Excerpt Six

 

“The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek” ~ Joseph Campbell

It was storming in Paris. I was walking along the Seine river and the top of the Eiffel tower was engulfed in a thick cluster of fog. You could only see the bottom two-thirds of the magnificent monument. It was eerie, and I felt the goosebumps crawl up the back of my neck. The rain was coming down, harder and faster. Sometimes I relished these moments, in this city called Paris. The city that so many people want to be in, visit from all over the world, actually live and work in….and now it was just me and Paris. I was alone with the city. There was not one other body on the boulevard for miles to see. It felt exhilarating. I didn’t care about being drenched, uncomfortable and cold. I found these circumstances essentially my private intimate dates with Paris. I’m that weird person, when everyone else wants to go inside, I head outside. I literally do the opposite to have my own escape. When I was a kid, I always pushed the envelope just right there at the edge. Like the time my mom found me in the back of a school yard with an injured black crow. My preschool teacher put her hands up with a sigh as she led my mother to the edge of the playground where she would see her daughter holding a large, jagged, dirty stick with a black crow on it. 

“Only Krista” as she would say. Another “Only Krista” was the fact that I was seriously becoming obsessed with securing ties to Paris. My brain was trying to find any and every possible way to stay. I was a dog with a bone. I was about to hit my TWO YEAR MARK living in this city, and the thought, the pure visualization I had of the possibility of me having to go back to the US, to California, was the full feeling of anxiety wherein I wouldn’t even recognize myself anymore. 

 

I needed to get back to mon petit pied-a-terre. 

I couldn’t believe what I was about to send. Just do it Krista. You have nothing to lose. These were my last thoughts before hitting the send button on my I-Mac computer. I remember my hand was shaking, I remember listening to the rain on my window, I remember a force within me that led my finger to the return key.

 

Hello Delphine,

I spoke over the phone with Alex about renewing my lease. I was first wondering if you are aware and if not can ask the owner if they would be at all interested in selling the flat at this time?

I love the apartment and am also looking to buy property in Paris now. If you know of other properties for sale that would be great as well.

Please let me know and then secondly we can discuss the lease renewal after this answer.

Thanks so much,

Krista

The response 24 hours later was …

Hello Krista

Thank you for your interest for the purchase of the flat

The price of this flat is 320000 euros plus the agency fees (5%)

Please let me know in case of any interest

Best regards,

Delphine