She looked up to find a man in uniform.
‘Signorina Dennis?’
‘Yes.’
‘Will you come with me, please?’
‘But I’m about to board the plane.’
‘I’m afraid you can’t do so until we have cleared up a small matter.’
His manner was pleasant but firm, and she yielded reluctantly.
‘This way to my office,’ he said.
She followed him, impatient to hear his explanation, but when they reached his office he showed her in and retreated, closing the door, leaving Alysa alone with the man who was waiting there.
Drago didn’t reply immediately, and she had time to study him. Now she wondered how she’d recognised him. If his face had been haggard the day before, it was deathly now. A man who’d seen a ghastly vision might have had his burning eyes. But she refused to feel sympathy. She couldn’t afford it.
‘I’m sorry,’ he said at last. ‘I would much rather not have had to do this, but something has happened. You can’t go back to England until you know everything.’
‘There you go again, telling me what I can and can’t do. Who do you think you are?’
‘I’m the only person in the world who can fill the gaps in your knowledge, just as you did for me-except that there’s much more than either of us dreamed.’
‘I don’t want to know. You must be mad to-Actually getting someone to fetch me from the departure lounge- how did you do that?’
‘Pietro, the young man who brought you here, owes me a favour.’
‘And what about my luggage? It’s on the plane.’
‘It’ll be retrieved.’
‘It must be a very big favour,’ she said bitingly.
‘I wouldn’t have done it if I hadn’t been at my wits’ end. You ignored my messages, and when I went to your hotel this morning they said you’d left early. But I checked your flight and it was two o’clock. I thought I’d find you easily, but I discovered that you’d changed to the earlier flight. I had to do something.’
‘And everyone had to simply step aside,’ she seethed. ‘But not me. I’m going back to get on the plane, and don’t you dare to stop me. Get out of my way!’
Drago had positioned himself between her and the door, and showed no sign of moving.
‘You’re not leaving,’ he said quietly. ‘You’re coming with me.’
‘So now I’m a prisoner?’
‘If you like to put it that way. I’m sorry. I don’t like behaving like this, but I have no choice. Alysa, for pity’s sake, won’t you try to understand?’
‘I understand that everyone has to do what you want because you don’t recognise the word no. Enough! I’m not a pawn for you to move around, and I’m leaving right now.’
‘This is important!’
‘I don’t care what it is. I’m finished. Now, for the last time,
He didn’t budge. If anything he seemed to dig himself in further, and Alysa prepared for battle. If he thought he could make her yield again, he would learn that he was mistaken.
But then something happened that caught her off-balance. Suddenly his shoulders sagged, as if a vital link had snapped inside him. Without further argument he pulled open the door and spoke heavily.
‘Pietro, please escort the
He moved out of Alysa’s path, and she hurried to the door.
‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘I’m sorry to disappoint you, but I really have to go.’
She could have got away then but she made the mistake of turning back and seeing something she would much rather not have seen. Drago looked defeated, as if he’d simply abandoned all hope.
‘Please try to understand,’ she begged.
‘I do understand. You’d better go quickly.’
But instead of leaving she made her next mistake: going to look him in the eye, and saying, ‘I don’t want you to think-Look at me.’ She put a hand on his arm and he raised his head to meet her gaze. His aggression had died, leaving only weariness behind. ‘You’re not being fair,’ she protested desperately. ‘You must realise that I can’t-’
‘I know,’ he agreed. ‘I shouldn’t have done it this way. I was desperate, but you’re right, it’s not really your problem. You’ve done all you could, and I’m grateful.’
‘And now I have to return to whatever I can make of my life, because I can’t-
‘All right? What does that mean?’
‘It means I give in. You’ve won. The new tactic worked. I’ll come with you.’
The joy on his face was a startling revelation. The next moment she was engulfed in a bear hug. Somehow she found herself returning it, even laughing with him, because the violence of his relief was infectious.
‘Just let me breathe,’ she gasped.
He drew back to look at her. ‘Thank you,’ he said fervently.
‘Just don’t ever do this to me again.’
‘When this is over, I swear you’ll never have to see me. Let’s go.’
‘Yes, let’s, before I change my mind. What about my bags? They’ll be on the plane by now.’
‘Pietro will get them off, and he knows where to send them. Come on.’
CHAPTER FIVE
OUTSIDE he showed her to his car-not the one he’d driven before, but far larger and more powerful. He swung confidently out of the airport onto the main road and drove fast for a few miles before swinging off.
‘Where are you going?’ she asked. ‘This isn’t the way to Florence.’
‘We’re not going to Florence, we’re going to another little place I own, in the mountains. We need privacy.’
‘What about Tina?’
‘She and Elena are spending a few days with her aunt and uncle. You saw them at the cemetery.’
‘So if they’re gone why can’t we have privacy in your house in Florence?’
‘Because I have curious employees. I want total isolation, and we’ll only get that in the mountains.’
Total isolation with this man, cut off from help if things went wrong. The thought should have made her nervous, but it didn’t. She’d already been through the worst. Now they were like two comrades facing enemy fire together. To be comrades you only needed trust. And, despite his outrageous behaviour, she did trust him.
The land began to slope gently upwards; the buildings became further apart. Sometimes the road wound its way among tall trees for miles, so that it felt as though they were the only two people in the world. Despite the time of year the weather was bright, and the sun glittered through the branches, dappling the way ahead.
Suddenly there was a gap in the trees, revealing the land sloping away. Alysa watched, fascinated, as they climbed higher and higher, seeming to leave the ground behind, soaring into a different world.
At last the road levelled out and they were driving through a small village. Drago stopped the car.
‘I’m just going to buy a few things,’ he said. ‘Will you come with me, or wait here?’
‘I’ll come with you.’
At any other time she would have found the village fascinating, coming, as it seemed to, from another age. Some streets were cobbled; the buildings were large and decorative, with archways extending out over the pavement. Impossible to imagine a supermarket here. Drago went from shop to shop, buying fresh meat and vegetables with the confidence of an expert. Every shopkeeper knew him.
‘Haven’t seen you here for a while,
