by Lina Ellina
79 - 1468
The next morning, Marin was shown into Conte Visconti’s office. Under different circumstances, Marin would have admired the opulent decor, but today he didn’t even notice it. This was not a social call.
The conte rose from his seat and welcomed the dapper young man. “My dear Marin, what a lovely surprise!”
“Thank you for seeing me on such short notice, conte.” Marin took the seat he was shown. His eyes rested for a moment on the deceased contessa’s portrait on the wall behind the conte’s desk.
“So what is the nature of the urgent matter you’ve come to see me about?”
The conte wondered if he had been too exuberant with Anna at the ball after all. He could only hope that Marin had not come to ask him to a duel. He knew too well he was no match for young, agile Marin.
“My fiancé to be is the cause of my visit, conte,” Marin started carefully, noticing the bead of sweat that was formed on the conte’s forehead.
“I hope everything’s all right.” The conte narrowed his eyebrows. He moved restlessly in his seat and wished this conversation was over already.
“It depends how you look at it, I suppose. Conte, may I be frank with you? My uncle has always spoken so highly of you, I feel I could confide in you,” Marin said diplomatically.
“By all means, my dear boy.” The conte tried hard to understand where this was leading and brought his handkerchief to his balding forehead.
“I fear that Anna is in love with you! Having seen the two of you alone on the balcony at your ball, I assume the same is true about you, too.” Marin dropped his bomb and watched the conte’s eyebrows rise and his eyes widen.
“Wha… What... what are you saying?” he stuttered.
“I’m saying that I fear I could never make her as happy as she would be by your side,” he said now more subtly. “Therefore, I’m willing to swallow my pride and call off the engagement if I knew your intentions were honorable. I would hate to see her suffer, as I’m sure you would, too.”
Marin folded his hands in tense anticipation. This was definitely the greatest social risk he had ever taken. He looked at the conte and cold sweat went down his spine when he realized that the discussion could end either way, but he kept his wits about him.
The conte examined the young man’s face closely. Was this some kind of a prank, he wondered? The truth was that he was secretly in love with Anna, but such bold directness was unheard of. Yet Marin seemed sincere. He shifted in his seat a few more times, trying to stomach what he had just heard. What would be the young man’s benefit to play a practical joke on him? The conte considered Marin’s risk should he refuse.
“If I have your word as a gentleman, you have mine,” the conte finally said, and the two men shook hands.
80 - 2011
At the reception the next morning, Marina asked the receptionist to notify Mr. Zanetti of her arrival and waited for him in the lobby, mentally preparing for a long, difficult day.
When he joined her a few minutes later, he was wearing an inscrutable expression. “Breakfast?” Lorenzo asked, not failing to notice the black circles around her eyes.
“Uh, no thanks,” she said casually.
“Will you have a coffee, at least, with me?”
Why did he insist, she wondered? She nodded, and they took a seat at a nearby table and ordered two cappuccinos.
Lorenzo fixed his stare on her, trying to read her face and asked, “Why did you just up and leave last night?”
What? “Mr. Zanetti...”
“Lorenzo,” he reminded her without smiling.
“I thought you didn’t need me anymore.”
“Last time I checked we were going to have dinner and celebrate my birthday together.” His eyes were too solemn to look at, and Marina fixed her stare on the floor tile pattern.
“I thought you changed your mind.”
What is this, she wondered? I’m the one who should be upset here, not you, she thought!
He studied her expressive face, and his voice was less grave when he spoke again.
“Help me understand this. When I left you at the bar, you were looking forward to spending the evening with me. Correct?”
She hesitated for a moment, and then she nodded.
“Why?”
Seriously? She cleared her throat. “It’s obvious now that I was wrong, but I just had the impression that uh… we had a moment and uh...” she stopped at a loss for words. The corners of her mouth quirked upward.
“You were not wrong,” he said quietly, and she met his gaze.
What kind of a game is this?
Lorenzo monitored her every reaction. She looked so young, so vulnerable.
“You were happy to spend the evening with me when you thought we had a moment, and you took off when Barbara showed up. Is that right?” he asked quietly.
Marina nodded and felt relieved when he made no attempt to continue this pointless conversation. They finished their coffee in silence and walked to the car where the porter was waiting with Lorenzo’s luggage.
Marina raised her bewildered eyes to him. “You’re cutting your stay short?”
“Just checking out. Will you open the car boot for the porter? He’s waiting.”
Marina unlocked the car trying hard to make sense. They got in, and she turned and locked eyes with him. “Where will you be staying?”
“I’ve already booked a room at the Four Seasons in Lemesos. You won’t have to drive so much in the middle of the night.”
“And Barbara?” She just couldn’t resist the temptation.
He gave her an alluring smile. “Are you jealous?” he teased her and watched her swallow hard with amusement.
“She came all the way here just to see you – to spend your birthday with you.” It still didn’t add up exactly.
Lorenzo glanced out of the window and cleared his throat before turning to face her again. “About my birthday... It’s actually on the twenty-third.”
Marina shook her head in disbelief. “What? I don’t get it. Why would you lie about it?”
“I did not exactly lie.”
He noticed her lifted eyebrow and added. “Okay. It was a white lie. My birthday’s just around the corner. What’s the big difference? Besides, I feared you might not have accepted the dress otherwise, and I just wanted to make you a present. If it’s that bad, I apologize.”
Perplexed, Marina looked at his earnest expression and reminded herself she was no more than his private guide, and she should act like one. “I think it makes more sense to use the daylight for the excursion and leave the check in for later.” She put on her professional shield once more.
“Marina!” He clasped her hand in his. “Barbara and I went out on a date once, and that’s it. Nothing ever happened. Nothing ever will. If I’m checking out today, I’m doing it for you.”
She stared into his Glaucous blue eyes for a fleeting moment before concentrating her gaze on her driving. “You are doing this for me!”
“Like I said before, you were right when you thought we had a moment. And I didn’t want you to think there’s anything going on between Barbara and me.”
Marina remained reticent, contemplating the whole situation. Why should she believe anything he said? Didn’t he lie to her about something as simple as his birthday?
Lorenzo looked at her pensively. She obviously needed more time, and time was a luxury he couldn’t offer.
81 - 1468
After dinner, Marin invited Anna for a breath of fresh air in the garden. He knew there was no way of keeping what he had to tell her a secret from the servants, but he could do without an audience when he broke the news.
“It’s a beautiful night,” he started casually.
“Yes, it is.” Anna tried to match his effort for polite conversation.
He led her to the bench underneath the honeysuckle. “Anna, you are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.” He had rehearsed what he would tell her. He would fla
tter her narcissistic nature and thirst for power and money.
“Thank you, Marin.” Anna wondered what had gotten into him.
“You are educated and refined. You’re every man’s dream.”
Just not mine, he thought and wondered if he was overdoing it with the flattery and decided to turn it down a bit.
“You have every right to happiness. You deserve more than a humble mill supervisor,” he tried to break the news gently.
“What are you saying, Marin?” Anna wasn’t sure she liked where he was going with it.
“I had a conversation with Conte Visconti today.”
Anna raised her bewildered eyes to him, but Marin’s face resembled the sphinx.
“What?”
“Did you know he’s in love with you and that he wants to marry you?” Marin sounded almost accusingly.
“What?” Anna asked again at the loss for a better choice of words.
“I’m saying that I have noticed how happy the two of you looked together at the ball the other day. I would hate to be an obstacle in your way. Clearly, I could never be a match to what the conte has to offer you. So, I’m releasing you of our engagement. He’s waiting for you.”
Anna looked at him in astonishment. Could she be so lucky? “And you?”
“I will drown my pain in wine and work. At least, I will know that two out of the three of us will be happy.”
Marin, you’re a poet! Better still, you’re a genius! Now, you need to find Elena and win her back, he thought. He feared that wouldn’t be as easy as breaking off the engagement.
82 - 2011
They reached the charming Kakopetria village at the confluence of Garillis and Kargotis Rivers, parked the car in the new village, and took to ascending on foot the picturesque lane, as the entire old village is a pedestrian zone. Lorenzo took out his camera and took snapshots of the ladies selling their homemade sweets outside their houses, with the sloped tiled roofs and wooden balconies, at the sound of the two rivers flowing, before they stopped at the water mill for coffee.
Lorenzo glanced around at the beauty of this hidden-from-the-road coffee shop and studied her troubled face. “Marina, are we OK?”
“What?”
“You look... tense. Is it because of Barbara? What more can I do to prove to you that there’s nothing going on between us?”
“You don’t need to prove anything to me.”
“But I want to, and I don’t know what’s going on it that little head of yours. Will you tell me?”
“It’s nothing. I just...” Marina cast a glance around.
“Just what?” he asked patiently.
She finally met his gaze and said, “I just don’t like lies. That’s all.”
He snorted. “Okay. Guilty as charged. Can I, at least, try and make it up to you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ll see. Let’s go back.”
“Okay, but it’s early for the ‘Lemesos by night’ tour you wanted to have.”
“I know. I just want to pass by a food market or a supermarket.”
“A food market?” she echoed his words.
“Yes. Let me redeem myself by cooking for you.” He offered her a mischievous smile.
“What?”
“You heard me. I want to cook for you. Tonight.”
“But where?” Marina asked alarmed.
“Surely there’s a kitchen where you live.”
“I must warn you. I don’t really have a kitchen, just a kitchen niche.”
“Don’t worry. I’m sure it’s perfect.”
He was too charming to resist. “Okay,” she finally consented and heard the violin ringtone of his cell.
“Good afternoon, your Grace... I see... I see. Thank you for your time and effort. I was wondering if it’s possible to make a donation.... Thank you, your Grace. Goodbye.”
“Well?”
“Well, it seems that the church records were destroyed when the Ottoman Turks looted and burnt down Christian churches once they had beaten the Venetians. The Latin Church even ceased to exist for ten years, until 1581, when it was reestablished, so the earliest documents date back to the end of the sixteenth century. The name Zanetti, especially Marin Zanetti, appears most frequently in the Famagusta District, but there is no direct link to the Marin Zanetti who was born in 1447, and it’s impossible to tell with certainty if they are related.”
“Are you disappointed?” she asked sympathetically.
“A bit. It’s been a wild goose chase after all. I mean, I knew my chances to trace him were one in a billion, but I guess deep down I was hopeful. I don’t regret my coming here though.” He stared at her meaningfully.
Marina tilted her head to the side. “There might be one more lead,” she said wearing a pensive face.
“Which is?”
“The Orthodox Church archives. For all we know, he might have married a Cypriot. It was not uncommon in mixed marriages to baptize some children Catholic and some Orthodox. We might be luckier there.”
“How long do you think it will take?”
“I’ve no idea. My guess is that the archives are kept in the Archbishopric in Nicosia, but you have to follow a certain procedure to be allowed access to them, and I’m not so sure there’s enough time to do it now... Perhaps you should initiate the search from Rovigo and plan another trip to Cyprus,” she said with a cheeky smirk.
“Perhaps I should,” he replied through half-closed eyes.
83 - 1468
With the engagement burden lifted off his shoulders, Marin felt like a new man. Not wanting to neglect his duties at the sugar mill or give Jacomo any bargaining chips over him, he discreetly entrusted Nikeforos to seek Elena out for him. Marin was hoping that the small size of the town and his sketches would lead to a quick result, but he was in for a big surprise. Nikeforos searched high and low day in day out, but Elena was nowhere to be found in or around Limassol.
“I’m sorry, Master Marin. Is there any other place she might have gone to?”
Nikeforos hated to let him down, and Marin’s spirits were sinking rapidly.
“Your guess is as good as mine.” Marin sighed.
“I’m just a simple man, Master Marin, but I’d say that if she’s pregnant with another child in her arm, she can’t have gone far.”
Marin shrugged. “Continue the search in the direction of Paphos,” he finally said and took a pouch full of sezins out of a drawer.
“Please, Master Marin. You are insulting me!”
Marin nodded apologetically.
“Don’t worry, Master Marin. I will find her for you if that’s the last thing I do.” He could tell his master had become maniacally obsessed with finding her. He would probably do the same for Persephone, he thought.
Marin got on his horse and rode to their love nest and left her a message on the door. It read, “The engagement is off. I love you. Return to me, please!” It was a desperate move, but he was running out of ideas.
The days went by slowly without a word from Elena and without an encouraging word from Nikeforos. The thought that he drove her away from her own house in her condition was too much to stomach.
“Where are you, Elena? What have I done? What a fool I am! Oh, Nemesis, be merciful!”
84 - 2011
They carried the shopping bags into the kitchen niche, and Marina gave Lorenzo a ten-second tour of the apartment.
“Venice!” he said happily surprised when his eyes rested on the poster on the wall.
Marina shoved her hands in the pockets of her chino pants. “Yeah, ever since I was a kid, I’ve always wanted to go to Venice. I’d like to travel all over the world one day, but Venice... How can I explain this? It’s not exactly a déjà vu. It’s more of a gut feeling that I have to go there one day.”
“When you do, look me up,” he said and handed her his business card. “I’d love to show you around. I can be your private guide for a change.”
An electrifying silence fol
lowed their smiles.
“Okay, chef. How can I help?” Marina broke the silence.
“You’ve done enough. You’ve been driving and explaining all day. Why don’t you have a shower and let me worry about dinner? Off you go now. I don’t want you tired for our ‘Lemesos by night’ tour.” He gestured for her to make him space in the kitchen.
Marina took her old white-washed jeans and a fitted top, her usual home outfit, out of the closet and disappeared into the shower, while Lorenzo made sure his cell was on silent mode. Marina took her clothes off and was about to turn the tap when she stood still straining her ears. She snorted when she heard Lorenzo singing La Donna è Mobile, visualizing him over his pots and pans, keeping the rhythm with his ladle.
85 - 1468
On some pretext, Marin left the mill early right after Nikeforos informed him of Elena’s whereabouts and rode toward Paphos with the wind in his face and his brain overflowing with questions. Would she have him back? Why did she disappear? Was there anyone else? Was that his baby? Was there a future for them? What would he say to his uncle? What options did he have if his uncle opposed their wedding?
He followed Nikeforos’s instructions. He rode along the coast and turned right before the castle, all the way up to the Catacombs. It was the last mud-brick house right before the Catacombs. He dismounted and tied his horse safely. He walked the few steps to her dwelling, with his heart on the verge of bursting in his chest as adrenaline reached a new high. He smoothed his hair, took a deep breath and finally knocked on her door.
Elena opened the door unable to utter a word.
“Ma…in,” Ioanna shouted excitedly as she appeared right behind her mother. She rushed with staggering steps toward him.
Marin went down on his knees, opened his arms for her to hide in, lifted her up, and tossed her in the air. “Look at you! You can walk and talk already!” He gave her a squeezing hug, closed his eyes, and filled her head with little kisses.