A ROMANCE IN CANNES

Chapter 19

Sitting at my desk, I look up at each new person who comes by, hoping to see who I want to talk to. After half an hour, I finally saw her.

I got up from my chair and walked over to her.

“Mariana, can you follow me into my office, please?”

I don’t give her time to answer. Once in the office, I motioned for her to sit down and closed the door behind us. If she was nervous about being summoned, she didn’t show it at all. She sits up straight, head held high and, of course, with this icy look that seemed to be reserved for me. Truth be told, she had no reason to worry, I just wanted to chat with her for a while.

“Everything going well for you, Mariana?”

My question unsettled her for a moment, but it was quick. She resumes her watchdog attitude. I take this opportunity to clarify my point:

“We haven’t had time to sit down and chat together. I wanted to know how things were going for you. If you have any comments for me about the service…”

“It’s okay, thank you,” she cut me off.

“Nothing to tell me? I like to have good communication with my teams, so if you have something to tell me, I want you to know that my door will always be open.”

“Miss Allard, if you come straight to the point rather than beating around the bush?”

Her response surprised me but I tried to conceal it as much as possible.

“When I told you that I would like us to have a relationship of trust, I meant it. Now, since you seem to enjoy candour, I’ll cut to the chase. We have a problem, Mariana. Several of our guests have complained of theft of valuables from their rooms in recent weeks. I’m talking to you today because the director is very tense about this, and I guess you can easily understand why.

She nodded, I continued.

“Mr Lecailler fears that the thefts will be repeated and, worse than that, that our guests will learn about it. A few days before the Festival, I let you imagine the scandal that this could produce. I, therefore, ask you to be particularly vigilant when you’re on the upper floors. If you see anything that seems abnormal to you, I want you to come and tell me about it immediately. Is that clear?”

Instead of answering my question, she says in a haughty tone that makes me want to pull out her blond locks.

“I assume you’re going to have this conversation with all the housekeepers?”

“I will, but I wanted to start with you.”

“And can I ask you why?”

“Because most of the thefts took place in rooms assigned to you. I imagine you might have some information on this.”

“Are you implying that I’m the thief?” She braced herself.

“Absolutely not. But I thought you might have seen something which didn’t seem important to you at the time, but which now, because of the information I have just given you, would seem suspicious to you.”

She didn’t take a second to think and declared immediately.

“No, I have nothing to say.”

“Well, then, I’m not going to keep you any longer.”

She stood up, straight as justice, and smoothed the bottom of her skirt. As she was about to go through the door, it swung open.

“Oh, sorry!” apologised Georges, seeing that he had narrowly missed knocking out the housekeeper.

“Hello, Chef,” Mariana simpered. “We often see you around these days.”

She then slips away as gracefully as a cat. Georges gave her a smile that I described as silly. He hadn’t understood the implication, of course.

“Have you ever been taught that you should knock before entering when a door is closed?”

“It’s okay, I knew you were with her. Besides, I come for work anyway.”

“And that gives you the right to walk into my office like it’s yours?”

“You love that I come to annoy you,” he replies with a bright smile which, I admit, softens my mood a little.

Georges hadn’t lied, he was here to talk about work. We had a client who had requested a full buffet in their room for their arrival, with very specific requests. Apparently, he wanted to surprise his beauty with a gargantuan dinner. I wondered, given the quantity of food ordered, if the young lady had an ogre’s appetite. Georges, who had already had the opportunity to meet these guests, confirmed to me that she was as thick as cigarette paper, which meant that most prepared meals would end up in the trash. But, apparently, the client was used to strange requests. And had little consideration for the work to be done to satisfy him. Money doesn’t always buy education, you have to believe it.

“When are we going to have a drink together?” Georges asked.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. Look, Mariana is already hinting that you come to see me often. There’s no need to add to the gossip mill.”

“Nothing prevents us from being friends. And friends go out together. Who cares what Mariana thinks. And, if you ask me, she’s just jealous that you blew her chances at the general housekeeper position.”

“Did she apply internally?”

“Yes. And, believe me, she got it bad when she found out she had failed. You could be the nicest girl on earth and she would still blame you.”

“So you’re implying I’m not the nicest?” I joked.

“You can be as tough as cowhide when you want.”

“Oh, thank you, Chef, this compliment goes straight to my heart,” I smirked, putting a hand on my chest.

“You’re welcome. Well, I’ll let you work, but reconsider my proposal. You, me and mojitos. Do you still like mojitos?”

I nodded. But I didn’t admit that it seemed to me to be a very bad idea. Mojitos wouldn’t help me keep my thoughts straight, and I felt like they had to be when I was around him.

A little later, as I walked around the hotel lobby, someone called out to me.

“Miss Oliver!”

I turned to an alcove where there was a small seating area. There were several in this space, and some customers liked to have a drink there in the afternoon. Often, elderly people who feasted on the incessant comings and goings. The place was indeed perfect, as long as you like to watch the crowd. Almost everyone had to pass through here, to enter or leave the hotel, or to go to a restaurant. This is also why I come here several times a day, to check that everything is in order. The lobby was the guest’s first impression of the establishment when arriving, and the last when leaving, everything had to be perfect.

The person who called me was Mr Schmidt. He was comfortably sitting at the back of his sofa, a cup of tea in front of him and a copy of The Independent on the corner of the table. He was alone.

“Hello, Mr Schmidt, what can I do for you?”

“You might agree to have tea with me.”

“You know I can’t do that. I’m on duty.”

“Are you the general housekeeper, Miss Danielle?”

“Yes, sir.”

“So if a guest asks you to sit down with them for a few minutes to talk to you about their stay at the hotel, are you still allowed to?”

“Yes, of course.”

“So sit down. I need to talk to you.”

I complied. Indeed, it was my role to respond to customer requests, if it concerned their stay.

“Don’t you think you could drink some tea?” he asked. “I don’t want you to become dehydrated while I’m talking to you.”

I smiled at his insistence, and he did the same.

“To be honest, I’m not a big fan of tea, Mr Schmidt.”

“Ah! I see, a girl rolling in the cafe! Is that it?”

“Among others. But my drug of choice is still chocolate,” I joked.

I don’t usually talk about my personal life with clients, but I found Mr Schmidt touching. He reminded me of my grandfather, even though they didn’t have much in common. I couldn’t imagine Papet sipping rare tea in the lobby of a grand hotel. He’s more pastis at the bar of the small village pub.

“Now, Miss Danielle,” he began. “You know that I have been here for several weeks and that when you stay in a hotel for a long period, you gradually learn how it works. When you have as much free time as I do, you also have the opportunity to observe both guests and employees. And then, over time, we even come to be part of the decor. No one pays any attention to the grandfather who drinks his tea every afternoon on the terrace or in the lobby.”

I didn’t know where he was coming from, but I listened to him with an attentive ear.

“I heard rumours,” he told me, “noises from the corridor, more and more insistent. I know there have been thefts in the hotel.”

At these words, a feeling of unease came over me. If he knew, that meant the information had leaked. And besides him, who else? There was no point in denying it, but at least I had to show him that we took the problem seriously.

“I can assure you, Mr Schmidt, that these are isolated acts. We’ll find the culprit. If you have valuables in your room, I can only encourage you to put them in your safe. Also, note that the one at the reception is at your disposal if you wish to take advantage of it.”

“Oh, my dear! I don’t worry about my things. I’m not sure what would be of interest to thieves in my belongings. I’m more worried about you. I suspect that you must keep an eye on your staff and that the director must not spare you either.”

His reasoning was sharp. However, I kept this reflection to myself; in front of the client, we always had to show that we were a solid team.

“The director and I take the matter very seriously, you can be reassured.”

“If there’s anything I can do for you, Miss Danielle, please don’t hesitate to ask me. As I just told you, I’m here every day, and nobody pays attention to me. If you need a hand, I’m your man,” he added with a wink.

“That’s very kind of you, I’ll remember that.”

A man approached us and asked if he could borrow Mr Schmidt’s newspaper. Mr Schmidt handed it to him, and I took advantage of the interruption to get up and make it understood that I had to leave.

With his attention refocused on me, Mr Schmidt announced:

“Good! Now go tell the director that I’ll need to talk with him. I’ve decided to extend my stay at Western Palace, and I want to arrange it directly with him.”

The reservations manager could have handled this very well, but I knew in advance that Mr Lecailler would happen to be happy to come and take care of it himself. Anyway, the guest had asked for the manager and, if possible, we had to try to satisfy him at all costs. So I made myself Mr Schmidt’s messenger with great pleasure, only too happy to have to disturb my superior for some good news this time.