The Medusa Amulet

Chapter 21

As the TGV pulled into the Gare de Lyon in Paris, David helped Olivia up from her bunk-“My head feels as if it’s been hit with a hammer,” she complained-and then wrestled their bags toward the door. When it whooshed open, he helped her out onto the platform while keeping an eye out in all directions.

The bald man and his accomplice, the one who had undoubtedly drugged their drinks, had to be somewhere in the mob disembarking from the train, and for all he knew they were still on the job.

David had slung the shoulder strap of the valise over his neck, and with one arm around her waist, shepherded Olivia to the cab stand, where he barged to the head of the line, pleading that his wife needed to get to a hospital. Once in the taxi, he directed him to the Crillon, where Mrs. Van Owen’s very efficient travel agent had already arranged for their accommodations.

At the hotel, Olivia was sufficiently recovered to navigate through the lobby, and down the hushed corridor to the lavish two-bedroom suite with a bird’s-eye view of the Place de la Concorde. Formerly known as the Place de la Revolution, its stones had once been awash in the blood from the guillotine; Louis XVI and his queen, Marie Antoinette, had been decapitated, like thousands of others, just a few hundred yards away.

“I need a hot shower,” Olivia said, “and room service.”

“What do you want?”

“Start with a dozen eggs, bacon, croissants, cheese, coffee-very black and very strong-and a gun.”

“I don’t think guns are on the menu.”

“Just so long as I have something to kill them with, if I ever see those two again.”

David placed the order, then quickly tried Gary again on his cell phone. This time the call went through, and even though it was the middle of the night in Chicago, Gary sounded wide-awake.

“I was planning to just leave you a message,” David said.

“That’s okay. I’m up.”

“Where are you?”

“Right now, the den. I’m watching some old movie on TCM.”

“How’s she doing?”

Gary paused, before saying, “Okay, I guess. She goes in daily for treatments, but at least she’s not living in the hospital. She doesn’t have a nurse waking her up every two hours to take another blood sample.”

“How’s Emme holding up?”

“She’s just happy to have her mom at home. For that matter, so am