Page 15 of Palazzo
Cosima waited until the following week to meet with Sally and Bill Johnson. She’d had time to speak to Allegra in the meantime about selling the palazzo. It had been the only way she could cover Luca’s outrageous gambling debt fast enough to save him. She couldn’t pull two hundred thousand euros out of the business with no justification for it, and she was meticulous with their books and their money, and ran the company honestly and responsibly. The palazzo was an enormous asset, which brought them rental income now. But there was more to be gained by selling, no matter how painful for them. They all remembered the time they had spent there with their parents, the elegant parties they gave and the magnificent balls. They had been dazzling hosts, surrounded by glamorous people, royals and socialites and movie stars. It was a forgotten era now. A time of dazzling social life in Rome. And the upkeep of the palazzo was enormous, in a city with difficult weather conditions and the sea and the canals eroding the historic buildings.
Selling the palazzo had been the only solution Cosima could think of to solve Luca’s pressing need, and possibly save his life, and selling would bring them each a sizable amount of money, even if it pained her and Allegra to sell.
Luca’s most recent escapade had made her realize that at some point it would be wise for her and her sister to buy him out of the business. He would be happy with the money, and they’d be better off without his ability to interfere.
Allegra didn’t disagree with her, but she was sad to lose the palazzo that had been in their family for centuries. She was more romantic and sentimental than Cosima, who saw the practical side of things as well. Allegra always trusted her sister’s decisions, but she was sad about this one. Selling the Palazzo Saverio seemed like an enormous piece of their history to give up, but out of respect for her sister she didn’t oppose the sale, although she was unhappy about it.
“If we don’t sell it, I’ll owe them the two hundred thousand euros they gave me, which I had to give Luca,” Cosima said with a sigh. “We have no other way to cover it. I can’t take it out of the business,” and they both knew they didn’t have that kind of money lying around. Their father had always impressed upon Cosima never to borrow money. But he couldn’t have imagined that they’d have to sell the palazzo, and all because of their brother’s folly and vices. He had demonstrated that he would do anything for money.
“Luca will be happy with the money when we sell it,” Allegra said wistfully.
“He never cares where the money comes from, as long as I pay his debts,” Cosima said angrily. Countless times she had had to cut back severely on something for herself or Allegra, to cover him, and hebarely thanked her. He expected to be taken care of and didn’t even pretend to have an interest in the business that supported them all.
—
The meeting with the Johnsons went smoothly. Cosima had had time to consult several realtors and had an idea now of what the palazzo was worth in the current market. It needed repairs and modernizing. There was maintenance they had deferred because the careful work it required, given the palazzo’s age, was expensive, and they couldn’t afford to keep it in pristine condition. But with its history, and how beautiful it was, and its size, it was worth a great deal of money. Cosima wanted to put some of the money into the business, but the sale would give each of them more than they had in the bank now, and a cushion for the future. Before they’d rented it to the Johnsons, it had been a constant drain on them with repairs they couldn’t avoid, and Cosima had been responsible about keeping it in the best condition they could afford, with the help of their two old caretakers. The repairs they had done served them well in the negotiations with the Johnsons, and they settled on a price which seemed fair to all of them. They were going to have reports done on the health of the structure and the stone, but there were few surprises. Cosima and the Johnsons were well aware of the palazzo’s weaknesses and its strengths.
The Johnsons wanted a ninety-day closing on the sale, which would take them into September, and at the end of September they were going to bring their architect and their decorator back to outline their plans for remodeling and renovation, and all the modern touches and elements they wanted to add once it was theirs. Thetiming sounded right to Cosima. Until then, the Johnsons were going to sign a “promise of purchase,” establishing the price and their intention to buy the palazzo in three months. No further money would change hands until then, since the Johnsons had already given her the two hundred thousand as a deposit. They intended to pay the balance in full at the end of the ninety days. Until then, the Palazzo Saverio would belong to the three Saverios, and after that it would change hands. The two hundred thousand euros already paid was a nonrefundable deposit if they changed their minds or defaulted on the sale, and the deposit was to be returned in full by the Saverios if they decided not to sell. But both sides had ninety days to change their minds. The Johnsons were worried that the Saverios would back out before the end of the waiting period, but Cosima assured them that she couldn’t imagine a circumstance that would induce them to keep the palazzo. It was a practical although painful decision for them. The Johnsons had unlimited funds to spend to bring it back into pristine condition, the Saverios didn’t, and the family hadn’t lived in Venice for thirty years. However much the family regretted it, and however attached they were to the palazzo, it seemed like a wise decision to sell.
Allegra was satisfied with the conditions Cosima had agreed to, and when she informed Luca, as usual he complained.
“Why didn’t you get a bigger deposit? They can afford it, and why not shorten the waiting period?”
“We don’t need to,” Cosima said simply. “Ninety days will pass quickly enough,” and they all needed time to adjust to the idea of the loss. They didn’t need the palazzo, but they loved it.
“It would have been nice to have the money sooner,” Luca said.They didn’t need it any sooner, and Cosima was sure that Luca would spend his share in a matter of months, knowing how irresponsible he was with money. She hoped he wouldn’t gamble it away, but she had long since learned, and again recently, that she couldn’t protect him from himself.
It was painful to listen to the Johnsons’ plans and their elation at the prospect of owning the palazzo. But at least they loved it, and she knew that the palazzo would be in good hands. There were no future generations of Saverios to pass it on to. Realistically, it didn’t seem likely that any of them would have children, or perhaps even marry. Allegra had a wide circle of friends, but no serious suitors. Her circumstances were complicated since the accident. Men still found her beautiful, but a wife with a serious spinal cord injury was a major undertaking, and she’d never come close to marriage with any of the men she knew, or even had a long-term relationship. She was capable of having children, but it didn’t seem likely. And Cosima had given up the idea of marriage once she’d fallen in love with Gian Battista and knew he’d never divorce. No man had come close to meaning as much to her, and she still couldn’t imagine it. Marriage was the farthest thing from Luca’s mind in his self-indulgent, hedonistic life. So there were no Saverio heirs to be considered, present or future, and no spouses on the horizon either.
The Johnsons were planning to go back to Dallas for July, and then to a home they had in Aspen for August, to avoid the crowds of tourist season during the summer in Venice. They’d be back in September in time to close the sale.
“I could have chartered a yacht this summer if they closed sooner,” Luca said to Cosima, which irritated her again.
“You’re ridiculous. You can charter one next summer, if you have any money left. When are you going to grow up?”
“Hopefully never. You don’t make it look like much fun,” he said, bitter about the agreement she’d made him sign to protect the business and prevent him from selling without her and Allegra’s permission.
“We’re getting a good price for the palazzo. And none of this would have happened if you hadn’t been an idiot at the casino with Olivier Bayard’s son.”
“You should have let me sell my share of the business to him. You could have paid the Johnsons back their deposit and kept the palazzo you and Allegra love so much.” He had no sentiment, only an unquenchable thirst for money he could squander. How he got it didn’t matter to him. “I might still charter a boat in September, to celebrate.” He had a vast entourage of hangers-on to draw from whenever he had some money. “Don’t you ever want to have fun, Cosima? You can’t be dutiful all the time.” But she was, in part thanks to him.
“I love the business. That’s fun for me.”
“You should have a good time for a change. Allegra has a better time, and she’s stuck in a wheelchair. She goes out more than you do.”
“She’s younger and she doesn’t run the business,” Cosima responded. “Thank you for your advice,” she added coldly. She was utterly fed up and disgusted by him.
It was easy to have fun and be young and carefree when someone else was paying the bills, which was the role she’d been assigned when their parents died. He had never stepped into their father’sshoes. He had left that to her. And their father hadn’t been so wise with money either. They lived well beyond their means, and the scope of the business at the time. It was Cosima who had put the family business firmly on its feet. Luca always said she lived like a nun. She and Gian Battista had kept their affair a secret, and as far as Luca knew, there had never been a man in her life. Luca had always thought her strange.
Allegra had suspected that there was someone, had guessed that he was married, and possibly who it was, but Cosima had never told her the truth. She kept her secrets to herself. Luca just thought his older sister was dull. Allegra had always sensed that there was a mysterious side of Cosima she never shared, and didn’t question her about it. Just as Cosima never asked Allegra how far things went with the men she saw her with. They respected each other’s privacy. Everyone in Rome knew what Luca was up to, and who he was with. He hung out with the worst elements in Rome.
—
Luca went to Paris again once Cosima had made the deal with the Johnsons and set the price for the palazzo. Luca knew just how much he was going to get out of the sale. It was a very sizable amount, and he was looking forward to it. But he wanted more. He knew how fast money could evaporate, and how quickly it was spent. He saw an opportunity around every corner.
He stayed with Max Bayard again while he was in Paris. They went to the casino in Enghien together and had a few minor wins, nothing to get excited about. Max had been cautious since their night of mad excess at the casino in Venice. Paris was lively andentertaining, and Luca liked French women. They were dazzled by his looks and fell prey to his charms. He spoke French fluently, which made it easy. Word of his reputation hadn’t traveled as far as Paris, and Max didn’t mention to his father that he had seen Luca again. They made plans to meet again in Venice in July. Luca had a friend who was away for the summer and had loaned him an apartment. They were planning to go to Saint-Tropez afterwards. Max had a friend they could stay with there. There would be plenty to do. They were similar in their pursuits and an unholy pair.
Luca was tempted to ask the Johnsons if he could stay at the palazzo, since they’d be back in the States for the summer and the place would be empty. But he knew that Cosima would be furious if he did, and he wanted to stay away from her for the moment, so he settled for the friend’s apartment in Venice on one of the smaller canals. Max was going to stay with him there. Max had five weeks’ vacation by law in France, and Luca had no obligations. He usually floated around Europe in the summer, staying with friends, pursuing easy women, and gambling when he could.
