smart people do an autopsy in New York, and they end up here in Cogo.
And we thought we were so isolated. I tell you the world’s getting
smaller every day.’
‘So you think these Americans came here following a trail that started
with Franconi?’ Kevin asked. His intuition was telling him the same
thing, but he wanted reinforcement.
‘What else could it be?’ Melanie questioned. ‘There’s no question in my
mind.’
‘Candace, what do you think?’ Kevin asked.
‘I agree with Melanie,’ Candace said. ‘Otherwise, it’s too much of a
coincidence.’
‘Thank you, Candace!’ Melanie said. While twirling her empty wineglass,
she looked menacingly at Kevin. ‘I hate to interrupt this fascinating
conversation, but where’s some of that great wine of yours, bucko?’
‘Gosh, I totally forgot,’ Kevin said. ‘Sorry!’ He pushed back from the
table and went into the butler’s pantry that he’d filled with his mostly
untouched wine allocation. As he was looking through the labels, which
held little meaning for him, he was suddenly struck by how much wine he
had. Counting the bottles in a small area and extrapolating it to allow
for the entire room, he realized he had more than three hundred bottles.
‘My word,’ Kevin said as a plan began to form in his head. He grabbed an
armload of bottles and pushed through the swinging door into the
kitchen.
Esmeralda got up from where she was sitting having her own dinner.
‘I have a favor to ask,’ Kevin said. ‘Would you take these bottles of
wine and a corkscrew down to the soldiers at the foot of the stairs?’
‘So many?’ she questioned.
‘Yes, and I’d like you to take even more to the soldiers in the town
hall. If they ask what the occasion is, tell them that I’m going away,
and I wanted them to enjoy the wine, not the manager.’
A smile spread across Esmeralda’s face. She looked at Kevin. ‘I think I
understand.’ From a cupboard she got the canvas bag that she used for
shopping and loaded it with wine bottles. A moment later, she
disappeared through the butler’s pantry, heading for the front hall.
Kevin made several trips back and forth from his wine collection to the
kitchen table. Soon he had several dozen bottles lined up, including a
couple bottles of port.
‘What’s going on?’ Melanie enquired after sticking her head into the
kitchen. ‘We’re waiting and where’s the wine?’
Kevin handed her one of the bottles. He said he’d be a few minutes more
and they should start eating without him. Melanie rolled the bottle over
to look at the label.
‘Oh, my, Château Latour!’ she said. She flashed Kevin an appreciative
grin, before ducking back into the dining room.
Esmeralda returned to say that the soldiers were very pleased. ‘But I
thought I’d take them some bread,’ she added. ‘It will stimulate their
thirst.’
‘Marvelous idea,’ Kevin said. He filled the canvas bag with wine and
tested its weight. It was heavy, but he thought Esmeralda could handle
it.
‘Let me know how many soldiers are at the town hall,’ Kevin said as he
handed her the bag. ‘We want to make sure there is plenty for everyone.’
‘There are usually four at night,’ Esmeralda said.
‘Then ten bottles should be fine,’ Kevin said. ‘At least for starters.’
He smiled, and Esmeralda smiled back.
Taking a deep breath, Kevin pushed through the door into the dining
room. He wanted to see what the women thought of his idea.
Kevin rolled over and looked at the clock. It was just before midnight,
so he sat up and put his feet over the side of the bed. He turned off
the alarm clock that had been set to go off at twelve p.m. sharp. Then
he stretched.
During dinner, Kevin’s proposed plan had sparked a lively discussion. In
a cooperative effort, the idea had been refined and expanded.
Ultimately, all three thought it was worth attempting.
After making what preparations they could, they all decided to try to
get a little rest. But Kevin had been unable to sleep despite his
exhaustion. He was too keyed up. There was also the problem of the
gradually increasing noise from the soldiers. At first, it had just been