Albert Einstein noted that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only changed from one form to another. Kat, a middle-aged marketing executive from Vancouver, ponders the truth behind Einstein’s law as she tours the antiquities of Italy. In Pompeii, volcanic ash remains in the shape of a woman bear witness to her futile escape of the rage of Mount Vesuvius. Kat, a widow with blood on her hands, contemplates the ancient woman’s destiny and her own. To escape the consequences of past choices, Kat abandons her travel companion and sometime accomplice. She links up instead with Franco, a street artist painting in the Roman twilight near Bernini’s sculpture of an elephant. Becoming Franco’s patron is the easy part. Kat learns that Einstein’s theory holds in everyday life. She cannot escape past decisions. Murder undetected remains murder after all.

Jane Callen’s short fiction has appeared in print and online magazines. An Italophile, Italy and her people feature in Jane’s writings. Bernini’s Elephant is her debut novel. A member of The Writers Union of Canada, Federation of BC Writers and Association of Italian Canadian Writers, Jane resides in Vancouver, BC.

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