Goodbye, Janette

by Harold Robbins

“Come naked,” he said, laughing. “You looked wonderful!”

  She heard the doorbell ring faintly downstairs as she put down the telephone. Quickly she glanced through the messages. The telephone buzzed.

  “Mademoiselle Louise is here.”

  “Show her upstairs.” She put down the telephone and went back to the bathroom to brush her hair. There was nothing important in the telephone messages. Time enough to answer them tomorrow. Suddenly she wasn’t tired anymore. She felt good. Everything was working out just the way she planned it.

  ***

  By the time she appeared at the Relais everyone there had seen the advance copy of Vogue. A sudden hush fell over the restaurant as she stood in the doorway for a moment before turning to Jacques’ table. She was wearing a loose-fitting man’s shirt tied at the waist over a baggy pair of jeans that revealed absolutely nothing of her figure except what was sensed beneath the clothing as she moved through the room, her hair falling to her shoulders framing her high cheekbones and her face completely devoid of makeup.

  Jacques rose and kissed her cheeks. The hum of conversation began in the restaurant again as they sat down.

  “I’m sorry I’m late,” she apologized. “But Boussac had me in his office. He was ranting and raving.” She paused and laughed. “He fired me.”

  “He’s an idiot,” Jacques said. “But why are you laughing?”

  “He didn’t know it but I had already sent in my letter of resignation last Monday and no one had bothered to tell him.” Louise appeared in the restaurant entrance. Janette turned to him. “I brought a girlfriend along. Is it okay?”

  “Of course,” he nodded, rising again as Louise made her way to their table. Janette introduced them and he kissed Louise’s hand as the waiter hurried up to place a chair for her. “What would you like to drink?”

  “I’ll have a bottle of Evian,” Louise said.

  “Since I don’t have to go back to work,” Janette said, “to hell with it all. I’ll have a kir royale.”

  “Make mine kir royale too,” Jacques said. Cassis and champagne was not a bad idea. He turned back to Janette. “What are you planning to do now?”

  “I thought maybe Louise and I would take a trip to the States. Neither of us have ever been.”

  The waiter put down the drinks. “Cheers,” Jacques said. He sipped at his drink. “I think you’re making a big mistake if you go now.”

  Janette’s voice was politely curious. “Why?”

  “Now is the time to strike. While the iron is hot,” he said. “Look around this room. Everybody is staring at you and talking about you. You’ve made yourself an instant celebrity. You can have anything and everything you want.”

  Janette laughed. “I don’t want anything. Especially another mannequin’s job.”

  “There are other things you can do,” Jacques said. “You can come back into the business as you planned several years ago.”

  “And do what?” Janette was pushing. She wanted him to make the point for her. It was important that he feel it was partly his own idea.

  “Move right into fashion,” he said. “You could be the focal point about which everything would revolve. Something we never had since your mother died. Something Shiki never could give us.”

  “Shiki could never give anything to me either,” she said.

  The waiter came for their order. Janette and Louise ordered steak tartare, and Jacques entrecôte au bleu with frites. When the waiter had gone, Janette turned back to Jacques. “Last night you said that Johann wanted to talk to me.”

  “Yes,” he said. “He was surprised on seeing the photo and curious as to your reason for doing it.”

  “I thought it would be fun,” she said quickly. “Besides, I always wanted to know what it would feel like to wear a million-dollar diamond.”

  “Really?” His voice was skeptical.

  She ignored this. “You had something in mind when you asked me to talk to you before I talked to Johann.

  “Yes,” he said. “I told Johann yesterday that we could promote a whole house based on you. A new image. But we’d have to get rid of Shiki. I agree with you when you say he’s a drag.”

  “What did Johann say?”

  “You know Johann. The first thing he thought of was that we would have to write off fifty million francs if we let Shiki go; then it would take another fifty million to get the new line started. And if it doesn’t work, everything is lost.”

  She nodded seriously. “That’s Johann all right. Always counting the numbers.”

  “Still, he didn’t say he wasn’t interested,” Jacques said. “I told him to talk to you before he closed his mind to the idea.”

  “I don’t think anyone will be able to convince him,” she said. “The idea could be fun as far as I’m concerned but he’s too set in his ways.”

  “Maybe if he thought someone else wanted to do it with you, he might be convinced.”

  “But there isn’t anyone.”

  “I could arrange something,” Jacques said.

  She was curious. “You have someone in mind?”

  He nodded.

  She looked at him without speaking.

  “Your stepfather for one,” he said. “I spoke to him yesterday. He’s very interested.”

  “I’m not speaking to him,” she said coldly.

  “I know,” he said. “But that’s personal. Business is something else.”

  “There’s no way he can come up with fifty million francs,” she said.

  “Maybe not all of it. But I have others who would come in. An American, Charlie Carolo. He owns one of the biggest women’s wear chain stores in America. He’s looking to upgrade his image. And there are others, but I haven’t spoken to them yet. Only Maurice and Charlie.”

  She sat there thinking for a minute, then shook her head. “No. If I want to do it, I would only consider it with my own company. I don’t want any partners.”

  “Then we’re back to Johann,” he said.

  “That’s right.”

  The waiter came with the food. They ate almost silently, each busy with private thoughts. When Louise had finished, she glanced at her watch. “My God!” she exclaimed. “I’m going to be late getting back to work.”

  “Take my car,” Janette said. “I’ll come and pick it up later.”

  She thanked Jacques for the lunch and hurriedly left the table. Jacques looked after her. “Pretty girl, your friend.”

  “Yes.”

  “Been friends for long?”

  “We’ve worked together ever since I joined Dior but we didn’t become friends until this week.”

  Jacques nodded sagely. “That happens very often. You see someone all the time but you never realize how important they are to you until the time comes to leave.”

  She nodded. “I never really thought about it but that’s true.”

  He was silent while the waiter took the dishes and he ordered coffee. Then he turned to her. “Now, let’s cut all the crap. Do you want the house of Tanya or don’t you?”

  “What makes you think I want it?” She was defensive.

  “You spoke to Philippe Fayard yesterday,” he said.

  “How do you know that?”

  “There are no secrets in the homosexual world,” he said. “Your stepfather heard about it and called me.”

  “Merde!” she said. “That means Shiki already knows about it.”

  “That’s right,” Jacques agreed. “And I’ll bet that right now he’s in Johann’s office shrieking his head off.”

  Janette was silent.

  “Whether you like it or not,” he said, “you’re already committed. So now, it’s up to you which way you want to go.”

  She looked at him. “Which way do you want to go, Jacques?”

  “With you,” he said. “Maybe that way the dream I shared with your mother will finally come true.”

  The waiter put the coffee down and she picked up her cup and looked into it. The demitasse was thick and
black. Before she lifted it to her lips, she raised her eyes to him, nodding her head slowly. “Then let’s go and talk to Johann right away.”

  ***

  Much to her surprise, Johann was calm and reasonable. He thought her ideas and plans were excellent and had a good chance for success. Only on one point was he adamant. “I have already discussed this matter with my attorney this morning,” he said. “And, as trustee for your sister’s share of the estate, I would be completely liable under French laws if anything should go wrong.”

  “What could go wrong?” she asked. “You even said you thought it was a good idea.”

  “We could still lose all the money,” he said. “And I have no right to take that chance on Lauren’s behalf.”

  “But what if we made a fortune?”

  “That would be good. But there are no guarantees that we will.” He looked across his desk at her. “I’m sorry, Janette. If it could be done with an investment of a million or so francs, that would be well within my normal jurisdiction. But this could turn out to be fifty or a hundred million. A loss like that could bankrupt the whole company and we would lose it all, not only the couture house, but the perfume company and the vineyards. You see, they’re all part of one overall package and each one is pledged to secure the other.”

  She was silent, thinking. After a moment she spoke. “Is there a way I can buy Lauren’s share for myself?”

  “I suppose there is,” he said. “But it would take a lot of money and I would still have to go before the French court for approval in order to establish that Lauren’s share was properly evaluated and that she received her fair financial remuneration.” He took a deep breath. “But why would you want to do a thing like that? The wine company alone guarantees you a good income for life.”

  “I’m not interested in the wine company,” she said. “Only the fashion house. Wines bore me. They’re bourgeois.”

  “Even so, we would still have to follow the same procedure.”

  “What if I relinquished my share in the wine company to her in exchange?”

  “In that case, you’d only be screwing yourself,” he said. “The vineyards throw off twice the income of the fashion house, including the parfumerie.”

  “Could I sell my share of the vineyards and use the money to buy the couture?”

  “I suppose you could. I know of nothing in the bylaws of the company to keep you from doing that. But I still think it would be stupid.”

  “Stupid or not,” she said, “I would like to do it.”

  “Who you sell it to is also important,” he said. “I have the right to reject any partner of whom I do not approve on your sister’s behalf.”

  Her voice grew cold. “In other words, you’re not going to let me do it.”

  “I didn’t say that,” he said quickly. “I’m only making you aware of my responsibilities. The same that I exercised on your behalf to protect your share. And neither you nor your sister has been hurt by it. As a matter of fact, both of you are twice as well off now as when I took charge.”

  “But the couture house is losing money, and for good business reasons we should sell it.”

  “Agreed.”

  “And we could sell it to a stranger?”

  “Yes.”

  “But not to me.”

  “If we went through the whole process that I outlined it could be sold to you. But as your friend and former trustee, I must caution you as to the risks you would assume.”

  “In spite of that, supposing I say to you as a fifty percent owner of the business that I want to own the couture house alone and I’m willing to sell my share of the vineyards if necessary—what would you do?”

  “I would have no choice but to hire experts to evaluate the business and try to find an equitable way of accomplishing it. After that is decided I would then have to get the approval of the courts to make the transaction.”

  “How long would it take?”

  “I don’t know,” he said. “Sometimes these things take years.”

  “Then the only way open to me is to have a buyer for my share of the vineyards of whom you approve?”

  “Perhaps,” he said.

  “Then that’s what I’ll have to do,” she said.

  He looked at her. “Janette, what’s the rush? Why don’t you take some time and think on it? If you still feel the same way, say, a month from now, come back and I’ll try to help you.”

  “Losing a month now means losing a season. If I begin now I can make next year’s spring collections.”

  “The fall collections are more important,” he said.

  “Not for me,” she answered. “I’m going for another market, and if I want to reach them I have to get them in the spring in order to set them up for the fall.”

  “I know what she wants to do,” Jacques said, finally breaking his silence. “She’s got a very good chance of accomplishing it. You could wind up making millions.”

  “Or losing millions,” Johann said. He looked at her. “I understand how you feel but I just can’t do what you ask as easily as we both like to.”

  She rose to her feet. “We’re getting nowhere.”

  “I’m sorry,” he said.

  She looked down at him. Her voice was hard and determined. “I’m going to get what I want. No matter what it takes. You know that.” She left the office, slamming the door behind her.

  Johann looked across the desk at Jacques. “See if you can make her listen to reason.”

  Jacques shrugged. “Were you ever able to make Tanya listen?”

  “No.”

  “What makes you think she’s any different from her mother?” Jacques asked.

  ***

  Johann arrived home at about seven thirty in the evening. Heidi met him at the door and kissed his cheek. He looked over her shoulder. Usually Lauren was right behind her at the door. “Where’s Lauren?”

  “She should be home any minute,” Heidi said. “Janette came by and took her out for the afternoon.”

  “What time was that?” he asked.

  “About four o’clock.” She looked up into his face. “Is there anything wrong?”

  He took a deep breath. “I don’t know,” he answered heavily. He walked into the living room with Heidi following him. “Did she say anything to you?”

  “No,” Heidi answered. “Just that she hadn’t seen her sister for a long while and thought she should spend some time with her.”

  Johann rubbed his cheek reflectively. “I don’t like it,” he said. Quickly he told her of their meeting earlier in the day. “She said she would get what she wants, no matter what it takes,” he said, finishing.

  Tears came into Heidi’s eyes. “She couldn’t be cruel enough to destroy her sister’s happiness?”

  “You forget, in many ways she’s not more than a child herself. A spoiled child who’s always had everything her own way. Suddenly there’s something she cannot have.”

  “Do you think she’s not going to let Lauren come back to us?”

  “I don’t know what to think,” he said. “There’s only one way to find out.” He went to the telephone and dialed Janette’s number. A voice answered. “Henri, is Mademoiselle Janette at home?”

  “Oui. Je vous passe, Monsieur.”

  The telephone clicked and Janette came on. “Yes?”

  He tried to keep his voice casual. “We were waiting for Lauren for dinner.”

  Janette’s voice was cold. “She’s not coming for dinner. She’s not going back at all. She’s going to remain home where she belongs. Please send her things over as soon as possible.”

  The telephone went dead in his hand before he could even reply. He returned it slowly to the table. “She’s keeping Lauren,” he said heavily.

  For the first time he saw Heidi angry. “The bitch!” she swore. “The cruel bitch! Are you going to let her get away with it? After all, you’re Lauren’s legal guardian.”

  “It means bringing it all into the open. The newspapers w
ill have a field day. They’ll go back to Tanya and everything that ever happened. By the time it’s finished, we’ll all be covered with shit, including Lauren.”

  “Then why don’t you just give her what she wants? Then we can take Lauren back to America with us and let Janette go to hell in her own merry way. What do you care what happens to her?”

  “I don’t,” he said. “But it’s not as simple as that. Any disposition of the assets that I make, no matter how fair and equitable it would be at the time, could be subject to misinterpretation later. If couture makes a lot of money, I’ve screwed Lauren out of potential benefits, if it loses and we’re in it, I’ve permitted Lauren to be exposed to tremendous losses. No matter which way I go, I’m damned if I do, damned if I don’t.”

  Heidi looked him directly in the eyes. “Then if you’re doomed to damnation, at least go there protecting the child who needs it most. And what she needs more than money is love and care, both of which we can give her.”

  He was silent.

  “Why don’t you buy Janette’s share of the vineyards?” she asked. “My father will advance you the money. He’s interested in the wine business. More than five years ago he bought a thousand-acre vineyard in California.”

  He looked at her, the germ of an idea taking shape in his brain. “I couldn’t buy it. I would be leaving myself wide open. If that weren’t the case I would have done it on my own. I have enough money. But if your father bought it, that would be a different matter. It would be a hands-off transaction that the courts and I could safely approve. Do you think he would be interested?”

  “I think he would,” Heidi said. “We’ll call him after dinner and find out.”

  ***

  “He’s not going to give up that easily,” Maurice had said. “Not after all these years where he’s had complete control. Nobody will ever know how much he made out of it for himself.”

  Janette looked at him. “I won’t believe that Johann was ever a crook.”

  “I’m not saying he is,” Maurice said quickly. “But he did run your business and he shared in the benefits. Who can say that he did not benefit a little more than was proper?”

  She was silent.

  “If you mean what you say,” Maurice said, “then you’ll have to go all the way. Force him out.”