Carpathian 10 - Dark Symphony

bathrobe, Antonietta. More and more you are sleeping the day away. You artists enjoy keeping strange hours."
    "So true." She kissed him lightly. "But you love us anyway."
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    Dark Symphony
    Page 119 of 188
    "Yes, I do. Thank Byron for helping Margurite. And we will be at your dinner party, giving you full Scarletti support. Have no worries."
    "Can Celt stay with me?" Margurite asked.
    Deep inside of her, she could feel Byron still and waiting. He didn't protest. He didn't object, but she felt him hold his breath. His concern made her feel cherished. "I'll ask him if he'd like to visit a little later," Antonietta promised the child. "I need him just a bit longer."
    Her hand dropped to caress the dog's silky ears. The borzoi did give her more independence.
    She would never have entered Franco's quarters with- out taking him, afraid the furniture was moved in one of Marita's frenzied decorating schemes, or that the children had left their toys out. Celt simply steered her around all objects without seeming to do so.
    The cat's scent is fresh in the grove. I see tracks around the garden area and the back courtyard in particular. The animal was trying to gain entry through the French doors. There is a distinct print on the door down near the bottom, as if he tried to pry it open. There are scratch marks up high on the frame.
    Antonietta made her way through the long hallway separating Franco's suite of rooms from Tasha's. The sound of weeping made Antonietta frown and quickly knock on her cousin's door. Tasha could cut someone in two with her tongue, but she rarely cried.
    There was instant silence. The rustle of clothes. Antonietta tried the door. It was locked.
    "Tasha. What's wrong?"
    "Nothing, Toni, go away."
    "I certainly will not. Open this door, or I'll get the master key." Alarm spread rapidly.
    Tasha would never lock herself in her room.
    "Is anyone with you?"
    "Just Celt. What's wrong, Tasha? You're scaring me."
    Byron could feel Antonietta's anxiety escalating. He stayed a shadow in her mind, even as he crisscrossed the grounds for evidence of the jaguar. The cats were known for their stealth and ability to keep hidden. This one, he was certain, was far more cunning than most.
    The door opened slowly. Tasha stepped back to allow her cousin entry and then shut the door firmly and locked it. "Watch the chair, Toni. Just a minute, let me push it back in. I didn't think about it being in the way."
    Antonietta, sensitive to every nuance, heard the tremor in Tasha's voice, even though it was evident she made every effort to cover it up.
    Something's wrong with her, Byron. She tells me everything. Every little detail. This is totally unlike her.
    Direct Celt to look at her. Byron focused, using the images from the animal. Tasha's face was swollen and wet with tears. He looked closer. Dark anger swirled in his belly. Use your fingertips, my love, someone has struck her. Her eye is swollen, and the left side of her face discolored,
    Antonietta caught her cousin's hand, drew her close. "Who dared to do this to you?" Her fingertips barely skimmed, careful of inflicting more pain. "You should have come to me immediately. I would have helped you."
    "I was too humiliated." Tasha burst into another storm of weeping. "I didn't want anyone to see me, to know. And you were still in bed with… that man." She added the last accusingly.
    "Christopher did this?"
    "He came to visit today, as he does every day, with his demands. He doesn't like my clothes. He wants my hair differently. I don't know enough about art. The list of my shortcomings goes on and on, and he doesn't even know about the most damning of all." A
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    Dark Symphony
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    sob escaped. Tasha wrapped her arms around Antonietta and cried into her shoulder as if her heart were breaking.
    Antonietta held her. Even Celt pushed against Tasha's legs in an attempt to comfort her.
    "You did tell that man to go to hell, I hope."
    "That's why he hit me. He was furious when I gave him back his ring. He said he refused to allow me to break the engagement. He said horrible