He and Theo had both been through the wars since they’d last seen each other, and it took him a few hours to calm down. But the warmth and pleasure of being with her eventually relaxed him and allowed him to put distance between himself and the complex operations he was responsible for. On her side, there had been no news of the kidnappers for several days.

They went to church together on Christmas Eve, and had dinner at the Ritz before that. Her four plainclothes DGSE agents were at a nearby table. Knowing the possibilities and risks for her in Paris, Mike had made arrangements and filled out the appropriate paperwork to travel with his own guns this time. He wanted to be prepared if anything happened like at the château. She was surprised when she hugged him when he arrived and discovered that he was wearing two guns, one at his waist and the other in a holster under his arm. He wore them every day in New York.

“Is that for me?” she asked him with a look of surprise, and he nodded.

“I promise not to sleep with them.” He smiled.

“You’d better not.” She was dreading another encounter with the kidnappers and hoped it never happened. The memory of the brains flying out of the kidnapper’s head when the bullet hit him was still a vivid one.

Their lovemaking was especially tender this time and just as intense. He was so grateful she was alive and that the attempt to kidnap her had been foiled.

He had checked in with Robert Richmond when he got to Paris, but Robert had no news for them either. They were still on the lookout for the kidnapper who had fled to England. And both the DGSE and the DGSI were searching for the one in France. They weren’t sure if he had successfully fled the country, or if he was concealed somewhere in France. No one had provided any further information, yet. Mike and Theo did their best not to think about it, and to enjoy the time they had, but it was ever present on their minds.