Vistaria Has Fallen (The Vistaria Affair/Vistaria Has Fallen #1)(43)

She apologized, pushed herself back upright and ignored Duardo’s thoughtful expression.

Minnie already showed signs that the restless night was catching up with her, so Calli waited. Soon, Minnie’s eyes slid closed and her head bumped against Duardo’s shoulder. He lifted his arm and settled her head on his legs and she curled up like a kitten and slept.

Duardo looked at Calli expectantly.

“How many people around us understand English, do you think?”

He didn’t look around, which told her he had already assessed everyone near them. “None. They have not reacted to comments we have made.”

“You have a pistol under your jacket.”

“Yes.”

“Why? Are we in that much danger?”

“Pascuallita is only five miles from the area of a known rebel camp. I must act as if I am in enemy territory.”

“It is your home town, isn’t it?”

He grimaced. “Many call Tel-Aviv their home town. Belfast, too.”

“There has been trouble in Pascuallita?”

“Once.” Unconsciously, he rubbed his thigh.

“You were part of that trouble, weren’t you? You were caught in it.”

“Yes.”

“That is what you did that earned you honor, that got you invited to General Blanco’s birthday. You said you protected your country.”

“I did,” he agreed.

“Would you be carrying the gun if you didn’t have us with you?”

“Maybe not. I do not know. You are with me and—” He glanced around. “Nick asked me to get you to Pascuallita and so I shall.”

“What did you tell the guard last night? The one that tried to stop us when we headed for the palace?”

“Pardon?”

“The one that put his rifle back on safety and melted into the dark. I’ve been thinking, Duardo. It seems odd that a security detail surrounding a Presidential residence would allow an American woman to climb up into the building, even if she was with one of their own. You said something—enough to allow me to wander freely into Nick’s rooms. What did you say?”

He considered her for a moment. “I told him that—” Again the quick look around, an awareness of his audience disciplining his tongue. “That the long blonde heroine of Prince Leopold’s domain wished to speak to Nick.”

“And just like that, he let you through?”

“Your reputation has spread throughout the army, Callida. You are the strong one. They will allow you almost any liberty, if you say you want it.”

She ran a hand through her hair, uneasy. “Don’t tell me they have some cute little Spanish name for me, like Nick’s?”

Duardo grinned. “I translated it literally. ‘Long, strong, blonde’.”

“Ouch.”

He laughed properly then. “Vistarians are all poets, even the soldiers. You cannot stop them weaving tales around everything.”

“I’m not a hero, Duardo. You know why I did what I did and it wasn’t for the sake of Vistaria.”

His laughter fled. “It does not matter why you did it. You were scared and you didn’t know if you could do it, yet you did it anyway. That is a hero. Me, I will always be grateful you did what you did.” He looked down at Minnie and caressed her cheek.

That gentle sweep of his fingers reassured Calli more than anything he could have said.

“What do we do when we get to Pascuallita?” she asked.

“Act like tourists, did he not say?”

“Are there lots of tourists in Pascuallita?”

“A few. It is an uncomfortable journey, so not as many as there should be. Pascuallita is very handsome.”

“Pretty.”

“Sì. The mountains, the old houses. To me it is simply home. People tell me it is charming.”

“So charming, the rebels are within spitting distance,” Calli muttered. “What was he thinking of, bringing us there?”

“He lives there,” Duardo said.

“He does?”

“Not in the town. Nearby. That is why I met him once before I met Minnie and you. When...” He touched his thigh. “He came to speak to those of us who fought that day.”

A shiver climbed up her spine. Nick’s home.

“How long till we get there?” she asked.

“An hour, maybe. We will be there in time for a late lunch.”

*

Duardo took them to a public house across the road from the railway station. It appeared to be a custom of his when he arrived back in Pascuallita because the man behind the bar greeted him by name.

They slid into a booth with high benches and wooden walls that blocked the table from the view of all but someone standing right next to it. Duardo ordered, chatting with the waiter. When the waiter nodded and walked away, he shrugged. “You must trust me. They don’t have a menu here and I know what is good.”

“That’s fine, Duardo,” Calli assured him.

Minnie, looking fresh and rested, rolled her eyes. “Just don’t let her gobble it down. She turned purple in the face last time because she bit into something too hot for her. You let her do that again and she’ll sue you for damages to her tongue.”

Duardo seemed incapable of accepting teasing in his new role as their appointed guardian. He shook his head. “You will like this.”