‘Senhorita,’ he said, turning to her. ‘My apologies. It is always a great moment when you have the pleasure of meeting someone in person with whom you have only corresponded by letter previously. May I present Professor Paul Landowski. Professor, this is Senhorita Izabela Bonifacio.’

Landowski reached out his hand and raised her fingers to his lips. ‘Enchanté.’ Then he looked down at her hand, and to Bel’s surprise, began to gently trace its contours with his own fingertips. ‘Mademoiselle, why, you have the most beautiful fingers. Does she not, Monsieur da Silva Costa?’

‘I regret I’ve never noticed them before,’ answered Heitor. ‘But yes, senhor, you are right.’

‘Now, down to business, monsieur,’ said Landowski, letting go of Bel’s hand. ‘I will show you my atelier, and then we will discuss your vision of the Christ in more detail.’

Bel followed the two men through the garden, noting that the foliage seemed still asleep – green but with no flowers visible yet – whereas in her homeland, the vibrant colours of the native plants decorated the landscape all year round.

Landowski led them into a high, barn-like structure that sat at the end of the garden, the sides of it constructed from walls of glass to let in the light. A young man sat bent over a workbench in a corner of the airy space, working on a clay bust. He didn’t even look up as they entered, so intently focused was he on his task.

‘I’m working on a provisional sculpture of Sun Yat-sen and am struggling to perfect his eyes. They are, of course, a very different shape to our own western ones,’ Landowski stated. ‘My assistant is seeing if he can improve on my efforts.’

‘You work mostly in clay or stone, Professor Landowski?’ Heitor asked.

‘Whichever the client desires. Have you any idea what you wish for your Christ?’

‘I have thought of bronze, of course, but I’m concerned that Our Lord will wear a greenish hue as the bronze ages in the wind and the rain. And besides, I wish all of Rio to look up and see Him wearing light-coloured robes rather than dark ones.’

‘I understand,’ said Landowski. ‘But if you are talking about thirty metres, I think that a stone statue of that height and size will be impossible to drag up a mountainside, let alone erect when you get there.’

‘Of course,’ Heitor agreed. ‘Which is why, with the interior architectural structure I hope to finalise while I’m in Europe, I believe the Cristo’s outer shell must be cast in a mould, and then rebuilt piece by piece in Rio.’

‘Well, if you’ve seen enough in here, we will retire to the house and study the sketches I have made. Mademoiselle,’ Landowski said, turning his attention to Bel, ‘are you content to amuse yourself in the atelier while we two men talk? Or would you be more comfortable in the drawing room with my wife?’

‘I would be very happy here, thank you, monsieur,’ said Bel. ‘It’s a privilege to see the workings of your atelier.’