Juan looked at Christopher seriously, “He blames me for your death.”
Christopher looked back at Juan just as serious. “I know.”
Juan asked the question that had plagued him, “Why are you here?”
Christopher started to speak, then stopped. After a moment he found his words. “When my wife died, I filled my time with exploring, hoping to fill the void. But no matter the number of new lands I discovered, the void remained.
“Finally I found the fountain – quite by accident I assure you. Or maybe the fountain found me. Either way, I arrived in the village and when I saw the fountain, I felt alive for the first time since her funeral.
“The fountain brought me here, just as it did you. I could have left several times but this place is so beautiful. I felt at peace here and so I stayed.
“I should have been there for my son. He was crushed at word of my death. I should have gone to him, let him know that I was alive but I was selfish. And so, I stayed here.”
Juan regarded Christopher. “Then let’s go find him and tell him.”
Christopher sighed and knew Juan was right. “Aye,” he said quietly.
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Eduardo owes me two pieces of gold,” Buono declared. “He bet me you were dead. I told him we weren’t that lucky.”
Juan opened his eyes to familiar faces. At first he was disoriented and didn’t understand. Then, slowly he regained where he was and took in his surroundings. He focused on the face of his old friend and smiled.
Next to Buono stood the two Calusa warriors. “I see the two of you survived the trip to Spain.”
Antonio answered in Spanish, “Your cities there are very beautiful.”
“You speak Spanish, now? Good.”
He directed his gaze back to Buono. “When did you get back?”
“We arrived in the village two months ago. It appears this valley is a sacred place to the Calusa and Antonio and Pedro led us here.”
“Antonio and Pedro, then. Whom is who?”
The two Calusa stepped forward and introduced themselves formally to Juan.
Juan opened his mouth to reply to the two warriors when Buono’s words sank in. “Wait, how long did you say you’ve been here?”
“We’ve been here two months.”
Juan was confused. “That doesn’t add up. I was only in the garden one day.”
“You’ve been gone over a year,” Buono answered seriously.
“A year?” he laughed. Surely Buono was joking but he did not return the amusement.
“But I traveled to the garden only yesterday,” Juan said dubiously.
“It’s true,” said Christopher walking up with Abuelo.
“Christopher, I don’t understand.”
“I don’t entirely either but that doesn’t make it any less true.”
There were many questions to ask but Abuelo had a more urgent matter to discuss. “There’s something you should know. Diego is leading the Calusa here.”
“Diego? How does he know of this place?” Juan was surprised.
“They’ll be here in a week,” confirmed Abuelo. “He comes with an army of five hundred warriors.”
“Five hundred? How could he have gathered so many?” An experienced soldier, Juan immediately began to search his mind as to the strategies they would use in defense of an army of that size.
“There’s more we have learned,” Eduardo offered. “La Florida is not an island. It’s a large land that spreads as far north and south as all of Europe and Africa. I can’t explain how but Abuelo has shown this to us. We’ve seen frozen lands to the north, deserts to the west and a far-stretching land to the south. The land south becomes jungles with lush beautiful vegetation and finally turns as frozen as the land to the north.”
Juan was mesmerized by Eduardo’s words. “How can all this exist and yet no man has discovered such a large land?”
Juan thought back to the Northmen tales of a wild land to the west. He had been an arrogant young man as he journeyed with Christopher to explore the so-called New World. How could a land already full of people be a New World?
Spain had only cared about expanding its own empire. The truth was that Christopher and he were conquerors not explorers.
And now Diego was coming as a conqueror.
Everything happened quickly.
The morning after Diego landed, his exploration party discovered a series of small caves five miles inland. Three men were ordered to explore the caves and gathered lanterns before approaching the first of the small fissures.
There was a slight movement in the vegetation just outside the mouth of the caves; the three men drew their swords but their response was belated. From behind the surrounding trees, men armed with bows stepped forward.
Diego’s men drew and charged but the bowed warriors cut them down. The remaining men looked to Diego. He did not sheath his sword but lowered it. Taking cue, the other men lowered theirs as well.
For a moment, soldiers and warriors glared at each other, eyes occupied with hatred. Then, a commotion began among the warriors and slowly a divide developed in the horde. Diego watched as a man can forward.
“Hello, Columbus,” the voice of the man sneered.
Diego could not believe who he was discerning. He was looking at Diego Velazquez, his Governor in Cuba.
“El Toro?” Diego asked, calling Velazquez by his soldier name. Diego had sent El Toro to Cuba to establish towns as well as make peace throughout the island. He had sailed with Diego’s father, Christopher on his second voyage to the New World.
“Aye, El Toro.”
“What are you doing here? I sent you to conquer the rebel Taino tribes in west Cuba,” Diego demanded.
“Accomplished.”
“Accomplished?”
“Aye.”
“And what on earth brought you to Bimini? How did you find this island?” Diego was incredulous.
“I know of the island the
