Alejandro's Revenge by Anne Mather

paid for the stolen items to be replaced, no ?’
    Abby wasn’t at all happy about being put on the spot, particularly as she suspected her brother had his own reasons for wanting to return home. But Luis was waiting for her answer and she shrugged. ‘I’ve heard that, too,’ she admitted, giving Lauren a sympathetic look. ‘But perhaps if you fitted a new alarm—’
    â€˜That’s a good idea, Papá,’ said Lauren at once. ‘And if it was teenagers, as Edward thinks, they probably won’t bother us again.’
    â€˜That’s what I think,’ said Edward, and Abby wondered why he seemed so keen to play the incident down. Did he have something to hide? Surely he hadn’t arranged to have the apartment burglarised himself.
    But, no. As Abby determinedly put such thoughts aside, Luis’s aunt chose to make her own contribution. ‘Why do we not all wait and see what la policia come up with?’ she remarked mildly. ‘I am sure Abigail does not wish to spend her holiday discussing our little problems.’ She paused. ‘How are you enjoying your stay, pequeña ? Dolores tells me you and she had lunch together at La Terraza. Did you know that I used to work at La Terraza? When I was a much younger woman, naturalmente .’ She smiled.
    â€˜What Tia Elena means is that her husband’s family used to own La Terraza,’ Dolores explained shortly, clearly eager that Abby shouldn’t get the wrong impression. She gave the old woman a reproving look. ‘It is a great pity that they decided to sell. These days it is making a fortune, no ?’
    â€˜Money is not everything, Dolores,’ returned the old lady, undaunted. ‘I think you forget that sometimes.’
    â€˜I forget nothing, Tia,’ retorted Dolores quellingly. She lifted the bell beside her plate and rang it imperiously, speaking in rapid Spanish to the maid when she arrived. Then, after the girl had cleared their plates, she said, ‘Shall we go into the salon? I have asked Anita to serve coffee in there.’
    Abby got the chance to talk to Lauren after they’d all adjourned to the salon. The younger girl had settled herself on a hide-covered sofa set at right angles to the huge fireplace and Abby hesitated only a second before taking the seat beside her.
    She noticed that Edward didn’t look particularly pleased that she’d chosen to join his wife, but that couldn’t be helped. He shouldn’t have told her Lauren was having an affair with Alejandro Varga if he’d wanted to keep it a secret. Besides, Abby had no intention of asking her about that. She just wanted the opportunity to gauge for herself exactly what was going on in her brother’s marriage.
    Lauren herself looked slightly surprised when Abby sat down, but she was too polite to offer any objection. On the contrary, she immediately struck up a conversation, asking Abby about her engagement, admiring her ring and proffering the suggestion that she and Ross ought to consider returning to Florida for their honeymoon.
    Abby, knowing full well that Ross would never agree to such a thing, made some neutral rejoinder before saying lightly, ‘It seems no time since we were discussing your honeymoon, Lauren. But I suppose you and Edward are quite used to being married now.’
    â€˜Y—e—s.’ Lauren drew out the word in such a way that Abby was hardly reassured. ‘We are happy enough, I suppose. Though this has not been an easy year for us.’
    â€˜No.’ Abby nodded understandingly. ‘I suppose the accident was quite a shock.’
    â€˜It was.’ Lauren accepted a cup of coffee from the maid before continuing. ‘But that isn’t what I meant.’
    â€˜It’s not?’ Abby was aware that her brother was watching them with a lowering expression. She moistened her lips. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to