"Any man who hates children can't be all bad." "W. C. Fields" "They're crazy!" "Stop it!" "That's enough!" "I'm going." "Stop it." " Don't go." "Yes, I'm going." "No, no, no." "Ciao." "Ciao." "What on Earth are you doing here?" "This noise is annoying." "And they always ask people to go out far too early." "Shut up, Walter, you're always talking." "And you should be more careful." "Remember what the doctor said." "Doctors are stupid." "How much?" "Twice what you got last time." "You'll get the balance afterward, of course." "That's him." "Do you mind?" "Not at all." "The client is always right." "Wait for me here, Georges." "I shall not be long." "Very well, mister Mostri." "Asshole!" "Here." "You'll fill the blanks yourself." "You shouldn't have." "After all that you already did for this place." "Don't thank me." "Thank my brother." "I'm only executing his last will and testament." "And I can't do anything else, can I?" "When will you finally take this down?" "I'm signing the checks now." "You didn't like him?" " No." "Neither did I." "When he died, a bunch of very efficient lawyers explained to me very patiently that your brother bought everything in this house with the checks for which I thanked him." "Everything." "Including me." "Well, anyway..." "I'm going to introduce you to the girl." "Did you read her file?" "I don't need to." "If you say it's alright, then it's alright." "What's her name?" " Julie." "Julie Ballanger." "Courage, Julie, and hurry up." "They'll be here any minute, now." "So soon?" " Are you not happy to leave here?" "I don't know anymore." "I'm afraid." "I don't want to go." " Come on, Julie." "This is mister Mostri, Julie." " Good morning miss." "Good morning, sir." "I'll do what I can but I don't know if I'll be able to." "Of course you will." "Don't pick excuses to justify your fears." "You've been with us five years and you're afraid of the outer world, that's all." "You won't have anything to fear from the outside world, miss Ballanger." "That's a promise." " You may call me Julie." "Well, since everything is settled and the introductions have been made," "I'll have your luggage brought down." "Thank you, nurse." "Julie!" "You must go now." "Mister Mostri is waiting." "Excuse me." "I know I'm a risk." "Of course not." "You must be very brave." "Everything will be alright at Mr. Mostri's place, you'll see." "I'll do my best." "I'm sure you will." "And if anything is wrong, just phone me." "Aren't we friends?" " We are." "So you'll phone me, won't you?" "Goodbye, doctor." "You see: people like me." "Maybe that's why you stayed here for so long." "Oh, please let me take those." "No." "Thank you, but there's no need." "You're not asking me what it is?" "If I may." "It's a novel." "My novel." "I'm trying to write about what I experienced at the home." "I want to be a writer." " This is very good." "You're not asking what's the title?" "Well..." "If I may." "The point is..." "I don't know yet." "You're a really nice person, Julie." " So are you, sir." "Lots of things have changed, haven't they?" "Weren't you allowed to go out?" "The last two years, I was." "But I didn't feel like it." "Once, I went to the shore of the river Marne with a friend." "Some blokes pestered us, so..." "It's beautiful." "The Mostris' small town house." "Good morning, mister Mostri." "Good morning, Fremia." "May I introduce miss Ballanger who, from now on, will live here with us." "Point taken." "Good morning, miss." "Drive, Georges." "Your servant, miss Julie." "Come." "You know Marcellin?" "Yes." "He was at the home." "He kills cats." "I've not bothered with cats for a long time, miss Julie." "And it's better to kill cats than people." "That's enough, Marcellin." "Don't mind Marcellin." "He's a moron anyway." "Well, this is your new home, this level and the two levels under it, are our private domain." "All the rest, all the other levels house offices." "Get settled, take your time." "On this first evening, we'll have dinner together." "At nine." "At nine." "Oh, no!" "here are some spicy passages, aren't there?" "Please, give it back to me." "Come on, I'm not doing anything wrong, am I?" "Give it to me." "Didn't you have problems when you were a little girl?" "Please." "Please." "Thank you." "And now, please, be nice and leave me alone." "But I'm a nice guy." "No?" "Do you like it?" "Yes." "I think it's beautiful." "Oh, yeah?" "Now this is promising." "Well, it takes all sorts." "OK, this is my room." "We're neighbours." "Convenient, isn't it?" "If you need something, one of these nights, just knock on the door." "Good." "Thank you so much, Georges." "We'll get along just fine, you and I." "Georges!" " Yes." "Here I am." "Where is he?" " Who?" "Oh, yeah!" "Do you want to see him now?" "You've got all the time in the world." "No, I want to see him." "Alright." "He's behind this door." "As the president is fond of saying:" ""I wish you a lot of pleasure"." "Oh?" " Oh, yes." "Well the police and the army allowed the mob to commit the excesses that every angry mob is prone to commit." "The bodies of four Palestinians were thrown out of the windows, lynched and burned this morning, then..." "Thomas?" "You are Thomas, ain't you?" "Good evening, Thomas." "My telly, you madwoman!" "I want my telly!" "My telly..." "My telly!" "Thomas." " Shit!" "Thomas?" "Thomas?" "Are you taking that so you won't have babies?" "What?" "It's a prescribed drug." "The other Louise took them not to have babies." "Who's Louise?" "None of your business." "Was she the one who looked after you?" "The one I'm replacing?" "Where is she now?" "She went away with a nigger." "She was afraid somebody would kill us." "What?" "You're always saying "What"" "I can speak properly, can't I?" " Yes." "Why have you got spots on your face, like this?" "The other Louise didn't have them." "And at least she wasn't crazy." "Who told you that, Thomas?" "Just try to tell me that you're not crazy, you liar!" "Do you only know what it is to be crazy?" "I saw crazy people on telly." "So?" "Do you think I look like them?" "Say?" "Not much." "Right." "Come." "You're going to be a nice boy." "You'll have your dinner and then you'll go to sleep." "You already put your pajamas on,that's good." "I didn't put them on." "I had them on already." "Didn't anybody dress you today?" "At least, have you eaten?" "No." "I wasn't hungry." "But, Thomas, who's looking after you?" "Well, Georges is." "Louise was before she went away, and Uncle Stéphane will until my mom and dad come back for me." "Come." "Do you speak Italian?" "Thank you." "Does it still hurt?" " No, I'm fine." "You mustn't blame Thomas, you know." "He's a difficult child." "I should have warned you." "He seems unhappy." "What happened to his parents?" "His father drowned one year ago." "And my sister in law Marcella, who was a very lively, beautiful and cheerful young woman, couldn't take it." "She took up drinking, then she began travelling to random places, all alone, well... she didn't even want to see Thomas again." "Listen." "Listen to this part." "Beautiful, isn't it?" "Three weeks ago, in Nice, she came back to her hotel room at dawn, drunk as usual." "Her glass was found broken on the balcony, while she was found 15 meters lower, on the sidewalk." "The investigators said it was an accident." "It's awful." "But Thomas still believes his parents will come back." "Didn't you tell him anything?" "I couldn't muster the nerve to tell him the truth." "He was told that his parents were travelling, that they would come back." "This is not easy, you know." " I understand." "Well..." "Now we must think of the future." "Thomas is far behind in his studies, so you're going to teach him how to read and write properly and especially how to be happy." "I'll do my best." "But you know, I'm not much." "Just a small grain of sand." "Nothing or nobody is useless, Julie." "How do you know that a grain of sand is not as important as a star?" "Tell me, mister Mostri." "This house: what is it?" "Oh, that?" "Rather ugly, isn't it?" "A Mostri bought it during the 1920's." "He pompously called it La Thébaïde" "I'd like to change it into a research and rest center for the great musicians of our time." "We would also give concerts there, in the summer." "That's a wonderful idea." "Do you think so?" " I do." "You're quite alone of that opinion." "Everybody tells me it's a crazy idea." "I say that the Cheshire cat was right." "What?" "The Cheshire cat was sitting on a big tree limb, smiling." ""What way should I go?" Alice asks him." ""This way lies the hatter, and that way lies the March Hare." "Go and see any of them, they're both crazy. "" ""But I don't want to meet crazy people!" Alice protests." "And the cat answers" ""This cannot be helped everybody's crazy." "You're crazy, I'm crazy, in this country, it's the normal state of being. "" "And little by little, the Cheshire cat becomes invisible." "Only his smile stays hovering in the air for a while, after the rest disappears." "Excuse me, I couldn't hear you typing anymore." "And I couldn't hear you knocking the door." "That's because I thought you were sleeping." "I didn't want to startle you." "It's really late, you should be sleeping." "Sleep is my big problem." "A couple of hours and then I wake up." "Couln't you take some pills?" "I've taken so many pills for so long that they have no effect anymore." "Am I intruding?" "Yes." "I was about to unpack." "Please do." "Don't mind me." "I just came to tell you that... the guy in the elevator won't bother you anymore." "You didn't have him fired?" "No, he was just sent to another department." "So at least you won't see him." "Tell me, Georges." "In this department, are there a lot of people like him?" "I mean like me?" "People who were sick?" "Oh, yes, they're all loonies." "Oh, sorry, I didn't mean you." "Helping mentally ill people back into society was Mr. Mostri's big project." "Not the Mostri you know, his brother, the one who died." "So, in this department, almost all the servants were in an asylum once." "Were you?" " Oh, please!" "I'm normal!" "And where are you from?" "I was in prison, if it's any of your business." "Why?" "Women." "Do you want me to tell you my story?" "If you feel you can trust me." "Well... what I liked were the big clusters of buildings." "In Sarcelle, Créteil and all similar suburbs..." "While the husband was away working and the kids were at school," "I went to see the housewives with a small vial of sulphuric acid," "I threatened to throw it in their face," "I had them strip butt naked and, if they were pretty enough, I pushed them toward the bed." "I screwed eighty-six of them." "It's awful." "But wait, not one of them could say in court that I brutalized her." "But it's monstrous!" "Not that much." "It wasn't acid, it was water." "With just a little coffee to add colour." "Women are a funny sort." "When I threatened to drop some of the alleged acid, like this, just to show them how it burned, do you know what they all said?" "They said, "Oh, no, not on the rug, not on the rug"" "Ok, I'll help you unpack, now." "No, thank you, Georges." "I'm tired." "I'd like to go to bed." "Don't you want me to run you a bath?" "No, thank you." "Leave me alone, now." "I'm going." "You know, miss Julie, you musn't think I'm bad because of what I told you." "I'm not at all like that anymore." "Of course." "I've forgotten already." "You're nice." "Dont be like that." "So what?" "Screw the Arabs!" "The important thing is to have full tanks and a working factory." "There." "No, man, you're always repeating the same thing!" "This is the kind of talk that can ruin the French industry..." "Morning." "Good morning, Thomas." "I made my decision and I won't budge." "Good morning, Julie." "Please take a seat." "Yes." "Screw the Americans too." "Do as I say." "My respects to your wife." "Goodbye." "Excuse me, I asked you to come quite early, but I must be at the airport in less than one hour." "You're leaving?" "Just for a few days." "If you need to talk to me, just ask my secretary." "And I left an enveloppe for you." " Thank you." "So you're taking Thomas for a walk?" "Yes, we're going to the park in Saint-Cloud." "Good." "Georges will drive you." "Georges!" "Georges!" "You'll drive miss Ballanger and the kid to the park in Saint-Cloud." "Oh, no, sir, I can't." "I must go and visit my grandmother in Limoges." "Yes." "Georges has a very young grandmother, about 20 years old, who's travelling a lot." "Sometimes in Strasburg, sometimes in Brittany, and now Limoges." "I'm sorry about your grandmother but you'll drive them in the DS." "I really can go on my own with Thomas, you know." "I'll take a cab." "No, it will ease my mind to have Georges driving you." "OK, let's go." "And you'll go and fetch them afterwards." "Goodbye, you." "I want you to be good with miss Julie." "No, I won't be good." "And I don't give a damn about her fucking park." "Well, goodbye Julie." " Goodbye sir." "Take good care of the kid." "And of you." "Please come back soon." "Come back soon..." "I'm hungry!" "Don't put your fingers in that, Thomas!" "Well, just prepare my toast then!" " OK, I'll butter your toast." "You're going to eat them nice and quiet, and then we'll leave for the park." "You'll ride a bike." "You'll see, it's great fun." "I don't care." "I won't ride your bloody bike." "It's for babies." "Oh, Thomas!" "Watch out." "Leave me, Louise, leave me." "I can do it alone." "Not Louise:" "Julie." "See?" "I can ride a bike." "Don't go too far." " Don't worry about him." "He's tough." "Don't I know it!" "Come and sit by me." "Come!" "I want us to make peace!" "Hey, I abandoned my grandmother for you." "Frankly, I really can't understand why you don't like me." "I'm rather handsome, I'm rather friendly, and I'm not stupid." "In your opinion, what do I lack to..." "Maybe a small vial of sulphuric acid." "Now that wasn't nice, miss Julie." "Not nice at all." " Louise!" "When do we eat?" "What?" "So soon?" "You said there were sweet buns." "In the car." "I'm going to fetch them." "Hurry up:" "I'm hungry." "Georges!" "Just forget I said that." "Not a problem, miss Julie." "I'm used to it." "Can't you take your newspaper somewhere else?" "I read it already." "Don't move." "Don't talk." "Do as I say and nothing will happen to either you or the child." "Exactly as I say." "Nothing more." "Say: "point taken"." " Point taken." "OK." "Take your things." "Get up." "Call the kid." "Thomas!" "Come here, quick." "Do you want to go back home?" "You forced me to come and now you want us to go so soon?" "Come to me, please." " What about my bike?" "Leave it." "Do exactly as we're told." "And don't be afraid." "I'm not afraid." "Is he a bad guy?" "Like on telly?" "No, not like on telly." "See that vase?" "Imagine, had it been your head." "Come." "Come on, faster!" "What's going on, miss Julie?" "Shit." "You'll drive." "She'll take the passenger seat." "I won't say it twice." "If I have to shoot, I will aim for the kid's head." "Do as he says, Georges." "Come on!" "No: this way!" "Get in!" "Drive." "And don't turn your head." "Thomas?" " I'm OK, Louise." "You'll take the ring road, Georges." "Stop calling me Georges." "I'm not your servant." "Oh, no?" "Go take the South Highway, Georges." "Your bills are all cut in half." "Child robbers alway get caught anyway." "Shut up." "Get out." "I told you I didn't want to go to your fucking park." "I don't care." "Uncle Stéphane will find us." "He's much more clever." "Of course he'll find you." "What is that supposed to mean?" "Just this: he'll find you." "He'll even find you alive, if he pays first." "You!" "Keys!" "Is she troublesome?" "I guess that's enough." "Don't worry." "She won't be bruised." "Hey, Louise." "Wake up, Louise." "Are you OK?" " Yes." "What about you?" "Have I been lying here long?" "You were knocked out for at least ten minutes." "See?" "We should have stayed home." "You can untie me." "I'm not going to fly away." "You won't succeed." "Come." " What do you want." "Sit down there." "This is my typewriter." "What is it doing here?" "We'll give it back to you." "What do you want to do with it?" "Nothing." "You'll do something with it." "You're going to type a letter to your boss, mister Mostri." "Come on:" "I'll dictate." "Well, the sooner the boss learns about this, the better." "Are you ready?" "At the top of the page to mister Mostri." "Lower:" "You think everyone is your servant, but I too have a right to enjoy life." "He'll never believe that I could write such a thing." "I too have a right to enjoy life." "Very well." "Very funny." "Come here, you!" "What will you do to him?" " Louise!" "Either I pop his eye out or I break his finger." "Your call." "No." "I'll do anything you want." " Scratch that!" "I can't stand seeing you loaded with money anymore." "I want my share." "I'll give you back the kid alive if you're sensible." "This is monstrous." "You want to frame me for the whole thing." "And this is the letter of a madwoman." "So what?" "You're just out of an asylum, aren't you?" "But what do you want?" "Who are you working for?" "Why?" "Because the sooner your boss is scared, the faster he will obey and the sooner you'll be free." "Can't you understand that?" "I can." " Then?" "You'll free us?" "The three of us?" "Miss Julie." "I'll say that you were forced to do it." "Why do you care about what you're writing?" "I think mister Mostri must be told as soon as possible, so he can get us out of here." "Come on." "I'll give you back the kid alive if you're sensible." "If you call the cops, I've got nothing to lose." "I'll hang Thomas at the end of a rope, and I'll hang myself too." "I can't write this." " Oh, no?" "No!" "I'll write it!" "I'll write it!" "I can't wait any longer." "I'd rather end it here and now." "Louise..." "You have been warned." "Julie." "Thomas, get behind me." "Hands up!" "Untie Georges." "I'll do it." " No: him." "Come on, or I kill you." "Alright." "Alright." "And don't make a move." "I'm just out of an asylum, you know." "No!" "Here, Georges." "So?" "Who's giving the orders now?" "What?" "You were with them?" "Come on." "Enough is enough." "But if you're with them, why the play acting?" "Well, we had to convince you to type the fucking letter." "If there are mispelling, it's important, it's telling." "They know that, they're specialists." "Shut up, Georges." "You talk far too much." "I'm fed-up with people talking to me like this." "We're associates." "I'm not your servant." "We may be associates, but only Thompson and I decide the way this business must be conducted." "That was the agreement." "I never said it wasn't." "There's no need to get excited." "Good." "I'll get the letter to mister Mostri." "Tomorrow, when it's all settled, let's meet by the wash-house." "Serve their meal, servant!" "Hey, while he's busy with Mr. Mostri's letter," "I'll be busy with you." "Leave her alone." "I don't want you to touch her." "Shut up, you little jerk." "Georges!" "After you serve dinner, you'll sleep in the car." "What?" "Are you kidding me?" "You must be used to it." "You're a chauffeur, ain't you?" "Georges." "I said, after you serve dinner." "What is it?" " Noodles." "I don't like noodles." "They're for the poor." "You're as much a bastard as your uncle." "You should eat shit." "I don't want your noodles." " You little jerk." "I think that tonight, Thomas will like noodles." "Tell us right now, how much you like noodles." "I like noodles." " You like noodles?" "Well eat, then!" "Here!" "Eat, damn you!" "You faggot!" "To sleep in the car!" "I take no orders from faggots!" "I don't care anyway,his fucking house has a musty smell!" "Are you asleep, Louise?" " No." "Neither am I. I can't sleep." " Try." "Think of something pretty." " Of what?" "Think of flowers." "Think of a big garden with flowers and honey bees." "Are there animals in your garden?" "Yes." "Birds." "Lots of birds." "Lots of animals." " A lion?" "Yes, there's a lion." "He's nice." "He's a nice lion." "Thanks." "Say, couldn't you untie me just for a minute?" "I've got to take my medicine and I need some water." "We don't have any water here." "Just whisky." "Too bad." "Well... whisky." "Thanks." "This is strong." "I'm not used to it, you know." "You're not as mean as you seem." "I watched you closely earlier you look like a very lonely person." "I'm lonely too." "You don't believe me?" "Nobody ever lies when they say they're lonely." "Outside of kidnapping people, what do you do?" "Where are you from exactly?" "What are you?" "Mark my words," "I don't have a first name, I don't have a last name, and I don't come from anywhere." "And you're going back to sleep." "You do not dare to look at me." "Do I scare you?" "Don't you like me, or do you think I'm crazy too?" "If you let me go with Thomas," "I could be very nice to you." "Go back to sleep!" "How long will you keep us here?" "Until Mr. Mostri pays the ransom?" "Somebody is bound to discover that we're here." "There are people walking around." "Anybody could pass by." "Too bad for them." "Well?" "How are you?" "The letter should have arrived by now." "God, ain't you the cheerful type!" "Everybody up!" "Come on, you're not on holidays!" "Did you sleep, Louise?" " Not Louise:" "Julie!" "Well?" "Not too disappointed with your night, are you?" "Can't you understand that a woman has nothing to expect from such a bloke?" "He gets his kicks with his gun." "Or with a rope." "He's sick." "Unbalanced." "A total loony." "What were you saying?" "Look, you make everything sound tragic." "Can't you take a joke?" "The keys of the other car?" " In the DS." "Go and fetch them, servant." "What kind of a car is it?" "A yellow Simca." "It's parked behind the church, near the old wash-house." "Give me the documents." " Now this is trust for you." "I hope it's not stolen?" " No, everything's legal." "You pretend to pass the loop inside and... here!" "Hey, this is fantastic." "How clever you are." "I watched him do it yesterday evening." "Tie me up, quick." "Done." "Drink this." "We're going." " We are?" "Everything is settled." "Are you sure that Mr. Mostri already got the letter?" "I told you: everything is settled." "Everything is settled?" " Drink that!" "Don't you have any milk?" "Don't you have any sugar?" "Thomas?" "Thomas?" "I'm sleepy, Louise." "I 'm sleepy." "The keys!" "Thomas, wake up!" "Thomas!" "Help me!" "What do you know of what was agreed upon?" "What's with you?" "Are you mad?" "Get back." "Again!" "Again." "Again." "But... where do you expect me to go?" "Down there." "No!" "Don't do this!" "Don't you fucking do this!" "You don't have a right!" "Get me out of here, for God's sake!" "Thomas..." "Get me out of here!" "You forced me to change my plan, Georges." "What plan?" "I was supposed to deal with the kid first." "No!" "No!" "Don't do this!" "Shit!" "Get me the fuck out of here!" "You're cool, you know that?" "You're cool!" "I tell you one thing, about the yellow car by the wash-house." "It's..." "Thomas!" "Thomas!" "Thomas!" "Sit down." "Thomas!" "Thomas!" "Wake up!" "Wake up!" "Thomas!" "Come!" "Oh, no, please, don't fall asleep again." "Look!" "We're saved!" "Houses!" "Watch out..." "Louise!" "I'm tired!" " We're almost there." "Little Thomas' nanny sent to mister Stéphane Mostri a letter that..." "Hey, look, Louise!" "We're on telly." "Julie Ballanger did several stints in psychiatric wards." "She was believed cured, but her current actions are those of a dangerous lunatic." "Why do they say you're a dangerous lunatic?" "If you have any information about either Little Thomas or Julie Ballanger, please inform the nearest gendarmerie as soon as possible." "Quick!" "The police are everywhere." "Well, we've just got to tell them... to tell the policemen we're not lost." "You're wrong, Louise." "This is not a police station, this is a post-office." " I know, I know, we're going to phone a man who'll help us." "But why won't you go to the gendarmes?" "Because..." "Come on!" "The police station!" "Connect me to the police station!" "Madam." "I'd like to make a phone call." "Are you blind, madam?" "What with all this going on, only emergency calls are allowed." "Hello?" "But this is an emergency!" "Then wait for your turn, please." "Hello?" "The prefecture?" "You have the HQ of the road police on." "The girl and the kid escaped." "What about Georges?" " He's dead." "We can still put it right, then." "Something happened." "The town is crawling with cops." "Is this the new car?" "Yes." "The old one could have been spotted, so we'd better switch." "We've got to find them first." "You've got your call, miss." "Booth number 2" "Hello?" "Please speak!" "Hello?" "Is this the Mostri Foundation?" "I'd like to talk to Dr. Rosenfeld, please." "The doctor is out." "Who wants him?" "He's not there?" "But I want to talk to him." "It's very urgent." "Is this miss Mercier?" "Miss Mercier is on holidays." "Who is this?" "I'm a friend of Dr. Rosenfeld's." "A personal friend." "Can you tell me where he is, please?" "He went to visit Mr. Mostri, in "La Thébaïde"." "Oh, La Thébaïde." "You're finished, booth number 2." " Oh, no, miss!" "I've got a priority call, I must take the line back." "Get back." "There are others things to see than an accident." "Get back, ladies and gentlemen." "Come on, move." "Don't push." "Please, move, madam." "Madam." "I want to speak to your chief." "Let me pass!" "Sir!" " What is it?" "I am Julie Ballanger." "This is not the time and place, madam." "Can't you see what's happening?" "But I'm Julie Ballanger, sir!" " I'm not talking to you." "Move!" "Move!" "Look, Louise!" "Look, Louise!" "Tell the gendarmes!" "Yes, yes, go away." "Move it now!" "Well, you sure are the fast type!" " We'll keep everything on us." "Quick." "The kid too?" " The kid too." "Please follow me to the cashier's desk." "Are you sure they won't recognize us like this?" "Yes." "Wear your hat." "Like this they won't." "Here!" "570 francs, Danièle." "Hurry up." "Thank you." "Thomas!" "It's not any cheaper." "If prices keep on going up, I'll buy a bicycle." "Sir!" "Sir!" "Are you going South?" "Yeah." "You want a ride, is that it?" " It would certainly be convenient." "Get in." " Get in the backseat, Thomas." "The gas-station attendant heard them talking." "Yes?" " They took the road to Clermont." "Give me the keys, I'll drive." "Watch out, Walter!" "Did we cover many kilometers?" "Yes, about 80." "Are you in such a hurry?" "We missed our train and he's going to school tomorrow, so I'd like to arrive early." "School?" "Aren't the kids on holidays?" "He's going to a private school." "Do you understand?" "Where do you want me to stop, exactly?" "I'll tell you, don't worry." " I'm not worried." "Hey, I know this music!" "Can you put it louder, please?" "We interrupt our musical program to bring you details about the little Thomas Mostri kidnapping." "The heir to an estimated wealth of several millions, the seven year old Thomas disappeared during a walk he took with his nanny." "The young woman then sent the family an inconsistent threatening letter." "I remind you that she was just out a psychiatric home." "She's of middle height and has brown-red hair, blue eyes and a fair complexion." "As for the kid, he's got short chestnut hair, and he's supposed to wear a jacket and corduroy trousers." "Of course, we'll give you all the details on this dramatic case during our 8:00 PM edition." "What's up?" "I just remembered, I forgot to call my wife." "Look, Louise." "I'm sure he's talking about us." "He keeps on looking at us." "Now, we're real bad guys!" "Yes, it's here." "Go in." "Good." "Thank you." "This is Dr. Rosenfeld, commissioner." "He was Julie Ballanger's doctor." "I know Julie Ballanger quite well, commissioner, and I'm convinced that, provided she can do it, she'll come and seek shelter here." "Seek shelter?" "Didn't I read you her letter on the phone?" "Thomas might just be dead now, and she might be too." "I don't know what could have happened to Julie Ballanger, but I'm positive she's not guilty of anything." "Well, if she's free and innocent, I can't see why she didn't go to the police." "Commissioner, things are not that simple." "You probably remember the Garnier case, about 15 years ago?" "Yes, he was a magistrate." "The president of a bankruptcy court who was killed by a thirteen year old girl..." "Julie Ballanger?" "Her arrest made her afraid of uniforms." "Pathologically afraid." "Even today, while she's absolutely cured" "I can't stress that enough, completely cured" "I don't think she'll go to the police." "I think she'll come to Mr. Mostri, who's a symbol of security for her." "Well, Mr. Mostri, I'll keep you informed as the search goes on." "If you get any phonecall..." " I'll call you, of course." "Thank you, commissioner." "Well!" "You must be proud of yourself, doctor!" "You had me entrust my nephew to a madwoman." "A criminally insane woman." " Julie Ballanger is not insane." "Oh no?" "Then why did she kill a man when she was thirteen?" "Because he raped her." "Are you sure this is the way?" " I don't know." "I'm sure it's not." "Such a road can't lead anywhere." "Would you rather run into the gendarmes?" "I don't give a damn about the gendarmes." "Oh, shit!" " Such foul language!" "Why did you turn the music off?" "We mustn't be conspicuous." " We're not bothering any neighbours." "Come!" " How dark it is!" "Are you coming?" "What are you doing?" "Look what I found!" "We're lucky you're here." "Come out." " It's all muddy." "Yes, I know." "I think I can see a house." "Can you see it?" "Yes, I can see it." "Hey, look, goats!" "And stairs." "Come." "Lots of hay, here." "We'll be able to sleep." "Come." "Look." "How soft!" "And warm too." "Ouch!" "I pricked my finger." "Let me see." "It's nothing." "You must be careful, you know there're a lot of things in hay." "There's grass and flowers but also thistles." "Doesn't it prick the cows when they eat it?" "Sometimes it does." "But to whom could they complain?" "It's sad, then." "When they suffer, they can't tell anybody." "Indeed." " Let's take the thistles out." "Oh, no, not now." "Now we sleep." "Because I'd like us to be up early, tomorrow morning." "Come on." "Smells good." " You must be hungry, poor Thomas." "It's OK." "We're comfortable here." "The spots on your face, I told you they were ugly, but it's not true, you know." "Do they always stay in the same place?" "Gee, I never wondered about that." "And you've got real pretty eyes." " Is that a fact?" "So you don't believe me?" " I do!" "I do believe you!" "You're tickling me." "The other Louise never kissed me." "Oh, no?" " She was fat, here, and here." "You're perfect." "Not too much." "My mom is like that too." "You've got to sleep now." "OK." "I bet you'll be asleep before me." "Come on, Thomas, get in!" "You see." "It's not that difficult." "We've been asking for a "no-exit" sign for years." "By night, of course, people don't know the way, and think this will lead them to the National road." "And why would they know the way?" "Say, you should drive the car to the mechanic's anyway it must have suffered." "No, thank you, I'm in too much of a hurry." "Thanks." "Fill her up." " Yes, sir." "Hello?" "Mr. Mostri?" "Hello?" "Hello?" "Why don't you speak?" "Hello?" "May I speak to commissioner Melun, please?" "As we said at the very beginning of this bulletin, the trail of little Thomas Mostri was just picked-up again, thanks to a farmer's information." "The police force are now blocking a lot of roads." "We'll keep you informed as new information reaches us." "What will we do if we run into a roadblock?" "I don't know." "Why don't we tell the gendarmes that what they say on the radio isn't true?" "Because." " Because what?" "Because!" "..." "I'm afraid of cops." "I hate cops." "Why?" " Oh, Thomas!" "Because, I'm a former bad guy, that's why." "Happy now?" " I don't believe you." "I'm tired of running." "Is Uncle Stéphane's house still far?" "Don't worry." " But I'm exhausted." "Come, let's hurry up." " Why don't you carry me?" "Louise!" "What does "orphan" mean?" "Where did you hear that?" "On the radio." "In the man's car." "Does it mean that my mom and dad will never come back?" "Do you know why I always call you Louise?" "Because you do it on purpose, of course." "I'll always call you Julie now." "Hey, look!" "Sheep!" "Well, commissioner, haven't you found them yet?" "No, mister Mostri." "But we found your car, left in a wood." "What else?" " Your chauffeur." "He's dead." "Georges?" "And Thomas?" "He was alright this morning." "Farmers have seen him..." "Oh, yes, like you, I heard that on the radio." "But tell me, commissioner, did you think about what I mentioned this morning on the phone?" "Yes, there is no problem, mister Mostri." "We'll station gendarmes all around your estate, you'll be safe." "Oh, very well." "My thanks, commissioner." "Mr. Mostri." " Sir." "I knew it!" "That's where we must get off the train!" "Can you see the gendarmes?" "They're fast runners, they caught up with us." "Come on." "There!" "This way!" "You'll see." "We'll have to cross a small bridge." "It's lovely." "Here." "And afterwards?" "Do we have far to go?" "Oh, yes, very far." "I remember, with my Dad, we came here to buy newspapers." "And it was a bit far, even in his very fast car." "What are you going to do?" " You'll see." "Climb!" "Come on, Julie, use the pedals!" "We're almost there." "This is my Dad's house!" "We have to see your uncle or Dr. Rosenfeld at once." "Nobody else." "What is it?" " Look." "They are gendarmes." "We can tell the gendarmes, they'll take us to Uncle Stéphane." "That's the point, I don't want to arrive between two gendarmes." "This is no time to chicken out, Julie." "Don't you know any other way?" "I do, but you'll have to double back." "Well?" " It's here." "Give me your hand." "Come." "This way." "Commissioner,was that your men shooting?" "Ah..." "Mostri..." "Mos... tri..." "I think it's over." "I'd swear he was pointing his gun at you, mister Mostri." "I don't know him." "Thomas!" "My little one!" "Doctor..." "If you would come with me, miss, please." "Commissioner..." " Please, doctor!" "She didn't do anything wrong." "Do you know this man?" " He's the one who wanted to kill us." "Are you sure he wasn't your accomplice?" "Are you quite sure you didn't plot the whole story with him?" "Why would I have done that?" "Tell them, mister Mostri." "Doctor!" "I do believe you, Julie." "Look, miss, at this point, I have no choice, but to ask you to come with me." "Commissioner,tell me you're not going to arrest her." "It will depend on her answers, doctor." " Answers?" "Please." " But I didn't do anything!" "Don't worry, everything will be alright." " But I didn't do anything!" "I was framed!" "Please, miss, follow me." "Don't make a fuss." "Come with me." "Thomas!" "Tell them it's not true!" " She did nothing wrong." "You must take a rest." " I swear she did nothing wrong." "She saved me!" " That's enough!" "Why don't you believe me!" "She's real nice!" "Julie!" "Don't go, Julie!" "Julie!" "Julie!" "Julie!" "Julie!" "Look what I found!" "Give me that, Thomas!" " Take it, sir!" "But... where did you find this?" "In Uncle Stéphane's office." "In his fireplace." "I'm sorry, mister Mostri, but I'm afraid you'll have to give me an explanation." "An explanation?" "You little bastard!" "You trash!" "The spitting image of his father, the same vanity!" "Arrogant and domineering." "A little bastard!" "The son of a big bastard who used to crush everybody under his dough, his arrogance, his hypocritical charity!" "Don't you dare touch me!" "No!" "I'm Stéphane Mostri!" "Do you remember, Julie?" "You said you were just a drop of water." "A grain of sand, lost on a beach." "Well, here you are, the grain of sand that upset the whole machinery." "Oh, I won't go to jail, you know." "No Mostri ever goes to jail." "I'm sure the psychiatric examination will reveal that I am sick, absolutely irresponsible." "Won't it, doctor?" "One moment!" "Remember what the Cheschire cat said, you can't help meeting crazy people for the simple reason, that we're all crazy." "Good luck, Julie Ballanger." "Here." "They're for you." "Come." "Let's go inside." "Translation by:" "Goupil 66" "Timing by McDuck May 2009"