Page 56 of Villa of Secrets

I had to show I could be respectful and act like an adult. ‘Sir, can I have your permission to go back to my sister and my friend? They’ll be worried.’

He nodded, eyes serious but mouth smiling. ‘Remember what I said. You are sworn to secrecy about this place. Come back tomorrow, little one. We’ll talk some more.’ He nodded at Giovanni who was sitting on his haunches by the door, watching.

The shepherd boy jerked his head sideways. One of the bandits untied my hands and feet. I looked at each man in turn, determined to remember their faces in case I met them under different circumstances. I made a swift nod at Capitano Nathanial and then followed Giovanni.

Halfway back, the shepherd boy pulled to a halt and faced me. ‘You were brave. A bit stupid at first, attacking the leader of the Andartes like that, but after the sack business, yes, very brave.’ His eyes narrowed. ‘You’ll have to keep control of your temper, but that aside, I think you’ll make a good rebel.’

His words thrilled me. Proud and honoured, I felt my confidence grow a little. He stepped forward, took me in his arms and kissed me tenderly. His mouth was soft and warm, and his hands pressed in the small of my back. My body melted in his embrace and I wanted the moment to last forever.

We broke apart and continued in silence.

Back at the hut, Irini ran to greet us. ‘Dora! I was worried.’ She eyed Giovanni. ‘You all right? How did it go with the Andartes?’

I told her what had happened. Evangelisa was quarrelsome, and I both despaired at her constant complaining and regretted that I couldn’t make her feel better.

‘I want to go home, Dora! I need a bath and I have to change my clothes.’

‘We can’t go back right now, Evangelisa,’ I said, not wanting to tell her the reason, that we might be captured and deported too. Nathanial might have been exaggerating about the locals behaving like vultures, but still, I had a suspicion there were enemies in the city.

‘Mama and Papa left instructions that we stay up here. I don’t know why, but I’m sure they had good cause. We must trust them and do as we’re told, right?’

Evangelisa stuck her lip out. Her selfishness should irritate me, but it doesn’t. Who could help loving my sister? She is so pretty; and because she’s the baby of the family, she is spoilt by us all. Although Evangelisa is less than two years younger than me, they’re the all-important years that separate child from adult. They also make me responsible for her safety.

‘Tell you what,’ I said. ‘What if Irini and I sneak back to the house and get your things, if you’re not afraid of being on your own for a few hours?’ I was concerned about the diary and letter I had left under Evangelisa’s dresses. Anyone reading the diary would realise Irini and Evangelisa were hiding up on Filerimos Mountain.

‘Why would Mama and Papa go off and leave us like this? They haven’t even said goodbye. It’s as if they sent us here deliberately, to stop us going with them.’

I hadn’t considered that angle before Mama had mentioned it, and I had to give Evangelisa credit for hitting on the truth.

She looked miserable and stared at the floor. ‘Perhaps I upset them? I keep asking myself. I know I’m selfish, but I swear I won’t be, not ever again. I just want them to come back.’ She fisted her eyes. ‘How can I tell them, Dora? Do you think we’ll be able to send them a letter? I promise I’ll try harder in everything I do. I love Mama more than anybody in the world, and I want her to be proud of me, even though I’m not as clever as you.’

My heart went out to her. ‘They do love you, silly!’ I said. ‘Don’t you know you’re their absolute favourite? They didn’t say goodbye because they’re coming back soon. They didn’t want to worry you.’ I sat next to her on the bed. ‘And you’re not alone, are you? You have Irini and me, and we’ll be perfectly fine until they return.’ I put my arms around her, holding her close. ‘Why not write your letter to Mama? She’ll like that. Start tomorrow and then, when we know their address, we can post it.’

She seemed happier with this suggestion. I realised we couldn’t simply return home and collect our belongings. If we went at night and managed to carry our things to Danial’s horse, we could load them on Zeus’s back and lead him up Mount Filerimos.

A sensible plan, I thought. We needed food too. Though times were hard, Mama kept a good store. Even if we only rescued the dried peas and beans harvested from our plot, we’d have enough to keep us for a month.

Chapter 25

Engrossed in the diary, Naomi was fretting about the teenagers when an almighty hammering on the door made her jump. She slammed her hand against her chest as if to stop her heart leaping right out.

‘Who is it?’ she called as she moved to the door. Nobody replied, so she unlatched the top half and pulled it open. Two men in suits, each with a briefcase, stood on her doorstep.

‘We’ve come to speak to Pandora Cohen,’ the taller man said.

‘She’s poorly, recovering from a stroke.’

The younger one dropped his shoulders and sounded sympathetic. ‘Sorry, lady. We’re here about the court case.’

The other stood firm, chin thrust forward, staring eyes.

‘Ah, I see. I’m her granddaughter. Can I help?’

‘May we come in?’ the first one asked.

Naomi nodded and opened the door.

They introduced themselves. Mr Gianakopulos, tall, very overweight, flabby-faced, perhaps in his sixties; the other, Mr Despotakis, half Mr Gianakopulos’ age, neat, clean-shaven and ordinary. Naomi indicated for them to sit at the kitchen table, telling herself she really must try to save the money for a sofa.