‘It sounds lovely,’ Grace said, following behind. ‘Thank you.’

The suite was like nothing Grace had ever stayed in before, including on her trips with Lawrence. She couldn’t believe the sumptuousness and thought put into its every detail. After unpacking and freshening up, she barely had time to appreciate the luxury before Sutini knocked on her door and suggested they should head over to the briefing.

‘Do you know who will be there?’ Grace asked as they walked.

‘I understand that a representative of the owners, the managing director, the architect, and the head of marketing will be attending, and perhaps some others. As you can appreciate, some areas still aren’t finished and so the conference room is very basic.’

‘I understand,’ Grace said. ‘Are you Balinese, Sutini? You have an American accent.’

‘Actually I am from Java. I went to college in the US,’ Sutini answered. ‘Please, watch your step here.’ She pointed to some building materials and workers’ tools. ‘They are putting up some handmade glass sculptures on these walls.’

‘I can see that it will be stunning when the work’s done,’ Grace said. ‘But more than that, there’s a feeling of tranquillity here,’ she added. It was true; even though she knew her problems at home hadn’t changed, her physical and mental distance from them in this place was making her feel calmer about tackling them. But first she had to focus on the briefing.

Grace was thoughtful as she walked with Sutini to the conference room. Luxury hotels, no matter how beautiful, often had similar, familiar elements. But this one was utterly different, dreamlike in a way, because of its setting in a landscape that seemed almost untouched. In these surroundings, she could imagine how the whole island must have been like this once.

The conference room might have been a temporary setting, but it had the aesthetics of an art gallery. In the centre of the light-filled space was a magnificent long wooden table with about ten chairs around it, and a contemporary sculpture of lava rock in one corner. An eye-catching though deceptively simple arrangement of flowers and greenery sat in the centre of the table. Hand-blown crystal water glasses were set at each place. Sutini’s description of the room as being basic made Grace wonder what Sutini might consider ‘elaborate’. Grace stopped and looked at the beguiling vistas from the huge windows.

Almost immediately, a tall, well-dressed man entered the room and strode towards her. ‘Ms Hagen, how do you do. I’m Hans Speyer, the marketing manager for MGI,’ he said, and shook her hand. ‘Welcome.’

Grace had read about him and knew that he’d worked around hotels in Asia for years.

Other people followed him in, and soon the room was filled with greetings and conversations. Hans’s assistant, a Javanese man, escorted her around and made all the introductions.

The marketing manager, the head of finance, and the hotel’s architect had all been invited to be part of this briefing for Grace. She was particularly interested to meet the son of the owners, Johnny Pangisar, a handsome Balinese-Chinese man who looked to be in his late thirties.