Sidney Sheldon - Memories of Midnight

The driver headed east, and fifteen minutes later they reached an enormous estate high on a hill. They drove through a tall iron gate and a stone gate house, up a long driveway lined with majestic cypress trees, and stopped before a large white Mediterranean villa framed by half a dozen magnificent statues.

The chauffeur opened the car door for Catherine and she stepped out. A man was waiting at the front door.

“Kalimehra.” The word for good morning sprang to Catherine’s lips unbidden.

“Kalimehra.”

“Are you … are you the person I’ve come to see?”

“Oh, no. Mr. Demiris is waiting for you in the library.”

Demiris. It was a name she had never heard before. Why was he interested in helping her?

Catherine followed the man through an enormous rotunda, with a domed roof set in plaques of Wedgewood. The floors were of creamy Italian marble.

The living room was huge, with a high beamed ceiling and large, low comfortable couches and chairs everywhere. A huge canvas, a dark and glowering Goya, covered one entire wall. As they approached the library, the man stopped.

“Mr. Demiris is waiting for you inside.”

The walls of the library were white and gold boiserie, and the shelves lining the walls were filled with leather books embossed in gold. A man was seated behind a huge desk. He looked up as Catherine entered, and rose. He searched for a sign of recognition on her face, but there was none.

“Welcome. I am Constantin Demiris. What is your name?” He made the question sound casual. Did she remember her name?

“Catherine Alexander.”

He showed no reaction. “Welcome, Catherine Alexander. Please sit down.” He took a seat opposite her, on a black leather couch. She was even lovelier close up. She’s magnificent, Demiris thought. Even dressed in that black habit. It’s a shame to destroy anything that beautiful. At least she will die happy.

“It’s … it’s very kind of you to see me,” Catherine said. “I don’t understand why you …”

He smiled genially. “It’s really quite simple. From time to time I help out Sister Theresa. The convent has very little money, and I do what I can. When she wrote me about you and asked if I could be helpful, I told her that I would be happy to try.”

“That’s very …” She stopped, not knowing how to continue. “Did Sister Theresa tell you that I … that I’ve lost my memory?”

“Yes, she did mention something about that.” He paused and asked off-handedly, “How much do you remember?”

“I know my name, but I don’t know where I came from, or who I really am.” She added, hopefully, “Perhaps I can find someone here in Athens who knows me.”

Constantin Demiris felt a sudden frisson of alarm. That was the last thing in the world he wanted. “That’s possible, of course,” he said carefully. “Why don’t we discuss it in the morning? Unfortunately I have to attend a meeting now. I’ve arranged to have a suite prepared for you here. I think you’ll be comfortable.”

“I … I really don’t know how to thank you.”

He waved a hand. “That isn’t necessary. You will be well taken care of here. Just make yourself at home.”

“Thank you, Mr.—”

“My friends call me Costa.”

A housekeeper led Catherine into a fantastic bedroom suite, done in soft shades of white, furnished with an oversized bed with a silk canopy, white couches and armchairs, antique tables and lamps, and Impressionist paintings on the walls. Pale shutters of sea green kept the glaring sun at bay. Through the windows, Catherine could see the turquoise sea below in the distance.

The housekeeper said, “Mr. Demiris has arranged to have some clothes sent here for your approval. You are to select whatever you like.”

Catherine was conscious, for the first time, that she was still wearing the habit given her at the convent.

“Thank you.” She sank down in the soft bed, feeling as though she were in a dream. Who was this stranger, and why was he being so kind to her?

An hour later a van pulled up filled with clothes. A couturier was ushered into Catherine’s bedroom.

“I’m Madame Dimas. Let’s see what we have to work with. Would you get undressed, please?”

“I … I beg your pardon?”

“Will you get undressed? I can’t tell much about your figure under those clothes.”

How long had it been since she had been naked in front of another person?

Catherine began to take off her clothes, moving slowly, feeling self-conscious. When she stood nude in front of the woman, Madame Dimas looked her over with a practiced eye. She was impressed.

“You have a fine figure. I think we’re going to be able to do very well for you.”

Two female assistants walked in with boxes of dresses, underwear, blouses, skirts, shoes.

“Select whatever you like,” the couturièr said, “and we’ll try them on.”

“I… I can’t afford any of these,” Catherine protested. “I have no money.”

The couturièr laughed. “I don’t think money will be a problem. Mr. Demiris is taking care of it.”

But why?

The fabrics brought back tactile memories of clothes she must have once worn. There were silks and tweeds and cottons in an array of exquisite colors.

The three women were quick and efficient, and two hours later Catherine had half a dozen beautiful outfits. It was overwhelming. She sat there, not knowing what to do with herself.

I’m all dressed up, she thought, with no place to go. But there was some place to go—into the city. The key to whatever had happened to her was in Athens. She was convinced of it. She stood up. Come on, stranger. We’re going to try to find out who you are.

Catherine wandered out into the front hall, and a butler approached her. “May I help you, miss?”

“Yes. I … I would like to go into the city. Could you call a taxi for me?”

“I’m sure that won’t be necessary, miss. We have limousines at your disposal. I will arrange a driver for you.”

Catherine hesitated. “Thank you.” Would Mr. Demiris be angry if she went into the city? He had not said not to.

A few minutes later she was seated in the back of a Daimler limousine, headed for downtown Athens.

Catherine was dazzled by the noisy, bustling city, and the poignant succession of ruins and monuments that appeared all around her.

The driver pointed ahead and said proudly, “That is the Parthenon, miss, on top of the Acropolis.”

Catherine stared up at the familiar white marble building. “Dedicated to Athena, the goddess of wisdom,” she heard herself saying.

The driver smiled approvingly. “Are you a student of Greek history, miss?”

Tears of frustration blurred Catherine’s vision. “I don’t know,” she whispered. “I don’t know.”

They were passing another ruin. “That is the theater of Herodes Atticus. As you can see, part of the walls are still standing. It once seated more than five thousand people.”

“Six thousand two hundred fifty-seven,” Catherine said softly.

Modern hotels and office buildings were everywhere amid the timeless ruins, an exotic mixture of the past and present. The limousine passed a large park in the center of the city, with sparkling, dancing fountains in the middle. Dozens of tables with green and orange poles lined the park, and the air above them was carpeted with blue awnings.

I’ve seen this before, Catherine thought, her hands growing cold. And I was happy.

There were outdoor cafés on almost every block, and on the corners men were selling freshly caught sponges. Everywhere, flowers were being sold by vendors, their booths a rage of violently colored blossoms.