Page 43 of Be Less Panda

‘You don’t have to talk to him if you don’t want to. Best not to if you’re still angry.’

‘I guess I’ve been a bit harsh. My ego’s taken a bruising,’ Nancy said.

But as she wasn’t in the mood for talking to Hans, it was going to be awkward if he was waiting for her in the cafe opposite. She considered sneaking out the back door, but he’d still see her unless she made a very long detour. She’d just have to make a run for it and hope he didn’t spot her in time.

Nancy quickly finished the rest of the washing up, grabbed her bag and headed for the shop door. ‘Night, Philip.’

‘Night, Nancy. Good luck,’ he said.

Nancy kept her head down as she exited the shop and turned towards home. Within a few seconds, she heard Hans call out from behind her.

‘Nancy! Wait!’

Keep walking!He eventually caught up with her at the traffic lights on the main road.

‘You’re in a hurry this evening,’ he said, slightly out of breath. ‘I wondered if we could go for a walk in the Bois like we usually do.’

She decided to be honest. ‘Not today, Hans. I’m still upset about last night.’ A small gap in the traffic gave her an opportunity to walk away. She looked back at him from theother side of the road. He was staring after her. She waved and walked off, her head held high.

21

The following day was warm and sunny. Too warm and sunny to be stuck indoors.

‘How can it be this hot in April?’ Nancy said, fanning herself with a leaflet for a local theatre group.

‘Summer’s arrived early.’ Philip opened one of the shop windows in an attempt to let some fresh air inside.

‘I’m thirsty. I’ll make us some tea.’ Nancy headed into the kitchen, which was even more hot and stuffy.

She opened the back door to let in the light breeze. When she turned back to the hob, she suddenly felt something soft rubbing around her ankles. She looked down to see a cute feline face looking up at her. ‘Mimi! You made me jump.’

The cat meowed and carried on weaving around Nancy’s legs. ‘I haven’t got anything for you.’

Mimi appeared to understand. She sauntered across the room in the direction of the open door.

Nancy carried on making the drinks, but as she picked up the teapot, she heard the distinctive creak of the door to Madame Dubois’s private apartment opening. Strange. Madame Dubois was at the hairdresser’s this afternoon. She swung around just in time to see Mimi’s fluffy tail disappearing up the stairs. She must have opened the door herself.

‘Mimi! Mimi!’ Nancy called up the stairs. The cat stared at her from landing, then defiantly carried on up the next flight.

Madame Dubois wasn’t going to be happy. For Mimi’s safety, Nancy ought to retrieve her. And it was an excellent excuse to check out more of Madame Dubois’s flat. She might be able to get to the bottom of what actually went on up there. She headed upstairs.

The living room was as neat and tidy as it had been a few weeks ago when Monsieur Ferrier had had his unfortunate heart attack. But there was no sign of Mimi.

‘Mimi! Mimi!’ Nancy started making kissing noises as well to see if the cat would respond to them. There was still no sign of her. The door to the kitchen was wide open. She went in, but there was no sign of Mimi in there either.

Nancy noticed another door ajar on the opposite side of the living room. It led onto a carpeted corridor with several more doors. Mimi must be through there - there was nowhere else for her to go.

Nancy hesitated.Don’tbe awuss!You wanted some excitement.It wasn’t that risky. Based on previous hairdresser visits, Madame Dubois wouldn’t be back for at least an hour.

Nancy headed down the corridor. All the doors were firmly shut except one. Nancy pushed it open.

‘There you are, you daft animal!’ Mimi was lounging on a leather padded stool, looking like she had no intention of going anywhere. As Nancy approached her, the cat casually lifted her hind leg and carefully started licking between the pads of her rear left paw. Nancy looked around. Unlike the bright light rooms elsewhere in the flat, this one was painted deep red with no windows. Nancy did a double take. The wall colour wasn’t the only unusual thing. She took in the chains and ropes hanging on one wall and the handcuffs that were attached to Mimi’s stool. A large cage stood in the corner with a selection of whips hanging above it. Nancystepped outside the room again and worked out where it fitted in the building. It must be close to the second floor of the bookshop. Was this where all the moans and groans had been coming from?

The words “bespoke bindings” floated back into her mind. She chuckled to herself. So that’s what this was all about. Obvious really. Billy had said some people got a kick out of being tied up and flogged, but she couldn’t understand the appeal personally.

Philip must be in on it. That’s why he responded to the alarm when Monsieur Ferrier had the heart attack and why he had a remarkable lack of interest in reading for someone who’d spent nearly three years working in a bookshop. Madame Dubois hadn’t employed him for his in-depth knowledge of English literature. She needed someone strong enough to carry a client into the living room if something untoward happened in here, and presumably someone capable of ejecting any unruly clients, too. It all made sense now.

Should she tell Olivia what was going on? She’d think about that later, but right now, the priority had to be evicting Mimi. The cat sensed what Nancy was planning and took evasive action by shooting off the stool and under the bed.

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