Cecilia's Secret

by Patricia Gallinetti

  They all discussed calling the police, but Liam had been clever, he waited until he was sure it was Cecilia who answered the phone and they only had her word that the incident occurred. Archie thought Cecilia was making too much of Liam’s threats.

  “Cecilia,” Archie said, “I don’t think he will try anything, he can’t get to you here,’’

  She sighed.

  “Yes, maybe you are right;” she replied, “He may grow tired of threatening me.” But she knew Liam, he would not let up. She remained desperately afraid for her unborn child.

  A few nights later, Cecilia woke with a start, a noise had disturbed her and she sat up in bed switching the light on. Liam entered through the patio doors which were open and he was walking towards her, his features twisted in hate as he glared out of his one good eye, he had removed the eye patch and the scar down the side of his face was horrific, his hair had been cut very short and the scar continued into his scalp. As she screamed, he laughed. There was the sound of rapid footsteps outside her bedroom door and he turned to leave.

  “You can’t get away; I will get you one day.” He called softly over his shoulder and ran out to the balcony. Agnes and Archie burst into her room with Helena following.

  “Cecilia.” cried Agnes. “What on earth is wrong, did you have a bad dream?”

  Cecilia was sobbing and couldn’t say anything, eventually she calmed down and told her family that Liam had been in her bedroom and had threatened her again. Archie and Agnes were looking at each other and Cecilia sensed they didn’t believe her, she knew what they were thinking, a pregnant woman always had fantasies, and the phone call from Liam had most probably given her this nightmare. Helena went to look out the doors, but of course she saw nothing. She closed and locked the patio doors firmly, saying she intended to spend the rest of the night in Cecilia’s bed with her.

  There were no more incidents involving Liam and Cecilia thought that she had been thinking too much about him and as a result she had the terrible nightmare and imagined his appearance in her bedroom. Everybody agreed it was perfect weather for a picnic and the women prepared the food while Archie and Trevor packed the cars. The family wondered if Denne’s Point would be a bad idea, the place where Cecilia had almost drowned, they were afraid it would bring back memories of Liam. Cecilia shrugged her shoulders and said she didn’t mind. After they had all eaten their fill and packed everything away, Cecilia, Helena and Trevor decided to go for a walk along the river bank. Agnes called after them.

  “Don’t go down to the river, remember what happened the last time we were here.”

  “Alright Mother,” Helena replied, “We’ll walk along the path through the trees instead.”

  The three of them set off strolling slowly and planning for the baby and the wedding, they were all looking forward to both events. Cecilia had grown fond of Trevor, he was a quiet shy man, unlike Liam in every way and she thought her little sister had chosen wisely. She was daydreaming and fell behind the others, suddenly, her arm was grabbed painfully and she was pulled violently back against a hard body, before she could utter a sound a hand was clapped across her mouth, fingers digging painfully into her cheek. She was terrified, of course she was sure her assailant must be Liam and he was dragging her back to where the trees grew closer together She was struggling to get away. Pulling her along the ground rapidly, walking backwards to get further into the forest out of sight of Helena and Trevor, her attacker tripped on a root and his grip loosened, Cecilia screamed and struggled to stand, using her fists to hit backward at him, she was hoping to hurt him somehow, she heard her sister calling, hysterically.

  “Cecilia, Cecilia, where are you? What’s happened?”

  Liam cursed, turning her head, she saw him running away deeper into the shadows. When Helena and Trevor found her at last, she had collapsed onto the ground and was sobbing quietly and she explained what had transpired, they had to believe her this time, her dress was torn in several places and the marks of his fingers were on her cheeks.

  Helena’s fiancé wanted to look for Liam, but Cecilia held him back, she knew he wasn’t a match for Liam and she was afraid Trevor would get hurt, maybe fatally. Liam had gone insane, she was sure of it, when she had hit him with the bottle that terrible night, she must have caused the damage, she felt guilty and was desperately afraid that it was all her fault.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  Italy - 1939

  W hen they arrived home, Archie called them all into the lounge for a discussion.

  “Did you ever speak to Liam about South Africa?” He asked Cecilia solemnly. “Maybe telling him you were in Johannesburg and where you were living? Can you remember what you did tell him?” Cecilia thought about this for a while, she was very calm considering the circumstances.

  “Yes, I did tell him, but if I flee to South Africa, I know just where to go, he knows Aunt Eloise’s address, but I don’t think I mentioned anybody else. I have two very special friends who will welcome me into their home and I am not even going to tell any of you where I’ll be.” She was thinking of Patrick and his mother. They had moved to a farm a few miles from where Eloise lived and she was sure Liam would never find her there. She had not lost contact with her friends, although she never wrote to Patrick, she was confident that she would be accepted into their home with open arms.

  Ida had been very quiet and when there was a pause she spoke up.

  “Why not go to Italy?” she said quietly in her lovely voice. They all turned to stare at her.

  “Italy.” gasped Cecilia. “I don’t know. I have never been there; I wouldn’t know where to go in a strange foreign country.”

  Ida answered. “I have very good friends in Tuscany, they live in a small village just outside Florence, Liam will never find you there” She said, “Their name is Raimondi. She looked around at all of them and sighed.

  “I have to tell you all something that I have never revealed to anyone else, it’s way too painful and I didn’t want to remember.” She looked down at her hands, her knuckles had turned white. “I was married,” Ida held up her hand to silence Agnes as she was going to interject. “Let me finish Aggie, I have started now I must do this for Cecilia and the baby’s safety,” Ida sat quietly for a moment and then continued. “In 1913, I went with a group of friends to tour Italy; we had a grand time and were carefree, travelling around the country. When we arrived in Florence, I went out one day on my own to explore the city, I could not find my way back to the hotel.” She said, “I couldn’t speak a word of the language and of course in those days not many Italians spoke English.” Ida paused and looked around at everybody. “Fortunately, I had written down the name of the hotel before I went out, eventually I stopped a very good-looking man and showed him the note and discovered he could understand a bit of English,” Ida stopped talking. With a big sigh, she continued. “He showed me back to our hotel,” She paused, remembering. “He had the most fascinating smile.” She was silent once again and they all noticed the pain on her face. “We saw a lot of each other after that and we fell in love, he took me to meet his parents, and of course when my friends returned to Australia, I stayed behind and married Remo.” She smiled, her thoughts going to those halcyon days.

  “His name was Remo Raimondi,” she looked around at all of them. “We were ecstatically happy and his parents and older brother took me to their hearts,” She continued, “I started to learn Italian and settled into life on the farm. Unfortunately, war was declared not long after we were married and Remo and his brother were called up.” Ida was silent then commenced speaking. “I never saw or heard from Remo for months, no news at all. I was frantic. At last one day, I saw a man walking slowly toward the house with crutches, I realized it was Remo,” She said, “He had been injured at the beginning of the war and had lost a leg, he was terribly thin and still very ill.” Her voice thickened. “Remo died in my arms a month later. His brother returned at the end of the war unharmed.” She looked around at them all and
stopped her narrative. Ida spoke again. “Remo’s brother passed away a few years ago, but he has a son, Piero.”

  She studied the dear people who had become her family. Everybody sat very still, the women were all tearful. Cecilia stood up putting her arms around Ida’s shoulders and she kissed her tenderly on the top of her head.

  “Oh Ida, Ida,” she whispered, “You have been such a dear, loyal friend, we have never asked you about your life before we met you and you are still looking after us.”

  Putting her hand up to caress Cecilia’s face Ida said determinedly.

  “I think you should go if everybody agrees, Liam may trace you from Eloise to these friends you plan to stay with and I want to go with you Cecilia,” she stopped talking and then announced, “I haven’t seen the Raimondi’s in years, they are my family and I am going to stay until the baby is born.” She smiled.

  Eventually it was decided. Cecilia and Ida were going to Italy.

  Archie booked the first available passage to Rome. The sooner the better.

  Cecilia hoped Liam would not worry any of her family, he was too much of a coward. It even may have been safe to go back to South Africa, but she thought he just might decide to seek her out there in his mad determination to harm her and the child. She was ready to leave all the people she loved and was again going to the unknown.

  When they knew the date, they were due to arrive in Italy Ida sent Piero a telegram. She had kept in touch all these years. The reply came back. Of course. You are welcome.

  The two women left late at night, Cecilia and Ida said a tearful farewell to Agnes and Helena, Archie drove them to the docks, he told them he would wait until they were safely on the ship. The vessel was to sail the next day. Resourceful, Archie had persuaded the captain to allow the two women on board before any of the other passengers. They settled in their cabin, prepared for the wait. Cecilia was very grateful to Ida for accompanying her on this mad dash. They stayed below, anxiously waiting to leave. At last the ship had cleared the harbour and they both breathed a sigh of relief and went up to the dining room to meet their fellow passengers. Cecilia’s eyes darted around fearfully, she scoffed at herself, Liam wouldn’t be on the ship, he would never find out where she was.

  The next three weeks during the trip were uneventful, Cecilia read a lot, lazing in the sun and gradually she began to relax. Ida was also content to while away the time dozing in a deckchair and they had managed to bring plenty of reading material with them.

  When the ship docked in Rome they found their way to the station and boarded the train to Florence. As the train pulled into Florence station, Ida was watching out the window for Piero, she didn’t know if he would be there, they may have to catch the bus to Tavarnelle val di Pesa, the little village where they were headed. Would she recognize Piero? Although she had never met him, she left Italy when he was just an infant; he had sent her a photo. Yes, there he was, she was sure. He looked a lot like his father, Remo’s older brother. After greeting the two women, Piero loaded the luggage into the rickety old car and they were on their way. Ida said it was a little over eight miles to the house, they would soon be there.

  Ida was excited yet apprehensive, so many memories. Cecilia didn’t know what to expect because as they turned into a very dilapidated road, she noticed it was overgrown with weeds, there were vines spread out in the field on their right. Coming to the gates she looked ahead and saw an old farm house; a woman was standing where the driveway ended in an open space and a little boy of about two years old was standing behind her with his thumb in his mouth.

  As Ida and Cecilia exited the car, the woman came up to Ida and hugged her, talking volubly, she turned to Cecilia and introduced herself as Francesca and the little boy, Giorgio. Francesca took the two women around the house to the back where there was a little apartment. The two women were enchanted with the panoramic view. Francesca told them to freshen up in the tiny bathroom and come next door and up the stairs to the kitchen, where the family usually had their meal. When they were ready Ida and Cecilia walked through the green double doors, looking around curiously they saw a big room, mostly used for storage. Bottles of wine and olive oil stacked on shelves. Francesca obviously did a lot of bottling, there were peaches and apricots in jars. There was a big shelf eye level, overloaded with a variety of vegetables. On one side were bunches of grapes and cherries. Strings of garlic and onions were suspended from the beams above them. Ida walked through to the stairs, Cecilia following, they found the family in the huge kitchen, a fire had been lit and there were two low walls on either side of the fireplace, which were large enough to sit on.

  They had a delicious meal, and Cecilia said she was tired, did they mind if she went for a rest? She went downstairs to the storage room to get to their apartment and as she came out she saw a little path disappearing down a small incline and decided to investigate. As Cecilia walked on she saw a wide river. Two willow trees bending towards the water resembled ballet dancers, a mother duck and her ducklings serenely floating past, butterflies dancing in the wind some alighting on the bull rushes growing near the edge, the dragonflies darting above the water and dipping in to skim the top and veering away. All sounds faded and it became very still, not a rustle, not the sound of a bird not even a breath of wind. She turned around and once again she saw Annie. “Annie.” Cecilia whispered - who was she? The young girl seemed to appear whenever Cecilia needed comforting, Cecilia blinked, there was nothing there. She thought. I have no doubt that one day I will find out who this mysterious girl is and what she wants from me. She looked around as the noises started up again. The Cicadas singing in the bushes, the soft wind moving the leaves gently, a call of a bird in the distance. What a peaceful part of the world and so beautiful. She was thankful she took Ida’s advice and came here. She spoke aloud.

  “Liam will never ever find me.” Nodding her head. Turning she walked back to the house, reaching their little flat; she kicked off her shoes and fell into a deep asleep.

  The weather warmed up and Cecilia and Ida were treated like royalty, Francesca couldn’t do enough for them. Little Giorgio gradually lost his shyness and often visited them in their flat; they spent a lot of time on the banks of the river, having picnics, reading and sewing. Cecilia listened to Ida reminiscing. For years she hadn’t spoken about Remo but now the floodgates had opened. Ida seemed to be pleased that she had finally come back to where she had been happiest and the bittersweet memories of her and Remo.

  The day came when Cecilia felt a slight flutter in her tummy; it was so slight she thought she may be imagining it. As the days passed the flutter turned into a definite movement and she was thrilled. Tears gathered as she thought about Liam, she had loved him, now Liam would most likely never know his child. Finally, Cecilia was counting the days towards the birth of her baby, it would be sometime in August. The midwife had taken up residence and would be on hand immediately the pains started. Cecilia was nervous, no Doctor, no modern equipment, but everybody reassured her, Francesca had given birth to Giorgio here, why shouldn’t she?

  Cecilia’s little boy was born on the fifteenth of August, there were no complications as she had feared, he was perfect, despite Liam’s attacks. When he was put into her arms she loved him with every fibre of her being, he was the most beautiful baby in the world and he was hers. She named him Bernard after her father, whom she had adored.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Italy - 1939

  I da meanwhile had kept the news away from Cecilia, there had been a rumour of war and she realized that if she wanted to get back to Australia she couldn’t delay any longer, she was reluctant to leave Cecilia and the baby, but Francesca and Piero assured Ida, Cecilia and Bernard were safe with them, they were off the beaten track, nobody would come to their little part of the world. Ida regretted she had persuaded Cecilia to come to Italy, but nobody had suspected that war was looming. When eventually she felt she couldn’t delay any longer, Ida told Cecilia, war was declared. Ida had t
o return to Australia before it was too late, Agnes had sent a telegram – the Australian Government announced, no more passenger ships were to leave Australia, however any Australian citizens stranded abroad would be given passage home until mid-September after that date it would be too dangerous to travel. When she heard the news Cecilia cried clinging on to Ida.

  “I wish I could go with you, but Bernard is too small,” She wailed. “We should never have left Australia.”

  Ida looked sadly at Cecilia, cuddling little Bernard. She was silent, cogitating, a frown between her brows. She felt guilty because she had suggested Italy.

  “I wonder if I should stay?” she smiled, she was reluctant to leave anyway “I am sure we will be safe here, in fact I would love to stay, there are so many memories in this place.” She looked out the window and thought she may have had her child here if Remo had survived; suddenly she made up her mind “Yes, I am going to stay on with you, it’s entirely my fault you are here and I must stay and look after you.

  Cecilia heaved a sigh of relief “Oh Ida, thank you so much, I was dreading being without you,” She looked at Ida “Are you sure?” she asked her friend because Ida had said she would stay until the baby was born.

  Ida reassured her. “We didn’t have the luxury of hindsight, who would have thought war was coming?” She went on. “There have been rumours, but we didn’t take them seriously enough, we thought it was all exaggerated.” She puffed out her cheeks. “Isn’t that always the problem?” She smiled patting Cecilia on the arm, not wishing to alarm the young mother. “It will be alright, don’t worry, I’ll send a telegram to Agnes letting her know about Bernard and what I have decided,” she grinned. “I know Agnes will be delighted that she is now a grandmother and very pleased that I will be here to watch out for both of you,” She sighed. “It’s surreal that a world war would break out so soon after the end of the last one.” Ida smiled; glad she had made this decision. “Besides.” she told Cecilia. “Last war Italy was an ally and I am sure it will be the same this time.” Piero drove Ida into Florence and she sent a telegram home with her news.