Chapter 527

• Proserpina
• I had dozed off, lying on the huge bed in our spacious bedroom. When I came awake twice, it was to find that I was alone; Lucien was still at work and now that Schwartz was not with him, he had to depend upon the other Capos, particularly on Philippe and of course, our eldest son, Piers. They were all at work in the study, I discovered when I went down once at around 3 a.m., bleary with sleep, to find the valet, Gustav, silent and as alert as ever, preparing a huge canister of coffee for everyone in the study. He inclined his bald head politely and I left with a sigh. Lucien never welcomed my presence in his study when he was at work and I respected the wishes of my Mafia Don.
• To my relief, I saw a couple of Philippe’s burly men guarding the corridors leading to the wing where Claude and Pies had their suites; which meant in effect that Ramona and her obnoxious brother were not allowed to roam around as they pleased, for the rooms they had were adjacent to those of my sons.