Chapter Fifty-Seven
Fifty-seven
Skye went back to the start.
She told Andreas everything, ignoring the temptation to gloss over the less-palatable parts she had played. Lying, pretending, faking—they were all past tense. Honesty had stepped up and eradicated the lot.
He said little, though listened intently, head bent toward her, his lips slightly parted.
Filiá wandered out to join them. The dog pressed her cool snout into Skye’s hand before crossing to the discarded socks to give them a sniff.
“Do you think I’m a bad person?” she asked.
“No,” he said. “What I think is that you are a brave person.”
“I might’ve agreed with you yesterday,” Skye said. “But then I read the rest of the letters.”
She glanced down at the tote bag on her lap.
“I brought them here to show you,” she said.
“When the earthquake happened, part of the wall upstairs at my house fell in. There’s a hollow on the landing, between the two bedrooms. I felt around inside and found a pouch containing some dogs tags, a gold cross, and a Nazi medal.
I don’t know who the last one belonged to, but I think I do know how the other things got there. ”
“They were all together inside your house?” Andreas frowned.
“It’s all linked,” she said. “The remains in my garden, the saber Dusty found, the dog tags. The only puzzle still to solve is that of the person buried under the lime tree in the empty house.”
“It is not the same man who wore the tags and the cross?”
“No,” she said. “Something else happened to him.”
Andreas cocked an eyebrow.
“Will you tell me?”
Skye inched the bag toward him.
“I think it’s better if Katerina does that herself.”
Andreas stretched his arms above his head, yawning widely.
“Must be catching,” Skye said, nodding toward Filiá. The little dog was turning around in ever-decreasing circles, trying to find a comfortable spot on Andreas’s socks. “Do you want me to go so you can sleep?”
“éla, no.” Andreas reached down and patted her hand. “I want you to walk with me.”
They went together down the steps and crossed onto the beach, his arm brushing against hers, a light morning breeze blowing loose strands of hair across Skye’s cheeks.
It was still quiet, though more of the surrounding shutters had been opened, the new day welcomed inside.
Filiá followed them, her nose to the ground, stubby tail wagging.
“Will you keep her?” Skye asked.
Andreas made a soft tutting sound.
“I am too busy. But she is a nice dog. I am sure she will find a new home soon.”
“Maybe she could come and live in the village—although I’m not sure how Tigri would feel about that. He already has Bruno to contend with.”
“Bruno is more of a log than a dog,” Andreas said.
His hand was close to hers. It would be so easy to reach out, slide her fingers through his.
“I love it here,” she murmured. “I feel safe, I guess. As if I’m finally in the right place.”
“That is exactly how I felt the first time I came to the island,” Andreas said, though his words were weighed down.
There was something below the surface, a barrier that had not been there before.
Skye held back as they drew closer to what remained of Karolos’s house, but Andreas pressed on.
He crouched and began to root through the rubble with his fingers, tossing aside chunks of masonry and broken picture frames. A flash of gold caught Skye’s eye.
“Is that another idol?” she asked.
“Saint Nektarios, the miracle worker.” Andreas lifted the small treasure, used his thumb to wipe away the dust. “This was my fault,” he said. “I knew it was unsafe. I should have forced the old man to let me do the work.”
“No, no.” Skye was beside him in an instant. “How could you ever have known what would happen?”
Andreas shook his head.
“It was an act of nature,” she insisted.
Filiá picked her way past them, nosing through the debris. A moment later, she froze, her tail upright, rigid. Skye moved to comfort her, but the dog shied away, sticking her muzzle in the air and letting out a mournful-sounding howl.
Andreas got shakily to his feet. They stood, facing each other.
“It’s not your fault,” she said. Slowly, she moved toward him. Placed her hand against his chest. Pressed until she felt his heart. It was beating out of time.
“I was distracted,” he said, his own hand coming up, his thumb finding her cheek.
Skye’s mouth went dry.
“Distracted by what?” she whispered.
The way he touched her cast her adrift from herself.
Andreas moved his thumb softly over her lips.
“You,” he said. “Always you.”
He leaned closer, but Skye jerked away.
“What is the matter?” Andreas asked, his arms falling limply to his sides.
“You were angry at me,” Skye said, unable to keep her tone neutral. “Why?”
He kicked at a stone, swore.
“éla, because you did not trust me. I told you about my brother, Sotiris, and still, you sent me away.”
“That was because I was scared. In that moment, I wanted to confide in someone that I knew would understand, not fly off the handle.”
“What is ‘fly off the handle’?”
“It’s when someone loses their temper, gets angry. It’s what Martyn did all the time; it’s what men do all the time.”
Andreas opened his mouth, then closed it again.
“It wasn’t that I didn’t trust you,” Skye said. “It wasn’t really about you at all. It was about me. What I needed in that moment. It doesn’t mean I don’t care about you. I do. I—I’ve missed you.”
Andreas took a breath, fixed her with a steady gaze.
“And I’ve told you now,” she went on. “About Martyn, about all of it. Doesn’t that count for something?”
He folded his arms.
“This isn’t fair, Andreas. You haven’t been honest with me, either.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, you were married. That’s right,” she added as his eyes went wide, “I know about your ex-wife. I saw her at the church in Chora. There was a bird and— Never mind, the point is, I know. When were you going to tell me about that, huh? After you’d kissed me?
After we’d had sex? When? Because I’ll tell you one thing, I’ve been with one colossal liar in my time, and I’m not about to fall for another one. ”
Andreas stared at her, jaw hanging open, skin a blotchy red.
“You ask me about Eurora now?” he said icily. “I am standing in the ruins of my dead friend’s house and you want me to talk about the ruins of my marriage?”
Skye faltered, her breath catching.
“I just want to know you,” she said softly.
But he was already turning. Already walking away. Already gone.
Skye was left alone in the silence he didn’t stay to fill.