It included the surviving letter describing a thirteen-year-old girl carrying a lantern between the dock and the upper path.
The boy stood before that display for a long time.
His mother joined him.
She looked toward the old photograph.
Then toward the brass token.
“That's your family history.”
The boy nodded.
He looked at the image of the old harbor.
Then asked quietly.
“Do you think she was scared?”
His mother considered the question.
“The girl with the lantern?”
“Yes.”
She nodded.
“Probably.”
The boy stared toward the photograph.
His mother continued.
“Being brave doesn't mean you weren't afraid.”
He looked up.
She smiled gently.
“Sometimes it means you do what you can even while you're afraid.”
The boy considered that.
Then looked toward his grandfather's notebook.
For a moment, he imagined the old man standing beside him.
Smiling.
Asking another question.
Reminding him to examine things that didn't fit.
The boy swallowed.
Then whispered.
“I think Grandpa would've been happy.”
His mother placed one arm around him.
“I know he would.”
The museum invited the boy to speak at the exhibition's opening ceremony.
At first, he refused.
He didn't like standing in front of large groups.
He worried about forgetting his words.
And he was embarrassed by the idea of adults listening to him talk about archaeology.
His father encouraged him.
“You don't have to give a fancy speech.”
The boy looked uncertain.
“What if I mess up?”
His father smiled.
“Then you'll be like everybody else who has ever given a speech.”
The boy laughed.
His mother helped him prepare a few notes.
They practiced at the kitchen table.
His younger sister sat opposite him pretending to be a very serious audience.
Every time he paused, she raised her hand.
He groaned.
“What now?”
She grinned.
“Are there ghosts in the ship?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“What if—”
“Stop!”
Their mother burst out laughing.
The boy tried again.
By the third evening, he could speak comfortably for several minutes.
He didn't memorize every sentence.
He simply organized the things he wanted to say.
How he found the iron.
Why the old map mattered.
What the historians discovered.
And how his grandfather's notes helped the investigation.
On the day of the opening, he wore his favorite blue plaid shirt and brown canvas overalls.
His mother had offered to buy him a new outfit.
He refused.
He wanted to look like himself.