“Oliver, your name seems to ring a bell. Have we met before?”
“I don’t believe we have,” he responded.
“Yes, I don’t recall meeting you either. It’s your name,” he told him.
“Well, Mr. Thompson, I’m not one to follow horse racing and I haven’t been in contact with Jacob very often since Hanna moved on. It may be possible you overheard him mention my name,” he explained.
“You’re probably right,” he agreed.
The remainder of the ride was mostly a quiet one. They made some small talk about London, the weather. During the drive the name recognition continued to gnaw at Serge.
***
When David arrived home there was post-it note stuck to the door of his suite. It was a scribble from Jacob saying only I need to see you now. David was entertained by this. This powerful businessman could have called, texted or have his assistant contact him. But no, he had walked all the way upstairs to stick a note on the door.
David tossed his bag through the door then went downstairs in search of his father-in-law. He first checked the office which he found to be empty. Next would be the kitchen. Success, there he was standing at the refrigerator chugalugging a tall glass of cold milk.
“Never too old for a cold glass of moo,” he said sporting a white mustache as he placed the empty glass in the sink.
He then walked by David waving him on, “come, we need to talk.”
They made their way to the office. Jacob took a seat at his desk. David sat in one of the two chairs facing him, remaining silent. It was out of the ordinary to be asked to meet outside their predetermined times. Most subjects could wait until then. This must be of some importance so David did not feel the need for idle talk. He would leave the floor open to Jacob. On a normal evening the man would have been fast asleep by now.
“Son, I have some disturbing news,” he started.
David’s heart skipped a beat or two. He could not recall being addressed by this man as son. This wasn’t going to be good.
“David,” he paused, “while you were in California this weekend Serge paid me a visit. He has tendered his resignation. I have accepted it.”
“I don’t understand. You can’t,” David was confused but was immediately waved off by his boss.
“Yes I can and I did. David it’s difficult to discuss, but Serge recently learned he has terminal cancer. He left this morning for England. He would like to spend the remainder of his days with his family.” Jacob took a deep breath than said, “David, he’s not coming back.”
With that the room stayed silent. David noticed his father-in-law’s eyes had glossed over. He was having a rough time with this.
“Listen, as tough as this is, we must move on. Serge’s last order of business was to make me promise to promote Renée as head trainer,” he informed his son-in-law.
David remained silent trying to decipher what he was hearing.
“He feels she has prepared herself for this day. She proved that to all of us this past weekend. I tend to agree with him. Do you?”
“Well, this is a tough decision. I would appreciate a day or so to weigh our options,” he was hesitating on giving the request his blessing.
His head was fogged by the events that took place the past two days and it wasn’t the racing. This would mean an even closer working relationship with Renée. Promoting her would mean the two traveling together quite often. They would repeatedly find themselves sharing the same hotel floor. She had worked hard, earned her day in the spotlight. Could they, no, could he be professional enough not to hold her back because of his inability to refrain from his urges. Of course she should be advanced. He always said the job would be hers. She was an asset to his team.
“David, do you agree,” Jacob broke his line of thought. “Am I not seeing the whole picture? Is there something I need to know here?”
However heavyhearted the news of Serge was, he expected David to jump at the chance of handing the reigns over to Renée. He always spoke so highly of her. The hesitation left him a bit bewildered.
“No, no,” replied David. “It’s a lot to take in. I didn’t see any of this coming. And yes, Renée is the only one that can fill his boots.”
“Good I’m glad we see eye to eye on it,” answering, but silently implying the decision wasn’t up for debate.
“Now to change the subject, have you heard from my daughter? I’m sure she communicates with you a great deal more than she does with me.”
“Yes, I did talk to her earlier today. She mentioned something has come up that may delay her return. I expect to learn more tomorrow when she calls. I will fill you in as soon as I know,” he relayed the conversation he had with his wife.
“Why does that not surprise me? David I hope you keep us in the winning circle. I am going to need to purchase a new aircraft sooner than expected. She is going to wear out my current one.”
“Will do,” he stood. “I’ll meet with Renée in the morning to inform her of the promotion.”
They bid each other goodnight and retired for the evening.
David’s life just became more complicated than it was this time last week.
***
Serge arrived at the Inn. They parked the car and made their way into the lobby. There was no desk. Patrons were ushered into a small office to complete their registration in private. It reminded him of a small library. One full wall was covered with books. The Inn did not provide televisions in the room but one could be entertained for a quite some time if they enjoyed reading. Serge’s registration consisted of an older well dressed lady welcoming him with a handshake then handing him the room keys. He soon learned the lack of paper work was due to Mr. McGinnis taking care of the cost in advance.
As they were being escorted to the room, both carrying one of his two traveling bags it dawned on him. The library jogged his memory. He waited until they were alone in the room.
“Mr. Thompson, please give me a call if there is anything I can do for you. Feel free to contact me day or night,” he said bidding a goodnight.
“Oliver, I now recall why I had recognized your name,” stopping him on his way out. “You’re a doctor. Not just a doctor. You’re a renowned cancer specialist. I remember standing in front of my physician’s bookcase reading the titles of his vast collection of books relating to cancer. If my memory serves me correctly, you were the author of a number of those publications.”
“Well, I’ve been found out.”
“You must be the oncologist that took care of Hanna. I recall Jacob bringing her to England for treatments,” he continued.
“Yes, you are correct,” Oliver began to explain. “I did treat Hanna. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to save her. If I had the technology available to me today back then, I believe she might still be with us.”
“Did Jacob inform you about my condition?”
“Jacob and I developed a relationship when I was taking care of his wife. When he asked if I could meet you, I agreed. He did mention your condition, but I would have agreed even if you weren’t dealing with this illness,” he told Serge.
“Thank you. My condition is terminal so I have come home to spend my last days with my family who I have put on the back burner for the most part of my life. There is no cure for me. I just have to accept it and make peace with myself.”
“That may be true, but you will need someone to oversee your medication. I would be more than willing to offer my services. If you wouldn’t mind, I could have your files transferred to my office tomorrow. I would like to have a look at them,” he inquired.
“With all due respect doctor, I don’t believe anymore can be done. I just need to bide my time.”
“We have made tremendous inroads with the disease. We can extend people’s lives much longer now. You need a doctor from this country. What would it hurt to utilize my services? It’s on the house,” he said trying to convince him to okay the file transfer.
“Ok, I will agree to it. Doct
or I have been preparing myself for the end so I do not wish to be given any false hope. I’m not looking to extend my life for a few months if I have to spend them in bed or a hospital.”
“I understand. I can only recommend as I do to all my patients. Our research is progressing at such a rapid pace that the longer one can hold on the better the chance they will be around for the cure,” he explained.
With that the doctor pulled out a consent form from his inside pocket. He handed it along with a pen for Serge to sign. Serge smiled knowing full well Jacob had set this whole occurrence in gear. He signed and returned the paper to the doctor.
“You came quite prepared,” he said.
“Preparation is tomorrow’s success.”
They made arrangements to meet at the doctor’s office the day after next. This would provide time to review the files. Although Serge was prepared for his maker, human nature sways us to hold onto any glimmer of hope.
***
The next morning David went about his daily routine. Not comfortable with the authority’s progress with regards to the fire, in addition to his regular duties, he began making some informal inquiries. Knowing a small number of people working in the fire fighting field, he had enough contacts to begin his own quiet, under the table, investigation.
Subconsciously he was finding everything and anything to do that morning, delaying the discussion he needed to have with Renée. As far as the staff was concerned Serge was away on business. His phone rang.
“David, last night we did not discuss reimbursement for Renée’s new position. I’m not sure what you have told her but I want her to receive the equivalent of Serge’s income,” it was Jacob tying up loose ends before handing the details over to Brooklyn.
“Jacob, I think that’s generous. That would make her an instant millionaire. I’m not sure I agree,” he explained startled by the fact the salary hadn’t even crossed his mind. “I believe we should ease her into a pay scale of that level.”
“Is she not going to have the same responsibilities as he did? Over the past few years you have spoken so highly of her. I was of the opinion that she was ready for the job at hand.”
“She is,” was all he had.
“Then pay her,” Jacob wasn’t going to argue the fact. “By the way, how did she take the news?”
“I haven’t had the chance to talk to her yet. I was planning on speaking to her this afternoon.”
“Odd, I would have thought that would have topped your list of priorities,” he said with what David thought was a suspicious mannerism to the comment.
“I’m busy Jacob. I will get together with her later. Was there anything else?”
“Drop me a text when you hear from Sandy,” he hung up.
David leaned back in the old office chair in the office, lunchroom or storage room whatever one might call it. Deciding he had procrastinated long enough for one day, he took a deep breath then dialed Renée’s number.
“Oui, David," she answered on the first ring.
“Can you come down to the lunchroom? There is something we need to discuss.”
“Now?” she questioned him.
“I would appreciate it.”
“I just saddled up for a training session,” letting him know she was about to give one of their horses a run on the track.
“Give the ride to someone else, this is important.”
“Okay, I’ll be right there,” she gave in.
Renée’s heart rate rose to a higher tempo. Seldom did her boss display urgency for a meeting. She made arrangements for one of the junior trainers to put the horse through its paces. While making her way to the office she was stopped a few times by staff members. With Serge not there her work load increased substantially. Eventually she arrived to find David sitting behind the scrubby desk looking rather agitated, heart rate up a few more notches.
“Please shut the door Renée,” he said.
“Okay,” she shrugged.
She did as he asked. He was acting out of character. The only thing going through her mind was, please don’t let this get personal.
“Please sit down Renée,” he directed her.
“Is there something wrong?”
“Yes,” he stopped not knowing how to initiate the conversation
“Renée I’m not sure how to begin here, so let me just jump right into it.” He forged ahead, “after discussions with my father-in-law last night we have made a decision to promote you to lead trainer.”
She didn’t reply. She sat there in shock. Before saying anything she needed to make sure of what he was saying.
“Your want me to take Serge’s job?”
“Yes that is what I’m saying,” he answered her.
She had heard correctly. All of a sudden her face reddened. Her blood pressure began to boil. She was furious, ready to storm out of the room and never return.
“How dare you,” she began. “I really thought we could deal with this past weekend like two adults. When will I learn? Every time I let my guard down, bang, someone slaps me in the head.”
Renée stood up preparing to leave presuming the offer was related to their indiscretions. She didn’t want or expect a payoff for sharing his bed.
“You don’t waste any time do you. I cannot be bought David. You need to start making your decisions using your head, not with what’s below your belt. I never would have taken you for being a person like that, serves me right.”
“Renée,” he tried to continue the explanation, “you don’t understand, it’s not what you think.”
“I’m good at what I do. But I will not sleep my way to the top. I’m so disgusted with you right now.”
“Renée, please here me out,” he tried once more.
She turned towards the door. That was it she was leaving. He got up and made a quick move to block her. He stood between her and the exit.
“Get out of my way,” she demanded.
“No, you need to hear me out.”
“I’ve heard enough,” she tried to push her way by him. “You will have my resignation on your desk in the morning. I can’t do this. I’m going home.”
David stood his ground. She became physical and began to shove him. She worked herself into a frenzy. He didn’t budge. She bent her arms in front of him and started to bang the side of her fists on his chest. He let her work out her frustrations. Slowly David put his arms around her and held her tight. Before long, her resistance subsided until she was near motionless. Overwhelmed by the assumption of being rewarded for the past couple of days, she laid her head on his chest and began to cry. It was so out of character for the tough little French girl. He continued to console her until she was calm.
David anticipated an emotional reaction from her, but he hadn’t touched on the topic expected to bring it on. It hadn’t occurred to him the promotion would be construed as recompense. He knew it was his fault and that he should have gone about the explanation differently. As it turns out the news about Serge should have been the first item discussed. The difficulty was he again was delaying having to tell her. It was going to break her heart. These situations were not his forte. He waited a couple of minutes then removed one of his arms from her. Next he locked the door. It would be best for all if no one entered the room at the moment.
“Renée, this isn’t what you think. I need you to sit down and hear me out. Please,” he told her.
She was no longer resisting him. She was spent. David helped her to the chair.
“Renée, I apologize I’ve gone about this the wrong way. Please bear with me for a couple of minutes. We would like to promote you to head trainer because while we were away Serge met with Jacob to hand in his resignation. He is no longer with us. Actually he has returned to England.”
“That doesn’t make any sense David,” she said.
“I know it’s hard to accept but it is what has happened.”
“I need to talk to him. I’m sure he’ll come back. Whatever the problem, I’m sure we
can convince him to return.” She didn’t want to believe what she was hearing.
“Renée, he is not coming back,” he paused. She wasn’t going to take this easily. “This is not easy Renée,” he took a deep breath, “Serge has cancer, it’s terminal.”
“Cancer?” she repeated.
“Yes the doctors have given him only a few months,” he continued to explain. “He flew home this morning, choosing to spend the remainder of his days with his family.”
Renée didn’t utter a word. Tears began to roll down her cheeks. She covered her face with her hands. No longer weeping or producing tears of anger, she was full out crying. The actuality of passing on the news got the better of him as his eyes began to water. No words were spoken. They sat there in silence each trying to contain their emotions. The sensitivity of knowing they would soon lose a good friend, combined with the realization of the complications they had introduced into their lives, got the best of them. Their feelings were being torn apart in multiple directions. The silence of the room gave way to the weeping for the next few minutes.
***
Sandy had made her decision. She would remain in Europe until the mission was completed. It was estimated Langley would require two days of surveillance in preparation. One or two days for her to rendezvous with a Special Force back-up team. The actual rescue would only require a few hours. So her estimate was another week before she returned home. She would then be adamant about staying a month or two at home void of distractions. Her husband was owed as much. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, true enough she thought. However, extended periods of separation may lead one into the temptations of his or her surroundings, if it already hasn’t.
Until the call came, she would remain at the Palace. The days would consist of her fine tuning her physical conditioning. It also allowed her time to make a few inquiries pertaining to the fire. If there was a European connection, one of her sources may have an insight to it. First things first, she had to contact David and break the news of the extension of her stay. Then she would notify her pilots of the plan.
Love Lonely Page 15