The Intern Affair (35 page)

“Yes, but I wouldn’t turned my back on you had I known you were wealthy.”

“As I said, I wasn’t sure, besides, I wanted to surprise you.”

The waiter came to their table and asked what would be “our pleasure!”
Talya was about to tell him that “our pleasure” would be for him to disappear, when Samir prevented her to open her mouth, and ordered a Courvoisier on ice for her and a tea for him. Were surprises never to cease on this day, Talya wondered.

“How did you know?”

“Simple. The first night I arrived in
Vancouver
, you poured yourself a cognac while preparing tea for me. So, tonight I thought, you would want something more delicate than a cognac and yet as palatable.”

“You know, I only wish I was as perceptive and observant as you are. If I had looked, opened my eyes to what was probably staring at me in the first place, maybe we wouldn’t be in this mess.”

“No, Talya. You have not missed a single item of what you saw during these past few weeks, but your memory has been blurred by events and uncalled recollections of your past.”

“I know.
And
when we talked about my days in school before we left
Dakar
, some things were coming back to me as I was telling the stories. Yet, they were children stories. None of which told of my emotions, of my intimate experiences. What I related to you then were all display pages hiding the real story.”

“And can you rip the display pages and let us look at the
real
story now?”

“No, Samir!
I can’t rip the pages.
I can’t.
Not yet.”

Seeing that Talya was getting upset, Samir took her hand.
“Shhhh, don’t distress yourself.
You’re just trying to rush into the future and you shouldn’t.
Be patient and let it go for now.
We will reach our destination together in due time.”

The waiter brought their refreshments to the table and said, “I’m sorry, Capitaine, I don’t know where my mind was earlier. I shouldn’t have missed acknowledging your return.
Welcome back, and to you, Madame
Gilmore
, welcome to the Hotel de Crillon.”

Marianne
must have passed the word around
.

“It’s perfectly understandable, Danny; I haven’t been here in a while. And thank you for the beverages, the tea looks fine to me,” Samir said, lifting the lid from the teapot.

“Yes, Capitaine, we have brewed your special blend.
I hope it’s to your satisfaction.”

“It will be, thank you.”

Jean, the porter came along a few minutes later to announce that the capitaine’s apartment was ready.
Samir told him that they would be going up as soon as they finished their drinks.
He added that he wanted the concierge to reserve a table in front of the window at the Ambassadeur’s for dinner later.

Samir had called Talya a ‘princess’, and since entering the hotel, she felt like one.

“What’s the matter?”
Samir asked, noticing that Talya was pensive.

“Nothing. I’m just a little overwhelmed, that’s all.”
I can’t get over it, would be a more suited description of how I feel.

When they entered Samir’s apartment, Talya had to stop at the door. The décor was elegant, simple and luxuriously comfortable.
It was one of the ‘Boiserie Suites’.
Every wall was covered with faceted oak wood panels, each adorned with crystal light fixtures.
There were two chandeliers illuminating the ochre, velvet chairs and reflecting star-like patterns onto the
Versailles
parquet floor. A huge golden framed mirror surmounted the fireplace on the far-side wall.

It was all too much for her. Samir was right. Such luxury didn’t really suit her taste.
The simplicity with which he had decorated his apartment however, appealed to her sense of comfort.
The lithographs on the walls were modestly framed, and the only
Louis
XV furniture was small and discreet, such as the table in front of the one window.
It was a manly suite.

Samir saw that she hesitated in taking the first step inside. “Princess, please do me the honour to pass the threshold of my home, your presence here warms my heart.”

“This is too much. I expected—”

“Come and see your room,” Samir interrupted keenly. “I think it will please you.”

Talya followed him, still looking around her.
She didn’t know if he had intended to bring her here from the first but
her
room, was decorated of blue. The dresser and mirrors were delicately trimmed and framed of gold while the blue silk cushion
s
accented the white-laced bedspread laid on the four-poster bed. The delicately patterned wallpaper was only adorned of three oil paintings, Monet’s reproductions of his ‘Déjeuner sur l’herbe’, ‘Femmes au Jardin’ and ‘Les coquelicots’. Words eluded her. She went to stand by the window. The silk, blue drapes, retained at the side by gold tassels, partly covered the white, floor-length sheer curtains. She stood looking out, unable to prevent those awful tears of joy from rolling down her cheeks.
She took a tissue out of her purse and dabbed her face. Talya felt she didn’t deserve to be spoiled in such a way. This dream wasn’t for her to live. She thought of
Alhassan
and the dreadful pain he must have been suffering. She had to get out of there and erase the memory. She needed to extinguish the hurt. She was tired.

Samir, who had been standing in the doorway, went to her and took her in his arms. Talya felt as cold as ice.

He lifted her face to his and peered into her eyes.

“My Lady, I know the pain, I know how much you want to find those answers, but you have to take the gifts that are offered to you.
You can’t deny
God
the pleasure of seeing your smile.
And you need to rest before our journey begins.”

“I know. But I don’t deserve to be treated like a queen when I feel like a wretched whore.”

“Talya, come with me.” Samir released his embrace and led her by the hand to sit in front of the fireplace. The flames were gently caressing the wood burning in the hearth.

“You are never again to pronounce such a word to describe yourself. It is offensive to my ears and to my heart.”

Talya looked at her companion, her eyes still bathing in tears. “Do you think for one minute that I would bring a whore into my home?”

“No, but that’s the way I feel. I feel as if I have betrayed my simple needs in favour of luxury at the very moment when I should atone for my sins with contrition and modesty, and not with splendour surrounding my every move.”

“Modesty and charity are in your heart and not on display, Talya, not here and not anywhere in your travels. Even if we were to leave here to stay in another hotel or even sleep under the bridges, your thoughts would not change. Your atonement will only be complete the day you see justice prevail, and whether you’re dressed in rags or in riches in the meantime, it will not change the outcome.”

“Maybe, Samir—” Talya closed her eyes, reclined on the seat and listened to the crackling fire. When she felt Samir rise from the sofa and leave her, she was up like a shot but stopped.
Talya knew herself too well not to sense that she was on the verge of becoming dependant, and clinging to her friend.
She needed to back off and let him be.
Samir turned around and looked at her curiously.

“I…, I’m sorry…. Nothing….” She sat down again, feeling like an absolute fool.

Talya, you’ve got to get a handle on this.
If this is a dream, well, you’ll wake up soon enough, and if this is reality, just enjoy it while it lasts. Tomorrow is another day.

46

“Talya? My Lady?”
She heard Samir’s voice beside her. Talya opened her eyes to look into his face. “Wake up, Princess.”
Good God what happened?
Where am I?
She looked at the fire and at Samir.
She was in a daze.
She had fallen asleep in front of the fire. “What time is it?”

“Nearly ten o’clock, and if you are hungry we can go downstairs or order some dinner to be brought up, which would you prefer?”

It was all coming back to her. Talya was at the Hotel de Crillon in Samir’s apartment. She had been crying obviously—the tissue was still in her hand.
She was embarrassed and feeling totally out of place.

“I’m sorry, Samir.
I’ve got to get into a shower first.
I apologize for falling asleep on you… Please excuse me.”

She got up, walked into her room, and closed the door. She rested her back against the doorframe and looked up at the ceiling. She hated the way she felt. Talya was enraged at her powerlessness. She needed to get out and go for a walk—alone.
She walked into the bathroom and ignored the loveliness of it all—in fact, it irked her. She showered, combed her hair and changed into a pair of jeans, and in one of the sweaters she bought in
Vancouver
before leaving. She slipped into her old sneakers, took her wallet and came out of the bedroom to find herself face to face with Samir. Talya was in no mood for scolding or a lecture of any sort. She wanted out and quickly.
He appeared startled at seeing the determination in her eyes.

“You’ll have to excuse me, Samir, but tonight I need to be alone. Do you have a key, so that I can return without disturbing you?”

“Sure, take mine, but may I ask where you intend to go at this time of night?”

“Even if I knew; I would probably
not
tell you.”
Talya’s words were lashing at him and her mood was getting worse by the minute. “Please, Samir, no more questions. I need to be
alone,
or is that too much to ask?”

He stepped aside and opened the door for her. She walked out without a word.

47

Once he had closed the door on her,
Samir went to the phone on the bureau. He dialled the number he wanted. “
Cecilia
?”

“My goodness, Captain, it’s so good to hear your voice. Is Talya okay?
Where are you?”

“We’re in
Paris
, my dear. Talya is fine but if I may intrude on his day, and if he is available, I’d like to talk to
Charles
.”

“Sure, Captain, right away.”
The line went dead for a moment.

“Samir. How are you?
How was your flight?
Is Talya okay?”
Charles
asked all at once.

“I’m just fine,
Charles
, the flight was fine. We arrived safely a few hours ago. But Talya seems to be going into a fit of depression again.”

“What? Let me talk to her.”

“I’m afraid that won’t be possible at the moment.
She’s gone for a walk and I need to get some answers from
Ghali
.
Would you be so kind as to call him for me and ask him to phone me as soon as his time permits?”

“Right away. Just hang up and I’ll get him to call you. You’re at the Hotel de Crillon as you planned?”

“Yes,
Charles
. S
ame number as the one I gave you in
Toronto
.”

“Okay,
Ghali
will be on the line in a few minutes
…,
don’t worry.”

Samir hung up and waited.
Charles
had been right, within five minutes the phone rang.
When Samir picked up the receiver,
Ghali
didn’t leave him any time to speak.

“What’s going on?
Charles
said Talya is having a fit of depression.”

“Yes,
Ghali
, that’s how I described it to
Charles
.
But I am not a physician so I wouldn’t be able to diagnose correctly what’s happening to her.”

“Tell me what she is doing right now.”
Ghali
’s medical mind took over immediately; his voice was devoid of emotions.

“She went for a walk and insisted on being left alone.”

“And what triggered the escape this time?”

“When I showed her the room that I had prepared for her in my apartment, she became distressed. She said she felt like a wretched whore for accepting such a gift when she needed to atone for her sins in modesty—”

“And what happened after that?”

Samir told him with precise details what had occurred that evening. “Do you think I should attempt to follow her?”

“No. If I read this reaction correctly, she’ll be back in an hour’s time with a smile on her face and wanting to eat.” Samir smiled to himself.
He could see Talya walking through the door in the manner
Ghali
had just described.