Parisian Affair (32 page)

Allegra felt gooseflesh run up her arms.
Monsieur Weiss had just fit in a missing piece of this puzzle for
her. 'And do you know what those pieces of jewelry are?'

He set his wineglass down and looked into her
eyes. 'Mademoiselle,' he said, 'all of the jewels he bought back
were emeralds. All the same size.

'Do you have any idea as to why he might have
bought them back?' she asked.

'Not the faintest. None. You may know more
about that than I do. I was simply a cutter—one of the best, if I
say so—and a polisher and setter. I know stones, but I'm not a
designer nor am I a historian or even a salesman. I've never worked
in the front of the store. Hardly ever set foot there, in
fact.'

Allegra looked puzzled and then, thinking
aloud, said, 'He sold all of these emeralds, but then set about
buying them back. They're all the same size, so they almost
definitely belonged together at one time. Belonged to the same
person.'

Monsieur Weiss nodded. 'Yes,' he said, 'but
who that person was? I don't know. And why he wants them back? I
don't know that, either.'

'Do you know who he sold them to initially?'
she asked.

He shook his head. 'No,' he said. 'I never
paid much attention to that sort of thing. I loved the stones.
Cutting them, polishing them, setting them to perfection. The rest
I left to the others.'

Allegra took a sip of her wine, then set the
glass down. 'I wonder if there's a way to find out,' she said.

'Ramtane Tadjer knows,' Weiss said, 'but I
would advise you to stay well away from him. Especially considering
what you've already told me. One thing I'm sure of, Mademoiselle
Sheridan.' He pointed a finger at her. 'He'll stop at nothing to
get that emerald. Nothing.'

Allegra felt a sense of dread. 'But then
there's the princess, too,' she said.

He nodded. 'Both of them are lethal.'

'You're really serious about that?'

'Absolutely.' He nodded emphatically. 'You
can tell yourself—and I can't blame you for doing so—that I'm just
a crazy old Jew. That Ram and the princess are of Arab descent, and
that I have it in for them. But you'd be wrong, mademoiselle.'

'I don't think that would've even occurred to
me, Monsieur Weiss,' she said honestly.

'Well, it would to a lot of people,' he
replied. 'But I have my reasons for mistrusting them. Especially
Ram. I was there when the Levants took him in. I saw his rise
within the company, and I might add that he deserved it. He was a
relentless worker and brilliant young man. But I was also there
when Jules died and left everything to Ram, and I think there was
some ... I think there were extenuating circumstances.'

'What do you mean?' Allegra asked. 'Are you
implying that—?'

'Think what you will,' Weiss said. 'But in my
opinion, Ram might have helped poor Jules along.'

Allegra almost stared openmouthed.
Surely
not
, she thought.
If he had been taken in by them, adopted
for all practical purposes, what would he have to gain by hurrying
Jules Levant to his death?
It didn't fit with the Ramtane
Tadjer she'd met. He seemed far too intelligent and patient a man
to risk losing everything—when he knew he was going to get it
anyway—by trying to speed up the process.

'And the princess?' she said. 'Why would you
mistrust her?'

'I can't really give you any tangible
evidence of her . . . shall we call it lack of character, for want
of a better phrase? No. She has done nothing reprehensible that I
can name. Not yet, in any case.'

'Then why do you mistrust her? Why do you
question her motives concerning her charitable foundation?'

He shrugged. 'Call it instinct,
mademoiselle,' he said. 'An unsatisfactory answer, I know. But this
I do know: the princess is a woman rife with resentments. She is a
woman who has suffered grave emotional damage in the past. And I
think she's the last person on earth to follow some spiritual
course. No. I think she's much more likely to be planning some sort
of revenge on those who've wronged her.'

Allegra didn't know what to believe. Were
Monsieur Weiss's thoughts merely the ramblings of an ancient,
resentful man? But, she asked herself, what did he have to gain by
sharing these thoughts with her? He certainly seemed to have his
wits about him, and he didn't seem to have any particular ax to
grind.

'Are you in contact with Monsieur Tadjer any
longer?' she asked.

He shook his head. 'No,' he replied. 'Ram has
no use for an old man like me.' Then he smiled and a sly look came
into his eyes. 'But I have seen him from time to time over the
years, though he doesn't know it.'

Allegra looked at him with curiosity. 'What
do you mean?' she asked.

'Ram still has the little apartment in this
building that Jules and Hannah gave him all those years ago.'

Allegra's eyes widened in surprise. 'An
apartment here? In this building?'

The old man nodded. 'Yes,' he said. 'They did
the same for him that they did for Elisse and me. After they took
him in, they gave him an apartment here, and even though he lives
like a pasha in his great mansion a few blocks away, he's kept his
little place here.'

'That's incredible,' Allegra said.

'Not really,' he replied. 'You see, he brings
women here. Women that he'd prefer not to take to his home, I
assume.'

Allegra swallowed and sat silently, digesting
this news in silence. Finally, she said, 'It sounds a bit. . .
unsavory.'

Monsieur Weiss laughed softly. 'The least of
his less appetizing characteristics, I should think. Many men here
keep mistresses or girlfriends, as I'm sure they do in America, but
I don't think that's precisely the case with Ram. It's been many
women over the years, so I'm told and so I've observed. But that's
neither here nor there, is it?' He sipped the last of his wine and
set the glass down. 'I hope I've been of some help to you,
mademoiselle.'

Allegra was glad for the opportunity to
excuse herself. 'I'm sure you have,' she said, 'and I can't thank
you enough for your seeing me today. It was very kind and generous
of you to share your time with me, and I've enjoyed meeting you
very much.'

'It was a pleasure to meet you, too,
Mademoiselle Sheridan,' he replied. 'I hope you find what you're
looking for.'

'I think I will,' she said, 'and partly
because of you.' She rose to her feet. 'Please don't get up. I can
let myself out.'

'No, no,' he replied, pushing himself up out
of his chair. 'I may be old, but not so infirm as to have to be
uncivilized.'

Allegra followed him down the hall and waited
for him to open the door for her, then smiled and gave him her hand
to shake. He took it in his and merely held it for a moment.
'You're a lovely young woman,' he said. 'Come again if you want. It
would be a pleasure to receive you.'

'Thank you, Monsieur Weiss,' Allegra said.
'It would be a pleasure to talk with you again.' Her reply was
heartfelt, and even though she was in a rush to meet Todd, she was
reluctant to leave him.

When she finally reached the street, she felt
a powerful sadness sweep over her.
He's so old and alone
,
she thought
, yet so interesting and lively
. She doubted that
she would ever see him again. Looking about for a taxi, she saw
that there was none about and started walking, hoping she was
aiming in the direction of a major thoroughfare. She wondered
whether she should tell Todd about what she discovered today, and
couldn't make up her mind. One thing for certain was that she was
more obsessed than ever with the emeralds and more determined to
find out what was going on.

Allegra trotted along the arcade at the
Palais Royal toward Le Grand Vefour. When she reached the
restaurant, she rushed inside and saw Todd already seated at a
table for two in the grand dining room. He saw her and immediately
got to his feet. The maitre d' didn't fail to notice.

'Mademoiselle Sheridan?' he said.

Allegra nodded. 'Yes,' she said. 'I see my
party back there.'

'Would mademoiselle like to hang up her
coat?'

'No,' she replied. 'I think I'll keep it on.'
It had been breezy and gray outside, and she hadn't quite recovered
from the chill.

'As you wish,' he said. 'Please follow
me.'

At the table, he pulled her chair out, and
Allegra seated herself. The maitre d' handed her a menu, and she
thanked him. He poured her a glass of champagne from a bottle that
rested in an ice bucket on a stand next to the table. 'Ah,' she
said, 'elixir of the gods. Thank you, monsieur.'

The waiter nodded, then left the table.

Todd sat back down and beamed across the
table at her.

'You look happy about something,' she said,
smiling.

He reached across the table and took her
hand. 'I'm just so happy to see you.'

'Well, I'm glad to see you, too,' she
replied.

'But I had no idea this place was practically
next door to Jules Levant Joaillier when I made the
reservation.'

'Do you think we ought to leave?' she asked,
looking around her, taking in the grand restaurant's elegant
designs painted on the glass and mirrored ceiling.

'I don't think we have to take a drastic
measure like that,' Todd said. 'In fact, I happen to know that
Ramtane Tadjer is not in the shop today, so I don't think we run
the risk of seeing him.'

Allegra lifted her eyebrows in surprise. 'And
how do you know that?' she asked, shrugging out of her coat and
putting it around her shoulders.

'Just wait till I tell you what happened,' he
said in a soft but gleeful voice. He took a sip of his champagne.
'I had a run of good luck while you were out shopping.' His
expression abruptly changed. 'Where are your shopping bags?'

'I couldn't find anything I wanted,' Allegra
lied glibly.

He stared at her for a long moment.
'Allegra,' he said, 'do I look like I was born yesterday? You're in
Paris, and you couldn't find anything you wanted?' He set his
champagne glass down. 'Now try telling me the truth.'

'First, you have to tell me your news,' she
countered. 'You're being very mysterious, and I gather you were up
to a lot more than a walk around the streets of Paris. How do you
know that Ramtane Tadjer is not going to be in the shop today, for
example?'

'I thought I'd try to help you find out more
about the emeralds,' he said slowly and cautiously.

Allegra's eyes burned into his.

'I figured that Tadjer knows what you look
like, but nobody at Jules Levant has ever seen me before,' he said
quickly.

Though Allegra was peeved, her ears perked
up. 'Go on.'

'So I went there and acted as if I were a
customer looking for an emerald ring,' Todd said. 'In fact, I told
the saleslady that I'd come to Paris to bid on Princess Karima's
ring.'

Allegra almost sputtered champagne. 'You
did?
'

Todd nodded. 'She bought my story hook, line,
and sinker, but what's more important is that she took a shine to
me.' He paused and smiled with self-satisfaction.

'I see,' Allegra said. 'All the ladies do,
don't they?'

'A lot of them do,' he said teasingly, 'but
it wasn't what you're thinking. This woman must be seventy, at
least. Anyway, she offered to show me their document books.'

Allegra almost levitated out of her chair.
'Their document books?' she exclaimed. When she realized that she'd
used a raised voice, she immediately lowered it and looked about.
'I can't believe this.'

The waiter appeared. 'Are you ready to
order?'

'We'll be a few more minutes,' Todd
replied.

When the waiter disappeared, Allegra said,
'You've got to tell me. What did you find out?'

'A lot,' he said. 'Over the years, Jules
Levant has handled several emeralds of the exact same size and
color as Princess Karima's. I made a list of who they were sold
to.'

'Oh, Todd! Oh, you're unbelievable.' She
leaned across the table and planted a kiss on his lips.

He beamed once again. 'The saleslady wasn't
even aware that I made the list,' he said. 'She was so busy telling
me anecdotes about the people who bought them.'

'Who?' Allegra asked. 'Who did buy them? And
how many people were involved?'

'I'd have to look at my list,' Todd said,
'but I remember that there were a brooch and a bracelet. Then a
necklace. Earrings. And the ring that was Princess Karima's. And
all of the pieces were bought by different customers.'

Allegra's mind was spinning. The emeralds had
to be part of a matched set. All the same weight and color. Very
rare. Especially for emeralds. And Jules Levant—or Ramtane
Tadjer—deliberately broke them up, even though they would've been
more valuable if they'd been sold all together.

'So,' he asked, looking at her with obvious
pride, 'how'd I do, huh?'

'You did brilliantly,' she said. 'Absolutely
brilliantly.' She took a sip of her champagne, then set the glass
down. 'I can't wait to have a look at that list.'

Todd fished a piece of paper out of the
inside breast pocket of his suit jacket. 'Have a look.'

Allegra practically tore it out of his
hands.

The brooch. Costas Stephanides
, she
read. She knew who the rich Greek was, of course. No doubt, he'd
bought the brooch for his mistress, that Greek actress, what's her
name. Marina Koutsoukou.

The bracelet. A General Ramondo
Gonzalez-Viega. Allegra didn't know who he was, but she knew she
could find out without much trouble.

The necklace. A Parisian, Vicomte de Rabe,
had bought it for his
vicomtesse
. Allegra knew her name from
the society and fashion press. She was one of those rich, thin
social butterflies whose every movement was recorded, whose taste
in clothes and decoration were emulated by women everywhere.