A Breath of Scandal Read Free Page B

predict his destiny, unlike some Gypsies, who merely pretended to have the gift her grandmother possessed.
    Lara wasn’t aware of the passage of time until Ramona returned to the wagon a few hours later. “How is he?”
    “Nothing has changed.”
    Ramona felt his forehead. “The fever will begin soon. I sent Rondo to fetch cold water from the sea. Go eat with the others, I will sit here with him.”
    Lara didn’t want to leave, but obeyed her grandmother with marked reluctance.
    Lara paused at the door. “Did you speak to Grandfather about remaining here a few days longer?”
    “Aye. He agreed to delay our leaving a day or two, until the
gadjo
either dies or shows signs of improvement.”
    Lara’s voice held a note of anxiety. “You won’t let him die, will you, Grandmother?”
    “ ’Tis in God’s hands,” Ramona replied, staring intently into the
gadjo
’s face. “Go now. Perhaps you can hurry Rondo along with the cold water.”
    Ramona continued to stare at the
gadjo
long after Lara left. Why was Lara so taken with the
gadjo?
She sensed his troubled spirit and felt evil surrounding him. She knew not whether the evil emanated from him or from others who wished him harm. Nor did she know how it would affect Lara. She only knew that destiny was at work.
    Ramona shifted her gaze to the
gadjo
’s hand. It lay limply upon the blanket, open and vulnerable. Disregarding every tingling nerve ending that warned her not to tempt fate, she cradled his palm in her hands. One sensitive finger traced the lines, pausing as she explored the soft pad of his thumb and deep indentations scoring his palm. Suddenly she let out a cry and dropped the hand as if it had scalded her.
    Closing her eyes, she muttered an incantation. Her probing into his destiny had revealed a tormented man courted by danger. Powerful forces were at work. Ramona knew intuitively that the
gadjo
’s enemies were a threat to her beloved granddaughter. And there was little she could do to prevent it.
    Somewhere in the murky depths of his brain Julian perceived another presence, but sensed no danger. He was aware of unbearable pain, of heat, then he drifted back to the sublime state where he heard and felt nothing.
    “Rondo’s here with the water, Grandmother,” Lara said, holding the door open for Rondo.
    “Set it on the floor, then both of you leave,” Ramona ordered.
    “Let me help,” Lara pleaded.
    “No,” Rondo argued. “You don’t belong in here. I will send one of the married women to help if Ramona needs someone.”
    “I need no one,” Ramona replied. “Go, both of you.”
    Lara withdrew. Rondo followed. “You are attracted to the
gadjo
,” Rondo charged.
    “He is sorely in need of my help.” With a toss of her curly hair, she walked away to join a group of her friends.
    The Rom were sitting around a central campfire eating supper and exchanging gossip when Ramona joined them.
    “Does the
gadjo
live?” Pietro asked.
    “He lives. He is a stubborn one. He refuses to give up his spirit.”
    “Eat, Grandmother,” Lara urged. “I will sit with him while you rest.”
    “He is feverish, Lara, and the worst is yet to come. Call me if you need me.”
    Lara hurried into her wagon and pulled the chair closer to the bed. Despite the golden glow of candlelight, the
gadjo
’s face was pale, and purple shadows dusted the fragile skin beneath his eyes. From time to time he moaned and shivered. Lara pulled the blanket up around his neck and crooned softly to him in the Romany tongue.
    She fell asleep with her head resting on the side of the bed, her hand clutching his as if to let him know he wasn’t alone.
    Lara awoke to the sound of excited voices and daylight shining through the curtained window. She jerked upright just as the door burst inward.
    “There’s a ship in the cove,” Rondo informed her. “They launched a jolly boat and ’tis’ heading to the beach.”
    Warning bells went off in Lara’s head. “What does Pietro