"All right, now. Don't tease. Who did you see, and who is the girl? Wait, let me guess," Vanessa said. "You've seen Kevin Matwin, haven't you? I know you've been to Europe."
"Well, you know, I don't think I've seen him since you two broke up," Eleanore continued. "We used to be together, the four of us, all of the time, didn't we?" She sighed. "Now only Jeff sees him, and that's for business reasons."
"Yes," Vanessa paused. "Yes, we were, weren't we? Those weekends at your cottage were wonderful. I must say I miss them at times. But tell me, Eleanore. Tell me about this child…this girl. And how is he?"
"Quite well. He was preparing a collection of religious subjects from the former Czechoslovakia. He was in a rush. Some of the masterpieces have been smuggled out of the country to resurface later, spread over different places." Eleanore paused and waited.
"And now tell me about his personal life, Eleanore. You know I'm dying to hear all about it," she laughed as if she were joking.
"Actually, I think I'll disappoint you. I think she's simply a good listener. I don't believe she could keep Kevin's interest for even an afternoon. I wasn't impressed." Eleanore sniffed. "Not much to her. She's just a baby, at any rate. Early twenties, at the most."
"Does she live at the old mansion? The one next door to Kevin's villa?"
"Yes, yes, she does. She has a couple with her, I think, though we didn't meet them. From what Kevin said, she has some sort of problems, though I couldn't begin to tell you what they were. I have no idea." She sniffed again, as if Tanya's problems were very far beneath her interest. "I think she's in a type of retreat. She avoided our questions very neatly. Maybe she thinks she can get Kevin by being a mystery woman." Eleanore laughed.
"Did you find out anything else about her?"
"Why do you care?" Eleanore asked with a touch of scorn. "Silly chit that she is… Yes, she studied at some MacKenzie Academy. It must be one of those small colleges in rural Ontario. That's about all, Vanessa, though I really can't see why you would care."
"Oh, Eleanore, just curious! You know I left him out of sheer boredom. I wondered if there was a little life in the old boy yet." Vanessa laughed. "By the way, I'd love to have you and Jeff over for dinner some night next week. Would that be all right with you? Good, then I'll see you in two days." She smiled softly. "But I must go now. Talk to you soon." She hung up the phone and tapped a finger on it thoughtfully.