All That Glitters (25 page)

As he lowered the steps of the plane, he turned around. Without a word, he motioned for Cammie to get up and go down the steps.

She tried to rise from her seat, but her shackled hands threw her off balance, and she fell to the floor. She struggled to get on her feet, but couldn’t.

Exasperated, Francois threw her over his shoulder fireman fashion, and made his way down the steps of the plane and into the Chateau. He dumped her roughly on to the nearest chair, unlocked the handcuffs, and removed the gag. “There’s no point in screaming,” he told her. “There’s no one here but us. No one will hear you but me. Gabe and the maid will be arriving later.”

Cammie started to sob. She had made such a successful escape, but he had outsmarted her.

“Stop that!” Francois warned. “If you don’t, I’ll have to slap you around again. I’m sure you don’t want that.”

Cammie stopped sobbing, but her shoulders shook as silent tears ran down her face. “Why are you doing this to me?” she asked him. “What have I ever done to you?”

“I told you. Your mother is a thief and she’s going to pay for it.”

“But why are you punishing me?” she pleaded. “She’ll never get over it if you kill me!”

“She should have thought of the consequences before she stole the musicals from my father.”

“But she didn’t,” Cammie protested. “Your
father stole them from her.”

“Shut up!” Francois demanded. “You don’t know what you’re talking about. He told my mother what an awful person your mother is.”

Cammie looked at Francois with loathing. “Your father never intended to marry your mother and be a father to you!” she yelled. “He was going to marry my mother, until she found out what an awful man he was! He lied to your mother about that. What makes you think he didn’t lie about the musicals? All you know is what she told you, and your father lied to her. I’ll bet she didn’t even know he was engaged to my mother.”

Francois raised his hand to strike her, then stopped. Why bother? he thought. It doesn’t matter what she thinks. She’ll be dead soon.

He pulled her up from the chair and pushed her toward the library. The paneled door to the secret room opened as soon as he touched the button, and he shoved her inside.

* * *

The first thing Cammie noticed was that Zack wasn’t there, and her hopes rose. He must have escaped! Or else someone found his body and did away with it.

“Just so you won’t think I’m such a bad guy,” Francois said, leering at her, “I’ll leave this light on. No one will ever find you here.”

“You’ll never get away with this,” she said, her voice trembling.

Francois laughed. “Your mother will do as I’ve asked. She’ll be so overcome with grief at losing your father, she’ll give in. She won’t want to lose you, too. I’ll see to it that the whole world knows what a thief she is. You’ll be dead by the time anyone finds you. I’ll send the maid with your dinner later. We have to keep you alive and well till your mother gives me what I want. Then I’ll take care of you. Have a good day,” he sneered.

He walked over to the podium and pushed the button on the top. The panel slid open. He walked through the open panel and touched the outside button, locking her in.

As Cammie looked around, she was stunned and disgusted when she saw all the pictures of Gregory Wilcox. The walls were covered with them.

Francois is obsessed! she thought. He obviously believes the lies Gregory Wilcox told Lilli. And of course Lilli does! But that doesn’t give her or Francois a license to do what they’re doing. There’s no excuse for kidnapping and murder!

She sat down at the desk to write a farewell note to her parents and to Jeremy, explaining in detail everything that had happened to her from the time Francois kidnapped her.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as it dawned on her that this note might be the last thing she would ever do for her parents. I only hope it helps them after I’m gone, she thought. It’s worth a try. At least this will help to prove to the world that what Francois and Lilli are claiming about Mom is not true.

She couldn’t bring herself to believe that Gabe had succeeded in killing them. And she could only hope that Francois’ scheme to kill Zack had failed, too. She felt almost certain that he really did escape from this room. It wouldn’t be like him not to find a way out. I only wish I could, she thought wistfully. If Zack did, maybe I can.

She finished writing the note and tucked it inside her dress, hoping that whoever discovered her body would find the note, too.

As she sat there, she thought of Jeremy. Now that she was facing what looked like certain death, everything appeared crystal clear, and she finally acknowledged that the attraction she felt toward him, and had tried to deny, was really love. Becoming a Countess was no longer important to her.

Oh, yes! Little Cammie had grown up. If only I had listened to Dad’s advice, and learned from Mom’s experience, she lamented, I could have avoided all this. They tried to warn me. Too bad it took something like this to wake me up.

Suddenly a great weariness overtook her. She crawled into a corner of the room and curled up. Soon she was fast asleep from sheer tension and emotional exhaustion.

CHAPTER XXXVII
 

When Cammie woke up, at first she couldn’t figure out where she was, or why she was asleep on the floor. But as she looked around and saw all the pictures of Gregory Wilcox, it all came back with a bang. Once again she was Francois’ prisoner—this time in the secret room of his Chateau in Biarritz. She sat huddled in the corner, trying not to panic.

Suddenly she heard the panel to the room slide open.

She shook with fear.

It wasn’t Francois.

It was the maid carrying her dinner on a tray. She placed it on a nearby table, and went quickly over to the podium.

The maid’s back was turned, but Cammie could see that she did something that caused the panel to close. For the first time since Cammie was so roughly pushed into this room, she felt a flicker of hope! Maybe I can escape, after all! But how? Can I trust the maid to help me? Will I be able to convince her?

The maid took the tray of food over to Cammie.

“Take it away,” Cammie told her. “I’m not hungry.”

The maid looked sympathetic. “Countess,” she said, “you have to eat. The Count gave me strict orders.”

“I’m not a Countess!” Cammie’s eyes flashed with anger. “If he said I was, he lied.”

“But I was there when you and the Count were married!” the maid protested. “How can you say you are not a Countess?”

“We’re not married!” Cammie snorted. “I guess he didn’t tell you. That was a sham wedding. He’s such a liar!”

“Oh, Countess!” the maid protested. “You mustn’t say such things about your husband!”

“I told you—he’s not my husband!” Cammie shouted. “Oh, what’s the use?” she sobbed. “No one will listen.”

The maid tried to reason with her. “There must be some mistake,” she said gently.

“There’s a mistake, all right!” Cammie
said between sobs. “But the mistake was mine. I should
never have trusted him.” She lowered her voice to a
whisper. “He’s going to kill me. Or didn’t he tell
you that either?”

The maid knelt down in front of Cammie. She was clearly shocked. “This can’t be true!” she declared.

Cammie started to cry again. “It is true!” she sobbed. She grabbed the maid’s hand. “Please,” she begged, “help me! Francois is a terrible man! I’ve got to get out of here!”

The maid hesitated. “I have to speak to Gabe,” she said. “If he tells me this is true, I will come back and help you.”

Cammie had all she could do to keep from screaming. She wasn’t getting through to her. “No! No!” she cried. “You don’t understand! Don’t do that! Gabe is helping Francois to kill me!”

The maid looked puzzled—then frightened. She went back to the podium, lifted the Bible, pressed a button, and the door opened. “I’ll be back later,” she told Cammie, and left.

Cammie knew that once the maid spoke to Gabe, he would tell Francois. He’ll probably kill me right away. I know too much. I’ve got to get away from this Chateau—now!

Don’t panic!

She jumped up and rushed over to the podium.

She lifted the Bible and, sure enough, there was a button recessed into the top of the podium!

She pushed it and the panel slid open.

Quick! Before the maid has a chance to speak to Gabe!

She exited the secret room and entered the library, careful to push the outside button and close the paneled door behind her. If Francois comes here to check on me, I’ve got to make him think I’m still in there!

As she ran into the hall and down the steps, she heard someone approaching.

She headed for the balcony, and hid behind the drapes.

* * *

Francois entered the library and saw that the paneled door was still closed. “Good!” he muttered. “She’s still in there.”

Gabe had just informed him what Cammie had told the maid, and he knew what he must do. I have to kill Cammie now, and shut her up for good. I have to kill the maid, too. I can’t take a chance that she might find out the truth, and report it to the police.

I’ll send her to pick up the tray, and put a bomb in front of the panel while she’s still in there with Cammie. I’ll repair the damage later. It will be well worth it to save my neck.

He raced over to one of the shelves where he had hidden some materials that could be made into explosives. Always be prepared, he had learned in military school. It wouldn’t be the first time he had blown up something. In ten minutes he had assembled a bomb. He placed it in front of the panel that led to the secret room, and set it to go off in five minutes.

He laughed triumphantly. No one will suspect. They’ll all feel sorry for me. Poor Francois! He lost his wife and someone bombed his home!

* * *

Cammie stood on the balcony trying to figure a way to get down to the ground. Three stories up was too far to jump.

I have to get away from the Chateau before Francois finds out I’ve escaped from that room!

Don’t panic!

There has to be a way. I’ve made it this far—I can make it the rest of the way.

She looked around to see if there was a tree she could climb down, but the nearest one was six feet away.

Francois was rushing to find the maid and send her to the secret room, when he suddenly spied Cammie on the balcony.

He lunged toward her, just as Zack and the others arrived in their rented helicopter.

Cammie screamed.

“Look!” Jeremy cried. “She’s on the balcony with Francois!”

“Quick!” Jay yelled. “Lower the rope ladder to her!”

Zack hovered over the balcony, and Jeremy threw the rope ladder down to her.

Things happened fast after that. Cammie broke away from Francois and grabbed the ladder.

While she was still in midair, a loud explosion ripped through the back section of the Chateau.

As Cammie began to climb the ladder, the force of the exploding bomb blew Francois off the balcony, and he disappeared behind the tree.

“Zack!” Cammie gasped as Jay reached out and helped her up into the helicopter. “Francois told me you were dead, but I didn’t believe him. I was sure you had found a way to get out!”

“I only wish I’d escaped from that room soon enough to have spared you all this grief,” he told her.

Hildy hugged her daughter. “Cammie, are you all right?” she asked anxiously.

“I’m fine now!” Cammie assured her.

“Thank God!” Jay said as he strapped her in.

Jenny was teary-eyed, and Peter wiped his eyes with the back of his sleeve.

Cammie reached out toward Jeremy who was seated beside her. “Are you okay? I’ve been so worried!”

Jeremy took her in his arms and held her as though he would never let her go. “I’m just fine,” he replied, “thanks to you.”

“We’d better get out of here!” Zack warned.

He turned the helicopter around and headed back to the airport just as the fire trucks arrived to put out the blaze and examine the damage.

* * *

The back section of Francois’ Chateau had been ripped apart by the bomb, and he was nowhere in sight. As the explosion threw him off the balcony, he managed to grab a branch of the nearby tree. As soon as he made it safely down to the ground he hid, intending to escape later in his plane. But when he heard the approach of the fire truck, he thought of a better plan.

Gabe came running out from the Chateau and joined him.

“Well,” Francois snorted, “I see you failed again! They’re still alive and Cammie is free. Can’t you do anything right?”

He shaded his eyes as he looked up and saw the helicopter disappear. He ran over to the Captain of the Fire Department, and Gabe followed him.

“Quick!” Francois yelled at the Captain, pointing to the helicopter. “They bombed my Chateau and tried to kill me! They kidnapped my wife! They’re on their way to the airport. Call the police and have them arrested!”

Gabe backed him up one hundred percent.

CHAPTER XXXVIII
 

The police arrived at the airport, sirens screeching, just as Zack was returning the helicopter to the rental area.

“What is it, Sir?” Zack asked as the gendarmes approached him.

One of the officers handcuffed him, while the other officers made a circle around the group so they couldn’t escape.

“You’re all under arrest,” the gendarme told them.

Jeremy approached the police officers. “What is this all about?” he asked them in French.

“Count Francois sent us after you,” they told him. “He says you bombed his Chateau and tried to kill him. And you kidnapped his wife. We’ll have to take you to headquarters and book you.”

“That’s not true!” shouted Cammie, confronting them. “It was Francois who kidnapped me and set the bomb, and now he’s trying to blame them!”

The gendarme’s eyes widened in recognition when he saw Cammie. “Countess Dubonnet!” he exclaimed.

“I’m not a Countess!” she declared. “I’m Cameron Stuart. Our wedding was nothing but a sham. It was all part of his plan!”