Sibling Rivalry

by E A Harvey

"And what about Mummy do you think she is stupid? She stood there and heard me lie to the police officer and said nothing".

  "Just hear what I have to say and then it's up to you what you tell mother. OK”?

  Chapter 53 Shot

  Pierre arrived at the hospital he paid the cabbie and rushed to the reception area. “Excuse me could you please tell me where the ICU area is“

  "Of course” said the receptionist. “If you follow the corridor in front of you and take the second to the left you will see the sign marked ICU".

  "Thank you very much. Thank you”.

  He ran as fast as he thought he could get away with in a hospital, slowing down only when he saw someone who he thought would complain, until he could hold back no more and sprinted the last few yards. Sitting outside the ward was Gabrielle.

  "Oh Pierre, I am so glad you're here. You can't go in at the moment as the doctors are with her. Darling she looks so poorly but she is alive. Thank God".

  “Gabby, why is she here so far away from where the car went in the river? What are they saying? "They are saying, and I cannot get to grips with any of it, that she has been shot".

  "Shot how ridiculous, who would want to shoot Penny? They must be mistaken. It must be a wound that she got in the accident".

  "They certainly are convinced she has been shot. They have a policewoman guarding her". “Where is she then”?

  "She is telephoning her boss, the signal is bad here".

  “And Penny how is she”?

  "At the moment she can't talk. She opens her eyes from time to time and it looks like she is trying to talk but then she drifts off again. Darling you must be prepared for what you see, this is not your beautiful fiancée laying in that bed, just remember, she is alive”

  Just then a doctor came out of the ward

  "Hello young lady. Are you still here" said the doctor

  "I will be here until she is ready to come home. This is my brother and Penny's future husband, Pierre DuPont”.

  “Hello doctor. How is she? Can I see her, please? She has been missing for so long".

  "Once my colleague comes out you may see her but not for too long. She needs her rest. Well at least now we have a name now for her. She is still a very ill girl. I am afraid and at this stage we cannot say if there is any damage to her brain. What we can say is that her vitals are very good. For quite some time we were not sure if she would survive, but she is a fighter and I am sure she will pull through".

  "Doctor has my sister got it completely wrong. She is under the impression that Penny has been shot".

  "No not at all. Your fiancé was shot. There is not the slightest doubt. We took a bullet out of her head and the police are in possession of it".

  “But witnesses saw her crash into a river".

  “Maybe, the bullet hitting her was the reason she crashed. Only the Police will be able to answer that“.

  "Penny Scott is a well-spoken young lady from a good English family, and the thought of anyone wanting to shoot her sounds extremely outrageous".

  "I am sure, but those are the facts”.

  A second doctor came out of the ward and nodded.

  "In you go, but not for too long, remember"

  .

  They both hurried in and Pierre was shocked to see just how ill she looked, the bandages had been mostly removed and a lot of the bruising had subsided but she was not the beauty he was accustomed to seeing. His urge was to grab her in his arms to protect her but he could see that she was one poorly young lady

  "My darling Penny it's me, Pierre, I thought I had lost you forever, please get well and come back to me, to both of us and we will never let you out of our sight again"

  He leaned across the bed and kissed her gently on her cheek.

  “Gabrielle could Janet be the one who shot her sister”?

  “Penny once told me that she believed her sister wanted her dead”

  “Pierre, surely not, not her own sister, we know that there was bad blood between them but can you honestly believe that Janet tried to kill her”?

  “Let’s hope not but I think at this time we should keep our suspicions to ourselves.”

  Chapter 54 Story

  "Peter, so far I have done more for you than any sister could do or be expected to do for a brother I love you and I would lie and cheat to keep you safe.

  I would do anything keep our family together even at the expense of losing Pierre and Gabby.

  While we have been away the doctors have seen daddy and they are saying a few months at most. It was different when we thought you had killed Janet and you could go to prison for life, but now you can tell them it was an accident and you never meant to hurt her.

  Now mummy won't be losing her husband a daughter and her son to prison all at one time”

  "Penny what you have done for me is beyond all anyone should do even for a brother, you are so very right so now I will tell you what really happened"

  "Janet rang me to say she was in France, she even texted me the address where she was staying. It was a cottage some distance from Paris.

  After what happened between you and her and Bob I was not going to let her ruin your happiness again.

  Penny, I adore you, I love you and I have always wanted to be like you"

  "But why Peter you are good looking, clever, women want you, I have seen the way Gabby looks at you"

  "I was not going to let her destroy what you have with Pierre, to stop the wedding which we were all so looking forward to, so I went to Paris and I bought a gun"

  “But Peter you said the gun was already at the cottage and that it was left there by the owners for protection"

  “Penny I got the gun and I killed a man to get it"

  "Oh my god Peter what has my lovely brother become, please tell me it isn't true"

  “This man deserved to die; a drug dealer and he would have killed me if I had let him”

  “Peter what have you done please tell me you have not killed a man in cold blood”?

  "Then I hired a car and I drove to the cottage, I told Janet that she must return to London and leave you alone.

  She started to argue and that's when I got the gun out"

  “Another lie you told me she had got out the gun because she thought you were a burglar”

  “And then Bob came in.

  "Bob my Bob? Of course I remember he told me that his family had a cottage somewhere not far from Paris”

  “Penny, I am in so much trouble, it was Bob's fault, he grabbed me from behind, I did not hear him come in Penny and he startled me, and the gun just went off.

  She fell and he rushed to help her and at that moment I hated him for what he had made me do. Then he was going to attack me so I fired again, and he died"

  I never meant to hurt either of them, never"

  "Oh my God, you killed Bob, Bob is dead, he was such a lovely guy and you shot him.

  Are you completely insane Peter? You have killed two men, that it or are you a serial killer and will soon hear about others?”

  “If only you had never got the gun”.

  Don’t you see Peter they were there together, together as a couple, and who knows maybe they were in love, you stupid fool, and all this has been for nothing?”

  "Please help me, Penny, what am I to do, we can't go to the police I have killed two, maybe three people if Janet dies"

  "What do you think will happen if Janet survives, Pierre and Gabby will know who she is and then the police will know and then mummy, thank god mummy does not know that Janet is critically ill in a French Hospital?"

  "I can't go to the police, let's see if Janet lives or dies and then we will know what's going to happen"

  "And what about me Peter, I know Janet and I have been at each other's throats but she is my sister and if I go to see her the truth will come out"

  "And Bob are you sure he is dead, what did you do next, just leave them lying on the cottage floor like a pair of rag dolls”?

  “
Forgive me darling but I loaded Janet into a car and drove her where I thought she would never be found"

  “My God and where was that, do you realize this is your own sister you’re talking about”?

  "Do you remember when I was in France for your birthday I went to an animal sanctuary, that's where I took her and where I left her"

  "You unthinkable bastard Peter, your own sister you threw away like a dead chicken, how could you, I should shoot you myself, what did you do with the gun, let me have it and I will willingly kill you, your despicable"

  With that she slapped him repeatedly around his head and face.

  "Penny I was frightened so frightened I had no idea what I was doing, I nearly put the gun against my head and pulled the trigger”

  “You should have done, what do you mean by you were frightened, were you frightened when you killed the so-called thug.

  By the time you killed poor Bob you were a hardened killer a trained assassin, who are you Peter, what you have done with my beautiful brother, I don't know who the man standing in front of me is"

  "What are you going to do Penny are you going to the police, please wait and see please I never meant it”

  "I honestly do not know what to do; if I say I am going to the police will you kill me too”.

  "You know I would never hurt you, darling I love you so much, I did all this for you Penny”

  "For me, for me, yes I hated her for what she had done with Bob and I, but not enough to want her dead.

  And Bob yes he cheated but unknowingly, do you think I wanted you to kill him because of that, I still cared for him, just no longer loved him”

  "I am so sorry, so very sorry”

  "And if I go to the police, they will arrest me as well, I am an accessory, I helped you, I helped cover up what you have done"

  "No, no I would tell them, I would not let the police arrest you"

  "Oh no, what are you going to do, shoot your way out of it”?

  "No the gun l threw into the river. I never did any of this, it was her, Penny"

  "What do you mean it was Penny, what are you talking about, do you mean me, Peter"?

  "No it was Penny, she told me that I must not let Janet ruin things for me, hurt me again"

  “What in God’s name are you talking about Peter, and who is this Penny you’re talking about”?

  By now his head was hurting and she was telling him to be quite and tell this woman in front nothing more.

  She would explain everything to this girl who claimed to be Penny Scott.

  And suddenly the whole conversation changed as a third person entered the discussion.

  Chapter 55 Franc

  "Mr DuPont, I understand you know who our mystery young lady is. Excuse me I am sorry, my name is Detective Robert Franc and the policewoman who has looked after her so well is WPC Marsh”.

  “Thank you” said Gabrielle smiling at the WPC

  "Firstly her name is Penny Scott. She is English but she lives in Paris with my sister Gabrielle. We are engaged to be married. Her parents live in London with her brother and sister. Other than that there is not much to tell"

  "Why would someone want to kill her Mr .DuPont? Does she have any enemies? Is she mixed up in something or with someone”?

  "Penny is the loveliest, nicest person you could ever wish to meet, I am sure nobody would want to harm her And if you mean, by something and someone, is she involved in some criminal activity, definitely not,”

  "But someone did want to harm her Mr DuPont. That's why the doctor removed a bullet from her skull"

  "But surely Detective it was an accident, someone hunting or something"?

  “Hunters do not use handguns unless they are hunting people. Also I understand from the doctors that there is some misunderstanding over the time you think she disappeared and when she was found is that correct“?

  "That is what does not make any sense. The doctor said that she had been in the hospital now for about a couple of weeks but the police called to tell us that she crashed her car a day or so later, and it was a hundred miles or so away from where she was found”.

  "Then someone else was driving the car it would seem" said Detective Franc.

  “We were led to understand there were two witnesses who identified her as the driver detective”. "Look something is very strange. Some time ago a Chief Inspector De Salis called about our patient and wanted information" said the doctor.

  "Rene De Salis I know him well. What did he want I wonder. Let us leave it there Mr DuPont and I will contact De Salis personally to find out what his interest is in our young lady”.

  “Now that is something we can help you with. Detective De Salis visited the three of us to ask about a man who had been murdered in England. A man who he thought knew Miss Scott” said Pierre

  “And did she know him Mr DuPont”?

  “It seems she had never met him or heard his name before” “What about you and Miss DuPont”?

  “No, neither of us had any dealings with the murdered man”.

  “Fine thank you, as I said I will call Rene De Salis and have a chat with him”.

  "If you need to talk to me or my sister again we will both be here or certainly nearby".

  "Rene is that you, you old wino? It’s Robert Franc. What are you up to? Still playing at being a copper are you? About time you retired".

  "Robert, I heard you had been sent out to graze or you were dead, I can't remember which". "Seriously Rene, what are you up to? It’s been a long time and why, I don't know. It's not as though we are a thousand miles apart. Are you married yet or are you still a confirmed Bachelor"?

  "It's funny you should ask that. Do you remember the English copper who I had a fling with all those years ago"?

  "A fling you call it? You were in love you walked about in a daze, your head up your arse if I remember".

  “Well she is back and I have seen her a few times".

  "And is it serious Rene, wedding bells and all that stuff? You're a bit old to start that lark don’t you think”?

  "It is for me, serious I mean, but I am not so sure how she feels. I know a gentleman never tells but we have slept together and it's been pretty wow".

  "Then I will look for my wedding invitation in the post Rene and my wife will want a new hat, I am sure".

  "If it happens you will be the first on the list, but I am sure you never called to ask about my sex life Robert. What can I do for you? Do I owe you money? Let me guess? You have a case and you need a real Detective to solve it”.

  "You’re right. No what I am interested in is what you can tell me about a young lady who goes by the name of Penny Scott"?

  “Oh no not you as well Robert, did some mad English copper put you up to this”?

  Chapter 56 Recovery

  "She opened her eyes again but this time she kept them open and she tried to talk".

  "Look she has done it again. Call a nurse or a doctor" said Pierre.

  Pierre pressed the red button and a little while later a nurse appeared.

  "What seems to be the problem, is she awake"?

  “She is awake and I think she is trying to talk nurse” said Gabrielle.

  "Let's try her with a drink shall we. That might make her feel a bit better".

  The nurse put the plastic cup to her lips and she drank gratefully. "I think our patient is starting to make some sort of recovery. Her vitals have been very good; I think we will let the doctor know what is happening".

  "Penny darling it's me it's Gabby. Can you hear me, talk to me. Pierre is here and he has missed you. We have both been so worried about you".

  She could hear them loud and clear but although she tried so hard to speak nothing came out of her mouth even though she knew her lips moved sometimes.

  "Look, Pierre, she spoke. I heard her. It was very quiet but she spoke".

  "Let's take a look shall we" said the doctor who had just walked in.

  He shone a small torch in her eyes while the nurse to
ok her blood pressure. Then he listened to her heart.

  All the time Gabby watched him with a fearful look on her face.

  "Well doctor is she okay” she asked

  "She is coming out of it. It's slow but the signs are good".

  “Keep talking to her but don't tire her too much".

  "Darling it's me, Pierre. Everyone is looking forward to our wedding but you had better hurry and get well first. Don't forget there are still things to get sorted, the flowers for one".

  "Who"

  "She spoke clearly that time, did you hear"?

  "Yes I did Gabby, she said "who" but who what"?

  ”Keep talking Gabby she can hear you and I think she understands”.