Sailing to Capri (35 page)

“Now, I understand the pressure you were under and your feelings for this woman, but as I told you when I confronted you, selling out the country that made you who you are was not the act of a gentleman, as many another spy has found to his cost.

“Fortunately, I stopped you before you acted. I offered you a choice. Leave immediately and never darken Lady Liberty’s doors again. Or take the consequences. And we all know from the media coverage of spies caught in the act what that would have meant. Total disgrace and a lifetime in jail. It was only because you had hesitated, not taken the final step and actually committed the crime, that I felt able to offer you a way out. You took it; you left America and disappeared who knew where.

“I saved you, Dopplemann. I gave you a chance, and yet I’m sure that for the rest of your life you’ll curse me for taking away what you were. A scientist. A genius. A man dedicated to his work. And a man with a terrible weakness.

“Did you kill me, Herr Dopplemann? I think it’s possible. That’s up to Montana to say. It would be a pity if you did, though, because I’m about to offer you and your genius a second chance.

“The world needs men like you, men with your vision, with your talents, your incredible far-reaching, ever-searching brain. I’ve discussed you with people I know, and we feel there’s no risk factor in taking you back onboard. You’ll find a job waiting for in the private sector. Your life is being handed back to you on a plate, Dopplemann, while mine, sadly, is over. You might want to think about that.

“I’m also leaving you the sum of one million dollars in trust, with
the income to be paid annually. Along with your salary, this will be sufficient for you to live on. Just keep away from the women. And I’m leaving you the contents of my wine cellar in New York. I think you’ll find enough good Bordeaux there to keep you happy for a long, long time. If you did not murder me, then I wish you luck.”

Everyone looked at Dopplemann as he got to his feet. His head was held high, and for the first time we glimpsed the man he once was.

“There were times over these past few years when I thought it would be a good thing to kill Bob Hardwick,” Dopplemann said in his odd hissing voice, “but I did not do it. I admit the urge for revenge burned in me until I could no longer think. I couldn’t have done the work I used to because my brain stopped like a broken watch on the day Bob confronted me. I blamed him for my downfall when I should have blamed the woman. Bob let me go free and now he’s given me a second chance. I’m humbled by his generosity of spirit. You can be sure I’ll never make the same mistake again.”

“Rosalia.” Montana’s voice was low and gentle as he spoke her name. “This is to you from Roberto.”

“Rosalia, my true love. I’ve wondered countless times how it would have been if we had stayed together. I’ve missed you every day of my life, and no doubt I will continue to do so in death. That’s the strength of my love for you.”

Rosalia’s face softened; she took her daughter’s hand and gripped it tightly. There was an innate dignity about her, in the way she held her head, the long, elegant neck that spoke of past beauty, a gentleness of demeanor and even after more than forty years, a lifetime without him, it was clear she still loved her Roberto.

“I still have the letters I wrote and that you returned, unopened. For the longest time I couldn’t figure out where I’d gone wrong. I loved you, you knew that. I was a hard worker—-you saw that too. I wanted to give you everything in the world: as many fancy jewels as you could wear, a magnificent home or maybe two or even three, whatever you wanted. And of course, children. Rosalia, my love, I wanted so badly to have children with you that all these years I dreamed about what they might look like. A son like me? A daughter like you? Hey, maybe even twins….

“The truth is, though, I wanted something else more. I was ruled by ambition. My mistake was not recognizing how the changes in my life would affect you, not understanding that you were afraid of the kind of life I was carving out for us. I failed to understand that you were unable to cope, that separation was the only answer, that you needed your life to go on the way it always had.

“I failed, but unlike the people gathered here at the Villa Belkiss, I was not given a second chance. Your decision was final and eventually I was forced to accept that. You went on with your life and I with mine, never to meet again. Until now.

“You must know, as you listen to my words, that I am here with you today. Nothing could keep me away. I wanted to give you everything in life, but now I must give it to you after I am dead.”

Rosalia clung to her daughter’s hand. Behind her, Hector leaned forward and put a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Montana read on.

“I am leaving you, Rosalia Alonzo Ybarra Delgado, the sum of one hundred million dollars.”

A bolt of lightning flashed through the room followed by a violent clap of thunder that rattled the villa’s windows. Filomena screamed and everyone jumped and looked nervously around. Montana read on.

“I also leave the sum of ten million dollars to my daughter, Magdalena Alonzo Ybarra Delgado Ruiz.”

There was an astonished murmur and all eyes fastened on Magdalena.

“I didn’t find out about our daughter for many years and now I’m attempting to make up for what she might consider my neglect. Know this, my Magdalena, I would never have neglected you.

“The money is to be held in trust for any grandchildren, both mine and those of Juan Delgado, the man who was lucky enough to marry you, Rosalia, and give you more children. The income will be paid annually and my lawyer, Arnold Levin, and my friend Harry Montana will be the senior trustees. These are men I can trust and I ask you to give them your trust too.

“So, my Rosalia—I feel I may call you ‘mine’ at last—this is finally the end of the road. Unlike the others, you are not under suspicion of murdering me. Your honor is not even in question. There is no room for evil in your lovely soul.

“And now I shall say a brief hello to the daughter I never met, and a sad good-bye to you, my love. Know that, even across this great divide, behind this final curtain, I will always love you.”

Montana put the long sheets of legal paper down on the desk, watching as Hector got up and went and knelt in front of Rosalia. He took her hand and Magdalena’s, peering into their downcast faces, looking like a man praying.

The room was silent. Outside a wind rustled through the trees. “I don’t deserve this gift,” Rosalia said quietly. “I cannot accept it.”

Hector jumped to his feet. “But Rosalia, Bob was so generous and he loved you so much. And besides, it’s not meant only for you, it’s for the children and the grandchildren.”

She shook her head. “I didn’t know I was pregnant when I left Bob,” she said. “My whole life was in disarray. I thought the obvious signs of pregnancy were simply because I wasn’t eating. I was thin, I was worried. I was afraid. When I finally understood, it was already five months.”

“Rosalia,” Montana said gently, “there’s no need to tell us your story. It’s private, personal …”

She shook her head. “No, I need to. I’ve told only three people my secret, but now, because of the inheritance, I have to tell you why I cannot accept.

“I was a waitress in a small workingmen’s café. Juan Delgado was my boss and also the cook. The food we served was the simple inexpensive fare of Andalusia: fish, paella, tapas. Juan was older, a nice man in his forties and never married. I’d been working for him for five months and he’d noticed my growing waistline, though I tried to disguise it behind a large apron. At night after the café closed, it was our custom to eat dinner together. Juan would cook whatever I fancied, and we
would sit and talk, he with a glass of wine, I with only water because of the child.

“One night, it grew late, but I still wanted to talk. I wanted to tell him about Bob and why I’d left him. I cried and Juan listened and then he said to me, ‘And what will you do now about the baby? Will you tell him?’

“I hadn’t thought he knew, but when I looked in his eyes I saw only kindness. I said I would never tell Bob because then I would be forced to go and live a life that would destroy me.

“‘But what about your child?’ he asked. ‘It will never get to see its real father.’ But I told him that was the way it had to be. I would look after my child myself.

“Juan said he’d fallen in love with me and he wanted to marry me and look after me and the baby. I loved him too, in a gentle, undemanding way; we were friends, compatriots, and now we would be parents.

“To protect my name Juan delayed reporting Magdalena’s birth. He registered it as six months later than the actual date. That way, he said, Bob would never suspect he was Magdalena’s father. And yet,” she added, with a half smile, “somehow later Bob seems to have found out. I thought only Juan knew. I’d told Magdalena the truth when she was old enough to understand and because I couldn’t live with the lie. And much later I told Hector, because he’s my good friend and I keep no secrets from him.

“I know now, of course, that I was wrong. I should have told Bob about his child. I cheated him of the pleasure of being with his daughter, but I was so afraid of losing my baby, afraid Bob would take her away from me. A man with all that money
has the power to do anything. It’s for that reason I cannot accept Bob’s gift, though of course his daughter must take what her father has so generously given her.”

Rosalia sat down. Everyone looked at her, but she bent her head and cried softly. For her it was the end of a love affair.

It was my turn. I looked at Montana as he began to read, wondering nervously what secrets Bob might divulge about me.

“My Daisy, I left you for last because you are the closest to me. You’ve put up with me for quite a few years now, longer than any other woman, and that’s living in close proximity with me, sharing my good moods and my bad, though it has to be said that you can act as ornery as any woman I’ve ever known, as you’ll remember from our first ‘date’ at my favorite London restaurant. I still bear the scar from that awful cheap brooch you wore, and that’s why I want you to go out and buy another one. The real thing this time. Go to As prey in London, they’ll have exactly what you want. Charge it to my account—ah well, actually no, charge it to your own account, lass, because you’ll have money in it by then.

“Did you really think I would leave Sneadley Hall to anyone but you? Actually, it’s Rats’s home—-you’ll just be there to look after him.
Ha ha, just joking, of course. No, lass, Sneadley is yours. I know you love it as much as I do, and I like to think of you there on a winter’s night, snug in front of the fire with Rats on your knee, or on a summer afternoon, handing out prizes at the village fete with the band playing ‘Jerusalem’ under the hundred-year-old chestnut tree. It’s all yours, Daisy, just remember to lift a pint to me next time you’re with Reg and Ginny at the Ram’s Head.

“As for the Villa Belkiss. Of course I’ve never seen it, but I pored over those photos many times, until I almost felt I knew it. What I do know is that it’s beautiful. It’s different, unusual, dramatic, and it has a history. Sounds just like you, my love. So it’s yours. I’d like to imagine you there too, under that vine-covered arbor, sipping wine and maybe thinking of me.

“After certain other bequests have been taken care of, I’m leaving you, Daisy Keane, my entire fortune. Why? you might ask. Because I can’t think of anyone who deserves it more. You’ve been my loyal companion through thick and thin. You’ve put up with my moods just as much as I put up with yours. You’ve seen me through sickness—and health. In fact, I don’t know why we’re not bloody well married—except I know you didn’t love me, at least not in that way. You are my best friend, Daisy, and always will be. I love you, and I always will and I’ll look after you—even from across the great divide. So take what I’m offering and make of it what you can.