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evening,” Carlos said as he signaled the waiter. “We need to discuss this find my daughter and Samuel made up on the slopes of Mt. Teide. She called me from the university an hour ago and gave me a brief overview. If it’s valid, I must make the proper arrangements for permits as expediently as possible.”
    “I couldn’t agree more, Carlos,” Eli Turner said as the waiter approached the table with pad and pencil in hand. “This could be quite a unique discovery.”
    “Where are Samuel and Maria?” Turner asked Carlos.
    “Samuel and Maria will be along shortly, Josh. They went to meet with the linguistics head at the university before coming here. Hopefully they will have more information for us.”
    “While we wait, I’ll have a Ron Miel , ” Eli said to the waiter, having grown fond of the local mead rum made with palm honey. “Josh, would you like your usual?”
    “I’ll have Jose Cuervo Black, on the rocks. Thanks, Dad.”
    “I’ll have another Malvasia; it’s one of our finest island wines. Oh, and a soft drink for Paulo because he is driving tonight,” Carlos said as the waiter then hurried off to get their drinks.
    “What do you two make of Maria and Samuel’s discovery?” Turner asked curiously, getting right to the topic at hand.
    “I’m a bit intrigued, but just a bit more skeptical, Josh. Finding a parchment written in ancient Aramaic within a Guanche tomb? It’s a bit of a stretch,” Carlos said, finishing off the last of his Malvasia .
    “I’m curious as to what is in the tomb, which Maria said was sealed with a flat cover stone. All of the other tomb entrances within the lava tube looked to be constructed with traditional piles of basalt rock,” Eli said as their waiter set their drinks down in front of them.
    “I’m more curious as to who is in that tomb.” Carlos added with a puzzled look. “I had Maria email the enlarged and enhanced photo of the cover stone to me before I came here. I want you to tell me what you see, Josh,” he said as he reached beside his chair, pulled out a photo from his brief case, and handed it to Turner.
    Eli and Carlos remained silent as Turner studied the photo of the cover stone that had been light-enhanced by brightening the natural rock, which left the etching in a dark shaded pattern. His sharp, blue eyes widened at the image he saw on the stone.
    “The Ichthus,” Turner said in an astonished voice. “What the hell would the symbol of the early Christian church be doing in an ancient Guanche tomb on the Canary Islands?”
    “That’s what I would like to know as well,” Carlos replied. “We do know from our studies that the Romans were exploring the Canary archipelago as early as the fourth century A.D. Pliny the Elder, who was a Roman soldier and administrator, did extensive research and documentation of the Islands. We also know that trade had been established by the Romans with the discovery of ancient potsherds dug up on the island of Lanzarote in the 1960’s.” He paused to take a sip of his wine, and then continued his discourse. “Most of the potsherds were pieces of large amphorae used to carry such commodities as wine, salt fish, and olive oil. Analysis of their clay showed that the amphorae originally came from Campania in Italy, Baetica in Spain, and Tunisia.”
    “That may explain the symbol on the cover stone,” Turner said.
    “I’m not so sure, Josh,” Eli said. “At that time, the early Christian church was struggling under heavy persecution from the Romans, so I don’t believe that the early church ever had a presence here. The Guanche worshiped their own Gods, and, it would have been almost impossible to communicate with them, seeing they had their own unique language.”
    “Do you think the tomb might have been used at a later date?” Turner asked.
    “Who’s to say?” Carlos said, taking another sip of his wine. “We won’t know until we perform a carbon dating on the contents. That will verify the