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convictions. If you’re going to call me names, do it to my face.’
‘You’re right, signora, I don’t like being bullied-’
‘No, you prefer doing the bullying.’
‘Silenzio!’ he snapped in a voice like a whip crack. ‘If you don’t mind I’d like to speak without being interrupted and without having words put into my mouth. I did not call you a prostitute-’
‘It was what you meant.’
‘Kindly don’t tell me what I mean. I will tell you what I mean. If you were married to Antonio for two years then I must respect that, but it doesn’t change my opinion that you saw a good thing and secured it for yourself. Why else does a young and beautiful woman marry a man in his sixties?’
‘There are a dozen reasons, none of which you would understand.’
‘To be sure, anyone who doesn’t see the matter through your eyes is an ignorant buffoon-’
‘Your words-’
‘But you know the truth about yourself, although for some reason you pretend not to. If I say you’re beautiful I’m not paying you a compliment. Beauty like yours is a trap, a menace. You see it every time you look in the mirror and work to bring it to perfection so that your snares are laid and your victims are helpless.’
‘And you think Antonio was my victim?’
‘No doubt of it. He was a lover of beauty, and an even greater lover of sexual allure. You must have found him easy prey. Did you look for him the way you look now?’
‘Yes, he liked me this way. The more I flaunted myself before other men the more he enjoyed it, because it made them jealous of him.’
‘And did he also tell you to go on flaunting yourself when he was dead?’ Salvatore demanded ironically.
‘Oddly enough he did. He actually bought me this dress and ordered me to wear it because he said, “Don’t you dare hide yourself behind widow’s weeds. I want the world to see you as I knew you.” You were wondering why a widow of only a few weeks dresses in this fashion, well, now you know. I’m obeying my husband’s command.’
He was about to make a sound of disbelief when it came to him that this was exactly the kind of thing Antonio would have said. The old reprobate had a way of coming out with things no other man would have said.
‘I wonder why you obey this particular command right now,’ he mused. ‘Am I supposed to become a helpless victim?’
‘You don’t seem very helpless to me,’ she remarked.
‘That’s because I’m protected. I know women like you. I know how you think, and calculate, what you want and how you go about getting it. You don’t even try to hide it, I’ll give you that.’
‘You flatter yourself if you think I’m trying to add your scalp to my collection. Why would I want to do that?’ Helena asked incredulously.
‘Because I’m an enemy, of course. What could be more satisfying? Since you prefer honesty, let’s be honest. Subdue the enemy first, then make your demands.’
His voice was cold and dangerous. Recklessly she upped the ante.
‘And just what do you think I want from you, Salvatore? I hold all the cards, which means I make the terms. I don’t even need to “subdue” you, the way you imply.’
He drew a sharp breath. ‘You’re a very courageous woman.’
‘No, I’m not. I’m just the woman who’s got something you want and isn’t going to meekly hand it over. Why would I need courage for that?’
‘For several reasons that I can think of but you probably can’t. You’re a stranger here. You should ask around. There are many who will tell you that I always get what I want, because my methods are-irresistible.’
‘I’m shaking in my shoes-I don’t think.’ In a deliberately provocative voice she added, ‘If I don’t choose to sell there isn’t a thing you can do about it.’
‘There’s a great deal I can do about it.’
‘Oh, yes, now I remember! You were going to drive me to the wall and buy me out for peanuts. How could I possibly have forgotten that? Probably because I was in a fit of