The Runaway Royals - Part Four
"Juliette," Hélène called across her own dressing room. Her own attendant appeared with a gown. As lady-in-waiting and companion to the Princess she was permanently on show, therefore she had to look presentable and fashionable too. Juliette had been a kitchen servant before the Queen selected her to be trained to be a lady's maid. It had been a great honour to be selected as attendant to Lady Hélène de Lyons, daughter of the Duke.
"Is this one all right milady?" Juliette asked holding up a green and cream gown. Hélène simply nodded. She had never spoken much to her attendants. She was actually quite a shy person. There were few people she really did feel comfortable with.
She stood up and allowed Juliette to do up the intricate network of laces and hooks, that this particular dress entailed. Fortunately her figure had remained such that she didn't have the problem of a very tight cinch to deal with. Her naturally small waist had fortunately been spared permanent expansion which meant that corsets needed to be pulled so they just fitted her. That way her gowns kept shape while wearing them.
Once she was dressed Juliette proceeded to do her hair. She had a very long mane of jet black hair, which was almost too thick to control, but Juliette had become accustomed to this and was now quite adept at pinning and styling the hair so that it was always the very epitome of chic. By the time she was finished Hélène always looked perfect and could compete with any courtier in the province, possibly the Kingdom. Her younger sisters, who had been kept in the dark about her relationship with Henry, always wondered why she wasn't the wife of some rich noble or Prince.
"Will that be all milady?" Juliette asked as the crocheted cap was put in place. Hélène looked over herself, making sure that there wasn't anything that wasn't quite right. She couldn't abide looking anything less than perfect. She never had been able to. Only one person other than her attendants had ever seen her not immaculately turned out, and for him she would have shunned the trappings of fashion and elegance forever.
Finally satisfied that she could look no better, she dismissed Juliette, allowing her to get along with her other duties. She quickly selected a pearl brooch and earrings to complete her outfit and left her dressing room to go for breakfast with Lord Grey. Since there return to the Palace after their, rather eventful, first few days in their appointments they had made somewhat of a tradition in breakfasting together. They enjoyed each others company and found they had a lot to talk about.
The Queen had given them the use of a drawing room in the west wing of the Palace in which they would eat together. As personal attendants to the Princess they were given special privileges. This drawing room had proved to be special haven for them. There were no courtiers allowed in that part of the castle and few guards were posted there. It allowed them to spend most of their time in peace. They could spend hours in there just talking. They often stayed up until long after the rest of the Palace was asleep. It offered solace to Hélène in particular as it was a part of Hautefort that had no connections with the past she shared with Henry.
Inside the drawing room, Steven was already there, as usual. Hélène tried to get up a little earlier each day in the hope of beating him to it, but it seemed as if the man never slept. "Good Morning Your Grace," Hélène said as she breezed in. "It is nice to see you so fresh after your exertions last night."
Steven allowed a dry chuckle to escape. "Good morning Lady Hélène," he said. Since finding out that her father was a duke, he always addressed her properly. He had been raised in that world of titles Dan being a duke himself meant that he had a respect for the women that had to put up with a lot of bother to satisfy the whims of aristocratic men.
Steven pulled a chair out for her to sit, before taking the chair opposite her. "I must say I was very impressed by your superior ability on the dance floor Steven. I had not put you down as being so light footed."
Once again Steven laughed at his companion's remark. He was used to her biting comments by now and positively encouraged her to mock him. He felt that it offered some humour which distracted them from the painful memories which kept them both in distress. Although they knew nothing of what troubled one another, they both knew that there was some tragedy in each others life. Perhaps that was what made them such good friends. They shared a bond that only the broken hearted could understand. "My mother was a great believer that it should not only be ladies that should be accomplished." He replied. "My father sent me to learn how to handle a sword and to ride like a man, and my dear mother had tutors brought in to teach me the intricacies of the waltz and how to be a virtuoso on the harpsichord."
"I had no idea that you were so proficient sir. You put us ladies to shame."
"Oh do not fret, father put a stop to the whole thing when mother threatened sewing lessons." Now it was Hélène's turn to laugh. It seemed that the witty, charming Lord Grey, only appeared for her and so she took full advantage of his good nature while it was there. Anybody else listening to their conversations and watching how they acted, might be mistaken for believing them to be lovers. But even if such an attraction existed their wounds were too fresh, and too raw to risk being cut again. They passed their time together in cheerful banter as they always did, before leaving to get on with their duties. They walked towards the Prince and Princesses chambers together as they always did. When they parted at the door to Danielle's dressing room, they marked the pleasant time spent in each others' company with a little bow. They then were left in the real world of their duties, and their sorrows.
As Hélène sorted through a rack of gowns, looking for the right one for the day she noticed a few were missing. That was very odd. Sometimes she would order Juliette to take some to be mended or cleaned, but she was sure that all had been returned and she had ordered no more to be removed. Worried that there was a thief in the Palace, Hélène decided to check through all of the Princesses belongings. However there was no jewellery missing. All of her diamonds and gems were still exactly where they always were. All that was gone was a couple of gowns, some shoes and a plain grey cloak. They were all the most basic things in the Princesses dressing room. Why would anyone leave the fortune in jewels and rich clothing that she owned and just take those. The whole thing reminded Hélène of something, but she couldn't quite work out what it was.
She went back to finding an outfit for Danielle, deciding not to worry her with it until she had spoken to Steven. He might be able to find something out. He was quite a good detective. Just one of his many proficiencies. As she was deciding between cream velvet and yellow silk, the odd remembrance in Hélène's head surfaced. Whenever she had accompanied Henry on one of his escape attempts, he had always insisted she take only the basics. Could he have possibly talked Danielle into doing something so reckless?
Worried about what her mistress may have done, Hélène moved over to the door to the main chamber and listened to see if she could hear any sounds coming from the room. There was nothing. She tapped on the door, hoping to get a response. Even if it was an angry one, it would mean that they had not done anything so foolhardy as running away. Again there was no reply. Now she knew she had to take the bold step of entering their bedroom uninvited. She took a deep breath and walked in. As she had feared, it was empty. In the middle of the bed, the place where Henry always left his notes, were a few folded up pieces of paper sealed with wax. There was one addressed to the King and Queen, one for Captain Laurent and one for herself. She ripped it open and read the letter, written in her mistresses hand.
Dear Hélène,
Do not worry about me. I am gone with Henry to the coast for our honeymoon. We have taken everything we need. You can expect us back in about ten days. Please try and assure the King that we will return as soon as promised and that he needn't send the guard after us. I am sure you will be glad of the time away from your duties. it will give yourself and Lord Grey a chance to have more of those secret talks that you think I don't know about.
Lots of Love,
Danielle
As much as Hélène wanted to believe these sentiments, she knew Henry too well. When his adventurous streak took over, he was liable to do reckless things. She was unwilling to put poor, sweet, naive Danielle into such danger. She gathered up the letters and went to find Lord Grey. She wanted some support when she had to take her findings to the King.
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As the King read the letter left for him by his son and daughter-in-law he got redder and redder until Hélène thought he might burst. She had faced his anger before when she had aided Henry in his run away plans, but that was nothing compared to this. Eventually, when he had finished, he exploded forth with rage. "How Dare they defy me in this manner!" he yelled. "I told them explicitly that I wanted them here for the time being."
While he ranted, the Queen remained seated in her throne. The whole idea actually seemed very romantic to her. Running off to spend time alone together. However she knew how rash her son could be at times, and did genuinely fear for their safety. She knew that actions must be taken to retrieve them.
"My dear," Marie said. "Do calm down and think about this rationally. We do not want a great fuss over this. I realise that we must retrieve them, but I do not think calling out the guard will solve anything. We have to start treating Henry differently now that he is married. No matter how childishly he behaves, we must accept that he is an adult. I suggest that we just send Laurent and Lord Grey. We know that they are heading to the coast, probably west, so there are only limited roads they could take. I am sure that the two of them can handle the task quite adequately." The two men nodded.
"Oh all right then," the King huffed. "But if they are not back here in five days, I will call out the guard." The Queen was satisfied with this compromise. It gave Henry a chance to show his father that he has grown up and can take care of himself and his wife.
Just as the men were about to leave, Hélène stepped forward. "Please you Majesties," she said gently. "But may I be so bold as to request that I too be allowed to go with the Captain and Lord Grey." The King looked at her in disbelief. "But Hélène," Steven said. "The roads are filled with dangers, which is why we want the bring the Princess back. I could not in good conscience put you in such danger."
The Queen noticed the tender manner of his speech and softening of his face as he said this. Could there be a romance blooming here? She certainly hoped so. Hélène was far to pleasant and pretty a girl not to be married. It had always puzzled Marie why such a prize was not already married.
"I shall not be able to rest until I know that she is safe. We have grown quite close in these weeks. I could be of use to you. I have been Henry's companion on these escapes before. I know where he goes. And the Princess will need her attendant when she is found. For all of your accomplishments Lord Grey, I think I might have the edge over you when it comes to hair arranging." Steven couldn't help laughing, even in these most severe surroundings.
"Fine," Francis said. "Arrange some of Danielle's things and I shall arrange for a carriage to follow you and meet with you each night at where ever you choose to stop."
"Thank you Your Majesty." Hélène curtseyed.
"But remember, you have just five days to have them back in this castle. After that I shall call out the guard and Heaven only knows how I shall punish them when they get back."