There is a LOT of French in this chapter - and the translation will be underneath in brackets.
IE:
"Bonjour!"
(Hello)
15 hours later and the small plane that I'm on touches down at the Mont Tremblant airport. Gathering my bag I head down the steps of the plane and realize that I hadn't prepared myself for the harshness of a Canadian winter. I was more concerned about actually getting here than what I would be facing weather wise. I enter the building and approach the customer service desk and speak with the man behind the counter.
"Bonjour, Monsieur. Puis-je vous aider?
(Good day, Sir. May I help you?)
I smile and respond.
"Bonne après-midi. Oui, pourriez-vous donner des indications pour le magasin de vêtements pour hommes le plus proche?"
(Good afternoon. Yes, could you please give me directions to the nearest men's clothing store?)
He nods his head and takes out a piece of paper.
"Bien sûr! Je vais les écrire pour vous. Plus pour les vêtements de plein air et les vêtements chauds?"
(Of course! I'll write them down for you. More for outerwear and warm clothes?)
I nod my head.
"Oui s'il vous plaît."
(Yes, please.)
He writes out the directions for me and draws a little map as well.
"Vous voila monsieur. Puis-je vous aider avec autre chose?"
(Here you are, Sir. May I help you with anything else?)
"Oui. J'ai une voiture de location m'attendant. Où vais-je aller chercher ça?"
(Yes. I have a rental car waiting for me. Where do I go to pick that up?)
"Juste en bas du couloir, Monsieur. Passez une bonne journée."
(Just down the hall, Sir. Have a great day.)
"Vous aussi."
(You as well.)
I head down the hallway with my slip of paper for directions to the clothing store, get all the paperwork for my car and head out of the airport. It's getting dark, I can only hope that this store will be open when I get there. Thank God that the the GPS in this car is up to date.
I make it to the clothing store in plenty of time and I pick up a winter coat that's actually warm, gloves, a scarf and some sweats. I didn't think I'd need to pack these, but I'm glad I found this place. I head back to the car with my purchases, wearing my newly purchased jacked, and enter the address I need in the GPS. 2 hours away. Of course, just my luck. I realize, as I pass the shops that are in this town, that I'm really, really hungry. I notice a market off to the left that appears to be open, so I pull in. I walk inside, pick up a few things and head to the counter.
"Bonne soirée, Mademoiselle. Vendez-vous des fleurs? Je n'en ai pas vu."
(Good evening, Miss. Do you have any flowers? I didn't see any.)
She smiles at me.
"Oui monsieur. Nous avons quelques types différents dans le refroidisseur à l'arrière. Quel genre que vous cherchez?"
(Yes, Sir. We've got a few different kinds in the cooler at the back. What are you looking for?)
I'm sure she sensed my relief.
"Quelque chose de beau qu'elle aimerait. Tous lex roses?"
(Something beautiful that she would love. Any roses?)
She smirks at me.
"Quelqu'un est dans la maison de chien. Nous avons quelques retourner là-bas. Combien? Une douzaine?"
(Someone's in the dog house. We have some there. How many? One dozen?)
I nod my head.
"Oui s'il vous plaît. Juste par curiosité, avez-vous vu cette femme ce soir?"
(Yes please. Just out of curiosity, have you seen this woman tonight?)
I take out the picture of her that I have in my wallet and she looks at it with a curious smile on her face.
"Tu veux dire Winnie? Elle était ici plus tôt cet après-midi."
(You mean Winnie? She was here early this afternoon.)
I look at her with a hopeful expression.
"Vraiment? Tu la connais?"
(Really? You know her?)
She smiles and looks surprised at me.
"Je l'espère! Elle est l'une de mes meilleures amies!"
(I should hope so! SHe's one of my best friends!)
"S'il vous plaît dites-moi. Suis-je loin? Est-il beaucoup plus loin?"
(Please, tell me. Am I far away? Is it much further to go?)
"Un moment. Qui es-tu ? Je ne sais pas si je devrais vous donner aucune information à son sujet. Elle a dit qu'elle voulait être seul et penser des choses à travers."
(One second. Who are you? I don't know if I should be giving you any information about her. She said she wanted to be alone and think some things through.)
"Je m'appelle Sean Renard, capitaine du bureau de police de Portland."
(My name is Sean Renard, Captain of the Portland Police Bureau.)
"Eh bien, puisque vous achetez une douzaine de roses, je parie que, pour elle, vous êtes un peu plus important que le capitaine de police. Ai-je raison?"
(Well, since you're buying a dozen roses I'd wager that, to her, you're a little more important than just the Police Captain, am I right?)
I look directly at her and don't answer the question, hoping that my silence will speak volumes. She nods in understanding.
"Vous êtes à une heure de route."
(You're about an hour away.)
I put the money on the counter for my purchases as I collect them, and I nod my head.
"Merci."
(Thank you.)
"Dites-lui que je lui dit bonjour."
(Tell her that I said hello.)
I nod my head.
"Je le ferai, je le promets. Joyeux Noël."
(I will, I promise. Merry Christmas.)
I head into the car with my food and flowers, following the directions given on my GPS. I take out my cell and dial an all to familiar number.
"I'm here. How's everything back at the Precinct? Ok, get Franco to deal with that. Listen, I'm going to be off the grid for a while as I'm sure you figured out. Yeah, I don't know exactly how long. If it's an absolute emergency – life or death – email. If not, don't bother, just fill me in when I get back whenever that will be. I will. You too."
I hang up my phone and concentrate on the road ahead of me. The snow is falling and making driving a little more difficult – so I slow my speed down to accommodate for the conditions.
After about an hour of driving, my GPS tells me that I have arrived – but there are no houses on this road, no buildings at all. I slow to almost a crawl and look very carefully through the thick snow falling down in front of me. I see a faint sign that marks a hidden driveway. This has got to be it. I turn in and follow the road for what seems like miles until I see a small cottage off in the distance, its lights on, smoke from the chimney and a car parked outside. I pull up as close as I can to the building and park, take the flowers from the back seat and quietly close the door behind me.
My stomach is turning in knots as I climb the steps to the front door. I knock quietly and there's no response. I wait a few minutes and try again. Still no response. I look through the front windows and I see things that I recognize: her laptop, her cell phone, those are definitely her slippers. I turn around and wonder where she could be when her car is still here. I walk away from the cottage and let my eyes adjust to the darkness around me. That's when I see them.
TBC...
Feedback floats my boat.