Page 73 of Reeling in Love

“You seem to have found out quite a bit, Mr Dupont. How long have you been investigating all this?” Nora asks. Her brow is wrinkled, and she’s sitting with her arms folded. Well, at least one of our brains is still functioning.

“Merci mademoiselle. I’m good at what I do. I’ve had barely a couple of hours to investigate, but since I know TruthSeekerBob’s real identity, it wasn’t a big deal to find out the truth. As for the inheritance, I’ve known that for years. I’ve worked for Monsieur and Madame Bardot occasionally and know the family well.”

“Sure. Okay. What’s your assessment of the sudden urgency in all this? I mean, Gabriel has been dating girls forever.”

“Well, as per the will, he has to marry before he turns thirty, which is, I believe, around a year from now. That’s why Madame Daphne has been regularly in touch with Ms Sophia and has been planning for them to meet and get to know each other. Also, from what I know, Monsieur Martin hasn’t been too pleased with the flings and has raised it multiple times with Madame Bardot and Madame Daphne.”

Who says the truth will set you free? Truth can as well bind you in its clutches so you can’t do anything, blindfold you so you cannot see where to go. Yes. Truth can as well be your jailor.

Dupont is quiet for a bit, as are the rest of us. He finally turns to Sophia. “Anything else that you need, Mademoiselle?”

“I’ll let you know. Merci beaucoup Monsieur.”

“Thank you, Monsieur Dupont. Are you sure that the audio is not with TruthSeekerBob as of now?” I ask. The cells in my brain have finally started showing signs of life.

“As of an hour ago, he didn’t have it. As far as my resources tell me, he’s expected to get it tomorrow morning. So you still have the night to convince your Mamie not to do it.”

He stands up to leave, but as he reaches the door, he turns to Nora. “And Ms Nora, I adore your posts. I follow you on a lot of platforms. If you need dirt on TruthSeekerBob, let me know. I have enough to keep him quiet for the rest of his days.”

Nora shakes her head. “While I thank you for following me and for your offer of help, this is not how I play. If I stoop to his level, what’s the difference between him and me? But thank you nevertheless.”

He nods and leaves. As for me, I’ve never felt more proud of Nora.

Chapter 31

Nora: #TwistsInLife

Well, life continues to throw more curveballs. To be honest, the past twenty-four hours of my life seem to be right out of some movie. While it might be exciting to watch, it doesn’t feel all that nice in reality, especially when it’s happening to you. Perhaps I would’ve felt differently if my friendship with Gabs wasn’t at stake.

Sophia has more work to do. With a part of her team in Boston, she prefers to work a little late into the evening. But she offers to send her car and driver to drop us off at Gabs’ grandmother’s house.

Gabs has messaged Mrs Bardot informing her of our visit.

“What do you plan to say to her?” I ask, breaking the silence in the car.

He shrugs. “Don’t know. It’s weird, y’know. To think that your family would do something like this, for money. I’m still unable to process it all,” he says.

“Tell me about it. My sister’s boyfriend sold the recording of a privately held conversation. People can do all kinds of things for money.”

We fall into silence again.

The driver eventually stops in front of a massive gate and rolls down the window. A liveried guard is standing there, who recognizes him and he smiles, opens the gate, and grants us entry. There’s a garden on both sides of the driveway. A man runs over to open the car door as the car pulls up near a large door.

I step out, feeling a little under-dressed in my jeans and tank top. It looks less like a house and more like a small castle right out of a novel. I don’t know anyone who lives in a place like this.

“Your grandmother stays here alone or does she house an entire village in this place?” I whisper to Gabs as we follow a smartly dressed man inside. I wonder if he’s the butler or something. Do they have butlers in France? Would this man be something like Jeeves who’d be able to help us get out of this mess?

He leaves us in a large living room. Paintings adorn the walls and artifacts, possibly quite expensive ones, are spread out everywhere. The room overall is a beautiful melange of ancient and contemporary. I’ve barely had time to register it when I hear the click-clack of heels and an older woman in an evening gown, with silvery hair tied in a bun, wearing light make-up, approaches us. Her gait and demeanor remind me of Daphne.

Gabs walks up to her. “Mamie,” he says, and she pulls him into an embrace.

“Oh mon petit-fils préféré, tu vas bien?”

“I’m fine,” he says, pulling away from her. “This is my friend, Nora.”

“Ah, I know I know. I follow her on Instagram and X. Bienvenue chez moi, ma chère.”

“Thank you for having me,” I reply, wondering if I should have done some Duolingo sessions in French before coming here.

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