Page 41 of One Summer in Monte Carlo
Nanette smiled weakly and mouthed the word ‘sorry’ in his direction, before moving back on to the narrow pavement, and allowing the man and his car to disappear down the ramp into the depths of the underground garage.
Shaking, she leant against the wall. It was several minutes before she felt strong enough to walk the few remaining metres to the rehearsal-hall entrance.
It seemed only a matter of minutes before the twins ran out to join her.
‘Hi, Netty,’ Olivia said, taking hold of her hand as they began to walk, while Pierre ambled along in front.
‘I didn’t forget a single line tonight,’ Pierre said proudly.
‘Well done, you,’ Nanette said, struggling to talk normally. ‘And you, Olivia? How did you get on?’
‘OK,’ Olivia said, turning to look at her. ‘I’ve only got three or four lines to say anyway. Are you all right, Netty? You don’t look very well.’
‘I’ve got a bit of a headache,’ was the only thing Nanette could think of saying. ‘Come on, let’s go home. Shall we have some hot chocolate when we get back?’
Once Nanette had seen the twins into bed, she went through to the balcony and looked down at the boats bobbing around on their moorings. Lights were shining out from the main cabin onPole Position,and as Nanette watched, a crew member came out on deck to check the positioning of the fenders. Even though Zac wasn’t on board, the crew knew to keep everything in tiptop shape. Zac had been known to arrive unexpectedly even when on a tight schedule between races.
She stared down at the yacht, wondering why her memory had suddenly started to throw pictures of the past at her. Zac’s proposition? Or maybe driving on Sunday had been the trigger? Whatever the catalyst, there appeared to be no stopping the flood of painful reminiscences that were unexpectedly crowding into her mind.
Large droplets of rain blew in unexpectedly under the shelter of the balcony and Nanette grimaced to herself. She gripped the balcony rail tightly as another vignette of that dreadful evening three years ago flooded into her consciousness…
It was raining heavily as they left the restaurant. By the time they were on the autoroute and heading for the first tunnel, it was torrential and Nanette expected Zac to decree leaving at the next exit. Instead, he simply pressed the play button on the radio and the nostalgic words of ‘Yesterday’ struggled to be heard against the noise of the storm and the rhythmic sweep, sweep of windscreen wipers rendered useless by the force of the rain.
It was calmer in the tunnel, but a few metres after they’d they exited it, Nanette saw the huge sheet of water that lay in front of them a split second before the car rose up, aquaplaning out of control across this unexpected lake before narrowly missing another car and hitting the central reservation with a bang and coming to rest in a tangled wreck.
Drifting in and out of consciousness, Nanette had been dimly aware of the nauseous smell of petrol and of Zac dragging her out and away from the wreckage.
‘I’ve phoned for help. Shouldn’t be too long,’ Zac assured her as she lay on the verge.
The paramedics were kind and gently placed her on a stretcher. As they lifted her into the ambulance, Zac leant over her and whispered something.
Now, three years later, Nanette finally remembered what those words had been.
‘Nanette, I’m so sorry. Please forgive me.’
27
Nanette jumped as Jean-Claude appeared unexpectedly on the balcony. Lost in her memories, she hadn’t heard the apartment door opening.
‘Is everything all right? You look very pale,’ Jean-Claude said, holding her tight as he gave her a greeting kiss on the cheeks.
‘I’m fine, thank you. I was trying to work out what I’m going to say to Zac when he returns.’
‘How about a straightforward, No, thank you. I don’t want the job with Vacances au Soleil.’
‘It’s no longer as simple as that, JC,’ Nanette said quietly. ‘I also need to talk to him about…’ she took a deep breath before continuing, ‘about the things I’ve started to remember.’
‘Your memory of the accident it is returning?’
Nanette nodded. ‘Something triggered it off tonight as I walked past Zac’s old apartment,’ she said, beginning to shiver. ‘Then when I came out here…’ Her voice trailed away as she gestured towardsPole Position.
Jean-Claude pulled her back into his arms protectively. ‘These memories have clearly upset you. Do you wish to tell me?’
Standing in the safe circle of his arms, looking up at his concerned face, Nanette wished she could confide in him. Ask his advice about how to approach things with Zac, but slowly she shook her head. ‘I think I must talk to Zac first – see if my memory is true or whether it’s playing tricks on me.’
Jean-Claude kissed her gently. ‘D’accord. You tell me when you’re ready to talk about the past. Tonight, we’ll talk about us and perhaps the future.’
Nanette smiled at him gratefully as he took her hand and together they left the balcony. She moved away from him to close the balcony doors and draw the heavy curtains across, but was startled by a loud ring on the apartment doorbell.
