Meridio's Daughter Part 23

Just as suddenly, Casey's nausea disappeared. Casey nodded in response.

"I don't understand it. I've never reacted to anything red in quite that way before. Wait a minute, the other night at the taverna.

The awning behind you was red, I remember because I started to get sick then, too."

"I'm sorry, honey." Tessa held Casey close to her, feeling her clammy skin warm slightly. I need to tell her what happened. It's got be better than putting her through this torture, doesn't it? How can I say I love her when I won't tell her the truth? Forgive me, Casey, but I can't stand the thought of losing you, not yet.

"Hey, why don't you run inside and get me another shirt to wear, get out of the sun for a few minutes, okay?"

"I don't know...I kind of like you dressed like that." Casey grinned lasciviously.

*"I'll just bet you do, but standing naked over a hot grill leaves me feeling a little vulnerable."

Casey chuckled and walked into the house, feeling as if nothing happened to her a few moments earlier. When she finally returned, she handed an old cinzano T-shirt to Tessa. Tessa looked up to thank her and smiled at the baseball cap on her head.

"You look pretty d.a.m.n cute in that."

"Okay, so tell me, how does a Greek woman educated in England wind up with a Chicago Cubs baseball cap?" Casey asked.

"I went to Chicago on business once. Some a.s.sociates took me to a game at Wrigley Field. The sound of the stadium...and the gra.s.s was so green. It took my breath away. I've been a fan of American baseball ever since."

"You are an amazingly complex woman, do you know that?"

Casey kissed Tessa's lips.

"Yeah, I bet that's what you say to all your Greek lovers,"

Tessa said gruffly, removing the meat from the grill as she spoke.

"Pretty much." Casey smirked.

"Oh, that's it, no food for you." Tessa smiled as she carried the plate into the house.

"Hey, don't tease me about food," the suddenly contrite Casey called after her.

"This place is beautiful, but do you really think the owner will rent it to me?" Casey asked.

They stood in the middle of the large two-bedroom apartment that Tessa recommended as a place for Casey to stay once she had to work in Athens. The large two-story wooden building was divided into three apartments, two on the lower level and the one they now stood in, that took up the top level.

"I think it's pretty much a certainty." Tessa stood behind Casey, slipping her arms around her waist. "You happen to have an in."

"Oh, really? Do tell."

"Yeah, the owner happens to have a thing for you." Tessa placed a soft kiss on Casey's neck.

*"Do you-?" Casey spun around to face Tessa. The grin on Tessa's face told Casey who owned the building they stood in.

"I'll say it once again. You are an amazingly complex woman, Tessa Nikolaidis," Casey said softly, right before she soundly kissed the woman above her.

They spent the rest of the late afternoon getting an extra set of keys made and having the utilities turned on. They finished by doing a little dry goods shopping for items that Casey would need. By the time they left the apartment, Tessa thought it already had Casey's distinctive look about it.

"You're not sleepy at all, are you?" Casey asked the woman who held her in her arms.

"I'm sorry, hon, I'm just not used to getting as much sleep as I have the last few days," Tessa said. She knew that she'd been fidgeting for the last hour, and Casey was sensitive to every one of her moves. "Would you mind terribly if I got up and read or something? I'll be right next door in the den."

"Of course not. You don't have to be with me every minute of the day to show me you love me," Casey said sleepily.

Tessa got up and put her robe on. She placed a gentle kiss on Casey's cheek. "Trouble is, I pretty much want to be with you every minute of the day."

Casey smiled and curled up against the pillow Tessa abdicated, breathing in the scent of the woman and thinking how much she loved the fresh clean scent of her skin.

There are many senses that exist within the human body that capture memories, none so strong as the sense of smell. By the time Casey was entering the dream stage of her sleep, the cells in her brain were still processing the scent that triggered the recollection of a day long forgotten by the sleeping figure.

"Can I ride him now, Pappa?" Casey jumped up and down in her excitement.

Andreas Meridio scooped up the five-year-old and held her in his arms. " Mahtia Mou , this is a big pony, and you're still a small girl."

*"But you said he was my Easter present!" Casey pouted while a fiery determination burned in her green eyes.

"Yes, Ca.s.sandra, but he is large, and you are small. You have to train him so he'll be gentle and not throw you. Remember, he'll be a grown horse long before you," he poked Casey lightly in the belly and she giggled, "are a grown woman."

"But, Pappa-" Casey complained as her father set her back on the ground.

"Enough," he said sharply, dropping to one knee in front of Casey. "I'll tell you what, if one of the older children will ride double with you, you can mount him. How does that sound?"

Casey jumped into his arms and hugged him fiercely. "Thank you.""Ca.s.sandra." Casey turned her head to see a pet.i.te blond woman coming down the path. "It's time for lunch, sweetheart."

"Coming, Mana," Casey called out to her mother. The girl kissed her father's cheek and ran up the stone path to her mother's waiting arms.

"It should be me that rides with Casey, I'm the biggest," a tall boy said, pushing one of the youngsters aside.

"I think Casey should pick. It's her pony," Casey's friend Maria spoke up.

"She's too little to decide," another boy chimed in.

"I'll be the one to ride with her." A dark-haired girl walked into view and stood in front of the first boy as if daring him to argue with her. She was eleven years old but every bit as tall as he was. "That is, if she wants me to."

Kneeling to Casey's level, she smiled into the green eyes that looked up at her in awe. "My name is Tessa. Would you like me to ride with you?"

Casey liked the way the older girl's blue eyes sparkled, just like the water in Tourlos Bay. Casey wished she could be big like this girl; she didn't act like she was afraid of those boys at all.

Casey nodded eagerly and held out her hand.

Tessa rose, took Casey's hand, and walked over to the stable that held the pony. She sat the youngster on a bale of hay and *explained to Casey all that she was doing as she saddled the pony. She sat mesmerized and promised herself that she would remember everything Tessa told her. Casey knew she would, too.

She may have been the smallest girl in her kindergarten cla.s.s, but she was smart and could remember things well. She never gave up when the bigger children did, and it was this fierce persistence that allowed her to keep up when the older children let her join them.Tessa jumped into the saddle and told Casey to stand on the bale of hay. Tessa maneuvered the horse into position and told Casey to put her left foot in the stirrup. Grasping Casey's arm in a strong grip, Tessa practically lifted Casey onto the saddle behind her.

"What do you think?" Tessa asked as they departed the stable and walked the pony around the field.

Casey looked down. "It's pretty far if you fall, huh?"

"Then don't fall," Tessa said with a chuckle.

After a time of trotting the pony around the gra.s.sy field, Casey stopped Tessa. "Can we go fast now?"

"You want to gallop, huh? Okay, but you'll have to put your arms around me and hold on tight."

Casey slipped her arms as far around Tessa's waist as she could.

"You'll have to hold on tighter than that, little one," Tessa said, half-turning in the saddle.

Casey tightened her grip and Tessa prompted the pony into a speedy gallop. It was a short burst by most standards, but it was enough to make Casey happy. When they returned to the stable, Tessa showed Casey how to remove the saddle and small blanket and to rub the horse down to relax the animal's muscles.

"Tessa, come on, we're gonna play ball." One of the older boys burst into the stable and shouted.

Casey hung back, knowing the older children never let her play ball.

"Come on, little one." Tessa placed a protective hand on Casey's shoulder, and Casey beamed up at her new friend.

Casey stood in a group of children, as captains were chosen *and teams were about to be selected. Casey was elated that she was going to play, but she felt miserable waiting to be picked. She was always selected last, and it was usually more of a burden to whatever team got stuck with her. It started to wear on her, and her self-esteem wasn't very high.

"I'll take Casey," Tessa announced.

"Oh, boy, we're going to win for sure now!" the older boy shouted.

Tessa's face gave nothing away as she motioned for Casey to stand by her side. Teams were finally settled and the children began a game of hahso , a Greek version of dodge ball. Tessa pulled Casey to stand by her.

"Do you know how to play, little one?"

Casey nodded. "I don't let the ball hit me," she said proudly.

"But, Tessa...I don't catch good."

Tessa smiled down at Casey, who only came up to her waist.

"That's okay, I'll catch the b.a.l.l.s. You just stand out in front and make what ya got work for you."

"What's that mean?"

"It means that you're small and fast, there's no way those stupid boys are going to be able to hit you. Jump out of the way and I'll be behind you to catch the ball."

Casey did exactly as Tessa directed. She hopped around and Tessa faithfully caught every volley that came at them, until they were the only two left from their team. Tessa picked up a ball and with a moment of precise aim, rocketed the object toward one of the two boys left on the other team. The ball hit the first boy squarely in the back and bounced off, smacking the second boy in the legs.

"Game over, we win!" Tessa's teammates shouted.

Tessa had a look of triumph as she looked down at her partner.

Tessa spit in the palm of her hand and raised it to Casey. Casey did the same, and the two girls slapped their hands together in victory.

Casey had always wanted to do that. She'd never won any sport before and always watched as the victors celebrated with the powerful handshake. She grinned broadly, even though it felt *a little slimy. Casey wiped her hand on her shorts and trotted off behind Tessa.

Tessa walked away from the group of children. Everyone knew that Tessa liked to go off by herself once in a while, but Casey trotted faithfully beside her friend, jogging to keep up with Tessa's long strides. Tessa was used to being alone most of the time. She looked out of the corner of her eye and caught sight of Casey running to keep up with her. She slowed down to a stroll for the youngster. Tessa didn't have any brothers or sisters, and this one was kind of fun to be around, even if she was just a little kid. There was something she liked that reminded her of herself.

Casey had a lot of heart and used her brains. There was also a look in those green eyes. Kind of like they were telling Tessa that Casey trusted her. Tessa smiled to herself. Whatever it was about the girl by her side, Tessa had an overwhelming urge to protect Casey. She didn't know why, it was just a feeling she had.

"My pappa works for your pappa," Tessa finally spoke. She waited to see what Casey would say. She remembered the last time she made friends with the son of the man her father worked for.

He thought he was better than her because of it.

Casey jumped up and down slightly. "Does that mean you can come over and ride the pony with me again?"

Tessa laughed aloud at the excited expression on Casey's face.

"Sure, little one." Tessa paused before continuing. "You know, you can call me what my pappa calls me, if you want. He's my best friend, and I only let my best friends call me this...Niko."

Casey smiled brightly. "Niko, can I be your friend?"

"Absolutely." Tessa smiled down at Casey.

The two wandered down into the olive groves, and Tessa taught Casey how to skip rocks across the water of the pond.

Casey couldn't make it work, but she clapped in delight as Tessa made the flat rock bounce across the surface of the water. When they came to the top of a gra.s.sy ridge, they looked down on a group of men, perhaps twenty feet from where they were hidden by the tall gra.s.s.

"Let's pretend we're spies," Tessa whispered.

Casey nodded silently, wondering what spies were.

*"See," Tessa whispered in a low voice, "that's my pappa over there."

Casey followed her friend's hand, pointing out a tall, dark- haired man. "That's my pappa next to him," Casey said.

The two girls watched as the action below suddenly changed.

The two girls' fathers engaged in a heated exchange, and even though Tessa couldn't hear what was being said, her brow creased into a frown. The movement of Andreas Meridio's hand happened quickly, but to the girls watching, it was agonizingly slow.

Meridio's hand came up with a pistol in it. He never paused, firing three shots into the taller man's skull before he slumped to the ground.

"Pappa!" Tessa shouted as she stood and ran toward the group of men.

Casey was frozen in place. She had watched the movies where people killed each other, but her mother insisted that it was all pretend. She told her they were actors, and when the camera turned off, the people got up and walked away. Casey waited for Tessa's father to get up, but he didn't. She heard Tessa cry out again. The frightened Casey watched as her own father backhanded Tessa away from him with a single blow. She jumped back up and was suddenly out of control. One of the men caught her from behind and held on to the kicking and screaming wildcat. That's when Casey acted.

"Niko!" Casey shouted as she rushed down the hill toward her friend.

Casey had no idea what to do, but the action was without thought anyway. She thought she heard her father calling her name, but she could barely hear over Tessa's screams. Casey rushed up to the man holding onto her friend and kicked him hard in the shin. The startled man yelped in pain and shoved Casey away from him, roughly knocking her to the ground.

Casey's fall was broken by something soft, and when she rolled over to discover what it was, she came within inches of what was left of the face of Tessa's father. More than half his face was missing from the force of the gunshots, and Casey realized she was covered in blood. Casey let out a terrified scream as another 0.

*man grabbed her by the neck and pulled her up.