by David Woods
He began to feel hungry again so they dressed for dinner. They chose a secluded table away from the other guests, and over the meal discussed the events of the day. He explained exactly what had happened, and Anna laughed when she heard his description of the destruction of the car and the two men running hell for leather towards the trees. Brian looked seriously at her. “You shouldn’t have moved from the bike. It was very dangerous, but I’m glad you did. If you hadn’t distracted that man I may not have made it.”
Anna frowned. “If I had not stopped you, you might have killed him. It scared me to see you so aggressive and fighting like a wild animal.”
“It was either him or me,”
“You won’t throw me about like that, will you?”
“Of course I won’t.”
They finished their dinner in silence, Anna thinking Brian could be a very dangerous man if he lost his temper. Yet he could be so gentle. But it is nice to be with a man who can protect me, she thought.
After dinner Anna decided to ring her parents. All they wanted to know was when they would be returning and were they both well. Anna’s mother said. “You will be careful Anna, won’t you?”
“Yes, of course.”
They went to bed early and made love, but this time much slower falling asleep in each other’s arms.
The following morning they both realised their problem may not yet be over. Anna voiced her doubts over breakfast. “Those two men may have recovered. And all they have to do is walk up to that café and ring for a hire car.”
“Yes. And then if they find us we might not be so lucky this time.”
Chapter Nine
Venk slowly pulled himself to his feet. His body ached all over; it hurt him to breathe and he sat back down again feeling his ribs, that he did not think were broken but just badly bruised. As he was thinking about his sad situation and feeling very sorry for himself, he heard the motorcycle start up in the distance. To hell with them, let them go he thought. But as his mind unfolded the events that led up to this sorry state of affairs, he began to feel a deep hatred of that ‘animal like man with piercing eyes.’ He has almost ruined me and how can I face my associates when they hear about my humiliation? I will have to give up my way of life and do something else. He then thought of his beautiful Opel laying in the river below, and his hatred became more intense. He felt so angry and humiliated he almost cried.
His deep thoughts were interrupted by a shout nearby in the wood, and struggling to his feet again, he staggered slowly towards the feeble cry for help. His knees were shaking as he stumbled forward, with large drops of rain soaking him with every new gust of wind, and when he saw Vautrin he could not believe his eyes. He tried to stifle his desire to burst out laughing, knowing it would hurt him anyway. “You useless Frenchman. How did you get up there?”
Vautrin’s answer was a tirade of muffled abuse.
“Shut up and just tell me how I am going to get you down. Perhaps I will not bother.” He started to walk away.
The Frenchman shouted more abuse, but ended with a whimper and a sort of crying sound.
Venk turned back and climbed slowly up the tree, stood on the branch above the hooked jacket and shoved it off with his heel. Vautrin fell like a broken doll on to the ground. Venk climbed carefully back down, feeling so shaky he nearly fell. His accomplice struggled to get upright, took one step forward and fell flat on his face. After ten minutes they were both feeling well enough to search for their weapons. Venk found his gun but Vautrin was not so lucky and they gave up, walking back slowly up the track.
It took the pair of them half an hour to reach the café, by which time they were in a very sorry state, both soaked to the skin and aching all over. Venk immediately rang Van Hagen and explained the situation. “My car’s smashed up, we are stranded and both soaked to the skin. We shall probably end up with pneumonia.”
“What am I supposed to do about it?” He said unsympathetically.
“Get a car, of course. And pick us up.”
“Has that boy got away, then?”
Venk was stuck for words, but stammered. “He took us by surprise. The bastard wrecked my car.”
“Oh dear, oh dear, and let me guess. He beat the hell out of both of you, didn’t he?”
“Cut the bloody chit-chat and get here quickly.” Venk found it very difficult to control his temper.
Van Hagen would not give up. “I was right, he did beat you both up.”
“He caught us by surprise. He must be a trained fighter.”
Van Hagen laughed mirthlessly, which hurt his ribs. “Ok, I’ll pick you up on one condition.”
“And what the hell’s that?”
“You admit that the farmer’s boy has beaten you. And give up and go home.”
Venk nearly cried with humiliation and spluttered “I agree. Just get here quickly.”
Van Hagen arrived two hours later and they drank a large amount of coffee and ate sandwiches, Vautrin explained how he came to be disarmed and jumped on, but could not remember how he came to be dangling from a tree. Venk vowed gravely, “I’ll kill that English bastard when I catch up with him. And I will sometime in the future.”
Now that Venk had admitted defeat, even if only for the time being, Van Hagen felt more able to come to terms with his own failure. Venk made them both promise to let him know if they ever saw the Englishman again and they agreed, thinking there was very little possibility of that anyway.
Brian and Anna breakfasted late and left the hotel at ten. The road had dried quickly after the previous night’s rain, and they could not help looking nervously behind for possible pursuers, although they both felt confident the chase was over.
Once out of town, Brian quickened the pace as he started to enjoy the ride, and after an hour they gave up the idea that they were being followed. Anna cuddled up close, feeling inwardly good and sensing Brian was feeing likewise. The journey took them through Metz and Nancy, and they stopped for lunch in a small town called Epinal, sitting in a café for an hour watching the people pass by. This was the first occasion Brian had felt relaxed enough to observe his surroundings in detail, and as he looked at his watch he shuddered when he thought of the events of the previous day. Anna saw him shiver and held his hand. “It’s all over now, you must try to forget.”
He looked at her troubled face and smiled. “You’re good to me, Anna. And now you can read my mind.”
She laughed. “Come on, I’m dying to see Switzerland.”
They left the little town and passed through lovely countryside consisting of hills and forests, reaching Mulhouse at three in the afternoon. The weather was still sunny as they pressed on, reaching the border half an hour later. Customs on both sides just glanced at their passports and waved them on. Brian thought Anna said something as they pulled away, and stopped further up the road. “Are you all right?”
“Yes. Just happy, and relieved to be here.”
They cuddled, banging their helmets together and Anna broke away and said in an excited voice. “Let’s go to Zurich.”
“Why not, it’s not very far.”
They passed through Basle and arrived at Zurich an hour later. Brian did not like towns much, but this one seemed different, interesting and clean and he thought he would enjoy staying here. They chose a hotel with its own car park and overlooking the lake, and Anna managed to get a room at the front with a small balcony much to Brian’s delight. After dinner that warm evening they walked along the lakeside, talking about their plans for the next few days, and as they sat on a bench Anna looked at Brian, “I can’t understand how a warm loving man can be so tough and ruthless at times.”
Brian did not know how to reply to that statement. “I don’t like being violent. It screws me up inside, but it’s only happened twice and you were there both times.”
She moved closer and whispered “
I think you are soft really.”
He grinned and kissed her forehead. “You’re probably right.”
The next morning they ate a huge breakfast of cold ham, croissants and bread rolls, washed down with unlimited supplies of coffee. Brian looked seriously at Anna. “We’ll have to discuss what we’re going to do with the money.”
“It is yours. You decide.”
“No. We’ll decide together.”
They returned to their room, took out the money and agreed how much they needed for immediate spending, bearing in mind Brian wanted to buy Anna lots of presents. She protested at first, but Brian insisted. “You’ve been exposed to a great deal of danger and trouble, and I want to make it up to you.”
“You already have. I have been overwhelmed by your love and affection.”
“Not enough” Brian insisted.
They meticulously worked out how much they needed to get the farm out of difficulty, but there was about £175,000.00 left. Brian wanted to deposit the remainder in their joint names, but Anna disagreed and their first argument followed. Brian soon gave in as he was getting nowhere. “If you won’t let me put the money in our joint names, you’ll have to marry me. Then I’ll insist.”
Anna sat down on the bed heavily. “Are you serious?”
“Of course I am. I wouldn’t joke about something like that.”
She was still stunned and did not know what to say. I must think about it. “We have only been together for a few days, you know.”
“Yes, I know you must think about such a big decision. But don’t take too long because I’m absolutely certain we could make it work.”
They put the cash in Anna’s rucksack that Brian tucked under his arm, and walked along Bahnhofstrasse to select a bank. They decided on a deposit account, making a careful note of the number. Brian asked for a cheque in sterling to cover the farm bank overdraft, plus some working capital. After filling in forms that were quickly provided, they left the bank happy to be relieved of the cash, and even happier when they calculated the interest it would yield. The rest of the day was spent exploring the city. Brian, like a lot of other men, always hated shopping, but these shops were different with such an array of elegant clothes and expensive jewellery. Brian insisted Anna should buy whatever she wanted, and at first she could hardly contain her excitement at the sheer choice available. After a little while she became thoughtful. “Don’t be silly, Brian. How will we carry it all?”
On the way back to the hotel they purchased a very elegant dress and a skirt with a co-ordinating blouse. Brian dragged Anna into a shoe shop where she chose a pair of black shoes with matching handbag. “That is enough. You are spoiling me” she said affectionately.
“In your case that’s not possible.”
“We must buy you something tomorrow.”
Brian grinned. “We’ll see.”
After dinner they walked beside the lake for a while, and sat on a seat. “Have you thought any more about getting married, Anna?”
“Yes, a lot. Brian, you will always be kind to me, won’t you?”
“You know I will. Does that mean you accept my proposal?”
“Yes” she whispered.
He was elated and hugged her tight. She made a funny squeal before he realised he had nearly crushed her. “I’m sorry, my darling. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
Anna regained her composure. “I am not hurt, but you have no idea how strong you are.”
“I promise to always be gentle with you.”
Anna smiled and kissed him. “Let us go back. We have a lot to talk about.”
They chatted until midnight, agreeing they should wait a year before actually getting married and, in the meantime, be together as much as possible.
The next morning they wandered into town to buy an engagement ring. Anna insisted on it being simple and not too expensive. This took nearly all morning and finally settled on a diamond solitaire. In the afternoon, despite his protests, Anna decided Brian was going to buy some new clothes.
He chose two pairs of trousers, two shirts and a pullover, only stopping when he pointed out the bike would not transport any more.
That evening they had an early dinner, and again walked along the lakeside to find their favourite seat. Brian said “I’ve been thinking about the future. I’m not too keen on spending the rest of my life farming, although it’s very nice in the summer. But I would like to still be involved in some way.”
“How will you do that?”
“I’m not sure yet, but whatever I do it must involve you.”
“But do you not want me to have children and look after your house?”
Brian looked up from staring at his feet. “Good grief, not to start with. Besides I think we need your considerable brain to keep me out of trouble. We haven’t been too lucky in that direction since we met.”
“Ah. But all that could not be helped.”
“There are a couple of problems we must think about. Like what I’ll tell my parents about the money. I can’t just hand over a cheque without there being an inquest as to how I acquired it.”
Anna sat and thought for a while. “It is a Swiss cheque, so how could you get that sort of money? You will have to say you won it in a lottery.”
Brian thought about that idea. “Not very convincing, but unless I can think of anything else it will have to do.”
“So what about the other problem?”
“D’you think we’ll be suspected of stealing the diamonds or, receiving stolen goods?”
They talked at length and finally decided the burglars were the only ones to know where they dropped the stones, and they were unlikely to tell anyone. Even if they did, there was no direct link to Brian. They agreed it would be better not to appear too wealthy, and walked back to the hotel, made love and slept soundly.
As the next day was hot and sunny, a boat trip down the lake seemed like a relaxing idea. Brian took many photographs of Anna and the passing villages. It was one of the happiest days they had experienced so far, and Brian remarked as they ate lunch on the boat. “I could certainly get accustomed to this way of life.”
“We will have to return here soon.”
Back in Zurich in the afternoon, they bought some gifts to take home, and after dinner decided they must start back the following morning. They consulted the map for a different route, deciding to return via Strasbourg.
Brian checked the bike over early the next day, tightened the nuts that had become loose and gave it a quick polish whilst Anna packed. With the holdall and rucksack bulging they finally departed mid- morning, sad to be leaving the elegant city, and wondering what the future would hold for them. They chose the road to Freiburg as it was near to the Rhine, and Brian rode slowly through the Black Forest, stopping for coffee at a picturesque café. The scenery was outstanding and Anna agreed it was a lovely part of the country. They lunched in Strasbourg, after riding across the bridge and through customs and stopped for the night at Trier.
Trier was a pleasant town on the Moselle, and they found an hotel beside the river. After walking around the town in the evening, they had dinner at a riverside restaurant, where they talked about the future. Brian said, “We’ve a day to spare and I’d like to look at the farm machinery dealers around Antwerp.”
“We can stay near the city and I will give you a guided tour” offered Anna.
An idea had been forming in Brian’s mind and he wanted to get Anna’s opinion. “I noticed a lot of different machines as I travelled though France and Belgium and some of them would be very useful in England. On the other hand we’ve some advanced machines that would sell here. If we set up a company to import and export machinery it could involve us both.”
Anna thought for a while. “Yes, it sounds feasible, but how would you start?”
“Well, by buying machines direct from the manu
facturers here, and at first storing on our farm in Kent to keep the costs low. We could then sell through the trade which would keep bad debts to a minimum.”
Anna nodded. “We could finance it direct from the account in Zurich, then buy the machines in England with the proceeds of the machines sold in Belgium.”
They agreed it was a good idea, but would need a lot more thought. Anna said she did not really want to finish her term at college, because it would not be much use to her in the future.
The following morning was overcast as they made an early start, travelling at a good speed and reaching Eindhoven for lunch. They stopped just outside of town to try a local dish recommended by Anna. Brian was ravenous and felt quite weak until he had eaten. Anna noticed that he never said much before or during a meal, but made up for it after. She asked why.
“Because I get weak and shaky sometimes.”
Anna became concerned. “You should not have waited so long. We could have stopped before.”
“I agree. We should have done.”
Anna bought a packet of biscuits and put them in her pocket. I will make sure you are not hungry again.”
They found a pleasant hotel just outside Antwerp and spent the evening eating a large dinner that seemed to last for hours. Anna bought a local map in the hotel foyer and they laid it out on the bed, marking it where they thought the machinery dealers were situated.
They checked out early and set off for the first company on the map. Arriving at the machinery dealers’ Anna first talked to the proprietor, who fortunately could speak English and was happy to show them around. The new machinery was in a large barn with the second-hand outside, and after a while the proprietor left them to browse. Brian was staggered at the quantity of new equipment that was on offer. “None of our local machinery dealers’ have this amount of stock.” He said to Anna.