“Why did you want to see him?”
“My abduction was scheduled to take place in two days’ time, and I was having second thoughts. We worked out a simple way for me to signal him that I wanted to go ahead with it.”
“The white hat you purchased at Louis Vuitton.”
She smiled but said nothing.
“Why the withdrawal from the ATM?”
“I was running low on cash, if you must know. Silly me, but I ended up being a few minutes late for my own abduction.”
“The kidnappers were Sentry operatives?”
She nodded.
“How did it go down?”
“There were no fireworks, if that’s what you’re asking. I simply got out of my car and got into theirs. Then they rolled my car into the ravine and we left.”
“The sandal you left behind on the beach was a lovely touch.”
“You think so? I was worried it was a tad over the top.”
“I suppose there was a motor yacht waiting offshore.”
“It was on the small side because we had to crew it ourselves. We were at sea for a couple of days. Then we put in at a marina along the Côte d’Azur and settled into a villa in the Luberon.”
“They locked you in a cellar, did they? Bread-and-water rations?”
“Hardly. But I did keep a low profile. After all, I had just vanished without a trace.”
“You must have been surprised by the fact that it never became public.”
“Not really. You see, I happen to be married to one of the world’s most secretive men. We were, however, quite startled when Edward blurted out your name during our first phone call.”
“You weren’t alone.”
“I must say, you were a worthy opponent.”
“And you were quite the actress. That was an impressive performance you gave on the telephone. You clearly missed your calling.”
“I was in the Dramatic Club at Cambridge.”
“Congratulations,” said Gabriel.
She frowned at him over her tea. “Bitterness doesn’t suit you, Mr. Allon.”
“Where were you that night?”
“The night of our phone call? Still in the Luberon. I came to Switzerland a few days after Peter wired the money to that bank in Cyprus.”
“I suppose he’s done business with CyproBank in the past.”
“You would have to ask Peter about that.”
“What was his cut?”
“Twenty-five million.”
