Issy nodded her head. “Yes. You’re probably right. He was in the vicinity the day the murder happened because I taught him and interestingly he’d arrived at school earlier than normal. He also reacted badly to it when I asked him about it and if he could shed any light on why it may have happened or who could have done it. He was the one who ordered me to be silent.”
“But,” said Dan scratching his head “why is he learning English if his business is so local and so profitable? It’s hardly like he needs a foreign language to shoot a gun and exhort money from local shop owners.”
Issy shock her head and looked up. “I don’t know the answer to that question. I really don’t know Dan anymore about a lot of things and how they connect to each other. All I definitely know is today Giuseppe’s drawer contained a gun and his fridge was full of packets of white powder so maybe that gives us a clue about what this is all about?.”
“What you mean his fridge was full of drugs?” asked Dan almost falling off his seat.
“I guess so. I don’t know,” Issy said. “I didn’t stop to find out. All I could think about was the gun and the bits of paper with death threats written all over them. It was all the evidence I needed to know we had to get off the boat as quickly as we possibly could” Issy replied wearily.
“Christ Issy. You know what this all means don’t you?” said Dan with his eyes wider than she had ever seen them before.
Issy shock her head “No not exactly. I’m not sure I know what anything means anymore.”
“It means that Giuseppe will want both of us dead if we don’t play his game. I reckon he invited us onto the boat to try and bribe us in some way so he could have a hold over us.”
“What are you saying exactly?” Issy said not following his logic.
“I mean,” said Dan “I bet you anything he invited us onto that boat to buy favours and to see if he could entice us into his world. The fact that you then went and blurted out the bit about the murder probably meant that he lost his moment and decided against us being involved in his business. I was angry with you on the boat but in retrospect it was probably a piece of genius.”
“I’m not sure about that” countered Issy. “Think about it Dan. At the moment I said those words about the murder, I wasn’t aware that Giuseppe was firing gun shots through people’s shop windows. So in retrospect it was a flawed bit of genius as he will probably now need to kill us or me anyway given that so far we haven’t exactly done him any favours whatsoever.”
“Um,” said Dan. “I have to say I probably agree with you. When you started speaking about the Via Maria Magdala affair his eyes looked murderous.”
Issy knocked back her Sanbiter. “That is precisely why I and probably you are both now marked people. I was at the murder scene and talked about my horror of it openly with him the day it happened and again on the boat today. There was definitely someone watching me when I went back into the street that night to look at the gun shot and that was probably him too – I now have proof that it was his writing on the bit of paper next to the mannequin’s thigh. We have to get out of this city before we get killed.”
Dan played with his glass. “I don’t want to leave here,” he said “but I think you’re right. It’s getting too dangerous. For whatever reason we’ve become embroiled in something bigger than we are, I don’t feel safe here anymore and I’m getting increasingly paranoid about being watched and overheard.”
Issy nodded her head “You’re right. As much as it pains me to admit it we can’t change things here. Everything is embedded too deep into the system. Even if we found out who really killed the journalist who would we go to? Everyone plays the game to survive. And that is my assessment of what we should do even though I think I have fallen head over heels in love with Bruno. So my remaining question is how can I possibly leave that behind?”
“Let’s go and see Tosca and treat it as one of our last nights in Naples,” Dan said trying to make the best of things while they still could and neatly avoiding the question about Bruno.
“Don’t you think it is dangerous being in an opera house with Giuseppe and Francesca?” asked Issy amazed that after everything they’d just been through Dan still wanted to go.
“He’s not exactly going to kill us in front of everyone at the opera is he?” Dan replied laughing. “I mean think about it…”
“I guess not,” Issy said. “It’s just such a shame it’s come to this. I had only just started enjoying myself. Everything here is so beautiful so long as you don’t scratch the surface or ask too many questions and if I leave I’ll never see Bruno again.”
“Well as far as I am concerned THAT may well be a blessing in disguise and not a bad thing” said Dan. “Whatever you say about him, and I know you like him, it does not detract from the fact that he knew too much of what was going on around the time of the murder.”
“But there is definitely something really special there,” replied Issy. “He felt and feels like he could be my soulmate you know THE ONE. I can’t help feeling what I feel. But I can’t solve that tonight so let’s just go to see Tosca and enjoy it. It’s supposed to be one of the best opera houses in the world. Do you think we’ll be ok to go dressed like this?”
“Well we’ve got no choice now,” said Dan looking at his watch. “It’s too late to go and get changed. I don’t suppose anyone will care about us and what we’re wearing. So long as we just slip in and out quietly I’m sure we’ll be fine.”
“Ok. Let’s go.” said Issy as she pulled him up with both hands and led him by the hand towards the magnificent San Carlo Opera House which shimmied in the sunshine.
San Carlo, Naples – 7.30pm 2nd October 1986
Walking into the San Carlo in a Miss Selfridge bikini top, denim skirt and flip flops to watch Tosca was not something anyone had ever done before (apparently).
And as soon as Issy and Dan entered the grand golden plated building it became clear that going to the opera in Naples was about the same, in terms of dressing up, as going to the Oscars.
The gowns, make up, shoes and shawls were the most exquisite that Issy had ever seen. Some of the women were also wearing face masks to add to the sense of the theatrical. The men were smartly European in evening wear.
“This is excruciating,” Issy said with her head buried in her chest. “Just lead me to my seat and allow me to die of embarrassment quietly when I get there.”
“Ok,” said Dan stifling his laughter. Pulling Issy through the crowds of opera lovers in her bikini top he said. “It looks like we’re sitting up here in the dress circle and have our own box thanks to Giuseppe. At least we’ll be on our own.”
“I bloody well hope so, but I assume Giuseppe and Francesca will be sitting with us which means if we are too alone just with them it could be problematic. Oh God Dan this is excruciating. Everyone’s staring and laughing at me. This is horrendous. Just keep walking,” hissed Issy desperate for the ground to open up and swallow her.
Eventually after some circuitous navigation, Dan found their seats, and as they entered the box it was clear that Giuseppe had gone to great lengths to ensure they had the best seats in the house.
This was good and bad.
Good because the views of the stage and the rest of the auditorium were incredible. Bad because they had been given what looked like the Royal box which jutted out into the theatre itself making them much more visible than either of them wanted to be.
“Ok,” said Issy as they finally arrived. “I’m sitting on the floor for now. That was more than embarrassing and we’re not out of the woods yet. How can I watch the opera from this box wearing a bikini top?”
Dan guffawed. “Look just lie low for now,” said Dan “and I’ll have a good look round and work out how you can watch and listen without being seen.”
“Good idea,” Issy said wryly. “Now I’ve walked through the crowds and done the really painful bit it would be disappointing if I had to remain on the floor during the performance.”
Dan scanned the theatre and stuck his head over the balcony and then said. “Ok, Issy, this is what I suggest you do, when the opera starts, you just need to haul yourself as anonymously as you can onto one of these opulently covered seats and rest your chin on the red velvet ledge of the box, that way anyone looking down on us or up at us will just be able see your head and not realise you’re practically naked from the neck to the waist down” he chuckled.
“It’s not funny Dan,” Issy replied. “What if someone from the school sees me? And I’m not sure that is an answer. Don’t you think that it is going to look very odd if all anyone can see is my head?” said Issy.
“Probably,” grinned Dan “But let’s face it. You’ll look even odder if you sit up and watch Tosca in a bikini. So it’s up to you darling. The alternative of course is you just listen to the music and sit on the floor all evening. Either way, I’ll get you an ice-cream in the interval.”
“Well, I’m definitely remaining on the floor until the lights go down,” said Issy. “I’ll never live this down.”
Dan laughed as he took in the beauty of the San Carlo from the inside. Opulently gold and ornate he stared at the magnificent domed ceiling and watched as beautifully dressed Neapolitans old and young flirted with each other and took their seats. “It’s a shame if you spend the next few hours on the floor,” Dan said to Issy in awe. “This place is totally amazing. Everything is red velvet or gold plated and the ceiling is basically an oil painting.”
As the orchestra started to limber up, the atmosphere became heavy with expectation and Dan took the opportunity to nip to the loo. Issy remained still in the far corner of the box hoping that no-one sitting above her could see her wondering when Giuseppe and Francesca would arrive. And then oddly for Naples, everything started bang on time. The lights went off and the opera house was plunged into momentary darkness. Italian chatter and the sound of fans being fluttering across hot faces could be heard rippling across the auditorium as conversations came to an end
“God,” Issy thought as she sat in the darkness. “Where the hell is Dan? It is pitch black and somewhere in this opera house there’s a murderer and I’m in a bikini top on my own on the floor of the Royal Box.”
As a pair of dramatic red velvet curtains were pulled back to reveal an exquisite stage, Issy breathed a huge sigh of relief as Dan made as dramatic an entrance into his seat.
“Thank God you’re safe,” Issy whispered as the orchestra started to play and Act 1 began.
“Of course I’m safe,” Dan smiled. “And the good news is that Giuseppe and Francesca are no-where to be seen so that hopefully means they went back out to sea rather than come here.”
“Don’t speak too soon,” Issy said. “He’s usually late unless someone has been murdered so he could arrive at any minute.”
As she watched Dan from the floor of the box she smiled at how excited he seemed to be. Hanging over the edge of the balcony, he reveled in the ecstasy and the drama of it all.
“Issy,” he whispered before it all really started. “Look at these intricate costume designs and the magnificence of that stage. This is exactly my kind of an evening. You have to get up, it really is not worth it if you just sit there all night.”
Issy stirred on the floor. She wanted to get up and have a look too. Dan was groaning with delight. It wasn’t possible to not watch any longer.
As the Recondita armonia aria started the notes being sung were was so spectacular that Issy suddenly lost any embarrassment she had of being at the opera in a Miss Selfridge bikini or fear of being shot.
Carefully she pulled herself up onto one of the red velvet chairs next to Dan doing her best to keep her body from view. She then leant forward and rested her head on the red velvet ledge of the box just like Dan had told her to.
Blown away by the music, she grabbed hold of a pair of binoculars that poked into her chest and rested them in front of her eyes so she could get a better look at the stage.
“You’re right,” Issy said. “This is absolutely amazing, I love this music. So passionate, so intense, I’ve never seen or heard anything quite so beautiful in my life.”
“I know,” said Dan. “I can’t take my eyes off it. I’m in love with the whole experience. We can’t go home yet. Not now we’ve just discovered this place.”
“Um,” Issy said. “I don’t want to go anyway. Not really. Not unless something else really bad happens.”
After the aria had finished, Issy moved the binoculars away from the stage and up towards the ceiling where she looked at a heavenly oil painting in finite detail. She then moved her eyes down to the boxes opposite them in the circle.
“CHRIST! What in God’s name ......?” Issy said to herself as she came face to face with Bruno through the binoculars. He was sitting DIRECTLY opposite her.
The shock at meeting him again at such close quarters but knowing he was sitting too far away for her to touch him crushed her heart. Nearly dropping her binoculars, she managed to grab them before they fell and could see Bruno looking up at her. Though it was difficult to see at first he had seen her and was smiling back.
Issy put the binoculars back to her eyes and they stared at each other for what seemed like forever both smiling widely. To calm himself down, Bruno took the fan from an old woman sitting next to him and started to direct air onto his face continuing to look upwards into the Royal Box he didn’t avert his gaze.
After smiling back some more, Issy wanted to know who he’d come to the opera with. Her heart beat in the hope he was alone. She moved the binoculars slightly to his right. Sitting next to him was the woman from whom he had taken the fan who looked like she could be his mother, typically Neapolitan and about the right age.
As Issy moved the binoculars to his left, she did a double and then a triple take before her world started to spin on its axis sitting up straight to be sure of what she had seen.
“What the HELL….” Issy panicked silently as she looked into Giuseppe’s eyes through the binoculars. There was no mistaking that look and that he wanted her dead. And even worse he was sitting next to Bruno and seemed to be part of the family outing.
His mouth smirked as he caught her eyes before he turned his eyes away back towards the stage and whispered something to Bruno.
San Carlo, Naples – 8.15pm 4th October 1986
When the curtains went down after the First Act, Issy grabbed Dan and said.
“We have to get out of here. Giuseppe KNOWS Bruno. They are part of the same family.”
“What! How the hell do you know that?” said Dan unaware of who had been sitting opposite them because all he’d been interested in was the costumes, the stage design and the make-up.
“I didn’t dare attract your attention. Didn’t you see them?” asked Issy incredulously.
“No I was too busy listening to the stupendous magnificent singing which is what we came here for” replied Dan struggling to take this new piece of information in.
“Look, this is massively important new information. Bruno was sitting opposite us with his family which as it turns out seems to include Giuseppe. They’re probably brothers, or cousins or something,” hissed Issy.
“WHAT!” said Dan following Issy out of the box “I told you Bruno had the wrong kind of connections but you wouldn’t believe me.”
“I’m not disputing that anymore Dan, but we have to leave this opera house. We’re in this too deep. I want to leave this city. We have to get out. When I looked at Giuseppe through my binoculars he definitely looked as though he wanted to kill both of us but particularly me” Issy continued as she looked over her shoulder.
“He looked exactly like that on the boat,” said Dan “but you probably didn’t see it.”
“Well I saw it just now and that’s one times too many. It is going to be difficult to leave here unnoticed given what I’m wearing. What I suggest we do is go to your apartment and pick up your stuff up in a taxi, then go to mine and then head straight to the airport. We need
to get the first flight out of here tomorrow morning if it’s not too late already.”
“What about Bruno, will you be able to leave him behind? Is this not all a bit too flighty just to leave like this?” Dan said struggling to keep up “I mean can we just stop and think about what we are doing for a moment.”
“I’ve had my heart broken once in the last few months and I don’t intend crucifying myself anymore. I came here to mend a broken heart not break it some more. Bruno has the capacity to finish me off completely. The only choice I’ve got now is to get out of here and I’d really like you to come with me.”
PART II – Secondo Piatto
Oxford – 6pm 2nd October 2000
It could have only been coincidence that brought Issy back to Balliol College Oxford to write Jeremy’s obituary, some four years after she’d last kissed him.
Jeremy Landau, her Classics professor at university and her former lover was DEAD and her editor wanted her to file the piece TODAY. “Go back to your old college and talk to his closest friend Max and also try and speak to his wife. He had the most brilliant of minds by all accounts with oodles of charisma and was extremely good looking to boot. Find out what you can. I’ll need copy by 9pm tonight to make tomorrow’s paper.”
Issy had simply stared at her editor and said. “Jeremy Landau is dead?” He’d nodded his head pausing at the tragedy before returning to discussing the front page with one of his senior editors. Obituaries were back page news he could only give her a few minutes of his time. Shortly after their conversation she’d travelled to Oxford in a state of numbness not really knowing how it had come to this.
“How odd,” Issy had thought as only an hour or so later she’d sat in front of Maximillian (do call me Max) Monroe a fellow Oxford don over dinner in the dining hall that evening that she out of everyone on the news desk she should be given this task.” As the waitress served them mushroom soup and a white roll with curly butter on the side, they started to talk about Jeremy for the obituary.
The Italian Affair Page 19
