La Fleur Rouge The Red Flower (20 page)

By this time Peter and Jenny had joined them, and they went into the hotel restaurant for a quick breakfast before the limousine arrived to take them to the studio.

As they sat down at the table, Hildy noticed that Jay seemed preoccupied. “Cherie, is something wrong? You seem so quiet. What was it that you wanted to tell me?”

He reached for Hildy’s hand. “Honey, I received an emergency call last night from the stage director in New York. He’s been trying to reach me for the past two weeks.” He looked pointedly at Greg as he spoke. “They’ve run into a snag with ‘Sunny Days,’ and they need me - and Greg - in New York right away. I’ve made reservations on the six o’clock flight tomorrow night. It was the first space they had.”

Hildy was so upset she almost dropped her accent. “Oh, Jay! Do you have to go back so soon?”

“Sweetie, I’ve got to get back there and take care of things. I’d better stay here at the hotel today and try to figure out how to fix their problem. I’ll see you tonight when you get back from the studio. We’ll have a nice evening. You can come to New York as soon as the film is finished, and we can be together again. You should be there in time for the opening of Greg’s new musical.”

Hildy’s eyes filled with tears. How in the world could she manage that? As soon as the filming was done she would be going directly to Boston to sue Greg.

CHAPTER XXVII
 

Jay’s announcement came as a complete surprise to Greg. He didn’t see how he could take care of Hildy before their flight tomorrow evening. His plan to dispose of her was just falling into place, like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, and he had to act fast.

He was surprised he hadn’t heard from Dan. He had promised to let him know where he was staying. Now that Greg knew Hildy was Hilary, he had to talk to him. He needed his help to carry out his plan.

“Jay, there’s something I have to take care of,” he said. “I’ll try not to be gone too long. And I’m expecting an urgent phone call. I hope it comes in before we leave tomorrow. It’s very important.”

As soon as Greg left, Zack rose from his chair. “Excuse me,” he said. “I have to make a call. I’ll use one of the courtesy phones. It won’t take long. I’ll be right back.”

Greg had just reached the front door when he heard himself being paged. He walked back and picked up the nearest phone. “This is Gregory Wilcox. You have a call for me?”

“Oui, Monsieur. I’ll connect you.”

Greg waited only a few seconds. “Mr. Wilcox?” he heard from the other end. “It’s Dan.”

“Dan! Where the devil have you been? I thought you’d contact me long before this!”

“I just arrived in Paris. I had to check out a few more places. I’m staying at La Petite Maison Hotel,” Zack lied.

“Where’s that?” Greg asked.

“It’s on the outskirts of town,” Zack told him.

Greg sighed impatiently. “I have to see you right away. I’m coming over.”

“Oh - I won’t be here,” he told Greg. “I have an appointment in a few minutes with someone who thinks he knows where Hilary is.”

“I’ve already found her! So much for your expertise!” Greg snorted. “I need to talk to you. I have a plan in mind, but I need your help.”

Zack hung up before Greg could say anything more.

Greg stood in the lobby holding the phone. This was the second time he had been cut off in the middle of a conversation with Dan.

He put the phone down and went to the desk. “I was cut off from my call,” he told the clerk. “Can you trace it and reconnect me?”

The clerk looked surprised. “Monsieur, that call came from the courtesy phone by the swimming pool of this hotel.”

Greg couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Dan was calling from this hotel? Something weird is going on! “Where is the swimming pool?” he asked the clerk.

“Monsieur, it is through those doors and down one flight.”

Greg raced down the flight of stairs to the pool.

Zack was standing by the elevator frantically pressing the button.

His back was turned, and the elevator came just as Greg arrived.

Greg looked around. The pool area was deserted except for the man who was just getting on the elevator. Could that be Zack? he wondered. What is he doing here? Greg was totally confused. He left the pool area and went back to the lobby.

It was ten A.M. I’ve got only a day and a half to do away with Hilary - er - Hildy, he corrected himself. He walked out of the hotel and hailed a cab, convinced that Dan couldn’t possibly have called from here.

He tried to squelch the panic that was beginning to attack him. What if she decides to tell Jay the truth before then? Now that they’re married he might believe her, not me. I’ve got to find a way to turn them against each other and prevent that from happening. He hopped into the nearest cab and slammed the door.

“Take me to La Petite Maison Hotel,” he ordered the cab driver. “Hurry!”

The driver turned and looked at Greg. “Monsieur, I’ve never heard of such a hotel. Do you know where it is?”

Greg was exasperated. “That’s your job! It’s somewhere on the outskirts of town. Look it up on your map!”

The driver stared at Greg for a moment. “Parlez vous Fran- cais?” he asked him.

“I don’t speak French!” Greg replied impatiently.

The driver smiled sweetly and spoke to him again. “Monsieur, vous etes un vrai cretin!” (Sir, you are a real ass!) He turned away with a secret smile of revenge. He scanned the list of hotels on the map that he removed from the glove compartment, then shook his head. “Monsieur, there is no such hotel listed in all of Paris. I would know if there were. Are you sure of the name?”

Greg nearly exploded. “There has to be a hotel by that name! My friend is staying there. He just called me. Look again!”

The driver glared at him as though he wanted to throw the map at him, but he politely handed it to him instead. “Maybe you can find it,” he told him.

Greg looked at the list. “Never mind,” he told the driver.

He got out of the cab and went back into the hotel and up to his room. He sat down in the easy chair, thinking. Why did Dan give me a name of a hotel that didn’t exist? Why did he wait so long to contact me? It’s almost as though he doesn’t want me to find Hilary, he muttered, but that’s what I’ve been paying him for! Had the clerk been right about the call coming from this hotel?

“I smell a double cross!” he declared out loud. But why would Dan do this to me? It doesn’t make sense!

He walked over to the private bar in his room, poured himself a Scotch on the Rocks, and sat down again, deep in thought. Dan is here in Paris. That much I know. But where? Could he really be in this hotel?

Something about his voice haunted him. I’ve heard it somewhere recently. But where? The answer to that question evaded him.

CHAPTER XXVIII
 

When Hildy and the others joined Zack in the lobby, the limousine was there ready to take them to the studio. As they seated themselves, Hildy felt a strange emptiness. Tonight would be her last night with Jay for quite a while - longer than he had any idea it would be.

She felt lost without him beside her. She brushed the tears from her eyes and looked at Zack. He seemed unusually preoccupied, as though a great worry was on his mind. For some reason she couldn’t explain, this frightened her. “Zack,” she asked, “is anything wrong?”

“Zack, what is it?” Peter asked him.

Before Zack could answer, the limo pulled up to the entrance of the movie studio.

Hildy suspected that Zack’s preoccupation had something to do with Greg. Her heart pounded, and she felt faint. As she stepped out of the car, she staggered.

Zack caught her just before she lost consciousness. He carried her into the studio and laid her down on the sofa. Jenny rushed to her side as Peter dug into the first aid kit for some smelling salts. Hildy came to in less than a minute, all apologies.

As soon as Zack was sure she was okay, he and Peter walked over to the other side of the studio.

Jenny stayed by Hildy’s side in an effort to support her. Together they watched as Peter and Zack talked.

* * *

Peter turned and looked at Hildy. What Zack had just told him was frightening. “Zack, do you think it’s necessary to tell Hildy? The film is almost finished. I don’t want her any more upset or worried than she already is. You saw what just happened. It’s only one more day. Greg is going back to New York tomorrow. What could he do now?”

“She’ll be okay!” Zack declared. “I’ll see to that!”

“It’s agreed then,” Peter said. “We keep quiet for the time being. I think the best thing to do is to go ahead with the filming. Greg told you he found Hilary - nothing more. Maybe he’s bluffing. Let’s hope so. At least Greg doesn’t know who you are. That much we’re sure of. And we have to keep it that way.”

The actors had arrived on the set by now, and Peter went over to Hildy. “Why don’t you sit here and rest?” he suggested. “We can carry on for a while. I’ll let you know when we need you.”

Hildy rose to her feet. “I’m okay,” she declared. She walked over to the others. “Please,” she begged, “don’t say anything about this to Jay. It would just worry him, and he has to get back to New York and straighten things out there.”

“We’ll keep quiet as long as you’re okay,” Peter agreed.

“I’m fine!” she assured them. “Really. Let’s keep going.”

Peter nodded. He was as determined as she was to return to the States and prove what a thief Greg was. “We’ll see to it that he’s put in jail where he belongs! Then she’ll be safe.”

CHAPTER XXIX
 

It was evening, and Greg sat in the bar of La Grande Veue Hotel stirring the ice in his glass. I can’t go back to New York till I make sure Hilary - uh - Hildy is no longer a threat to me. How do I get her alone? How do I take care of Roger? And what do I say to Jay?

Suddenly it came to him exactly how to inject his poison into Jay’s mind and deal the death blow to his and Hildy’s marriage. What a perfect plan! he exulted. But he needed to get hold of the script for “La Fleur Rouge” first. How could he do it? It seemed impossible.

He moved to a small table in the dimly lit cocktail lounge where no one could see him. The lobby was in clear view of the lounge as he watched the people come and go. Although his back was turned toward the door, a mirrored wall which faced the lobby enabled him to see whoever walked by. He motioned to the waiter.

“Yes, Sir - what would you like?” the waiter asked him.

“Bring me another Scotch on the Rocks. Make it a double. And bring me a bottle to take to my room.”

As he sat there sipping his drink and reading his newspaper, he looked up and saw Hildy, Peter, Jenny, and Zack enter the hotel lobby. They headed toward the elevator - all except Peter, who deposited his briefcase and jacket on the coffee table by the sofa and went to the desk to speak to the clerk. Peter’s back was turned as he stood in the long line. Greg realized it would be quite a while before Peter could return to pick up his belongings.

Greg saw his chance! He sped into the lobby and over to the coffee table. When he was sure no one was looking, he grabbed the briefcase and took it back into the cocktail lounge. In the dim light he opened it. The script for “La Fleur Rouge” was there!

He searched further and found a secret compartment at the bottom of the case. A gun was neatly fitted into it. This could come in handy, he thought. What a stroke of luck!

He quickly removed the script and put the gun in his pocket. To make up for the lost weight in Peter’s briefcase, he carefully placed the unopened bottle of Scotch where the gun had been, and wrapped the newspaper he had been reading around it so the bottle wouldn’t rattle.

He closed the secret compartment and the briefcase and sneaked it back to the coffee table while Peter was still standing in line. He sped down the stairs to the back elevator by the swimming pool so no one would see him.

Once in his room he hid the script in his suitcase. He planned to put stickers with his logo on it later to hide Hildy’s name. He always carried these stickers just in case he came across a musical he considered worthy of stealing. No one suspected a thing. They had come to associate this kind of logo with his scripts, and never thought to question it.

When Greg came back to the lobby, Peter was nowhere in sight. Whew! That was close, he mused, as he entered the cocktail lounge to order another double Scotch. He raised his glass in a toast to himself, gloating over his cleverness.

* * *

Hildy was unusually tired when she returned to La Grande Veue Hotel after the day’s filming. The stress of knowing that she and Jay would be separated for longer than Jay had any idea had taken its toll, and there was no way she could explain it to him. This evening was their last together for who knew how long?

When she entered her room Jay held out his arms, and she rushed into them.

“Honey,” he said, “I’ve ordered dinner here in our room. I expect it to arrive any minute. Go take your shower. I’ll take care of the rest.”