Carpathian 00 - The Scarletti Curse

she thought he was going to open his arms and allow the other man to kill him. Don Scarletti seemed to be speaking softly, shaking his head.
    "No," she said softly to the wind. "No."
    At the precise moment of her denial of his death, the don's shoulders straightened, and his betrayer attacked. The don was once again a whirling blur of motion as he leapt to one side to avoid the dagger, catching his opponent's wrist and twisting it as he stepped back into the man so that the blade buried itself in the betrayer's chest. They stood, toe to toe, staring into each other's eyes, and then slowly the betrayer collapsed, and the don lowered him reluctantly to the sand. He stood for a moment, his head bowed in evident sorrow, and she saw his hands come up to cover his eyes.
    Nicoletta's heart turned over, and tears shimmered in her eyes for a moment, blurring the scene below.
    She wiped them away and looked down again. The don suddenly looked up. Gasping, she shrank back into the foliage. Even though it was impossible for Don Scarletti to see her through the thick leaves and branches, she felt the weight of his stare. He could not have seen her, not from that angle; it would have been impossible. He couldn't even have known she was there. Her teeth bit at her lip nervously. She had always been so careful, yet in a short time she had had two strange encounters with Don Giovanni Scarletti, the very last aristocratico she should ever meet.
    "Nicoletta!" Ketsia's plaintive voice caught her attention, and she turned to see the child rushing toward her. Obviously alarmed because she could no longer see Nicoletta, she had panicked. Tears streaked her little face.

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    Nicoletta immediately caught the child to her, dragging her back away from the cliff so she could not see Don Scarletti and his dead assailants on the beach below.
    "Were you afraid, piccola?" Nicoletta stroked back her hair and bent to kiss the upturned face. "I thought I heard something, but…" She shrugged casually. "What frightened you?"
    "I thought… Did you see the color of the sky? I thought…" Ketsia trailed off. "Maria Pia told me I should watch you all the time. I did not want you to get into trouble."
    Nicoletta hugged her. "The sky was indeed a wondrous hue, but Maria Pia—well, she can frighten the men in the villaggio, she can frighten the sheep on the hillsides, perhaps she can even frighten the fish in the sea, but certainly not you, Ketsia. Why, I have seen you fly at your big brother when he teases you.
    Surely he is much more terrifying than Maria Pia." Deliberately she teased the little girl as she continued to walk with her toward the trail.
    Nicoletta wanted to go back and see what had happened, but she didn't dare rouse Ketsia's suspicions; the little girl was curious about everything her mentor did. Night was falling rapidly. Nicoletta often roamed the wilds at night, but she would never keep a child out so late. The villagers were a superstitious people and believed in all sorts of things Nicoletta had never found to be true. With a sigh of regret, Nicoletta began to lead the way down the path.
    "Wait!" Ketsia called, turning and running back toward where they had been working on the plants.
    "Your shoes! I left your shoes! Maria Pia will lecture me!"
    Nicoletta burst out laughing. "We cannot have that."
    Ketsia giggled, her world right again. She skipped after Nicoletta, chatting and happy, completely unaware of Nicoletta's silence. It had grown dark by the time they made their way to the village. When Ketsia saw Maria Pia, she tugged at Nicoletta's skirt. "She is frowning at you," she whispered, surreptitiously tapping the shoes against Nicoletta's leg. "Presto, put them on before she sees."
    Nicoletta ruffled the child's hair as she took the shoes. "She sees everything, Ketsia. Do not worry. She frowns, but she does not bite."
    Ketsia's mother took the child off after exchanging all the endless gossip of the day with Nicoletta, who pasted on an appropriate smile.
    Maria Pia evidently felt the same impatience. She clutched at Nicoletta's arm tugged. "We must eat. I am sagging without food."
    Nicoletta followed her quickly into the small hut they shared. "You look tired. Allow me to fix you something to eat while you rest." Gently she helped the older woman into the one good chair they had beside the fireplace. Curbing her curiosity, she built a fire and began to