What was a foregone conclusion happened.
Libby and Elliot goes to St Petersburg to find out more about Blake’s past espionage activities, and it is there that they finally hook up and sleep together. This was clear from the first moment Elliot appeared, and I still don’t like him. I don’t know why. I have more reasons to dislike Nick than Elliot, but the fact that he is apparently so handsome and rich puts me off. I know Nick has committed the worst sin in a relationship, but in the few moments that we have seen from him, he seems honest and sincerely regrets his actions. When Abby is back in London, Ginny, Nick’s sister, sets her up to see Nick, and for the first time they talk. Nick talks about changing their lifestyles as he thinks this is what has hurt their marriage. So he thinks they could buy the B&B in Cornwall they always dreamt of. Yet, Abby shatters his intentions when she tells him that she has met someone. She is not totally honest with him as she simply tells him that she has only been on a date. Nick is clearly upset, but his only reaction is to say that they could sell house and he will continue transferring money to their joint account so that she wants for nothing. He leaves saying that he will visit the counselling consultant his sister has recommended even though Abby has told him she doesn’t know if she will turn up. I feel sorry for Nick. I don’t know why, but he gives me more good vibes than Elliot.
In St Petersburg Abby and Elliot discover that the rumours about Blake being a spy are true. One ex-KGB officer confirms that Blake was angry with his country because of the way his father had been treated during the war. That was why he was willing to spy. Yet, he hints that when he started seeing Ros, things became more difficult, but he doesn’t follow that line. After they return, Abby doesn’t see Elliot again as immediately afterwards he flies to San Francisco for some business. Abby is then surprised one Sunday morning when Ros storms into her house angrily. Abby discovers that Elliot has published the story about Blake being a spy without even telling her. Ros is livid as she insists that there is no way Blake could be a spy, and now his reputation, the only thing left, is in tatters.
After Ros leaves, Abby reads the article, and although upset for being kept in the dark, she is also excited to see his name in the byline. Elliot explains about Blake’s spying activities, and he also mentions Ros, hinting she might have known. Abby is distraught, but instead of calling and waking him up wherever he is, he simply sends an email. She realises that this is the second man who has let her down recently, but I still think she gives him too much consideration. I don’t know if she is dazzled by his obvious wealth, but it’s sad that she doesn’t make the same effort for the man who she has been married to for six years.
The novel then returns to 1961. Ros and Blake are now a couple, and they travel to Paris. It is here that Ros starts noticing some strange behaviour in Blake. In their room he excuses himself to go and buy some cigarettes. When he is gone, the phone rings twice, but every time Ros answers, they ring off. Blake is gone more than the few minutes that would take him to buy cigarettes. Then they go to Montecarlo and visit Lady Victoria, Blake’s friend from the first chapter, who lives nearby. Victoria is all praises about Ros, and she tells her that Blake has never been so taken before. Victoria advises Ros to set limits because Blake is the kind of man who could stray easily. So when Ros tries to follow her advice and tells Blake she doesn’t want him to go on his expedition, he gets miffed, and unlike what she believed, Victoria doesn’t open her mouth and let her make a show of herself. Upset, Ros goes to bed, and when she wakes up a bit after midnight, she sees that Blake is not in bed yet. When she gets up and has a look out of the window, she notices Victoria and Blake in the dark garden, talking, and she can’t help but suspect and feel jealous. I wonder if Victoria Harbord was part of the espionage structure. Maybe like the KGB agent told Abby and Elliot, Ros made things more difficult, and Victoria simply tried to sabotage the relationship.
That didn’t work. Blake and Ros talk when they return to London. Since she realizes she won’t be able to change him, she tells him that she wants to go to Peru with him. Blake surprises her by promising never to go away again, and he asks her to marry him, and she naturally agrees.
