13.2 Angel of Mercy

Madeleine was a brilliant sportswoman and she graduated from École internationale bilingue in Paris. Fencing was certainly one of her skills though in recent years she diverged from most activities and maintained dancing at the roots of her passion. She could perform a tango or a salsa, obviously ballet, and if she had to; walk on a tightrope.

Madeleine Blanche had to leave theatre at a very early stage because her father moved to England. Sometimes she had nothing to do and so she decided to go to places.

On a trip to Spain, Madeleine joined her friends on Mark Wayne’s boat who was a naval architecture.

“No water in the cabin!” one of the girls complained.

Wayne deliberated, “You don’t have to wash your face! Just wipe a towel!”

At the time, in 1975, Mark Wayne got a job to design a yacht for a client. This yacht would be built in Galicia where the best wooden boats were made. And of course, the ideas stolen or borrowed from English shipwrights ages ago.

However, when Wayne visited the boat builder, he learned that a Spaniard in Coruña had plans for the same boat and for the same client but of better design. The shipwright explained why he thought it was better; “Cabin arrangements and the positioning of the water closets.”

“I agree,” expressed Wayne, “When the cabins are square, there are thousands of ways you can arrange them.”

“I don’t mean the cabins,” said the boat builder, “these closets do not flank in his plan, they are independently allocated.”

“That will add to the cost!”

“Yes, it will,” admitted the shipwright, “though it’s a far better arrangement with dual steering on a luxury cruiser, that’s a package.”

“Dual steering within this dimension!” it shocked Wayne.

“He’s done it,” said the shipwright, “Go and see for yourself!”

“He won’t show it to me!”

Back on the boat he called the girls and said, “This guy, Luca, is crazy for British girls. Who can seduce him and steal these plans for me?” And why? Because Luca once told Wayne that English girls did everything and stopped at nothing.

“We can try!” said a frail looking girl by the name of Madeleine Blanche. She was not at all good-looking at that time, twenty-six years, skinny with dark brown hair, brown eyebrows and freckles on her face.

“He will be there in that waterfront bar, playing his guitar. His place is a block up the lane. I will show you. He stays on the top floor, third floor, windows open.”

“I need a thin rope like nylon twice the length to the window,” said Madeleine.

“Are you going to climb?” he asked.

“Yes,” she said, “rather to climb down if we can hook this guy. I must be able to carry the rope inside my dress.”

First part of the show that evening was to dance flagrantly on the floor so that everyone stopped their eyes on her. Next part of the evening she managed to buy drinks on him. He asked for a nightcap and the girls refused. He raised the price but the girls declined.

Best part of the evening she got drunk and pissed on the dancing floor. Helpless girls then insisted on Luca to help for no charge at all. Madeleine was carried up the lane like a paralysed bat. They dumped the girl on a sofa in the top floor and the girls then demanded him to take them out for another drink. Luca took the two girls out leaving Madeleine knocked out on the sofa.

Madeleine entered the study and took the set of blueprints taking her own time. She rolled them and tied with a twine and fastened on her back. She dropped two ends of the cord to the ground with a loop around a desk. She climbed down holding to the thin double rope. She got incredible strength. In the dead of the night, those white stucco walls gleamed in the moonlight. She glided down from a window on a thin red line. Once on the ground, Madeleine removed the cord by pulling at one end.

“My goodness!” cried Wayne, “You got the whole thing! Including prototype sketches of the concept design!”

And Wayne knew that he shouldn’t stay because Luca would suspect him for stealing the blueprints. So, he left the port.

Wayne copied the whole thing or he did improvise, he won the bid and the yacht built to his plan. Luca told the Londoner that Wayne stole his plans by setting up these girls. And this rich customer demanded Mark Wayne for help from the girls.

Since then, Madeleine Blanche became a well-paid jetsetter.