“Come on, Leonard, don’t tease. She’s going to think I’m a heathen,” Alistair answered at the same time Sophia said, laughing, “Don’t you think I’ll understand him?”
“I can guarantee you won’t.” His angelic smile still in place, he turned to Alistair. “She thinks that because she knows several languages she will understand your heathen dialect.”
“Several?” Alistair asked. “I’ve noticed that she can read in four languages, but several?” He looked at her. “How many?”
Her turn to shrug.
“She is too modest, Alistair. Seven, isn’t it?” Leonard counted on his fingers, “Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, English, French, German, and… What’s the other one?”
“Eight, Leonard.” She made a face. “But I don’t speak Hebrew and Latin as fluently as the others. I can only read and write.”
“Hebrew?” Domitila, Leonard’s sister, frowned at her.
“Gabriel was Jewish, so is Gabriela.”
“Indeed,” Alistair murmured, “Leibowitz. Are you also Jewish?”
“I don’t really profess a religion. I was baptized in the Catholic Church. I converted to Judaism to marry Gabriel. Not that he minded our different religions, but I did it anyway. However…” She bit her lip as she tried to express her thoughts. “I believe in something bigger. There’s no need for labels to do good deeds or accept God. Any name for it will do as long it brings peace.”
“I see.” He nodded, struggling to figure her out. “Where did you learn so many languages?”
“I studied in a British school that had Spanish as a second language, besides, of course, Portuguese. At home, we had a French governess. I also studied for a time at a boarding school in Lausanne. They had regular courses in French, German, and Italian.” She smiled, fond of the memories, “I loved it. It was funny. They offered classic literature, Greek and Roman mythology, piano, Cordon Bleu Cuisine, skiing, riding, and fencing classes. I did it all. They distracted me from…” Her voice waned.
He enveloped her hand between his. “From?”
“My parents had passed away two months before.” Her eyes reflected her sorrow.
“I’m sorry.” His low murmur conveying his sympathy and he squeezed her hand. “How did they die?”
“In a car crash the day before Christmas Eve while on the way to our house in Angra dos Reis. My grandparents, my siblings, and I were already there but my parents had stayed in Rio because my father had a meeting with some new clients. A car driven by a young buck hit them. It was dark and pouring; the road was slippery and in a bad state. Their car rolled down a cliff. The guy fled. Their bodies were so damaged we had to have a closed casket service.” She looked down at their joined hands and entwined her fingers in his. “It was a very long time ago but I remember as if it happened yesterday.”
Because Alistair knew she was an orphan, he thought he could handle hearing her speak about her loss. He couldn’t. Something inside his chest clenched at the thought of the little Sophia hurting so badly.
“Jesus!” Domitila was taken aback. “Didn’t you sue him?” Andrew put an arm over her shoulders and squeezed.
“My grandparents sued the guy, to no avail. He was underage and his father was extremely rich and influential. You know the drill… We settled for an agreement. We received money, but money doesn’t lessen a pain like that.” She shrugged and gave her a sad smile.
He gently squeezed her hand.
“How old were you when they died?” Alice asked, softly.
“Ten. Carolina was seven. However, the impact of their death was worse on Felipe. He was sixteen and had passed the exam to begin engineering college the following year. He wanted to work with my father. Three of my grandparents were alive then. Together they moved in to this penthouse apartment to raise us. Both parents were only children. I think that’s why they had so many kids.” She grinned at Alistair. “They said the twins weren’t expected and Carol was supposed to be their last child. The girls were so pampered. And still are very spoiled.”
She took out her phone from her jacket inner pocket and scrolled for photos of her family. “Here, look. I have some recent photos of my siblings. Felipe, the eldest.” She showed the screen to him. “He is my twin. We were born on the same day of the same month, six years apart. I try to speak with him at least once a week, but we are so close that we don’t really need words.” The love she felt for her brother showed in her voice.
The photo - Felipe and Sophia standing on the bow of his yacht - was taken during her last visit to Brazil.
“He does look very much like you. Impressive. The only difference is the lock of white hair. It’s unusual.” He tilted his head to the side, analyzing the photo.
Leonard came to stand behind them. “Let me see, Alistair.”
He passed her mobile to his brother-in-law. Alice strolled to her husband’s side. “Oh, my, Sophia!” she exclaimed. “He looks like a model. He’s gorgeous. Look at this face, this tanned skin and-wow,” she sighed, dramatically, “this body!”
Domitila came to look and whistled. Andrew smiled from his place on the sofa, not at all concerned.
Leonard elbowed Alice in the ribs. “Hey! Behave yourself.” His angelic smile slashed his face. “I must say! His twin is gorgeous, too.” He wiggled his brows at Sophia, who had turned sideways on the sofa and looked up at them.
She immediately flushed and snatched her phone from his hand. “Give it back to me.”
Leonard laughed.
Why didn’t I choose another photo?
Alistair chuckled beside her. “Show me your sisters.”
Sophia chose more carefully this time. No one in bikinis or trunks.
“These are Carolina, and Victoria and Valentina, the youngest.” She pointed them out. “And Felipe, of course.”
Alistair took the phone from her hand and stared at it for a long time. “You were happier here,” he noticed, looking at her.
“Gabriel was still alive,” she murmured.
Gabriel. Always Gabriel. His eyes flickered with some unreadable emotion and he turned them back to the photo, his finger on the edge of the screen. “May I?”
“Sure. Go on.”
Domitila tapped Alistair’s shoulder. “Hey, big guy, don’t hog it. We want to see, too.”
“This white lock is so charming,” said Alice from behind, not seeing the photo Sophia had just shown Alistair, his broad shoulders concealed her iPhone. “Women must throw themselves at his feet.”
How ironic. “Women have lusted over Felipe since he was young.” Sophia lips curled upwards a little, in a cynical grimace. “After he was given this lock, they seemed to desire him even more.”
“Given?” Alice asked from behind, puzzled.
Alistair paused and his green eyes swung to her face, fascinated by the sudden change in her mood. Again. So volatile.
“The lock… It started growing sometime after his wife Renata died in a car crash when he was almost killed, too. A truck hit their car. She died instantly. He was in hospital for eight days in an induced coma because of the swelling in his brain. Fortunately, there was no permanent damage other than a scar on the left side of his forehead and eyebrow. At least,” she breathed, “no physical damage.”
The room went silent as they waited for her to continue.
“He was driving.” Her shrug was almost a shiver. “Although the accident was not his fault, he still feels guilty. It runs in the family, you know.” This time, she did shudder.
“What runs in your family?” Alice asked in a low voice.