Lewis and Maddox tried unsuccessfully to locate Sébastien Descombes, so they settled for sandwiches and a pint to take stock of the situation. It was as his sister had said. Sébastien tended to sleep late after hot nights in the kitchen and once up was constantly on the go from farm to vendor to decorator, arranging the contracts for his new restaurant. His staff assured them that he would be at la Brasserie Belge for the dinner hour.
"I know that some people throw themselves into their work when they grieve…" Maddox started, as Lewis cut her off.
"But you would think that he would also want to do anything to help the police find the bastard who did this to the woman he loved," Lewis said. "I know I did."
Lewis looked a little misty for a moment and then shook it off when Maddox put her arm on his shoulder.
"Sod him. I think I need to take Dr Hobson for a romantic dinner at a certain three star Michelin restaurant."
Lewis' mobile chirped. "Speak of the Devil, my lady beckons. Post-mortem time," Lewis said with a smile.
"Sir, you are the only copper I know who looks happy to go to the mortuary."
"Quite. In the meanwhile, try to track down the other people on the list that Laetitia Descombes gave you. And get on to Gurdip about the CCTV in the street. See if he's found anything useful. We'll reconvene to talk to Dorothy Descombes together after I check in with Hobson."
Lewis left a take-away coffee in Hobson's office before entering the room where Hobson was finishing up with the corpse.
Hobson got straight to the point. "It's as we thought, Robbie. Anne-Sophie Lambert died from her stab wounds with what I would speculate is a chef's knife. Time of death would be around 11 o'clock last night. If I had to guess I would say that she knew her attacker because there are no signs of a struggle."
"Aye. It's likely that the attacker let her in to the boutique as it was otherwise locked." But Lewis' mind wasn't totally on the case. "Laura, I was thinking about dinner…"
"One more thing, Robbie, before you give in to your biological needs," Hobson said with a smirk. "Anne-Sophie was pregnant."
"Hmph. How far gone?"
"13 weeks, I'd say."
"That explains the midnight dress alterations. She didn't want anyone to know that she was getting a little thick around the middle. But someone did know. Anne-Sophie was about to become a wife and mother, and someone didn't want that to happen." Lewis now looked grumpy.
"Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings. I'm done now, though. Were you saying something about dinner?"
"There's a Belgian place that I'd like to try tonight, if that's ok."
"Waffles for dinner, Robbie?" Hobson looked sceptical.
"No, I hear that La Brasserie Belge is quite good."
"So this is part of the investigation, and not you wanting to take me out on the town."
"Fringe benefit?" Lewis asked, leaning in for a kiss. Hobson accepted his advance, all the while raising her still gloved hands away from Lewis.
"Am I to meet you there or will you come home first?" she asked.
Lewis had a look of consternation on his face.
"Fine, Robbie. I'll see you there."
After Lewis left to go meet Maddox, Hobson returned to her office. She was a little miffed that Lewis' romantic dinner plans were work related. There she found a coffee in an insulated take-away mug along with a post-it note marked "XOXO." She decided that Lewis wasn't so bad after all.