Chapter Four
Henry removed his cape and rushed out of the church. Jacqueline quickly followed as well as Laurent. Danielle rose from her family's pew and they also headed out of the church. Nicole looked at her daughter closely. She could see a little hope in her daughter's face.
They walked to their carriage and rode back to the manor.
Henry couldn't believe his good fortune. He now saw what was important. Love was the one thing he had in his life and he had to take it. He ran down the line of carriages heading back to the palace when he saw the servant that Danielle had saved. He ran up to him. "Where is she?"
"The baroness?" Maurice asked.
"Nic-Danielle," The prince told him.
"But she has been sold, sire."
"Sold? To whom?"
Jacqueline
answered him as she arrived at the carriage.
"To Pierre Le Pieu, your highness, just after the masque."
"Tell no one we have
spoken, for all will reveal itself in due course," Henry said to Maurice and
Jacqueline. "Come, Laurent, there is
much to be done."
The captain of the guard nodded and giving Jacqueline a quick smile, followed after the prince.
Half an hour later, Danielle, Ariella, and Nicole were al sitting in the study, reading and waiting to see what would happen next. After leaving the church, the five of them had arrived at the manor and walked inside and they had decided to wait it out and see what would happen.
Danielle glanced over at her mother and sister sitting across the room from her, faces buried in a few quite large books. Books that Danielle was sure they weren't truly reading. But she was trying to read her book as she waited for what would happen next.
It had taken an hour, but the royal guard was ready to mount the rescue of Danielle. They all rode off with the prince among them as they headed toward Le Pieu's estate.
The ride took twenty minutes, but they arrived at the Chateau de Beynac and Henry immediately ran for the door. He pounded on it and it was opened by none other than Jenna.
She
curtsied when she saw who it was at the door.
"What may I do for you, your majesty?"
"I need to speak with Le
Pieu, at once!" Henry said insistently.
"My husband is not here, your majesty. He will be gone for several days," Jenna answered him.
"I was told by Jacqueline de Ghent that Danielle du Barbarac was sold to Le Pieu the day after the masque," Henry said.
"Danielle is not here, either, your majesty. She is where she belongs, with her family, her true family," Jenna told him.
"And where is that?" Henry asked her.
"Nearby. That is all I will tell you, your majesty. You will have to find her yourself," Jenna said before Henry walked away and she then closed the door.
Henry remounted his horse and directed the royal guard away from the chateau. Laurent pulled his horse up alongside his good friend. "Is she not here?"
"No. Le Pieu's wife told me that she is with her true family. She wouldn't tell me where that was, just that it is nearby," Henry told him in frustration.
"What do you want us to do?" Laurent asked.
"We will search the countryside until we find her. I will find her! I will not lose her now!" Henry exclaimed.
Laurent nodded and pulled back a bit, leaving Henry alone with his thoughts.
Danielle had grown weary of reading, as had her mother and sister. They had decided to go out into the gardens and enjoy what was left of a beautiful day.
Danielle had chosen an area of the gardens where a spring-fed pond was situated. Leaves and blossoms from the nearby trees and flowers lightly lined the surface of the pond.
Danielle sat down at the edge of the pond and ran her hand slowly through the water, making it ripple. Flower petals surrounded her hand as she ran her hand back and forth through the pond, dreaming of her beloved Henry and now soon, she knew, they would be reunited.
