Olive island

by Kay Thorpe

  'Are you just passing through?' she asked, and he laughed.

  'No, Perata is my home, although I spend my days in Kerkyra.' He paused, went on calmly, thought I would see for myself the girl who refuses my brother's invitation. It is not often that such things happen to Nikos.'

  Nicky had stiffened. I should have known, of

  course. There's only one place you could have come

  from. Does your brother know why you've come?'

  `Nikos,' he said, 'knows little of what I do and nothing of why I do it. We are not . . . how do you say it?.. . buddies?'

  Nicky laughed. 'That's more American, but I get the idea. You mean you don't get on very well with him.'

  `Most definitely not.' His tone was emphatic, and he pushed himself away from the tree. 'As brothers we are better cousins !'

  `Are you sure there isn't some Irish in your family tree?' she chuckled, saw him frown and shook her head. 'It would take too long to explain, and I do understand. I'm not exactly enthusiastic about him myself.'

  `That is what I gathered from what he said about you.' He had moved out a little from the shadow now, and Nicky saw that he was younger than she had first thought, perhaps twenty-three or four, and of slim, wiry build. There was, she supposed, a strong family resemblance between the two brothers, but in Dino the inheritance was softer, the cheekbones less proininent, the mouth and jaw not quite so firmly defined . . . and his hair was longer than that of any other Greek man she had seen up to now.

  Taken all round, he was probably one of the handsomest young men she had ever met, and she would not have been human had she been able to ignore the small thrill of gratification in the knowledge that he was also viewing her with appreciative eyes.

  `What did he say about me?' she asked, more to break the momentary silence than through any real need to know — or so she told herself.

  'That you are a young woman who needs a firm hand.' There was a wicked sparkle of laughter in his eyes. 'When Lee came without you this afternoon it was the closest I have ever seen Nikos to disconcertion — if that is the correct word.'

  'It is,' she said. 'It's a perfect word.' That would show him, she thought with some satisfaction.) 'Lee tells me you've only just returned from England,' she went on. 'What do you think of life over there?'

  'It is different,' he returned, sitting down on the

  wall beside her. would like very much to return there one day, perhaps even make my life there.'

  'Oh?' She considered him in some surprise. understood from Lee that you wanted your family to return to the mainland.'

  'It was a notion which met with little response. I did not really expect it.' He shook his head decisively. 'The mainland is not the answer to my problem. Even there I should still be working under Nikos's command. In England I would like to open a restaurant of my own, a place which would 'become as famous as the White Tower on Percy Street. Dino's, I would call it. Simple, you see. Easy to remember. A small place but very special.'

  'Specializing in Greek cuisine?' prompted Nicky, entering into the spirit of the game.

  'Greek and Continental. I would . . .' He broke off, smiled wryly and spread his hands. 'Why do I think of such things? Nikos would never agree.'

  She said carefully, 'Does it have to depend on him?'

  'Of course.' He said in the flat voice of automatic acceptance, 'As head of the family he has complete

  control overall business matters.'

  But he sent you to England to study the restaurant business, so he can't have so much against it.' Unconsciously her voice had risen a little. 'Surely you have e right to some consideration. You're as much an Alexandros as he is !'

  `Are you the owner of this place?' Harvey Tolman, as leaning back in his seat a few feet away watching them. 'The name was mentioned in the brochure.'

  `The name of Alexandros is mentioned in many places,' returned Dino with some pride. He had risen to feet politely. But it is my brother to whom you refer.'

  `Your brother, is it?' The other's eyes went from his e to Nicky's reflectively, then he glanced towards his n companions and raised a brow. 'Would you say the hostess has her priorities right?'

  `Depends what she's after,' returned his wife, winking at Nicky as she pressed the ever-straying blonde air back into place. `What's the brother like?'

  `Older,' replied Nicky steadily. 'You might catch a glimpse of him some time during the fortnight, al

  though he doesn't come to the hotel very often.'

  `Pity.' Margery Tolman sounded regretful. 'He sounds an interesting character. Perhaps you can persuade your friend here to bring him along some Time.

  `Nikos,' said Dino, 'is not to be easily persuaded, but will tell him of your desire to meet him, kyria. I am sure he will be most flattered by your interest.' He looked back at Nicky and smiled. 'It is time for me to

  leave. You will walk with me to the courtyard where I have my car, perhaps?'

  Away from the terrace and the possibility of being overheard, he said frankly, 'Such people I do not like. They were all of them listening to what we had to say to each other.'

  `I don't think they can have heard so much,' she said. `And if they did it's our own fault. We did do rather a lot of talking to say we've only just met.'

  'I did the talking, you the listening.' He paused at the side of a gleaming yellow MG, ran a hand lovingly along the smooth lines of the front wing, said proudly, `Do you like it? I brought it back with me from England. Nikos thinks me a fool to waste such a car on our roads.'

  Nikos, thought Nicky, would think anything foolish which did not fit in with his own ideas.

  'Personally,' she said, `I think it's a beauty.'

  'And it is not alone in that.' He was looking at her now instead of the car, mouth curving, dark eyes admiring. 'I have enjoyed our conversation tonight. We can talk again?'

  'Of course. Any time. I'm almost always here.'

  'Then I shall look forward to our next meeting.' He got into the car and started the engine, grinned at her and raised a hand in a gesture of farewell. Walinichta!

  Walinichta,' she echoed, and watched him out of sight around the corner before turning back towards the terrace with a smile still on her lips. So that was Dino ! How different he had turned out to be from the impressions she had formed. How different from his brother.

  `Having fun?' Lee was standing in the doorway of the hotel, a cigarette in his hand, a rather cynical ex-

  pression on his face. 'That was Dino who just tore round the corner, wasn't it?'

  'Yes.' She moved the few paces to join him. 'He just stopped in to say Hallo. Nice of him, wasn't it?' 'Charming. I'm surprised it's taken him this long to cover your presence. I've been expecting him since

  you got here.'

  Nicky eyed him in silence for a moment before ying, 'I take it you don't exactly approve of Dino. Any particular reason?'

  'No, except that he's a bit of a lightweight characr.'

  'Compared with Nikos, of course.'

  'Compared with Nikos.' He gave her a sharp glance. what kind of sob story has he been pouring out on your shoulder?'

  'What makes you think he's been giving me any kind of story?'

  His lips twisted. 'Because, my sweet love, that happens to be his line. The deprived younger brother — it's always good for a bit of sympathy from those who can only see one side of the story. Odd, but I gave you credit for too much sense to be taken in by a good-looking face and a winning manner. Are you seeing him again?'

  Stung, she said bitingly, 'If I am is it anything to do with you?'

  'Probably not.' He ground the cigarette end beneath his heel, and straightened. 'It seems to be time to say goodnight.'

  'Lee.' She made an impulsive movement towards him. 'That was a rotten thing to say. Don't let's row over Dino. I only met him tonight.'

  'Were we rowing?' he asked, then laughed suddenly and shrugged. 'Yes, I suppose we were. Put it down to jealousy, if you like. I thought I migh
t be the main attraction round here.'

  Back on familiar ground, she smiled back at him. 'Who's saying you're not? Didn't you hear of playing one man off against another?'

  heard of it, but I can't pretend to like it. Come and have some coffee. You've done your duty for one day.'

  It wasn't the first time Nicky had been in Lee's private sitting room, only before it had been during the daylight hours. Now, lamplit and with its windows closed to the night, it looked different. Cosier, more intimate. Coffee was brought in by one of the boys still on duty. Nicky took her cup and sank into the depths of an armchair which looked and felt more British than Greek.

  'It is,' Lee confirmed when she mentioned it. `Nikos provided it when I took over the job here. He's thoughtful that way.'

  'You think rather a lot of him, don't you?' she said, stirring in sugar. wish I could feel the same way.'

  'No, you don't.' He was smiling. 'You enjoy fighting a lone battle against such odds. There's something in a woman which responds to the sheer challenge of the purely masculine male. You want to make him over, soften him up, bring him to heel — call it what you like. In twenty years' time you'll be grousing along with the rest that men aren't men anymore, but you won't be willing to admit that you helped bring them down.'

  'Wow !' she said admiringly. 'You certainly go to town when you get a bee in your bonnet ! Would you

  describe yourself as a purely masculine male?'

  'Masculine, yes. Pure, no. I sometimes feel that the only way to deal with today's particular brand of womanhood is as my forefathers might have done — sling her over a shoulder and carry her off to some private den. Probably, it's what she secretly yearns for.'

  Nicky leaned her head against the padding of the chair and pulled a face at him. 'You know something? The atmosphere here is beginning to rub off on you. You're even starting to see women as the inferior sex again. I think the Lib ought to canvass for a new rule. No men allowed out of the country until the processing is complete !'

  'You know something else? The atmosphere here is beginning to get to you, too. You're fighting hard to hang on to your ideals, but you're losing out fast. You've seen some of the women here, dominated perhaps, yet happy with it, and you're starting to wonder if equality is all it's supposed to be.'

  'It depends on the kind of equality one wants. Formal rights are what we're mainly after. Socially I'm quite content to follow on as before.'

  'In other words, you want your bread buttered on. both sides?'

  'Jammed, too, if you like.'

  Lee was grinning. 'You had me going for a minute or two there, you little devil. It's one great game to you, isn't it?'

  'Not entirely. There are one or two things I feel rather strongly about.'

  'Here, I would have said only one. Nikos didn't appear to place much belief in my excuse for not taking

  you over there this afternoon. He'd told his mother you would be there, and she was looking forward to meeting you.'

  'I wouldn't mind meeting her if I didn't have to go through him to do it. Is he at the villa all the time?'

  `Well, hardly. He spends a great deal of it travelling round his various concerns.'

  `Checking on his minions, I suppose. I'll bet he makes sure he gets double value for every drachma he spends in wages. Heaven help his wife — if he ever finds anyone good enough for him. She'll have to account for every item !'

  `If it's Dino who sparked off that little tirade, I warned you not to take too much notice of what he says. He's got a chip on his shoulder as big as a log. Nikos has done a lot for him — and precious little he's got in return. Even while he was in England he spent more time playing around than studying what he'd been sent there to study.'

  `Perhaps that's the operative word — sent. At twenty-three or so he's entitled to resent having to obey his brother.'

  `It wasn't like that. That year in London was an attempt on Nikos' part to get through to him how much he had his interests at heart. could have done With him here, but he thought a period away from the island might help him to settle down on his return. It didn't, as you've already found out. Dino still resents the fact that he's not head of the family, without even considering the responsibility that goes with the job.' Lee drained his own cup and set it down. 'Incidentally, he's twenty-five, if you're all that interested. Personally, I think you're just seizing on him as a further

  muse to pull Nikos down. He got your back up the

  first day you came here, and you're darned now if you're going to see any good in him at all. Right?'

  `Wrong,' she said emphatically. 'Dino Alexandros would have my sympathies whoever he was. It's the whole situation that's wrong !'

  `It isn't your problem.' He sounded a little concerned. Nicky, don't go getting yourself involved in a family matter like this one — not if you want to keep your job. If there's one thing Nikos wouldn't stand for it's interference from an outsider.'

  `Particularly when it's foreign and female.' She smiled at him blandly. 'Stop worrying, Lee. I'm not going to carry a banner — although it wouldn't look bad, would it? How do you write "Fair Do's For Dino" in Greek?'

  `I hate to think.' He looked at her for a long moment, mouth pulling into a smile despite himself. `What am I going to do with you?'

  `You could try kindness. I'd never bite the hand that fed me.' She held out her cup. 'Is there any more coffee?'

  There was, but she did not have time to drink it. A tap on the door heralded the information that she was wanted on the terrace by a couple of the guests. By the time she had dealt with the query time was getting on, and she became conscious for the first time of her own tiredness. It had been a long day and a full one. A reasonably early night, she decided, would not do any harm.

  Undressing in her own room, she went back over the events of the day, and cautiously congratulated herself on what seemed to be a good enough start with these

  people with whom she would be spending the next fortnight. Coming round to her meeting with Dino, she found herself smiling and hoping that it would not be long before he returned to the Xenia. They had quite a lot in common where some matters were concerned.

  The following few days passed quickly. Inevitably, as the holiday spirit took over, Nicky found her position becoming easier, her presence taken for granted. At mealtimes she no longer ate alone, but could pick and choose from the invitations pressed upon her to join the various groups. Only the Tolmans remained aloof, friendly enough on the surface, yet always suggesting the faint assumption of superiority which kept the others at their distance. Nicky often wondered why such folk should choose to take their vacation in this particular manner at all, when there were other means apparently far more suited to their collective temperament. A smallish hotel, fairly far removed from the trappings of society, could only bring about a certain degree of intimacy amongst its guests.

  Saturday morning brought the first of the organized excursions. With the exception of the Professor and his wife who were taking a day's walk into the neighbouring hills, everyone had elected to go along and see the town by guided tour.

  Traversing the narrow mountain road by Pullman coach was by far even more unnerving than even Spiros's effort, and Nicky spent the greater part of it clenching her teeth against involuntary exclamations of panic as the vehicle swung crazily round the bends under the guiding influence of a driver who was the young taxi-driver's equal in happy unconcern if not in years. As she would be making this. same journey at

  least four or five times a week for the next three months, Nicky was aware that she was going to have to become used to it, but right now, as on the Thursday, she was concerned only with getting this time over and gaining a breathing space for the journey back.

  No one else seemed particularly worried, she had to admit. By the time they stopped on the outskirts of the town to pick up the guide for the proposed tour, several people were singing, and even the Tolmans were showing signs of interest in their surroundings.


  Across the road a ferry from the mainland had just docked, and was releasing its passengers in a continuous stream of colour and sound. Here, by the sea, the breeze was fresh and pleasant, drifting in through the open windows and bringing with it all the scents and sounds of a foreign port. Idly watching the traffic as they set off again, Nicky's attention was caught by a white Citroen which was slowing to allow the coach room to pull out from the kerb edge. With the sun in her eyes it was difficult to be certain, but the driver had a familiar enough look about him to make her keep her eyes on him as he camee up to overtake where the road widened a little further on.

  Yes, she thought, that was Nikos. And he had had a woman with him. A young one, too, from the brief glimpse she had had. Nicky was aware of an odd sensation deep down inside her.

  Five miles out of town, and standing far above it, lay the Achilleon, originally the home of Elizabeth of Austria who had commissioned it to be built in the late 's, later the summer residence of Kaiser Wilhelm II, and now restored and leased out as a place of entertainment embodying a dance hall, restaurant and

  casino. Like a lot of Corfiot architecture, for Nicky its chief charm lay in its total incongruity with its surroundings, an ornate and pretentious legacy of a time when taste ran a poor second to ostentation. Following the guide through the various rooms, Nicky found her attention wandering, and was glad when they had finished the tour of the interior and could emerge once more into the brilliant beauty of the gardens.

  Several parties of varying nationalities were also moving about the grounds, the strident American accent overriding all others. Cameras clicked and whirled busily, Nicky's own amongst them. Stepping back a little from the marble balustrade of an overhanging terrace in order to bring in some foreground interest to the superb view over town and strait, she stumbled over an uneven piece of ground, and would have fallen had someone not caught her swiftly by the arm from behind.