Cast An Evil Eye Read Free Page A

whistle from the coffee pot signaled that the coffee was ready. Hildy poured some into three cups and brought them over to the table. They sat in silence, sipping and letting the warmth comfort them, each wondering if they weren’t being foolish to worry. After all, what could Greg, Jr. or Lilli possibly do that wouldn’t catch up with them? They were sure neither of them would want to do anything that would send them back to jail. Twenty-one years should be quite enough for anyone, they felt.
    They sat there sipping and thinking—thinking and sipping.

CHAPTER IV  
    D awn was beginning to peek through the windows of the Chateau as the sun poked its head above the ocean. Seagulls were already soaring overhead, chatting to each other, then diving into the choppy waters for their early morning meal.
    Outwardly, everything seemed to be perfectly in tune. But an ominous sense of oppression hung over the Chateau in Biarritz.
    Hildy, Cammie, and Courtney knew it was useless to try and get any more sleep, so each returned to her bedroom to get dressed for the day.
    Jay was already up. “Good morning, honey,” he greeted Hildy. “We have plans to make.” He looked puzzled. “Where did you go in the middle of the night?”
    “You were awake? I didn’t want to disturb you, so I went down to the kitchen. I couldn’t sleep. I wasn’t there long before Cammie joined me. Then Courtney came down. She couldn’t sleep either.” She turned to the closet to pick out the clothes she would wear for the day, but as she stood there her shoulders began to shake, and she couldn’t control the sobs. She turned back to Jay in tears. “I thought this hideous nightmare was over and done with. I can’t believe Gregory and Lilli are out of prison. Is there no end to the trouble Gregory Wilcox and his son started so many years ago?” She threw her arms up in a gesture of despair. “I don’t think we’ll ever be free of them!”
    Jay walked over and put his arms around her. “Honey, I have an idea. Why don’t we all go to New York and attend Courtney’s musical? That will get us out of France for a while. We can all stay at our house in Scarsdale. We’ll feel safer once we’re back in the States. Surely Gregory and Lilli won’t follow us there. We can think about our next move later. One step at a time.”
    Hildy breathed a sigh of relief. “How soon can we leave?”
    “The sooner, the better,” Jay vowed. He looked at his watch. “Let’s see. It’s eight o’clock now. It’s a two-hour flight to Paris. As soon as we have breakfast I’ll have Zack warm up the engines, ready to take off. We’ll get packed and be on our way. If we leave by ten we can make the two o’clock plane to New York.” He walked over to the door. “You take your shower and get dressed. I’ll tell the others. I’m sure they’ll be delighted.”
    Zack was just coming out of his room as Jay entered the hallway.
    “Good morning, Zack,” Jay greeted him. “I’m glad I ran into you before we join the others. I’ve just suggested to Hildy that we all go to New York to attend Courtney’s musical. We should get as far away from here as we can. What do you think?”
    Zack nodded. “I was going to suggest the same thing at breakfast,” he agreed. “Let’s see—there’s you and Hildy, Cammie and Jeremy, Fran, Courtney, myself—” he paused—“and I wouldn’t dream of leaving Andre here in all this danger. We should take him with us.”
    “I wouldn’t leave without him!” Jay agreed.
    “That’s eight people,” Zack figured. “I’ll call and make the reservations. We should leave as soon as possible.”
    “I’ll break the news to the others,” Jay called back as he walked down the hall. “Come down to breakfast as soon as you can. The sooner we’re on that plane, the easier we’ll all feel.”
    The reservations were made for an afternoon flight in First Class. They ate a hearty breakfast, then scurried around packing, ready to