Opposing Forces (15 page)

“So tell me more about home?” Philippe asked.  He was curious to know what lay behind those wonderful soft brown eyes.

Sabina was fast finding out that trying to keep your background hidden was rather tricky without actually lying.  “My father is in politics and is about as remote and devoid of human emotion as they come.  My brother is pretty much the same.  It’s only my younger brother Heinrich who actually has any life to him, and he’s away travelling for the year.”

“Cool. I remember my year abroad, it was amazing.”

“Is that where the surfer look came from?”

“Yeah, I spent far too long in Australia. Have you travelled much?”

She shook her head.  “Not really.  Obviously I’ve been around most of Europe.  Last year I spent six months working at an orphanage in Romania, the year before was a conservation project in the Amazon.  I’m twenty-one and have barely travelled the world. It’s quite pathetic really.”

“There’s more to life than just travelling,” Philippe tried to make her feel a little better.  “And you’ve been to two countries I haven’t.  What was Romania like?”

“Very Eastern European,” Sabina sighed.  “And if you think this country has some strict laws, Romania has even more.  But it was all worthwhile for the children.”

“There can’t be many countries left that still have orphanages?”

“Just the poorer ones.  Luckily the orphanage I was at was very modern by their standards.”

“The Amazon must have been really cool? I assume you were in Brazil?”

“Yeah.  It was kind of weird living with the local tribes and not seeing a set of hair straighteners for six months.”

“But that is one hell of a unique experience.  I’m actually quite envious.” Philippe took a slug of his Coke.  “Where the bugs bad?”

“The mosquitos were but you got used to them.  My fear was the spiders and snakes.”

“Did you see many?”

“Regrettably massive tarantulas would occasionally drop down from the forest’s canopy and scare the crap out of me.”

“Snakes?”

“I did see a couple of anacondas but not close up thankfully.”

“Would you go back?”

“I’d love to visit the Amazon again, but not for a prolonged stay.  I’ve done my bit for conservation and am rather fond of life’s luxuries.”

“Did you go with friends?”

“No.  Like the orphanage position, I saw it advertised and went for it.”

“Do you keep in regular contact with your friends in Zurich?”

“Not many of them have gone to university, they preferred the lure of the Riviera for an extended stay, so we’ve even less in common now,” she sighed.

Sabina was starting to feel a bit of a fraud.  Here was the poor little rich girl, trying to pretend she was just like the rest of the group, but her upbringing was so very different.  She hated it, she wanted a normal family.

“Well, Lausanne is a terrific place to live.  It’s so diverse and brimming with wonderful nationalities like the English and Swedes, that you can’t fail but have a good time.” Philippe glanced over to the barbecue pit.  “Is anything edible, Francois, or have you cremated it all?”

“Sod off, Thevenez. You’re getting nothing to eat.  Your beautiful girlfriend, on the other hand, can have what she likes.”

Sabina looked up a bit embarrassed.  “Oh, I’m not...”

Philippe winked and cut her short.  “In that case load up your plate, Sabina, and prepare to have your taste buds well and truly assaulted.”  Philippe ducked out the way of a bread roll that was thrown in his direction.

She sat with a plate full of rather burnt food between her and Philippe.  She wasn’t that hungry with him watching her but it would have been rude not to eat.

“Are all your friends here on the force?” she asked between mouthfuls of charred chicken. “Excluding James, of course. He already told me he’s a doctor.”

“No, it’s just me. Pierre and Yves I know from climbing, Ricardo and Florian are rafting buddies from back home in Neuchatel and the rest I guess I’ve picked up along the way.”

“What attracted you to the police force?”  She was curious how someone who looked more at home on Waikiki beach would join the rigid ranks of the Swiss police.

“I’m not altogether sure what the deciding factor was.  I think it was my love of grey uniforms.”  He bit into a burger and choked.  “Bloody hell, it’s more charcoal than meat,” he winced and threw it into the trees.  “I’m sorry. Cordon bleu cooking is not one of Francois’ skills.”

“It’s not that bad,” Sabina tried to be complimentary but the food was terrible.

“You make an appalling liar,” he smiled.  “So what else do you do but ride beautifully?”

“I can ski, snowboard, water ski, play tennis and polo.”   All rich girl sports, she sighed. 

“I wouldn’t have had you down as a snowboarder,” he mused.  “I sense a trip to Champery is in order when the snows fall.”

“Oh, I’m really not very good,” she turned a little pink.

“In that case I’ll make the perfect instructor,” his eyes twinkled.  “A group of us rent a chalet each winter which usually ends up more like a student doss house by the end of the season.  But you should come, if you can put up with the mess.”

“When you’ve spent your life growing up in a place that resembles a show house, mess sounds good.” 

Philippe felt a huge wave of sympathy for her.  Despite her attempts to hide her background, she was obviously from the ranks of Zurich’s wealthy elite. But it was her desire to fit in, to be treated like one of the crowd that really made him warm to her.  She so wanted to be accepted for herself. And he was more than happy to do that. 

Sabina could not remember a time when she felt happier.  She sat with the girls and watched the men horse around with a ball, some feeble attempt at football she thought.   Everyone was just so easy-going she relaxed completely and was sorry when it was time to ride back down.

Philippe helped her tack back up.  “I hope you haven’t been too bored?”

“Not at all, it’s been fun.  Your friends are really lovely.”

“Then there’s a chance I can persuade to come back out with me again sometime?”

“As long as Francois is not in charge of food, yes,” she giggled.

He gave a wide grin and hoisted her up into the saddle.  The ride back down was just as much fun, everyone trying to race each other.  Sabina was however the most skilled and decided to jump a high hedge rather than ride around it.

“That’s bloody cheating,” Philippe called out.

She turned and flashed him a smile.  “Sore loser?”

“Very,” he grinned. 

She waited for him to draw level and they finished the last few minutes side by side.  Once back at the stables it was a flurry of activity, as they were removing the tack and putting the horses back in various stalls.  She was busy exchanging numbers with some of the girls, who were insisting she attend this party, go to that club with them or join them for dinner later that week.  All of a sudden her fledgling social life was brimming with invitations.  Philippe eventually dragged her off. 

“It’s time to steal you away,” he said softly taking her hand and pulling her over to his motorbike. 

She felt ridiculously nervous on the drive back to her apartment.  She did not know what to expect.  Would Philippe ask her out for definite or would it be left open, one of those ‘I’ll call you in a couple of days’ lines where she would never hear from him again?  She really liked him, he was funny and so easy to talk to, not to mention damn cute.

They arrived back at her apartment and she handed him the helmet.  “Thank you again for a really great day,” she said shyly.

He smiled warmly.  “Let me see you safely to your door. As an officer of the law, I should warn you that there are many unscrupulous characters that lurk in stairwells.”

She let herself be walked up the four flights.  He unlocked her door for her and handed back the keys. 

“Are you free Wednesday afternoon?” he asked.

Sabina nodded.  “Yes, I only have lectures in the morning on Wednesday.”

“Good, will you come out with me then?”

“Sure.  What have you got in mind?”

“It’s a surprise.  I’ll pick you up around 3pm.  Dress warm.” He stepped marginally closer.  “May I kiss you goodnight?” his voice had dropped very low.

She nodded again, not trusting herself to speak.  His hands buried themselves in her soft, dark hair as he pulled her close.  The kiss was beautiful.  He smiled down at her.  “I think I’d better leave right now or else you won’t be able to get rid of me.”

Her raging hormones certainly did not want him leaving, she had just had a sample and she definitely wanted more, a lot more.

Hubert glared at his wife, or rather his ex-wife as of that morning.  Bettina had finished packing the last box to be transferred to Lucerne and the removals men were just pulling out the drive.  The sale of his mansion had been agreed and as of next month, he too would be moving out.  The shame of having to sell his beloved house which had been in the family for generations to pay off his wife.  It was either that or his career.

Rumours of their impending split had circulated through the upper echelons of society; no Grundberg had ever divorced before.  He hated Bettina even more for sullying the family name.  He hoped she would be lonely and miserable in her new life. 

“I guess that’s me done,” Bettina popped her head around his study door.  “You are free now to carry on your sordid little affairs without any repercussions as long as they are of legal age.”

“I will be happy to, madam,” Hubert responded curtly.

“Does your latest whore know that you’ve had to give up most your wealth so she won’t get a cent? It would be such a shame for her to put in all that effort for no return.”

“Sod off, you dried up old woman,” Hubert grunted.  “Go live your sad life and leave me to get screwed every night.”
 

He heard Bettina’s laughter echo in the hallway.  “You’ve certainly been screwed over, Hubert.”

An hour later he was having a disagreement with Jacqueline.
“But why can’t I move in now the old witch has gone?” she whined.

“Firstly, this is my family home.”

“Was your family home,” Jaqueline reminded him.

“Secondly, it would not look good if I am living with you within hours of my wife moving out.  Politics is all about appearance and I need to keep mine unblemished.”

“But you said we would be together after she went.”

“We will.  Once the sale of the house has been completed, I will buy an apartment in the business district.  You can spend time with me there.”
 

“I don’t understand why you need to sell this house,” she pouted. “You’re supposed to be loaded.”

“I am but the money is tied up in capital.”  And Bettina took more than half of it.

“I wanted to live in a nice house not some crappy apartment,” Jacqueline scowled.

Hubert was getting bored with the conversation.  He reached out and stroked Jacqueline’s butt.  “Why don’t I get a bottle of champagne and we have it in the master bedroom.”

“I’m not sure I’m in the mood anymore,” she grumbled.

He pulled her onto his lap and ran his hand under her skirt.  “I think you are,” he grunted.  “Especially if you want anything out of me, you’ll fuck me as and when I want it.”

Jacqueline tried to wriggle off his lap but all it did was arouse him.  “You can’t treat me like that.”

“I think you’ll find I can.”  He stood up and dragged her over to the sofa.  “And as no-one else is around, I’m going to have you right here.”

He was fairly brutal with her, he needed to highlight that he controlled their relationship, not her.  And after being humiliated by Bettina, he had to take his aggression out on someone.  Jacqueline was that unlucky someone. But at the end of the day, she would be well paid for her services.

Pascal returned to his apartment, a little earlier than planned.  He was not in the best of moods having been turned down for another job.  He was surprised to find his girlfriend, Marie, packing a suitcase.

“You going somewhere?” he asked, making her jump.

“Shit,” she hissed, “I hoped to be gone before you got back.”

“Gone where?”

“I’m moving out, Pascal.”

“Why?”

“You’ve changed since the Police Force kicked you out,” Marie’s shoulders sagged a little.  “You never were the easiest person to live with but since then you’re angry all the time.”

“Of course I’m angry after the way I’ve been treated.  You should be supporting me, not abandoning me too,” he growled.

“That is precisely why I’m leaving,” she turned to face him.  “You had a fair trial but refuse to accept it.  You need to move on with your life, not dwell in the past.”

“It’s nice to know I have such a supportive girlfriend.”

“Had,” she snapped.  “I, like many of your friends, have got fed up with you wallowing in self-pity.”

“If that’s what you think, then get your useless ass out of here.”  He stormed over to the bed where she had just closed her suitcase.  “I’ll even give you a hand to move out.”  He grabbed the case, headed out onto the balcony and threw it down into the street.  “You have precisely thirty seconds to get the hell out my apartment before I toss you over as well.”

Marie looked at him with contempt in her eyes.  “You’re a complete asshole, Pascal.”  She moved quickly to the front door.  “If you’re smart you’ll seek professional help.”

Pascal watched her leave then a few minutes later, pick up the contents of the suitcase which had spilled onto the pavement.  He was steaming mad.  How could his girlfriend desert him at a time like this?  The slut was obviously not worth the trouble.

Sitting down on the sofa, he opened the local newspaper to see if there were any job opportunities that weren’t listed online.  He was struggling to find work.  The army had turned him down flat; they did not want anyone who had been dismissed from the Police Force.  Right now the only avenues open to him were security jobs. But again they were proving allusive due to his dismissal by Tribunal.  A familiar face looked back at him from the newspaper.  It was that Carrington bitch.  Hate flooded through his veins.  It was all her fault he was in this position. She had ruined his life.  Perhaps Marie was right in that he should stop wallowing. It was time to issue payback to Maisie Carrington.