"Wait," Race told the cab driver as he opened the cab door. The Vinchelle residence was a two-story Georgian colonial, with a straight flagstone walkway leading to the door. Race walked it like a last mile. He pressed the doorbell with trepidation. He was somewhat relieved when the door opened, and a bearded white man, maybe an inch or two taller than him, appeared. The man was wearing a bathrobe, quite an expensive one Race noted, and was evidently wearing nothing else. The man stared at him, then pass him at the cabbie, now standing outside his cab.
The man looked at Race again. "You must be Mr. Blackmon."
Race nodded. "And you're Mr. Vinchelle?"
"Professor Vinchelle," Jacques replied with Gallic haughtiness.
"Is Dean Vinchelle here," Race asked, ignoring Jacques' attitude.
"Yes."
"May I see her?"
"She is ... indisposed."
"Look, Prof. Vinchelle. I have just received a very frightening call from Dean Henning. If I do not see Dean Vinchelle right now, I'm going to the police."
Jacques looked intently at Race, then relented, opening the door. "I'll be right back," Race said. He returned to the cab, spoke to the cabbie, then returned to the house, following the Frenchman up the stairs.
Jacques led the way into the bedroom, where Race found a naked Sharon on the bed, her wrists back in the wrist restraints. Race looked at her, then at Jacques, then back at Sharon. In explanation, Jacques removed his robe and turned his back to Race. It was covered with several welts, some bleeding. From the pattern of four parallel scratches per welt, Race surmised that they had been inflicted by Sharon.
"Look, you two," Race said. "I don't know what's going on here, and I don't care. But I told the cabbie that if Dean Vinchelle is not at that doorway in five minutes, to call the cops."
The two Vinchelles looked at Race, then each other. Jacques pulled his robe up, then went to the bed and released his wife. She grabbed a satin kimono style nightgown from one of the chairs and stepped into a pair of open-toed slides with pom-pom puffs. The three then headed downstairs, Sharon leading. As they reached the foot of the stairs, they saw two uniformed officers and the cabbie standing just inside the doorway. Both Race and Jacques mentally noted that five minutes had not elapsed.
Jacques spoke first. "Samuel, David, is there a problem?"
The two officers looked at each other, then at the Vinchelles, then at Race, then at the cabbie, then each other again. Samuel spoke for them. "George called," indicating the cabbie. "Said that there was trouble here, that a nig ... a colored gentlemen had told him to call the police if Dean Vinchelle didn't show up at the door."
Sam, Dave, George, and Jacques all stole glances at Race when the racial epithet was sounded. Race gave the cops a standard I-won't-forget-what-you-nearly-said-and-you- will-pay-I-am-somebody look. Instantly Samuel knew he was in trouble. Race then looked at the cabbie. "I thought I said to give Dean Vinchelle five minutes."
"I know, sir," George blurted, "but things just didn't look right. And I didn't use that word, sir."
Race stared at Samuel again. Samuel stared back, belligerently.
"Well, gentlemen," Sharon intervened, "we can all see that I'm all right." She pranced over to Race, placing his hand on his arm. "I really appreciate your concern, Mr. Blackmon. Makes me feel like some princess being rescued by her knight." She sneered at Jacques then exited into the kitchen.
The men watched her go, all except Jacques noting how the nightgown clung to her hips, revealing the dimples and globes of her ass, and how the skirt of the nightgown swished back and forth as she walked. As the door between the two rooms closed, the men looked at each other awkwardly. Samuel again spoke.
"Well, Prof. Vinchelle, I guess this was a false alarm."
"No, Samuel, no." Jacques replied. "George here did the right thing. Better to err on the side of caution. Very grateful, George. Very grateful."
The police officers backed out of the doorway, leaving the three of them standing there. Race looked at George, realizing the cabbie was waiting to be paid.
"Prof. Vinchelle," he said firmly, "I think you owe this man money."