Chapter One
Nearly four years later…
"Lynette? Lynette, my dear, is that you?" Bernard Chafee tried to lift his head, but could not find the strength to do so. His daughter approached him, smiling weakly. "I'm here, Papa." She knelt beside his tiny bed and stroked his graying hair lovingly, feeling the sharp sting of tears threatening to fall. It had been nearly two weeks since her father's illness had begun, and each day, his symptoms worsened. His eyesight had begun to weaken and he slept for hours, sometimes days, at a time. Lynette feared that he would never be the same again.
Lynette and her father lived in a small, run-down cottage on the outskirts of Paris, far from the bustle of city life. Since her mother's death when she was six, her father had been her only companion. Bernard was an unsuccessful inventor who traveled all over France to display his work at various exhibitions. Try as he might, however, his creations never seemed to catch-on and he rarely made any profit from his efforts. The father and daughter lived a very simple lifestyle and sometimes could not even afford to eat, yet Lynette's support of her father's dreams was unfaltering. Much like her father, Lynette too, was a dreamer. She longed for the thrill of adventure, for the rapture of love, and, most of all, for a sense of belonging.
Lynette was no stranger to the residents of nearby Paris. She visited often, usually buying food or medicine for her father, or sometimes visiting the city's enormous library. Everywhere she went, the girl was met with curious stares and hushed whispers. Many thought that her father was a madman and suspected that his bookish yet beautiful daughter was just as crazy. There had only ever been one who thought differently. He alone understood and shared her hopes and ambitions. She often envisioned his handsome face in her dreams, longing to see him again… but that had been long ago. Her young beau had left Paris with his family six years ago, when she was thirteen years old. She had neither seen nor heard of him since.
Recovering from her reverie, Lynette's deep brown eyes stared at her father's pale face, their expression unreadable. Finally, her mind was made up. "Papa, you need help." She paused. "We can't stay here anymore." Bernard's eyes widened in shock. "Leave?" he whispered weakly, "This is our home, Lynette! Where will we go? Don't worry about me, I'll be fi-" His words were cut off by a sudden bout of harsh coughing. Glancing into the handkerchief enclosed in her father's trembling hands, Lynette winced when she saw flecks of blood mingling with the mucus it held.
"You need help." She said sternly. "We're leaving for Paris in the morning." His daughter stood at once and began packing some of her father's belongings into a worn traveling bag. Bernard managed to sit up. "But we have no money! How can we afford-" Lynette's look hushed him. "You know as well as I do that I have Mama's talent. I'll audition at the Opera House. Surely they'll find a place for me." She stopped, waiting for a reaction, but her father said nothing. "The pay won't be much, but it should be enough to get you the help you need." She gave her father a gentle kiss on the forehead. "Get some sleep, Papa. We'll need to leave early." Lynette left the room without another word.
The next morning, as planned, Lynette packed up her belongings, hitched up their old wagon, and began the long journey to Paris. As the early morning sun broke through the trees, the young girl glanced down at her father's sleeping face. Though she tried her hardest to keep him warm, the chill of the piercing autumn wind was still a threat to the old man's health. Turning her eyes from his shivering form, she urged the old horse onward. With the added weight of the wagon and luggage to burden him, the horse, Philippe, maintained a painfully slow pace as their journey continued. It was noon before they finally reached the city.
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"Please, Monsieur , is there anything you can do for him?" Lynette asked the doctor urgently, gesturing towards her trembling father. He lay on a small cot in the corner of the room, his breathing slightly labored. "He will need to stay here for several weeks, at the least, Mademoiselle. It will take time to determine the severity of his condition. And then, well, we will see." The doctor paused, looking on the young girl with pity. Lynette was overjoyed. "Do you hear that, Papa? He's going to help you!" She kissed her father gently, knowing he could not hear her cries of joy. He had fallen into another of his deep sleeps.
Lynette reached into the bag at her side and pulled out a pile of crumpled notes. "Will this do, Monsieur?" She handed the money to the doctor. "I will have more, very soon, I promise you… But please, help my father!" The young doctor stared into young girl's pleading eyes. He knew that what she had given him was barely enough for a week's stay at the hospital…yet he found himself unable to refuse this poor girl. "This will do." He smiled softly. Lynette's eyes lit up. "Oh, thank you! You'll never know how much this means to me, Monsieur!" With a final goodbye to her sleeping father, Lynette bid the doctor farewell, promising further payment in a week's time. Her spirits lifted at the promise of help for her father, Lynette stepped back into the mid-afternoon sunlight to continue her journey deep into the heart of Paris.
The girl and her horse were met with many critical stares as they led the creaking carriage down the crowded city streets. Women whispered behind their delicately embroidered fans and young men gawked from beneath the rims of their beautiful silk hats. Lynette looked shamefully at her ripped and faded blue dress, a deep blush coming to her face. They know I'm not one of them… she thought miserably. Finally, when it seemed she could no longer bear the humiliation, she brought Philippe to a halt. Lynette found herself before the most beautiful building she had ever seen.Stepping lightly off her carriage, she approached the massive building. Lost in her awe and excitement, she jumped at the sudden appearance of a figure at her side, but smiled when she saw it was only a child. The young stable boy offered to find a place for her horse to stay, to which she nodded gratefully. But as Lynette watched Philippe being led away, a feeling of intense loneliness began to consume her. She was finally on her own. With a deep breath and a quick whispered prayer, she lifted her small traveling bag and continued her way up the immense marble steps toward her new home.