The Art of Illumination (The Art of Deception Book 4) by Olivia Le Roux

Author:Olivia Le Roux [Le Roux, Olivia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Olivia Le Roux Mysteries
Published: 2023-07-09T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5. The Intruders

Christian bellowed like a charging bull as he ran into the kitchen.

“I am armed!” he shouted.

“Ahhh,” cried a terrified-looking older woman, who backed against the kitchen counter while the man moved forward.

Claire was coming into the kitchen to see what was happening just as she heard a blood-curdling scream.

“Madame Renaud!” she cried, dropping the mallet.

“Who is this man?” she demanded in French.

“It’s okay. He is a friend. He is American. Well, he is French, but he lives in America. It’s a long story. But we thought you were an intruder.”

“Mais non!” she insisted. “I was here to drop off your rabbit. How could I intrude? I spend almost every day here!”

“I know. You are right. Of course. I’m sorry.” Claire looked embarrassed, as though she were caught in a lie or caught by a parent when returning from a party, slightly tipsy. It was clear to Christian immediately that Madame Renaud was more than a maid or a cleaning lady – she was the grande dame of the manor. Christian looked at her and noticed the suspicion she obviously had for him. Then he noticed that the man was the taxi driver who had told Claire about his infatuation for her when he was a teenager.

“Hello, Benoit,” said Christian in increasingly flawless French. “I remember you. The infatuated cabbie.”

“Mais, monsieur, I hope I did not insult you while reminiscing with your wife. It was innocent memories.”

“Not, not at all. I was merely trying to remember who you were. And that is who you are.”

“Yes. And she is still a beautiful woman. You are a lucky man to have her.”

“But he is not my husband,” said Claire.

“Yet,” said Madame Renaud. “I did notice there is only one single bedroom disturbed.”

This struck Christian as a little too personal, but he noticed that Claire did not react. She just smiled. “We were out for dinner.”

“So, my rabbit is not good enough for you? I know it is only paysan cooking, but it is good, and you used to love it more than anything.”

“Of course, it’s not that. It’s just that it is eleven at night. We had to eat. Remember, we just flew in from New York. We are already six hours into the future. And we are still also on American dining hours.”

“Still,” she said, looking hurt. “I would like you to have this.” With a broad sweep of her arm, she indicated a beautiful-looking stewed rabbit in a cream sauce in an orange Creuset cooking pot.

“Oh my!” said Christian, admiring the dish’s beauty and the intoxicating aroma.

“It is better than anything you can get in America,” she said proudly.

“I have no doubt,” said Christian. “Thank you, Madame Renaud. Let me introduce myself. I am Christian de Castelet.”

“So, you are French?” she said with a happy voice.

“Well, yes.”

“And so, why do you speak in this, this foolish way?”

Christian laughed a little. “I guess I have been away from France for a long time. It’s just that I seem to have lost my accent a little or perhaps added a little suspicion to it.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.