“This is embarrassing, Mother,” he reminded her. “I worked for Olivia, as a grown-up. She didn’t adopt me.”
“No, but you two are friends, I think. That includes how naughty you were as children, and how sweet. I’m sure Olivia got up to mischief too.”
“Never, I was perfect. Except when I borrowed my mother’s favorite sweater and loaned it to a friend and forgot to get it back, or when I stole her new high heels and broke one…and locked myself in the bathroom at five and the fire department came and had to remove the door. Stuff like that.” She laughed, and got up to leave, and thanked Liese for the visit. “It was a great honor to meet you, Mrs. von Hartmann. I’ve been a great admirer of yours from a distance ever since I met Joachim.”
“I admire you too. Thank you for being a friend to him, as well as his employer. We all need our friends.” Olivia nodded, touched, and a look passed between the two women that only they understood. “Thank you,” Liese said again, they kissed on both cheeks, and Olivia left. She thanked Joachim again at the door, and they didn’t kiss, but a warm look passed between them. And Liese was eating one of the éclairs when he came back into the room. She looked up at him with a grin. “I don’t know if you’re in love with her,” she said, licking the chocolate off her fingers delicately, “but I am. What a lovely woman she is. And she is your friend, whether you know it or not.” He nodded, not sure what to say.
He sent Olivia a text an hour later. “Thank you for making my mother so happy.” And she responded immediately.
“I’m in love with her. You’re a lucky man.”
“I know,” was his response, and he wondered when he would see Olivia again. Probably not for a while, but the air had been cleared, and he was happy the two women had met.
Olivia thought about Joachim and his mother that night. He was a complicated man, with an unusual background. A war criminal grandfather, a drug lord identical twin brother, a father he never knew, an extraordinary mother, and all of it had made him who he was. Her history was much simpler. A father pretending not to be, a mother who had given up her life for a married man. Her mother had taught her everything she didn’t want to be, including being dependent on a selfish, dishonest man. They had both been weak, selfish people. Joachim had terrible people in his history, and also a mother who was a shining example of everything one should be. She had been the greatest influence on him of all.
Chapter 17
Just as Olivia had hoped, the chateau was finished right on time, in less than the eight months she’d allowed for. She had done it by sheer grit, determination, and hard work. She had the whole place cleaned, the gardens were as beautiful as Nikolai Petrov had hoped. She completed the interior installation in three days of nonstop work, curtains, paintings, furniture. It was a showplace beyond the owner’s wildest dreams, and hers. She took photographs of it for Nikolai and herself and emailed a set to Joachim too. He texted her that he was stunned at how beautiful it was and what she had done since he’d left.
She waited for a response from Nikolai Petrov and got none. She emailed him again, and still no response. He had transferred all the money she needed for final payments, and paid her fee, but there was no letter, no email, no text, no call. It didn’t make sense to her and she called Audrey Wellington in New York to ask her to check with her original contact if everything was all right. Audrey sounded shocked to hear from her.
“You haven’t heard?”
“Heard what? Did someone kill him?” It was the only thing she could think of to explain his silence, now that he was the owner of such an exquisite property and home. It almost did look like Versailles and every inch of it gleamed. Olivia had been waiting for him to arrive so she could show it to him, and how all the technology worked. Even that had been installed on time. Even the pool was complete. It really was a miracle. She’d never worked so hard on anything in her life. She’d been too busy to read the papers and see it.
“He was convicted of money laundering in France. All of his property has been seized. I think he had three or four houses in the South of France, and some apartment buildings in Paris. The government is taking them all. Including the one you just finished, I’m sure.”
“That’s it? And then what?” Olivia was stunned. She had worked like a slave to finish it for him, and now the government was taking it and she hadn’t heard a word from him.
“They’ll sell it at auction, probably for much less than it’s worth, a fraction of it. It will be a fabulous deal for someone. Government seizures always are.”
“How does that happen? Will someone notify me? Who do I give the keys to? I’ve been writing to him for ten days and he hasn’t answered.”
“He may be in jail. And don’t worry. When they get around to it, someone from the Treasury will show up, and take whatever they need. Did you get paid?”
“Every penny. All the suppliers have been paid, and I got my entire fee three weeks ago. I thought it a little odd that he paid me before I finished.”
“Maybe somewhere under the crook, he’s a decent guy. Honor among thieves. I think he was convicted two weeks ago. I’ve been afraid to call you. I was sure you’d be furious with me if you got burned. I honestly didn’t know he was a crook when I gave you the job. I thought I was doing you a favor.”
“You did. I just can’t believe this.” She was shocked.
“It happens with the Russians sometimes. He owes the tax people millions. He might have paid eventually, but with money laundering charges and a conviction, they won’t give him the properties back. I think he was making illegal arms deals, selling missiles. It was big league stuff.”
“How sad, I don’t even know who’ll wind up with this beautiful house.” But she hadn’t met Nikolai either. He was just a voice on the phone and wire transfers to the bank.
“I’ve been wanting to call you. You may want to kill me after this, but I have another project for you. Not as massive as this one. An American, not a Russian. One of my regular clients just bought a very pretty small chateau, more like a manor house, he says it’s a little jewel, and he wants someone to do it for him. He’s a totally honest guy. A Texan. It’s completely on the up-and-up. Can I give him your name? And are you staying in France for a while?”
“I am,” she said, making the decision on the spot. She knew now that this was what she wanted to do, refurbishing houses in France, preferably for American clients. She was going to renew her apartment lease for another year, or two.
“He’s very attractive by the way, and single. This might be a bigger deal for you than just a decorating project,” she said pointedly, and Olivia laughed. Audrey had always thought Olivia was very attractive and was surprised she was unattached.
“Do you throw in the matchmaking services for free?” Olivia teased her, and they both laughed.
“Definitely.” Normally, Olivia would have balked, but it was very appealing. She’d been thinking lately, now that the chateau was finished she had to make a real effort to get out and meet people, and she hadn’t had a real date in too long, not since New York. She wanted to meet some men. She wasn’t shopping for a husband, but a dinner date would be nice. She didn’t want to sit at home alone forever. She had come to Paris to live life, and she was. A man could be part of that. “I’ll give him your number. He can talk to you about the house, and take you out to dinner,” Audrey said, pleased. “I think he’s going to Paris soon. His name is Guy Fellowes, so you know who he is when he calls. And, Olivia…I’m really sorry about the Russian.” She genuinely meant it. But Olivia wasn’t sorry she’d done the job. It had been a labor of love and she’d learned a lot. And she’d made a lot of money on it.
“You couldn’t know,” Olivia reassured her, but she was still shocked about Nikolai Petrov when she hung up, and pleased that she had the prospect of another job from Audrey, for an honest client this time. She felt sorry for Nikolai
Petrov. He had sounded like a nice man, and he had been fair with her, whatever else he’d done. She was sorry he would never see the lovely chateau. She was grateful he had paid her in full before his conviction by the French courts.
She sent Audrey the photos of the chateau after they talked and Audrey emailed her and said it looked spectacular.
Guy Fellowes called her that night. He had a very pleasant Texan accent. He told her about the small chateau he had bought, and what he hoped to do with it. It was in the south, close to Provence. It would be more of a commute for her, but she said she could manage it. He was coming to Paris in three days and staying at the Ritz. He invited her to meet him for a drink so they could discuss the project, and she said she’d be delighted to. She had no idea if he’d turn out to be someone she wanted to go out with, but she liked the sound of the house he had bought and what he wanted to do to it. After the chateau, everything would be easy for her. She promised to send him photographs of it, to give him an idea of the scope of what she was capable of.
After she hung up, she called Joachim, to tell him what had happened to Nikolai Petrov and that the chateau was going to be seized by the government. She expected him to be as shocked as she was. He sounded distracted when he answered, and there was a lot of noise in the background. She told him what had happened, and he didn’t sound surprised.
“Things have been crazy here too. It turns out that my delightful employer owes over a million pounds in back taxes. He’s a heavy gambler. He tried to burn the barn down last night, for the insurance money. They’ve arrested him for it. The house is mortgaged to the hilt, so he tried to set fire to the barn. He had just taken out a huge insurance policy. All the horses are safe, but they arrested him for tax evasion, insurance fraud, and animal cruelty. He saw to it that we got the horses out quickly, into trailers and off the property. It was all very obvious. It was a scheme of massive proportions. He was desperate to do something that brazen. I’m afraid it’s going to go badly for him. His girlfriend reported him. He told her he was going to do it, and he’s been cheating on her, so she called the police. The firefighters were here all night, the animal protection people came for the horses. And the police took him away about an hour ago. Things are a little busy right now. I’m not staying obviously. But I want to stick around till somebody takes charge here. His sister and her husband are coming from Italy. I swear, the world is full of criminals. Being a butler isn’t what it used to be.” He sounded shocked himself. “I’m sorry about the chateau. Did he stiff you for what he owed you?” It seemed inevitable and he was sorry for her. He wasn’t going to be paid by Mount-Williams, but he was relieved that no one had gotten hurt.
“No, he paid me in full three weeks ago, right before he got convicted. And I just got another job from Audrey Wellington. A Texan who bought a small chateau near Provence. I’m meeting with him this week.” Joachim was happy that things were turning out well for her. She deserved it. She worked so hard.
“I’m glad for you. I’ll send you a text and let you know where I am. I’m going to turn the whole mess over to Mount-Williams’s sister when she arrives. He did some serious damage to the barn, but we got all the horses out, with no casualties. The world is a crazy place.”
* * *
—
She didn’t hear from him again after that. Her meeting with Guy Fellowes went well. He was as handsome and charming as Audrey had said. He hired her to do the chateau after their meeting at the Ritz, and he took her to dinner at Le Voltaire to celebrate. She sent flowers to Audrey to thank her. Olivia was sitting at her desk a week later when she got a call from the Treasury, wanting the keys and anything else she had relating to the chateau. Two men came by shortly after to collect what she had. She had all the keys carefully marked in a lockbox and some papers in a manila envelope. She had all the paperwork related to the renovation for whoever would eventually buy it at auction. The man who picked it all up was very formal, and he brought a huissier with him, a legal witness to testify in court that they had collected the keys and whatever documents she had. It was a strange end to the story after eight months of hard work on her first big decorating project.
Joachim called her the next day and sounded upset. She hadn’t heard from him since his employer got arrested almost two weeks before.
“Where are you?” she asked him. “Are you still in Sussex, or back in London?” He was unemployed again, and would have to start the job search all over.
“I’m in Paris,” he said quietly, and she suddenly got a bad feeling about it. There was something in his voice.
“Is everything all right?” There was a long silence at the other end.
“It’s my mother. I talked to her last night.” He sounded dazed. “She was so happy. She turned the Monet over to the family yesterday. She’s been working on it for over a year. She finally found a distant cousin, and they needed the money desperately. They have a special needs child. She was fine when I talked to her. But she didn’t answer her phone this morning. I called the police, and the guardian let them in. She had died peacefully in her sleep. I think she must have sensed something. I just got here. The apartment is perfectly neat, and it usually wasn’t. Everything is in order, her papers, her clothes, her desk. She looked so peaceful, and so happy. She just went, quietly.” Tears slid down Olivia’s cheeks as she listened to him. “I’m glad you met her.” His voice broke as he said it.
“So am I,” Olivia said, crying openly. They both were.
“She loved you. She thought you were terrific,” he said.
“What can I do to help?” she offered. She didn’t want to cross any lines. She knew how private he was, but he sounded lost, which wasn’t like him. And he needed a friend now, not an employer.
“I’ll take care of it. I need to get everything organized. She’s at the funeral home now,” he said, pulling himself together.
“Can I do any of it for you?” she offered again.
“No. I’ll let you know what I’m doing. Maybe we can have lunch afterward.”
“If there’s a service, I’d like to go.” She could hear that he was crying when he answered her.
“I’m not sure. She had kind of her own arrangement with God. I don’t want to do anything she wouldn’t have wanted. I suppose I’ll bury her next to Javier. She’d like that. Francois was buried with his own family in Brittany, so I can’t put her with him. I still can’t believe she’s gone.” Neither could Olivia. She had seemed so vital and alive only weeks before.
“Maybe she felt she had done everything she was here to do,” Olivia said gently. But Joachim still needed her. They loved each other.
“Maybe so,” he said, and they hung up a few minutes later. He texted her that night that the service was going to be in a small church near his mother’s apartment, and then she would be buried next to Javier. He said that her colleagues from work were going to come, and a few of her remaining friends. He said he thought his mother would like it if Olivia was there. He was especially glad now that Olivia had met her.
She wrote back that she would like to come, if it wasn’t an intrusion. He didn’t answer for a long time, while he wrestled with the response and didn’t know what to say. He finally typed it out slowly half an hour later, weighing every word. Words were dangerous, they could commit you, and attach you to people, or hurt them. He looked at the message he had written, was satisfied with it, and finally pushed the send button. He knew his mother would have approved of what he’d written.
“I need you there with me. Please come.” He had never felt so naked in his life or so scared after he wrote it to her, and she responded immediately.
“I’ll be there. I’m here if you need me. Call anytime.”
He didn’t write to her again. She saw him as soon as she walked into the small church, holding a small white bouquet. He was wearing one of his dark suits, impeccably groomed, a
nd his eyes met Olivia’s as she walked down the aisle toward him, and slipped into a pew, halfway down the church aisle, not too close to the front, since she didn’t know his mother well, and wanted to respect Joachim’s need for space and boundaries.
He came to find her a few minutes later. “Will you sit with me?” he asked in a whisper. She stood up and followed him to the front pew. The casket was in front of the altar. He hadn’t had her cremated. It was a simple, unpretentious white wood casket, and seemed right for Liese.
There were about thirty people in the church, and Joachim didn’t know many of them. He whispered to Olivia before the service started. “My mother and I came so far together. The years in Buenos Aires, and then we came here…Francois…She was so brave. She always moved forward. She never looked back. No matter what happened, she always kept going.” Without thinking, he had laced his fingers into Olivia’s. “I’ve never been as brave as she was.”
“Yes, you have. You just don’t realize it,” she whispered. Olivia could feel Liese there with them, and she could feel her love for her son, and so could he.
The service was very brief. He shook hands afterward with the people who had come, whether he knew them or not. They each had something nice to say about his mother, and how extraordinary she was. He remembered how she had insisted on meeting Olivia. He wondered if she had sensed what was coming even then, and wanted to see Olivia before she left. She had always been intuitive, as well as wise.
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