You don't believe that.' I passed no judgement on his belief in his daughter. Other people would give us the unbiased view of Caesia.

This is a very hard question,' Helena enquired gently,. but could you deduce anything from your daughter's body.

No.'

We waited. The father remained silent.

She had been exposed on a hillside.' I kept it neutral.. There was no sign of how she died?'

Caesius forced himself to relive his grim discovery.. She had been there a year when I found her. I made myself look for signs of a struggle. I wanted to know what had happened to her, remember. But all I found were bones, some scattered by animals. If she had been harmed, I could no longer tell how. That was the problem,' he raged.. That was why the authorities were able to maintain that Caesia had died naturally.'

Clothing?' I asked.

It looked as if she was… clothed.' Her father stared at me, seeking reassurance that this was not a sex crime. The second-hand evidence was insufficient to judge.

Helena then asked quietly,. You gave her a funeral?'

The father's voice was clipped.. I want to send her to the gods, but I must find answers first. I gathered her up, intending to hold a ceremony, there in Olympia. Then I decided against it. I had a lead coffin made for her and brought her home.'

Oh!' Helena had not been expecting the reply.. Where is she now?'

She is here,' answered Caesius matter-of-factly. Helena and I glanced involuntarily around the reception room. Caesius did not elucidate; elsewhere in his house there must be the coffin with the three-year-old relics. A macabre chill settled on this previously domestic salon.. She is waiting for a chance to tell somebody something of importance.'