Hot Basque: A French Summer Novel 2 (23 page)

Antoine had run his hand across his forehead, nodded wordlessly and turned to the others.

‘Oh, you guys I am so so sorry, what a mess, sit down, let me get you all a cognac.’

His face was a picture of misery and confusion, his dark hair glistening with sweat. Edward, quickly assessing the situation, had put his arm round his friend’s shoulders and taken him on one side.

‘We’d better go, Antoine. With the baby and all that. Don’t worry mate, you did us proud, it was a really great evening, the final floor show was impressive. Only kidding. Listen don’t worry about it, we’ll talk tomorrow, it’s late now, and everyone’s tired. You going to be OK?’

‘Me, I’m fine, I’m fine, ah, the hell with it, I’m not fine at all, I’m so mad and embarrassed–’

He’d broken off then, seeing that Jill was trying to inch her way out from behind the table.

‘Jill, wait!’

But she’d just held up a hand, then, with a tremulous smile, turned to his parents.

‘
Merci Madame et Monsieur. Le repas est excellent
, really lovely meal, thank you all so much,
merci beaucoup
.’

Her face had lost all colour, her green eyes were huge, unnaturally shiny. As the smile had started to wobble, she’d turned and hurried to the door, with a last wave.

‘Jill! Wait!’

Antoine had rushed after her.

Caroline had been torn between going after her friend and trying to calm the Arantxa family who were all visibly upset. Madame was blinking back tears, her hand pressed to her mouth, the sisters were having a heated conversation with their father and brothers, there was a lot of arm waving, and raised voices. She heard the word ‘police’ mentioned several times.

Edward had gone over to Madame Arantxa, wrapped his arms round her and lifted her off her feet. He’d whispered something in her ear that brought a wan smile to her lips, beckoning for Caroline to join them.

‘I’ve just told her that we’re counting on the Arantxa family to provide the entertainment for our wedding.’

Caroline had taken Madame Arantxa’s hand in both of hers.

‘Thank you so much Madame. You all treated us like royalty. I don’t know what happened just now, but you mustn’t let it spoil things. Five minutes unpleasantness at the end of a lovely evening. Antoine is such a good friend. We all love him to bits. That woman was obviously mad. We’ll sort it out tomorrow.’

There had been more hugs and thanks, reassurances that they had had a wonderful evening and ‘
le petit Joshua’
would be fine. But it was impossible to miss the hurt in the eyes of Madame Arantxa, impossible to ignore the waves of fury coming off the Arantxa sisters.

Leaving the restaurant, Caroline had looked round for Jill and Antoine. They were a little way down the street, Jill standing stiffly in front of Antoine who was leaning towards her imploringly.

‘Trouble in paradise,’ Edward had murmured coming up behind her.

‘Just when everything was going so well. I can’t believe what happened. What was it all about, have you any idea? Who was that horrible woman?’

‘Never seen her before. Or the others, either. Come on sweetheart, let’s get everybody home. Time to find out the details later.’

The ride back to the villa had been mostly silent. Caroline, feeling Jill’s rigid body next to her on the seat had sensed her friend was fighting back the tears. As soon as they’d got to the house, she’d excused herself and gone straight to her room, shaking her head with determination as Caroline made to follow. Nadia and Julian had also muttered hasty goodnights and taken the baby upstairs.

When everyone had disappeared, Caroline looked at Edward.

‘
Merde. Merde merde et merde.’

‘You need a cognac my sweetheart. Let’s go sit outside.’

He poured a glass for each of them and carried them out to the terrace.

‘Did we just dream that scene or what?’

‘I wish. Come sit on my knee. That’s better. That woman, as I said, I’ve never seen her in my life, and Antoine’s never mentioned a Melodie. Melodie! She should have been called Cacophonie. Or Screech.’

‘What a bitch!’

Edward was surprised by Caroline’s unusual vehemence.

‘He just looked so upset, the lamb. And hurt.’

She took a gulp of the fiery liquid.

She hadn’t forgotten the evening last summer when her sister had sprung her vile surprise on all of them. Without a word, Antoine had moved to her defence, along with Edward, Jean-Paul and Dominique. Unquestioning solidarity. Friends. Just the memory of it brought tears to her eyes. She sniffed, brushed them away.

‘And did you see the way she was dressed? That skirt? And she was shouting about whores? Hah!’

‘Darling, I can assure you that underneath the skirt she was fairly respectable. I got a good look. They were red.’

‘It’s not funny Edward.’

‘I know sweetheart, I know, sorry, just trying to lighten things up. I hate it when you’re unhappy.’

Caroline took another drink.

‘All that stuff about the police? What did she mean?’

Edward shrugged.

‘God knows. One minute we were having a great time, the next poor old Ant is wrestling with a mad dwarf octopus. Poor guy. He was looking so proud. And Jill couldn’t take her eyes off him, every time he opened another bottle I thought she was going to swoon. He has got impressive biceps, I admit. Not as good as mine, but still...’

He nuzzled Caroline’s neck.

‘Look. We’re on holiday. Let’s agree to forget all about it till tomorrow. Everything’s been going fine until now. And it’ll be fine again. My sweet Caroline, my gorgeous sexy fiancée, will you come stroll with me in the midnight garden? Maybe feel my biceps?’

Edward was looking at her so tenderly, so lovingly Caroline almost burst into tears.

Silently, she nodded.

Hand in hand they wandered down through the grass, down to the bottom of the
parc,
where the wild flowers grew. They looked out at the town spread below them, out over the rooftops towards to the distant ocean. It was almost black at this hour, pierced with luminescent trails of white where the odd wave broke.

All around them were rustlings and small movements, the dark silhouettes of trees rising into the starlit sky, the half-seen flight of bats. The air was full of smells, the sharp scent of pines, still warm from the sun, the moist earthy scent of the grass beneath their feet, the delicate perfume of the Pierre de Ronsard roses, planted by Julie many years ago. What a night. So beautiful, a nightingale should burst into song.

As if in answer, a small orchestra of crickets tuned up nearby.

Caroline leaned her head against Edward’s shoulder.

‘I love it here.’

She looked up at him in the shadows.

‘Thank you for bringing me. Thank you for making all of this possible.’

A shiver ran through her in spite of the warmth, an uneasy feeling that threatened to overwhelm the beauty of the night.

In response he raised her fingers to his lips and kissed each one tenderly before drawing her into his arms and burying his face in her hair.

‘Have we ever made love in a garden?’

His whisper tickled her ear.

‘Not as such. In a wood, under a chestnut tree. In the rain.’

‘It’s not raining now.’

‘It isn’t. But there might be spiders. Big, French spiders.’

‘Hmm. Is that your way of telling me deep down you’re a pretty boring, mattressy sort of girl? No naughty fumbles in the park? Victorian nightie, four-poster bed, missionary position, lights off?’

She tilted her head, sought out his eyes. She could just see the shine.

‘Take me up to bed Rayburn and we’ll see who the missionary is.’

He swung her up into his arms. She buried her face in his neck, inhaling his smell, warm, citrusy, safe.

‘Do you really think that things will be OK?’

‘I promise’.

It was a promise he would later regret.

But for now Edward was concentrating on making his way back to the villa, following the tiny pools of blue cast by the solar lights, leaving behind the fragrant shadowy garden and the big French spiders.

Caroline closed her eyes, leaned against her man and tried to ignore the knot in her stomach.

‘Caro honey, for you.’

Edward was standing by the kitchen door, holding up the phone.

‘OK, I’ll be right there.’

Caroline gave the spoon to Nadia, stood up and nuzzled the top of Joshua’s head.

Joshua gave his toothless grin and spat out some mashed carrot.

The four of them, Nadia, Julian, Joshua and Caroline were having breakfast outdoors in the back garden, shaded by the enormous fig tree. It was already very hot. There was a certain amount of jostling going on about who got to feed the baby.

There was no sign of Jill. Glancing up, Caroline saw that the shutters to her room were closed. They were all talking quietly, studiously avoiding mentioning the events of the previous evening.

She pulled the sash of her dressing gown tight and walked across the flagged terrace, the stones warm beneath her bare feet.

‘It’s Antoine. He wants a word.’

Edward held out the phone to her.

She took the phone from him, moved indoors.

‘Antoine are you OK? I was going to ring.’

She crossed the hall, went through into the salon.

‘
La rose. Je suis dans la merde, n’est-ce pas?
In the big shit?’

Antoine’s voice was sombre.

‘Jill’s still asleep. Look Antoine, what the hell was all that about?’

Antoine groaned.

‘It’s a long story. I need to talk to you, I can’t explain it to Jill, I don’t have the words in English, it’s complicated
. La rose,
I need your help.’

Caroline thought quickly. Edward could see to lunch, they had plenty of stuff in the fridge, cold cuts, salad.

‘You can count on me. Can you meet me? Where are you now?’

‘
Café de la Grand Plage
.’

‘OK wait for me, I’m not dressed yet.’

‘Oh, sorry Caroline, I’ve messed up your morning.’

No you haven’t. I’ll see you there.’

‘
Bisous la rose. Et merci
.’

Antoine disconnected. Edward stuck his head round the window.

‘
Alors?
’

‘He wants to see me, to explain everything.’

‘You want me to drop you anywhere?’

‘No thanks darling, it’s the
café de la Grande Plage
, I’ll be quicker walking. I’ll just jump under the shower and head off. Can you sort out lunch?’

Edward came over and put his arms round her

‘I am the Lunch Man. Go fix our boy.’

Twenty minutes later, showered and dressed, Caroline grabbed her bag and headed off down the hill.

She was going to fix the boy. And fix the lovers. Get things back on track between them. There was an explanation, she knew it
.

***

She spotted him sitting at a table at the edge of the crowd. His face was expressionless, his eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses. As she approached he looked up and jumped to his feet.

Normally the minute he saw her he gave her a huge hug and a beaming smile. But today he just stood, immobile. She moved quickly round the table to where he was sitting and grabbed him in her arms.

His body was rigid, every muscle held tight, but as she continued to hug him he relaxed and his arms went round her. They held each other close for a long moment, without speaking, impervious to the curious stares of other customers.

Finally Antoine stepped back, and looked down at her.

‘
Merci Caroline
.’

‘Oh Antoine, for what? Now come on, order me a double espresso and tell me what’s going on.’

She hadn’t missed the fact that Antoine’s glass was empty, and that he’d been drinking
pastis
. She hadn’t missed the stubble that lined his jaw either. But he was showered, in clean clothes, and when the waiter approached he ordered two espressos.

Caroline leaned back in her chair, waiting until he was ready to talk.

‘Jill. I’ve ruined it, haven’t I? She thinks I’m a criminal.’

‘We haven’t talked. But she was upset, you saw that, she’s obviously wondering what’s going on.’

He nodded.

‘I tried to explain last night, but it’s complicated and we were both in a state. Melodie.’ He grimaced. ‘It’s not a pretty story.’

Caroline reached across and squeezed his hand.

‘I’m a big girl. And remember last summer, there were one or two things that happened that were not pretty at all.’

He nodded again, took a sip of his coffee.

‘I remember. The
pelota
game. And then Julian ending up in hospital. Yeah, that was bad. I haven’t asked, how is she, your sister? It’s bad, isn’t it, between her and Jules I mean.’

‘Bad. But hey, we’re here to talk about you. And this...Melodie.’

Antoine smiled at the way her lip curled when she pronounced the name.

‘Yeah. Where to start...she’s fairly new in town. Comes from Bordeaux, found a job here last autumn, started mixing with our crowd, you know how it is, we’re all pretty easy going.’

‘Mmm.’

‘Easy-going’ in this context was a way of describing the numerous liaisons that went on among the male and female members of the group, in particular Dominique, Claudie’s on-off lover. The men were young, good-looking, relatively well off, close in their friendships. Their motto was ‘enjoy life while you can’. The women ranged from more or less steady girlfriends to camp followers, ready to spend the night with whoever asked them home.

Caroline had never known Antoine to have a serious relationship, he was quick to compliment and engage in a bit of verbal flirtation, but behind the verbal banter he was more reserved than the others, holding himself back as though looking for something more than the odd one-night stand. He was obviously a passionate man, she’d often wondered what was stopping him from taking advantage of the numerous offers that came his way. Maybe it had something to do with that formidable lady, his mother. She’d most likely brought up her three boys with non-negotiable ideas about how to treat the fairer sex.

Antoine was talking again.

‘At first Melodie seemed shy, unsure of herself. She didn’t say much about her past, just shrugged and gave a look, she had this way of dropping her head and looking up at you with those enormous eyes, sad eyes, as though she’d known a lot of suffering. At first we joshed round, teased her, tried to cheer her up. She’d give this little melancholy smile–’ Antoine did an impression ‘–and I’ve got to admit Caro, we all fell for it, all felt sorry for her. She seemed like one of those frail vulnerable women you just want to protect, you know?’

Caroline nodded. She’d met the type.

‘Anyway. After a few weeks, maybe four, five, she started to show an interest in Chadi, you remember him?’

‘Chadi.’ She thought for a minute. ‘Is he the tall quiet one? With the big hands?’

Antoine laughed ruefully.

‘Yeah, he does have big hands. And a big heart. You know he works as a gardener, has his own little business, a van and an apprentice, works all the hours God sends, just about manages to get by, pay his bills, go out with the gang. He’s the quiet type too, you’re right. Not really at ease with the girls, he’s had a couple of on/off relationships, but basically he’s a loner. His parents come from Pau, it’s not a thousand miles away but he doesn’t see them often, he’s usually working weekends, and he’s an only child, no brothers and sisters to fall back on. It’s important that, round here most of us come from big families, there’s always someone to run to if you get in a bind. So we’ve all kind of adopted Chadi, he comes to eat at our place, my mother and sisters feed him up, make a fuss. He’s a very sweet guy.’

Antoine paused, took a sip of his espresso.

‘How long have you known him?’

‘Oh five, six years, he’s a long-time member of the group, as I say, a bit quiet, doesn’t shout as much as the rest of us.’

He gave Caroline an apologetic smile.

‘So, back to Melodie. She started making sure she always sat next to Chadi, she’d lean towards him, whisper things, then give that mournful smile and gaze up at him from under her eyelashes, you women, you know how to do it. Anyway one thing led to another, and they started going together. At first we were all pleased, for both of them, but especially Chadi, we thought it’s time he got a nice girl, someone who really loved him, who’d look after him.’

He grimaced.

‘Look after him, that’s a bloody joke. The next thing we knew, she’d given up her bedsit, moved in with him. Fine. He seemed to be OK with that. We pulled his leg a bit, he just used to shrug and smile. Then she hurt her ankle, was laid up for a while, first she was on the sick but somehow, we never quite found out all the details, she didn’t have a job anymore. So it was Chadi working for both of them. When we all went out, she’d ask Chadi to get her another packet of cigarettes, another drink, we all noticed she was drinking more, sometimes to the point her eyes would glaze over, then she’d whisper in Chadi’s ear, the next thing they’d be leaving, Chadi making some excuse or other. We could all see the guy was changing, he asked Dominique on the quiet if he could lend him some money for a couple of months, said things were tight. You know Dodo, he’s an idiot with the women, but if he only has ten euros to his name he’ll hand it over to a friend. Anyway we got the impression something was going on, but none of us really felt we could ask Chadi if everything was alright, as I said, he’s a private kind of guy. Sorry Caro, this is taking a long time...’

‘Don’t worry Antoine. I’m in no rush. And I’m beginning to get the picture.’

And privately she had a nasty feeling where all this was heading.

‘The next bit...I don’t really know how to describe it. We all go out together, sure, but the men often meet up on their own, on the beach, to catch a few waves, later we have a drink together, maybe we’ll go to a
pelota
game, just the guys. Even the ones who’re in a steady relationship. I mean you don’t have to be tied to somebody’s apron strings just because you’re in love with them, do you?’

‘I agree,’ said Caroline. ‘In fact I think it’s positively unhealthy in a couple, always on top of one another, always checking up on the phone where are you, what are you doing, who did you have lunch with, what time will you be back tonight...’

Antoine looked a bit surprised at her forceful reply. She gave a short laugh.

‘Liam. The ex. The one you nearly punched after the
pelota
game last summer. He was like that.’

‘Ah.’ He nodded understandingly. ‘In that case you’ll know what I mean when I say that we started seeing less and less of Chadi at the men-only stuff, and even when we all went out together she’d be stuck to him like a pot of glue. Chadi was becoming more withdrawn, more sombre, I guess you’d say. So one night Dominique, he’d had a few drinks, he said enough was enough, he was going to ambush Chadi and haul him out for a night with the boys. Yeah, I know, bad idea.’

He pulled a face.

‘But he managed it, don’t ask me how, then we proceeded to get Chadi pretty plastered, all of us thinking that would do him a world of good. You know us guys Caro, we can be real idiots. We walked him back to his place, we were all singing and laughing like a bunch of clowns, we left him at the door making all these signs to be quiet and off we went.’

He paused, looked at his watch.

‘I need a drink for the next bit.’

‘Am I going to need one too?’

Antoine ordered another
pastis
and a white wine for Caroline.

‘So. It’s three o’clock in the morning, I’m in bed, fast asleep, and someone’s banging at the door. I was pretty much out of it, we’d had a hard night, but whoever it was gave the impression they weren’t going to go away in a hurry, and I was worried they were going to wake the neighbours. When I opened the door, it was Melodie.’

He shook his head.

‘
O malheur
. Caro, she gave me a shock, her clothes were torn, she was practically falling over, I couldn’t see her face at first, she had long hair back then, she was sobbing hysterically. I got her inside, into the kitchen, sat her on a chair, fetched a glass of water, and that’s when she looked up and I saw her face.’

He took a mouthful of
pastis
, swallowed it down, gave a little shiver.

‘She had this enormous bruise, right across one eye and down her cheek. Her face was swollen, her makeup was all streaked, at first I thought her mouth was bleeding, but that was just her lipstick.’

‘He’d hit her? Chadi?’

Antoine exhaled noisily.

‘That was the story, when I could get her to speak coherently. Oh jeez, I felt bad, really bad, for her, but also for Chadi because we’d sort of egged him on, you know? If we hadn’t forced him to go out, got him drunk...’