Otto questioned Guido the factotum, who was indeed the coachman from Firenze, and learned Claudia and her guests were expected at the end of the week....He was unable to enlighten us as to whom the guests might be.The next day Otto and I rode the three miles into Verona from the comfortable Villa Agostino, checking at the Carli Palace for signs of arrival of the British delegation, where we were informed they were expected ‘any time soon’.We left our horses at a livery stable and wandered around. The rum had been poured in at about the same rate as the coke, making it much stronger than she'd expected or was used to. She sat out on the balcony and carried on drinking, the combination of the heat and the drink making her relax as she sank deeper into the chair and lifted her legs onto the railing.Paul finished unpacking the suitcases and walked through the sliding doors to find her asleep again. He nudged her awake, not wanting her to burn on the first day. "Hey, you need sun lotion on. Flags adorned the graves of soldiers returned from foreign lands where they died. Mothers, sisters, brothers, widows, children and descendants of dead warriors gathered at grave sites to hold on to fleeting memories and wonder, "What might have been..."That was then. Today, four men sit at a table, devouring a lunch charged to a corporate expense account. Their conversation is all business; they left the office, but brought their work to the table. All four are balding, their hair prematurely. „Oh, what a terrible dream,“ she sighed. At the same time she felt, that all her body was cool. „Chills,“ realized Marlene, why she is shaking. Marlene tried to pull blanket more over body and to move herself under it. „I have to get warmer,“ she thought. Time was 4 a.m. She had two more hours until the next naked day outside.She did not stay asleep anymore. Finally at 5.30 she rose out of bed and started to prepare hot tea. Chills still plagued her. She almost cried, because after half an hour.