“There are all these factions, all these groups of disaffected people, who are here because they had to flee their homelands. They don’t love France. They hate the West. The irony is that they enjoy freedom and safety here, but they don’t approve of a culture that celebrates pleasure, especially sex. They see one of those sexy billboards advertising bras in the Métro—well, they don’t even let their women out of the house unless they’re covered head to toe—and they conclude France is deeply corrupt.”

“And then there’s the wine, which is a big part of French culture,” said Sid, uncorking another bottle.

“Right,” agreed Richard. “They don’t drink alcohol.”

“Now, that’s what I call a sin, refusing to drink wine in France,” said Sue.

“So true,” agreed Richard, smiling. “But what I’m trying to get to is the fact that terrorists are a dime a dozen here. There’s more plots afoot than you can imagine. Every week it seems the antiterrorism brigade uncovers another scheme to blow up the Eiffel Tower or to assassinate some government official. They even have plots against other terrorist groups. It’s crazy.”

“It sounds like the Wild West,” said Rachel.

“It is,” said Richard, “and if you’re smart, you’ll keep your heads down.” There were a few chuckles, and Richard continued, “Be careful, watch your step, and don’t go looking for trouble. That’s my advice.”

“Good advice, anytime,” said Bill, giving Lucy a look.

After they had consumed several bottles of wine, it was generally agreed that it was too much trouble to cook dinner, so they decided to go to Loulou’s bistro on the corner. They enjoyed a leisurely meal—service was never fast there—and it was after eleven when they finally left. They were walking down the narrow cobbled street, lit by lanterns that hung from the buildings, when Lucy got a call from Elizabeth.

“What’s up?” asked Lucy, falling a step or two behind the group.

“I’m so scared.”

Lucy could hear the fear in her daughter’s voice, and her stomach did a somersault. “What’s wrong?”

Bill heard her anxious tone and left the group, joining her on the sidewalk to listen to the call.

“Adil and Malik tried to break in.”

“Are you okay?” Bill demanded after seizing the smartphone and holding it so they could both listen.