108. An Archangel Called Ivan Read online

  An Archangel Called Ivan

  BARBARA CARTLAND

  www.barbaracartland.com

  Copyright © 2007 by Cartland Promotions

  First published on the internet in September 2013 by Barbaracartland.com

  ISBNs

  The characters and situations in this book are entirely imaginary and bear no relation to any real person or actual happening.

  This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise circulated without the publisher’s prior consent.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronically or mechanically, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval, without the prior permission in writing from the publisher.

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  An Archangel Called Ivan

  It then suddenly struck Arliva with a feeling of horror that maybe she would never find anyone who would love her for herself.

  She wanted the love her father and mother had had for each other which was why he had never married again, although at times he must have been very lonely.

  ‘I just want to be loved for myself,’ she thought. ‘I don’t want anyone who pretends to care for me because they want my money or anything else I possess.’

  Yet she could not stop herself worrying that it was something she might never find.

  She felt as if her money was encircling her with tight cords that would prevent her from ever knowing the meaning of real love, the love that everyone wanted, the love of a man and a woman simply because he was the other half of herself.

  ‘That is what I want,’ Arliva said to herself, ‘but because I am so rich it is a gem I will never find. Even if I want to believe a man loves me I will be quite certain that he will be grasping for that great fortune which exists in my name. Oh, please God, what shall I do?’

  The prayer came directly from her heart.

  THE BARBARA CARTLAND PINK COLLECTION

  Barbara Cartland was the most prolific bestselling author in the history of the world. She was frequently in the Guinness Book of Records for writing more books in a year than any other living author. In fact her most amazing literary feat was when her publishers asked for more Barbara Cartland romances, she doubled her output from 10 books a year to over 20 books a year, when she was 77.

  She went on writing continuously at this rate for 20 years and wrote her last book at the age of 97, thus completing 400 books between the ages of 77 and 97.

  Her publishers finally could not keep up with this phenomenal output, so at her death she left 160 unpublished manuscripts, something again that no other author has ever achieved.

  Now the exciting news is that these 160 original unpublished Barbara Cartland books are ready for publication and they will be published by Barbaracartland.com exclusively on the internet, as the web is the best possible way to reach so many Barbara Cartland readers around the world.

  The 160 books will be published monthly and will be numbered in sequence.

  The series is called the Pink Collection as a tribute to Barbara Cartland whose favourite colour was pink and it became very much her trademark over the years.

  The Barbara Cartland Pink Collection is published only on the internet. Log on to www.barbaracartland.com to find out how you can purchase the books monthly as they are published, and take out a subscription that will ensure that all subsequent editions are delivered to you by mail order to your home.

  If you do not have access to a computer you can write for information about the Pink Collection to the following address :

  BarbaraCartland.com

  Camfield Place

  Hatfield

  Hertfordshire

  AL9 6JE

  United Kingdom

  Telephone: +44 1707 642629

  Fax: +44 1707 663041

  Titles in this series

  These titles are currently available for download. For more information please see the Where to buy page at the end of this book.

  The Cross Of Love

  Love In The Highlands

  Love Finds The Way

  The Castle Of Love

  Love Is Triumphant

  Stars In The Sky

  The Ship Of Love

  A Dangerous Disguise

  Love Became Theirs

  Love Drives In

  Sailing To Love

  The Star Of Love

  Music Is The Soul Of Love

  Love In The East

  Theirs To Eternity

  A Paradise On Earth

  Love Wins In Berlin

  In Search Of Love

  Love Rescues Rosanna

  A Heart In Heaven

  The House Of Happiness

  Royalty Defeated By Love

  The White Witch

  They Sought Love

  Love Is The Reason For Living

  They Found Their Way To Heaven

  Learning To Love

  Journey To Happiness

  A Kiss In The Desert

  The Heart Of Love

  The Richness Of Love

  For Ever And Ever

  An Unexpected Love

  Saved By An Angel

  Touching The Stars

  Seeking Love

  Journey To Love

  The Importance Of Love

  Love By The Lake

  A Dream Come True

  The King Without A Heart

  The Waters Of Love

  Danger To The Duke

  A Perfect Way To Heaven

  Follow Your Heart

  In Hiding

  Rivals For Love

  A Kiss From The Heart

  Lovers In London

  This Way To Heaven

  A Princess Prays

  Mine For Ever

  The Earl’s Revenge

  Love At The Tower

  Ruled By Love

  Love Came From Heaven

  Love And Apollo

  The Keys Of Love

  A Castle Of Dreams

  A Battle Of Brains

  A Change Of Hearts

  It Is Love

  The Triumph Of Love

  Wanted – A Royal Wife

  A Kiss Of Love

  To Heaven With Love

  Pray For Love

  The Marquis Is Trapped

  Hide And Seek For Love

  Hiding from Love

  A Teacher Of Love

  Money Or Love

  The Revelation Is Love

  The Tree Of Love

  The Magnificent Marquis

  The Castle

  The Gates of Paradise

  A Lucky Star

  A Heaven on Earth

  The Healing Hand

  A Virgin Bride

  The Trail to Love

  A Royal Love Match

  A Steeplechase for Love

  Love at Last

  Search for a Wife

  Secret Love

  A Miracle of Love

  Love and the Clans

  A Shooting Star

  The Winning Post is Love

  They Touched Heaven

  The Mountain of Love

  The Queen Wins

  Love and the Gods

  Joined by Love

  The Duke is Deceived

  A Prayer For Love

  Love Conquers War

  A Rose in Jeopardy

  A Call of Love

  A Flight to Heaven

  She Wanted Love

  A Heart Finds Love

  A Sacrifice for Love

  Love's Dream in Peril

  THE LATE DAME BARBARA CARTLAND

  Barbara C
artland, who sadly died in May 2000 at the grand age of ninety eight, remains one of the world’s most famous romantic novelists. With worldwide sales of over one billion, her outstanding 723 books have been translated into thirty six different languages, to be enjoyed by readers of romance globally.

  Writing her first book ‘Jigsaw’ at the age of 21, Barbara became an immediate bestseller. Building upon this initial success, she wrote continuously throughout her life, producing bestsellers for an astonishing 76 years. In addition to Barbara Cartland’s legion of fans in the UK and across Europe, her books have always been immensely popular in the USA. In 1976 she achieved the unprecedented feat of having books at numbers 1 & 2 in the prestigious B. Dalton Bookseller bestsellers list.

  Although she is often referred to as the ‘Queen of Romance’, Barbara Cartland also wrote several historical biographies, six autobiographies and numerous theatrical plays as well as books on life, love, health and cookery. Becoming one of Britain's most popular media personalities and dressed in her trademark pink, Barbara spoke on radio and television about social and political issues, as well as making many public appearances.

  In 1991 she became a Dame of the Order of the British Empire for her contribution to literature and her work for humanitarian and charitable causes.

  Known for her glamour, style, and vitality Barbara Cartland became a legend in her own lifetime. Best remembered for her wonderful romantic novels and loved by millions of readers worldwide, her books remain treasured for their heroic heroes, plucky heroines and traditional values. But above all, it was Barbara Cartland’s overriding belief in the positive power of love to help, heal and improve the quality of life for everyone that made her truly unique.

  “I have always believed in angels and that a very special Guardian Angel looks after me and guides me all through my life.”

  Barbara Cartland

  CHAPTER ONE

  1860

  Arliva walked away from the noise and laughter in the ballroom towards her sitting room.

  She had just found that she had left her evening bag on the table after dinner and, as she wanted a handkerchief out of it, she must find out where it could be.

  She was almost certain that the servants would have taken it into her sitting room and put it on the writing table, as there would be no doubt that it was hers.

  It was gold and had been given to her on one of her birthdays by her father.

  It had her initials on it in diamonds and contained an attractive powder compact that had been another present which also had her initials displayed in precious stones.

  In point of fact the whole front of the compact was sprinkled with them.

  It was just another indication of her wealth.

  At her father’s large house in Park Lane she was able to hold an evening party at which everyone in the Beau Monde was to be present.

  Arliva had made a tremendous impact on the Social world from the moment she first appeared in it.

  As her father had died when she was just seventeen, she had stayed quietly in the country for a year.

  When she appeared this Season, she was nearing nineteen and had completely astounded the Social world.

  It was not surprising because she was immensely rich, which, as the Dowagers said to each other was always an ‘Open Sesame’ to the Beau Monde.

  She was also extremely beautiful.

  It’s really most unfair the other debutantes muttered amongst themselves that Arliva should have so much to make her the most talked about, the most beautiful and the most successful debutante of the Season.

  Lord Ashdown, her father, had been a most brilliant diplomat and he had contributed enormously to the huge British Empire presided over by Queen Victoria.

  He had been rich and influential before he became a diplomat, but his success then had lain in the fact that his father had been an extremely clever man and he had done a great deal for the countryside he lived in.

  When Lord Ashdown had shown, while he was still at Oxford, that he had an exceptional brain and great charm that was the hope and ambition of every budding diplomat, his father had wisely insisted that he become proficient in every foreign language.

  When he was later offered an apprenticeship to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, the Secretary said,

  “He knows more languages than I do and I cannot imagine anyone who would be more useful to us at this or any other moment.”

  It was then that Lord Ashdown realised that he was in his element.

  He travelled from country to country and, because he was handsome and when it suited him flirtatious, a large number of women fell willingly into his arms.

  But surprisingly he did not marry.

  It was because he enjoyed his life so much as a bachelor he felt he would find himself tied down, however attractive his wife might be, and he would feel confined in a way he was certain he would hate.

  He was therefore nearly fifty when he was finally married.

  He was extremely happy with his young and very beautiful wife.

  Unfortunately and to his and everyone else’s great sadness she died during the birth of her first child.

  Whilst Arliva was a comfort to her father, he was continually travelling throughout the world and it was not until she was old enough that he took her with him.

  The countries they visited and the people they met made a great impression on a girl who was only fourteen years of age.

  She learnt to speak almost as many languages as her father and to be friendly with the men and women of every different nation. It was an extraordinary education in a way for an English girl.

  But, when her father died, she then realised that her wandering life had come to an end.

  She was obliged to settle down in the large country house he owned in Gloucestershire and be given lessons by Governesses, who could teach her very little that she did not know already.

  In his years of extensive travelling Lord Ashdown had become even richer than he had been when he had inherited his fortune from his father.

  He was interested in so many different things.

  The treasures he had brought home from his travels filled the house in the country to the rafters and were an increasing delight to his daughter.

  Whenever she saw something for sale which she knew would delight her father, she insisted on buying it, thereby adding to the great collection he had already made.

  Arliva was chaperoned after her father’s death by his sisters. As he had four of them, they took it in turns to have her either in the house where they lived or to stay at Ashdown Abbey which had been her father’s favourite house and which was now hers.

  It was not surprising that the stories of the valuable treasures that the house contained and the beauty and worth of its owner reached London long before she set foot in Mayfair.

  To claim that she was an overnight sensation at the first ball given for her in London by one of her relatives was to express the situation mildly.

  The very fact that she appeared to be so completely unaware of her beauty and her money made her attractive to every man who danced with her.

  Naturally it caused her to receive great attention from the Dowagers, who not only wished to marry off their daughters to someone of importance but also to find a rich and charming wife for their sons.

  To Arliva it was a new world that she summed up, as she had every other place she had visited, to find out the truth beneath the obvious glitter and the reality behind the diplomatic pretence.

  She had learnt so much from her father.

  What was most significant was his advice never to frighten people with your knowledge and never to let them feel that you are too clever to enjoy the compliments they undoubtedly will pay you.

  Arliva had laughed at the time, but she had noted how astute her father was in dealing with Statesmen from other countries who wanted to obtain something of value from him.

  And how he never let them realise that he was well awa
re what their tricks would be long before they tried to capture him with them.

  Arliva therefore acknowledged the varied proposals of marriage that she received demurely and kindly.

  At the same time never letting the man who was proposing be aware that she knew what really attracted him was her fortune.

  “You are a huge success, dearest,” one of her aunts complimented her, “and we are so proud of you. Of course there is no reason at all for you to be in any hurry to marry anyone.”

  Arliva realised that her aunts had been consulting amongst themselves as to how they could deter fortune-hunters from snatching Arliva away from them.

  They need not have worried.

  Her father had taught her so much that she knew almost before the man in question asked her to be his wife that he was thinking of piles of gold rather than the light in her eyes.

  The one outstanding talent of Lord Ashdown had been the fact that he could sum up the man he was talking to almost immediately he entered the room.

  “It’s not exactly what he says or what he does,” he told his daughter, “it is something that vibrates from him and that is what you have to learn to recognise.”

  Arliva understood exactly what her father meant.

  As she grew older, he had sometimes allowed her be with him when he had a caller that he suspected would sooner or later desire to conduct some vital business with him.

  “Now what did you think of that man?” he would ask Arliva when they were alone together.

  “I thought that he was very good-looking and well-dressed for the part he wanted to play,” she replied.

  Her father had smiled.

  “Go on,” he urged her.

  “Then I sensed,” she continued, “that behind the complimentary words that he was mouthing to me and the warm welcome he was repeating on behalf of Her Majesty, there was a determination to obtain something from you which he thought you would not immediately be aware of.”

  “You are quite right,” he said, “and you are getting better at it every day. It was something I rather suspected before he came, but which I could see quite clearly once he began to talk on so many different subjects that he thought would blind me to the main reason for his attention.”