"Oh, I'm fine. I knocked over a box of files about our family that was on my desk. But I found my passport in the drawer of my desk.” He handed her the passport and suggested they go back to the kitchen.
They made their way back to the kitchen and she sat back down at the table. Iris typed the passport details into the web page on her phone and checked them in. They had e-boarding passes so didn’t need to print anything out and they were bringing carry-on luggage only, so could just go straight to security when they got to the airport. She gave him back his passport and finished her drink. They talk briefly about their travel plans for the next day before they say their goodbyes.
They met the following morning at the train station. Luca was already there when Iris arrived and he’d already bought the train tickets.
“It’s only fair since you paid for the flights.” He said when she began to protest.
“Thank you, I really appreciate that.”
“You’ve given me a chance to do something I’ve been meaning to do, but kept putting off, for months and months, if not years. So, no, thank you.” They made their way to the platform to wait for the train that was due in about 10 minutes. Iris wished she'd been able to grab a coffee on the way to the station, she’d even had a thermos flask appear in her suitcase this morning so assumed she was going to find coffee. Instead, she ended up giving the container to a homeless man she saw in a doorway across from her hotel. The morning air was cold where the sun hadn’t yet had a chance to rise enough to warm everything up. She immediately felt like he was supposed to receive the flask so she took it straight over to him. He actually spoke fluent English so she quickly explained that there was no coffee in it but at least he’d have a mug to put coffee or soup or whatever in when he could get some. They chatted for a few more minutes and she gave him all her change in coins before she left. He thanked her for the thermos and the coins but most of all the conversation.
The train arrived on time, which was novel to Iris, who was used to British trains, and they found seats easily. They decided on the seats with a table between them as the train was practically empty.
“Only two more modes of transport after this one!” He said.
“Who knows? Maybe we can fit in a taxi and a bike ride while we’re at it today?” He laughed as they got themselves comfortable in their seats for the next few hours. The train pulled away from the station and they were off on the next part of their adventure.
Chapter 23
Once they finally arrived in Igoumenitsa after a train ride, a plane ride, a taxi, a ferry and another taxi, they went straight to the hotel to check in. They dropped their bags in their adjoining rooms, then they headed back down to the lobby to find where they needed to go for the record office.
It wasn’t far according to Google maps, just a few minutes’ walk. They arrived at the record office just as it was closing. The man locking the door was less than impressed to have 2 people questioning him about the office opening hours. He rudely tapped on the sign next to the door after he had finished locking it and they both got the message that the closing time was a firm, fixed time.
“Looks like we’ll be coming back tomorrow at about 9.30am.” Luca said. “There’s a library nearby, maybe we can find something there so this hasn’t been a completely wasted day.”
“What could we find in the library? I thought we needed the shipping records?” Iris asked.
“Maybe some local stories or myths that could help us that far back, anything that might have a reference to search for tomorrow.”
“Do you not have anything in your research?”
“I have a family name and that’s about it, we can try looking for that but I have a feeling it’s going to be fairly common by now.” He said, slightly dismayed.
They headed to the library and used the reference computers to see what they could find. He looked for the name and she looked for anything from the 8th century that might be of use to them.
As he suspected, he found a lot of references to the family name, but it had become such a common name now that there were thousands of results. Luca ordered them by oldest to newest and found only a handful of references to anything older than the 8th century.
Iris, on the other hand, found nothing that could be related. She did, however, find an interesting story on a local family that claimed they were the descendants of Pandora and Epimetheus. She skimmed the newspaper article as she waited for Luca to finish his research. It was an intriguing story but these people were clearly money grabbers, looking for their 15 minutes of fame. She got to the end and went back to the search results to see if there were any other stories worth reading.
The librarian came round to let everyone know it was closing time, so the two of them called it a day and decided to find somewhere for dinner. They packed their things away and headed back out onto the street.
“So, what did you find?” She asked as they walked back to the hotel.
“A lot and not much, in all honesty. The name is widespread now but the earliest references to the name do date back to around 300BC. Just one of two passing references of merchants who helped to build the area up. They were mainly in things like planning applications where old buildings were being torn down to build something new and, naturally for a country like Greece, they had to do an archaeological survey in case there was anything of historical value. I think most of it was deemed to be like another building or not much left to learn, or not a good example of something from the period, so it was deemed ok to be destroyed. But you have the added problem here that the whole town was pretty much destroyed in the second world war and had to be rebuilt from the ground up. Who knows what might have been lost along the way?”
“Oh no, that’s such a shame! You’re right, so much could have been destroyed that we’ll never know about or be able to get back.”
“What about you? What did you find?” Luca asked.
“Not much as well. Probably less than you. I found some entertaining stories but that’s about it. There was one about a family who claims to be the descendants of Pandora but that’s about it really.”
“Of Pandora? Really? Why do they think that?”
“It’s a family legend passed down through the generations apparently. They claim they can prove a direct link from them to Pandora and have it all written down in some huge family tree, going back thousands of years.”
“But what kind of proof do they have?” Luca said, perplexed.
“No idea, the article didn’t say, but they did say that everyone is welcome to come and see for themselves. They’re only charging a few euros per person to see it all.”
“Ah, now it makes more sense. Happy to tell as long as you reward them financially.”
“That’s exactly what I thought! Maybe we are related after all.” Iris stopped suddenly. “Oh, hey, that’s the street they live on. It was mentioned in the article. Want to check it out?” Luca sighed and shook his head.
“It’s getting late, let’s get some dinner, some rest and maybe we’ll check it out tomorrow after we’re done in the record office.”
“Good idea, we’ve only got a few days, no point wasting them on carnival sideshows.”
Chapter 24
The hotel had a decent restaurant so they decided it would be easier to eat there before turning in for the night. They got a table straight away, as it wasn’t very busy on a Wednesday evening. They were served quickly by the bored looking teenage waiter who clearly didn’t want to be there.
After a satisfying meal of moussaka for her and stifado for him, they headed to the hotel bar to grab a quick drink and talk about their plan for the next day.
“We’ll meet at 9am in the lobby and head over to the records office.” Luca said as they finished their drinks. “We’ll be there in plenty of time and have a few hours to find what we’re looking for before they close.”
“We’ve got adjoining rooms, don’t you just want to meet in the corridor?” Iris as
ked, curious as to why he’d suggest the lobby when it seemed unnecessary.
“I was going to go for a run and have breakfast and things first.” Luca stated.
“Oh, yeah ok, see you in the lobby in the morning then.” Iris said. She headed over to the bar to order another drink for a nightcap before going to bed. All the travelling and tracing her family history back so far had her head spinning and she could do with the drink to relax into sleep. She ordered a white Russian and took it back to the now empty table she had shared with Luca. She sipped it slowly, swirling the alcohol and the ice around the glass every so often. A tall, dark and reasonably handsome man approached her table. Without saying a word, he pulled out a chair and sat down opposite her.
“Hi.” He said, before taking a sip of his drink.
“Can I help you?” Iris asked.
“Maybe, that depends on what you think I need help with.” He said with a smile that made Iris feel almost dirty.
“Finding a table that isn’t occupied by the look of it.” She replied dryly.
“I thought you looked a little lonely. Maybe you’d like to chat?” He reached a hand across the table as she quickly moved hers and her drink away.
“I’m flattered, honestly, but not interested. I’m grabbing one quick drink by myself before going to my room. I have a very early start in the morning and I can’t be late under any circumstances.”
“I could always set an alarm for us for the morning.” The way he said it made Iris’ skin crawl.
“I’m good thanks, I know how to set an alarm.” She stood up and drank the last mouthful out of the glass. “Goodnight.” She said abruptly before putting the glass back on the table and walking away, towards the lifts. She quickly glanced back and the man was still sitting at her table. She pushed the button on the wall to call the lift and waited for it to come.
Eventually the lift dinged to show it had arrived at the ground floor. Just before the doors opened, she sensed someone behind her. She glanced quickly over her shoulder again and saw that the table was now empty. She turned to look over the other shoulder and saw that the man from the bar was now stood behind her.
“Are you sure you have to get up early?” He said, stepping a little too close for Iris’ liking.
“Yes, she does.” Said a voice from behind Iris. She turned back around and Luca was standing in the lift. “I’ve been looking for you darling, I didn’t think you would be so long.” He grabbed her hand and gently pulled her into the lift with him. “Let’s go to bed. We’re up late enough as it is.” He said, pushing the button for their floor. The doors closed on the man from the bar, stood there looking at them with a scowl on his face.
“Perfect timing.” Iris said. “He was starting to get a bit too demanding for my liking.”
“That’s not the word I would have used for his behaviour. I saw him watching you as soon as we got into the bar. I didn’t feel right leaving you there with him watching you so I thought I’d better come back and make sure you were ok. Why men think they can do that to women is beyond me. Do they think it’s attractive or something?”
“What? Demanding you do whatever they ask or tell you to because you’re attractive and they feel like they deserve to have a piece?”
“Yes, that.” Luca said sternly, his hands curled up into fists by his sides.
“I have no idea if they think it’s attractive or not but the vast majority of women certainly don’t. Anyway, why were you coming back down to the lobby?” Iris asked, hoping to calm him a little by changing the subject.
“Oh, my key won’t work in the room door anymore. I was going to the reception desk to get a new key. But I’ll wait a little while in case that man is still there.”
“I think we left the adjoining door open earlier. If it’s still open, it’ll save you the hassle.”
“True, I can fix the key when I go for a run in the morning then, it’ll be much quieter anyway. And if not, he should have left the lobby by the time we’ve checked.”
Thankfully the door was open between them so Luca went through to his room and Iris stayed in hers. She wished him a good night and locked the door behind him, before getting herself ready for bed. She sent James a quick text but didn’t get a reply. He must have been sleeping already.
Chapter 25
The next morning they got to the record office a few minutes before it opened, so sat on the kerb outside, sipping the to-go coffees they grabbed at the buffet-style breakfast the hotel had laid out. It was a standard continental style breakfast with a big selection of pastries so Iris grabbed a couple of croissants and some Baklava for her bag. That was one of her favourite parts of buffet-style breakfasts, you could also grab lunch at the same time!
“So why are you suddenly so interested in your family tree?” Luca asked as they wait.
“I told you, I’m putting together a big family tree for my mum.”
“Yes but why now? Why the sudden rush?”
“My mum’s had a rough time lately and I wanted to do something nice for her. She loves history and I thought this would be perfect. And I’m an only child so it would be nice to know that there are other people out there related to me and that when my mum eventually dies, I won’t be completely alone in the world.”
“What about your dad?”
“He died when I was young, car accident. So, it’s just been my mum and me for a few years now.”
“Oh, uh, I’m sorry to hear that.” Luca said, clumsily.
“Honestly, don’t be. It was tough at the time but it’s been so long now that it feels like this is how life has always been. It’s my mum I feel for, she’s been alone for so long and when I moved out, she didn’t really have anyone.”
“How long ago did you move out?”
“About 9 years ago. But I don’t live close by to her either. I’m basically a 2-hour drive away.”
“Really? My mother would have killed me if I’d moved so far away! Why so far?”
“A job. When I finished university, I was offered a graduate position at a very prestigious architect firm to be an assistant urban designer. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity.”
“Do you like the work?” Luca asked, intently.
“I did, I loved it. But after a few years, honestly, the pressure got too much. I was fed up with all the stress, none of the recognition and definitely not enough pay. I was there for the experience so I could move on to something better but it just wasn’t happening. So, I found a job closer to where I was living that paid more and was less stress.”
“Still an urban designer? I’m assuming they’re the people who draw the ‘artists impression’ of what new buildings will look like?”
“Yes, something like that, but no, I moved into product design instead. It’s a lot more fun for me to be honest. And it’s a lot more varied. It’s not just buildings with a few trees thrown in for good measure and a person here and there.”
“And what about relationships? Do you have someone in your life?”
“There’s no-one of significance right now but I met someone recently. We’re going on a date when I get back home. I’m hoping that turns into something. What about you? Do your parents still live in Bracciano? Are you married? I’m assuming not if you agreed to go to Greece with me after a conversation over lunch! Unless your spouse is very understanding and trusting!” Iris said, with a small laugh.
“You would be right about that! I’m not married, a perpetual bachelor, unfortunately. And my parents have both passed. They were older when I was born, so I didn’t expect them to live forever. And they would have been very old grandparents if I’d ever had children.”
“Not something you wanted?” Iris asked.
“Children?” Iris nodded.
“I think it’s different for men and women. I’m technically able to have children much later in life so I don’t know, I guess I still have time. I also haven’t found someone who I’d want to have children with. One of the upsides of both
your parents dying when you’re young is that you inherit everything right at the time all your peers are struggling most financially. They’re trying to buy tiny one-bedroom houses and you’re moving back into your five-bedroom, three-storey childhood home. Never mind your parents are dead, at least you’re not struggling for money much anymore. Which, unfortunately, attracts a certain kind of friend and girlfriend, the majority of the time.”
“So, gold diggers?” Luca laughed at Iris’ suggestion.
“Yes, you could say that. There have been some over the last few years that weren’t gold diggers but we just weren’t right for each other or it just didn’t work out. But…” He sighed. “I remain hopeful that one day I’ll meet the right person and it won’t be too late for children. Otherwise, it’s up to you to carry on the family tree!”
“I suppose it is!” She smiled at him and he gently nudged her with his elbow. “What about the woman in the café? It looked like there was something between you the other day.”
“Uh, Giovanna and I, we…. I didn’t feel we were a good fit. She disagreed.” He said, taking a sip of coffee.
“Oh, how come? If you don’t mind me asking?”
The Bedside Cabinet: The Cabinet Mystery Book 1 Page 10