HELD AT GUNPOINT

May 7 continued

While we were making our trip to town Don decided to go on a bike ride.  So he and I had discussed the alarm system on the house and worked out a hiding place for the alarm control so that whoever got home first could turn the alarm off.

When we bank robbers and grocery store marauders returned home from our adventuraes in La Chapelle I retrieved the alarm control and pushed the button with the outline of the house, which, Francois had explained, would turn off the alarm.  We entered the house with armloads of groceries, and began to make lunch.  A short time after we arrived home, however, the alarm did sound. So I again pushed the house outline.  The alarm deactivated and we went about our business, having lunch and chatting.  After about 15 minutes the alarm sounded again!  I pushed the house button again, but now it wouldn’t deactivate the alarm.  Since I didn’t have my glasses on, I couldn’t determine which other button might be relevant, so I just pushed all of the buttons in an attempt to make the horrible noise stop.  By this time I found my glasses and saw that in addition to the icon I was pushing there was another house outline that was a very narrow outline and I was pushing the bold outline.  Oh, well.  The alarm was off and we finished our lunch and were getting out the playing cards.

BANG! BANG! BANG! There was a loud knock on the door.  I was just coming from the kitchen to the dining room with two large bags of fruit in my hands and the banging echoed loudly off the tile floors.  I jumped at the loud noise and then called out, “Just a minute dear.” thinking it was Don.  I opened the door and my jaw dropped.  I ditched my fruit and held my hands high in the air. Two policemen stood in attack stance, guns drawn and pointed at me! 

“Sortez ici!!”  demanded the gendarme.  He wanted me to come out of the house.

“Soyez debout la!”  he pointed.  Stand over there!

I scurried out of the door and down the stairs and stood in the place indicated with my arms out at my sides while the two policemen clicked their ammunition clips in and out of their guns several times, trying to look official and intimidating.  They were just boys, though, so they didn’t pull it off completely.  I stood there, hoping they were disarming their guns and not putting the bullet clips in. 

I tried to explain that I was exchanging homes with M. Francois Merle and that I had set off the alarm by mistake, but the fellow in charge was busily making telephone calls, agitatedly yelling into the telephone at whomever he had reached, and scowling at me.

In the meanwhile Susan came out to try to help.  I was afraid they were going to get their guns out and armed again and point them at her.  I looked at the guy who wasn’t on the phone and said, “Gosh!  You scared me, pointing your gun at me.”  I know he understood because he got a little grin on his face, but he was not allowed to say a word.  I guess he was the underling and not allowed to speak.  Susan was busily explaining and translating their actions for me the whole while. 

After a lengthy telephone conversation #1 gendarme (he looked to be about 25) began to scold me most heartily.  First in French, then, due to my bewildered look I am sure, in English.  Over and over he complained that they had to come a long way to answer the alarm, and I should not push the button and I was bad, it was very inconvenient, etc.  Not just once, not twice for emphasis, but many, many times he went over his complaint. 

I apologized profusely, both in English and French  “Je suis desole, monsieur!  J'ai poussé le bouton par erreur.  Je ne le ferai pas encore.”  My apology made no impression and got me no mercy.  On and on he continued, excoriating me with gusto.

By this time Cheryl was at the door too, to see what was going on.  With a big grin on her face, she ran upstairs to get her camera.  But, by the time she was back, the police boys had given up in disgust and were leaving.  She caught a shot of them as they departed, complaining all the way.

Later when Don came home from his bike ride I confessed about pushing the wrong button.  That is when Don admitted that he, too, had set off the alarm, but had left the premises before the police arrived.  No wonder they were so mad at us.  Two false alarms in one day!