Heart of Glass - By Sasha Gould Page 0,48

tie it hastily at the waist and run towards the main stairs. Barefoot and with my hair loose, I descend into the main hallway—just as Faustina, her hands red from scorching hot water, leads the boy indoors. They stare at me in surprise.

“Aren’t you dressed yet?” Faustina asks. She wipes the soapsuds from her hands onto her apron. “I’ve been working since dawn!”

The boy gawps at the open collar of my dressing gown, and hastily I pull it tighter. “You have a message for me?” I ask. The boy nods, his mouth still hanging open. I throw a glance at Faustina, who has folded her arms and is giving me a long, narrow-eyed look. “You may leave us,” I tell her formally.

She opens her mouth to protest, then thinks better of it, turning on her heel to walk back out to the wooden washbasin that rests on the courtyard tiles.

“Well?” I ask.

The boy swallows hard. “A ship has docked in the harbor,” he says.

I feel my skin prickle with anticipation. “Whose ship?”

“That Turkish prince’s—Halim.” The boy’s face colors. “The one you fought with a sword.”

“And how do you know about that?” I ask sharply.

“Everyone’s talking about it.”

I feel my face stiffen. “I can hardly set foot outside my own door. I rely on you to tell me what’s happening in Venice—remember?” The boy looks as though he’s about to burst into tears. I soften my voice. “Thank you for the message.” I walk over to where my purse hangs from a wooden clothes hook and dig inside it for payment. As the coins fall into the boy’s open palm, I give him one last instruction: “Tell our coachman to prepare the horses.”

“Where shall I say you’re going?”

I look out the open front doors of the villa. In the far distance, I can see the sparkle of water. “Where is Halim staying?” I ask.

“I know that!” the boy says proudly. “I asked around before coming here. He’s taken apartments near the harbor, on Albanesi.”

“Well done,” I tell him, smiling. I slip him an extra coin.

That’s where I’ll go, then, I tell myself.

When I emerge from my room, ready for the journey, Lysander and Emilia are standing in the hallway. They are dressed in walking clothes.

“Won’t you join us?” Emilia smiles. I shake my head, glimpsing the coachman waiting patiently out on the drive. Lysander looks over his shoulder, following the direction of my gaze.

“You’re going out alone?” he asks.

“Why not?” I say. “I’m not going to be a prisoner here.” But as I start to walk towards the open doorway, Lysander grasps my arm.

“Are you sure you’ll be all right?” he asks, drawing me to one side. “Remember what happened before the funeral.”

“I have to leave this house one day.”

Lysander’s eyes are pained and he lowers his voice. “I’ve heard rumors, Laura … about Roberto.”

“Oh yes?”

“Consider, how well do you really know this man? He was hidden for many years, living a life free of restriction.…”

“Just say what you mean.”

“Do I have to?” he asks. “I know what young men are like, sister.”

“Really?” I say. “Well, you don’t know Roberto. He’s a good man. I know this from the depths of my soul.”

“All women in love say this, and we both know that some are wrong,” says Lysander. “Please, listen to my counsel.…”

I shake myself free, firmly, but I don’t want to cause a scene in front of Emilia.

“I’ve heard the rumors too,” I say. “But if I believed every rumor to take to the air in Venice, I’d be a fool indeed. Roberto. Really, brother.” I force a smile onto my face. I don’t want him to ask where I’m going.

Turning to the waiting coachman, he calls out, “Take care of her!”

The man nods in acknowledgment. Hastily, I go outside and climb into the coach. As the driver slams the little door shut behind me, Emilia’s face appears at the window. She reaches inside the carriage and takes my hand.

“Stay safe,” she tells me. “We love you, you know.”

“I’ll be fine,” I reassure her, wondering if she too has heard this new gossip about my beloved Roberto. She steps away from the coach, and I hear the crack of a whip. Then the coach lurches and I ride out towards the harbor. To the man who can change everything.

I ask the coachman to drop me off a few streets away from Halim’s apartments. I cannot risk word getting back to my family as to my whereabouts. I duck down the