“I think there’s nothing for it but to drown our troubles,” said Lucy.

Sue was never one to refuse a tipple. “Open a bottle, Sid, will you?”

He was just pouring when Pam and Ted arrived, along with Richard. “I must have heard that cork pop,” said Ted, making a joke.

Nobody laughed, but Sid offered to open another bottle. “We’ve got plenty, and there’s more at the Monoprix.”

“Do I sense a mood of gloom?” asked Pam. “What’s going on?”

“The lawyers weren’t very helpful, and Bob stepped in dog doo,” said Sue.

“Quelle catastrophe,” said Pam. “I heard a woman say that into her cell phone.”

“Sounds about right,” said Bob, drinking deeply from his glass of vin rouge.

“Ted told me about your daughter’s roommate,” said Richard, speaking to Lucy. “I’m very sorry.”

“It’s very upsetting. I’m so worried about her,” replied Lucy, touched by his concern. “I’m afraid she’s in danger. Two deaths, and the police don’t seem to be making any progress.”

“Do you think they’re connected?” asked Richard.

“They must be, don’t you think? It can’t be a coincidence that two people we know were murdered, but I can’t figure out what any of it has to do with us. We’re innocent, but I think we must have unwittingly stumbled onto something.”

“Lucy’s right,” said Bob. “The authorities seem to think we’re involved, that, at the very least, we know something. That’s why they’re detaining us. It’s so frustrating.”

“My fear is that the bad guys also think we know something,” said Bill.

“We know nothing,” said Sid in a fake German accent.

“I think you’re right to worry,” said Richard as Sid refilled his glass. “There’s a lot more going on underground in Paris, and I’m not talking about the sewers and the catacombs. It’s easy to make a wrong step. . . .”

“You can say that again,” said Bob. The wine seemed to be taking effect, brightening his spirits.

“I’m serious,” said Richard. “The French are in a very uncomfortable situation right now because the Arab or Muslim population, whatever you want to call them, is booming. France has always been popular with émigrés—think of all the Russians and Poles who’ve come here through the years—but the Arabs are different. They want to preserve their culture, and they’re not interested in assimilating. They’re mostly interested in getting back to where they came from.