After the War: A Novella of the Golden City Read Online Free PDF

husband, turned to Alejandro, and held out her hands to take his. “Do you recognize me, Jandro?”
    Her delicate features were pretty, and he suspected she was several years younger than her husband. He should know that sort of thing about his family, not just suspect it. “No, but you must be my mother.”
    She kissed his cheeks. “I am overjoyed that you’re home. Joaquim kept promising me you would return someday, and I prayed he was right.”
    “I’m grateful for your prayers,” he said, settling on what he hoped was a safe comment.
    “And Serafina,” she added, “Joaquim says you’ll be staying with us for now, so why don’t I have the footman take your bags up to your room.”
    A footman with a scar crossing his nose and one cheek came and whisked the bags away. Marina turned back to Alejandro. “Joaquim suggested we not give you too much to deal with at once, so the children are with their grandparents. They should be back in time for dinner, though, and will all want to talk to you then.”
    There were five, if he recalled correctly from his talk with Joaquim. “Could I see a photograph, to practice their names?”
    “There’s one in the sitting room.” Marina slipped out of the hallway into that room and emerged with a silver-framed photograph of the family.
    It had to be at least three years old, because he was in it, proof that he belonged here. He had some resemblance to the girls. The youngest child, the only boy, looked to be in a christening gown
—
likely the occasion for the photograph.
    “I didn’t know what was best,” Marina added. “I’ll leave the choice to you. Would you like to tour the house to see if it jogs your memory? Or perhaps just start with your room?”
    “I would honestly appreciate the chance to change into clean clothes.” He’d been feeling grubby since he’d walked through the front door. “Joaquim told me I still have clothing here.”
    “Yes, of course you do,” Marina said. “And I know Joaquim would appreciate a nap. He never travels well. Perhaps a quick breakfast?”
    “We had breakfast on the train, darling,” Joaquim said.
    “Oh, I forgot that. Then why don’t you all go up and rest.”
    Alejandro made his way along the fine hallway with Serafina on his arm and headed up the stairs. “Which room is mine?” he whispered.
    Serafina led him to a closed door only two away from the stairwell. It opened onto a large room that had recently been cleaned. It smelled of beeswax and freshly laundered linens. Alejandro stepped inside. A wide bed stood between two tall windows with iron-railed balconies outside. On the left side of the room, two doors led off into side chambers. A leather settee to one side of those doors had a stand next to it, with a coffee tray already waiting for them. This room made the one at the hotel look paltry. The burgundy bedding was finer than anything Alejandro recalled sleeping on before. This was a prosperous man’s bedroom. He’d clearly underestimated the family’s wealth. “Is Joaquim still in the police?”
    “Yes.”
    That had to be a matter of choice, then. Joaquim surely didn’t need to work, not given the grandeur of this house. He chose to.
    Serafina dragged Alejandro toward one of the closed doors. “This is your dressing room.”
    The dressing room smelled a little stale, but Alejandro suspected that all he would have to do was request that the servants clean his garments, and they would. He crossed to an armoire and opened it to discover more jackets and trousers than he thought he would ever need. He wasn’t accustomed to choosing . He took a deep breath. “What should I wear?”
    “I’ll pick it out for you.” Serafina busied herself selecting a shirt and other garb, revealing that she had some familiarity with this room and his possessions.
    “Did you live here while I was gone?” he asked cautiously.
    Her hands stilled. “For a while,” she said softly. “When they told us you were dead, I