Excerpt 1:
The day after I met with Lucy and Pierre at my flat, Lucy called and wanted to meet me somewhere so we could talk. I suggested the nearby Jardins du Luxembourg. The fall flowers were blooming and their brilliant oranges and yellows filled the gardens. The only thing that rivalled the beauty was the fragrance. These gardens were my favourite place in Paris. Once inside the gates you wouldn’t know you were in the busiest city in France except for the dull roar of the traffic. The gardens were a sprawling green oasis of manicured pathways, mature trees, and open grassy spaces for children to run and play. All surrounding a huge wading pool with perfectly kept gardens throughout. Of course, the entire park was under the eternal gaze of Luxembourg Palace.
I told Lucy to meet me on a bench we had shared many times. I arranged it so I would arrive before she did, so I could have some time to think. I had two hot coffees, so I hoped she would get there soon after me. I lit a cigarette and watched as dozens of people strolled by in front of me. A homeless man walked by with what appeared to be all of his possessions in a shopping cart. He had a cup in his hand and was talking about his girlfriend, named Stephanie, who left him years ago. He looked at me and kept talking about her. I didn’t make eye contact for more than a second. I put a coin in his cup and he thanked me and kept walking.
Further away was a clown doing a juggling act. He was tossing five red balls several meters in the air and never dropped one. A dozen or so people stood around and watched the performance. On a bench to my left were a young man and woman sharing lunch. They were probably not married, as they were dressed for the office.
I knew why Lucy wanted to meet me here. She wanted to talk me out of my plan. I had known her for 25 years and we were very good friends, so I knew what she was thinking before she told me. But no matter what she said, it wasn’t going to change my mind. Nothing would change my mind. At this point I would have done anything if I could have seen Daniel for even five minutes. If it meant going to jail, I would have done it. My life without him was not worth living.
I took the final draw from my cigarette and butted it out in the ash tray at the side of my bench when I felt two arms suddenly hug my neck from behind. I instantly recognized the familiar scent of Lucy.
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Excerpt 2 (days later):
Minutes later Hugo marched through the front doors of the Louvre, his comb over flopping behind him, he met up with the security guard, Michel, and they went together through the Grand Gallery, turned the corner into the Salles des Etats and over to the booth where Chief Desjardins, Sergeant Ducharme, Constable Sebastien and Constable Jean were standing. Hugo took one quick look at the painting in the booth. “Mon Dieu! This is not the Mona Lisa! This painting looks like it was painted yesterday.” He looked at Sebastien and Jean. “Are you sure this didn’t happen after we left?”
“Positive, Monsieur. We were here the whole time.”
Hugo looked at Michel. “Where is Pierre?”
“He’s in the Richelieu wing.”
“Call him over immediately.”
“Can you call Lucy in?” said the chief to Hugo.
“I’ve been trying, she hasn’t answered. Her phone is probably turned off for the night,” said Hugo.
“Hugo,” said the chief, “Lucy is the curator for the Mona Lisa, correct?”
“Yes, among many other paintings.”
“Then how could she mistake this replica for the real thing? Sebastien was able to identify it, you recognized it in seconds, and I can easily see it from here, ten feet away.”
Hugo rubbed the top of his head but didn’t respond, his hair tickled his left shoulder.
“In addition,” the Chief continued, “the alarms have not sounded since 12:08, indicating that’s when the painting was stolen – before we were here, not after we left. There was NO power surge.”
“Mon Dieu,” said Hugo.
The Chief continued, “Pierre worked very hard to convince us the alarm was triggered by a power surge. And Lucy corroborated by telling us this painting was the real Mona Lisa. You can’t reach Lucy on her phone, and how much do you want to bet Pierre isn’t going to be answering that call?” he pointed at Michel who was radioing Pierre and beginning to look concerned. “We just lost three and a half hours because we took their word, Hugo.”
“What are you saying?” said Hugo.
“I’m saying the Mona Lisa was stolen and it was an inside job.”
“Impossible! Lucy could not do such a thing.”
“Well,” said the Chief, “then I hope she answers her phone soon so she can tell us what happened. Meanwhile, the painting is probably a long way from here. I doubt the thieves stole it and hung it in a store front window on the Champs-Elysees.”
Hugo’s face went white. He took his phone in his hand and tried calling Lucy again.
“Yvette,” said the Chief to Sergeant Ducharme, “I need you to call back to the prefecture and have them track the painting. The GPS chips will pinpoint its location. Don’t hang up the phone until you know where it is.”
“Got it,” said Sergeant Ducharme.
“Sebastien and Jean,” said the Chief, “I need you two to continue to patrol this museum. Don’t leave until someone takes your place in the morning.”
“Understood, Chief,” said Sebastien. Jean nodded.
“Michel, has Pierre answered yet?” said Chief Desjardins.
“No Sir,” said Michel looking bewildered.
“I’m assuming he’s not going to respond. My guess is he’s on his way to the airport. So, I need you to take charge on locking down the entire Louvre. Nobody gets in or out without my permission. I don’t care if the ghost of Pablo Picasso shows up, he checks in with me.”
“Understood Sir,” said Michel.
“Hugo, I’ll leave it to you to notify the museum’s board of directors and anyone in senior management that needs to know. I’m going to call back to the prefecture and have them notify Interpol, every police organization in France, the border patrol for France, and all countries that border France.”
The Chief paused and then continued. “And then I’m going to make one phone call that I don’t want to make.”
“Who is that to?” said Hugo.
“President Moulin. She’s about to wake up on the wrong side of the bed.”
