“It’s out of control,” Nicholas said. “Even here.”
“I agree completely,” Carl said. “Corporate greed is the devil.”
Everything was served family style, so he had the opportunity to try many things. Of course, Alexandros wouldn’t let anyone order from the menu or pay for the meal. It was sometime after one in the morning when we finally left the restaurant and Kiki and I delivered Carl to his cottage by the sea.
The little house where he would stay was half the size of mine but a lot more contemporary. It was white with navy blue shutters, and flower boxes under the windows were filled with herbs and hardy ferns. There was the requisite courtyard with a round table and four chairs. Lights were strung in the trees and an old olive tree, gnarled with age, stood like a sentry in the far corner where it had probably been for a hundred years or more.
“This is very nice,” Carl said.
“It stays rented in the summer months, but this time of year . . . well, it’s not exactly the busiest time for tourists,” Kiki said. “It’s not the Hotel Palumbo, but I think you’ll like it.”
We went inside.
This one-bedroom house was a candidate for a magazine shoot next to the rustic simplicity of my grandmother’s house. The stone fireplace was the focal point of the living room. All the furniture was low slung and slipcovered in white canvas piped in navy. The coffee table was large, rectangular, and entirely constructed of glass. In its center was a cobalt hand-blown glass vase filled with calla lilies that Kiki and I had bought earlier at the market. Of course, we had stocked the refrigerator for him with the basic things he would need. Instead of a percolator this house had a Nespresso machine. And the appliances here were all stainless steel and almost new. It was very modern. Off the open kitchen/living room/dining area was a small powder room, and a large master bedroom was behind a sliding barn door. The master bath had a view of the ocean. And a shower. He opened the window and the sounds of the waves coming ashore filled the room with just the perfect perfume of salted breeze.
Carl smiled at me and then looked to Kiki.
“Who owns this house?” he asked.
“A French woman who bought it for an investment. She works in the fashion business in Paris and she’s hardly ever here.”
“She certainly has great style,” I said.
“She does,” Carl said. “This house is really great, Kiki. Thank you so much for arranging this for me.”
“You’re very welcome, Carl. So, we will see you in the morning? Why don’t you e-mail Eliza when you get up?”
“I’ll do that.”
We said good night and Kiki drove me back to Yiayia’s house, a few blocks away.
“He’s very nice,” Kiki said.
“Oh, Carl’s a great guy, for sure. I’ve known him forever.”
“What’s the matter with his wife?”
“And my husband too. I think they just have a couple of loose screws in their heads.”
“Well, I think you could spend a million years studying human behavior and it would always be a little irrational. People seem to like to make trouble for themselves. Maybe they just get bored. Who knows?”
“It sure looks like self-destructive behavior to me. But I think, as you said, that it’s more about their fear of getting old and dying.”
“It’s true!”
I said, “I just want to get old, and then I’ll worry about dying!”
We laughed and hugged. I got out of the car.
“See you tomorrow?” I said.
“You know it! The neighborhood is gathering and my mother is at the stove!”
“God, she is so great,” I said and blew her a kiss.
I could not wait to get into my bed. And I was really looking forward to dinner with everyone at my aunt Anna’s house.
The next morning I woke up to sun streaming through all the windows. It was going to be another beautiful day. For some reason, I thought of Clarabeth while I brushed my teeth and dressed. I wondered then for just a few moments what she would do in my situation. Given the many husbands she had had, she would probably say to give Carl a serious once-over. Even considering Clarabeth’s age, she was a very pragmatic woman. She believed that men and women needed partners for life and that it wasn’t healthy for most of humanity to be alone. She would’ve told Adam to take a hike, because although she never came right out and said it, she had not liked what Adam and Eve did one little bit. I was sure of that much. But then, she didn’t have to voice her opinion, because she had Cookie. Cookie was more than happy to mortify Adam and Eve in public and to cast buckets of disparaging words in their direction whenever possible. It had never been in Clarabeth’s nature to dress down sinners. She was definitely a member of the love the sinner, hate the sin camp. And she knew when a thing was too broken to mend. Would she say Adam and I were too broken? No, she would say she couldn’t answer that question.
Then I thought of my mother and Yiayia as I set up the coffeepot and plugged it in. They were from such a different time and place, they’d be horrified. To them, family was everything. They would tell me to do whatever I had to do to work things out with Adam, to go home and be his good wife, to forgive him and to never speak of this unfortunate business again. They didn’t buy into that idea about pursuit of happiness being an individual’s inalienable right. Hell, no. You take the oath? You honor the oath. It was just that simple. They would tell me that I was a smart girl and that I should find a way to work Corfu and whatever else I wanted to do into the equation. But it was my job to hold the family together. Men strayed from time to time. They would probably tell me that it should be expected or that it was just a flaw in the nature of the male of the species. If a man does something stupid, it shouldn’t ruin the whole family. Besides, it ruined holidays and weddings, and, well, it would just put a nasty cramp in everything for the rest of my life if I divorced Adam.
That was all true. And if I was being completely honest with myself, I’d admit that both arguments had merit. The real question was what did I want to happen now? I didn’t know. I really didn’t know.
I straightened up the house and had a little breakfast. I wondered if Carl was awake, so I sent him an e-mail. He responded right away.
I’m drinking coffee, eating cake, and wondering why you don’t spend some of Adam’s money and get yourself an international plan for your phone so I can just call you? Ha ha! Do you want to meet somewhere this morning?
He was right. It was time to upgrade my phone service. I could meet him at one of the cafés on the main drag in Dassia. We could have another cup of coffee and then take a taxi or a bus to the city. I could wait until later to impress him with my Vespa skills. First stop in Corfu Town? The Church of Saint Spyrídon. As a doctor, he would be stunned by the uncorrupted remains of the saint and his traveling shoes. We’d have lunch at the Liston and we would map out a few trips to some other islands. But mostly, I wanted to hear what he was thinking about his marriage. And at some point, I’d find a phone store.
I e-mailed him back with the plan and he responded by saying he would meet me in the village in half an hour.
I found myself smiling for no reason as I brushed my hair. Was it because Carl was here? Yes. Was it because I was attracted to Carl? Absolutely not. Okay, yes, but only in a platonic way. I mean in reality, I wasn’t about to do something really stupid like have an affair with Carl to punish Adam and Eve. That was ludicrous. But his being here would strengthen my resolve and help me make some decisions. For better or worse, we were in this soup together.
I took one of my shopping baskets with me, dropping my phone and wallet inside with a hairbrush and a scarf to cover it all up in case I might be followed by a pickpocket. There was almost no crime in Dassia, but that didn’t mean I shouldn’t be cautious. I’d buy a bottle of water and maybe a newspaper if I could find one in English. I locked the door of the house from the outside and began the short walk.
There were two cafés in the busines
s district. One sold pastries and shots of ouzo with briki, a strong Greek coffee brewed in copper pots and frappé, a cold coffee drink. The other café sold those things as well, but it had a larger menu and was open late into the night. Both had tables outside. I spotted Carl seated inside the second one. It was called Athena, as many business establishments were.
“Good morning!” I said.
He stood and gave me a kiss on my cheek.
“Good morning, gorgeous! Sit, please.” He held my chair for me.
Carl had lovely manners. I had to give him that.
Café Athena was a modest affair. The dozen or so tabletops had brightly colored mosaic designs in their cement tops, which rested on metal bases. The chairs were ladder-backs with thick rush seats. The entire eating area was under a thatched roof over a floor of large square rust-colored tiles. It was casual but very simple and easy to maintain. Most of the tables were filled with young women with little dogs on leashes and men reading the newspapers and discussing the events of the day. And just as in coffee shops all over the world, there was a contingent of an old dudes’ club, a table of eight older men, leaning in to hear each other, nodding and drinking coffee.
“Did you eat enough?” I said. “Want to split an omelet?”
“Sure. What kind?”
“Well, you have to have feta cheese. This is Greece and you get feta with everything. After that? I don’t know. How about spinach?”
“Sounds fine to me,” he said.
We ordered the omelet and two cups of coffee. He pulled out a guidebook and we made a plan for the day’s sightseeing. Our food arrived and we began to eat, finally bringing up the obvious.
“So,” he said, “Cookie sure spilled the beans. Why do you think she did that?”
“Because she’s really as mean as a snake?” I said. “I mean, she had to know that telling the story of their teenage romance would do more harm than good. Not to mention the story of their dinner together. What were we supposed to believe?”
“Exactly. This omelet is pretty good.”
“The food here is pretty good right across the board.”
“And you know what? For years, I thought Cookie was a sweetheart! Of course, once her addictions came to light I knew she was more complicated than I’d originally thought. That’s one problem with being a physician. Too many hours are spent away from home, so you never really know what’s going on.”
“Listen, Carl. I always knew Eve was very fond of Adam. And I knew Adam felt the same way about her. But I didn’t think they’d step out on us. I really didn’t.”
“Cookie said Eve was dressed like a hooker when she saw her at Charleston Place.”
“Now why would she tell you that? She knows she’s just causing more heartache and trouble for all of us.”
“Yeah, it seems pretty mean-spirited. Since then, Eve gave up alcohol.”
“No kidding?”
“Yes. She said she needs clarity, and wine clouds her judgment.”
“Wow,” I said.
After breakfast, we took a taxi for the short ride to Corfu Town. Carl was staring out the window, enjoying the coastal views.
“The water’s beautiful. It might be nice to take a long walk along the shore. How’s the beach in Dassia?” he said.
“Rocky. It’s not the best for walking, but there are plenty of other smooth spots not too far away.” I was quiet then, thinking of how much Adam and I loved to walk the beach hand in hand on the Isle of Palms. “It is beautiful here.”
“I fired that nurse, by the way.”
“Well, that’s good,” I said, wondering if anything had gone on between them.
“I never touched her. She wanted to know why she was being fired and I told her sexual harassment in the workplace. How’s that?”
“She probably denied it,” I said.
“She did. How’d you know that?”
“It’s all about ego, isn’t it?”
“It sure seems like it.”
We got out by the Church of Saint Spyrídon, which was crowded with people walking in every direction. I had told him the whole story of the wandering saint and he was fascinated.
He said, “I’ll be the judge of whether his corpse is corrupted or not.”
He was ahead of me, walking into the church, and I stopped him.
“Let me take your picture, Carl! Stand right there on the steps!”
Then someone stepped up to me and said, “Go get in the picture with him!”
“Oh! Okay! Thanks!”
I quickly trotted myself to where Carl stood, he threw his arm around my shoulder, I put a big smile on my face and the nice stranger clicked away.
“Thanks!” I said as the man handed my phone back to me. Then I turned to Carl and said, “Now let’s go see Saint Spyrídon and ask him to bring Eve and Adam to their senses.”
We stepped inside the apse of the church and Carl looked up.
“Wow,” he said. “How old is this place?”
“Sixteenth century.”
“That’s old,” he said. “It’s a little spooky in here, don’t you think?”
“A little. Okay, want to go see the saint?”
“Let’s do it.”
We stood in line waiting our turn as others went before us. The same Orthodox priest was there chanting for each pilgrim. When it was our turn, I let Carl go first. He took a long look into the lavish silver coffin and seemed transfixed. He said something to the priest and the priest nodded his head. As I had done when I was here, Carl touched his foot. I saw the same look of astonishment come over Carl’s face and I knew he’d had a similar experience to mine. He moved on and I took his place. I repeated my petition to the saint and to the priest and just to be sure I hadn’t imagined it, I touched the saint’s foot again. Once more I felt a rush of something, and then it was over. Carl was waiting for me in the front pew.
He got up and followed me outside.
“How’d you like them apples?” I said. “Cool, right?”
“If I hadn’t seen that guy with my own eyes and experienced it myself, I wouldn’t have believed it.”
“It’s a little like touching the doorknob after you skate across carpet in nylon socks.”
“Yes, it is.”
I stood there and shook my head, thinking, Well, who knows? Maybe the saint had heard our prayers and was going to intervene on our behalf.
“Where should we go next?” Carl said.
“Let’s go to the Antivouniotissa Museum. They have a mind-boggling collection of Byzantine icons and all kinds of other religious treasures.”
“Let’s go! I’ll get us a cab.”
He managed to flag one down and I took his picture again before I got in.
“We have to document your vacation,” I said.
We played the role of tourists all morning, and then one o’clock found us seated in the Liston. We had just ordered lunch when his cell phone rang.
“Ted? What’s going on? Is everything okay?”
“What? Oh, my God. Okay, okay. Don’t worry.” Pause. “No, I’m away. But I’ll be on the next plane.” Pause. “I’ll text you. Thanks.”
His face was drained of all color.
“What’s happened?”
“It’s Adam. He’s in the ICU at the Medical University. It looks like he may be in liver failure.”
“What?” I thought I was going to faint dead on the floor. Liver failure? I started to panic.
“It sounds like hep C. Let’s get a check and get out of here.”
chapter 19
eliza
I made my apologies to Kiki and Aunt Anna and threw my clothes in my suitcase. Carl booked airline reservations, and we were off to the airport one more time.
“I’ll return your Vespa for you,” Kiki said.
“The paperwork’s on the kitchen table,” I said. “Kiki, good grief, how can I thank you for everything you’ve done?”
“I know. I should open an airport limo service.
” She looked at me in the rearview mirror. She was smiling. I knew she was teasing me then. “Maybe I’ll come to Charleston and stay with you for a vacation. I’ve heard it’s beautiful.”
“Yes! Come and stay! I’d love to have you. I have a big old house and lots of empty bedrooms and a place at the beach on the ocean. Bring Aunt Anna too!”
“Well, let’s let you get through this crisis first and then we’ll talk about it. I have a feeling that Adam will be fine. Here, take these.” I took a string of beads from her.
They were amber komboloï, or worry beads—a secular Greek version of the Roman Catholic rosary.
“I sure hope you’re right. Oh, Kiki! They’re beautiful! Thank you!”
“You’re welcome. When I’m worried, I say my prayers and run my fingers over the beads. Somehow it helps.”
“Let’s see,” Carl said, and I handed them to him. He had a look at them and then gave them back to me. “Very nice.”
Carl was very quiet. Too quiet. That meant he was worried and not telling me what I needed to know. I would ask him what he was thinking as soon as we were alone.
At the airport Kiki and I hugged and hugged, and I promised to give her the update on Adam as soon as there was one. Just when I thought I had Greece to myself I got yanked away again. I hated leaving, but there was no alternative. I couldn’t stop thinking about Adam. I was going to be at his side as fast as humanly possible. I e-mailed the boys too. I couldn’t stand it that Adam was suffering, much less entertain the thought of anything worse.
Three hours later we were over the Atlantic Ocean, on a direct flight from Athens to Kennedy Airport in New York. From there we would take a United Airlines flight to Charleston. Ted was going to pick us up at the airport.
“Please tell me everything Ted said again.”
“He said that Adam had been complaining of extreme fatigue and that two nights ago he began vomiting and couldn’t stop. He called Ted, who came and rushed him to the ER. He was admitted right away and given fluids and they ran tests. They check for hep C now all the time.”
Same Beach, Next Year Page 24