be.’
‘Then take someone else in case he puts up a fight.’
‘Please,
‘That’s right, don’t insult him,’ Sam echoed.
Having reached the car, Vittorio opened the back door, propelled Gavin inside and locked him in. Angel watched, appalled and fascinated, as Gavin hammered fruitlessly on the windows and shouted abuse that nobody could hear.
‘Like a spider trapped in a bottle,’ Vittorio observed dispassionately. ‘And he isn’t unlike a fat, bloated spider.’
Frank and Roy had hastened upstairs to Gavin’s room and now emerged with his luggage, which they put in the trunk. As the car vanished they all waved at Gavin staring out of the rear window, still evidently wondering what was happening to him.
‘What did he think he was doing?’ Roy demanded.
‘He thought it would be nice to come here and take over,’ Angel said. ‘And he thought I’d be stupid enough to fall for his line. That’s the bit I can’t forgive.’
‘Well, Vittorio took care of him,’ Sam rejoiced. ‘I knew we could rely on him.’ He was almost dancing with joy.
When Vittorio returned several hours later, Sam was the first to greet him.
‘He won’t come back, will he?’ he asked anxiously.
Grinning, Vittorio tapped the side of his nose, but did not speak.
‘That’s right,’ Sam agreed, nodding wisely. ‘Don’t tell us where you buried him.’
‘Actually I just put him on a bus to Naples,’ Vittorio said. ‘Sorry to disappoint you.’
‘I suppose it’ll do for now.’
‘Will you two listen to yourselves?’ Angel demanded. ‘Actually, I could have coped with him.’
Vittorio and Sam looked at her, then at each other. They shook their heads.
After that Sam was quiet for a few days. Sometimes he seemed to be sunk so deep in thought that Angel had to speak to him several times before he knew she was there, but this was different from his usual vagueness. Now she had a feeling that there was a purpose to his reveries, but when she tried to get him to open up he smiled brightly and told her not to worry her head about a thing, just as though she was a child again.
One morning he gave everyone the slip and went for a solitary walk in the garden. For a while he strolled apparently aimlessly, but when he saw Vittorio hard at work, pruning an apple tree, a sense of purpose seemed to envelope him, and he stepped out smartly, waving his stick and calling out.
Vittorio greeted him with a cheerful grin. ‘You managed to escape, then?’
‘Of course I did. That granddaughter of mine is a wonderful girl, but she does fuss so.’
‘That’s women for you,’ Vittorio agreed wisely.
‘The thing is that you have to let them think they’re running the show,’ Sam confided. ‘Never let them suspect that you’re really pulling the strings.’
‘What strings have you been pulling now?’
‘I’ve been thinking about that Gavin creature.’
‘A nasty, slimy piece of work,’ Vittorio agreed.
‘But you knew how to deal with him. You’re a man who can be relied on, and I’ve been thinking…’ His voice trailed off and his eyes suddenly became unfocussed.
‘Sam!’ Vittorio said urgently.
‘Ah, yes, where was I?’
‘Thinking.’
‘Ah, yes. I do a lot of that. People think I can’t think, but I can. I’ve been writing my will. It’s quite a document.’
‘I’ll bet it is.’
Sam fumbled in his pocket and brought out a sealed envelope, which he held out.
‘Is this it?’ Vittorio asked, taking the envelope. ‘You want me to look after it for you?’
‘That’s right. Because you’re my heir.’
‘Oh, no-’ Vittorio tried to hand it back but Sam became agitated.
‘You must keep it because-because I’ve left you my most precious possession.’
‘But surely that should go to Angel? She’s the person you love.’
‘You don’t understand-my most precious possession-you must-’ Sam sat down suddenly, gasping.
‘Don’t get yourself upset,’ Vittorio said worriedly.
‘You must take it-otherwise I can’t feel safe-’
‘All right.’ He shoved the letter into his back pocket and looked anxiously into the old man’s face. ‘Are you feeling bad?’
‘Just a bit-short of breath,’ Sam gasped. ‘I’ll be all right in a minute.’
‘I don’t think so,’ Vittorio said anxiously. ‘Let’s get home quickly.’
He pulled Sam’s arm about his neck and raised him off the ground as easily as though he weighed nothing. Carrying him thus, he hurried to the house, calling Angel’s name.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
IT WAS quiet in the hospital corridor. Vittorio pushed the door open slowly and looked into the room where Sam lay connected to machines. Beside him sat Angel, her whole attention fixed on the old man, so that she wasn’t aware of Vittorio until his hand dropped lightly on her shoulder.
‘Any change?’ he asked.
‘No,’ she said in a despairing voice. ‘He just lies there without moving. If only he could open his eyes and see me.’
‘He had a massive heart attack,’ Vittorio reminded her. ‘He nearly died there and then, but he’s still alive, and that’s a good sign.’
It was thirty-six hours since Sam had been rushed into the hospital after his collapse. At first it had seemed as though nothing could save him, but the doctors and nurses had fought hard, and had finally made his condition stable. For the moment that was as much as could be hoped.
Since then Angel had stayed there, refusing to leave Sam’s side, except when asked to move so that he could receive attention. Then she would flatten herself against the wall, almost invisible but never taking her eyes off him, until she could move back.
‘Have you had any sleep?’ Vittorio asked now.
‘How can I sleep? I daren’t. That might be the moment when…’ She shuddered. ‘When he opens his eyes,’ she finished firmly.
‘What about Roy and Frank? Can’t they relieve you?’
‘I’ve sent them away. They’ve hardly had any time off since they arrived, and Sam won’t need them while he’s here. So I said they should take a few days’ holiday.’
Vittorio sat down on the other side of the bed from where he could partly see Angel’s face. In such a brief time she had become thinner, and drawn. If she’d looked at him he would have reached out and taken her hand, but she seemed barely aware of him, and he wondered if he himself was to blame. If there was a distance between them now, who but himself had set it there?
‘Berta packed a bag of overnight things for you,’ he said. ‘I left it there by your foot.’
She gave him a brief smile. ‘Thank you.’
Night was falling. A nurse entered, checked the machines, spoke a quiet word to Angel, and departed. They sat in silence for some time until something about the angle of her head made him lean closer, and discover that she was asleep.
He immediately fixed his attention on Sam, silently taking over her vigil, not moving until two hours had passed
