Poisoned in Provence: A Nina Brown Paranormal Cozy Mystery by Cat Green

Author:Cat Green [Green, Cat]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: SG Publications
Published: 2022-04-13T23:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 16

I leave Gertrude in the hotel lobby. I’ve witnessed some wild food preparations in my time, but the story of monkey brains must be the most depraved thing I’ve ever heard. What would I do if the live creature we picked up at FedEx turned out to be a domestic animal, like a dog or a cat? People eat both in some parts of Asia, I’ve heard. Would I be able to sit there, taste the dish, and judge it?

No, I tell myself firmly. I’d put down my pencil and resign. No way could I condone such cruelty to animals.

Maurice spots me before I can take the stairwell to my suite. “Oh, Nina. I made that appointment with Anne you requested. She’ll meet you here in the lobby at 3pm. Does that suit?”

“Perfect.”

“I’ve also found the pictures you asked about. I’ll show them to you in my office.”

Maurice opens the polished wooden gate, granting me entrance to his personal office behind the reception area. Like the man himself, Maurice’s office is well organized. Black and white pictures line his walls. He catches me studying them.

“These are some old family photos. The one in the top right corner was taken more than a century ago at a family picnic.”

I step toward the faded black-and-white photo. The women wear long white dresses and carry parasols. The men wear black suits with white shirts. “They’re formally dressed for a picnic.”

“French families in this area enjoy dressing well. They view it as respect for others. The photo on the bottom left is Chez Corton, back in 1910.”

Gazing down at the photo, I’m surprised that the restaurant shows little change from that date. The flowers on the windowsill even seem the same. But what surprises me most is the man standing proudly in front of it. He’s the spitting image of Jacques, but with broader shoulders and a full black mustache. Two young girls stand beside him.

“That’s Jacques’ great-great-grandfather and his two daughters. The older girl was his great-grandmother, Vivienne. And the tiny one, Betty, is still alive today, if you can believe it.”

I’m about to blurt out that I had met Betty, and that Jacques had told me all about Dame Vivienne and her magical powers before I remember my secret.

“She must be near a hundred.”

Maurice smiles. “Perhaps something near that. People live long lives in this area. The older sister, Vivienne, passed only a few years ago. She was a village legend.”

“For what?”

“She had a way with herbs, as did Jacques’ mother. But have a look at these photos I found for you from our family album.”

Maurice carefully opens an enormous leather album so old it crackles when he opens it. “Originally, the Hotel Deluxe was a private home for a wealthy family. My great-grandfather was able to purchase it after the war when the economy was in shambles. He made the necessary improvements to turn it into the hotel. In the good years, it flourished. Then the bad years came, and he was forced to sell it.

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