Getting Old Is Très Dangereux: A Mystery Read Online Free PDF

large,
n’est-ce pas?
Such a wonderful coincidence.” She makes a small moue with her lips. “Even though I should not be kind to you—the way you left me so abruptly.”
    Jack jumps in, I assume to stop her from saying anything too personal. “Congratulations on your book. When I met you, your first book was about to be published. And now, I see, this is your fifth. You must be very proud of your success.”
    Colette speaks for her. “And she leads a very exciting life because of it.”
    It’s obvious the niece is very proud of her aunt and Michelle is content to let the young woman extol her successes. Michelle puts her arms lovingly around her niece, but Colette suddenly blurts, “And because of what she writes, her life is very dangerous, too.”
    Michelle interrupts. “Now now, we’ll have none of that.”
    “But you have so many enemies!” Colette insists.
    Michelle pats the young woman on the head. “My niece worries too much.”
    Jack, finally in his element, lets the cop in him come out. “Has something been happening to make you fearful?”
    “There have been incidents … ” Michelle admits.
    “More than just incidents. Threats—” Colette inserts.
    Michelle puts her hand gently on Colette’s lips. “I am not afraid.” But her eyes belie her words. Jack catches it as well. This woman is frightened and trying to hide it.
    Michelle looks at her thin diamond wristwatch. “
Ma petite
,” she says to her niece, “you should have been paying attention.” She starts to move to the door. “We are expected at my publisher’s booth on the third floor.
Au revoir
, Jacques.” She takes his hand in hers and as far as I’m concerned, she holds on too long. And Jack takes too long to remove his hand from hers.
    She turns to me with a lovely practiced smile. “It was
très
pleasant meeting you, Mme. Gold. And your friends. I will be here this week. Perhaps we might have tea one afternoon.”
    “That sounds lovely,” I answer equally politely,knowing that isn’t going to happen. The girls’ heads swing up and down in their excitement. I smile up at Jack. “Don’t you agree?”
    He manages a half nod. As we leave the room he glances back. Michelle looks as worried as Colette.
    Walking through the parking lot, Jack, who hasn’t said a word since we left the hotel, suddenly hands me his car keys. “You go on home,” he tells me. “I’ll grab a cab later.”
    “Where are you going?” But I know what he’s going to say.
    “They’re frightened. I think I ought to find out more. They may need police protection.”
    I am too stunned to protest. Bella, Sophie, and I pile into his car and drive off. By the time I search for him in my rearview mirror, he’s already gone. I’m fuming.
    Sophie, in the front passenger seat, kicks off her high heels. “So, what’s he gonna do now?”
    “Quiet!” The girls are dying to talk about it, but I nip them in the bud. “Not a word. You hear? I do not want any discussion.”
    They cower in the face of my anger. I can’t deal with this right now. In fact, I don’t want to think about anything now. I want utter silence. My mind wants to shut down until I can be alone and figure out what really just happened and how it might possibly affect my life.
    Police protection indeed. And then I remembershe just happened to mention what floor she’d be on. Red flag! She knew he would come back.
    Making his way through the hotel, Jack wonders how he will find Michelle again in this crowd. Then he recalls she had a meeting at her publisher’s. Third floor. Right. He follows in the direction she was heading. Old cop abilities, like a good memory for details, die hard. He also remembers the publisher’s name from the poster.
    A decorative gate made of wicker and covered with a trellis of shiny fake leaves leads him to PIP—Paris International Publishing, Ltd. Jack suddenly finds himself in a contained area intended to remind one of France. The partitions are