Stormy Haven (5 page)

“
I won
’
t do anything in a hurry,
”
Elfrida was saying.
“
Jameson won
’
t know that I
’
m here, and it
w
ill be just as well to find out more about Mindoa before quarreling with him.
”

“
Have you ever met him?
”

“
No.
”
Acidly, she added,
“
And I wouldn
’
t want to meet him now if the estate were showing a profit. Quite obviously he
’
s a slacker; he
’
s been comforting himself with the thought that a woman can be hoodwinked, particularly if she happens to be several thousand miles away. Well, he
’
s going to learn differently!
”

Upon the topic of her reduced income Elfrida could become violently eloquent. During her nervous indisposition Melanie had had to bear hours of carping and venomous conjecture; by turns she had felt sorry for Jameson and hopeful that there was some simple explanation for the diminishing profits.

“
Perhaps he
’
s been ill,
”
Melanie suggested.
“
People here do get fevers.
”

“
Well, we shall see! The plantation made good money once and it can do so again.
”
Methodically, she decisively refolded the map and placed it in a dressing
table drawer.
“
It
’
s bedtime. Good night, Melanie.
”

CHAPTER FOUR

In spite of
being the only, pampered son of a rich father, Ramon Perez was an excellent companion. Having looked at Melanie and decided that her exquisite fairness and modesty concealed a passionate intensity of nature, where she was concerned he was also an instant and tenacious friend.

When Elfrida and Melanie drove up in a Perez car next morning, Ramon met them on the wide path that curved up to a villa of spectacular proportions. In white slacks and silk shirt, a crocus-blue tie floating in the breeze, his thick, glossy hair slicked back, he was even more arrestingly handsome than yesterday. Or perhaps Melanie was better equipped to judge him. His manners were impeccable, which was more than could be said for Stephen
’
s, when they came upon him sitting in the dim veranda with Ramon
’
s father.

Stephen merely half stood, said,
“
Good morning, Elfrida
... Melanie,
”
and sat down to resume his discussion. Not the ghost of an inquiry as to how they had fared at the hotel; though, to be sure, he must have heard their replies to Ramon. His politeness to the old man was marked, his attitude toward Ramon cool and verging on the contemptuous. The young Spaniard, however, insensitive to anything alien in the atmosphere, was a youthful and agreeable host.

“
I
t is really tea that you desire,
senora
?
”
he
demanded of Elfrida.
“
You, too, Melanie—I may call you Melanie?
”

“
If you wish.
”

“
I do wish—very much. And I will teach you to say
‘
Ramon.
’
Tea, then. Mr. Brent, you will have whisky with my father?
”

Magically, within seconds, the tea was brought to the veranda by one white-suited, barefoot servant and the tray with bottles and glasses by another. Ramon had an innocuous tall drink and showed much interest in the tea. His mother, he told them, who could not be persuaded to leave Spain, boasted that she had never drunk tea in her life.

“
She is of the old type,
’
he Said,
“
what you English call
‘
starchy,
’
but she like
s
the English. Her brother, with whom I stayed during my vacations in England, is married to an Englishwoman. I was very happy there.
”

Stephen put in,
“
What are you planning to do when you return to Cadiz?
”

“
Do,
senor
?
”
inquired Ramon, mystified.

“
To justify your existence,
”
Stephen elaborated with some bluntness.

Ramon glanced rather blankly at his father. The old man smiled and shrugged.

“
Stephen is
afraid that you have grown up u
seless, Ramon. His father had wealth, but once his son was started on a chosen profession, he did nothing more for him.
”

“
But what became of the money?
”

“
A large percentage of it,
”
Stephen explained with a blandness that nevertheless had edges,
“
was appropriated by the state for death duties. The rest, with my consent, went a long way toward building a hospital.
”

Ramon looked confused, and then he brightened.
“
One day I, too, will finance the building of a hospital—the Perez Hospital.
”
Having sidestepped Stephen
’
s contention that man was put on the earth to work, he stood up and bowed gracefully to Melanie.
“
Now that you have finished your tea,
I
would like to show you the gardens. Nowhere else in the world will you find so many different kinds of flowers. But, needless to say,
senorita
,
you will be the sweetest of them all.
”
Much as she would have liked to witness Stephen
’
s reception of this piece of extravagance, Melanie daren
’
t look his way. She followed Ramon down the steps, allowed his light touch on her arm as he led her along a path between palms and cypresses.

It was really a gay garden. Terraced emerald lawns, flaming flower borders, branches laden with blossom: frangipani, magnolia, the scarlet tulip trees. The garden finished at a low, ornamental wall that dripped with blue and yellow rock flowers.

Melanie gazed down over the vista of treetops and heavily thatched roofs at the close streets of the town. The dome of the mosque gleamed gold in the glaring sun, its sides, encrusted with semiprecious stones gathered from the beaches, gave back a gaudy glitter. The other churches stood out whitely against the excessive blueness of the sea, and between them huddled the countless stucco dwellings, the bazaars, the shops, the offices of the exporters and shipping agents.

“
The view is good is it not?
”
Ramon, at her side, had gestured toward the sea.
“
Before you came
I
had grown a little tired of it, but
I
can see that you are bewitched and remember how I, also, was entranced when first
I
saw it.
Senorita,
how long will you be here, at Port Fernando?
”

“
I
’
m not sure. Two or three months, perhaps.
”

“
That is good. Is Mrs. Paget your duenna?
”

Melanie gave an uncontrolled little laugh and Ramon
’
s dark eyes glowed. The pretty smile, the white throat, the soft, husky voice. She was not beautiful in the stereotyped way that many of his countrywomen were beautiful, but she had tenderness, an inner light, and no girl with such a lovely mouth could be so cold as this Melanie would have one believe her.

“
Mrs. Paget is my cousin,
”
she said.

“
Your parents are in England?
”

“
I have no parents. My father was in the navy—he died in the Far East when I was a child—and my mother died four years ago.
”

“
My poor Melanie! So you are alone, except for Mrs. Paget.
”
He let a minute slip by, then asked smoothly,
“
I am not quite sure how you are related to Mr. Brent. Is he, in some measure, your guardian?
”

“
Of course not. Stephen was just a shipboard acquaintance who happened to have the same destination.
”

“
Yet it seems to me that he appoints himself your formidable big brother. I do not care for Stephen Brent.
”
Seeing that this lack of fondness probably ha
d
a stronger counterpart i
n
Stephen, Melanie said nothing. She picked a saffron blossom from the wall and sniffed at it. Urgently,
Ramon moved to face her. He was not much taller than she and took no pains to veil his expression.

“
Is it permitted that we dine alone somewhere? There is a place called the Miramar where one can have a good dinner and also dance. Nice people go there, and I would take great care of you and see you early to your hotel. Is it possible that Mrs. Paget would consent?
”

“
She might.
”

“
And if she did?
”

Ramon was young, handsome and smiling, his boldness just a scrap of audacious. To Melanie he was in part an answer to the yearning of her unfledged heart, in part an escape from Elfrida. With a flash of daring she replied,
“
I would like to go to the Miramar,
senor
.
”

“
Then I will certainly win Mrs. Paget
’
s permission!
”

After which he seized her hand and pressed his lips to her wrist.

“
Senorita
...
”
he
stopped himself and stood very straight. Stephen had come upon them, had paused to regard with complete distaste the fire in the eyes of Ramon, the pink flags in Melanie
’
s cheeks.

“
We
’
re going now,
”
he said.
“
There
’
s no need to use the
senor
’
s
car. We
’
ll go in mine.
”

“
I didn
’
t know you had one at Mindoa,
”
she managed.

“
Didn
’
t you?
”
he said abruptly, but offered no enlightenment.

The three of them moved off together, toward the driveway where Senor Perez chatted conventionally with Elfrida. Goodbyes were exchanged. Ramon bent to speak into the back of the car.

“
I will give myself the pleasure of calling upon you later today,
senor
a
,
”
he said.
“
I have a favor to beg of you.
”

“
Why not ask it now?
”
Elfrida queried graciously.

“
It will keep for a few hours.
”
He stepped back and addressed his final farewell exclusively to Melanie.
“
Adios,
senorita
.
”

The car shot away, out of the driveway into the avenue that gradually twisted down into the town. Elfrida was gently smiling to herself, and Stephen, behind the wheel, was staring ahead.

“
Senor Perez is quite nice,
”
said Elfrida, as if mildly surprised at the discovery.
“
The young man has his good points, too. How much longer are they staying on the island, Stephen?
”

His response was noncommittal.
“
They were about due to leave when we arrived. I sent Colonel Davidson a cable from Alexandria, and the
senor
was good enough to hang on till I came.
”

“
Do you know the old man well?
”

“
Fairly. I
’
ve met him in Spain and Morocco. I only saw the cub once before—in England.
”
An instant
’
s pause.
“
Straight to the hotel?
”

“
Please. It
’
s getting toward lunchtime, and in this sticky atmosphere one needs to change often.
”

“
Couldn
’
t we just take a quick look at the shops?
”
pleaded Melanie.

“
I can
’
t think what you find so fascinating about these dirty bazaars. We shall see enough of them in the weeks to come.
”

“
But we haven
’
t strolled in the streets, yet.
”

“
From what I
’
ve seen of it the town is best negotiated by car.
”

“
Couldn
’
t I walk back to the hotel alone?
”

“
No,
”
said Stephen, in his well-known tones of finality,
“
you couldn
’
t.
”
He took the bend that brought them on the main shopping center.
“
I have to call at an office on the Marine Drive. We
’
ll drop Elfrida at the hotel and you can go with me, if you like. You
’
ll be back within half an hour.
”

This was so generous of Stephen that Melanie simply said,
“
Oh, thanks,
”
and subsided into her corner in an aura of self-congratulation. Elfrida lost her smile.

At snail
’
s pace the car nosed through the multicolored crowds, avoided donkey carts and itinerant goats, and was peered into by inquisitive boys and the ever present beggars. When Elfrida had been deposited at the hotel, Melanie transferred to the opposite
corner
and peeped into the nearside shops as they passed. Much of the merchandise was rubbish bought in lots from trading ships, but an exclusive store that actually had plate-glass windows displayed bales of linen and silk, a few dusty pairs of new shoes, some handbags and raincoats.

The Marine Drive was a semicircular thoroughfare edging the bay. Facing the sea were the government buildings and a string of offices and warehouses, and drawn up high above the gray-pink beach was a disorderly collection of sampans and dugout canoes.

As Stephen pulled in, a dozen urchins cocked a hopeful eye and one of them brandished a filthy rag with which he proposed to clean the shining gray car. Stephen waved them off.