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Authors: Lee Lamond
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but Austin made it very clear that an occasional indulgence would be good.
“I have an assignment for you, and I will not take no for an answer,” said Austin with a smile on his face.
“An assignment? I think your project will be quite enough … and now there is more?”
“This is simple. I’ve been to Paris a bunch of times, and I’m not sure that I’ve ever seen the real Paris or the real France. In the next few months I want to see those things that the tourists don’t see. I want to get into the private collections and into the unknown neighborhoods. I want to see the towns and villages around Paris and learn the unknown history. You pick the what and the where. I don’t want you to take time from other things that you must do, but if you can join me, great. If I have to go by myself, that can work as well.”
Madeline did not want to be a babysitter for anyone, but this was different.
It had been a good night. It was about ten when Austin hailed a taxi to get Madeline home. The rain had stopped, and Austin decided to walk back to his apartment. On the way he checked his watch and figured that he could reach Carl Thompson at home. While dodging puddles he reached for his cell phone, pushed a few buttons and then heard Carl’s cell ring.
“Nice to hear from you, boss. How’s your vacation or whatever you call it?” said Carl
“Everything here is as I expected. This is going to be an uphill battle, but we’ll win. What’s new at home base?”
“Oh, the usual stuff. The IRS is going to send you to prison, and the plant burned down.”
“Stopped being a smartass, or I’ll come home.”
“Okay, you win,” laughed Carl. “Actually, not much is going on that we did not know or plan for, so we are fine. What is new with you?”
“Carl, I have a special project for you. This might be a tough one because it involves a couple of people in France. Ask our lawyers if they can do confidential background checks on a Madeline Rousseau and a Claude Badeau. I’ll e-mail you as much personal stuff to identify these people as possible. I just want to know if there’s anything that sticks out and whatever financial info you can find. If the lawyers ask why, just say that it’s a possible pre-employment thing.”
“Should I ask why?” asked Carl.
“It’s a long story. I’ll tell you later.”
Chapter 4
Paris/Saint-Abban
In Austin’s mind a firm commitment was needed from Vassar. He was the man in charge, the man to impress, and the man with influence throughout the art community. In their meeting, he had given encouragement, but what was needed was the Louvre seal of approval to give the project respect. It had always been his plan to put the Louvre name on the program, and without it, Austin would be lost. Corporate sponsors would be required due to the magnitude of the money involved, and corporate targets would not want to do this to be nice. Now that he had met some of the players, the human side of the project was being revealed. Dealing with facts or tangibles was easy for Austin, but dealing with the mystery of the human mind was more difficult. He put aside the French personalities, born from years living in a different culture, and tried to concentrate on things he could hang numbers on. Was he being naive about what he could accomplish? How soon would he see any success? Should the plan be to start small on an experimental program and hope that it grew? He had much to think about. Was the Church the real obstacle? Talking with Vassar was something he could work on, but how did one address a discussion with the Church? As a non-Catholic, Austin did not even know the administrative structure. Could this be done in France, or was a visit to Rome required?
Austin sat in his kitchen, slowly sipping a cup of tea and eating a piece of pastry left over from a guilty purchase the previous day. He had been awake since about five, thinking about many things, including Susan.
“I have an assignment for you, and I will not take no for an answer,” said Austin with a smile on his face.
“An assignment? I think your project will be quite enough … and now there is more?”
“This is simple. I’ve been to Paris a bunch of times, and I’m not sure that I’ve ever seen the real Paris or the real France. In the next few months I want to see those things that the tourists don’t see. I want to get into the private collections and into the unknown neighborhoods. I want to see the towns and villages around Paris and learn the unknown history. You pick the what and the where. I don’t want you to take time from other things that you must do, but if you can join me, great. If I have to go by myself, that can work as well.”
Madeline did not want to be a babysitter for anyone, but this was different.
It had been a good night. It was about ten when Austin hailed a taxi to get Madeline home. The rain had stopped, and Austin decided to walk back to his apartment. On the way he checked his watch and figured that he could reach Carl Thompson at home. While dodging puddles he reached for his cell phone, pushed a few buttons and then heard Carl’s cell ring.
“Nice to hear from you, boss. How’s your vacation or whatever you call it?” said Carl
“Everything here is as I expected. This is going to be an uphill battle, but we’ll win. What’s new at home base?”
“Oh, the usual stuff. The IRS is going to send you to prison, and the plant burned down.”
“Stopped being a smartass, or I’ll come home.”
“Okay, you win,” laughed Carl. “Actually, not much is going on that we did not know or plan for, so we are fine. What is new with you?”
“Carl, I have a special project for you. This might be a tough one because it involves a couple of people in France. Ask our lawyers if they can do confidential background checks on a Madeline Rousseau and a Claude Badeau. I’ll e-mail you as much personal stuff to identify these people as possible. I just want to know if there’s anything that sticks out and whatever financial info you can find. If the lawyers ask why, just say that it’s a possible pre-employment thing.”
“Should I ask why?” asked Carl.
“It’s a long story. I’ll tell you later.”
Chapter 4
Paris/Saint-Abban
In Austin’s mind a firm commitment was needed from Vassar. He was the man in charge, the man to impress, and the man with influence throughout the art community. In their meeting, he had given encouragement, but what was needed was the Louvre seal of approval to give the project respect. It had always been his plan to put the Louvre name on the program, and without it, Austin would be lost. Corporate sponsors would be required due to the magnitude of the money involved, and corporate targets would not want to do this to be nice. Now that he had met some of the players, the human side of the project was being revealed. Dealing with facts or tangibles was easy for Austin, but dealing with the mystery of the human mind was more difficult. He put aside the French personalities, born from years living in a different culture, and tried to concentrate on things he could hang numbers on. Was he being naive about what he could accomplish? How soon would he see any success? Should the plan be to start small on an experimental program and hope that it grew? He had much to think about. Was the Church the real obstacle? Talking with Vassar was something he could work on, but how did one address a discussion with the Church? As a non-Catholic, Austin did not even know the administrative structure. Could this be done in France, or was a visit to Rome required?
Austin sat in his kitchen, slowly sipping a cup of tea and eating a piece of pastry left over from a guilty purchase the previous day. He had been awake since about five, thinking about many things, including Susan.
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