[NS] J'Accuse

The garden party continued after that with everyone drinking brandy and chatting. Ferrari broke out the cigars and the men sat around smoking, watching the women's 'floor show'. Rick was impressed by the number of times Yvonne orgasmed. Eventually, he announced that they had to leave, it was nearly five and the Cafe' Americain would be opening soon. After taking their leave, saying the good-byes and Yvonne putting her clothes back on, the couple walked the short distance back to Rick's night club.

"Is she better at it than me?" Yvonne asked as she leaned against Rick's side, his arm around her shoulders, hers around his waist. The first two fingers of her other hand were hooked into the backs of her shoes. After over three hours in Amira's company, Yvonne's legs were too unsteady for high heels.

"Better at what?" Rick asked.

"You know," Yvonne answered, looking around the pedestrian traffic to make sure no one they knew were in ear-shot. She lowered her voice to almost a whisper, but still had trouble getting the word out. "Fellatio."

"Different, not better," he answered. "No one gives better blowjobs than you do." When she scoffed in skepticism at that, he elaborated. "Your blowjobs are the best blowjobs because they come from you." He paused briefly. "A woman's mouth is more than just a mouth."

They took a few more paces, Yvonne being careful where she placed her bare feet. Looking up at him with a quizzical stare, she asked, "Did you just say something incredibly nice to me?"

He answered by kissing the top of her blonde head. When they were a block away from the club, Yvonne announced. "I am going to learn how to do that."

"Do what?" Rick asked.

She replied by touching the base of her throat. "You know... all the way down."

"It is probably just a matter of practice," Rick said.

Yvonne nodded, staring down in thought, and added, "Amira can probably give me some tips." And then she giggled.

"What's so funny?" he quirked an eyebrow at her.

"What you said about me in the courtyard... Like Eve in Eden." She mischievously grinned up at him. "I guess that I have developed an affinity for snakes."

"Yvonne the snake charmer," he agreed. "And let's not forget sword-swallower."

The young Frenchwoman nodded, her face now serious. "I definitely need to phone Amira tomorrow."

"Oh, there is something I have been meaning to ask about you and Amira," he said as they stepped into the club.

But he did not get a chance to ask, for Carl, the headwaiter, hurried over to him. "Mister Rick, Captain Renault phoned. He wants you to see him at police headquarters." In response to Rick's query about what time did he call, Carl answered, "About fifteen minutes ago. Maybe thirty."

"I guess I'd better get over there," Rick removed his arm from Yvonne's shoulders and tried to 'hand her off' to Carl. "Help her get up the stairs."

"I don't need any help," she said, stepping away from Rick and spreading her arms out. "I can just float up there." She made a slow, three hundred and sixty degree turn. "My feet won't even touch the ground."

As she walked away, Rick lowered his voice to a whisper and told Carl, "Follow her up the stairs, anyway. Don't let her fall."

***** ***** *****

"Am I in trouble, Louie?" Rick asked, removing his fedora as he was shown into the Prefect of Police's office.

"Not at all," Renault gestured to a chair. "Sit down. You will probably hear about this tonight, so as a courtesy, I want you to hear it from me now... Two days ago I had my men haul in the usual subjects. In that sweep, we struck gold. A pair of petty thieves. Merchant stalls robberies. Individual stick-ups. That sort of thing. They were a couple, a man and a woman. They had been hired to kill that resistance leader. Under interrogation, we were able to learn who." He lit a cigarette, offering one to Rick, who accepted it.

"Naturally, I had to double check a few details to make sure it was the correct person," Captain Renault continued his explanation. "It was the correct person. Tonight I make the arrest."

Rick was impressed. It was only two days ago that the body had been discovered, and already Captain Renault had 'cracked the case'. "Nice piece of police work, Louie."

"Thank you, Rick," Captain Renault replied. "I know that I should say 'I got lucky' but a fellow countryman of mine once said that 'luck is the ability to exploit accidents'."

"A brilliant policeman and modest, too," Rick replied. "Although I thought Napoleon was Corsican, not French."