Among the Olive Groves Read online

  Running up the car park stairs, she reached her level, located her car and climbed in. It would only take ten minutes to get to her house, another ten to change and grab her case, and then she would be on her way south to Cornwall and her parents. She was looking forward to seeing them. Work had been busy and, although she loved her job, she was very tired and needed a break. Yes, a few days in Cornwall was just what she needed.

  ~

  Kate opened the front door and paused a moment to listen to the familiar sounds of her mother clattering around in the kitchen and her father laughing at something on the TV. With a smile, she closed the door, threw her bag and coat over the banister and propped her case against the wall.

  “Kate! You made good time,” Margaret hugged her daughter tightly. “Brian, come sit, dinner’s almost ready.”

  “Kate,” her father said, patting her arm and smiling. “It’s nice to have you here again.”

  “Thank you, Dad. I’m glad to be here.”

  ~

  Margaret and Brian were up early the following morning, pottering about the house, anxiously waiting for Kate to rise. At just gone ten am, she finally padded down the stairs.

  “Sorry I’m awake so late. I haven’t slept that well in ages,” she yawned as she sat at the table.

  “That’s okay. Tea?” Margaret held out the old brown teapot that she still insisted on using.

  Kate nodded, trying her best to stifle another yawn. Margaret poured a cup of hot brown liquid, and added a dash of milk to it before sitting opposite her daughter.

  “We wanted to talk to you, Kate,” her mother began.

  Kate looked at her parents, a feeling of déjà vu flooding back.

  “What about?”

  “Your mother and I have spoken to someone on your behalf about these.”

  Brian dropped the locket and envelope on the table in front of her.

  Kate was shocked. “How did you get them?”

  Margaret smiled at her daughter. “I’m sorry Kate but I took them when you weren’t looking. I knew the moment you put them in that drawer you would bury your head in the sand and forget about them, and go back into your shell and continue on as normal. I got the letter translated for you and asked them to tell me what was engraved on the back of the locket.”

  “You had no right! Bloody hell, Mum, why, for once, can’t you just leave things alone!” Kate stood and turned to leave the room.

  “Kate Fisher, sit down! How dare you talk to your mother that way!”

  Kate knew that tone. Her father did not use it often, but when he did she knew he was angry. She turned and lowered herself back into the chair.

  “Sorry, Mum.”

  “It’s okay. But I think this thing with Athena has been getting to you, Kate. You haven’t been the same since we told you about your adoption. You’ve shut yourself off from everyone who cares about you: us, Fletcher, your friends. It’s not healthy, and we can’t bear to see the happy, outgoing girl we love so much, living like a hermit! Running away doesn’t help Kate, it just makes things worse and we worry about you all the time. You aren’t the Kate we know and love any more, and we want to help. Until you do something about it, you will always feel this way and it’s not doing you any good.”

  Kate shrugged. She really did not care. As far as she was concerned, Athena was dead to her, but if her parents felt the need to assuage their own guilt by using Athena then so be it, let them try. As for Fletch, she just could not go there again.

  “Fine. What does it say?”

  Margaret smiled and passed a piece of paper to her. “Here is the translated letter.”

  Kate began to read.

  My darling Athena,

  My darling daughter. If you are reading this it means that you escaped from the island without me and I was left behind. As I write this letter, what I have to do fills me with dread. I do not know who I can trust. Even now, I write in haste by candlelight fearful of what is to come. You my darling daughter brought such light to my life and you made it complete. As complete as it could ever have been, and I loved you with all of my heart.

  One day you will want to know about your family and I hope that your saviour will tell you. You were born during such a terrible time, the world was at war and we were all scared of what the future would hold. My future was already a mess, and I could not let you be a part of it.

  I was always doomed. Sometimes I wish that the Sarkis family, the olive groves and Xigia Beach never existed. They just remind me of everything I have lost.

  Always remember me Athena, for I fear for my future.

  Your loving mother

  Elena Petrakis

  Kate had not expected the letter to be so sad. Quickly she scan read it again, but realised it still did not tell her much about Athena and her family.

  “What is the point of this, Mum?”

  Margaret held up the locket and showed Kate the back of it. “This inscription says I love you Elena. I think the picture of the woman inside may be her.”

  “But how can that possibly help?” Kate was frustrated. The whole thing was starting to really piss her off.

  “Your father and I have being doing some digging. We have found only one Ionian island with a Xigia Beach, and an olive producing family called Sarkis. It is called Zakynthos.”

  Kate considered the information for a moment. “It’s not much to go on, though.”

  “True, but it’s better than nothing,” Margaret said.

  “So what do you expect me to do?”

  “Nothing. It’s all been taken care of,” Brian said.

  “What does that mean?”

  “This is your Christmas present. Open it.”

  Kate tore at the envelope and out fluttered a travel agent voucher.

  “What’s this for?” she asked, shocked.

  Her father spoke, his tone laced with love and concern.

  “You work too hard, Kate. It’s time you had a holiday and time you sorted your life out. You can’t go on like this.”

  “I...” she began.

  “No Kate. This has gone on long enough. The voucher is valid for six months, and the only condition is that you use it to go to Zakynthos. You will go for two weeks, and you will do what your birth mother, Athena, asked. Your mother and I have talked about it at length and we agree. Until you face this head on, deal with it and get over it, you will never be able to move on with your life. Yes, you have a business, a very successful one and we are so proud of you, but you have nothing else. You have no friends, no boyfriend, no life outside of work and it has to stop! We can’t keep worrying about you. Enough is enough!”

  It was the longest speech her father had ever made and it shocked her. He hardly ever raised his voice but today he had been stern and authoritative.

  “And if I say no?”

  “It’s your choice. You’re an adult, and we can’t force you to do anything, but we won’t put up with it anymore, Kate. You’re miserable, you’re wasting your life, you need to stop worrying about the past and about hurting us, and start living your life. We love you and we know you love us too, but you need to come to terms with your past, otherwise you will end up spending the rest of your life as a virtual hermit wondering what might have been.”

  Tears blurred Kate’s eyes. She knew they were right. She had tried to pretend that the news from ten years ago had not affected her, but it had. It affected her deeply. She had spent a decade wondering if there was more to her family history. She had lost Fletch because of it, she had left home because of it, and she had almost become estranged from her parents because of it. Her mother’s voice interrupted her thoughts.

  “Your father is right. You need to do this, Kate,” she said softly. Kate looked at her parent’s kind faces and knew they were right. She needed to go. It had taken over the last decade of her life, eating away at her, blackening her very soul. It was time she faced it head on.

  “I just don’t know where to start. How do I look for people
who may not even exist?”

  “You’ll work it out.”

  “And if I don’t?”

  “Then at least you’ll know you tried. It’s better to have tried, than spend the rest of your life wondering,” her mother said with finality.

  Sitting back in the chair, she knew what she had to do. She had to go to Greece, to try and find out about her birth family. Only then would she really know who she was and where she came from, and be able to start living her life.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Zakynthos, Greece, 1941

  A new year arrived bringing with it much change. The situation in Europe had become dire. France had been invaded six months earlier and the might of the German Army continued to creep ever closer, swallowing whole countries in its wake. The Germans had come to Italy’s aid and, by the end of 1940, Germany and Italy stood shoulder-to-shoulder as allies, a worrisome development for the rest of the world. Many stories were broadcast across the airwaves and it seemed that the Germans were ruthless in their campaign against the rest of Europe. They blitzed England, destroying entire communities and razing cities to the ground. They caused death and destruction everywhere they went and dictated their newfound way of life to those countries now in their grip. It was a sad state of affairs and, however hard countries fought against them, the Germans it seemed were always a step ahead.

  Angelos hated listening to the news. It was filled with sadness, death and destruction. He did not really understand any of it and the whole thing perplexed him greatly. He had asked many people he knew why the Germans were doing these things, but no one really seemed to know. Politics had never been a strong point, and so all he knew was that people were suffering and countries had been invaded with no way of defending their rights. It upset him greatly, and he dreaded it happening to their peaceful paradise. Despite his reservations, he was as desperate as everyone else to know the latest information. Living on the island was like living in an hourglass, and every new invasion made the islanders feel as though they were living on borrowed time. Life carried on, but the threat of the ever-enveloping war was becoming too much to bear.

  Angelos was still working for his father but he now lived in a small house on his father’s land with his new wife, Maria. His wedding day was still a complete blur; he could not believe his father had tricked him so cruelly. He had stumbled towards his wife to be, praying that he was suffering from a nightmare, but he failed to wake and had been forced to stand and accept the girl for the remainder of his life. She was the polar opposite to Elena. Where Elena was willowy and beautiful, Maria was plump and plain. Elena had sparkling eyes and shining hair; Maria’s were lifeless and dull. Elena was outspoken, brave and filled with life; Maria was quiet, shy and boring.

  The wedding party had lasted all day; his father and Stelios showing off like preening peacocks to all their guests, proud of their alliance. Angelos had felt sick, and had nothing but hatred in his heart for his father. Later that evening, Loukas and Stelios had walked Angelos and his wife to their new house, bidding them good evening with much merriment. As the sound of their laughter faded in the distance, Angelos knew with dread that he was forced to give himself, completely to a woman he did not know and would never love the way he loved Elena. What was he supposed to do? Silently, Maria had crept into their bedroom and he knew that as a new husband he had a duty to perform. With a heavy heart he closed the bedroom door behind him, and joined his new wife in bed.

  ~

  Elena left Athena with her parents. As much as she loved her daughter, she felt trapped in the house. She had not seen Angelos in nearly three months, and was at a loss to know what he had been doing and why he had not been to see her. It was unlike him and she missed his company.

  She knew that creeping down to the olive grove was a risk, but it was the only sure way of finding him. She waited all day, impatiently pacing up and down, unable to concentrate on anything for long. Finally, twilight arrived and she slipped out of the house knowing that the cover of late winter light would better serve both of them.

  Peeking over the wall, she saw him cutting up old and storm-damaged trees into logs that would go into store to be used for firewood. She glanced around looking for Loukas, but was relieved to find that it was just the two of them. She opened her mouth, allowing the melodic notes he had always loved to wash over him.

  Angelos lifted his head instantly and they locked eyes. His heart melted, but his head refused to let him move. He was married now; Elena was his past and he was to have nothing more to do with her. He knew that he should turn and leave, but as much as his head tried to win out, it was his heart that eventually made him do its bidding. Stepping forward, he slowly walked towards her. Nothing about her had changed, she was still as beautiful as ever, and he wondered why life had so cruelly taken her from him.

  “My Angelos. Where have you been, why have you not come to see us? Your daughter misses you, and so do I.”

  Angelos climbed the wall and pulled her away from the groves. After crossing the track, they disappeared into the small woodland that ran alongside the groves.

  “Elena, I...” he was lost for words.

  “What is it? Is it your father?” She reached forward and took his hands in hers, bringing them to her cheek and then kissing them. The feel of cold metal against her face made her take a step back. Lifting his right hand, her heart plummeted.

  “What is this?” she whispered.

  “I am so sorry, Elena. My father forced me. I had no choice.”

  “You are married?” She was so shocked she could barely get the words out.

  Angelos watched her crumple before him. Before she could flee, he folded her in his arms and held her tightly.

  “I love you Elena, I love you so much.”

  She fought against him, her Angelos, the man she loved. She pushed him back, and he fell into a tree. “If you love me, then why marry someone else? Who is she anyway?”

  “Maria Makris.”

  Elena felt as though she had been punched in the stomach. “The daughter of Stelios Makris?”

  Angelos just nodded.

  “Your father hates me that much?”

  Angelos shrugged, not knowing what to say.

  Leaning against a tree, Elena slid to the ground. “I always knew your father and Stelios disliked me, but to do this. Oh Angelos, how could you let them?”

  He sat next to her, trying to explain. “My father threatened me, Elena; there was nothing I could do. He tricked me. He and Stelios planned the whole thing. By the time I realised what was happening, I was in the middle of the ceremony. There was nothing I could do.”

  “Do you love her?”

  “No. I do not love her.”

  “Do you kiss her and make love to her like you did with me?”

  Angelos wanted the earth to swallow him. “She is my wife. There are certain things I must do.”

  Elena felt sick. The thought of Angelos touching another woman the way he used to touch her made her distraught. She buried her head in her knees and cried.

  “Do not cry.”

  “What am I supposed to do, Angelos? You are married to someone else now and you no longer love me or want me. And what about our daughter?”

  “I do still love you Elena. I love you with every fibre of my being, and Athena will always be my daughter. I will always be there for her, for both of you, if need be.”

  “But we can never be together.”

  “Yes we can, Elena.”

  “How? It is impossible.”

  Angelos could no longer bear it. He leaned forward and kissed her, running his fingers through her hair, and Elena feverishly kissed him back. Lying her on the ground Angelos did what they both wanted, he made love to her there on the woodland floor, naked skin moving softly against naked skin. All that mattered was here and now and the two of them. He did not care that he was breaking his marriage vows, or that his wife would be wondering where he was. The only woman that mattered to him was El
ena, now and always.

  ~

  Loukas stared at Angelos. He wondered what was wrong with the boy. He had everything he could ever need and yet he walked about like a sullen teenager. He had hoped that the marriage and responsibility of being a husband would change his son, but Angelos was worse than ever. Loukas and Stelios were desperate to become grandfathers but the wait was becoming long. It angered Loukas that Angelos had managed to drop a bastard so quickly with a peasant, but when it came to nice girl like Maria, they were still childless. Loukas wondered why that was. He should make it his business to find out. Maybe Pigi could have a word with Maria to see if everything was okay? If this marriage failed, Loukas would end up looking a fool, and he would not be made to look a fool by anyone, especially his son.

  Leaving his house, Loukas climbed into his cart, and flicked the reins at the donkey, instructing it to make its usual journey. He did not have time to worry about his son now. There was too much work to be done.

  ~

  Sitting in the café, Angelos drank coffee while listening to the latest radio report. Spring had arrived and the island was blossoming. News about the war, however, was grave. The British had come to Greece’s aid and fought bravely, doing all they could to help, but it was futile. The Germans finally invaded and mainland Greece was now under the Axis occupation of the Germans, Italians and Bulgarians. Angelos suddenly realised that his prediction of a short war had been very wrong. The entire world was fighting hard with each other and no one knew where it would end or who would eventually win. It was a frightening and sobering thought.

  After downing his coffee, he stepped out of the café and climbed onto his bicycle. He cycled to Elena’s house in the mountains. He needed to see her and Athena, needed to feel real, needed to feel alive and there was only one person who could make him feel like that.

  Elena Petrakis.

  His marriage to Maria was awful. He tried his best to be a good husband, but he hated the sight of her and could not bear being in the same room as her. He did feel sorry for her. It was not her fault. She was as much a pawn in this whole mess as he was, but it did not change how he felt. Elena was the only woman for him.