Crêpe Murder: Book 4 (A Patisserie Mystery with Recipes) (6 page)

“Like I said, two years ago. The first one with the Austria heiress didn’t get pulled off as planned. The girl was lucky. A bodyguard managed to scare off the two kidnappers, clipping one of them in the arm with a gun when they tried to kidnap her in her home, but the men escaped. I think they aimed too high. The girl was practically Austrian royalty, fantastically rich. For the second target, they aimed a wee lower. Just some rich real estate mogul’s daughter, but equally filthy rich. Juan was never caught however, and he got away with millions. I’m sure it’s the same guy. It can’t be a coincidence that both girls had a boyfriend who fit Juan’s description, and now there’s a third victim with the same story.”
 

“God.” Ralph stared at the image of Juan frozen on the screen.
 

Clémence imagined Sophie being beaten, or worse. The realization dawned on her that Juan had probably traveled with them two years ago because he was scooping out whether they were worth kidnapping, and left when he thought they weren’t.
 

It could’ve been her. Clémence could’ve easily been the one kidnapped for ransom.
 

“Wow.” Clémence sat down. Her head was dizzy with thoughts and fears of what could’ve been.
 

She’d never been so glad to have grown up middle-class. Just because
Damour
made them millionaires, wealth didn’t change her. They lived in bigger apartments, had nicer clothes and got to travel more, but Clémence was never ostentatious about her wealth. But had she given off a rich vibe when she met Juan? Perhaps. They had met in the bar of a 5-star hotel, and all the girls had been dressed up in their finest clothes.

Emily’s family were wealthy enough, but they weren’t millionaires. After Juan found out how much she was worth, he probably moved on to Clémence. Then he dropped her too, after learning that her parents were bakers, not knowing that they founded the
Damour
patisseries.
 

“I want a screenshot of this man,” Cyril told Ralph.

“Sure thing. I’ll send it to your email.”
 

“I’m off then.”
 

“Is there anything I can do?” asked Clémence.
 

“Not at the moment,” said Cyril. “Although can you also send me the contacts of your friend Emily that you promised. I’d want to talk to her.”
 

“Okay, but I want to help. I mean, what do you know about this guy? Where is he from exactly? What was his upbringing like?”

“Look, Damour, you’ve done enough so far. Now if you want me to find Sophie as soon as possible, let me do my job.” He headed out the door, and then turned around before he closed it. “And don’t forget to forward me Emily’s contacts.”
 

Cyril didn’t even offer to drive her back.
 

CHAPTER 8

“Want a drink?” Ralph asked. “You look like you need one.”
 

“Maybe a glass of water, please.”
 

Ralph obliged, putting the glass before her on the kitchen counter.

“They’ll find your friend. Like the inspector said, the last girl came back alive.”
 

“But she was beaten. God, how could I be stupid enough to trust this guy and his lies?”
 

“How could you have known? Don’t be too hard on yourself.”
 

Ralph was looking at her with a certain tenderness. He was cute in his scruffy way, but she had a boyfriend. And the way he looked at her said that he was definitely interested. Clémence drank the water and stood up.

“Thanks for all your help today, but I better be going.”
 

“No problem. I’m here if you ever need any help. I promise the next time you see me, I’ll be in a suit and tie.” He winked at her. “Just give me advanced notice.”
 

Clémence couldn’t help but smile. “Sure thing.”
 

Outside, the bright sun contrasted with her sense of doom. The first thing she did was call Arthur.
 

“
Coucou, cherié
,” he answered. “What’s up?”

She explained everything that she’d learned that morning. “Did you know about this?”
 

“No. I don’t think Theo knows either. He’s going to be really upset when I tell him.”
 

“Cyril won’t tell me anything else about Juan’s potential identity. I want to speak to Madeleine. Theo too. Can we all get together to talk somewhere right now?”
 

“Of course. I still can’t believe Sophie actually got kidnapped. I’ll call Theo and I’ll call you back after we make the plans.”
 

“Sophie’s apartment is probably being searched for clues right now,” she said. “But how about Madeleine’s place, wherever she lives? I want to meet there if she agrees.”
 

“Okay.”

Clémence’s headache got worse. Anger rose to her chest. Juan! She had to get this guy. What kind of slime would woe girls, toy with their hearts, and kidnap them for ransom? This was some psychopath.

She went inside a Monoprix to calm herself down. It was hot outside and the store was air-conditioned, which cooled her a little. She couldn’t think when she was angry or stressed out, so she had to relax. It was also almost lunchtime. She was hungry, so she grabbed a salad and a bottle of organic pineapple juice, and sat in the cafe section of the store.
 

After she took a few bites of the chicken salad, her stomach felt better. She was able to think more rationally. What did she know so far? The kidnappings started happening two years ago. The first attempt was on an Austrian heiress. While Cyril didn’t give the details, he’d said enough. She took out her smartphone and typed in “Austrian heiress kidnapping” in the search engine. Sure enough, a few newspaper articles appeared about the thwarted attempt.
 

One of Mia von Koromla’s bodyguards was able to fend off two kidnappers in the heiress’s estate late in the evening. Gunshots were fired and one of the kidnappers was shot in the arm before both masked men fled the scene. Mia has now been taken to an undisclosed location. She has round the clock security.
 

The prime suspect is Mia von Koromla’s boyfriend, Victor Osuna, who claims to be from a noble Spanish Family. After the kidnapping incident, Osuna disappeared without a trace. Police say he used a fake alias; his true identity has yet to be revealed…

Mia had dated him for three weeks. He had plenty of time to scoop out her home, take pictures, and make note of the alarm systems. He was close enough to find out details such as the code to her alarm, the members of her security team, and when their shifts were.

The heiress, her family, friends and members of her security team described Victor as suave, charming, and an all-round nice guy. They didn’t want to believe that he could be the mastermind behind the kidnapping.

Clémence shook her head. Juan must’ve done the same to Sophie. He even managed to move into her apartment after only a month of dating.
 

Before she could Google the Swiss heiress, Arthur called her back.
 

“Okay, Theo and Madeleine are both at Madeleine’s apartment right now. She lives in the 8th, near Parc Monceau. Theo texted me her address with the door code, so I’ll forward that to you.”
 

“Great,” Clémence replied. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
 

While traffic was always a challenge in the city, the morning rush hour had died down and Clémence managed to flag down a cab. She told the driver to go in the direction of Parc Monceau until she received Arthur’s text and was able to relay the exact address.
 

The area around Parc Monceau was full of rich jet-setters and celebrities. It suited socialites like Sophie and Madeleine Seydoux. The residents weren’t as old and posh as the ones in the 16
^th
, but it was still an exclusive neighborhood. While it wasn’t as beautiful and expensive as the 6
^th
arrondissement, or artsy and charming like Montmartre, residents of the 8
^th
 
arrondissement didn’t have to put up with too many tourists either. Not even in Parc Monceau, where it was packed with local kids under the care of full-time nannies. Many of the kids were the off-spring of the rich and famous.
 

Clémence got out of the cab in front of 28 Boulevard de Courcelles. She punched in the entry code and pushed open the door, which took her into an elegant foyer. It had a small elevator barely big enough for two people, not unlike the elevator in her own building.
 

She went up to the 6
^th
floor and rang the doorbell. Arthur answered. He greeted her with a kiss.

Madeleine introduced herself with a bright smile, although there was a look of worry behind her eyes. She had the same precious face and big brown doe eyes as her sister, except her hair was a lighter brown and it came down to her waist. She was also a well-known socialite in the Paris scene.
 

“Clémence, I’m sure I’ve met you before, years ago at one of those parties.”
 

“
Oui
,” Clémence replied. “I think we’ve met too. I used to go to more parties back in the day.”
 

“Come on in. Would you like some wine?”
 

“Yes, please.” Clémence did need a drink.
 

Theo stood up to greet her as well. He had dark circles under his eyes, his hair was a mess, and his navy tie was loosened around his neck.
 

Madeleine lived alone in the apartment, which was a luxurious but modest one bedroom. She explained that Sophie lived in the building across the street and their parents’ place was right next to Parc Monceau, an apartment occupying two floors of a building. The Seydoux family wanted to stay living in the same area because they were all very close.

“I’m sorry this happened to your sister,” said Clémence. She sat down on the couch carefully placed her wine glass on the glass coffee table. The white rug underneath tempted stains of all kinds.
 

Madeleine’s calm facade dropped; she looked down in sorrow. “I wish there was something I could’ve done. I pray every day she’s not hurt, and that it’s just the money they want. If they contact us soon, we’ll give them the money, no problem.” She looked up at Clémence. “But I hear you’re better good at solving crimes. Maybe better than the police. Can you help us? My parents are devastated.”
 

At the sight of Madeleine’s sad face, Clémence’s heart went out to her. What if it had been her own sister who was kidnapped for ransom? She couldn’t imagine what that must’ve felt like.
 

“I’m going to do all that I can. Tell me everything. Start with how Sophie met Juan.”
 

“Sophie went to visit her friend Maria in Spain last month during the long weekend. I couldn’t go with her because my boyfriend Henri invited me to Provence. If I went, could I have prevented all this from happening? Changed her fate somehow?” Madeleine let out a long sigh. “Anyway, Sophie went to Seville, which is like a dream. She went out with Maria and some other girlfriends one night and met Juan at a bar. A couple of days later, she called home to say that she was staying in Spain for another week. She stayed with Juan in his hotel. It was truly a whirlwind romance. And then she extended her stay
another
week. When she came back to Paris, Juan came with her.”

Theo’s face darkened. “I knew this guy was trouble the moment I laid eyes on him. There was just something so fake about him.”
 

“Unfortunately I fell for his act,” Madeleine admitted. “He was handsome, he had this cute accent and he was so well dressed. He talked the talk. I thought, no wonder Sophie was mad for the boy. They moved into Sophie’s apartment and I met Juan for dinner on the first night. He asked a lot of questions about us. I thought he was the best listener I’d ever met, but little did I know he was just getting information about us for his kidnapping ploy!” She shook her head in anger. “The stuff he told us about his family were all lies. The loving way he treated Sophie—I really bought it. What an act!”
 

“He also told me he was madly in love with Sophie,” said Clémence. She told Madeleine about how she’d seen Juan eating crêpes with Sophie at
Damour
, and how he’d run into her on the street the day after, when he explained why he was in Paris. “Now I realize he just wanted me to be on his good side so I don’t blow his cover to Sophie. I wonder if he followed me around just so he could pretend to run into me.”

“I’d say it’s more than likely,” said Theo.
 

Arthur had already filled Theo in on how Clémence originally met Juan two years ago, but Madeleine had more questions. “Did Juan tell you that he was from Madrid?”
 

“Yes, but he was insinuating that he was Spanish royalty. That was two years ago, before the Austrian heiress kidnapping attempt. I think he has perfected his lies since then. He got close with Mia von Koromla
;
he was able to successfully kidnap a Swiss heiress a year later.”
 

“The inspector didn’t tell us that. Who is this Swiss girl?”
 

Clémence didn’t know either, but she performed the Google search for the kidnapping. She scrolled through the articles and found one to read out loud.
 

“Livia Egle, the kidnapped heiress who had been held ransom for 4 million euros, was released in the middle of the woods in western Switzerland yesterday. She is currently hospitalized for trauma. No physical injuries have been reported. She was kidnapped for nine days. A ransom call was placed on the Egle family on the evening of her kidnapping for the 4 million sum. A man by the name of Don Alba is the prime suspect. Egle’s former boyfriend, he disappeared around the time the victim was kidnapped and hasn’t been heard from since. Police are still searching for him.”