But now it works, pointing north again.”

“You should keep that,” Levi said.

“Me? Why?” Tommaso answered.

Levi replied, “You never know when you might get lost.”

Tommaso rubbed his thumb along the tarnished brass and carefully placed the compass in his pocket.

Levi paused a moment to consider his next words, then said, “I’ve avoided asking you this, trying to respect your privacy, but where are you from, Tommaso?”

The good-looking man in his early forties answered, “Someplace nicer than this, I think.”

Levi then asked, “Are you happy with us here?”

“I suppose,” Tommaso replied.

“Not exactly a rousing endorsement,” Levi answered back.

Tommaso, trying not to offend, responded in a friendly tone, “I suppose not.”

With the door to the small shed still open, Levi could hear the ocean crashing on the shore, prompting him to ask, “More boats are coming and going today from the island. Would you like to go ashore with me?”

“No,” was Tommaso’s answer, at little more than a whisper.

Levi then asked, “Tomorrow?”

Again, Tommaso gave him a quiet, “No.”

Levi then asked, “Is it the ocean you don’t like, or the boats?”

Tommaso took a deep breath and replied, “Both.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.