No Time To Lose

Prologue

"Nita, honey, do decide what you are going to wear! You won't have time for that later!" Mother screamed from the kitchen. I shuddered and put the book I had been reading aside. My family was going to the auction where my dear great aunt's belongings were to be sold. Everybody was excited about the event. I was not.

Aunt Ruby never was a frequent guest at our home. My grandmother's elder sister, she would send me heartwarming cards for every Christmas and Easter but hardly ever visited us. Everyone except for me had a really difficult relationship with her. Aunt Ruby wasn't your regular kind and quiet great aunt. She seemed loud, argumentative and witty, grouchy as she got older, but I knew she was a very sensitive and kind person at heart. She had loved my dad to bits from the moment he was born, but she never liked my mom. She didn't approve of his marriage and didn't bother to hide it. As the days went by, she visited us less and less often, and by the time she died, my dad hadn't seen her for good two years. It broke her heart, but she always managed to make a joke out of his rare visits. She was very funny, but most importantly, she was a dancer. It was she who suggested I join the ballet class at the age of four. It was she who showed me how to do an arabesque and who decorated my tutus with sequins. We always had a close bond, and I think sharing a profession made us even closer.

She died almost three months ago from a heart attack. Her death was very unexpected, and she didn't leave a will, so after some time my mother decided we should do something with her possessions. Her house had already been sold, and now some of her belongings - mostly rare books from her library and expensive antique pieces of furniture - were up for auction.

It definitely wasn't about money. The Bergmans never needed extra money. Even though I had always been a little embarrassed by this fact, my family is one of the richest in London. My parents owned several houses, a number of speedy cars, and my mother possessed more fur coats than princess Anastasia must have had in her wardrobe. I don't remember ever wanting something - a toy or a dress or a car - without it being bought for me. Both my sister Emma and I went to private schools. I swear we would have gone to Eton college if we were boys. I know my grandfather was somehow related to Ingrid Bergman, but he never told me how exactly. So since my parents are basically made of money, they didn't have to sell Aunt Ruby's old armchairs. They were doing this so they wouldn't have anything to remind me of her.

The auction was starting in a couple of hours, and I did not want to go. To me, watching people sell Aunt Ruby's tea services and emerald rings was like watching them sell tiny pieces of her heart. If Eric hadn't agreed to come with me, I would definitely stay at home, drink my tea and maybe cry a little. Oh, Eric.

I reached out for the phone and dialed his number.

"Hello, Anita speaking, can I talk to Eric?" I mumbled quickly, looping the telephone wire around my finger. Fortunately, his roommate reacted quicker than usual and the next moment I was speaking to my boyfriend himself.

"Hi Nita, how are you?" I imagined Eric giving me a sympathetic smile. I shrugged my shoulders as if he could see me.

"Could have been better," I said honestly. "Are you getting ready? You promised to pick me up at six, and it's a quarter to five already."

"Well, honey," he finally spoke and let out a cough. "I tried to call you earlier because I think we need to talk."

It sounded suspicious but I went on.

"Well, sure. What is wrong?" I asked, biting my lip. People don't say "we need to talk" when they have good news. I was in for something unpleasant, but it was too late to go back.

"I am afraid I can't come. I have some urgent things to do." He was talking so fast I could hardly make out what he was saying. "And I don't think we should see each other any more."

Nice. In the last three months, I have lost my aunt, my job and now my boyfriend.

"Eh...Why?" I knew it was cliché but I couldn't think of anything else.

"M-m, I am not sure we should discuss it over the phone. I will meet you for a cup of tea later this week, okay?"

I shook my head. I slowly put the phone down and stared into the space.

My name is Anita Bergman and I am not lucky with guys. My first boyfriend stole my heart, took my virginity and then dumped me because he considered me to be a bad kisser. He had me crying for two weeks before I got over it and was able to do something else. My second boyfriend got drunk at my birthday party and tried to hit on my sister. My third boyfriend left for Australia and I have not heard from him since. And now Eric, the guy I thought I could trust, is leaving me the day I desperately need support. What is it, a curse?

"Anita!" I heard my mother scream again. "If we are late because of you choosing your outfit again, you will never be invited anywhere anymore!"

I got up, thinking how little I cared about what I looked like. If I could just disappear right now, it would be great.

-loveandsqualor