He has spies everywhere. You'd be spotted.'
'It would be enough. Oh, Felix, please come with me.' She leaned forward and beat her clenched fists on her knees.
'You must come with me!'
'Will you go alone if I don't come with you?' Felix asked, not looking at her.
There was a long pause. She hesitated, then controlling her agitation, she said, 'No, I wouldn't leave you. Of course, I wouldn't, but you will come with me, won't you?'
Felix stood up.
'Well, at least I have the answer to my other question,' he said. 'Now I know just how much you love me.'
'I - hope you do,' Lorelli said.
He came over to her.
'So you didn't see Willie at the Trioni villa?' he said in a quiet, conversational tone.
For a moment, Lorelli didn't get the impact, then she felt as if a splinter of ice had been driven into her heart. She stared at Felix, her face blanching under her make-up, her eyes wide with terror.
'Willie?' she gasped. 'Was he at the villa?'
'Of course,' Felix said. 'You don't imagine I'd let you go there without someone to take care of you in case there was trouble, do you?'
'Oh!'
She jumped to her feet and looked wildly around the room as if looking for a means of escape.
'Willie has just got back,' Felix said, watching her. 'Alsconi is waiting for him. He wants Willie to confirm you had no trouble at the villa.'
Lorelli backed away from his fixed, glaring stare.
'You mad little fool!' he went on, his voice suddenly out of control. 'Do you imagine you can get away with this?' He went to her and crowded her against the wall. 'Do you?' His hands closed over her shoulders, his fingers digging into her flesh. 'Willie heard everything that was said.'
Lorelli's knees buckled. If he hadn't held her, she would have fallen. He pulled her over to the bed and let her drop on it.
He stood over her, his fists clenched.
'You fool! So you planned to sell me out!' he went on furiously. 'Two hundred and fifty grand! Do you think you'd ever have got your hands on the money?'
Lorelli shrank back.
'I had to do it! They'll pay the money. I know they will! It's our only chance to get away. The money is for both of us.'
'Is it?' Felix laughed. 'I gave you the chance to offer it to me and you didn't even mention it. So you wouldn't leave me? That's funny; when all the time you were planning to sneak away and lose yourself in Buenos Aires. Lose yourself?
That's a laugh too. You're crazy to think you could get away. You wouldn't get as far as the boat. You wouldn't even get out of Siena!'
She struggled upright. Her face rigid with terror.
'You won't tell him? You won't give me away?' She scrambled off the bed and down on to her knees, catching hold of his hand. 'You can't tell him, Felix! You said you loved me. You know what he would do to me! Felix! Don't do it!'
Don who was watching was shocked by her abject terror.
Felix jerked his hand out of her grip and moved away from her.
'He asked me if you would like to go to Buenos Aires. He's planning to start operations there. He thinks you should go.'
Lorelli closed her eyes.
'Then he knows?'
'It's possible. It might be a coincidence, but at least it shows how crazy your idea is.'
'We can find another place,' she said feverishly. 'There must be dozens of safe places...'
'Don't kid yourself,' Felix said savagely. 'You're going no place.'
'If you tell him, I'll kill myself. I'll never let Englemann touch me.'
'Very dramatic,' Felix sneered. 'Okay, go ahead and kill yourself. Do you think I care?'
She began to cry, resting her arm on the bed and her head on her arm.
Felix lit a cigarette. His hand was so shaky he had trouble holding the match steady.
'All right, all right, cut it out,' he said. 'I'm not telling him. I must be stark, raving mad to do this for you, but I won't tell him.'
She looked up.
'You mean it?'
