“I never lost touch with Etienne and the others. We’d send letters when we could, sharing bits and pieces of our boring existence whilst prattling on about how we missed the spontaneity we had in school. For years, we had escaped the halls of that hallowed university as soon as the sun went down without knowing what the night would bring, yet it now seemed our lives were planned, monotonous…boring.

“It was Garrick who had the idea of an adventure. For the most part, we were all under the thumbs of our fathers. We received monthly stipends on which to live and feed our families; however, those expenditures were monitored, and our behavior scrutinized so as not to damage the family name. Garrick proposed that if we had our own revenue, something tied to nothing but our names, that would give us control over our lives. We could choose when to rise and when to slumber. We could choose where to travel and what to purchase, and we could live in homes not tethered to families watching us, judging us…or knowing who we had in our beds.”

Max took a long, slow breath, and then he took another. “By that time, it was well known that the continent to the south held treasures unimaginable. Stories of jewels practically lying on the ground, tales of caves veined with gold, and spices…spices that were worth more than their weight in gold. It seemed the perfect answer to our situation, for it would provide us with not only wealth beyond our imagination, but an adventure, an adventure to end all adventures…and it was.

“It took nearly a year of planning, a year to siphon as much as we could from our stipends to pay for the voyage, and late in the summer of 1515, we left letters for our families and then rode off into the night. Oh, Christ, we were so much younger than our years, but with our chests puffed with all the arrogance and pomposity that comes from wealth, we set out to make a name for ourselves.”

Max looked over at Bennett. “I feel I need some strength to continue.” Max pushed a button on the phone on his desk, and then he pushed it again. “It’ll be but a minute.”

As if on cue, the study door opened, and two of Max’s guardians came inside. The man took off his suit jacket and rolled up the sleeve of his pressed shirt before going to stand next to Max, while the woman, wearing a sleeveless dress, had to make no preparations as she stopped at Bennett’s chair.