Page 49 of One Summer in Monte Carlo
‘I need your help, Nanette,’ Zac’s voice interrupted. ‘I want you to go toPole Positiontomorrow morning, meet someone and put a package in the safe for me.’
‘What? You ring at nearly midnight to ask me to do something trivial that your skipper can do?’ Nanette said incredulously.
‘No, he can’t,’ Zac answered quietly. ‘You’re the only person apart from me who knows a) where the safe is and b) the combination to it.’
‘You mean the secret, personal one, in your cabin?’ Nanette asked as realisation dawned. ‘You’ve never changed the code?’
‘No.’
‘Can’t the skipper simply put whatever it is in the main safe until you get back?’
Zac sighed audibly down the phone. ‘No. If there hadn’t been a problem with testing tyres, I’d have been there to deal with it myself. As it is, I’m unlikely to get back for some time. I’d rather it was totally out of sight. Five minutes, Nanette, that’s all it will take.’
‘You’re not asking me to help with something illegal, are you?’ Nanette demanded.
‘Definitely not,’ Zac replied instantly. ‘If it makes you feel any better, I can tell you it’s something to do with Vacances au Soleil.’
Nanette took a deep breath. ‘OK,’ she said reluctantly. ‘I’ll do it tomorrow.’
‘Thank you. Eleven o’clock on board. You do remember the combination?’
‘Yes.’ As the combination was made up of her birthday date backwards, it was one she was hardly likely to forget.
‘Thanks, Nanette. I owe you one.’
‘If my returning memory is right, Zac, you owe me more than that,’ Nanette said. ‘When you get back, we need to have a serious talk. Goodnight.’
Quickly, before Zac could start to question her, Nanette replaced the receiver. She was determined to challenge Zac face to face, to see his reaction to her accusation. Now was not the time.
Tomorrow she would go to the yacht and do as Zac asked – but this was positively the last time ever she would do anything Zac Ewart asked her to do.
32
The next morning, Nanette took the twins to school before returning to the apartment and making Patsy some breakfast.
‘You still look a bit peaky,’ Nanette said. ‘How do you feel?’
‘OK, thanks, and I’m really sorry for spoiling your evening,’ Patsy said.
‘You worried me, but you didn’t spoil the evening. I had a lovely birthday.’
‘Did I hear the phone last night, after Jean-Claude had left?’
Nanette nodded. ‘Zac.’
Patsy looked at her. ‘And?’
‘I’m going to collect something and put it in his personal safe on boardPole Positionthis morning,’ Nanette answered slowly, knowing that Patsy wouldn’t like it. ‘Don’t stress about it,’ she added. ‘It’s not good for you in your condition. It’ll only take five minutes mid-morning and then I intend to forget all about Zac Ewart until he gets back from Indianapolis next month.’
‘Do you know what it is you’re collecting?’ Patsy asked.
‘No. It can’t be anything too large because the safe isn’t that big,’ she answered.
‘Have you told JC or Mathieu what you’re doing?’
Nanette shook her head. ‘No. Mathieu has already left and I’m not expecting to see JC until this afternoon. I’ll tell him then. What are you doing?’ Nanette looked at her sister, horrified, as Patsy went to throw off the duvet.
‘I’m getting up and coming with you, of course,’ Patsy said.
