Page 13 of French Escapade

“Élodie? I thought you had lost my number!”

“Very funny,” I grumble. “I know I haven’t called in a while, but...”

“You’ve been busy,” she says finishing my sentence for me.

Looks like I may need to come up with fresh excuses.

Luckily, she doesn’t seem to be annoyed with me. How are you doing?”

“I’m actually doing okay.” I feel a tiny bit guilty to tell her that I’m calling her because I need a favor. I’m on a case and I think, maybe, you could help me.”

“I’m listening.”

I put her on speaker so the guys can follow our conversation. “I’m on a missing person case, and there’s a chance the missing girl stayed at the Richmond Palace during the past few days. She could still be there.”

I pause to choose my words carefully. But my friend is smart.

“Let me guess, you need me to look something up for you in our system because you don’t have a court order?”

“If you could do that … I know you’re not supposed to, but time is of the essence. You know I wouldn’t ask if there was any other way. I can’t tell you much more, but I have reason to think this young woman is in real danger.”

I watch Kenneth stiffen. I do not want to scare him, but then again, I need to sway Olivia.

She remains silent for a bit. At least it’s not a straightno. “Please, Olivia,” I beg.

She’s aware this is not my usual style. Does that weight it in my favor?

“What kind of information do you need?” she finally asks.

“I would like to know who has been staying in room 320, and if they are still there.”

Through the phone, I hear her clicking away on a keyboard. She comes back on the line and says, “Mr. and Mrs. Orlov.”

“Orlov? The eagle,” whispers Kenneth.

So, in addition to French, he speaks Russian? What he has no way to know is that The Eagle is Arkady’s nickname. My heart is beating a little faster. If the scumbag is still in his room holding Madison against her will, maybe there’s a way to …

My hope crashes when Olivia adds, “Accounting has the room marked available as of today. They checked out about two hours ago.”

Two hours. It’s not much, but then again, it’s a long time. They could be far away already. They could have crossed a border, gone to Marseille, or even flown away if Arkady has a private jet available at Cannes airport.

Kenneth twitches in his chair. I feel for him. He needs to move, run after his sister. Every second spent waiting behind this desk seems a waste of time. I agree with him, but we need some sort of plan. “Has the room been cleaned yet?”

“Not according to the floor schedule.”

“Do you think we could have a look at it?”

“Élodie, do you realize what you’re asking?”

“Yes, I do. And I wouldn’t, if you weren’t my only hope.”

She hesitates for a bit and says, “Okay, but hurry. I’m not going to be able to freeze the room for long without getting in trouble.”

The next second, the three of us are out the door.

* * *