Lucy Gordon - Rinaldo’s Inherited Bride

‘I’m a stranger. Our eyes always see the most clearly.’

‘You are no stranger,’ he said abruptly, and walked away.

Within a couple of days Celia and Franca had brought the heavy work under their expert control, leaving only the cooking to Teresa. This she guarded jealously.

Whether Rinaldo had told her or whether she had guessed the truth Alex couldn’t say. But it was clear that she now regarded Alex as a friend. She would take special care in serving her food, and her eyes would meet hers in a silent question. Was this how she liked it? Yes? Bene!

On those occasions Alex would look up to find Rinaldo regarding her, and remember the odd note in his voice when he said, ‘You are no stranger.’

She rented another car and, with the knowledge that she now had independence of movement, she no longer felt any need to leave the farm.

Evenings that had once been spent going to parties and first nights were now spent contentedly combing grass seeds out of Brutus’s long fur. He came to expect it and would present himself, rolling over on his back to make it easy.

‘I used to do that,’ Rinaldo observed, ‘but these days he tends to stay in the house, so he doesn’t wander among the long grass so much, and it stopped being necessary. Until now.’

‘He joins me when I run in the morning,’ she said. ‘At least, he starts out with me, then drops out when he gets tired, and goes and waits for me in the barn. When I swing from the rings he watches in a puzzled sort of way, and you can almost hear him thinking, ‘What on earth is she doing ?’

‘We’re the best of friends now, aren’t we, old boy?’ she asked Brutus tenderly. ‘And if I don’t get these seeds out, you’re going to grow a lawn.’

Rinaldo no longer seemed to object to her petting Brutus, and when she looked up a moment later she found him looking at her with a faint smile on his face.

One day he said to her, ‘It would be doing me a favour if you’d wait in the house this morning. The vet is coming to give Brutus his injection, and if I’m not back in time at least you’ll be with him.’

‘Of course. The vet comes all the way out here?’

‘You mean, why don’t I take Brutus to the surgery? Because he hates cars and goes mad in them, climbing all over the place. That’s bad for his arthritis.’ After a moment he added uneasily, ‘Of course, it costs a lot more-’

‘So I’ll have to wait an extra five minutes for the money? I wish you’d stop saying things like that.’

‘I’m merely trying to assure you that I’m not being wilfully extravagant-’

‘No, you’re not,’ she said indignantly. ‘You’re rubbing my nose in it. It’s worth the expenditure to save Brutus pain, and you knew I’d say that, so please let it drop .’

He nodded, and left.

She spent the morning sitting on the sofa with the old dog, who panted in a way she hadn’t seen before and was disinclined to move.

At last the vet arrived. He was a youngish man called Silvio, whom Alex liked at once. She explained who she was but had the feeling he already knew. Was there anyone in the whole of Tuscany who didn’t know the situation, she wondered?

‘How long has he been panting like this?’ he asked when he saw Brutus.

‘Since this morning. I thought his arthritis must be hurting since it must be so long since his last injection. But the next one will make it all right, won’t it?’

‘I can take away that pain, but this is something else.’ Silvio felt in Brutus’s throat, and the dog whined softly. ‘There’s a lump there, and at his age it’s probably bad news. Look at how white his snout is. He’s very old. He’s had his life. The kindest thing now is to let him go peacefully.’

‘I can’t authorise you to do that,’ Alex said. ‘He’s Rinaldo’s dog.’

‘Tell him to call me and I’ll come back, preferably today. Rinaldo can’t put the inevitable off any longer. Do you still want me to give him the injection?’

‘Of course,’ she said at once.

When Silvio had gone Alex rubbed the dog’s head, laid trustingly in her lap.

‘How is he ever going to let you go?’ she murmured. ‘You were her dog. You’re all he has of her.’

Gino returned first. When she told him what had happened he dropped to his knees beside Brutus, patting him and murmuring sympathetically.

Rinaldo arrived a few minutes later and Brutus slid off the sofa and went to meet him. He was moving more easily now, and Alex watched the pleasure come into Rinaldo’s face as he saw the improvement and ran his hands over the rough coat.

‘Thank you,’ he told Alex. ‘He’s still panting a bit though. Did the vet have anything to say about that?’

‘Yes, he thinks it’s something bad,’ Alex said. ‘He wants you to call him and discuss-’ she hesitated ‘-putting him to sleep.’

‘Nonsense,’ Rinaldo said impatiently. ‘A good meal is all he needs.’

‘I fed him this afternoon. He only ate a little and then he brought it up.’

‘He’ll eat what I give him. You’ll see.’

But Brutus only stared mournfully at the food his master put down for him.

‘Come on,’ Rinaldo urged gently. ‘It’s your favourite.’

The dog looked up at him with eyes that Alex couldn’t bear to see. They were full of understanding, and trust that his master would face the truth and do what must be done.

Rinaldo saw Alex and Gino looking at him.

‘You’d think no dog had ever been off his food before,’ he snapped.

He went into the next room and they heard him on the phone to Silvio. When he came back he said,

‘He’s on his way. I’m going for a walk.’

He didn’t speak to Brutus but he looked at him, and the old dog wandered slowly out after his master, into the twilight.

Gino sighed. ‘He hasn’t seen it yet.’

‘He’s seen it,’ Alex said softly.

Silvio arrived in an hour to find Rinaldo and Brutus sitting under the trees. Gino and Alex went out and arrived as the vet was saying, ‘All I can do is give him some tablets, that would keep him with you for a few more weeks. But they wouldn’t be happy weeks. Not for him.’

Rinaldo shrugged. ‘That settles it. The barn is the best place.’

He began to walk away, Brutus following.

‘Shall we come?’ Gino asked.

‘No need,’ Rinaldo said over his shoulder.

Silvio followed them into the barn and remained for ten minutes before coming out and driving away.

After a moment Rinaldo emerged. His manner was calm and his face betrayed nothing. He shut the barn and walked off under the trees.

Alex spent the rest of that evening alone with Gino, talking in a half-hearted fashion.

Rinaldo returned after an hour, brushed aside their attempts at conversation and went straight to his office, where Teresa brought him coffee.

Gino, who made a well-intentioned visit, returned looking glum.

‘Rinaldo says he has to concentrate on the books. He says there’s work to be done and he can’t waste time on something that’s finished with. When I left he was studying figures.’

‘The ultimate sign of heartlessness, according to him,’ Alex said wryly.

‘Heartless is right,’ Gino snapped.

Rinaldo had not appeared when Alex went to bed. She tried to sleep but couldn’t, and at last she got up and went to stand at the window, where a full moon was turning the land to silver.

Suddenly she grew still. From down below she could see movement, as though someone was hiding just beyond the trees.

Pulling on her dressing gown she left her room and went along the corridor to Rinaldo’s room. But her knock produced no response. After a moment she knocked louder, but still there was no answer.