The Heiress of Santorini

by Angel Sefer

  Still feeling a little dizzy and out of place due to the time difference, she walked to the windows and drew back the curtains. What an amazing view! I could never get used to it, she thought, letting her eyes wander over the manicured gardens stretching all the way down to a private, sandy beach and the deep blue waters of the Aegean. They must spend a fortune to keep the gardens looking like this on a ground formed by a volcanic eruption, she thought, astonished.

  She was about to go to the bathroom when she noticed a couple coming from the beach towards the house. The man picked up his pace, and the woman caught up with him and grabbed him by the arm. He yanked his arm free and strode ahead of her. As they approached the house, Alexandra saw that it was an older woman—maybe around sixty—in a long white dress and a younger man in blue shorts and a white T-shirt. The man seemed pretty upset, and at some point, he turned around to yell at the woman, waving his arms violently. The woman gave a worried glance towards the house. Alexandra hid behind the curtains, feeling her heart thundering in her chest. Even though they probably couldn’t see her from where they were standing, she didn’t want to get caught spying on them.

  Alexandra rushed to the bathroom, took a quick shower, and put on a pair of soft white pants and a light green blouse. She wore her flat, white sandals and left the security of her bedroom. Walking down the corridor, she took a glimpse inside some of the rooms with open doors. They were all bedrooms similar to hers. This is a huge house! she thought.

  She walked to the top of the staircase and was about to go downstairs when she heard people arguing in Greek. Instinctively, she pulled back. It was probably the same couple she had seen from her bedroom window.

  “I’m not going to put up with this!” the man said angrily.

  “Lower your voice,” the woman responded in a lower, but just as irritated, tone.

  “I’m telling you,” he went on. “You have to do something, and you have to do it now!” he insisted.

  The woman’s voice dropped to a whisper, and then Alexandra heard a door slamming. They probably went into a room and closed the door behind them, so no one would hear their argument, Alexandra thought.

  She waited for a couple of minutes and then walked down the steps. She went to the living room and glanced around her, feeling a little awkward. Then she decided to walk outside. The backyard appeared so inviting.

  She stepped through the glass doors and drew a deep breath, enjoying the revitalizing sea breeze mixed with the aroma of flowers. She walked towards a huge, kidney-shaped swimming pool with a small wooden bridge over it. This place is magnificent. Too bad the people living here don’t seem that happy, she thought.

  She walked around the pool and down the path towards the beach. I should go back inside and try to find Mark, she thought. But she couldn’t resist. She felt an uncontrollable urge to go down by the water.

  She approached the edge of the gardens and walked down a few steps. When she reached the seashore, she took her sandals off and walked bare foot on the almost black sand. What an amazing sensation. Smiling blissfully, Alexandra closed her eyes and raised her face to enjoy the sun.

  “You can feel it, too?” she heard his deep, masculine voice and turned to face Mark. He was standing a few feet away from her in a pair of white shorts and a T-shirt. Her heart skipped a beat, seeing his handsome face and suntanned body.

  “Feel what?” she asked him, confused.

  “The urge to come to the sea,” he said. “Like a siren calling for you.”

  Alexandra laughed. “Yes,” she admitted. “I feel it, too. This place is beautiful.”

  “Not as beautiful as you,” he said softly and came closer to her.

  Instinctively, Alexandra took a step back, glancing around her worried. She didn’t want Mark to come any closer or, even worse, someone see them like this on the beach. She didn’t want to give the wrong impression. What wrong impression? she laughed at herself. You mean the right impression. She was in love with him, and anyone could see that.

  “Please, Mark, don’t,” she whispered.

  He stopped and peered at her. “Why are you afraid of me?” he asked.

  “I’m not afraid of you,” she protested. “It’s just that it’s not right. I’m here to do a job, and we have to stay away from each other.”

  He stared at her for a couple of seconds and then put his hands in his pockets. “As you wish,” he said and walked towards the water. “Let’s take a walk.”

  Alexandra hesitated for a moment and then followed him.

  “The president will be here tomorrow,” he said suddenly.

  Alexandra was taken by surprise. “I see,” she managed to say.

  “We’re going to have dinner with him tomorrow night,” he went on.

  “And until then?” Alexandra asked.

  “Until then, you’re our guest,” he said. “You just sit back and enjoy. You can go swimming or do anything else you want. You’ll find some bathing-suits in your closet.”

  “Do you live here?” she inquired curiously.

  Mark turned and glanced at her, surprised. “Sometimes,” he replied.

  “I thought this house belonged to your boss,” she continued puzzled.

  “It does,” he admitted. “You see, my boss is also my great uncle. So this is my family home, as well.”

  “I see,” Alexandra said, trying to comprehend what she had just learned. So Mark wasn’t just an employee. He was a member of the mysterious president’s family.

  “I have an apartment in Athens,” Mark continued, “where I stay most of the time when I’m in Greece. But I come here on the weekends, especially during the summer.”

  “I see,” Alexandra repeated, not knowing what else to say. “Who else lives here?” she asked after a moment’s hesitation.

  “Well, let’s see,” Mark said. “My great uncle lives here with his second wife, Penelope. Her grandson, Jonathan, also stays here from time to time.”

  “I saw them earlier,” Alexandra said, realizing that the people she had seen earlier coming from the beach were probably the president’s wife and her grandson.

  Mark drew a deep breath and stared at her closely. “What did they say?” he asked.

  “Nothing,” she said. “I didn’t actually talk to them. I just saw them walking back to the house from the beach.”

  Mark looked at her silently for a moment. “I want you to promise me something,” he said afterwards. “I want you to be really careful.”

  Alexandra stared at him surprised. “But of course,” she said. What did he think? That she was going to impose on their lives. Of course, she was going to be careful and discreet. She was here on business and had no intension of interfering with these people’s lives.

  Mark kept on watching her, as if he wasn’t satisfied with her response.

  “I told you I’ll be careful,” she insisted and felt her temper rising. “I should be heading back,” she added and turned towards the house, leaving Mark alone on the beach.

  Walking back to the house, she was furious. How dare he insult her like this? As if she was some kind of idiot who didn’t know how to act.

  ***

  Mark stood there, staring after her. She had misunderstood him again. Talking about being careful, he didn’t mean her attitude towards Jonathan and Penelope. He actually meant being careful of them! He sighed. Oh, well, he thought. There’s nothing I can do about it right now, since I can’t explain to her why. At least, not yet.

  ***

  As Alexandra approached the mansion, she had this eerie feeling of someone watching her. She glanced around and thought she saw the young man from this morning standing at one of the windows downstairs. She didn’t want to stare but, as she neared the house, she glanced over at the window again. There was nobody there.

  Great! Now I’m imagining things, she thought, upset. It’s just that this whole thing is getting to me. I know there’s something more going on here, I can feel it. I know millionaires, or I shoul
d say billionaires, she corrected herself glancing around her, are eccentric, but this whole deal with flying me all the way to Greece for a meeting is way too much. Unless… She tensed, as suspicion crept in her mind again. No! she thought. I’m just being paranoid. It just can’t be… But then again, the same thoughts kept coming back ever since she first laid eyes on the island.

  A little dazed, she walked in the living room, and, not knowing what else to do, she decided to head for the stairs and up to her bedroom. She had only taken a few steps when she heard someone’s voice.

  “You must be Alexandra,” a male voice said with a sophisticated English accent.

  She stopped and turned to see a young man, around her age, coming towards her. She recognized the young man she had seen before talking to the lady and maybe watching her from the window. So this is Jonathan, she thought.

  “Yes,” she replied. “I’m Alex Stewart,” and gave him her hand. “And you are?”

  “I’m Jonathan Lambrou,” he introduced himself. “My grandmother, Penelope, is Mr. Vassiliou’s wife,” he explained.

  Alexandra stood speechless, feeling as if the ground had just disappeared from underneath her feet. She heard him saying something else, but she couldn’t understand a word. All of a sudden, the room started spinning around and then, nothing but darkness.

  ***

  Alexandra heard voices and tried to open her eyes. She recognized Mark’s voice talking to her.

  “Are you okay?” he was asking her and sounded really concerned. “Alexandra! Talk to me!”

  She tried to say something, but her throat was dry.

  “Give her some water,” she heard Martha saying.

  With great effort, she managed to open her eyes and saw that she was lying on a sofa in the living room. She saw Mark, Martha, and Michael standing over her. Jonathan and an older lady, who should be his grandmother, were standing a little farther back. She tried to sit up in the sofa, feeling embarrassed.

  “I’m sorry,” she mumbled. “I must have fainted.”

  “Stay still,” Mark ordered her. “The doctor is on his way.”

  “I don’t need a doctor,” she protested and tried to stand up.

  “Stop being so stubborn!” he yelled at her, and Alexandra could tell he was losing his patience.

  Next thing she knew, he picked her up in his arms and carried her upstairs to her bedroom with Martha and Michael following right behind them.

  “Please, Mark,” she protested. “I told you I’m fine.”

  “The doctor will be the judge of that!” he insisted and placed her on her bed.

  “Now you go on and leave us alone,” Martha said and pushed the two men out of the room. Then she helped Alexandra take her clothes off and climb under the covers.

  “I’ll bring you something to eat,” Martha said. “You didn’t have anything to eat all day, and with all this heat and everything, you fainted.”

  “That’ll be nice,” Alexandra said politely. The truth was that she was starving. Besides, she was in no mood to go downstairs for dinner and face anybody right at this moment. She wanted to be left alone to decide what to do. She had sensed it right from the start that there was something wrong, and she was right… Oh, Dad! I’m so sorry! she whispered, feeling overwhelmed by strong and conflicting emotions. I would have never broken my promise to you intentionally. And now, here she was in her grandfather’s house! And Mark? Oh, God, she whispered as she realized that Mark was her cousin.

  ***

  Martha came back to the room to find Alexandra crying her heart out. All upset, she placed the tray down on the table by the window and went to take Alexandra in her arms. She held her close and let her cry, softly caressing her hair.

  “It’s okay, my child,” she kept on whispering. “Whatever it is, we’ll find a way to make it right.”

  Alexandra pulled back and wiped her eyes with a tissue that Martha handed to her. “I’m sorry,” she whispered and swallowed hard.

  “It’s no problem,” Martha reassured her. “It happens to all of us. Every now and then, we feel the need for a good cry. Now is there anything I can do?” she asked.

  “No,” Alexandra replied and shook her head in denial. “But please, I don’t want to see a doctor. I’ll be fine, really,” she added and looked at Martha pleadingly.

  Martha stared at Alexandra’s tear-stricken face and felt her heart sinking. “Okay, then,” she agreed, not wanting to upset her any more. “I’ll tell Mark to call the doctor and cancel.” Realizing that too many things were going through Alexandra’s mind right then, she reached over and squeezed her hand reassuringly. “I want you to know that I’m here for you.”

  “Thank you,” Alexandra replied and spontaneously placed a kiss on the old lady’s cheek. “Thank you for everything.”

  Martha gave her a warm smile and left the room.

  Mark was waiting for Martha down the hall. As soon as he saw her coming out of Alexandra’s room, he rushed towards her.

  “Is she all right?” he asked concerned, probably seeing the serious look on Martha’s face.

  “You need to stop playing with people’s lives like this!” she reprimanded him.

  “We’re not playing!” he protested, all upset. “This is not a game, Martha, and you know it!”

  “You’re right!” she said. “This is not a game! This is her life we’re talking about, and you should be honest with her.”

  Mark shifted uncomfortably and glanced towards Alexandra’s room.

  “You leave her alone!” Martha said. “The last thing she needs right now is for you to tell her any more lies and upset her.”

  “I didn’t lie!” he murmured. “I just didn’t tell her the whole truth.”

  “You put her life in danger,” Martha reprimanded him.

  “I’ll protect her,” he vowed.

  “Just like you did before?” she asked and immediately felt bad, seeing the hurt expression on his face. “I’m sorry,” she apologized. “I talked to my daughter, and she told me about the kidnapping attempt.”

  “What else did Catherine tell you?” he asked carefully.

  “Nothing,” Martha replied. “Catherine doesn’t talk about things she shouldn’t repeat, not even to me—her own mother. She only told me about the attempt because she was concerned about Alexandra and scared that something might happen while she’s over here.”

  Mark drew a deep breath, and Martha realized he was also scared about the possibility of someone making another attempt on Alexandra’s life.

  “Listen,” she said and placed her hand on his arm tenderly. “I know you mean well, but this is a dangerous game you’re playing. You shouldn’t have brought her here. Not with everything that’s goings on. Now her life is in danger, as well.”

  “I’ll protect her,” he insisted. “I’ll protect her from all of them.”

  “And who will protect her from you?” Martha asked and stared straight into his eyes.

  ***

  Mark stared at Martha shocked. Was it that obvious he was in love with Alexandra? He stood there silently; there was nothing to say. He couldn’t admit it and, of course, he couldn’t deny it either. Martha knew him too well to try to lie to her.

  She peered at him for a minute and then left towards the stairs. “Be careful!” she whispered over her shoulder.

  Mark’s thoughts flew back to the moment he stepped inside the house to find Alexandra lying on the sofa with Jonathan leaning over here. He’d never felt so scared in his life. He’d run and grabbed Jonathan by the throat, pulling him away from Alexandra. He felt the urge to break his neck, and he would have probably done so if Michael hadn’t grabbed him from behind and pull him away.

  “What did you do to her?” he yelled at Jonathan over Michael’s shoulder.

  “Nothing,” Jonathan mumbled, shaking from fear. Seeing that crazy look in Mark’s eyes, he probably thought Mark would kill him.

  “Don’t you lie to me, you bastard!” Mark yelled
and tried to free himself from Michael.

  “I swear!” Jonathan yelled. “I didn’t touch her!”

  At that moment, Penelope came running downstairs. “What’s going on here?” she demanded, seeing Jonathan in bad shape and Michael holding Mark back. Penelope’s eyes went from one to the other and then rested on Alexandra, who was lying motionless on the sofa.

  “What happened to her?” she asked confused.

  “Ask him!” Mark said accusingly.

  “I didn’t do anything!” Jonathan insisted. “I just introduced myself.”

  “You introduced yourself?” Mark asked ironically. “And because of that, she fainted?”

  “I don’t know what happened!” Jonathan insisted. “I didn’t say anything else. I just told her that I’m the grandson of Mr. Vassiliou’s wife.”

  Mark stared at him, shocked. He felt the urge to kill Jonathan, and judging from the expression on Michael’s face, he was thinking the same thing.

  Jonathan, probably sensing their intentions, had drawn back towards his grandmother.

  “What’s all this yelling and screaming about?” Martha cut in, running from the kitchen. She glanced around and rushed to Alexandra. “What’s wrong?” she asked and leaned over the girl. “Someone bring her some water!”

  Mark shook his head to clear his thoughts. She knows now. He clenched his fists, trying to control his anger. He was furious with Jonathan, but he was also angry with himself. I should have told her, he reprimanded himself. It was inevitable that she would find out. If it weren’t for Jonathan telling her, she could have seen something, some pictures of her mother maybe.

  All of a sudden, another thought dawned on him. Oh, no! Alexandra was now under the impression they’re related. Oh, my God! What a mess! He clenched his fists, unable to control his temper. He loved her so much, and all he wanted right now was to take her in his arms and hold her forever. But how could he do that when she believed they were cousins. How could he explain this to her?