Alannah looked at the matronly woman, shocked that she would even say such a thing, how could she know? Had her father managed to get word to all the outlaying Islands? Without thinking she blurted out "I have never been in a relationship until I met Nicolò. I only met Nicolò a few weeks back on the ship to America. I have spent too much time trying to get away from. . ." Alannah stopped when she realized what she had just said, immediately her hands went to her mouth, they were shaking, and she was shaking her head.
The woman's gaze narrowed. "Get away? What are you trying to get away from Alannah? I will not harbor a criminal in my home." She said with more harshness that Alannah had ever heard before out of a woman.
Alannah looked down at her lap, removed her hands from her mouth and gave a nervous little laugh, she took a deep breath and sighed. "No, it's not that at all. It's just that…." And out it all came, in one endless breath. The whole story of the time a 16year old Lady ran away from her home in Ireland. Alannah had never told a sole what she had just spilled to this woman, a complete stranger.
Seemingly oblivious to this last remark, the Señora chuckled. "I see. You have had quite the adventure haven't you young lady? Your title means nothing to me, you are just an young girl, and I am your friend." She narrowed her gaze at Alannah "Does Nicolò know any of this?" Alannah shook her head "well it would behoove you to tell him at some point, if you are to become more serious. He loves you, you know? Well, perhaps we have a few things in common." With that she stood up and walked back to her desk.
"You mentioned a boat,' Alannah said doubtfully. "The man in the plane told me that no boats come to this island -"
'No doubt the wily Matias approached the island from the northwest," Señora Beringer told her. "If you had approached from the other direction then you would have seen the city of Los Linga, there is Port Lira in all its glory. And, yes Alannah, you heard me correctly. There is a port on Storm Haven Island, and it is full of sea-going vessels, including two or three small passenger-freighters."
Alannah took a deep shuddering breath and let it out slowly. "What am I to do? Nicolò has a job here, but what will happen to me in the meantime?"
Señora Beringer looked at Alannah and said "I shall have to tell Maria that we have a house guest. As you are a guest I would appreciate it if you and Nicolò would mingle on your own time, not mine. For your part you will have to find some way to amuse yourself until I decide what to do with you." She smiled thoughtfully. "I daresay that you have indeed come to the right place if you were seeking isolation. I do believe that you will find this is a place of . . . various solitudes. Alannah, be warned solitude is the furthest thing from that soul-sickness called loneliness. You may even learn about shared solitude here, and if you and Nicolò find what you are looking for while you are here, then so be it. But there….now compose yourself and go and find Maria, tell her I said you are to be housed in one of the guest rooms. The one overlooking the ocean is lovely." She said with a cocky smily, looking at Alannah attire. "I would make use of the bath and then change into a something a little more suited to our climate. Although it is quite lovely you must be very hot in that heavy dress. Maria will tell you the rules around here, but when you are ready it will be time for our mid-day meal. I will see you shortly out in the glass room. That is a glassed-in structure on the far left side of the Chateau. It is cool and pleasant there, shaded by many trees and it has a breathtaking view of the cove and the valley. Now go, child. I am a very busy woman and have work that must be attended to."