She spent the morning sitting on the sofa with the old dog, who panted in a way she hadn’t seen before and was disinclined to move.
At last the vet arrived. He was a youngish man called Silvio, whom Alex liked at once. She explained who she was but had the feeling he already knew. Was there anyone in the whole of Tuscany who didn’t know the situation, she wondered?
‘How long has he been panting like this?’ he asked when he saw Brutus.
‘Since this morning. I thought his arthritis must be hurting since it must be so long since his last injection. But the next one will make it all right, won’t it?’
‘I can take away that pain, but this is something else.’ Silvio felt in Brutus’s throat, and the dog whined softly. ‘There’s a lump there, and at his age it’s probably bad news. Look at how white his snout is. He’s very old. He’s had his life. The kindest thing now is to let him go peacefully.’
‘I can’t authorise you to do that,’ Alex said. ‘He’s Rinaldo’s dog.’
‘Tell him to call me and I’ll come back, preferably today. Rinaldo can’t put the inevitable off any longer. Do you still want me to give him the injection?’
‘Of course,’ she said at once.
When Silvio had gone Alex rubbed the dog’s head, laid trustingly in her lap.
‘How is he ever going to let you go?’ she murmured. ‘You were
Gino returned first. When she told him what had happened he dropped to his knees beside Brutus, patting him and murmuring sympathetically.
Rinaldo arrived a few minutes later and Brutus slid off the sofa and went to meet him. He was moving more easily now, and Alex watched the pleasure come into Rinaldo’s face as he saw the improvement and ran his hands over the rough coat.
‘Thank you,’ he told Alex. ‘He’s still panting a bit though. Did the vet have anything to say about that?’
‘Yes, he thinks it’s something bad,’ Alex said. ‘He wants you to call him and discuss-’ she hesitated ‘-putting him to sleep.’
‘Nonsense,’ Rinaldo said impatiently. ‘A good meal is all he needs.’
‘I fed him this afternoon. He only ate a little and then he brought it up.’
‘He’ll eat what
But Brutus only stared mournfully at the food his master put down for him.
‘Come on,’ Rinaldo urged gently. ‘It’s your favourite.’
The dog looked up at him with eyes that Alex couldn’t bear to see. They were full of understanding, and trust that his master would face the truth and do what must be done.
Rinaldo saw Alex and Gino looking at him.
‘You’d think no dog had ever been off his food before,’ he snapped.
He went into the next room and they heard him on the phone to Silvio. When he came back he said,
‘He’s on his way. I’m going for a walk.’
He didn’t speak to Brutus but he looked at him, and the old dog wandered slowly out after his master, into the twilight.
Gino sighed. ‘He hasn’t seen it yet.’
‘He’s seen it,’ Alex said softly.
Silvio arrived in an hour to find Rinaldo and Brutus sitting under the trees. Gino and Alex went out and arrived as the vet was saying, ‘All I can do is give him some tablets, that would keep him with you for a few more weeks. But they wouldn’t be happy weeks. Not for him.’
Rinaldo shrugged. ‘That settles it. The barn is the best place.’
He began to walk away, Brutus following.
‘Shall we come?’ Gino asked.
‘No need,’ Rinaldo said over his shoulder.
Silvio followed them into the barn and remained for ten minutes before coming out and driving away.
After a moment Rinaldo emerged. His manner was calm and his face betrayed nothing. He shut the barn and walked off under the trees.
Alex spent the rest of that evening alone with Gino, talking in a half-hearted fashion.
Rinaldo returned after an hour, brushed aside their attempts at conversation and went straight to his office, where Teresa brought him coffee.
Gino, who made a well-intentioned visit, returned looking glum.
‘Rinaldo says he has to concentrate on the books. He says there’s work to be done and he can’t waste time on something that’s finished with. When I left he was studying figures.’
‘The ultimate sign of heartlessness, according to him,’ Alex said wryly.
‘Heartless is right,’ Gino snapped.
Rinaldo had not appeared when Alex went to bed. She tried to sleep but couldn’t, and at last she got up and went to stand at the window, where a full moon was turning the land to silver.
Suddenly she grew still. From down below she could see movement, as though someone was hiding just beyond the trees.
Pulling on her dressing gown she left her room and went along the corridor to Rinaldo’s room. But her knock produced no response. After a moment she knocked louder, but still there was no answer.
She stood in the hallway, listening to the quiet of the house about her, unwilling to try again and awake Rinaldo for what might be nothing. She could imagine his caustic remarks.
After a moment she turned away and went down the stairs, into the corridor that led to the back door. She could just make out that that there was still someone beyond the trees. Now she could also hear the sound of rhythmic movement.
She stepped forward as silently as possible, gliding through the trees until she came to a small clearing. Then she stopped. What she saw made her draw a sharp breath and step back quickly.
The man in the clearing would not want anyone to see what he was doing, and especially he would not want to be seen by her.
The spade flashed as the hole grew deeper. Rinaldo stood inside, waist deep. He wore no shirt and his body gleamed with perspiration as it rose and fell. His concentration was fierce and total.
At last he stopped, leaning on the spade, his head bent, his shoulders heaving. Then he straightened up, and reached out to something Alex had not noticed before.
Now she saw that Brutus was lying on the ground. She waited for Rinaldo to toss him into the grave, but instead he drew the cold body toward him and gathered it into his arms. Slowly he began to lower it.
Alex held her breath, awed by his incredible gentleness to an animal who could no longer feel it.
At the last moment he paused and laid his cheek against Brutus’s head. For a long time he was still. Then he moved his head slightly, caressing the fur, and she thought she saw something shining on his cheek. Still he held his friend, as though unable to face the final moment.
At last he dropped to his knees, out of Alex’s sight. He remained there for a long time.
She backed away slowly, knowing that he must not find her here. When she was safely out of the trees she began to run back to the house. As she went, she called herself a fool.
She had never known anything about Rinaldo. Or rather, she had known exactly what he wanted her to know, and no more. Tonight she had witnessed a consuming grief that he would keep hidden from the world, if he could.
Nobody saw her slip into the house, for which she was thankful. She wouldn’t have known what to say to Gino just now.
Once in her room she went to the window and waited. At last, after a long time, he emerged from the trees. She stepped back from the window, lest he see her, but he walked with his head down and his shoulders hunched, not looking about him. As she watched, he crossed the yard and disappeared.
At breakfast next morning Rinaldo looked as though he hadn’t slept. Which was probably true, Alex thought. His
