Chapter 41

Far ahead of us, we could see a man on the beach collecting shells. The closer we got, the worse I felt. I held Kathy's hand and squeezed it tightly. She squeezed it back. When we were about a hundred yards away, Kathy stopped me and asked if I was sure if this is what I wanted to do.

"It's all I can think of for the moment," I said.

She hugged me and said, "I'll wait right here. Yell if you need help."

"Thank you." I continued down the beach. As I got closer, I started looking around to see if anyone else was nearby, particularly my blackmailer, or anyone with a camera. I didn't see anyone closer than Kathy and she was a toy figurine far down the beach. The man noticed me approaching and watched me draw near. He was an elderly black man between fifty and sixty years of age. He looked on the thin side, but still appeared healthy.

When I reached about five feet away, he said, "Bonjour, mademoiselle, commen