Spyros Lambrou suddenly found himself very interested. "Sit down...what's your name?"
"Lato, sir. Georgios Lato."
"All right, Lato. Suppose you start at the beginning..."
The marriage of Constantin Demiris and Melina had been disintegrating for years, but there had never been any physical violence until recently.
It had started in the middle of a heated argument over an affair Constantin Demiris was having with Melina's closest friend.
"You turn every woman into a whore," she screamed. "Everything you touch turns to dirt."
"Skaseh! Shut your fucking mouth."
"You can't make me," Melina said defiantly. "I'm going to tell the whole world what a pousti you are. My brother was right. You're a monster."
Demiris raised his arm and slapped Melina hard across the face. She ran from the room.
The following week they had another argument, and Constantin struck her again. Melina packed her bags and took a plane to Atticos, the private island owned by her brother. She stayed there for a week, miserable and lonely. She missed her husband, and she began to make excuses for what he had done.
It was my fault, Melina thought. I shouldn't have antagonized Costa. And: He didn't mean to hit me. He just lost his temper and didn't know what he was doing. And: If Costa didn't care so much about me, he wouldn't have hit me, would he?
But in the end, Melina knew they were simply excuses because she could not bear to dissolve her marriage. The following Sunday she returned home.
Demiris was in the library.
He looked up as Melina entered. "So you decided to come back."
"This is my home, Costa. You're my husband, and I love you. But I want to tell you something. If you ever touch me again, I will kill you."
And he looked into her eyes and knew that she meant it.
In an odd way, their marriage seemed to improve after that episode. For a long time after that, Constantin was careful never to lose his temper with Melina. He continued to have his affairs, and Melina was too proud to plead with him to stop. One day he'll get tired of all his whores, Melina thought, and he'll realize that he needs only me.
On a Saturday evening, Constantin Demiris was putting on a dinner jacket, preparing to go out. Melina came into the room.
"Where are you going?"
"I have an engagement."
"Have you forgotten? We're having dinner at Spyros's tonight."
"I haven't forgotten. Something more important has come up."
Melina stood there watching him, furious. "And I know what it is - your poulaki! And you're going to one of your whores to satisfy it."
"You should watch your tongue. You're becoming a fishwife, Melina." Demiris examined himself in the mirror.
"I won't let you do this!" What he was doing to her was bad enough, but to insult her brother deliberately on top of everything that had gone before was too much. She had to find a way to hurt him, and there was only one way she knew. "We both really should stay home tonight," Melina said.
"Oh, really?" he asked indifferently. "And why is that?"
"Don't you know what today is?" she taunted him.
"No."
"It's the anniversary of the day I killed your son, Costa. I had an abortion."
He stood stock-still, and she could see the pupils of his eyes darken.
"I told the doctors to fix it so I could never have another one of your children," she lied.
He completely lost control. "Skaseh!" And he punched her in the face and kept hitting.
Melina screamed and turned and ran down the hall, Constantin right behind her.
He caught her at the head of the stairs.
"I'll kill you for that," he roared. As he hit her again, Melina lost her balance and fell, crashing down the long staircase.
She lay at the bottom, whimpering in pain. "Oh, God. Help me. I've broken something."
Demiris stood there, staring down at her, his eyes cold.
"I'll have one of the maids call a doctor. I don't want to be late for my engagement."
The telephone call came shortly before dinnertime.
"Mr. Lambrou? This is Dr. Metaxis. Your sister asked me to call you. She's here in my private hospital. I'm afraid she's been in an accident..."
When Spyros Lambrou walked into Melina's hospital room, he walked over to her bed and stared down at her, appalled. Melina had a broken arm, a concussion, and her face was badly swollen.
Spyros Lambrou said one word, "Constantin." His voice was trembling with rage.
Melina's eyes filled with tears. "He didn't mean it," she whispered.
"I'm going to destroy him. I swear it on my life." Spyros Lambrou had never felt such rage.
He could not bear the thought of what Constantin Demiris was doing to Melina. There had to be a way to stop him, but how? There had to be some way. He was at a loss. He needed advice. As he had so often in the past, Spyros Lambrou decided to consult Madame Piris. Perhaps there was some way in which she would be able to help him.
On the way to see her, Lambrou thought wryly, My friends would laugh at me if they thought I was consulting a psychic. But the fact was that in the past, Madame Piris had told him some extraordinary things that had come to pass. She's got to help me now.
They were seated at a table in a dark corner of the dimly lit cafe. She seemed older than when he had last seen her. She sat there, her eyes fastened on him.
"I need some help, Madame Piris," Lambrou said.
She nodded.
Where to start? "There was a murder trial about a year and a half ago. A woman named Catherine Douglas was..."
The expression on Madame Piris's face changed. "No," she moaned.