Page 6 of Vengeance in Venice
Giusti grinned. “We came to mount a rescue, signora, but you appear to have rescued yourself.”
“She does that,” Solomon said with pride, though he was afraid his voice cracked. He pushed her gently onto the cushioned bench and sat beside her, holding both her hands and searching her face for signs of fear or injury. “What happened?”
“It was so quick, I had no chance. Almost as soon as Alvise left me to go to your aid, two men seized me and dragged me down the narrow passage between the buildings. People must have seen, Solomon, but no one helped.”
“The city is afraid,” Giusti said sadly. “And suspicious. We pretend—perhaps your captors are police, so we don’t wish to be involved. Or you are an errant wife who deserves a husband’s discipline. I am ashamed. And I am so sorry for my part in your experience.”
Constance, though she held very tightly to Solomon’s hands, seemed already to be recovering her usual spirits. “You appear to have come off worse than I, signor. My captor was also responsible for the attack on you. He said you have something of his.”
Giusti’s cut lips twisted. “He has something of mine.”
“He thought I was your lover.”
Rather to Solomon’s surprise, Giusti actually blushed. “That is his shame, and mine, most certainly not yours. Forgive us. At least he is not so lost to honor that he tried to keep you.” He switched his gaze to Solomon. “My home is nearby. Allow your boatman to set me down at the next steps. But perhaps I may call upon you tomorrow to express my thanks?”
“There is no need,” Solomon said. “But we will be happy to receive you. We are at the Palazzo Zulian—do you know it?”
“In Cannaregio? Yes, a good place, quiet and yet close to everything you need.”
Warily, Solomon scanned the side of the canal while Alvise held the boat steady.
Constance said, “Is there someone at home to care for your wounds, Signor Giusti? Are you safe?”
Giusti laughed. “Tonight, I have never been safer. It is Savelli who is now awaiting my reply. Forgive us for mixing you up in our quarrels. Goodnight.”
He sprang up the steps with an airy wave and vanished into the night.
Beside Solomon, Constance relaxed and leaned into him. They glided on through the city in silence, save for the gentle lapping of the water and the splash of Alvise’s oar.
*
“It took meby surprise,” Constance admitted when they were finally alone in her bedchamber, and she had been bathed and dressed in a soft nightgown. Solomon had seen the bruises on her arms, but though his lips tightened, he made no comment. He was waiting for her to tell him, and for that, she was grateful.
“It felt like a nightmare,” she said, sitting on the bed while he watched her from the shuttered window, “coming from nowhere out of our perfect idyll. And now it is already faded, a nightmare I haven’t forgotten but one I know has not harmed me.Cannotharm me. The bruises are just from the men’s hold—they had to be harsh because I struggled so much. But beyond that, they did not hurt me. My host was furious with them—and not just for taking the wrong woman. He was appalled that they had gagged me.”
“What did he expect?” Solomon said, trying to keep the savagery from his voice. “If he abducts a lady from the street—”
“To be fair, I don’t believe he instructed them to do so. They acted on their own initiative because they thought I had sent you and Alvise to help Signor Giusti. Don’t look like that, Sol. I can’t deny I was frightened, but he was perfectly civil. The worst part was not even knowing if you were alive.”
“I was afraid I had lost you,” Solomon said hoarsely. “Forever.”
Like her, he had been a lonely but self-sufficient person before they met. This connection between them, this love that had bound them so inextricably, had taken them both by surprise, and since their wedding, they had grasped the happiness with both hands in the foolish assumption that nothing could threaten it now. Well, therewerethreats. But nothing could break the bond.
She rose and went to him, taking his hand and kissing it. “You and I know better than that. Come to bed, Solomon.”
They lay together in a loose, gentle embrace. Perhaps it was sheer relief at their safety, but with their bruises salved and the comfort of his presence, she felt curiously at peace.
“Do you want to leave?” he asked, just when she thought he was falling asleep.
She shook her head, taking his face between her hands in the darkness. “No. Not unless you do. It was just another adventure. I love this city, but it would not be natural if it didn’t have a darker side. This Savelli is not a cruel man. He loves his wife, and in his own way, he is as intriguing as your Giusti. I think we have a task for Silver and Grey. To find a way to end their feud.”
“I have always loved your optimism.”
She smiled, her lips against his skin. “There will be no fee, of course, so if we fail, we lose nothing.”
“And no one in England needs to know.”
She knew from his voice that he was finally smiling, too. She had found, she thought, the perfect way to get over the ugliness of their fright. They would use it to do some good and enjoy the new adventure.
