“And did Dad document it?” I press, excitement building.
Tommy nods. “Photographed every page. He was especially interested in the coordinates recorded in the margins.”
“Coordinates that could identify the precise location of the Salvador Mundi wreck site,” Sid concludes.
“Did Dad ever mention the Star of Sebastian?” I ask, lowering my voice though no other visitors are nearby.
Tommy’s expression confirms he recognizes the term. “The navigational device. Yes, Samuel believed the logbook contained references to it. That it might have survived the wreck.”
“And the seventh location on his map?” I pull out the folded paper, showing Tommy the marking beneath the lighthouse.
“The old storage cellar,” Tommy answers without hesitation. “Beneath the lighthouse foundation. Samuel spent hours down there shortly before he died.”
“There’s more,” I say, pulling out the USB drive. “I found Dad’s insurance policy.”
Tommy’s eyes widen as I explain about the lockbox and the note. “Samuel always was thorough,” he murmurs. “This changes things. With this documentation, we might be able to get emergency protection for the site even without recovering the star.”
“But I still want it back,” I say firmly. “It’s not just evidence. It’s the last thing Dad, and I made together.”
“Can you show us?” Sid asks.
Tommy hesitates, loyalty to my father warring with caution about our intentions. “Why the sudden interest, Sid? Your family’s history with maritime artifacts is well known in certain circles.”
Sid doesn’t flinch from the implied accusation. “I’m helping Marnie recover her star. Whatever my grandfather’s activities, my interest is in supporting Samuel’s daughter.”
The straightforward response seems to satisfy Tommy. “Wait here,” he instructs, before climbing the stairs to check on his tour group.
He returns minutes later. “I’ve asked my assistant to handle the next few tours. Follow me.”
Tommy leads us down the main staircase, then continues past the ground floor entrance to a narrow door I’d never noticed during previous lighthouse visits. Beyond lies another staircase, descending into darkness.
“Watch your step,” Tommy warns, switching on a flashlight. “These stairs date to the original construction.”
The storage cellar reveals itself as a circular stone room roughly twenty feet in diameter. Metal shelving lines the walls, holding maintenance supplies, old logbooks, and miscellaneous equipment accumulated over the lighthouse’s long history.
“Samuel focused on this area,” Tommy says, directing his flashlight toward the northern section of the cellar.
The beam illuminates a portion of wall that looks subtly different from the surrounding stonework. Slightly discolored, with mortar that appears newer than the adjacent sections.
“He believed something was hidden within the wall. Possibly during the 1923 renovations, when my great-grandfather was keeper.”
“Did he try to access it?” I ask, approaching the section of wall.
“No. He said proper archaeological methods would be needed to preserve whatever might be inside. He was documenting everything before approaching state historic preservation officials.”
The responsible approach sounds exactly like Dad. Thorough, methodical, respecting proper channels despite the excitement of discovery.
Finn moves to the wall section, sniffing intently along its base. His behavior suggests something indeed lies beyond the stonework.
“I believe Samuel encoded the precise location in your driftwood star,” Tommy continues. “Along with the logbookcoordinates and other evidence he’d compiled. An insurance policy, he called it.”
“Insurance against development interests that might want to build over the wreck site,” Sid adds.
“Coastal Development Partners,” I confirm. “They’ve been acquiring properties throughout Seacliff Haven.”
Tommy nods. “Including the old caretaker’s cottage adjacent to the lighthouse grounds. They approached me about selling the lighthouse itself six months ago. Claimed they wanted to ‘preserve and enhance’ the historic structure as part of a larger coastal development.”
“But the lighthouse is historically protected,” Sid points out.
