Anne Hampson Flame of Fate [MB 1069] (pdf)

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heard as she noted again the harshness of the features, the cold
unemotional eyes, the half-twist that touched his mouth as Max said
something he obviously did not like. It was a sneer, a gesture of
disdain, an indication of his superiority; it was arrogance, it was
contempt. Alana, had she wished, could have found several other
names to put upon it.
She leant back in the chair and gazed up into his face, thinking of
the cold stone statues she had seen, statues of the ancient Greeks,
their pagan faces devoid of emotion, their lines and contours
portraying all that was merciless and cruel in man. Max and Conon
were also seated now and the servant was hovering by the door,
having answered the arrogant clapping of Conon's hands which, it
would seem to Alana, was a substitute for the ringing of a bell. The
man, subservience written all over him, waited v uncertainly by the
door, plainly afraid to interrupt the conversation. Conon kept him
there, and continued to talk to Max. Alana found her temper rising.
It had nothing at all to do with her, she knew, and yet Conon's
treatment of the man made her blood boil. What right had he to
assume this manner of a god?
At last he glanced towards the man, and his eyes swept him, just as
if such behaviour were automatic.
'Tell Katina to come here,' he ordered curtly.
'Yes, Mr. Conon, I-'
'And dinner will be served in one hour.'
'Yes, Mr. Conon.' The man was turning, about to leave the room,
when Conon spoke again. 'You saw that the rooms were made ready
for my guests?'
'Yes, Mr. Conon.'
Alana swallowed the little ball of anger that had settled in her throat.
The repeated 'Yes, Mr. Conon,' sickened her beyond all reason. She
had, though, transferred her gaze to Max, questioning him silently.
He shrugged and spread his hands resignedly.
'Are we staying here?' Alana was compelled to say. 'I thought it was
arranged that we should return to town and put up at an hotel.'
The dark eyes of the Greek turned upon her.
'It was so,' he told her in his quiet, faintly accented tones, 'but I
prefer that you be my guests here.' He made a swift appraisal of the
room, a room of luxury and exquisite taste in its furnishings. Alana
was later to learn that Conon had toured the capitals of Europe when
collecting the items which went into the furnishing of his home. The
silver standard lamp with its matching wall lights and centre fitting
had been hand-made in Germany; the carpet was Persian but had
been purchased at Sothebys, as had the fine Chelsea and Bow
groups and several other porcelain figures whose craftsmen had
executed the work over two centuries ago. 'Katina will be here
directly to show you to your room.' His eyes returned to her; she
knew she was colouring, slowly and painfully, knew by the sudden
satisfied narrowing of his eyes, by the twist of those sensuous lips
that was, she suspected, to become familiar to her during her stay
here.
She hoped the business would be conducted in time for her and Max
to catch the Lindos when it sailed at two o'clock on the following
day. One night under Conon's roof would be more than enough for
her, she felt sure.
The room to which she was shown was the last word in comfort and
design, the carpet almost enclosing her feet as she walked upon it,
the furniture of bird's-eye maple, the hand-embroidered drapes to a
high wide window along the outside of which ran a verandah facing
the sea. Alana stepped on to it and stared out over the blue-green
waters of the Aegean. To the north was the island of Leros, while
other tiny islands, some of which were no more than jutting rocks,
lay dotted about like monsters lifting their heads for air. To the right
rose the mountains, majestic even in their nakedness, while the
lower slopes flaunted their garb of trees and bushes and a myriad
exotic flowers. The gardens themselves possessed an idyllic beauty,
set as they were on the high plateau with breathtaking views all
around them. Shady nooks could be seen here and there, enclosed on
three sides by flowering bushes. A lemon orchard filled the area
along the eastern side of the villa while on the other side a sunken
rose-garden housed an ornamental pool and fountain, and several [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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