Those You Trust: compelling women's psychological fiction

by Bernie Steadman

  She made me laugh. ‘Aunt Irini, it’s good to see you. I have no doubt that you would have seen him off, but don’t worry, the police are out looking for him. Would you like some tea?’

  Luckily, she looked at the state I was in, and took herself off home.

  We were still sitting quietly in the last of the afternoon sunshine before the sun disappeared behind the mountain when she returned with an enormous casserole dish from which came a wonderful smell of roast lamb and herbs. ‘It will be fine sitting on the counter until you need it, then in the oven for about forty minutes and it will be good.’ She took it into the kitchen and placed it on top of the stove.

  She was gone for at least ten minutes and finally I craned my neck to see what she was doing in there. ‘Are you okay, Aunt Irini?’ I asked.

  ‘Come and see,’ she said.

  I struggled to my feet and followed her back inside. In my living room she had placed several pieces of her own painted pottery, and three family photographs. One was the photograph she had shared with me already, but the other two were different. An old, old picture of a young couple looking serious on their wedding day. ‘Nyssa and Andreas?’ I asked and she smiled. And another old one which was full of people at a celebration. In it, after careful looking, I found my parents as teenagers, holding hands. ‘Whose birthday was it?’ I asked.

  ‘It was your mother’s sixteenth birthday, and all the family gathered. It was just before your father…’ She looked at my tired eyes and shrugged. ‘I will tell you who everybody is another time. Now, rest.’

  ‘Thank you. Thank you for the photos and for the beautiful ceramics.’

  ‘Pah, somebody has to have them when I’m gone, and my daughter isn’t interested if it doesn’t come from IKEA, and Stavros is a priest, so what can he own? I wanted to give you back your family history.’ She bustled off through the back door.

  ‘She’s a remarkable woman,’ said Alex, locking the back door and placing a shiny new key on the table.

  I hadn’t even noticed the door had been fixed. ‘When did you have that done?’

  ‘I did it myself. Irini visited the ironmonger shop for me this morning and Delphine arrived and looked after you while I collected my tools and some spare wood. I did it while you were asleep. Though how you slept through banging and an electric screwdriver, I don’t know.’ He grinned. ‘Stay where you are, I’ll light the lamps and we can have a fire and later we can eat and watch a film. Will that suit you, madam?’

  It did.

  ‘I’m glad. Then as soon as we sort out your family, and the Leo problem, maybe we can spend more time together without you being in danger of death?’ He whistled as he went off to clean out the grate.

  They are rare, Alex’s type of man. He had an optimism that was hard to quench, and I didn’t want to be the one who quenched it. He actually liked me the way I was. Rare, as I said.

  The sun had disappeared so I followed him inside, glad to be able to lock the door against intruders. I had never felt unsafe until now, but until Leo was behind bars, I didn’t think I could relax. Turned out I was right not to, he hadn’t finished with me yet.

  25

  Early next morning, after a restless night’s sleep, we were both awake and snuggled down under the duvet.

  ‘Do you need to get back to your boat today? Tell me the truth.’

  ‘I do. I have a job that must be finished before I can get her into the water. Will you be okay on your own if I go and do it?’

  ‘Of course, I’ve got the hairdresser coming, don’t forget, and Irini is next door, and Delphine up the road. I’m not going to be lonely.’

  ‘Great, I’ll not be too long, but you keep your phone on all the time, okay?’ He dashed into the shower and whistled a tune through his teeth.

  Where on earth did he get the energy to whistle? I still felt like I had been hit by a bus. I had far deeper bruises than those on my body, and I needed more sleep. Much more sleep. I curled up again, and had almost drifted off, when:

  ‘I am done,’ said Alex, appearing at the foot of the bed fully dressed.

  I clambered out of bed and wrapped my arms around him, burying my head in the middle of his chest. I was able to breathe more easily when I was holding him. I sighed and melted in further, until Alex lifted up my chin so he could see my eyes. ‘Will you be all right? I can cancel if you need me to stay. Just say.’

  ‘I’m okay. I need to ring home and book my flights. Trying to right a family feud is going to be a challenge for all of us but I want to bring them back together, Alex. They have spent the best years of their lives apart on the whim of a cruel father, and they’re getting old.’

  ‘You’re giving them back their family.’

  ‘Well, I’m going to try. I haven’t attempted to contact my uncle Stephanos though. For all that Leo told me, I think he is the one financing Leo to take over Nikos’ empire. More lies, I expect. I’ll talk about that with Nikos and Delphine later.’ I took a step back from him and held both his hands. ‘I’ve worked out what I want to say to Nikos, and if he agrees, then he will have put right the wrongs that he did to my friends, and we can go forward with a better plan than me taking over a business I don’t want. Because I can always say no, can’t I?’

  Alex gave a thoughtful nod. ‘You are going to blackmail him while you have the power?’

  I grinned at him. ‘Exactly!’ It sounded easy when I said it to Alex, but inside I was worrying that I could split my family apart again before we even got to know each other. I had to pray that the tug of family and of blood would be stronger than Nikos’ Cretan pride.

  Alex kissed me and set my toes tingling, and I made him promise to return quickly even though I wasn’t sure I was up to much exercise. Having him hold me while I slept was worth a huge amount. Sex we could catch up on later.

  I was up and ready for the promised hairdresser when she arrived carrying a huge nylon bag. She set up in my kitchen and opened her bag out on the table. I’d never seen so much makeup and hair product outside a beauty department. Her Greek was fast and colloquial, and I found it hard to follow, but eventually she chopped several inches off my hair, layering over the bald bits so that a sort of extended fringe covered the gaps, and did the same layering at the back, although the bump was shrinking already. I liked it, it was a sort of shaggy bob. It suited my hair and my face. She did my eyebrows too, and spent ages showing me how to camouflage the bruising on my neck. I felt quite spoilt and really enjoyed myself. It was good to lavish a bit of attention on simple things that made me feel better.

  Once she had gone, I brought up my saved flight information and booked onto a flight leaving Chania the following day. I didn’t want to be here any longer with Leo on the loose, and I was worried about Dad.

  Mum and I needed a chat, too.

  I played with the phone for a while, working out what I wanted to say. In the end, I told Mum that I knew the full story of Dad’s past, and wanted to come home and talk to her and Dad about it. I didn’t want to give any more details over the phone.

  She was frightened, angry and upset, all at the same time. A feat my mother could achieve without breaking a sweat. ‘Are you trying to kill me? How can I look your father in the eye again? He will think I have betrayed him. You have betrayed him!’

  ‘Mum, it will be all right, I promise. It’s time to bring this to an end, before it’s too late to put it right.’

  ‘It’s buried too deep. Your father cannot forgive his brother. You don’t understand.’ Her voice rose from anxious to shrill.

  ‘I understand fine. Listen,’ I said to incoherent muttering at the end of the line, ‘I’ve met Delphine, Nikos’ wife and I’m helping her with a design project. I’ve also met Nikos and been to their house. They’re our family, Mum.’

  She choked. ‘What? How? How did you even meet him? What have you been doing over there? How? Oh, God in heaven, this has all happened since you left Will. It’s a nightmare. I want my nice daughter back, n
ot this…’

  ‘This what?’ My hackles rose. She always did this to me.

  ‘No, nothing, I meant nothing. It is a shock, that’s all.’

  I took a deep breath and tried for a reasonable tone. ‘Look, let’s not talk on the phone, it’s always difficult, and there is so much I need to tell you. I’ll see you at about one in the morning on Thursday. You don’t need to wait up, I’ve got my key.’ Somewhere. ‘And, Mum? Give my love to Dad. I am looking forward to seeing you, you do know that, don’t you?’

  She was sniffling. ‘Of course, and we love you very much. We will see you soon, darling. Bye.’ I heard her sob as she put the phone down.

  Aarggh. I felt upset too.

  While I was in the getting-things-done mood, I rang Delphine and asked if I could come up and talk to them before flying home to Manchester. She was delighted that I was feeling better, and asked me to come at twelve, when Nikos would be home. That left me a couple of hours to marshal my arguments, and then I would put my plan to Nikos and see what he said. No pressure.

  I walked to the house slowly. The sun on my face was easing my worries, and the paracetamol was easing my soreness.

  Delphine greeted me warmly. ‘You look fantastic,’ she said as she let me into the study. ‘Your hair really suits you and I can hardly see the bruises. Did you enjoy it this morning?’

  ‘I did. Thank you so much, Delphine. I feel much better too after a couple of nights’ sleep.’

  We sat opposite each other on the sofas, as we had done just a few days before, only this time it felt very different. This time I knew what I needed to ask, and I had my uncle at a disadvantage. He needed me more than I needed him. ‘Thank you for agreeing to see me, Uncle, I know you’re busy.’

  ‘Not too busy for you, Anna. What do you need?’ asked Nikos, pouring coffee from a pot.

  I had to pitch it right. ‘Well, it has been forty years since you have seen or spoken to my father, your own brother. I knew nothing of my history, of you, of Delphine, of your business, until a few short weeks ago. The revelations came thick and fast when I finally started to get people to talk to me, and I discovered my father did have a family after all.’ I took a sip of coffee. It was good and strong. I tried to be delicate, but it felt urgent. ‘Isn’t it time, Uncle, that you broke this feud, moved on and welcomed your family back home? Surely the grip of your father has lessened over the years?’

  Nikos sighed and took a gulp of coffee. ‘Straight to the point, I see. Anna, I know what you are saying is true. It has weighed on my mind for years. But…’

  ‘But it was too hard to even try?’

  ‘Not that, but I thought they would both be settled, with families and businesses. What good would it do to bring it all back up again? The pain and the shock of that time. It was too much to bear. I didn’t want to bring it all back again.’

  Delphine interrupted: ‘But when we found out that you had come to the island, and were living in Nyssa’s old house, that was when we realised that we did have a family, after all.’ She squeezed Nikos’ hand. ‘And it was a wonderful thing, was it not, Niko?’

  ‘Was it, Uncle Niko? Wonderful?’ I watched as his eyes looked at the ceiling for help.

  ‘Not at first, no. I was frightened that you had come to disrupt everything. That you would bring trouble to my home.’

  Oh God. ‘And I did bring trouble, but I didn’t mean to. I’m so sorry about Leo.’

  ‘He was the one I should have been frightened of, not you, it is true. But he is also my nephew, just as you are my niece, and now I have signed over everything to you, and he is on the run from the police. You see, you have brought trouble, even if you didn’t mean to.’

  He was right about that. ‘Yes, I want to put that right. That is why I’m here. I’m going back to England tomorrow to see my parents. My father is ill, and I need to see him.’

  ‘Ill? What is the matter with him?’ asked Delphine.

  ‘I’m not sure yet, but if he can travel, my aim is to bring them both back to Crete, at least for a holiday, before it’s too late.’

  Nikos’ eyes filled up. ‘You would do this?’

  ‘I want to. It’s time.’

  He smiled. ‘I can see you have your grandmother’s spirit.’

  ‘That’s not all I want to do. I’m very unsure about Stephanos. From what Leo let slip the other night, he is probably the driving force behind Leo’s attack on you. But he does deserve the chance to explain himself at least. So, I’d like to contact him once I’m back from England.’

  ‘This may…’ he added a phrase in English, ‘… this may “open a can of worms” as you would say.’

  ‘I know. I won’t do anything without your full knowledge. I want to make this old wound better, not inflame it. Leo initially told me his father had refused to allow him to come to Crete, and then cut him off because he came anyway. But then he said the other night, halfway through trying to strangle me, that his father had promised him your business. Lies, lies and yet more lies, I think.’

  ‘Excuse me interrupting again,’ said Delphine, ‘but this is a huge task.’ She laughed gently. ‘You are dealing with enormous Cretan egos, Anna. It will be hard for Nikos to say he is sorry, and harder still for the brothers to accept his apology.’

  ‘I know that, but what if Dad is seriously ill? What if he dies without ever setting foot in his homeland again? How can that be better than at least trying?’

  Nikos inclined his head again. ‘If you wish to do this, I would be forever in your debt.’ He used a starched handkerchief to dab at his eyes.

  ‘I really do want to do it. Thank you.’ I drank more coffee, and sorted my thoughts. ‘There is one more thing I want to ask. It’s to do with what happened in Paleochora.’ I rushed on before he could interrupt. ‘Delphine and I have been helping Mr and Mrs Andreanakis with their new home, but Constantinos Papadikis still has nothing.’

  Delphine sighed. ‘I am looking for a position for him in one of the restaurants here, perhaps.’

  ‘I may have a better idea, if you will hear me out. Will you set him up to run a not-for-profit café again? Like he did before? One where all the profits go into creating new chefs and waiting staff? One that will offer training for unemployed people?’ I gave Nikos a moment to let this sink in. ‘Think of it as a chance for you to give back to your people.’

  He turned to look at Delphine, and I could almost see the cogs shifting as he worked out the best angle for him.

  I added, ‘You could set up the charity in your name. That would be a legacy worth leaving.’

  Delphine laughed. ‘She is quite brilliant, Niko. Of course you should set up a charity to help the unemployed. It will solve the problem of Constantinos. I will run the charity for you, and then we will pass it on to Anna when we are too old to do it anymore.’ Her eyes shone. ‘It is the right thing to do. You said you would help him. This way we all win. Say yes, Niko, say yes.’

  He was silent for a few moments, and I held my breath. This was almost as important to me as getting the brothers back together. In many ways more important, because it would start Nikos on the road to doing good with his money, not just making ever more profit.

  Finally, he sighed. ‘I agree. It will be a fitting tribute to me, and good for the town. Delphie, will you get it started? I would like to meet the young man. He has made a good impression on you, Anna.’

  ‘He has. He is one of the most passionate and compassionate young people I have ever met. He is a good man who will work hard for the town.’

  Nikos looked at me with his hooded black eyes and gave a wry smile. ‘I think I will be apologising to a lot of people now that you are here to change my life.’

  ‘And mine,’ said Delphine, smiling widely. ‘At last I can do something useful. I am excited.’

  Nikos shuffled forward on the sofa, ready to get up. ‘If that is all, I have a meeting with the Chania police. I expect them to tell me what they have been doing to arrest my nephew.’
He patted me on the arm. ‘It is good to have you in the family, Anna. I can see that we will have many interesting debates in the future. Let me know what happens with your father. I am sorry that he is ill.’

  He walked to the window and indicated the old house down the drive. ‘I have lived in this big house for many years. I built it so that I didn’t have to live in the house where I was born any longer. After my mother left us, I couldn’t go back inside, although your grandfather lived there until he died. Perhaps, one day, it may be opened up once more, and your family might live there?’ He crossed to the door, shouted for his driver and waved goodbye.

  Once he had gone, Delphine and I let out sighs of relief.

  ‘I am amazed that you got him to agree to all that,’ she said. ‘You really have brought magic with you.’

  ‘I don’t know about that,’ I said. ‘But I knew that this would be his most vulnerable moment, so I thought I’d exploit it as much as I could.’

  She just gaped at me, and in seconds we were both giggling. ‘Brave girl,’ she said. ‘I usually just shout at him until he gives in.’

  I felt a bit shaky to be honest, and a bit giddy, but I was beginning to understand that Nikos acted mainly out of fear, not cruelty. ‘He thinks that the only way to live is to be tougher, meaner and harder than everybody else, Delphine. I’m hoping that he will come to understand that there are better ways to live.’ I had held onto the final demand, saving it for another day, but I thought it would be useful to give Delphine a clue. ‘This may sound ridiculous, but I want Nikos to give up the whole business in the future, and I’d like your support.’