“I have ever since my husband’s death,” she said sadly. “I suppose I’ll never have the freedom I had before.” Her life had changed radically. But the daily tension and terror would no longer be there, knowing that they were after her to settle an old score that should never have been held against her, or her husband, and surely not their son. She had paid a terrible price for what had happened, a price that could never be reversed.

“I hope you can live in peace now,” Guy said sincerely. She wasn’t too old to marry again and have other children, but he didn’t know if she would. Theo had already decided that having another child would have been a betrayal of Axel, and she would live in constant terror that another child could be taken from her, or killed simply because of what she had. She couldn’t imagine living with that kind of fear as a constant presence in her life, and she didn’t want to try. She knew she couldn’t endure it again. Axel had been her bright shining star, and the only one she wanted now, in her heart forever. But at least her life would be relatively normal again, with the four surviving kidnappers in custody. Until the next time, or the next threat, if it ever happened. It would always be a possibility. She had to learn to live with that now. She was almost used to it, but not quite. And maybe she never would be, having bodyguards around her for the rest of her life.

And the DGSE and MI6 had passed a serious message, both through underground channels and with an official warning to his government connections, warning Dmitri Aleksandr that if he pursued the Pasquier matter again, he would be prevented from entering England and France in the future, which he did not want. So it was over.

A week later, Guy contacted her again, by phone this time.

“I thought you’d be interested in knowing that Pierre de Vaumont has turned up.” She wasn’t surprised and was sure he was off taking advantage of someone, making a deal and a commission at someone’s expense. He was a lowlife and would always find a way to make use of someone.

“Where was he?” She was sure he would say Dubai, or Morocco, or someplace where deals were made and rich people congregated.