Page 55 of Secrets Beneath a Riviera Sky
‘The test showed that Zazz was not his granddaughter,’ Theo said. ‘Which made him wonder who your father was. He knew how close Agnes and I had been before the wedding so of course he had no difficulty in putting two and two together and realising the clear answer is me. I am your father and Zazz’s grandfather. And I have to say, although it is a huge shock, I couldn’t be happier.’
A stunned silence greeted his words.
‘Well, I think it’s great news,’ Zazz said, placing the coffees on the table and breaking the silence. ‘Cos, you’ve always been in our lives and you’re just the perfect grandfather I’ve always dreamt of having. No longer Uncle Theo but Grandad.’
Francine reached for a coffee as she sat down. ‘Did you really have no idea?’
‘Non, I’m still coming to terms with the news,’ Agnes said. ‘But, like Theo, I couldn’t be happier. The fact that Oscar is not a blood relation to you and Zazz but that Theo is…’ She smiled. ‘It’s wonderful news.’
‘I can’t quite believe this,’ Francine said. ‘Have you two been having an affair for over fifty years?’
‘Sadly no,’ Theo said, smiling. ‘But we have been special friends. I have loved your mother for all of that time. You are the result of the one night, before Agnes married Oscar, that we have spent together. And like everyone else we assumed that you were a honeymoon baby.’
‘The other thing it changes,’ Agnes said, speaking into the silence that had fallen. ‘I’m afraid you are now no longer in the will. You will receive nothing.’
‘I wanted to give it to you anyway,’ Francine said. ‘To make up for,’ she shrugged, ‘you know, the past.’
Agnes smiled. ‘I wouldn’t have taken it but thank you. I’m sorry you won’t get anything directly from Oscar but I promise I will make sure you will receive something in the future.’
‘You will still get something though, won’t you?’ Francine said.
‘The small legal share that a wife gets when her husband dies.’ Agnes nodded. ‘French inheritance is strange like that, unless the wife is specifically mentioned, everything goes to the children. There is no special provision made for a spouse other than the right to live in the house until death, or if the house is sold, one quarter of the estate, the remaining three quarters goes to the children. In this case Serge Cortez.’
‘I’m so sorry that not knowing the truth has caused so many problems down the years,’ Agnes said. ‘And it’s all my fault for marrying the wrong brother. I’ve always loved Theo. I wish I had been allowed to marry him all those years ago.’
Theo squeezed her hand. ‘We will be together now for the rest of our days. Perhaps even married?’ He asked as he leant in and gave her a kiss.
* * *
After Agnes and Theo had left and Zazz had gone to the library, Francine realised she was trembling with the shock of the bombshell that her maman and Theo had just dropped. She picked up her phone, praying that Edwin would be free and able to answer. Relief flooded through her body as she heard his voice.
She stumbled over her words, almost choking as she got them out. ‘You’re not going to believe this,’ she took a deep breath. ‘Oscar left Maman a letter – with an illegal DNA test he had done in England. He used a strand of Zazz’s hair, of all things.’ Francine bit her bottom lip as she paused to try and calm down. ‘It seems you were right. Maman and Theo are a lot closer than I’ve ever realised. Oscar isn’t, wasn’t, my father. But it turns out that Theo is.’
There was a two or three second silence before Edwin spoke. ‘Well, that’s unexpected news but good on the whole, I think? You’ve always hated Oscar but you’ve always loved Theo. And better to have him as a blood relative than Oscar?’
‘Oscar clearly jumped at the chance to take advantage of Zazz’s unexpected appearance,’ Francine said. ‘I knew Zazz sneaking down here to see Oscar would end in tears with him taking advantage of her presence.’
‘But surely they’re tears of happiness now,’ Edwin protested. ‘You should be grateful to her. It was her arrival in Oscar’s life that enabled the truth to come tumbling out. You’ve gained a man you know and love as a father. I know you’ve lost an inheritance, but I don’t think you really wanted anything from Oscar, did you?’
Francine shook her head. ‘No. I simply wanted to make sure Maman finally got some money out of him.’
‘I think Agnes has got everything she ever wanted now,’ Edwin said.
‘I’m glad it has finally worked out for them to be together,’ Francine said. ‘They’ve both suffered through Oscar’s actions.’ She paused. ‘I suppose I should think about coming home. I miss you and there is no need for me to stay now. Maman doesn’t really need me now, besides she’s got Theo ready to help her if she needs help.’
‘I was going to surprise you tomorrow,’ Edwin said. ‘I’m booked on a morning flight. I should be with you at about two o’clock.’
‘Oh, brilliant news. Shall I ask Theo to meet you?’
‘No, I don’t want to bother him. I’ll get the tram into Nice and then pick up a train. See you tomorrow. Love you, Frankie.’
‘Love you too,’ Francine said smiling at the nickname as she ended the call.
46
The news the next day that the buyers had signed and paid the notaire all the agreed monies, including an extra sum for a very early completion date, was received with relief by everyone. Agnes though, was by far the happiest. Soon her life would be totally free of Oscar and his immoral ways that had somehow managed to weave a tangled web around her life for so long and kept her sister away from her. Agnes and Denice spoke to each other every day now and Agnes was loving having her sister back in her life. Denice was a real breath of fresh air and never held back from expressing her feelings about Oscar, ‘the evil bastard’, to quote her words.
Agnes knew Theo was counting down the days to when his brother’s all-entangling threads in their lives would finally be cut and they could move forward together. She also realised that when Francine and Edwin returned to their everyday life in the UK, they were expecting her to go with them. At least Francine was. Edwin, Agnes suspected, was more in tune with the way things were between her and Theo now that she was free.
