Night Watch

FIFTY-EIGHT

By six o’clock, we had been taken over to Kenner Stables by the local police, joined by Mercer, who had arrived soon after the town cops.

Patti Kenner, one of the kindest, smartest women I’d ever met, was doing her best to calm and comfort us. She had called her personal physician to come tend to the soles of Mike’s feet, cleaning out the teeny glass fragments from the broken bottles he’d stepped on and bandaging them with an antibiotic ointment.

Mercer, Mike, Luc, and Gina were at Patti’s kitchen table. She had canceled her dinner party and was feeding all of them the delicious meal she’d prepared earlier in the day-individual chicken pot pies in small cast iron skillets. I was on a sofa at the far end of the room.

After the police had interviewed Jim Mulroy, he’d brought a case of 1982 Mouton Rothschild Pauillac for Patti before heading home. He told us it was from Peter Danton’s personal stash. We were on our third bottle by the time the doctor arrived to check me out.

Gina Varona was explaining her long friendship with Brigitte Rouget. “Luc and I were the two steady influences in Brigitte’s life,” she said. “I’ve spent a lot of years trying to keep her drug-free, keep her on track for her family.”

“You were serious about backing me, too,” Luc said. He was leaning back in his chair, his long, thin legs stretched out in front of him. I’d never seen him look so sad.

“We should never have let Peter get involved,” Gina said. “I think he was feeding coke to Brigitte all along. Bringing it to her from Africa even a decade ago. You trust everyone, Luc. That’s your problem.”

“And Coop doesn’t trust anyone,” Mike said.

“When did you get worried about Peter Danton?” Mercer asked Gina.

She frowned as she answered. “I was really fond of Luigi. I mean, I only knew him from the club, but I thought he was a bright kid, a hustler with a great future. I really liked that Luc was willing to give him such a big break. So first I heard that Luigi was going over to Mougins-to meet Luc-I thought it was really a good thing for us.”

“Well, that was the least of it,” Luc said.

“Next thing Peter tells me, after Luigi comes home, is he thinks Luigi killed the girl.”

“Lisette?” I asked.

“Yes, Lisette. And she used to be Brigitte’s supplier. So suddenly, it seemed so obvious to me that there was a drug connection at the base of all this,” Gina said. “And then Luigi was found dead in the water.”

“Josh Hanson rolled over on Peter while we were waiting for his ambulance to come,” Mike said. “Snitched on him. That’s how he won himself a free ride back to Brooklyn, with the detectives, as soon as he’s treated and released.”

“Peter Danton slit Luigi’s throat?” Gina asked.

“Yes, for the same reason Luigi killed Lisette. Too much cocaine went missing. Luigi slipped Luc’s matchbox into her pocket, just to make it look bad for Luc. Josh said Peter bragged about doing the same thing to Luigi, who’d told him he’d done it. It’s a dangerous game, trafficking in drugs,” Mike said. “Maybe the most dangerous game.”

“But you must have known about Gineva Imports?” I asked Gina.

“We set up a corporation because we had a lot of legitimate goods to bring into the country,” she said. “Cocaine wasn’t one of them.”

“Nor were women,” Luc said. “Escorts or prostitutes, or however you want to call them.”

“Wine, cheese, truffles, escargot,” Gina said. “We had quite a list of good things to import. The corporation was set up in my name and Eva Danton’s. Peter was the vice president. I’m sure you’ll see he’s signed off-or forged our names-on everything else.”

“The building next to Luc’s restaurant?” I asked.

“What building would that be?” She answered my question with a question.

“I didn’t know about it either,” Luc said, drawing in his legs and burying his head in his hands. “Apparently my design to restore the dignity and civility of the great Lutèce was the least important part of Peter’s plan.”

“Has his link to the prostitution ring based in Lille been confirmed?” I asked.

“Interpol will have an answer by Monday,” Mercer said.

“It hardly matters at this point,” Luc said. “The dream is ruined. There’s no point going on.”

I stood up to walk over to him. “They’ll get this all separated out from you.”

He waved me off. “I was stupid, Alex. I was so driven to create this fantasy for myself-for my father-that I let myself lose sight of everything that mattered. I need to go home, darling. I need to go home and figure out what’s left of this.”

The chief of police opened the back door of Patti’s kitchen. “My men are ready, Mr. Rouget. If you’re going to get to JFK for your flight, you’ll have to leave now. We need to stop at your hotel for your passport and bags.”

“Why don’t you stay one more day, Luc?” Gina asked.

He stood up to shake hands with Mercer and Mike, and to thank Patti Kenner.

“I think it’s better for everyone if I leave now,” Luc said. “Whenever the police need me, I’ll come back.”

“Let me walk you to the car,” I said.

Luc laughed, trying to defuse the tension. “Just come out on the steps to say good-bye.”

“Who wants a refill?” Mike asked, trying to distract everyone from watching me, I was sure.

The Washington Township patrol car was backed into the drive, the two officers seated in front with the motor running.

I held on to the railing as I went down the stairs after Luc. I was on the bottom step and he was on the ground when he turned to embrace me.

“I’m so sorry I brought such a sordid mess into your life, dear Alex. It was the last thing I ever intended to do.”

“No apologies, Luc. There’s nothing to be sorry about.”

“I had such very different plans for this evening, darling. Someday soon I’ll tell you what they were, and maybe by then we can even laugh about it.”

“Maybe so,” I said, wiping the tears from my eyes.

Luc pulled my head toward him and kissed me-first on each damp eyelid, then on the tip of my nose, and then my mouth.

I hated good-byes. I hated emotional good-byes of every kind. I willed myself to think that this wouldn’t be the last time Luc held my face between his hands and told me that he loved me. But I knew better than to believe that.