Trouble finding Blondie (31 page)

With all this crazy energy, Simona re-evaluated the plan and made a new proposal.

“Clearly, you all need to have your moment with him alone, speaking Czech and all. How about we come here first and have a drink for an hour. Then I’ll tell him that we arranged to have dinner somewhere else and we all go to the chateau together.
 
Does that sound good?”

“That sound perfect. Let’s do that,” Adam said.

“That also means that you have to be ready by six.”

“No problem. It’s twelve twenty now,” Anton said.
“What? Shit. Sorry. I have to run.”

All the kids were laughing about Simona’s blunder, and she was smiling back blowing them kisses.

❖ ❖ ❖

She walked into the house, and before she could sense the energy around her, her phone rang. It had been ringing all morning, but this one was from Cori and she had to pick up.

“Hey. Are you guys ready? Is the arrival time the same?”

“Mom, I’m truly sorry. I can’t come.”

“What?”

“I just talked to Andre. He is fine with it.”

“Why? What happened?”

“We just made the cut, and I have to play the whole weekend. I’m really sorry, but there is no way out of it.”

“Do you want me to talk to the coach?”

“No, mom. I need to be here. I want to play.”

Simona understood that he would be not only jeopardizing his position on his team, but also sacrificing something important to him solely to make her happy.

“I understand. And I’m very proud of you that you called Andre on your own.”

“Thanks, mom. I love that you are not mad or guilt tripping me. You are the best.”

“I love you. And thanks for being honest, not making silly excuses.”

“I was really looking forward to seeing you all. Especially Francois.”

“I know. He is sooo excited. He will call you on Skype when Arye gets here. Wait. He is still coming, right?”

“Yeah, he is on his way to the train station. Pick-up at 4.10 PM, right?”

“Yes. Good luck then, Cori. Please call me tonight. I want to know how it went.”

“Mom, he still has no clue?”

“No, even Francois is keeping the secret. He is so proud of himself. He keeps coming around the corner with his finger to his lips, smiling with ‘shhhhh’, even to grandma. It’s so cute.”

“I’m bummed, mom, really. Did everyone else make it?”

“Yes, every last one of them.”

“Any drama so far?”

“So far so good, fingers crossed.”

“Ok, I can’t wait to hear all about it. But knowing you, you will have a crew taking video and pictures, so I’m not worried.”

“Good bye already.”

“Haha, mom, we all love your perfectionism. It was meant as a compliment.”

“Thank you. Call me tonight. I love you.”
“Love you, too…”

❖ ❖ ❖

Andre was sitting outside on the patio with Francois in his lap, reading books. He heard Simona’s conversation but didn’t get...

“Hi, boys. Are you hungry?” Simona asked.

“Mamaaaa, we were working in the garden, and…” Andre put Francois down and interrupted his cute speech, “Where have you been for three hours? And where is your shopping?”

“Nice to see you, too. And I’m not cooking tonight. I made reservations.”

“I’m not going anywhere. I want to be home with my family. Except you seem to be wanting to be somewhere else.”

“I’m not sure if it’s your jet-lag or simply you being needy, but you interrupted your son and you owe him an apology.”

Before he could say anything, Simona walked away. Andre’s mom came over and put her hand on his shoulder. “I suggest you get a grip on yourself from now on because you are going to feel like an ass tonight.”

“What about tonight? Fancy dinner with Philippe? Someone else? I hate surprises.”

“You hate surprises, papa? Mama has a big surprise for dinner. She bought a new dress, too. She looks like an… what is it, grandma? Like a girl angel.”

“It’s called a fairy, Francois,” Elise was smiling at Francois, but turning around and giving stink eye to her own son.

“I’m very sorry, Francois. Mommy was right. It was rude for me to interrupt you, and I was wrong to talk to mom like that. I’m sorry.”

“It’s ok, papa. You are just tired. But mama really missed you. She told me every night.”

“I better go apologize then.”

“No, papa, mama is busy today. I have an important job to keep you busy.”

“You have a whole conspiracy going on here? Is grandma in on that, too?”

“Yes. Grandma knows the secret, too.” Francois was giggling, loving knowing something his dad didn’t.

“So are you going to tell me?”

“No, mama said you are like the FBI, and I need to be really careful.”

“What do you know about the FBI?”

“FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION.”

Andre was surprised by the statement, but equally about the pronunciation.

“Well, what do they do?”

“They ask questions, spy like detectives, and work for government. They interrogate people to find out secrets.”

“Who told you all that? Mama?”

“No, mama thinks it’s bad for children. I called Philippe.”

“You know how to call Philippe? You don’t know numbers.”

“Papa, you are so silly. It’s voice demand on your phone. But I called him on Skype so that I could see the words coming from his mouth.”

Andre didn’t know what to make of it. Be impressed or mad at Philippe. He had a hard time processing all that from a four year old human.
 

“How do you call on Skype?”

“Ipad.”

“You don’t have an Ipad.”

“Hmmm, that’s another secret.”

“Francois. You know that it’s against mommy’s and my rules for you to have electronics, right?”

“I didn’t break any rules.”

“Then who did?”

“Now you are being the FBI, and I’m going to play with grandma.”

Francois left with a stubborn face and with a wrinkled forehead just like his mother. Andre had to smile how at much they were alike. Elise came out to the patio with a kitchen towel in her hand and slapped her own son.

“What was that for?” Andre asked in an innocent voice.

“What did I tell you?? Get a grip on yourself. Snap out of whatever it is, and stop making two people who breathe, eat, and live for you upset under my watch.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Are you stupid on top of it? Two people walked away from you because you were upsetting them. You are either gonna ruin it for all of us or gonna look like an ass tonight. I’m telling you.”

“I already know there is a conspiracy and some surprise dinner.”

“Then just go with the flow and show your gratitude.”

“For what? For being in the dark?”

“Oh my God, you really are dumb. This is how you behave when you come back home after two weeks? This is your way of showing how much you missed them? Throwing jealous tantrums, and making your son feel bad? Who are you? Where the hell is my son?”

Andre’s mom turned around and walked away, too.

Everyone is walking away. Great. I must have leprosy or some disease I don’t know about...

I’m pissing everyone off, so clearly I’m doing something that I can’t see. I need to get out of here...

Andre decided to go for a drive.
 

Simona realized that she was stuck without a car. She went on a phone call mission, calling all the vendors, making sure that they all managed to get where they should be, and that everything was moving along.

“Elise, did he say where he went and what time he would be back?”

“He didn’t say anything. But I said plenty to him.”

“What did you say?”

“Just some mother-son things.”

Simona smiled and figured Elisabeth Zatopek gave Andre a good smacking speech.
 

“Grandma, Francois wants to go to the train station. Perpignan is 25-30 minutes away, so they have to leave at 3:30 PM,” Simona said. She turned to Francois and said, “That means you need to take a nap no later than 1:30 PM.”

“Mama, I don’t need a nap.” Francois protested.

“Ok, but don’t be sad if you miss papa’s big surprise because you fell asleep in the car on the way there…”

“Fine. But I want to have lunch with papa.”

“I’m sorry, but it’s 1 PM right now. So you need to eat and then sleep.”

Simona took him to his room. He changed into his pajamas, and she laid down next to him.

“Mama, papa doesn’t like surprises. I’m sad because he wasn’t nice.”

“Oh, munchkin, papa is just tired. He missed you so much that he wants to just be with you and not with other people. But when he sees who it actually is, he is going to be soooo excited. I promise.”

“I know. I’m so excited. I can’t wait to see Mateas and Cori, and…”

“Oh, honey, I forgot to tell you. Cori can’t come. He has to stay in Barcelona because of a soccer tournament. He called when I got home this afternoon.”

“Is Arye coming?”

“Yes. He and everyone else.”

“Then it’s ok, mama. It’s going to be a biiig surprise.”

Simona smiled, but she wasn’t sure anymore about the success of this mission. It was going downhill somehow. First Cori, then Andre’s attitude. Oh well, no way back now.

She came back to the kitchen to ask Elise what they should make for a nice lunch for just the two of them. Simona opened a new bottle of Savignon Blanc for her and had Elise pour her a glass of red. They toasted to the success of the evening and smiled.

“Simona, it’s going to be a great evening. Don’t worry,” Elise tried to calm Simona.

“I’m not worried, Elise. I did my best. I have no control over the outcome. It’s in God’s and Andre’s hands. That’s all I can do.”

“Amen.”

The minute they toasted again, the door opened like a big wind coming through the house. Andre was carrying boxes and bags, a full meal from their favorite local organic restaurant. He put the bags down on the counter and said, “I believe I owe everyone an apology for my misbehavior. I would like to treat my favorite people in the world to a great lunch.”

“Perfect. I’ll get the plates,” Elise walked by her son, pinching his butt.

Andre walked over to Simona to hug and kiss her, “I was being ridiculous, but I have a good excuse. I want you guys selfishly for myself. Is that a crime?”

“You know any apology that is followed with but is not an apology.”

“I wasn’t apologizing, my dear. I was simply stating the obvious as an explanation.”

Simona hit him, and Elise hit him with a kitchen towel from behind.

“Ouch, double whammy. Like I’m ever going to leave you too alone for that long.”

“We are like Thelma and Louise. You better watch out,” Simona said.

“Where is my partner in crime?”

“He is sleeping. He was so exited to go pick Arye up at the train station that he almost didn’t fall asleep. By the way, the departure for your dinner adventure is 5:30 PM.”

“What? Hell to the no! That’s when my siesta is happening.”
“I’m afraid not. You better be shaved, dressed, and in a very perky mood.”

“Yes, leave the ‘grumpy’ home. We all had enough of him for today,” Elise added.

“Mother!”

“Yeah, yeah. You heard me right.” Elise was laughing, serving all the fabulous food.

18

"THE MAGIC THIRTY THREE."

ANDRE WOKE FRANCOIS up at 3:10 PM. Elise was giving orders which was very unlike her. She told Andre that he needed to go pick Arye up, for them in order to have a peaceful time to do their hair and get ready. Simona called the service manager to ask if one of his staff could drive her car and come pick her up at 3:20 PM. She told Andre she would just give the server a ride back so that he wouldn’t wonder where she disappeared again.
 

The hairstylist was coming at 4 PM to do Elise’s hair. He was going to do Simona’s after. It was absolutely necessary for her peace of mind to go and check on everything. When she arrived at the chateau, she was shocked to find Philippe there.

“What are you doing here?”

“I figured you would have a hard time getting out. And since you stubbornly dismissed an event planner, I’m just making sure everyone is up to par.”

“Thanks for flying the staff in. Especially the chef.”

“The hotel school was your idea. And let me tell you, I have been nothing but impressed with this Swiss hospitality thing.”

“Ha! They are the cream of the cream. Those are future dinning room managers and hotel directors. The Swiss system believes they need to know all the departments hands on.”

“Impressive is the word. Especially with the Nazi boss over there.”