The Roubaud Connection

by Estelle Ryan

  I stepped away from Colin and made sure my look at Manny conveyed my censure. “Your sarcasm isn’t helpful.”

  “I think it’s a good idea to get names from Caelan.” Daniel stepped forward to obscure Manny’s view of Colin. Always the mediator. “I’ll put a rush on the medical examiner to give us everything he can so we can try to ID these two.”

  “How long have the bodies been out here?” Colin asked.

  “I have no idea.” Daniel raised his shoulders.

  “It snowed lightly early this morning.” I pointed at a bush close to us. “There’s a light dusting of snow there. But there’s nothing on the bodies.”

  “Could the snow have melted from their body heat?” Colin shook his head even before he finished his question. “No. They were dead before they got here. So they must’ve been dumped within the last four hours.”

  “I’ll get an exact time from the weather guys to find out when it snowed,” Daniel said. “And hopefully, the medical examiner will be able to give us an exact time of death.”

  I doubted the medical examiner would be able to give a precise time for these people’s deaths. “An estimate is more likely.”

  Daniel smiled at me. “Then we’d better tell the crime scene techs and the guys from the medical examiner’s office the scene is theirs.”

  I was grateful to turn away from the awful carnage on the snow. I took two steps towards the cars, then stopped. “I want to speak to the tourists.”

  “Sure.” Pink nodded. “They have been very co-operative.”

  I thought about it some more. As we walked back to the parking area, I moved away from Colin to walk next to Manny. “Are you able to give a professional interview?”

  He stopped. “What the bloody hell does that mean, missy?”

  “It means that I know you are dealing with emotional pain, but I would prefer if—like usual—you spoke to the tourists and I observed their body language.” I pointed at his scowl and flared nostrils. “But if you are this easily riled, it might be counterproductive and I won’t get an accurate reading from their reactions.”

  “Bloody fucking hell.” Manny pushed both fists against his eyes for a few seconds. Then he glanced at Daniel and Colin continuing along the path without us. The narrowing of his eyes made me wonder if he realised they were giving him time to compose himself. He inhaled deeply, rolling his neck on his shoulders. “I’m good. Let’s do this.”

  I didn’t believe that he was ‘good’, but I trusted that he would conduct the interview with the tourists in his usual professional manner. We walked in silence until we reached the others. Vinnie was out of earshot, talking on his phone. Colin, Pink and Daniel were leaning against the GIPN truck, but straightened when we got close. None of them said anything about Manny’s behaviour.

  We walked over to the tourists still standing next to the patrol car, Daniel and Pink leading the way. We were about fifteen metres from them when Manny held out his hand to the side. I stopped and looked at him. He turned around to face away from the tourists and closed his eyes. I waited.

  Manny took fifteen slow breaths before he opened his eyes and looked at me. “You need to pay extra attention, Doc.”

  “I always pay full attention.” The intensity of my focus on others often caused them discomfort. I stopped this line of thinking and studied Manny’s face. This was not what he’d meant. He was doubting his own focus. “I understand.”

  He grunted, inhaled deeply and turned around. “Let’s do this.”

  I relaxed considerably when Manny’s posture changed. He hunched his shoulders and slowed his gait, his facial muscles less tense. We neared the small group and I turned my attention to them. Pink was introducing Colin and Daniel to the tourists and the police officer was taking a step back, allowing Daniel to take the lead. I was surprised to hear British accents all around.

  “And this is Doctor Genevieve Lenard.” Daniel gestured towards me, then pointed at Manny.

  “I’m Manny Millard.” Manny followed his interruption by stepping forward and shaking their hands.

  The three women were in their forties and were spending a week away from their families and jobs in Oxford. Nina Gray was a mid-level manager at a public relations consulting firm. Her long, dark hair was covered by a fashionable turquoise knitted cap. The rest of her outfit seemed to have been ordered from an outdoor sports catalogue and was much more sensible than the pretty cap.

  Rose Wright was the shortest of the three women and owned her own small children’s clothing company.

  “And my name is Joan Hazard.” The third woman’s smile lifted her freckled cheeks. “I know, I know. Not quite the surname you want when you’re adventurous.”

  “Are you adventurous?” Manny’s smile was small, but inviting.

  “Is she ever.” Nina rolled her eyes. “She’s the one who made us come out here before I’ve had enough cake and coffee.”

  “We all wanted to come.” Rose’s soft voice was controlled, her arms wrapped tightly around her torso. “So far the week has been wonderful. We’re doing things we wouldn’t do back home because we’re too busy or lazy. We decided to come to Strasbourg for the bridges, cathedral and fine art museums. And when Joanie suggested the nature reserve, we thought it would be wonderful to be out in the crisp morning air.”

  “It’s crisp, all right.” Manny snorted and the women smiled. Rose relaxed a bit, her hands no longer clutching her coat. Manny turned to the male tourist. “So Pierre, what brought you here this morning?”

  “The same as them.” Pierre Bruel nodded towards the woman. He was in his forties, well-groomed and spoke with quiet confidence. Like the women, he was dressed warmly, his knitted cap pulled low over his brow and his scarf high against his jaw. “I’m here for a conference and decided to do some forest bathing before our workshops start today.” He glanced at his watch and smiled. “Yeah, I think I’m going to miss the first few.”

  “I can’t place your accent.” Manny slumped lower into his coat. “Where are you from?”

  Pierre’s smile lifted his cheeks, but didn’t cause small wrinkles in the corners of his eyes. “I was born in Belgium, spent my first five years there before we moved to England. I’m currently living in Reading. I work for an international IT company there. I suppose my formative years and my mother being Flemish still has an effect on my accent.”

  “Makes perfect sense.” Manny’s faked friendliness was convincing. “Reading, huh? There are some beautiful woods around for forest bathing.”

  “My favourite is Fobney Island Nature Reserve.” Pierre paused until he noticed Manny’s positive reaction. “I wanted to come to this forest because I heard it was famous for horse riding paths.”

  “Oh, you got the wrong forest.” Daniel smiled. “You’re most likely thinking of the Neuhof forest to the south of Strasbourg.”

  “Seriously?” Pierre’s disappointment was the first genuine reaction he’d shown. “Dammit.”

  Manny chuckled. “You still have time to explore, right?”

  “Right.” Pierre appeared distracted for a moment. On a quick inhale, he smiled. “I’m here for another three days, so there’s indeed still time for that.”

  “I’m sure you’ve told the officers more than once, but could you please indulge me by telling once again how you found the bodies?” Daniel first looked at Pierre, then at the women.

  “Oh, those poor people.” Nina glanced towards the crime scene and crossed her arms. “It’s just awful.”

  “I got here around nine.” Pierre nodded as if agreeing with himself. “Yes, the news was just starting on the radio when I pulled into the parking area. I got out, locked my phone in the boot and went in that direction.” He pointed to the crime scene. “I hadn’t walked three minutes when the colours caught my eye. One of the things I love about forest bathing in winter is how monochromatic everything is. Just the snow, the bark and green leaves. Nothing else to distract my mind.”

  “What did you do wh
en you saw the bodies?” Daniel asked.

  “Oh, I didn’t know they were bodies at first.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I thought someone had dumped some camping gear or rubbish or something there. But as soon as I was close enough, I saw they were people. It was horrible.”

  “We arrived after Pierre,” Rose said softly. “His car was already parked and we were glad that there weren’t more people. We wanted a true nature experience.”

  “We went in the same direction and saw Pierre staring at the people.” Joan cleared her throat and closed her eyes. “The bodies.”

  “I didn’t know what to do.” Pierre hunched his shoulders. “I could see they were dead.”

  “We didn’t know what he was looking at, so we walked there.” Nina blushed. “I might’ve screamed when I saw those poor people.”

  “She did.” Pierre’s smile was wide. And genuine. “Gave me the fright of my life.”

  “I immediately called 112.” Joan straightened a bit. “I make a point of knowing the emergency numbers in every place I visit.”

  “Wise.” Manny nodded slowly. “I can’t imagine how difficult it must’ve been for you to see all of that.”

  “Terrible.” Pierre shook his head, his sigh deep.

  “I...” Rose swallowed. “I think I’m going to have nightmares about this.”

  “It’s okay, lovey.” Nina stepped closer and put her arm around Rose’s shoulders. “We’ll find a way to cope with this. We’re hardy like that.”

  “Did you see anyone else?” Manny asked.

  “No one.” Pierre looked at the women. They nodded. He stared into the forest. “It’s so quiet and white here that it would’ve been easy to see someone else.”

  Manny was quick to hide his scepticism. A few days ago, Vinnie and Pink had been in a deep discussion about camouflage in numerous environments. Manny had pretended to read a book, but I’d seen his attention drifting to their conversation.

  He looked at me, one eyebrow lifted. I exhaled sharply. He wanted me to give him a verdict on the short interview we’d just had. Experience had taught me that he would be most displeased if my opinion was frank and therefore obvious. I thought about my wording for a few seconds, then looked at Pierre. “Where’s your car?”

  Manny gave me a sideways glance before dropping his shoulders a bit more. He made a point of looking at Daniel as if the latter was annoying him before facing the tourists. “This is so daft. The Frenchies have a million silly rules. If you guys don’t let us look in your cars, they’re going to kick up all kinds of fuss because we didn’t dot our i’s and cross our t’s. So to speak.”

  “No problem.” Joan took a set of keys from her jacket pocket and pointed at the only red vehicle. “It’s a rental and it’s in my name. You can record everything if that would help. I don’t mind.”

  “Oh, that’s darling of you.” Manny took the keys and handed it to Daniel. “I’ll make sure they don’t scratch the car.”

  She shrugged. “I have insurance.”

  “Pierre?” Manny turned to the IT specialist. “May we see your car?”

  “Of course.” The contractions of the orbicularis oculi muscles under his eyes were fleeting, but I’d noticed it. He was relieved. He took a key fob from his trouser pocket and handed it to Manny. “Also a rental. But I would appreciate it if you guys didn’t scratch it.”

  “No problem.” Manny walked to the gray car that would blend in on most of the roads in Europe. Ten minutes later, Manny handed Joan and Pierre their keys back. “The crime scene techs recorded everything just in case we’re called to the carpet. Now we can show them we were diligent and you guys are only guilty of witnessing something extremely horrible.”

  “If you could go with these officers, they’ll take your statements and you’ll be free to go.” Daniel smiled at Pierre. “And hopefully, you’ll get to visit the Neuhof forest.”

  Pierre’s smile was relieved. “Thanks. Yes, I will definitely make a point of getting there. Something good has to come out of this experience.”

  Two officers led the tourists away and we walked back to our vehicles. Vinnie was leaning against Manny’s sedan, still talking on his phone. We stopped next to Colin’s SUV and Manny held up his hand while he made sure the tourists were occupied and out of earshot. “What did you see, Doc?”

  “Inconsistencies.” I winced. “The problem is that it’s not really suspicious to show a few inconsistent nonverbal cues under circumstances such as these.”

  “What did you see?” Manny lowered his brow and stared at me.

  “The women’s body language didn’t raise any alarms with me.” I glanced at Pierre talking into a camera while an officer recorded him. “Pierre showed relief that could’ve been because he wasn’t caught in a crime or because this traumatic event is over.” I paused, recalling his micro-expressions. “He tried hard and mostly succeeded in controlling his responses and nonverbal cues, but a few times it was too calculated. I can give you exact examples. Should I tell you all of them?”

  “Dear God, no.” Manny scratched his chin and looked at Daniel. “Your guys found nothing suspicious in his rental?”

  Daniel shook his head. “No evidence of blood. It’s clean inside, the boot is empty and clean.”

  “Hmm.” Manny thought about this for a few seconds. “Can you get someone to tail Pierre? Someone who will not be made?”

  Daniel nodded. “I’ll organise it.”

  “I would really like to get out of this cold.” Colin stomped his designer boots. “I wasn’t really thinking I had to hike through the snow when I got dressed this morning. My feet feel like they’re dying.”

  Something Colin had said triggered an extremely negative emotion in Manny. His lips thinned and his hands fisted in his coat pockets.

  “Okay, old man.” Vinnie walked closer and bumped fists with Daniel while the latter talked on his phone. “I’ve got ears and eyes all over the place looking for gossip about this kind of MO.”

  “And what?” Manny swung his angry gaze from Colin to Vinnie. “You want a pat on the back?”

  Vinnie’s eyes widened, then he smiled maliciously, turned his back on Manny and said over his shoulder, “Yes, please.”

  “Bugger off, criminal.” Manny stomped over to his sedan and opened the door. He paused and looked at me. “See you in the team room. Don’t make me wait.”

  He got in his car, started it and on high revolutions left the parking area. Vinnie stared at Manny’s car until it was out of sight and looked at me. “What the fuck, Jen-girl?”

  I took a step back. This was a completely new situation for me.

  “Let it go for now, Vin.” Colin took my hand and squeezed. “We’ll talk about Millard later. Let’s just go to the team room.”

  “No way, dude.” Vinnie put his fists on his hips. “That old man better have a fucking good reason lashing out at me like that. I’m so pissed at him right now. I think it’s better if I hang back with Dan.”

  “I won’t be long.” Daniel finished his call and nodded towards the tourists. “As soon as they’re done, Pink and I will come in too. The crime scene techs are going to be busy here for some time still and I agree with you.” He looked at Colin. “It’s freezing out here.”

  Colin nodded and opened the passenger door for me. “See you guys at the team room then.”

  He got in and started the car without speaking to me. I quietly stared out of the window until we reached the city centre. This time I didn’t even notice Colin’s driving or how many cars were on the road with us. My mind was on a loop, trying to find a logical way of dealing with this new situation. When we drove past the European Parliament, I twisted in my seat to face Colin. “I don’t know what to do.”

  He glanced at me. “About Millard?”

  “Yes.”

  “Hmm.” He overtook a truck with ease and glanced at me again. “What did you see? No. You know what? Don’t tell me. Millard knows you saw whatever is eating at him. I bet he’
s hoping like hell you won’t tell me or anyone else.”

  “So what do I do?” Friendship was still a relatively new concept to me. Before Colin had entered my life, I had never had friends before. As a child, I’d been too isolated and socially inept to make friends. Phillip had been my boss for a long time before I learned how to relate to him on a deeper level. Colin, Vinnie and Francine had taught me most of the friendship skills I had. Still neurotypical friendships remained mostly a mystery to me.

  Colin thought about his answer for a short while. “If you were in Millard’s shoes and he in yours, what would you like for him to do?”

  “A hypothetical situation?” I considered such an event. “I would prefer for him to let me deal with my emotions and share it with the others when or if I’m ready.”

  “Then do that for him. Trust Millard to work through his own feelings and talk to us when he’s ready.”

  “You’re saying ‘when’, not ‘if’.”

  He snorted. “Yeah. It might be the optimist in me, but I’m thinking that despite his British reticence, Millard knows we care and want to be there for him.”

  “Vinnie is angry.” It had been evident in all his nonverbal cues.

  “Vin will be fine.” Colin slowed down and glanced in the rear view mirror. “He knows Millard is picking the strongest of us to dump his sadness on. This is new for us too. Vin obviously needs to calm down so he won’t punch Millard when the idiot lashes out again. But he’ll handle it. Don’t worry.”

  That was just it. I was worried. I didn’t know what was going on with Manny, only that something had happened after we’d left to meet with Hassan and it was causing him tremendous emotional anguish. Moreover, I was deeply concerned that his way of dealing with his pain by taking it out on Vinnie might damage their relationship.

  It was ridiculous how irrational my thinking was at the moment. I felt responsible for maintaining the emotional equilibrium of the group. I shook my head at myself in disgust and turned back to look out of the window. Colin was right. I needed to trust Manny to know how to work through his own pain. And I needed to trust Vinnie to manage whatever abuse Manny was going to aim at him.