“He’s upgrading us, third floor, street view with balconies,” says Joselyn.
“Excellent!”
“Let him piss on us again, maybe we can get the penthouse,” says Harry.
“Sorry, but it’s already booked,” says the kid.
“Is it possible to get two adjoining rooms?” I ask.
“Let me see. I think I can do that.” He checks the computer. “Yes.”
“Good. You get a bigger tip than the taxi driver,” I tell him. “Even so, I doubt if it will probably take you far in this town.”
“If you mean it’s expensive, you’re right. But then I don’t live in the Latin Quarter.”
“Where do you live?” I ask.
“I’ve got a small flat out in the suburbs. Place called Rosny-sous-Bois. And a roommate to share the cost.”
“Another American?” says Joselyn.
He nods. “A friend from Colorado.”
“How long you gonna be here?”
“Another few weeks, then we’re off to Italy. How about you guys, on holiday? Vacation?”
“Not exactly,” I tell him.
“Here on business, then.”
“You could say that. Do you work the desk every day?” I change the subject.
“I’m on nights this week. But you won’t have any trouble with the language if that’s what you’re worried about. The house operator speaks perfect English, as does much of the staff. Just tell them Mike sent you. That you’re friends of mine. They’ll treat you very well. Parisians are actually quite friendly once you break through the veneer.”
“I know. It’s just getting through that diamond veneer that worries me,” says Harry. “Guy could die on the street looking for directions.”
“It’s not that bad,” says the clerk.
“Not if you speak French,” says Harry.
The clerk hands one key to me and the other to Harry, then slaps the bell on the counter for the bellman with the luggage cart to take us to our rooms.
“Any chance of renting a car for a few hours tomorrow?” I ask.
“It can be arranged. Just call down to the desk. Phillippe is on tomorrow. He will take care of you.”
A car could be handy. It provides a place to hide out if we want to watch the front of Liquida’s hotel, especially at night, and a fast way to escape in a pinch if we need it.
I hand the kid behind the counter a fifty-euro note and watch his face as it lights up. “Oh! Merci beaucoup!” he says. “That means thank you.”
“The show was worth it,” I tell him.
“Thank you for everything,” Joselyn says to Mike as she takes my arm. “Now I am afraid to go up to the room with them.”
“If they give you any trouble, just call the front desk,” says the kid. “I’ll send up our chef, Marcel, with a butcher knife.”
“I’ll keep it in mind,” she tells him.
We turn and follow the bellman toward the elevator.
“Maybe you could call down later and get Marcel’s phone number,” I tell Joselyn.
“Or we could just lead Liquida to the kitchen,” she says.
“I’d rather do takeout,” says Harry. “Call Thorpe and tell him his man’s in the frappe.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
The shadow moving across her Nook reader caused Sarah to glance upward. She found herself looking into angel eyes staring down at her.
“Hello,” he said.
“What are you doing here?”
“Seems that we are now neighbors.” Adin Hirst was standing there with a cup of coffee in one hand, a bagel in the other, and a smile on his face. “Mind if I sit?”
“No. Help yourself.” Sarah closed the cover on her reader. She had taken to spending a few minutes each afternoon in the small coffee shop on the ground level of the FBI’s condo complex.
“What are you reading?” Adin set the plate with the bagel and his coffee cup on the table, and then sat down across from her.
“Oh, just rereading some of the things I had to read in college. Doing it for enjoyment this time.” Sarah was going nuts up in the apartment, she and the dog climbing the walls. She had an hour every other day in the company of one of the FBI agents to walk the dog. That was it, her only foray out of the building.
“Can I look?” Adin gestured toward the reader.
She handed it to him.
“I’ve seen these, but I’ve never held one.” He hefted it in his hand. “It’s very light, isn’t it?”
“Yes.”
He opened the cover. She hadn’t turned it off. “Gatsby. You’re a Fitzgerald fan,” said Hirst.
“You’ve read it?”
He nodded. “Wonderfully written, not a word wasted. Cuts to the soul of his characters like a knife. How many books will this thing hold?”
“They say fifteen hundred, but I’m not sure. It probably depends on the length of the books.”
“That’s amazing. So what do you do, download the books through your computer?”
“No, it’s 3G. Has its own chip. You just go online into their library and order what you want, pay with a credit card, and it downloads in about sixty seconds. I have a Kindle upstairs, same thing, but a different library. That way I get a broader selection of books.”
“Incredible,” said Hirst. “What will the Americans think of next? I’m going to have to look into it.” He smiles and hands it back to her.
“What’s this about being neighbors?” said Sarah.
“I’m now living in the building.” Adin took a sip of coffee. “Whew, that’s hot!”
“Since when?”
“Since yesterday.” He wiped his lips with a napkin. “The lease on my apartment was up. I tried to renew for a short time and couldn’t, so the bureau offered to put me up here until the program is over.”
“I see. What floor?”
“Eight. Same as yours.”
“You are close.”
“Just around the corner.” He smiled at her and nibbled around the edges of the bagel. “How is your dog?”
“He’s fine. But he needs more exercise. He’s starting to give off gas in the evenings. Lies on the carpet and issues forth with silent clouds of death, if you know what I mean.”
He laughed. “If you like, I can take him out and give him a run.”
“That would be good. The only problem is, I need exercise too.”
“I’m not sure they’d let me do that,” said Adin. “I mean, take you for a run.”
“I knew what you meant.” Sarah smiled. “They let us out every other day. Just for an hour, under the gaze of a friendly agent. It’s like being in prison.”
“Actually most prisoners get more yard time than that,” said Adin.
“I don’t mean to complain, but I can’t wait to get home, back to a normal life.”
“And when’s that going to be?”
“I don’t know. Hopefully when my father gets back, I’ll know more.”
