Cast An Evil Eye (2 page)

“I told you ‘Déjà Vu’ would be a hit!” Zack chided Courtney. “You wouldn’t believe me, would you? I don’t mean to brag, but my intuition is always right. I think this calls for a celebration, don’t you?”

“I certainly do!” Fran—Count Francois I, who was Jeremy’s father—joined them on the terrace. He had just risen from his usual afternoon nap. He was still the distinguished looking gentleman they had first met years ago—older, but still vital for his years.

“Jeremy,” he said to his son, “why don’t you ask Andre to bring that champagne you’ve been saving for a special occasion? I think this is it!”

Jeremy looked at his father. The deep love he had for him was unmistakable. They had become very close since being reunited after the long years of separation caused by Gregory, Jr. and Lilli when Jeremy was just a boy. “I certainly do, Sir,” he replied. He turned to Courtney. “I think you’re old enough to have some champagne. After all, this is your party.”

He pressed the buzzer for Andre, his faithful butler, who had saved his life when he was only five.

Andre, all smiles, appeared in the doorway. “Yes, Sir,” he said, “what can I do for you?”

“Andre, would you please bring the champagne I’ve been saving? The one with the special label on it? We’ve just had great news! Courtney’s musical, ‘Déjà Vu,’ is a smash hit on Broadway! We’re going to celebrate, and we want you to join us in a toast.”

“Oui, Monsieur!” Andre wholeheartedly agreed. “Thank you for including me.”

“Don’t we always?” Jeremy asked him. “You’re part of our family.”

There was much gaiety as Jeremy opened the bottle of champagne and shot the cap off the terrace into the ocean. The staff had prepared a sumptuous feast which would be served overlooking the Atlantic.

It seemed that nothing could spoil this joyous occasion.

CHAPTER II
 

T
he sun had disappeared and the moonlight was waltzing merrily over the waves as the group sat on the terrace enjoying each other’s company and the dessert and coffee that topped off the delicious meal they had just finished.

While dessert was being served, Jay picked up one of the other papers. The contented smile was quickly replaced by an expression of utter disbelief and horror as he read the headlines. He sat forward in his chair in a state of shock.

“Jay?” Hildy put her fork down. “What is it?”

“This has to be a mistake!” he told her.

“What?”

Jay handed her the paper.

On the front page was a picture of Gregory Wilcox, Jr., the former Count Francois II, and his mother, Countess Lilli Claude.

“JUST RELEASED FROM PRISON,” the headline read.

Hildy put her hand over her mouth to hush the sound of horror that tried to escape from her lips.

Cammie looked frightened.

Courtney rushed over to them.

“Grandy Hildy? Mom? What’s wrong?” She studied the picture, then turned to them. “Do you know these people?”

“I’m afraid so, honey,” Cammie answered when she managed to catch her breath.

Andre reached out and took the paper from Hildy. His face paled as he read the headlines. It was this man and his mother who had hired someone to kill him years ago. Would they try again? His voice shook as he spoke. “They weren’t supposed to be released this soon. This is a mistake, n’est pas?”

Zack looked deeply troubled. “I think the time has come to tell Courtney the whole story,” he told them. “She has a right to know.”

Silence. Courtney waited. What was it they were about to tell her—that she had a right to know? “Mom? Dad? What’s this all about?” she asked with all the curiosity of a twenty year old.

Zack turned to Hildy and Jay. “Do you want me to tell her?” he asked. “Perhaps it would be easier for you if I did.”

Hildy nodded, unable to utter a word. This was terrible news. She felt numb.

What happened? They had been sentenced to life imprisonment. Why were they released so early? Or at all, for that matter?

An awful premonition crept over her that the chaos Gregory Wilcox and his son had caused so many years ago was about to strike again. Greg, Sr. had been dead for many years, but now Greg, Jr. and his mother were free to create more havoc in their lives. When would it end?

She shuddered. There was that old familiar punch in the stomach that she had experienced long ago when Gregory Wilcox, Sr. threatened her life. Again he was wielding power from the grave. Would he ever stop haunting her?

Cammie sat in numbed silence, remembering those terrifying days when she had been held hostage by this unbelievably cruel man, Gregory Wilcox, Jr., and his mother, Countess Lilli Claude, who had engineered the whole thing.

Jeremy put his arm around Cammie and reached out to Andre with a comforting gesture.

Fran looked grim. “These people should be locked up for good,” he said. “I hope they learned their lesson while they were in prison, and won’t cause any more trouble.”

“Don’t hold your breath,” Zack warned. “I have a strong feeling we haven’t seen the last of them.”

He motioned for Courtney to sit down opposite him.

“Honey,” he said, taking her hand in his, “I want you to listen carefully. This has happened twice now, and that’s quite enough. History has already repeated itself once. I only hope it won’t repeat itself again. It’s best for you to know everything so you’ll be on your guard. We may never see them again. I hope we don’t. But, just in case, we must be prepared.”

He proceeded to tell Courtney the whole story—how Gregory Wilcox, Sr. had stolen Hildy’s musicals, “The Ginger Jar,” and “La Fleur Rouge,” and Roger Fielding’s musical, “The Happy Heart;” how he had planted a bomb on Hildy’s plane to kill her, and when that didn’t work, had kidnapped both her and Roger to prevent them from exposing him for the fraud that he was; their rescue; how Countess Lilli had killed Vivienne, Fran’s first wife, so she could marry him; how she had plotted to have Jeremy killed when he was only five years old so that her son, Gregory Wilcox, Jr., could become Count Francois II; how Andre, unknown to Fran, had saved Jeremy’s life by kidnapping him so he could be adopted by a couple in the States, placing him as far away from danger as he could, but thereby causing him and his father to be separated for twenty-one years; how Gregory, Jr. had taken Cammie hostage with the intent to kill her, and had demanded that Hildy admit to a lie—that of stealing his father’s musicals; Cammie’s rescue; how Gregory and Lilli had hired a hit man to kill Andre; and finally, the arrest of Gregory, Jr. and Countess Lilli.

Courtney sat speechless!

“They almost got away with it,” Zack continued. “They’re very clever. You never know what scheme they’ll come up with next. This is why we felt you should know about it. Being warned ahead of time is your protection. Just because someone looks innocent or has a title doesn’t mean that person can be trusted. Sweetheart, you can’t be too careful. They’re out of prison now, and it’s anyone’s guess what they may be plotting next. I think Gregory, Jr., and his mother would do anything to regain his title of Count Francois II.”

“Over my dead body!” Fran declared vehemently.

Zack grimaced. “I wouldn’t put that past them, either. You know how treacherous they are!”

Courtney jumped up from her chair. She ran over and hugged Fran as if by so doing she could ward off any impending danger to him. “Oh, Grampa Fran!” she exclaimed. “Are they really that bad?”

“I’m afraid they are, cherie,” he said, returning her hug. “We don’t want them causing you any harm. They might try and use you to get to us.”

“Don’t worry!” Courtney declared. “I’ll never be fooled!”

Zack shook his head. Oh, the confidence of youth! he muttered under his breath.

A pall fell over their celebration. The gaiety was gone, and in its place was a sense of dire apprehension. Gregory, Jr. and his mother, Countess Lilli were supposed to have been sent to prison for life without possibility of parole. Why they were released after only twenty-one years was a big mystery.

This had been quite a day. Great reviews, topped by the worst possible news. They were all pretty exhausted, so they decided to retire early.

CHAPTER III
 

A
nightmare woke Cammie at two o’clock in the morning. Unable to sleep any more, she rose quietly, not wanting to waken Jeremy, and slipped out of the room down to the kitchen.

Hildy was already there, sitting and staring out the window, as though she half expected Gregory Wilcox, Jr. and Countess Lilli to come flying in over the Atlantic Ocean in his private plane and taxi in on the landing pad outside the Chateau, just as he used to. She looked up as Cammie entered the room, and managed a wry smile. “You couldn’t sleep, either?” she asked.

Cammie shook her head. “I had a terrible dream. Francois—I mean, Gregory,” she corrected herself—“he kidnapped me again. I can’t seem to get those awful pictures out of my mind.” She shuddered as the memories washed over her like a tornado uprooting what confidence she had been able to salvage from the nightmarish horror of years ago. “The fear and panic—they’re all back. How did I ever live through it? It was the most awful experience of my life.”

Hildy reached out her hand and pulled Cammie down into the chair beside her. “I know, dear. I felt the same way when his father kidnapped Roger and me and left us stranded in the Alps. But we’re here now, safe and sound. We have a wonderful life. That’s the thing to concentrate on. We’re probably borrowing trouble, anyway. Chances are we’ll never see Lilli or Gregory, Jr. again.” But she didn’t look at all convinced.

Cammie glanced at her mother. “I hope you’re right, but it’s scary just knowing they’re out there free as birds, and here we are shaking in our boots. How could it happen? It’s not fair.”

The door to the kitchen opened, and Courtney stood there rubbing her eyes. “I couldn’t sleep. I heard voices. What are you two up to?”

Cammie pulled out a chair and motioned to her. “Come and join us, sweetie,” she greeted her. “We couldn’t sleep, either. I can’t believe that Gregory and his mother are free. How could they release them from prison after what they did?”

Courtney was all sympathy. “It must have been awful for you—both of you. I can’t imagine being kidnapped like that and left to die.” She turned to Cammie. “Mom—was this Gregory person really going to kill you?”

“Oh, yes. He bragged about it. He planned to put the blame on Andre. He even set a bomb outside the door where he had me locked up. He didn’t know I had already escaped. But he found me out on the balcony. Zack flew over in a helicopter and saw me struggling with Gregory. Your father lowered a rope ladder to me and I grabbed it just as the bomb went off. He pulled me up into the helicopter. Then Gregory told the police that we set the bomb to kill him, twisting it around to make us look like the culprits. It was a terrible mess till your Great Grampa Fran came to our rescue.”

Courtney looked pensive. “Isn’t it strange that you both had the same experience—both kidnapped. It’s almost as though it runs in the family. Being kidnapped, I mean. Déjà vu!”

Hildy was horrified. “Don’t say that, Courtney!”

“I’m sorry, Grandy Hildy. I was half joking.”

“It’s nothing to joke about, dear. Even if it’s only half a joke.”

“I was just trying to put a light touch on it,” Courtney explained. “You know—inject some humor into the situation.” She shivered. “But it isn’t funny, is it? I hope I never have to go through anything like that. I don’t think I could survive. I wonder how you did.”

Hildy rose and walked over to check the coffee pot which she had plugged in. “Well, dear,” she said, “I guess you just do what you have to do to get through it. You pray a lot, and you keep believing that somehow you’ll get out of it alive.”

“I think you were both very brave,” Courtney told them. “I’m sure glad you’re my mother and grandmother. I couldn’t have made a better choice.”

The whistle from the coffee pot signaled that the coffee was ready. Hildy poured some into three cups and brought them over to the table. They sat in silence, sipping and letting the warmth comfort them, each wondering if they weren’t being foolish to worry. After all, what could Greg, Jr. or Lilli possibly do that wouldn’t catch up with them? They were sure neither of them would want to do anything that would send them back to jail. Twenty-one years should be quite enough for anyone, they felt.

They sat there sipping and thinking—thinking and sipping.

CHAPTER IV
 

D
awn was beginning to peek through the windows of the Chateau as the sun poked its head above the ocean. Seagulls were already soaring overhead, chatting to each other, then diving into the choppy waters for their early morning meal.

Outwardly, everything seemed to be perfectly in tune. But an ominous sense of oppression hung over the Chateau in Biarritz.

Hildy, Cammie, and Courtney knew it was useless to try and get any more sleep, so each returned to her bedroom to get dressed for the day.

Jay was already up. “Good morning, honey,” he greeted Hildy. “We have plans to make.” He looked puzzled. “Where did you go in the middle of the night?”

“You were awake? I didn’t want to disturb you, so I went down to the kitchen. I couldn’t sleep. I wasn’t there long before Cammie joined me. Then Courtney came down. She couldn’t sleep either.” She turned to the closet to pick out the clothes she would wear for the day, but as she stood there her shoulders began to shake, and she couldn’t control the sobs. She turned back to Jay in tears. “I thought this hideous nightmare was over and done with. I can’t believe Gregory and Lilli are out of prison. Is there no end to the trouble Gregory Wilcox and his son started so many years ago?” She threw her arms up in a gesture of despair. “I don’t think we’ll ever be free of them!”

Jay walked over and put his arms around her. “Honey, I have an idea. Why don’t we all go to New York and attend Courtney’s musical? That will get us out of France for a while. We can all stay at our house in Scarsdale. We’ll feel safer once we’re back in the States. Surely Gregory and Lilli won’t follow us there. We can think about our next move later. One step at a time.”