Greek's Baby Of Redemption

‘Good.’ Milly walked away from Alex’s bed, gazing out at the sparkling sea. ‘I was hoping you could come visit here at the end of the summer,’ she said, trying to inject a positive note into her voice, as if what she was suggesting could really happen. ‘For a few weeks at least...’

‘If he lets me,’ Anna said quietly, her voice filled with doubt, and Milly sighed. Carlos Bentano and Milly’s mother had married when she was fourteen and Anna just four. While their parents had been partying up with the last of their money, both penniless, minor aristocrats, Milly had been like a mother to Anna, only to be wrenched away from her four years later, after the inevitable and acrimonious divorce. In the intervening years, her contact with her stepsister had been all too fleeting; she’d seen her once or twice a year, if that, although not for lack of trying.

Carlos was just as likely to turn Milly away at the door of his dilapidated villa on the outskirts of Rome than let her in, and for no reason than it seemed to amuse him to be cruel. Meanwhile he hosted debauched parties, inviting all manner of dissolute reprobates into his home, and paid scant attention to his daughter by an earlier marriage—Anna’s mother had died when she was a baby—and was indifferently negligent of her education. Milly was desperate to get Anna away from him, and five million euros would certainly help...

But she’d said no. She’d turned Alex Santos down, and right now, listening to her sister’s voice wobble as she tried to be brave, Milly could not think why she had been so selfish.

‘Why wouldn’t he let you?’ Milly protested as brightly as she could. ‘It won’t affect him, and he might like having the house to himself for a change.’ But they both knew Carlos didn’t care about that. ‘How are things going, anyway?’ Milly asked. She talked to Anna nearly every day, but, despite these daily conversations and reassurances that she was well, Anna was never able to allay her anxiety, a knot of tension that had lodged itself in her stomach six years ago, when they’d been separated.

‘Okay,’ Anna said on a sigh. ‘He came back from the casino last night in a foul mood.’

‘Oh, Anna...’

‘I stayed out of his way, and he was gone again this morning.’

‘But what do you do?’ Milly protested. She hated the thought of her sister drifting around like a ghost in that crumbling villa all by herself, day after day, but Carlos had already refused to let Anna come to Naxos for the summer.

‘I read. Play music.’ Anna was an accomplished violinist, and Milly loved to hear her play. ‘It’s better when he’s not here. Last week...’ She stopped, and unease ran its chilly finger down Milly’s spine.

‘Last week...?’

‘It doesn’t matter, Milly.’

‘It does. Tell me, Anna, please.’

‘Why?’ Anna’s voice trembled. ‘There’s nothing you can do.’

‘What happened?’ Milly demanded. ‘I need to know.’

‘It’s nothing, really.’ Anna sounded subdued now, which made Milly feel even more alarmed. ‘He had some friends over, and they got drunk. One of them came into my bedroom...’

‘What?’ Horror clogged in her throat and she tasted bile. The thought of some drunken lout in her little sister’s bedroom made her want to run all the way to Rome, as fast as she could. ‘Anna, what happened? Did he...did he try anything?’

‘No, no, he went out again. He apologised, even...’

Milly felt herself breathe a little easier, but she still felt suspicious as well as deeply afraid. She didn’t think Anna was telling her everything, and what if next time the drunken guest wasn’t so accommodating? What if her sister was in more danger than Milly had ever realised or feared? With her honey-blonde hair and big blue eyes, Anna was lovely, and just becoming a woman. She would be irresistible to some of Carlos’ debauched friends.

‘Do you have a lock on your door?’ Milly asked. ‘Because I think you should lock it. Every night.’

‘I’ve put a chair under the knob since then. Really, it’s okay, Milly.’

But it wasn’t at all okay. Milly breathed in deeply, willing herself not to cry. She didn’t want to make Anna feel worse. ‘I’m so sorry this is happening to you, Anna,’ she said softly. ‘This isn’t at all how I hoped your life would be like.’ When she’d been little, Milly had promised to take care of her. Vowed to always protect her. And now she was powerless.

She sent money when she could, and she had a savings account in Anna’s name, but there was so little she could do.

And yet with five million euros you could do so much more. You could bribe Carlos for custody, even...

‘It’s not your fault, Milly,’ Anna said. ‘And actually I was calling for another reason.’ She paused, and Milly steeled herself, hoping there wasn’t more to worry about. ‘A space has opened up at the academy,’ Anna continued hesitantly. ‘I just got the email this morning.’

‘The academy...’ Milly’s mind raced. She knew Anna had been dreaming of going to the prestigious music school in Rome for several years, but there had been no space, and, more importantly, no money. Carlos would never agree to pay for anything, and Milly couldn’t afford the fees, even with her generous salary.

‘That’s wonderful, Anna, but—’

‘I know it’s a lot,’ her stepsister continued in a quiet, intense voice. ‘And you can’t possibly pay it all, but I’ve arranged to give music lessons to some neighbours. It’s not much, but it would help—’

‘Oh, Anna.’ Milly bit her lip. She doubted her sister could make nearly enough teaching violin to make up the difference, but she couldn’t bear to disappoint her and put a stop to her dreams. ‘What does Carlos say?’

‘I haven’t told him, and I don’t plan to. He doesn’t care where I go to school, and he might refuse just because he could. Besides, he doesn’t have the money, and if he did, he certainly wouldn’t spend it on me.’

‘But...’

‘I can forge his signature. I’ve had to before, when he’s forgotten to sign forms and things. I’d leave and return home the same time every day, not that he notices. It could work, Milly. I’m sure of it. It’s just the money...’

‘I’ll see what I can do.’ Tears pricked Milly’s eyes as she thought of her sister desperately trying to make this dream work, and all on her own strength. She was so young, and yet far too old for her years. Milly couldn’t bear to think of the debauched scenes Anna must witness in her father’s home, when Carlos had his horrible friends over. And when she thought of one of those amoral men looking at Anna, coming into her bedroom...

She had to do something.

‘Thank you, Milly,’ Anna said earnestly. ‘I really appreciate it.’

‘I can’t make any promises,’ Milly felt compelled to warn, even though she wanted to promise Anna everything. ‘Send me an email with the details of the fees, okay? And I’ll try to make the numbers work.’ Although she doubted they would...not unless she had five million euros.

‘All right.’ Anna hesitated. ‘The only thing is, the space won’t be open for ever. The principale said I needed to send my deposit by the end of the week.’

‘The end of the week—’ Milly couldn’t keep the words from coming out in a squeak of dismay.

‘I’m sorry. I never dreamt a space would come up in time for me to start...’

‘Send the email,’ Milly repeated firmly. ‘I’ll look into it this afternoon, and if I can swing the fees, I’ll wire the deposit as soon as possible.’ Although it made her stomach sink to think of it. How would she be able to afford such a thing? And yet she knew she wanted to. Desperately.

How desperately?

That little voice continued with its sly whispers after Milly had ended the call. Desperately enough to marry Alex Santos? That would solve all of Anna’s problems. Do you really want to keep her safe?

Milly scrunched her eyes shut, trying to block out that whisper, but it did no good.

Well, do you? the voice mocked. Do you?

* * *

‘There is a woman here to see you, Kyrie Santos.’

Alex frowned as he listened to the disembodied voice of the receptionist on the intercom. ‘A woman? I have no appointments. You know that.’ His voice was sharp with recrimination. All the staff at his headquarters in Athens knew he didn’t take unscheduled appointments. He didn’t want prying eyes, ever. No one saw him while he was here; he had had a private entrance installed with a lift that went directly to his penthouse office. His door was always closed.

‘Yes, I know, sir...’ The woman sounded apologetic as well as uncertain. ‘But this woman insists...’

‘Insists on seeing me?’ Alex repeated in disbelief. Who on earth could it be? It didn’t matter. ‘Then you can simply tell her I am not—’

‘Insists that she is your fiancée,’ the woman corrected in an embarrassed rush. ‘I’m sorry, sir. I didn’t know if...’ She trailed off uncertainly while Alex frowned at his intercom, trying to process what he’d just heard. His fiancée?