Page 68 of Villa of Secrets

Rebecca twisted a length of hair around her finger the way Naomi remembered. A sign of stress. ‘You don’t know how much I missed you too.’

‘I’ve been worried. You should have answered my letters,’ Bubba said.

‘Letters?’ Rebecca blinked rapidly and appeared lost for a moment.

Naomi frowned. Had Bubba’s correspondence meant so little to Rebecca that she had tossed them without another thought? Naomi found that hard to believe, yet what other explanation could there be?

Bubba glanced at the door and then at Naomi, who recognised her fear. Naomi shook her head. Bubba sighed and sank back into the chair. Their tension dissipated as they talked about trivia, simple chit-chat, while Naomi filled the table with meze. Courgette balls, calamari, fried cheese, bite-size pieces of salt cod in golden batter, beetroot salad in garlic dressing, and grilled octopus.

‘A glass of wine, Rebecca?’ Naomi asked.

Rebecca shook her head. ‘Erm, perhaps not.’

‘Coffee then?’

‘Plain water, if you don’t mind.’

Naomi frowned; this wasn’t like Rebecca.

They sat around the table. ‘You got the gun?’ Bubba said to Rebecca.

‘Well, yes . . . although I didn’t realise what it was until the last parcel came.’

‘And the diaries?’

Rebecca nodded. ‘Two, I found it quite shocking to learn about your childhood, and I’m so amazed by your bravery. I’d no idea what you’ve been through.’ She paused, and glanced at her sister. ‘Fritz was astounded too.’ She returned to Bubba. ‘I hope you don’t mind. I decided he should read them. He needs to understand what happened here. Many of the war atrocities were kept from him.’ She looked at Naomi, then Bubba. ‘He’s finished the first one, and taken the other to America to read on the plane.’

‘There’s two more,’ Bubba said. ‘But the last one’s for another occasion.’

The sisters exchanged a glance.

Naomi changed the subject. ‘I forgot your luggage.’ She dragged the cases in and Rebecca found the perfume.

‘I hope you like this, Bubba. Let me put some on your wrist.’

Bubba grinned her crooked smile as Rebecca sprayed the scent. The old lady lifted her hand and sniffed. ‘Oh!’ she whispered urgently. ‘It’s, oh, the cinnamon tree . . .’

‘It is. Look, there’s even a little cinnamon stick fixed to the lid.’

Bubba touched the thin roll of bark. Her face blanked and she pulled in a sob. ‘Oh, Giovanni.’ She gazed into the past while fresh tears trickled down her cheeks. ‘I waited for so many years.’

Rebecca, alarmed, stared at the fancy perfume bottle and chewed her lip.

Naomi took the scent from her grandmother and returned it to Rebecca. ‘Best put it away for now. Don’t worry. She slips back sometimes, although not so often these days. She’s recalling the past. She’ll be fine in a few minutes. Doctor Despina said we should let her work through these things. Just hold her hand.’

Rebecca did, but it was clear Bubba’s mind had left the room. ‘It was an accident,’ she whispered. ‘I didn’t mean to do it, I swear! Don’t leave me, please come back.’ Then Bubba was crying bitterly. ‘I loved her so much, and now she’s gone. I’m cursed to lose everyone I love.’ She pulled away from Rebecca and dabbed her eyes.

‘How awful! How long’s this been going on?’ Rebecca asked quietly.

‘Since the stroke, she regresses,’ Naomi said. ‘Suffers through the worst times of her life. There’s nothing we can do. It’s as if she needs to go through this pain every so often. She’ll get over it shortly.’ She picked up the perfume. ‘The scent has invoked deeply buried memories.’ She passed a bunch of tissues to Rebecca, who gently dried the tears from her grandmother’s face.

‘You’ve had all this to contend with?’ She blinked at Naomi. ‘I’m so sorry. I’d no idea. Do you have a nurse that comes in?’

‘Don’t be crazy. I haven’t the money for things like that.’ Naomi rubbed a little cream onto Bubba’s hands. ‘I have a rubber sheet on the bed to deal with incontinence, and the doctor calls three times a week. That’s it.’

‘This is too much for you, Naomi. You’ve got to let me help.’

Naomi smiled, but not unkindly. ‘Ah, you’ll clean her up and wash her down when her bowels misbehave, will you?’ The look of revulsion on her sister’s face made Naomi laugh.