Left with my thoughts what I realized; the sight of Gabriela standing in the hall had been in our favor, the man aware that he was taking the ladies seat, Gabriela’s seat, finally convinced him to leave. I doubted, although I couldn’t be sure, me standing in the hall would have been as compelling an argument for him to leave. We had unknowingly made a good strategic decision, me sitting next to Alexandra, and Gabriela standing in the hall.
For me every trip to Italy has a train story and this was the story, on our first afternoon in Italy on the way to Venice. When the woman who had spoken to me and to the man left the car, at a point prior to the terminal point in Venice I thanked her again. “Grazia, Grazia.”
After she spoke to me she continued to speak to the man in quiet tones. She spoke to him periodically, with long gaps in the monologue, as if when she thought of another idea or argument she would speak and present it to him. I sat opposite him and several times I made eye contact with him, but said nothing. Neither he nor I showed any emotion.
After about ten minutes the man sighed deeply. Then he arose and left the compartment purposefully as if he was going somewhere. I nodded to the woman in the brown business suit, in recognition of her work on my behalf. I then motioned with my hand for Gabriela to come and take the seat.