Chapter 12: What Jon Learned from the Maid

Jon stopped eating and listened to the maid's story. He drank the water she poured him and wiped his lips with the tablecloth.

The maid continued. "According to my mother who also heard it from her grandmother, the island used to be uninhabited because of the lack of good soil to farm. However, the presence of fresh water made it known to the fishermen who would sometimes replenish their water supply by coming here. She said there are caves not far from the dock where the fishermen used to stay during bad weather as well as a network of springs and waterfalls that were probably the same sources where the fishermen get their water from."

The maid stopped speaking and looked at the door which remained closed.

"Go on." Jon glanced at the closed door and then urged the maid to continue. "Tell me how Dante came to be in possession of this island."

"My grandmother told me that a dinghy was washed ashore here many years ago carrying a man who turned out to be Dante's ancestor. No one knew whe