Gauguin Connection, The (36 page)

A smile pulled at his lips, but he swallowed it away. He got up and held out his hand to me. “M’lady?”

I put my hand in his and let him pull me up. He weaved his fingers though mine and walked to the front door. He briefly let go to put on his jacket, but immediately took my hand again before opening the door. A scowling Manny was leaning against the wall across from my front door. “What’s going on?”

I was too shocked at the sight of a cleanly shaved Manny dressed in an immaculate tuxedo to answer.

“I’ll be Jenny’s date for the evening.”

“Not going to happen, Frey. You’re not going. There is no way that you have an invitation and I’m not getting you inside. Not happening.”

“Au contraire, my dear Millard.” Colin pulled an enveloped from the inside pocket of his jacket and waved it at Manny. “My invitation.”

From one second to the next, Manny’s expression changed from annoyance to suspicion. “Is that invite real? Where and how did you get that?”

“I’m not without my resources.”

It was his quick glance at me that made realisation crash through me. He had acquired the invitation through Interpol. I bit my lips to refrain from saying anything and tried to focus on something else. It wasn’t difficult. Manny’s transformation was very distracting.

“You look fifteen years younger,” I blurted. “And you’re actually handsome.”

“Oh, for the love of all that is holy, Doc.” Manny’s scowl was back. “You’re not going to distract me from refusing to allow Frey to join us.”

“I wasn’t trying to do that. You really look younger.” I decided to stop this line of conversation when Manny’s lips turned into an angry thin line. “If Colin doesn’t go, I won’t go. He’s my anchor. And his invitation is real and legitimate.”

“What is she talking about?” Manny asked Colin.

“She needs me.” Colin squeezed my hand. “I’ll be by her side the whole night. Now if we’re done with this conversation, our transport is waiting.”

Without waiting for Manny’s response, Colin led me to the elevator. Angry footsteps followed us after a moment.

“We’re going in my car.” Manny started an argument on why we should go in his car. I lost interest in his diatribe and went over the details of what I knew about Piros in my head. I didn’t pay attention to the arriving elevator car and blindly followed Colin when the doors opened to the ground floor. I needed to make sure that I hadn’t overlooked anything concerning Piros.

A shocked silence brought me back to the present and I found myself between the two men at the entrance to my building. Parked in front of us was a limousine.

“There has to be something illegal about this.” Manny stared at the long vehicle in disbelief.

“Nothing illegal or wrong with a bit of style. Don’t you agree, Jenny?”

I lifted a shoulder. “Will it get us to the event?”

“Yes.”

“Then let’s go before I change my mind.”

Manny continued to grumble, but he followed us to the car. His arguments about using his car forgotten. The driver was standing at the open passenger door and received a scowl from Manny when he greeted him. I was too nervous to allow rudeness or the lush interior of the limousine to have any effect on me. It was awkward, but I didn’t let go of Colin’s hand when I entered the vehicle first. With conscious effort I relaxed my panicked grip on his hand, but he immediately tightened his hold. I truly hoped that I would have some time tomorrow to analyse the relief and feeling of safety I drew from Colin’s touch.

I leaned back against the seat and allowed Colin and Manny’s conversation to wash over me. They seemed to have reached a truce and were talking about the security procedures taken by GIPN. Colin seemed to understand all the coded police jargon. I didn’t care to ask. My only concern was to put an end to this case.

Too soon we stopped. I looked out the window and saw a circular driveway with a line of limousines dropping off elegantly dressed couples. We waited our turn to reach the entrance and the doorman opened the passenger door. Manny got out first, followed by Colin. Still holding my hand, he assisted me until I stood between him and Manny. When the latter uttered an inelegant groan, I glanced at him and then followed his line of sight.

Waiting by the door was Vinnie, looking marginally less dangerous because of the woman next to him. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen in real life. Tall, with the exotic looks of a few races mixed in one, she looked like she had walked off the front page of a glossy women’s magazine. The kind of magazine I never read. Vinnie said something out of the corner of his mouth and she laughed without any inhibitions. I liked that.

“Who’s that?” I asked Colin as we moved towards them. Vinnie glanced at our entwined fingers and narrowed his eyes for a second before he gave me a genuine smile.

Colin didn’t answer me until we were within handshake distance of the couple. “Jenny, I would like you to meet Francine. Francine, this is Doctor Genevieve Lenard.”

“Oh my God, you’re gorgeous.” Francine took a step closer. “I would love to hug you, but I won’t. These guys told me a lot about you, but they never told me that you were so beautiful.”

“You are Francine?” I stared at her in shock. “You are not the only one from whom such knowledge was withheld. In a classic sense you are much more beautiful than I.”

“Should we start a mutual admiration club for you two?” Manny was angry. He was being sarcastic. When he wasn’t glaring at Vinnie, he aimed his hostile gaze at me. Why he was furious with me, I did not know.

“And who is this delightful gentleman?” Francine fluttered her eyes at Manny. I was sure she was being acerbic. His scowl intensified.

“Francine, this is Manny Millard. Millard, Francine,” Colin said.

“You’re the one who—”

“Works very hard for good people, and you are the law,” Francine interrupted him with a sharp edge to her words. Manny narrowed his eyes and then nodded in acknowledgement of something unspoken. I didn’t know what that something was. Before I could ask, Francine pointed at the front door. “The party has already started. Shall we go in?”

“I thought you would have the names for us before the event.” I looked up at Francine to see a brief frown. We were in one of the front rooms, surrounded by throngs of designer-dressed bodies. Feigned interest, false laughter and idle chatter threatened to distract me. I focussed on the warmth of the palm touching mine and waited for Francine to answer.

“I also thought I would have them.” She picked a champagne flute off the tray, which a bulky waiter politely offered to our group. Vinnie and Colin also took flutes. Manny declined and I did not have a free hand. My left hand had a death grip on Colin’s and my clutch bag was in my right hand. Alcohol was not something that I considered wise at this time. What I needed more was information.

“So you have nothing?” I asked. Everyone looked at me with widened eyes. Maybe my tone had been too displeased.

“I think I’m angrier about this than you are,” Francine said. She elbowed Vinnie lightly and he took a tablet computer from his jacket’s interior pocket. Big pockets for a big jacket. “But I don’t have nothing.” She swiped the tablet a few times, tapped a few more times and smiled triumphantly. We followed Manny to a mantelpiece and stood close enough so no one could overhear Francine. “This flash drive is the mother lode.”

“Francine, English,” Colin said.

Francine glanced at me. “Oh, yes. Okay. This flash drive has all the account numbers of anyone who ever had any dealings with the shipping companies. It is divided into the art auctions, the artists, the security companies, which by the way is helping me get the real names of the owners of these accounts. The banks’ encryption is really good, but—”

“I really don’t want to know this,” Manny said.

“Ah, of course. You can’t be party to anything that is not strictly by the book. Hypocrite.” Francine rolled her eyes.

“Would you stop interrupting Francine so she could tell y’all what she’s found.” Vinnie glared at Manny. I wondered why he had the Texan accent again.

“Thanks, Vin.” Francine leaned into him, her eyes on her tablet. “I did a lot of search work on your Mister Brun. He has a few accounts all over the world, but his Hungarian account is the oldest. It was opened twenty-five years ago. I checked the photo ID’s he gave when he opened his numerous accounts and each is different. Never the same person’s photo. It’s most definitely a cover identity.”

“It isn’t logical that he would use the same name over and over again. It makes it so much easier for him to be discovered.” I huffed. “Not a very intelligent move for a criminal.”

“Maybe he has some sentimental attachment to the name,” Manny said.

“He also owns property in all these countries where he has his accounts. In Croatia he has a large villa and there he insured some artwork to the amount of”—she checked her tablet—“seven million US dollars.”

“Does it say which pieces are insured?” I asked.

“No, but I can find that for you if you need it. Something that bothered me was the lack of family that I found with all his identities. Except for Hungary. There he listed his wife as Irene Brun.”

“Irene?” A connection was tugging at my consciousness.

“Jenny?” Colin squeezed my hand. “What is it?”

“Somewhere I came across that name. I just can’t remember where.” I needed a quiet place and Mozart.

“Irene is a very common name,” Manny said. “It is also very possible that it is a false identity.”

“Don’t worry about it now, Jen-girl,” Vinnie said. “It’s more important that you check out the people here.”

“Do you have anything else on Simon Brun?” Manny asked.

“No, but I’m also working on that.” She waved her tablet computer at us. “This tablet connects to my work computers and will let me know as soon as the decryption is complete. I’ve set it up to immediately compare the names of the owners of those five accounts to all the other lists of names that I have. It will also do a general search on those names, which should give us more.”

“We’re running out of time, people.” Stress tightened Manny’s throat so that his speech was strained.

Tension pulled at my back and shoulder muscles and I wished that I was more comfortable with other people touching me. A deep tissue massage would be wonderful. I turned my attention away from the group towards the door and froze. Colin must have felt my reaction. He rubbed my forearm. I glanced at him and he smiled at me. “Wild horses couldn’t keep him away.”

Emotion placed a huge lump in my throat as Phillip made his way through the crowd towards us. Not once did he take his eyes off me. If one could’ve chosen one’s parents I knew who I would’ve chosen as my father. A wide smile lit up his face as he reached us.

“Genevieve, you look well.” He lifted his hands and let them drop before he touched me. “Actually, you look beautiful. How are you?”

“Coping,” I answered honestly. “This is not something I’m prepared for.”

“I don’t think anyone was prepared for this.” He smiled at me and for the first time looked at the people forming a protective circle around me. “Good evening, everyone.”

Greetings and introductions were exchanged. Phillip didn’t insist on knowing any more about the case. He was just there to make sure of my safety.

Manny glanced at his watch. “Most of the guests should be here already. Maybe we should start mingling. Do you all have your cell phones?”

“I have my smartphone.” I pinched my clutch bag under my arm and proudly lifted my phone.

“Will you answer it?” Manny lifted one eyebrow.

“If I must.”

“Tonight you must, missy.”

Manny asked for Vinnie, Colin and Francine’s numbers. A brief argument about invasion of privacy and someone’s big brother was interrupted by Phillip reminding everyone of the bigger picture. I observed a lot of resentment when the exchange of numbers happened. Just then we were joined by Leon. Another round of greetings and introductions followed before I pulled lightly on Colin’s hand.

“They’re arguing again. Can we please start analysing people?”

“A very good idea.” He looked relieved. “They’re stomping on my last nerve, so I can’t imagine how you must feel.”

As soon as we left, Vinnie and Francine followed us at a distance. Throughout the welcoming and award ceremony at least two of our group were within view. I started relaxing into the feeling of being watched and protected. We were approaching the bar for a much-needed glass of water when Manny intercepted us.

“Seen anything?”

“Relevant to the case?” I asked. I had observed a lot of interesting behaviour, but didn’t want to hear Manny’s sarcasm again.

“Yes, missy.”

“I’ve seen a few men with similar posture and movement as the thugs who broke into my place.”

Colin stiffened. “Why didn’t you say anything?”

“They just walked and behaved in a similar manner. It’s not evidence of anything. They’re mingling, but are much more observant than any of the other guests.”

“Some of them might be our guys,” Manny said. “Have you seen anyone who might be Piros?”

“No.”

Manny sighed. “Okay, let me borrow you for a while. I want to introduce you to my boss.”

“Which one?” I asked.

“The Head of the EDA and the Chief Executive. They’re in the other room.” Manny looked at Colin. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to tag along.”

“Amen to that.” Colin blinked twice and suddenly looked concerned. He turned to me. “Jenny, will you be okay?”

I looked at our hands and for the first time in hours took my hand out of his. The imprint of his hand felt ridiculously permanent on my palm. I rubbed my palm against my thigh and took a bracing breath. “If it’s only ten minutes, I’ll be okay.”

“Millard, you heard the lady. Ten minutes or I’ll come looking for her.” There was no ambiguity in the threat delivered. Even I heard the unspoken implications.

“You don’t get to threaten me, you lowlife. It will be ten minutes because of Doctor Lenard, not because of you.” Manny gestured for me to go ahead of him and said over his shoulder, “Arsehole.”

“I have a theory,” I said as we made our way through the crowd. Manny leaned closer to me and nodded that he was listening. I phrased what I was about to say very carefully. “You think you are old and settled in your ways. It is not true. You are an exceptionally open-minded person, for some reason reluctant to let anyone see it. I also think that you like Colin, respect him and even like Vinnie. What I don’t know or understand is why you can’t admit to this. Why you think it is shameful.”

Manny was quiet for so long that I glanced up at him. An angry vein was throbbing on his forehead and he was continually swallowing. I had failed to phrase myself carefully. He stopped and breathed as if he had just run up a few flights of stairs. A waiter passed us with a tray and Manny grabbed a glass with an amber-coloured drink in it. In one gulp he emptied the glass and closed his eyes. I waited, watching as his breathing slowed and his face returned to its normal colour.

“Doc, you would drive a man to do and say things that could land him in prison.”

“Technically, I don’t have that kind of power. We are each responsible for our own—”

“Doc.” Manny held up his hand as if stopping traffic. “Now would be a good time to not speak. I’m going to forget the last five minutes and introduce you to my bosses. You are going to be your best social self and you are going to observe the hell out of them.”

He didn’t wait for my response, but turned away from me and walked with measured steps to a small group of people. I followed him, immediately recognising the Head of the EDA and Chief Dutoit from the footage I had watched. They made their excuses and broke away from the group to face us.

“You must be Doctor Lenard.”

“And you must be the Head of the EDA, Sarah Crichton.” I was ready and produced a warm smile. I even allowed her to shake my hand without flinching.

“Doctor Lenard,” Frederique Dutoit said. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you in person.”

My smile faltered and it took work to not react when we shook hands. In deference to our different nationalities, we spoke English. Chief Dutoit’s English was perfect and without accent. His voice deep and smooth. I needed a moment to ascertain what it was about his voice, his non-verbal communication that was troubling me. Very likely it was just his social pretence. And I always found social pretence grossly abrasive.

I answered a few polite questions about the event. When questions about the case were aimed at me, Manny smoothly interrupted and answered untruthfully or with half-truths. I allowed him to lead this strange interaction, aware of how important it was for him. It was also invaluable for me. I was reeling with the revelations of what the Head and Chief were loudly projecting. I wondered if Manny knew how much the Chief hated him, or the Head distrusted the Chief, but valued Manny. Office politics. I couldn’t stand it.

“Genevieve, there you are.” A soft hand rested on my shoulder blade. I turned to be air-kissed by an enthusiastic Francine. “When I heard that you were here, I just had to find you.”

“Um, hello.” Her strange behaviour led me to surmise that she was pretending. I didn’t know if I was allowed to use her name or not. Or what my role in this ruse was.

“Oh, honey, look at you. You look fantastic. I just have to hug you.” I was pulled into an embrace that I forced myself to return. While holding me close she whispered into my ear, “I’m sorry for all this touching, but I need you to play along. You need to go to the ladies’ room with me.”

I straightened when she let me go and managed a happy smile. “It’s wonderful to see you too. I didn’t know you would be here.”

“Yet here I am.” She turned to a slack-jawed Manny and smiled brightly at him. Her acting skills were admirable. “If you’ll excuse us, us girls need to freshen up.”

Francine didn’t wait for a response, but grabbed my hand and started pulling me away from the group. I sent an apologetic smile to Manny and his bosses. The cluster of facial muscle movements indicated Manny’s intense anger. Oh, dear. I turned my attention to Francine. “What’s happening?”

“Colin got impatient.” She let go of my hand and led us out of the room. “And I needed to go to the washroom, so I thought it was a good plan to get you away from those stuffy suits.”

“Are we really going to the washroom? I thought it was all a ruse.”

“After two glasses of bubbly, my bladder is killing me. So yes, we’re going to the loo.”

“What about Colin and Vinnie?”

“They’re following us and will keep an eye on the doors.”

“Oh.” I followed her to restrooms more elegant than any of those in the top hotels and mansions I had been in. An anteroom with lush carpets and designer sofas led to a room that looked like it had been carved out of marble. A middle-aged lady passed us on her way out, preceded and followed by an excess of perfume. I looked at Francine and she rolled her eyes.

“Rich old ladies.” She nodded at our surroundings. “Stunning, isn’t it? I have only seen this kind of crazy opulence in Moscow and St Petersburg. This is so Russian.”

“It is beautiful,” I said. It was not my taste though. It was cold, impersonal and would take far too much time and specialised products to keep clean.