Hearts On Fire Episode 05
The guests, Marianna and Julia met on the patio an hour later for drinks and a finger buffet.
Julia looked at the spread, which a young woman with jet-black spiky hair was still bringing out through the kitchen door, and realised she was famished.
She allowed Marianna to fill her glass with wine.
“Ah, the Orvieto Classico,” Charlie declared, picking up a carafe and helping herself.
She held out her glass to the nearest person, Debbie.
“Propino tibi salutme plenis aucibus.”
Debbie looked puzzled, but clinked glasses.
“It’s Latin,” Wizzy explained. “An old Roman toast.”
Charlie took a gulp of wine.
“We got a good grounding in the classics, didn’t we, Wizzy? Lord help the youth of today.
“Photography and sociology. Where will that get us?”
Julia caught Mark’s look.
He rolled his eyes and she looked away before she started giggling.
“Cin cin,” she said, clinking her glass against Wizzy’s. “Isn’t that what the Italians say?”
“It’s Chinese, originally,” Charlie answered, and began a long explanation.
Julia sagged. How could she survive this superior attitude and knowledge?
Mark intervened.
“According to Julia, it’s lucky the Italians don’t all speak . . .” He broke off and looked puzzled.
“Where was Hannibal from?” he asked her.
“North Africa,” she replied.
“Carthage,” Charlie supplied easily, as though that explained everything.
“Of course,” Mark continued, as though he’d known all along.
“So it’s lucky you don’t speak Carthaginian,” he said to Marianna, who laughed.
Mark looked at Julia.
“What did I say?”
Julia shrugged.
“I’m at the limit of my knowledge. I only know what I read in the guidebook.”
“Hannibal spoke Punic.” Charlie enlightened everyone. “A variation of Phoenician.”
She looked set to deliver a history of the Punic Wars when Marianna intervened.
“You put us all to shame, Charlie,” she said. “But I must give my introductory talk. No doubt Julia would like to introduce herself, too.”
Marianna looked to her for confirmation and Julia smiled.
“Yes, I’d like to explain how I expect the week to work. I’m sure it’ll be a little different from other art courses you’ve taken.” She avoided looking at Charlie and Wizzy as she said this.
“No doubt,” Charlie commented, looking pointedly at the view.
Marianna talked for nearly half an hour.
She explained what Villa Davide had to offer, about walks the guests might wish to take, and about showers, which were rationed.
“Italy is in the grip of drought,” Marianna explained. “No rain for eight months.”
Julia noticed Mark blanch. He’d eaten hardly anything and was staring at his glass as though trying to shut out reality.
“So,” Marianna went on, “we have water for showers for half an hour in the morning between eight and eight-thirty.”
“Oh, how tiresome,” Charlie complained. “I was looking forward to an afternoon shower. Can’t you make an exception for us?”
Marianna smiled and shook her head.
“I’m afraid not. We are in crisis. But the cold shower next to the swimming pool still works, so you can wash off the chlorine.”
Mark lifted his head.
“Aren’t you worried about forest fires?”
“Yes, of course,” Marianna answered honestly. “But this is our home. There is nothing we can do about that.”
Mark, Julia noticed, grew paler still and was sweating.
“But if there is a drought, how will they fight it?” he asked. “They won’t have water.”
“There are no water pipes in the forest,” Marianna countered.
Julia looked out over the endless forest. She hadn’t thought about a fire.
But now he mentioned it, Mark was right.
Her stomach began to flutter at the memory of terrifying news reports of fast-moving flames, dense smoke and charred ruins.
She saw others looking, too.
Julia assumed other houses nestled in the trees, but she couldn’t see them.
Nor could she imagine anything a firefighter might attach his hose to.
“There is the lake,” Marianna continued.
“Lake Trasimeno?” Mark asked.
Marianna nodded.
“Yes. Helicopters pick up water from there, but mostly they fight the fire with . . .” She broke off and made an action.
“Beaters,” Julia provided.
“Yes, beaters. But our fire service is excellent. Everyone knows to keep watch and contact the authorities at the first sign of smoke.”
Her answers reassured Julia, but Mark wouldn’t drop the subject.
“What would you do if a fire was coming this way?”
“We would get in the car and drive to safety.”
“What if it was already on your driveway?”
The driveway from the main road was long, so Mark had a fair point, and Julia found herself hanging on Marianna’s answer.
“Oh, that happened one year, didn’t it, Marianna?” Charlie turned to Wizzy for confirmation.
“I’m not sure people want to hear about that, Charlie,” her friend replied.
Mark was transfixed. The rest of the group was silent.
Charlie waved away Wizzy’s objection.
“Oh, but it’s such a luscious story. There was an arsonist, wasn’t there, Marianna? How many fires did he set? Twelve?”
Marianna tried to play it down.
“Many fewer, and he was caught.”
Charlie ignored her.
“One of the fires was at the entrance to the drive, which is about a kilometre, would you say?”
“No, no. Only a few hundred metres.”
It was far enough for the fire to make it impassable before anyone noticed the danger, Julia thought.
Mark’s knee was jiggling up and down like a jack hammer.
Julia guessed he had a fear of fire. He was transmitting it to her and possibly the others.
She reached and caught his hand beneath the table.
He stared down at it for a few moments, then raised frightened eyes to hers.
“The fire was quickly spotted and dealt with, Charlie,” Marianna continued. “The arsonist is in jail. It can’t happen again.”
Mark stood and shook himself free of Julia’s grasp.
“I’m sorry. I can’t stay here. I thought I was coming to a farm –”
“It is a farm,” Marianna interrupted.
“It,” Mark began, one arm outstretched towards the forest, “is a tinderbox. Infinite, desiccated trees just waiting to explode into flames.
“It doesn’t need an arsonist. It takes one discarded cigarette. A spark from a barbecue.
“I’m sorry; you can all stay and await the inevitable if you want.”
He turned to their host.
“Marianna, I need to arrange a flight home and find somewhere to stay tonight.”
Then Mark strode indoors, leaving everyone speechless.
Julia’s heart was in her throat. This was the worst possible start for Marianna.
She looked at the shocked faces around her and wondered who would be next.
To be continued…