Let Them Have Cake (26 page)

             
“I know it is. I’m just giving you a bad time.” Jeff hugged
her shoulders and reclaimed her hand. “Go on. Why a geriatric nurse practitioner?”

             
“I love all the old people I take care of. They have so much life knowledge. I want to help them have quality of life in their later years.”

             
“I enjoy my elderly patients, too.”

             
Jeff sat quietly for a moment, then suggested, “Maybe we could go in practice together some day. Like Rex and June Morgan.”

             
“Who on earth are Rex and June Morgan?” Anna asked.

             
“They’re comic strip characters that have been around for years and years. They finally got married and had a baby. She became a nurse practitioner, and they work in the same office together.”

             
Anna smiled broadly. “I can’t believe you read the comics. I thought you were an intellectual.”

             
Jeff laughed. “I always start out my morning with the comics and Dear Amy. It puts me in the right frame of mind to begin my day.”

             
“Actually, that’s pretty smart thinking. There’s so much bad news in the paper that it makes sense to start the day with lighthearted stuff.”

             
“You’ve changed the subject. What do you think about us working together?” Jeff asked.

             
“What about your career as an ER doctor?”

             
“Like you, I can’t imagine doing that forever. It’s too stressful. I’ve always thought I’d like to eventually open a family practice office. You could be the geriatric specialist,” Jeff answered.

             
Anna settled her head on his shoulder and watched a mother pushing a baby carriage as she jogged along the river. Everything seemed to be falling into place for her and Jeff. He hadn’t mentioned the marriage word yet, and she hoped that was what he had in mind. It did seem as though he had forever in mind, that was for sure.

Chapter 23

             
“Please take us to the
Grevin
Wax Museum
.” Jeff instructed the cab driver as he slid in next to Anna. “I don’t know the exact address but I know it’s on the Boulevard Montmarte.”

             
“But of course, Monsieur.” The French driver sniffed disdainfully in Jeff’s direction. “The wax museum is quite famous. I’ll take you right to it.”
             

             
Anna snuggled up to Jeff. “I can’t believe we only have a few days left here. Now that I’m feeling like my old self again I want to stay longer.”

             
Jeff smiled and squeezed her hand. “I understand. I feel the same way. But responsibility and the real world await us.”

             
“Do you think we could go back to
Versailles
before we go home?” Anna asked.

             
“If you’d like. I’ll check and see if we can get a room at the hotel we stayed in before you got sick.”

             
“I’d love that. I’ve seen enough of
Paris
for this trip.”

             
“I’ll call as soon as we go back to the hotel. Do you still
want to go to the wax museum?” Jeff asked.

             
“Why not? It’ll be fun.”

             
“Madame, Monsieur. We are at the Grevin,” the cab driver said as he stopped his cab in front of the wax museum.

             
Jeff paid him and helped Anna out of the taxi.

             
They bought their admission tickets and entered the Grevin.

             
“Shall we go to the twentieth century room first?” Jeff asked.

             
Anna looked up from the museum brochure they’d been given when they purchased their tickets.

             
“Sure. Let’s save the historical rooms for last.”

             
The first scene was of a cocktail party attended by
Paris
celebrities and special guests from the film community. Julia Roberts, Bruce Willis and Sean Connery sipped cocktails. Ray Charles played the piano, and Marilyn Monroe tried to keep the skirt of her white dress from exposing more of her than she wanted exposed.

             
They moved on to the next exhibit room.
Anna pointed towards wax figures of Scarlett and Rhett Butler.

             
“Look, Jeff. It’s the kiss scene from
Gone With the Wind.”

She sighed wistfully and wrapped her arms around herself. “That’s my favorite movie.”

             
Jeff smiled and put his arm around her. “Please tell me Scarlett isn’t your role model.”

             
“She was such a strong woman; I can’t help admiring her a little bit.”

             
Jeff laughed. “I guess that’s one way to describe her. I’d describe her as being manipulative and self centered, and a bit of a spoiled brat.”

             
Anna pulled away from him. “She was just misunderstood. That’s all.”

             
“You see a different side to Scarlett than I do. Let’s agree to disagree, shall we?”

             
Anna smiled up at Jeff. “I’m being silly. That’s a good idea. We’ll just agree that we disagree.”

             
“You’ve got a deal.” Jeff took her by the arm and steered her out of the room. “Let’s go to the historical rooms.”

             
They strolled through the galleries and stopped to look at the display of the Impressionists’ Ball, where painters and writers are gathered, and the one of Napolean meditating on his major battles.

             
“Here’s the French Revolution room. Shall we go there next?” Jeff asked.

             
Anna followed Jeff into the room, and the first figure she saw was Queen Marie Antoinette. Her hand flew to her throat and she took a step back.

             
“What’s wrong?” Jeff asked. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

             
Anna was unable to answer him and her eyes were open as wide as saucers.

             
“What is it? You’re pale. Talk to me,” Jeff urged.

             
“It’s my dress.”

             
“Your dress? I don’t know what you mean.” Jeff looked at her questioningly.

             
“She’s wearing the dress I made.”

             
Anna pointed towards the wax figure of Marie Antoinette.

             
“You mean Marie Antoinette?” Jeff asked. “How could she be

wearing a dress you made?”

             
“When I was in the hamlet I made a new dress for her. She was so pleased with it that she gave me the green dress I was wearing in the portrait. This is the dress I made.”

             
Jeff looked puzzled. “I still don’t understand.”

             
“One of my duties was to sew for the Queen. Anne-Marie had started this dress before she disappeared, then I finished it when I arrived at the hamlet. It’s the same blue silk dress. I’m sure of it.”

             
Anna knelt down on the floor and reached for the hem of the dress.

             
Jeff whispered as he looked around the gallery for museum attendants, “What are you doing? Don’t touch that. The signs say not to touch the displays. You’ll set off the alarms.”

             
“Come here, quickly. I’ll prove I made the dress.”

             
Jeff hurried over to her.

             
“Don’t touch it. You’ll get in trouble if someone sees. These are fragile fabrics.”

             
“I’ll put my hand in under the laser security beam. It won’t set it off.”

             
“I hope not.” Jeff paced nervously. “I don’t want to spend the rest of my vacation in a French jail.”
             

             
Anna took a pen from her purse and lifted the edge of the skirt, exposing a hand sewn seam.

             
“Look. Right here.” She pointed to a spot on the hem. It was tiny and dark brown in color.

             
Jeff peered closer.

             
“What am I supposed to be looking at?” he asked.

             
“That brown spot is a drop of my blood. I pricked my finger with a needle while sewing the dress.”

             
Jeff looked at her in amazement. He realized there was no way she could have known about the spot unless she’d been the one to put it there. 

             
He was pale and shaking as he said, “You’ve convinced me my little Anna. Or Anne-Marie, whoever you are. Let’s go back to the hotel and pack. We need to go solve this mystery before our time is up and we head home to
California
.”

Chapter 24

             
Anna pulled the hat lower on her head and tried to cover her ears. “It’s really damp and cold out today. I should have brought my muffler.”

             
Jeff hugged her to him. “We can go back and get it, if you’d like. The hotel is close.”

             
“No, I’ll be fine. It’s still early in the morning. It will be warmer later.”

             
Anna surveyed the hamlet. “It feels so empty here. Where are all the people?” Anna asked.

             
“The tourist season hasn’t really started yet, and today is especially cold. There would be more people here if it were warmer.”

             
Anna smiled patiently at Jeff. “What I mean is, it doesn’t feel like the same place I lived in for those months. It was a bustling hive of activity during that time. People were all around. Now it feels cold, damp, deserted...”

             
Jeff looked around before replying. “It’s deserted and
cold. I’ll give you that.”

             
Anna’s heart quickened as Geoffroi’s cottage came into view. She began walking faster and pulled Jeff along with her.

             
“Let’s look inside.” Anna let go of Jeff’s hand. “This is where I found clothes to change into the first day. I was cold and wet from the fog.”

             
The doors to the cottage were chained and locked with heavy padlocks. The glass in the windows was stained with minerals that gave it an opaque look. Anna peered inside and was disappointed to see that the cottage was empty of furniture.

             
“There isn’t anything in there except some gardening tools.” Anna moved to the next window. “I can see the fireplace from here, but it’s boarded up.”

             
Jeff took Anna by the arm and led her gently back to the path. “Shall we go further into the hamlet?”

             
“Yes. I guess there’s nothing here for me to see.”

             
Anna was quiet as they strolled along. She held hands with Jeff and leaned against him slightly as they walked. She could feel Jeff looking at her from time to time but didn’t return his questioning gaze.

             
Jeff led her to a rock next to the lake and reached into his backpack for a cloth wrapped bundle. “Come sit down for a bit. I have some rolls and cheese from breakfast. Are you hungry?”

             
She gratefully accepted the food offered. “Yes. I guess I am. I was in such a hurry to get here that I didn’t eat much.”

             
“Look at the black swans. Aren’t they beautiful?” Jeff asked. “Did you know they mate for life?”

             
“No, I didn’t. I know a lot of animals mate for life and mourn when their mate dies. Is that where the phrase
swan song
came from?”