Authors: Thomas McDermott
“I suppose not.” Helene sighed loudly. “I can’t thank you enough for your kindness.” Helene followed the brilliantly dressed woman down the ornately decorated hall with red carpeting and red tapestries on every wall. She found it a bit vulgar and ostentatious. The décor had the sense of a showy display as if the owner were trying to impress the world that she was trying so desperately to enter. She was saying loudly that she was rich and powerful where Helene’s taste was much more subtle and quiet. She was sure that the two of them under normal circumstances could never have been friends. She was led to a room that was large and filled with loud impressive furniture all painted gold and covered with gold fabric. It was a horror truly but Helene suddenly felt guilty for judging this woman’s taste when she was helping them to flee the danger all around them. Once again she thought it would all become a funny story she would tell when the world calmed down again.
She was left alone with two maids who drew her a bath and helped her scrub the filth of the streets away. There was an array of wonderful gowns to choose from that were all the right size. The mistress of the chateau certainly knew how to pamper her guests. Helene chose a dress of turquoise blue that seemed more beautiful than the others. It was regal and made in the most recent of fashion and she saw also that there were several wigs to choose from and one of the girls was quite skilled at hairdressing and helped her achieve the desired look. Finally she was herself again. Helene Corbet of Passy. She couldn’t wait now to see Etienne. She was fastening one of the brooches on her dress when she heard a commotion coming from downstairs. It sounded like angry shouting and the frightening sound of angry pounding. Her heart froze in that instant as she remembered the angry mob on the streets. She opened the door and made her way to the stairs. In the foyer there were about twenty men with guns and hammers and all sorts of weaponry. They were held at bay by Celine D’Aumont. Suddenly her hostess turned around as if she sensed Helene’s presence. She smiled in the most calm manner for someone under such circumstances. She bade the men to be quiet and surprisingly they listened to her. She really was a friend to the people! Helene’s fear subsided and she saw that Celine was motioning for her to come downstairs.
“Don’t’ be afraid darling. These are friends. In these desperate times we must all be friends to the common man. It’s what all this violence is all about. For too long the privileged few have held all the coins as the rest of France starves. You saw it for yourself today did you not?” She held out her hand to Helene as she nervously reached the bottom stair. “You saw for yourself the agony and the desperation of the people. Did it not move you to tears?” The men were all staring at her hungrily with malice shining from their eyes. Helene was confused. Where was Etienne? Celine grabbed her wrist with inhuman strength and refused to let her go. Now Helene was terrified. When Celine spoke again there was blood in her voice.
“Gentlemen. As promised I deliver to you an enemy of the people of France! Comtesse Helene Corbet of Passy!” With this she pushed Helene brutally into the crowd who began cheering and yelling. One of them even shot his pistol towards the ceiling. Helen screamed as the men grabbed her and began dragging her out of the house. She looked at Celine who stood there smiling as she bade her servant to fetch her wool cape. She wasn’t going to miss this for all the world. Helene screamed and screamed for Etienne but there was no help to be found anywhere. Somehow Celine D’Aumont had tricked her and now she was being carried away by the angry killing mob that had frightened her so earlier. She couldn’t understand why a woman whom she didn’t even know would do this to her. Where was Etienne? Had she tricked him as well? She screamed again and again until one of the men knocked her on the back of her head until all she knew was blackness.
Sasha sat up in the bed abruptly. She was in a strange place and the violence of her dream had made her more afraid. Where was she? Oh yes, she looked at the sleeping form next to her and smiled at Taylor. After the river boat tour they had agreed to go to the Ritz for a night cap and the next thing she knew there were clothes flying about everywhere. They had made love not once, but three times before they finally fell asleep after admitting it was the best sex either one of them had ever had. Sasha didn’t know if he was just saying it to be nice but it was true for her. Looking at Taylor she thought about the nightmare and wondered why Celine had suddenly decided to show up in it. Great, now she was going to need therapy! First she dreams of Taylor two days before meeting him and now this dream of Celine betraying her. Was it some sort of omen? She looked around the extravagant room and wished suddenly that she was at home. She looked at Taylor again and something flashed in her mind like a memory that was vague and distinct at the same time. She saw him sleeping just like this but in a different bed and a different place. The flashes started coming faster and she found herself disoriented. What was wrong with her? She panicked and slipped out of the bed quietly. Not wishing to wake him she grabbed her purse and began to dress. She wanted to leave without disturbing him. She clicked the door closed as quietly as possible and ran down the hall to the elevator. The door opened quickly and inside was one passenger. A short attractive man who smiled up at her and went back to reading the paper in his hand. As the elevator opened to the magnificent lobby she stepped out and remembered where she saw him before. He was on the boat with her and Taylor. She had noticed him as they were disembarking and remembered feeling sorry for him that he was all alone. He didn’t get off at the lobby with her. He continued to ignore her as the doors closed and he vanished from sight. Something weird was definitely going on and she was going to get to the bottom of it. Maybe Celine was having Taylor followed. Oh God! That meant she would now know that Sasha had slept with the reporter from D.C.! Just what she needed. One thing was for sure she was going to do a little reporting of her own and with her access at Celgen she was sure she could find things that Taylor couldn’t get close to. She was going to start with Celine. He told her that there was no information about Celine to be found anywhere. She was going to find out who Celine D’Aumont really was. She walked out into the morning light and the strange flashes of memories or dreams began to fade. With each step she felt more clear headed and walked haughtily down the Champs Elysees toward the Eifel Tower. It was time to get to work.
ENCRYPTION
Frankie walked into the front door of the house on Rue Raynouard and descended the long set of steps. He stopped at the bottom and surveyed the grand room bathed in sunlight. It had been a long night and he had made sure nothing happened to his subjects of interest. There was a flurry of activity out on the terrace and he heard heated voices back and forth. Stepping out into the warmth of the spring sun he saw Marcus and Claire engaged in a battle of wills.
“How could you let this happen Marcus? After everything we risked to get her here.” Claire was on fire and it amused Frankie to see her this way. Usually she was the ice princess and he much preferred her like this.
“I didn’t let her do anything! She tricked Virginie and was gone for at least half an hour before we realized it.” Marcus was pacing rapidly back and forth. Neither one of them acknowledged Frankie’s presence. “This is just terrible.” Marcus muttered more to himself than to Claire.
“And what are we supposed to do now? Kidnap her again? By now she’s told Celine everything. Once again your well made plans end up with people in danger. I’m surprised any of us are still alive. What is she waiting for?” Claire’s anger had subdued to the slow simmer of rage.
“I thought in this modern age we would have the advantage. I still do.” Marcus looked at Frankie for the first time. “We need everyone here now more than ever. It’s only a matter of time before she goes after them.” He moved toward the smaller man and asked him quietly. “Any signs of awakening?” There was a tiny glimmer of hope in his voice.
The hope was dashed instantly by Frankie’s smart ass reply. “Nope. Not a thing.” He sighed dramatically as if nothing at all were out of the ordinary and their lives weren’t in danger. “Although they did sleep together last night and Sasha tore out of her room like a bat out of hell first thing this morning. Maybe she remembered something.” He walked to the well laden table covered with mountains of fruits and delicacies and popped a small macaroon into his mouth.
“How can you be so calm? Are you really looking forward to this? I mean she could really destroy us for good!” Claire was in a state of hysteria. For a moment they all listened as the sounds of the birds in the surrounding trees began to increase. The more agitated Claire became the louder the birds got.
“Careful Claire. If you don’t control your anger you’ll soon have all the animals in Paris in a state of chaos. Do you really want to inflict your mood on them?” Frankie stuck his tongue out at her. He knew that her concern for the animal kingdom outweighed anything else in her mind. She glared at him and closed her eyes for a moment trying to quiet the voices that were screaming in her head. After a moment she opened them again and was restored to a state of calmness. Acting childish out of the blue she stuck her tongue back at Frankie which made him laugh more than any other thing could have at that instant.
“There’s my girl! I knew you hadn’t lost your sense of humor completely. C’mon it’s not all that bad. So Celine knows we’re up to something. If anything it means that she’s going to go after the other two before they remember who they are. With them out of the way it would be easer for her to get to us. Except there’s one thing I don’t understand. She’s been giving Taylor the water I’m sure of it. She knows that will only quicken his awakening. I don’t understand why she would do that if she were trying to get them before any changes occurred.” Frankie helped himself to another macaroon and tossed it in the air before catching it in his mouth.
“To get him on her side.” Claire whispered just loud enough for them to hear.
“Do you really think she could?” Frankie said with his mouth full.
“Celine can do anything she sets her mind out to do. She could twist all the facts and convince him that we are the enemy. She’s very clever when she needs to be.” Marcus was looking out toward the forest of trees in the park. “She obviously knows by now that we took Ellen. She has Taylor drinking the water and she had Sasha close by her side at work. What I want to know is how did she find them before us? This is something completely new. This has never happened before. Always she waited for us to betray ourselves somehow. This time she has singled them out before they have a chance.” Marcus could not disguise the darkness gathering in his soul. He alone knew exactly how insane Celine really was. It was more difficult to anticipate the move of a madman or woman for that matter. He sat down at the table as if he were defeated.
“That doesn’t matter now because we know who they are too. We have to get them to safety and bring them home and just hope to the gods they remember who they really are before Celine kills us all.” Frankie patted Marcus on the shoulders.
“And what if they don’t?” It was barely discernable.
“Then we watch them die yet again. I mean really. It’s like reruns on television at this point!” He smiled at the two of them. Claire and Marcus stared at him and then each other before they all burst into laughter. The sound had the wonderful ability to break the fear and tension that had entered the room with the mention of Celine D’Aumont. Marcus coughed and tried to stop laughing long enough to ask Frankie.
“How are we on the files?” He was all business now.
“I’m making progress but I still haven’t cracked the code yet. I think I could have it figured out by the end of today if I get started right now. I mean who needs sleep right?”
“What’s wrong hotshot? I thought you could decode anything. I thought that was one of your things.” Claire was mocking him.
“I can decode anything!” Frankie shouted proudly. “I just didn’t say how long it would take.”
“If we can figure out what she’s up to then it might help us in the long run. It could give us something on her to hold over her head.” Claire searched the trees for Magdalene. She closed her eyes and called to her silently. The bird appeared from the horizon and sailed down toward them. She landed on Claire’s shoulder who patted the bird gently before walking down the stone stairs to the garden. Without looking back she said to the boys. “Let me know if the whiz kid comes up with anything. I need to recharge my batteries.” She slowly disappeared into the field of flowers and looked like some Greek goddess seeking her solitude.
“Alright Frankie. We’re depending on you. Let me know the minute you find anything.” Marcus took his leave into the house. There were thousands of details for him to attend to. Frankie grabbed the plate of cookies and went in behind Marcus and headed to the office. He walked into the rich paneled room full of books and burgundy leather furniture. There was an old wooden desk of the simplest designs and there on top was a small laptop. Frankie tapped into the system and began to work. A few hours later he peaked his head out and spotted Virginie coming up the stairs.
“Hey gorgeous! Can you tell Marcus I need him in the library? Thanks you’re a doll.” He winked at her and popped his head back into the room. Virginie couldn’t stop from blushing. She knew she should be insulted but when Frankie spoke to her in this way and he always spoke to her in this way she found it flattering. He was a funny one but there was also something about him that was very seductive. She never could put a finger on it. Usually she liked tall and lean men and she never liked her own country men but she would definitely not rule out the possibility of Frankie, maybe, sometime. She gathered her thoughts together and found Marcus in the great room sitting before the fireplace with a book in his hands. He did not seem to hear her come in so she coughed a little cough to let him know she was behind him.
“Monsieur. Mr. Levoyer would like to see you in the library.” She saw him nod his head to let her know he had heard her but he seemed totally absorbed in his reading. She left the room to continue the tasks at hand before he put the book down. It was a book on the Celts in France from around 2500 B.C. until 125 B.C. when the Roman empire began to descend on the area making Paris a city of Rome and even changing her name to Lutetia. He quickly made his way to the library to see Frankie grinning from ear to ear.