Mike took off his jacket and tie, rolled up his sleeves, and went back to his computer when he got home. He checked the clippings Robert Richmond had sent him and read them again—everything about the kidnapping and murder, with all the grim details. In hindsight, it was easier to see the mistakes that the French police had made, withholding the ransom for too long and only doling it out partially, which infuriated the kidnappers and then caused them to panic, afraid of their bosses perhaps. He dug back further then, into articles about her successful internet business. It had been hugely innovative. He saw pictures of her with Matthieu, and read about him too. His name was globally known, with his luxury empire that had earned him a fortune. Mike found one article that fascinated him about Matthieu Pasquier’s history. He was an attractive man, but he had a stern, somewhat forbidding look about him. He seemed like an unlikely partner for Theo, being so much older than she was. But as Mike read more about him, he was intrigued by his background.

Matthieu’s family had been among the most important industrialists in France at the beginning of the twentieth century. They owned most of the steel business in France, and were the leading members of the haute bourgeoisie. They had been immeasurably wealthy and led a very grand life, and they had profited heavily by supplying the country’s need for steel during the First World War in 1914. The Second World War had been equally profitable for them and they had become the most visible collaborators with the Nazis when they occupied France in 1940. They had even advised the Germans on how to make their factories in Germany more efficient. Their alliance with the Germans had filled the Pasquier coffers.

Matthieu’s grandfather had been an outspoken supporter of the Nazis, and the family had continued to live extremely well during the war, in great luxury, while others suffered. His wife had been a famous couturière, a rival of Coco Chanel, with the same political views and sympathy for the Nazis. For German sympathizers, it had been a glittering time in Paris.

At the end of the war, the family had been severely punished for collaborating with the Germans and opening their doors and factories to them. Their entire fortune was taken by the French government as restitution. Their factories became government-owned. All of their holdings and possessions were confiscated. Matthieu’s grandfather had committed suicide when they lost everything. The only thing left to them was their château outside Paris, and a small apartment in the city. Everything else was gone. Matthieu’s grandmother died of tuberculosis not long after her husband’s suicide. His father had been a wastrel, a playboy, and a gambler, and had sold the family château to pay for his gambling debts. He had died, shot by the husband of one of his mistresses.