A place of concealment

You are permitted in time of great danger
to walk with the devil until you have crossed the bridge.
Bulgarian Proverb

Mart stared out the window as the train raced over the rails. He barely noticed the breathtaking scenery outside. The quartet had scoured the train schedules the previous evening until they had found the quickest possible route. It would take just over four and a half hours to reach La Fouly.

Max and Diana huddled together on the seats opposite to Natasha and himself, whispering back and forth. Whatever they were whispering about must be very funny since Diana had laughed several times. She used to laugh at my jokes, Mart thought resentfully.

Mart’s attention was brought back to the present when his seatmate stood. Natasha had been uncharacteristically quiet for most of the journey and had provided no distraction from his jealous thoughts. Now she complained, “I am tired of sitting. I must stretch my legs. I think I will stop in the dining car and get a beverage.”

“I will come with you,” Max offered. “I could stand to stretch my legs as well. Could I bring back anything for either of you? Or do you wish to accompany us?”

Mart and Diana both declined the offer of a drink. As Max and Natasha walked away, Diana checked her ever-present smartphone. Mart watched as Diana sent a couple of texts and then turned his attention back to the scenery. Diana startled him from his dark thoughts when she changed seats to sit beside him. Di smiled at him and laid her hand on his arm. “I know I resisted the idea of you being involved in this investigation, but I have to admit I am glad that you’re here. It reminds me of the adventures we used to have when Trixie dragged us into one mystery after another.”

Mart offered her a weak smile. “Hopefully this adventure won’t end like some of Trixie’s almost did.”

Diana’s smiled faded. “I hope you’re right. We’ve been lucky so far, but I don’t think all of the weird incidents have just been random acts. We need to be on our guard. I have a feeling our dark-haired friend hasn’t given up. I kept an eye out for him at the train station this morning, but I didn’t catch sight of him. He could have slipped by me, but there’s no way he got on the train after it left Paris. This is one of the fast trains, which means there aren’t any stops for him to sneak aboard.”

“Maybe he was just a thug who saw an opportunity to cause mayhem. There’s no reason to suspect that anyone is following us.”

“Maybe, but that’s not what my gut is telling me, Mart.”

“Let’s hope we’re both wrong,” Mart joked, “and are just channeling Trixie with our suspicions about every little incident.”

 “I’m not sure we’re anywhere close to Trixie’s league when it comes to suspecting everyone and everything,” Diana laughed. “In any event, I’m going to take a stroll; I think I could stand to move around for a bit.”

As Diana sauntered off, Mart realized that he was very thirsty. He headed in the opposite direction that Diana had taken. As he crossed into another car, he caught sight of Natasha at the other end of the car speaking with a short, stocky gentleman. Although the man was dressed in a nice suit and Mart couldn’t see his face, something about the man’s demeanor reminded Mart of the groundskeeper he had spotted outside the Emmerichs’ apartment building the morning they had visited the bank. The man’s hair was obscured by the hat he wore. It was tipped low over his forehead, concealing his eyes. At the sound of the door, the man glanced toward Mart. The man tipped his hat to and hastened away. Natasha turned to walk in the opposite direction and temporarily blocked Mart’s view of the man as he disappeared into the adjacent train car.

Natasha beamed a smile at him. “Mart! Did you decide to take a walk after all? You should definitely go to the dining car. They have the most delicious-looking croissants.”

“I thought I would get something to drink after all. Who was that man you were just speaking with? He seemed familiar.”

“I do not know his name,” Natasha shrugged. “He stopped me on my way back to our seats to ask for the time. Unfortunately, I do not have a watch and so was unable to help him. I have never seen him before.”

“I guess I’m mistaken,” Mart made a mental note to mention the man to Diana. “Is Max still in the dining car?”

“Yes, he said he would return soon. He was enjoying his coffee still.”

“I think I’ll head on over and see what’s good.” He smiled. “It’s been a while since breakfast.”

When Mart returned to his seat, Natasha and Max were both there, but Diana was nowhere to be seen.

“Where’s Di?”

“She was not here when I got back. I haven’t seen her,” Natasha replied. “I assume she has gone for some exercise.”

“I’m going to see if I can catch up with her. I just remembered some news from home that my mother sent in her last email. I thought Diana might enjoy hearing it as well.”

Mart passed through several cars before he spied Diana coming toward him. She smiled at him, “Stretching your legs, too?”

“No, I came to find you,” Mart replied. “I think I saw our mysterious moped rider.”

“What! Where?” Diana demanded.

“On my way to the snack car. He had stopped Natasha in one of the cars. I couldn’t get a clear look at him, so I can’t be certain it was our guy. My gut says it is. Natasha said he only asked her for the time, but I think he had plans for more mischief. I don’t know what he was going to do to Natasha, but I’m glad I foiled whatever nefarious plan he had up his sleeve.”

 “It probably was our guy. We need to stay on high alert and we need to keep an eye on Natasha.”

“Yeah, I don’t want to let Mr. Moped near enough to do her any harm,” he agreed.

“That isn’t exactly what I meant. I mean we need to make sure she isn’t in cahoots with him.”

“Di! You can’t be serious. Now I know you really are channeling Trixie!” Mart exclaimed. “He tried to run her over in Paris while you and Max were in the vault! Surely you can’t believe she’s involved with him!”

“You’re right. I had forgotten that she was one of his targets.” Diana pushed her hair back from her forehead. “I guess this whole situation has made me more tense than I realized. If I make a mistake, it might result in you, Max or Natasha being hurt.”

Mart put his arm around Diana’s shoulders. “Don’t be so hard on yourself, Di. You’re not Superwoman, and we’re all big girls and boys. We can take care of ourselves.”

The quartet reached La Fouly early in the afternoon. Mart stopped into a small grocery store to grab a quick snack. He had only eaten a small sandwich and an apple from the snack bar for lunch. The small store reminded him of Mr. Lytell’s store back home, except the man behind the counter was very friendly and engaged him in a conversation while he rang up his purchases. Mart mentioned that they were looking for a chalet that belonged to his friend’s grandfather, who had not used it for some time. When he heard that Mart and his friends were unsure about the exact location of the chalet, the friendly proprietor turned to an elderly man seated at a table that held a chess set.

“Dad, you know every place around these parts. You could probably help this young man out.”

The man harrumphed and peered up at Mart with rheumy eyes. “What did you say the owner’s name is?”

Mart gave him the name and the man nodded. “I know the place. Haven’t seen Klaus in years. Quit coming around after his boy was killed. Rented it out for a while, but I don’t think anyone’s been there in several years. I can tell you how to get there.”

Mart caught up with his traveling companions at the rental company. He told them about his luck in getting directions to the chalet.

“Marvelous!” Max turned to Diana. “You see, he was a tremendous help. It is a good thing we let him join us.”

“Oh, may I see them?” Natasha requested. “I am very good with directions.”

Mart handed her the paper on which he had written the directions. Natasha sat in one of the chairs in the seating area and studied them while the others waited their turn to rent a car.

Finally, Max secured a rental car and the foursome set out to find the chalet. Diana, who was sitting in the front seat by Max, turned to Natasha. “Could you pass those directions up here, please?”

Natasha raised her hand to her mouth as her face turned red. “Oh dear! I am such a ninny! I put the paper down beside me when I was finished looking at it. By the time we were ready to go, I forgot all about it! I left the directions lying in a chair in the rental place.”

Diana frowned at her, but Mart hastened to reassure her. “Don’t worry, Di. You know I have a knack for remembering things I’ve read. Plus I have the bonus of having written them in the first place. I think I can recall enough to get us there.”

With Mart providing directions as best he could remember, and Natasha adding what she recalled as well, it took over an hour before the group found the chalet. As they climbed out of the car, Mart looked around the area.

Nestled into the mountainside was an inviting-looking chalet made of timber and stone. The dark timber of the upper story contrasted beautifully with the grey stone of the lower half of the house. A thick layer of snow encrusted the sloping roof and the overhanging eaves sheltered the wooden balcony that stretched across the front of the house. Trees surrounded the house and the mountains rose majestically behind the chalet. An open field covered in inches of snow lay to the side and slightly behind the tree line. Mart shuddered when he noticed the thick overhang of snow on the cliffs above the field. Even though it was still ski season, the warming temperatures were beginning to melt some of the snow. He knew that overhang of snow could spell trouble.

He felt Diana approach him. She squeezed his hand in a comforting gesture. “Don’t worry. We won’t have any reason to cross it.”

Mart acknowledged both her words and her support with a quick hug. He gazed at Diana, who looked lovely in her warm winter gear. The light purple scarf she wore wrapped around her neck matched her lavender gloves and warm knit cap. Trying to lighten the mood, Mart quipped, “Did anyone ever tell you that purple is your color?” He offered her his arm, “Shall we go find the treasure that awaits us where ‘x’ marks the spot?”