One Hour to Midnight Page 5

  A small sound made her turn as the door closed behind him. She sucked in a shaky breath and leaned her hot face on the cool glass.

  Why does he have the power to hurt me after all this time?

  At last she sat and poured another cup of tea. Nothing could stem the rush of memories. Some so uncomfortable they made her cringe.

  The fantasies she wove. She'd regarded Leon as her white knight, sent to rescue her from the consequences of her own foolishness. When had that intense awareness of him begun?

  Looking back now with the benefit of maturity, she realised it had been at their first meeting. She shuddered and leapt from the chair, chewing on her knuckles. Nothing could subdue the excoriating memories.

  I was so naïve, so fucking stupid. I thought Leon was my white knight, sent to rescue me from the consequences of my foolishness.

  Instead he was the devil, already plotting my downfall.

  And that quickly she was back at Jacobs Well—

  —the baby was as restless as I was.

  No matter how I moved, the baby turned making that position just as uncomfortable. I rubbed my belly but nothing eased the discomfort.

  When would Yannis come?

  I just knew something was wrong. Is Yannis lying about his brother not wanting us to marry?

  Unable to sit still, I paced. I opened the door, but the blast of heat had me shutting it just as quickly.

  Only the air conditioning made the Queensland summer bearable.

  No matter how often I glanced at the clock, the hands never moved. Where is Yannis? He promised he'd stay with me until the baby comes.

  I must have dozed because the cottage door opened on a blast of hot air and Yannis was there. And my worry faded like mist before the sun.

  Tall and dark, Yannis Karvasis was fantasy in the flesh. His pale grey eyes sparkled with charm, and were such a striking contrast to his tanned face. My heart turned over. I loved him so much. "You're here."

  Yannis chuckled as he scooped me into a tight hug. "Miss me?"

  "Do you have to ask?"

  He held my face between his hands and his expression set my heart racing in panic. I wasn't mistaken. Something was very wrong. "What is it?"

  "I have to go away again." He kissed me. "Will you be okay?"

  "How can you leave? You've barely stepped inside the door."

  "I have no time to explain." He avoided looking at me. "Leon will relent. Then we won't have these separations, you'll see."

  He kissed me, a quick hard kiss before he let me go and strode to the door.

  "When will you be back?" My voice trembled.

  Yannis frowned, eyes narrowed, enough to let me know he hated me whining.

  "I'll be back as soon as I can." He paused in the doorway, and gave me the strangest look. "Miss me."

  And he was gone.

  I stood in the middle of the room and knew I'd made a terrible mistake. Tears leaked down my cheeks. How could he do this to me?

  That night, around midnight, the bedroom light snapped on and a harsh, guttural oath blistered the air. Jerked from a sound sleep, I looked up as a dark haired stranger crossed to the bed, yanked back the covers, grey eyes almost black with fury as they raked me from head to toe.

  "Are you Ricki?"

  My heart pounding with fright, I managed to nod. Too aware my nightgown offered scant protection, I shrank away.

  His eyes widened and he shook his head like a dog coming out of water.

  Moving slowly, as if in deep shock, he spanned the swell of my pregnant belly with huge tanned hands.

  "Sweet Jesus, you're pregnant!" The soft whisper was more potent than any curse.

  He looked from my distended belly to my face. "Yannis's baby?"

  This man had to be Leon Karvasis. His resemblance to Yannis was unmistakable.

  "Who are you?" I asked, defiant. "Yannis and I are engaged to be married."

  Another savage oath blistered the air and heat flooded my face.

  "I'm Yannis's brother, Leon." Then, expression curiously gentle, he sat on the edge of the bed. "You're engaged to Yannis?"

  I nodded but this formidable stranger frightened me.

  "I wonder if Sonia knows that. Or Andreas and Katya."

  "Sonia?" Somehow I managed to breathe. Who were these people?

  "Yannis's wife and children. You didn't know?"

  Shocked, I gasped. He's trying to scare me off, Yannis warned me he would? "You're lying."

  "Suit yourself." He stood up, towering over me.

  I sat up pulling the sheet up to cover myself. He shrugged and turned away to survey the room. My heart threatened to burst out of my chest as I slid from the bed and pulled on my dressing gown.

  "Quite the illicit love nest." His contemptuous glance seared like a red hot brand. "I must be crazy? Did I imagine acting as best man for Yannis when he married Sonia?"

  Somehow, I faced my tormentor. He was lying. He had to be.

  "And propping him up when Andreas was born," he said, in that same remorseless tone that scared me silly. "He was no better when Katya was born. Yannis finds it hard to face difficult situations."

  The horrid words eddied and swirled. Was he being truthful? He gripped my shoulders and looked at me, his expression harsh and unforgiving.

  "You little fool. Yannis won't leave his wife for you. It's her money keeping you in this love nest. He hasn't earned it working for me."

  My meagre meal threatened to return as his words hit like a fist in the stomach, leaving me winded.

  "How can you live knowing you're being kept by your lover's wealthy wife?"

  Somehow I escaped his grip and staggered to the window, resting my forehead on the cool glass. Married—Yannis's married, with children?

  And I'm pregnant.

  I began to shake and my knees threatened to give out.

  "You can't stay here." Leon strode to the wardrobe, ignoring me. "All hell's set to break loose. Get dressed."

  He pulled out some clothes, shoes, panties and a bra and shoved them at me but I was frozen, unable to move.

  He gripped my shoulders, his expression softer. "Do you want to be at the mercy of the press?"

  I managed to shake my head.

  "They're hard on my tail, sweetheart. If you want to give them the slip, get dressed."

  I took the clothes and staggered to the bathroom and somehow managed to pull them on. All the while his words echoed through my head. Yannis's married—married with children.

  I heard him opening drawers. My makeup and toothpaste lay on the counter and I tried to gather them but my hands shook so badly, they fell from my grasp.

  After a perfunctory knock Leon came in and seeing my difficulty, bundled them into the toilet bag for me. He grabbed the discarded robe and gown and shoved them in the bag he carried.

  "What's going to happen to me and my baby?"

  That made him pause. "How old are you?"

  "S..s..seventeen."

  He swore soft lurid curses, closed his eyes, and ran a tanned hand across his face. He caught my hand, grabbed the hastily packed bag, adding a pillow and rug and propelled me to the internal garage.

  "Lie in the back seat. Cover yourself with a rug. Show your face and it will be plastered across every newspaper in Australia tomorrow, or maybe worse, okay?"

  Traumatized, I had no choice but to obey. As his car sped through the night, I buried my face in the pillow to muffle my tears—

  Veronica shuddered and leapt from the chair, the memory as fresh as yesterday. She chewed the knuckles on her fist. How could I have been so naïve, so stupid? Why didn't I question Leon? Refuse to go along with his edicts?

  Leon had taken her to his home in Melbourne. At Claremont, he handed her over into the care of his wife. It was Julia who told her of Yannis's suicide, his embezzlement of company funds, his huge gambling debts. The scandals had rocked Australia.

  She'd never forgiven Yannis his betrayal. Or Julia for telling her.


  She slapped a palm against her forehead.

  I knew returning here would be difficult, but surely it shouldn't be this hard. And the sooner naïve, gullible Ricki Langdon dies the better.

  From here on out, pragmatic, sensible, take no bullshit Veronica, was firmly in charge.

  A knock on the door broke her into her troubled thoughts and she welcomed the distraction. "Come in."

  The door opened and a woman entered.

  Veronica somehow managed to control her shocked surprise. Yannis's widow was the very last person she'd expected.

  "Hello, Ricki." Sonia Karvasis's smile was wary. "Leon asked me to visit. He's worried you'll feel alone and isolated."

  Veronica didn't miss the irony. Her last encounter with this woman had not been pleasant.

  "Sonia," she said, cautious. "It was kind of Leon to suggest you visit. I know very few people in Melbourne."

  The years had treated the other woman kindly. Her blonde hair showed no hint of grey. Her blue eyes seemed much softer. Amazed, Veronica realised she wasn't intimidated.

  I'm no longer a scared, pregnant seventeen-year old girl, either.

  Once she'd taken everyone at face value.

  Maturity made her more discerning.

  Sonia's presence stirred too many questions. Could she seek answers? Did she really want to know? Or would the answers be far too unpalatable?

  "Does Leon have any kindness for either you or me?" Sonia asked with a bitter little laugh.

  A shiver, as cold as snakeskin, slithered down Veronica's spine. "Oh?"

  Sonia walked across to the window twisting restless hands. "Leon's my children's guardian. Everything I do with regard to Andreas and Katya, he has to approve."

  Veronica frowned doing the mental arithmetic, "Andreas is what, sixteen?"

  "Fourteen going on forty. And he's far too angry. He resents Leon's petty restrictions, his unrealistic expectations."

  "Surely Leon has his best interests at heart?"

  "Leon's far too hard on my son." Sonia turned from the window and something in her expression made Veronica even more wary. "He struggles to distinguish Andreas from his father."

  She watched the blonde, her heart jerking in her chest. "And you're surprised?"

  Even now, Veronica struggled with the enormity of Yannis's deception, his calculated cruelty, the immorality of not only his actions, but Leon's and Julia's too. They had all preyed on a love-starved girl's infatuation.

  Oh yes, it was more than time to kill off Ricki.

  Was Andreas heading along the same path? Was this the root of Leon's concern?

  Sonia's eyes narrowed. "Not really. Yannis was an unfeeling bastard, but does that make him any different from Leon?"

  The question lay there like a gauntlet thrown into the silence, a challenge Veronica wasn't prepared to touch.

  "And if I were you, Ricki, I'd be very concerned. If Jordan survives, will he suffer the same fate?"

  Veronica took a slow, hurting breath, hand clenched tightly. The silence in the room suddenly so intense, the squabbling of brightly coloured parrots in the trees outside the window could be clearly heard.

  "I go by my given name now, Veronica." She lifted her chin, shoulders straight. "Jordan isn't my concern, Sonia. I relinquished my rights."

  The words hurt, but they needed to be said.

  Every moment since her arrival here had only served to reinforce Kathleen's words. Jordan was not her child, had never been her child since the day she'd given him to Leon and Julia. And this was an acknowledgement far too long in coming.

  "Veronica?" Sonia raised one well-shaped eyebrow. "What brought that about?"

  "Could it be that the entire Karvasis family killed off the naïve, gullible Ricki?"

  Dull colour ran up under Sonia's fair skin. "Are you lumping me in with them?"

  Memories of her previous encounter with this woman surfaced and with it a quirk of black humour. What was it Kathleen always said? If the cap fits, wear it.

  "Why are you here?" Veronica was suddenly impatient with this woman and whatever agenda she was peddling.

  "I thought when he adopted Jordan Leon would butt out of my life. What a joke!" Sonia gave an inelegant snort and paced in front of the window. "Now, I've a new man in my life. José wants us to marry, and me and the children go and live with him in Argentina."

  "And?"

  "Leon won't have a bar of it." Sonia's pacing grew more frantic. "It'll do Andreas good to leave Melbourne and the toxic taint surrounding his father's name."

  Veronica frowned. "And what has this to do with me?"

  Sonia stared at her, expression arrested. "You really don't know do you?"

  "Know what?" Apprehension leaked through Veronica's astonishment.

  Sonia laughed, shaking her head. "And you said naïve, gullible Ricki Langdon was dead?"

  "I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about." Veronica wondered if this was how Alice felt after she'd fallen down the rabbit hole.

  "That's what's so funny. Don't you know Leon has you in his sights to replace his darling Julia? Can you persuade Leon to be reasonable? So José and I can marry?"

  She wants me to plead her case with Leon. Veronica's patience evaporated.

  Sonia, like every other Karvasis, was a user. How she dreamed up this ludicrous idea was anyone's guess.

  As if I can persuade Leon to do anything.

  Chapter Five

  Veronica dozed in the recliner, exhausted after the physical endurance test.

  "How are you feeling?" A nurse placed a parcel on the table beside her chair.

  Veronica grimaced. "I had no idea I was so unfit."

  The nurse chuckled. "Scary isn't it? Here's a delivery to cheer you up."

  Intrigued, Veronica sat up. The parcel was light and odd shaped. Surprise gifts were few and far between and she savoured the moment. Why was Leon sending her gifts? Veronica opened the attached card. The childish writing set her heart thudding.

  Veronica.

  Dad helped me choose a gift to thank you for your help.

  Jordan.

  It was too much. Leon didn't play fair! Veronica held a trembling hand to her cheek. When had the Karvasis family ever played fair?

  This gift was Leon's idea. Jordan couldn't leave his hospital bed. She opened the parcel and the breath caught in her throat.

  Nestled in tissue, a silver mouse, bright ruby eyes in an inquisitive face peeping from a hole in the base of a tree trunk. The tiny animal was perfect in every delicate detail. She loved it, ran a finger over its surface and turned it up and found hall marks. It was an antique and she knew it was no junk shop find.

  With a hollow, sinking sensation, Veronica knew Leon had taken note of every detail of her home. How else would he know she'd covet this addition to her collection of antique silver animals?

  And knowing this underlined her vulnerability.

  A movement in the doorway made her look up straight into Leon's appraising gaze. He walked in and sat in the chair opposite as Sonia's words echoed in her ears. Leon has you in his sights to replace his darling Julia.

  Acutely uncomfortable, Veronica gave him an under-her –lashes glance. "It's beautiful. Thanks, but why pretend the gift was from Jordan?"

  "When I saw it, I remembered your collection. It reminded me of you."

  That startled her to looking at him. "Of Me? Why?"

  He glanced from her to the ornament. "That night at your cottage you reacted so much like that little animal."

  She spluttered on a choked laugh. "Well thanks."

  Leon leaned across and touched it with a finger. "Only your mouse-hole is that cottage, isn't it?"

  His astuteness was unnerving. "Why get Jordan to fill out the card?"

  "It's a way to involve him. Jordan needs more than to worry about his illness." He looked up, his gaze laser keen. "Will you visit Jordan? He'd needs to see you."

  His quiet question made her mouth go dry. Jordan's plight
made the rights and wrongs of this awful situation irrelevant, but she was still reluctant. "How is he?"

  "He's holding his own." He caught her hand, squeezing it. "We'll know soon if you can give him that vital chance."

  And that's all the use I've ever been to this family. Julia and Leon saw me as the chance to gain what nature denied them, a child.

  "Don't look like that!" He gripped her chin forcing her to meet his eyes. "Veronica, listen to me. If you're not a suitable donor, Jordan will die."

  The harsh words jolted her. She clutched at her throat, distressed. "He won't die."

  "Yes he can." Leon caught her hand. "Even if you're a suitable donor there's a high chance he could reject your bone-marrow. And with the strain of leukaemia he has, a bone marrow transplant may only grant him remission."

  "Why are you doing this?" A giant hand of fear crushed her from the inside out.

  Leon's face was so close; all she could see was the searing grey of his eyes. "You already hate me and despise yourself. How are you going to feel if you refuse what may be the only chance of ever seeing Jordan alive? Are you going to be able to live with it? Death isn't for one year or even ten, it's forever."

  "It's Veronica," she said, fighting against his hold. He let go and she slumped in the chair.

  "Is it?" His scathing glance scorched her. "Then act like Veronica and not a wimp. Jordan's a frightened little boy. He needs to see you."

  The scathing indictment scrambled her thought processes. This situation was outside her experience and pushed her well beyond her comfort zone.

  "What have you told him about me?" Nervous fingers pleated the fabric of her skirt.

  "He knows you're his birth mother and although I've told him you're here, I don't think he really believes me."

  "He knows he's adopted?"

  "It's my policy never to lie." Leon's glance was hooded. "Jordan's always known of his adoption. He's funny, intelligent and understands far too much about the implications of his illness."

  "That's tough."

  "It is tough." Leon threaded fingers through his silver streaked hair. "In a lot of ways, he reminds me of you. He takes such delight in simple things and yet he's also such a boy."

  The words should have comforted her, but only left her more isolated. This was why I wanted no contact. These memories offer a glimpse of the unattainable.