Not such a bad crowd after all, Gia decided after an hour or so. There were numerous nationalities, all well dressed, friendly, polite, offering a smorgasbord of accents. The new dress fit her beautifully and she felt very feminine. She was aware of the admiring glances she drew from more than a few of the guests, and she enjoyed that. She was nearly finished with her third fluted glass of champagne—she knew nothing about champagne but this was delicious—when Nellie grabbed her by the arm and pulled her toward two men standing off to the side. Gia recognized the shorter of the pair as Edward Burkes, security chief at the Mission. The taller man was dark, dressed all in white, including his turban. When he turned she noticed with a start that he had no left arm.

“Eddie, how are you?” Nellie said, extending her hand.

“Nellie! How good to see you!” Burkes took her hand and kissed it. He was a burly man of about fifty with graying hair and a moustache. He looked at Gia and then smiled. “And Miss DiLauro! What an unexpected pleasure! You look wonderful! Allow me to introduce you both to Mr. Kusum Bahkti of the Indian delegation.”

The Indian made a small bow at the waist but did not extend his hand. “A pleasure to meet you both.”

Gia took an instant dislike to him. His dark, angular face was a mask, his eyes unreadable. He seemed to be hiding something. His gaze passed over her as if she were an ordinary piece of furniture, but came to rest and remain avidly on Nellie.

A waiter came around with a tray of champagne-filled glasses. Burkes gave one each to Nellie and Gia, then offered one to Mr. Bahkti, who shook his head.

“Sorry, Kusum,” Burkes said. “Forgot you don’t drink. Can I get you anything else? A fruit punch?”

Mr. Bahkti shook his head. “Don’t trouble yourself. Perhaps I’ll examine the buffet table later and see if you’ve put out any of those good English chocolates.”

“Are you a chocolate fancier?” Nellie said. “I adore it.”

“Yes. I developed a taste for it when I was with the London embassy. I brought a small supply with me when I came to this country, but that was six months ago and it has long since been depleted.”

“Just today I received a box of Black Magic from London. Have you ever had those?”

Gia saw genuine pleasure in Mr. Bahkti’s smile. “Yes. Superior chocolates. “

“You must come by some time and have some.”

The smile widened. “Perhaps I shall do that.”

Gia began to revise her opinion of Mr. Bahkti. He seemed to have gone from aloof to quite charming. Or was it simply an effect of her fourth glass of champagne? She tingled all over, felt almost giddy.

“I heard about Grace,” Burkes said to Nellie. “If there’s anything I can do… “

“We’re doing all we can,” Nellie said with a brave smile, “but mostly it comes down to waiting.”