Tales of Dirty Old Man Ch. 18

I need to apologize to you for the long wait for this chapter. So much has been happening over the past few months that unfortunately writing had to take a distant second place.

This is the 18th chapter in this series - I strongly recommend you to read the previous chapters in order, before this one, it's not going to make a lot of sense otherwise.

I can't thank Romantic1 enough for the time he spent reviewing and editing this and the previous chapters. Any remaining mistakes are all mine.

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The flight was called on time and we were able to settle into our seats. I accepted a glass of champagne from the lovely stewardess and began to relax. We had managed to get three seats in a row; I was sitting by the window and the girls the two centre seats. No one else was seated in the first class cabin by the time the cabin doors were closed.

Take-off was smooth and I reclined my seat and I fell asleep to the drone of the engines and the quiet murmur of Simone and Angie talking.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ** ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The flight takes almost seven hours and I slept most of that time. At some point, Simone curled up on my lap and the flight attendant must have tucked a blanket over us. I woke briefly and her head was resting on my shoulder, and the warmth of her body suffused into me. She smiled in her sleep, the faintest of sighs sounding in time with each breath. She glowed with inner contentment. It was a point in time when we were both so in tune with each other that we were one! We matched breath for breath and heartbeat for heartbeat.

We were woken up as the plane started its descent into Charles de Gaulle. Simone stretched and gave me a kiss before disappearing to the toilet. Angie came over and sat down on the arm of my chair. We talked as I sipped the coffee I'd been offered.

Angie stroked the side of my face, the back of her hand brushing the soft bristles of my beard. "She's so right for you," she said. "I thought we'd lost you after Ros died."

"I'll admit I was in a dangerous place for some time," I said. "But thanks to Simone and the family I've never felt happier."

She looked at me and grinned, "You, me, Simone and Paris, oh we are going to have so much fun."

"Not to forget Lisette."

"True, who could forget that beautiful young woman."

She eased off the arm of my seat and onto my lap. "Life is good: I have my best friend back, I'm pregnant and I have the best husband in the world." She wriggled around and kissed me. "And best of all I get to spend ridiculous amounts of money shopping!"

The stewardess came back and noted that now a different women sat in my lap and was kissing me. I watched as her eyebrows rotated to new heights.

Simone came back to her seat and the stewardesses began their final preparations for landing. Angie moved back to her seat and buckled up.

The landing was smooth and comfortable, with the usual long taxi to the gate. The early morning sunlight glistened off the dew-covered grass beside the taxiways. The plane came to a halt and the engines spooled down. I stood and stretched and the stewardess was beside me with my jacket in her hand. I got my carry on down from the overhead compartment, before getting Simone's and Angie's down.

We were allowed off the plane first, one of the many benefits of traveling first class. It didn't take us long to complete the formalities and collect our luggage. I was expecting Lisette to be waiting for us at the exit of the arrivals hall, but there was no sign of her.

Simone looked about and said, "I thought she said she would be here to meet us?"

I saw the limousine driver holding up the sign with my name on it. We walked over to him and while Simone checked in with him, I tried to call her but the call went straight to voicemail. I left a message saying we had arrived and we would meet her at the flat.

The apartment was empty when we arrived. I found Lise's suitcases in the bedroom partiality unpacked. But after checking out the apartment there was no other evidence that she been there the past couple of days. I kept trying her phone, but it kept going straight to voicemail. I realised that other than a quick text to say she'd landed safely we'd had no further contact with her. Simone checked her closet and as far as she could see there were no clothes missing. We found her laptop in the spare bedroom she used as a study.

Simone checked with the neighbours, but nobody had seen or heard from her since she left to join us in Dubai almost a week ago. There was a week's mail in the post box in the lobby.

"This isn't right," I said when we were all back in the flat. "Do we have the numbers of any of her friends?"

"Let me check around," Simone said, "I know she has an address book."

Angie said, "I think you need to call the university as well and see if she's been in class this week."

"Found it," Simone called out. She started calling Lisette's friends and it was quickly obvious that no one had seen her since she had flown back.

"None of them has seen or heard from her. They all thought that she'd extended her stay with us, nobody was worried." She told us. "I've got them checking around, one of the girls is going to contact the local hospitals."

"Christ, I hadn't even thought about that," I said, "What about the police?"

Simone thought for a few seconds. "Let's wait and see if she's had an accident before we jump the gun."

I checked the time, it was almost ten o'clock, "I suggest we wait until one, and if she hasn't been found or turned up then, we call them."

I had a thought, "Is her handbag anywhere around? I haven't seen her phone or her passport."

We checked around the flat again and her bag and phone were missing.

Simone's phone went off and she quickly answered it. After a few moments, she rang off. "No one matching her description has been admitted into any of the local hospitals. She hasn't been seen at the University. Andy, I'm getting worried, where can she be?"

"Have we tried the chateau?"

Simone was calling before I'd finished talking. She held her hand over the phone, "Call Kirsten, see if she'd heard from her?"

I called my daughter while she spoke to her father at the chateau. We both put our phones down and I shook my head. "She and Christina are in Italy for a few days they left on Saturday."

And she said, "No one's answering at the chateau, I'll need to try later."

"This is ridiculous," I said, "We know she got on the plane. Her bags are here so we know she got back to the flat. So where the bloody hell is she? Forget what I said about waiting, we need to call the police."

Angie and Simone looked at me, I was pacing up and down the room as I spoke. Simone reached for her phone and made the call. She spoke fast and furiously finishing up with "Oui certainement, nous pouvons être là."

"Come," she said to me, "We need to go to the police station, they are expecting us. Angie can you stay here, they are going to send someone over to look around."

Angie just nodded and gave us a hug as we hurried out the door.

We hailed a taxi and she gave the driver the address of the police station. The journey only took five minutes. Simone spoke to the officer in reception and we were ushered through to the depths of the station. We were shown into an office on the second floor. We were asked to identify ourselves and Simone handed over our passports and her French ID card. (The conversation was in French and Simone spoke for both of us, my grasp of the language is acceptable for a general discussion but wasn't up to this interview).

"So Contessa, I understand you wish to report a missing woman, is this correct." While he spoke, I could see him looking at Simone's ID card with the look of someone trying to recall something.

"Yes her name is Lisette Nicole Thierry, and she's a student at the Sorbonne."

And her relationship with you is?"

Simone pointed at me, "Andrew is my fiancé and Lisette is our lover; we all intend to live together once she's graduated."

God, you've got to love the French, he just smiled and congratulated me. Then he turned serious. "When and where did she go missing?"

Simone explained all the details as we knew them. Starting with Lisette getting on the plane and us finding her abandoned luggage in the flat.

The officer took copious notes and was writing down Simone's full name when he seemed to recall whatever it was about her name that had attracted his attention earlier.

"Duval is your married name? What was your husbands name?"

"My soon to be ex-husband, we are almost divorced, it's final in a couple of weeks. His name is Bernard Gorge Duval."

"Merde, wait here, please." He got up and hurried out of the office.

"Did I just miss something?" I asked Simone.

"I've no idea what's happening," she said. She held on tight to my hand.

It was a good five minutes before he returned in the company of an older woman.

She introduced herself as Michelle Martien, the head of the detectives at the station.

"I understand that you've both been out of the country for the past week."

We said yes and looked at each other wondering why she wanted to know that.

"Then I guess you've not seen the news?"

"No," we both said.

"Madam Duval, you husband escaped while being transferred to Paris for further psychiatric tests. He injured both of the medical orderlies who were escorting him, one seriously in his escape. He was last spotted in Orly on Saturday evening."

Simone went white and she looked at me in horror. "The children," she gasped.

Michelle put her hand up, "They are safe at the school, the local gendarmerie is keeping them under observation. The rest of your family are staying with family friends with a police guard."

"Thank God, so Lisette is with them?"

"No, we weren't aware of Mademoiselle Thierry's relationship with you."

I interrupted, "And like us she wouldn't have known about Bernard escaping, do you think he's responsible for her going missing?"

"It's something we will pursue. Did Bernard know about her?"

Simone said, "He was aware we were friendly with her. He would have known her from the village."

"Would he have known she was studying at the Sorbonne?"

"I would have thought so, her family was very proud that she got a place there. I think the winery also gave her a small scholarship."

Michelle spoke quietly to her companion who left the room. She looked over his notes.

She said, "I don't think you should stay at the flat, is there anywhere else you can stay?"

"Can I make a call?" I asked. She nodded. I used my iPhone to call Peter in Dubai and explained the problem. He said Angie had already called to say Lisette was missing.

"Pete, we need a hotel with decent security. Can you get the Paris office to book something for us?"

"I'll give them a call now, they'll contact you directly. I'm going to contact our security agency and lay on extra security for you. Do you want me to get tonight's flight?"

"Wait for the moment mate, if we need you, we'll call. In fact if it gets awkward here I may send them all back to Dubai for safe keeping."

We said our goodbyes and he rang off.

"It'll be sorted out soon, can one of your officers stay with our friend at the flat until we know where we are staying."

"There're two officers there already," she said.

Her companion returned and they had a quick conversation.

"Madam, there was an inquiry to the student administration office a few days ago. It was supposedly from your family winery and they wanted confirmation of Mademoiselle Lisette's new address for their scholarship details. As it seemed legitimate, the assistant gave the caller her address."

"So you're saying Bernard had Lisette's address and he may have taken her."

"It's a reasonable supposition," Michelle acknowledged.

"But why would he do it. It doesn't make a lot of sense," Simone said.

I flashed back to that evening in the restaurant when he tried to shoot us. "Don't you remember, he was going on about how I'd taken you and the children away from him. What if he's decided to try and take something precious from us?"

"You mean Lisette don't you?" Simone said in a subdued voice. I nodded.

It was obvious that the police thought the same as I did as we were escorted to a waiting area while there was a flurry of activity in the offices around us.

Simone was desperate to hear her children's voices even though she'd called them almost every day we'd been away. She called the school and convinced them to let her talk to the children. The school administrator confirmed that the police were providing extra security. She got off the phone with tears in her eyes. "I told them that the children would be staying with us as soon as we can arrange it until Bernard is caught," she said.

I had a call from the Paris office of A & R financial services. They had booked the three of us into two adjoining suites at the hotel George V and a limousine would be waiting for us outside the police station. Angie and our bags were already on their way to the hotel with a police escort.

It was a good hour before Michelle returned to us.

"He definitely has your friend, there is CCT from the lobby and across the street that show him going into the building Monday morning and leaving with her twenty minutes later. It looks like she went willingly; she had a backpack with her. But he was heavily disguised so she may not have recognised him. We are circulating new photos of both of them. They took a taxi to the Gare de Lyon, but we haven't found any evidence that they took a train."

She pulled a couple of photos from a folder she was holding and we saw a shot of Bernard walking across the lobby at the flats. If I hadn't needed to be told that it was him, I would never have recognised him. The biggest difference was the beard.

Simone looked and asked, "Are you sure it's him?"

"We are, we used facial recognition software and it give us a 99% that it's definitely him."

"So why would she go with him?" I mused

We looked at some further images taken from CCT cameras. In one he seemed to be holding her arm tightly.

Simone said, "I suppose he would just have needed to say that there was a problem with the children or her family and he'd been sent to get her. I guess she'd have gone with him willingly. He would have known all the right names to mention to gain her confidence."

"The question is where would he take her," asked Michelle. "Do you have any thoughts?"

Nothing came to my mind. Simone suggested that as they had headed for the Gare de Lyon, they could be heading south.

Simone added that he had grown up in the region around St Raphael not far from the chateau.

There wasn't much more that we could offer and we could see that the police officers wanted to get on. After confirming where we were staying we were escorted down to the waiting limousine.

There were two men waiting for us. They introduced themselves as our security. Robert was the driver and Philippe the head of the detail.

We got into the back of the car. Philippe turned in his seat to talk to us.

"Please don't go anywhere without contacting me first. One of the security detail will be nearby at all times. We know he has a previous history of violence against you. At the moment we don't think he wants to physically hurt you, but it's better to be safe than sorry. The hotel security is aware of the situation and we've worked with them in the past."

It seemed a bit over the top to me but if it made Simone and Angie feel safer who was I to complain.

The limo pulled up in front of the imposing entrance to the George V. Phillipe and Robert got out and looked around, their eyes never still. They opened our doors and Phillipe escorted us to the reception desk where we were given our room keys. Again he escorted up to the elevator to our floor.

As we walked along the corridor, I asked him, "Which room is Angie. Mrs Moore in?"

"This one," he said pointing at a door. "And you are in this one," indicating the next door.

"And our bags?"

"Are in your room sir."

I stopped at Angie's door and knocked.

"Who is it?" She called out.

"It's me, love," I replied.

The door flew open and she was in my arms.

"Have they found her?" She asked.

"No, but we know who has taken her."

"The police officer who brought me here said that they thought they had an idea. So who is it?"

"Bernard!"

"But...but he's in jail." And her face went white so I made her sit down.

"Not anymore, he escaped when they were transferring him to Paris for a full psychiatric evaluation. He injured both of the orderlies who was escorting him."

"But why would he take Lisette?"

Simone said, "The police think that it's misguided revenge; they suspect he wants to take something precious from us. Probably because he believes we've taken his children from him,"

Angie looked horrified, "The children, are they safe?"

Simone nodded, "It's ok, they are safe at the school and there's extra security in place."

I added, "I get the feeling we would be better off at the chateau. We can keep Michael and Anna with us and we've got the extra security." I nodded in the direction of Philippe, who was standing in the doorway.

He came over and we discussed the options open to us. In the end, we all agreed that moving all of us to the chateau and the new house was the best choice. Philippe needed a few hours to organise everything so the decision was made that we would leave in the morning.

"I have a gut feeling," I said, "That he's taken her to somewhere he's familiar with, and I suspect that's somewhere near St Raphael."

Simone agreed, "It would make sense. He grew up in the region and there a few misguided friends who may offer him some help."

"It's the other reason I think we should be nearby, in case we can help."

I looked at my watch; it was three o'clock. So much had happened and changed in just a few hours.

Philippe said, "It would help us if you should stay in your rooms until tomorrow. We don't know if he has other plans to hurt you?"

Simone nodded, "We understand, there's nothing significant planned that we can't reschedule until after we get her back. I'll make some calls."

There was a connecting door between the two sets of rooms and we opened it. Simone sat at the ornate desk and made a couple of calls while I took the opportunity to wash and change into fresh clothes.

Simone called out to Angie. "Madam Blanche says she will be here after they close the shop for your dress fitting. I tried to tell her that we could reschedule, but she wouldn't hear of it."

Angie walked into the room and said, "It doesn't feel right getting a dress fitting while Lisette is in danger."

"All the wheels are in motion, so at the moment there's not a lot else we can do," I said.

The phone in the room rang and Simone answered it, the conversation was short and in French.

After she had put the phone down, she said, "The police have found a car stolen from near the Gare de Lyon abandoned about twenty kilometres from St Raphael. They found Bernard's fingerprints so they know he was driving. There was evidence that there was someone else with him. I told them we will be at the Chateau tomorrow."

"Was there anything else they could tell us?" She just shook her head and started crying. I was by her side in a moment and wrapped my arms around her. She gently shook in my arms and her tears soaked into my shirt.

There was a knock on the door and it opened and Philippe entered the room. "There are reporters outside the hotel. Someone told them that you are staying here."