Page 6 of A Chance in a Million
She checked the caller ID and was surprised to see that it was Fergus. She wasn’t sure whether to be happy to hear from him or not.
‘Hi, Fergus. Long time no speak. How are you?’
‘Hi, Jane. How areyouis more to the point?’ Fergus had been one of her fellow officers in the regiment and was one of the few people who knew the full horror of what had happened that day in Fallujah. Hearing his voice brought a whole host of memories rushing back – most of them unwelcome.
‘I’m doing well, thanks.’ She did her best to sound upbeat. ‘In fact I’ve just started a new job in Venice of all places.’
‘That sounds great. You always had a thing about Italy, didn’t you?’
They chatted for a few minutes and he told her he had just been promoted to major. After she had given him her congratulations he got round to the reason for the call.
‘Ginny and I are getting married on the twenty-fifth of August and we wondered if you’d like to come. Sorry it’s a bit short notice, but I’m being posted in the autumn and we thought we’d better legalise things first.’ He had obviously already considered how she might react at the thought of what would no doubt turn out to be a regimental reunion, with all the memories that could stir up, as he was quick to add. ‘Anyway, just take your time. Why don’t you save the date and think about it? No pressure. Let me have your address and we’ll send you an invitation but, like I say, no pressure.’
‘Thanks, Fergus, that’s very kind. I don’t know, though…’ Her voice tailed off and he jumped in.
‘Like I say, just think about it. We’d both love you to come but we would fully understand if you didn’t feel up for it.’
‘Thanks, Fergus, thanks a lot.’ Automatically, she dictated her new address to him and told him she would definitely think about it. After he had rung off, she stood there for a few moments, staring blindly across the flagstones to the array of pink and white buildings all around the square and felt pretty sure that sending her an invitation was going to be a waste of a postage stamp. Any lengthier reflection was interrupted by the sight of the dog crouching down at her feet in an unmistakable pose. Hastily she stuffed the phone back in her pocket and reached for the poo bags.
Next morning she woke up with a feeling of considerable relief. Despite her new surroundings and even after receiving the call from Fergus, she had slept like a log, untroubled by any recurrence of her bad dreams. She went across to the bedroom window and opened the mesh screen that had done a good job of keeping away unwanted insects. She leant out and surveyed the view. It was another cloudless day and she felt sure the temperature would be high once more. Although the flat was on the top floor right up underneath the roof and she hadn’t turned on the aircon, she hadn’t been too hot in bed. Certainly, in comparison to Iraq, this was bearable heat. She spared a thought for her new canine friend underneath his thick fur coat. It must be hot being a Labrador in Venice in the summer.
After taking a shower she went through to the kitchen to make herself a coffee and heard scratching coming from outside the door. She opened it to find that Dino had come upstairs to greet her. She gave him a big smile and a bread stick. It was rather nice to have company.
At nine o’clock she and the dog descended the stairs and met Maria, who introduced her to her husband.
‘Good morning, Signora Reed. This is Alvise.’
As Jane shook hands with the friendly-looking man, she couldn’t miss the gnarly feel of his hands and the weather-beaten look to his face. Clearly he hadn’t spent his whole life as a live-in servant.
‘Good morning, Alvise, and please would both of you call me Jane. Thank you for carting my suitcase up all those stairs yesterday. Sorry I had to bring so much stuff.’
She had felt obliged to bring winter things in addition to lightweight summer clothes as well as the two smart dresses she owned in case she really did have to represent Miss Leonard at formal events. She hadn’t taken much interest in her appearance for several years now and she felt sure she would have to think about doing a bit of shopping one of these days. No sooner had the thought occurred to her than she realised that this was the first time she had considered clothes shopping for ages and took it as a positive sign. If she had still been having sessions with Oscar, the counsellor the regiment had provided for her, she felt sure he would have approved.
‘Don’t worry about that, Sig— Jane.’ Alvise had a stronger accent than his wife but Jane managed to follow what he was saying pretty well. ‘I spent most of my life working as a stevedore at the docks so a little bag like yours was nothing.’
Leaving Dino with Alvise, Jane and Maria set off on their shopping trip. Even this early in the morning the narrow street was fast filling up with tourists and she was relieved when Maria led her off into a narrow lane away from the crowds. Jane did her best to memorise the route as they snaked through alleys sometimes little wider than her shoulders. After crossing a narrow humpbacked bridge over a far from fragrant-smelling canal, they reached a little square hemmed in by tall buildings which provided welcome shade from the morning sun. Here they found a neon sign above a shop front proudly describing itself as a supermarket despite the width of the shop barely reaching a few metres. Inside, however, it opened up into a complex labyrinth of rooms, many with ornate arched ceilings, all packed with supplies.
From there they carried on via the back lanes as Maria showed her the best shops to buy fish, meat, fruit and vegetables; most of them tucked away well off the tourist trail. On the occasions when the alleys were wide enough for them to walk two abreast, Maria explained the solution the Cooper family – in common with many of the inhabitants of Venice – had come up with so as to avoid the tsunami of tourists who descended on the city every summer.
It was very simple: they moved out.
‘At the end of the month we’ll head for the hills.’ In answer to Jane’s quizzical expression, she elaborated. ‘As well as the palazzo, the family also has a country estate. Signora Flora, the general’s mother, lives up there now.’
‘Really?’ Jane did a bit of quick calculation. If the general had been the same age as Lady Cooper or even a bit older, his mother was probably well into her nineties by now. ‘Does she live there alone?’
‘She has a companion.’ Maria used the expressiondama di compagnia, which sounded like something out ofA Room with a View.
‘And this lady looks after the general’s mother?’
Maria’s face broke into a little smile. ‘I’m not quite sure who looks after who. Signora Flora’s still a very feisty lady, even though she’s just turned ninety-five and her companion is only a year or two younger. But they manage – with a bit of help from Umberto who looks after the estate.’
‘I see. And where’s the country estate?’
‘It’s up in the Colli Euganei.’ Seeing the look on Jane’s face, she supplied some more detail. ‘It’s a hilly area just over an hour or so from here, on the other side of Padua. The temperature’s a lot more manageable up there and there aren’t so many people milling around.’
‘Will that include me?’
‘I’m sure it will. Alvise and I will close up the palazzo and we’ll all go.’
