Chapter 3: A Lady in Tears
Benoit was Baldwin . . . Jack hoped he'd concealed his dismay from Freyja. Philippe had ordered him to stay away from all the de Clermonts except her. Would Baldwin wash his hands of the matter now that he knew Philippe had ordered their mission? Freyja thought so. Jack wasn't so sure.
The aloof wearh was nothing like the man who for a short while had been his father. The way Baldwin insulted witches filled Jack with loathing. Philippe wouldn't have to worry about Jack keeping his distance. The less he saw of Baldwin, the better.
Jack had learned during his time with the Roydons that being a de Clermont was no guarantee of being a good person. Master Roydon's sister Louisa had tried to kill Mistress Roydon. Based on the conversation Jack overheard, Baldwin could be similarly inclined. Louisa was no longer alive, but Baldwin could still be around in Mistress Roydon's time, hundreds of years from now. Yet another reason for Jack to stay alive till then. Philippe could have a blind spot when it came to his children and not realize the danger they posed.
Jack couldn't do anything for Mistress Roydon at the moment, but there was someone else who needed his friendship. Louise had few friends at court. Even though she was head mistress to the king, she kept to herself. Not only was she fearful of the jealousy of others but she was tortured by the thought of her relationship with the king. She was a devout Catholic, and the adultery she was committing made her despise her weakness in not being able to renounce him. Yet she freely confided in Jack her adoration for His Highness.
Was the king already tiring of her? Jack wouldn't be surprised. Louis was restless and exacting. He demanded a life full of pageantry and glory. Louise wanted a quiet home life. Inevitably, Louis would seek pleasure with someone better suited to his personality.
Jack found Louise in her apartment near the king's bedchamber. She was lying on a chaise longue when her servant led him into the antechamber. A small book lay in her lap.
"Jean, you are welcome indeed!" she exclaimed happily, cutting short his bow as she rose to greet him. "I hope your music will dispel my ennui." She glanced at the spinet along the wall. "Today I may just listen to you play. I haven't touched the harpsichord since arriving at the chateau. I'm afraid it's out of tune."
"I'll be happy to tune it for you," he offered.
"That is kind of you. Perhaps later. At the moment, I feel too big and clumsy to attempt anything." She clasped her hands over her belly. "My doctor tells me to rest, but that only makes me feel more like an invalid."
"You look radiant," he declared. "Have you had any complaints?"
"No." A shadow crossed her face. "But I didn't for the three others either."
"This baby will be different," he assured her. "I wager she'll be beautiful, and, just like you, she'll be beloved by the king."
"Why do you think she'll be a girl?" Louise asked.
"Because she's also a little bossy. She didn't want older brothers. She wants to rule over your future children." Jack shrugged. "She's like her father, and that's why he will dote on her!"
"What nonsense you talk!" she said with a laugh, but he'd succeeded in making her smile.
"I warn you I may be a bad influence on her," he continued. "I could teach her about the best hiding spots in the chateau. The mischief we'll get into . . . " He winked. "I don't think you want to know the details yet."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." She bit her lower lip, dimples forming on her cheeks. "I may wish to take part!" She reflected for a moment. "I can think of only one solution to avoid those future escapades."
"What's that?"
"You need to get married. It's really past time, you know." For a moment, her expression saddened. "There's no chance of that for me, but the pleasure I'll have of seeing you and your children will make up for it."
"I'm not even engaged, and you see me with children?"
She shrugged, gazing up at the mural on the ceiling as if conferring with the nymphs in the mural over her head. "It's not my fault. My rascals will demand playmates of their own age." She dropped onto the harpsichord stool and propped her arms on the closed case of the instrument. "Let's see . . . Who should you marry?" Her face brightened as she snapped her fingers. "I have the perfect candidate!"
"Who?" Jack demanded, growing uneasy. Surely Louise wasn't serious. This was one courtship that would never take place.
"Your actress friend Bernadette Roulet. I've seen the two of you whispering together. She's beautiful. She sings like an angel. It's a match made in heaven. What do you think?"
Louise looked so pleased Jack hated to crush her fantasy. "Bernadette's more of a sister to me," he said, treading carefully.
"That's the best way for love to start," she declared. "You begin as friends and end as lovers. I know I'm right. You should give it careful consideration."
Bryn had never expressed an interest in men, but if she had, he could be tempted. He already loved her although not in the way Louise hoped. With Bryn and Leonard, he didn't have to disguise his nature. But Freyja claimed Bryn's heart. They hadn't mated but they might someday, and he wouldn't do anything to damage that happy possibility. As for Leonard, he considered Jack to be his brother, and that wouldn't change.
Louise touched his arm. "Don't look so sad. If you gave yourself a chance, I'm confident Bernadette would respond. You've no idea how handsome you are. Any girl would be lucky to have you."
Have a wearh as a lover? He doubted that very much. He patted her arm. "Not half as lucky as the king is to have earned your love."
She blushed. "My fondest hope is to remain in his good grace." Her eyes grew bright with moisture. Jack had learned that Louise's emotions were difficult to control when she was with child, but was something else causing her to be on the verge of tears?
"I brought my sketchpad along with my viol," he said. "I didn't know if you'd feel up to singing. I could sketch you instead."
"Like this? I don't feel very beautiful right now."
"You should," he said firmly. "You're glowing with the happiness that child will bring you. Let me draw you. If you're pleased with the picture, you may wish to present it to the king. You could add a poem." He knew she liked to write poetry and hoped the suggestion would please her.
"I love the idea! Could you add the portrait of the king on the wall to your drawing?"
"With pleasure."
"How would you like to pose me?"
"Perhaps reclining on the chaise longue," he suggested. "The sketch shouldn't take long to complete but I don't want to fatigue you."
"I think I'd rather be depicted writing the poem at my desk. Surely that will please him." Her lips began to tremble, and she placed a hand over her mouth. The tears started to flow.
Jack offered her his handkerchief. "I didn't mean to distress you," he said worriedly.
"It's not you." She sniffed as she dabbed her eyes. "I seldom see His Majesty these days." She swallowed. "I think his eyes are wandering. I don't know what to do. In my condition . . ." Her words ended in a shrug.
"Is that why you're at Saint-German?" Jack asked quietly. Normally Louise stayed in the Palais Royal during the later stages of pregnancy.
She nodded. "I needed to see for myself. The king is quite taken with Françoise-Athénais."
"Madame de Montespan?" Jack asked in surprise. She was a recent arrival at court, and he hadn't heard much about her.
Louise nodded gloomily. "She's a brunette beauty—charming, witty . . ." She frowned and added in a lower voice. "Flirtatious. In sum, everything I'm not." She twisted one of the rings on her fingers. "I don't know what to do. I fear I'm losing the king's favor."
"The king fell in love with you, not her," Jack said, praying Louis still felt that way. But in his position, his tastes could blow with the wind. No one could deny him.
Louise started writing the poem while she modeled for him. She hoped the drawing would be ready to give to the king that evening . . . if he showed up. At the chateau, her apartment was on a floor reserved for relatives of the king. The fact that Madame de Montespan was granted a suite adjacent to the king acquired an ominous significance. The queen's quarters were in a separate wing to lessen any likelihood of her witnessing the king with Louise, or anyone else for that matter.
While Jack drew, Louise chatted about the latest gossip. Several of the ladies at court had heard the rumors about Egidi. They joked about poison, claiming that love potions were far more likely. Jack had once asked Susanna Norman if love potions existed and she'd laughed at his question, not giving him an answer.
Once the drawing was finished to both his and Louise's satisfaction, Jack headed to Freyja's quarters to make a report. With his viol and sketchpad, anyone who saw him would assume he'd been summoned to entertain a noble. Even if Freyja weren't there, Françoise would be and he looked forward to seeing her again.
A familiar scent made him stop in his tracks. In an instant, Aurora stood in front of him.
"Jack?" she exclaimed, her face lighting up. "This is an unexpected pleasure!"
"For me as well," he said, stumbling for words. Should he be pleased there was no one else in the corridor? Or was he in even more trouble that no one would overhear them?
The last time he'd seen her was over forty years ago in London. She'd refused to let Father H sample her blood and had left. She knew nothing about Jack's connection to the de Clermonts, but Philippe had given him more than an earful about her. She was Gerbert d'Aurillac's daughter. She'd indirectly caused the deaths of hundreds of witches and other innocents by encouraging the Witchfinder's activities during the Civil War. She'd also participated in a scheme to destroy the trust witches felt for Father H.
How should he handle it? She was undoubtedly linked to the scheme Domenico had alerted Freyja to. Jack's duty to Philippe was to use his friendship with her to find out what she was plotting. The last time they'd met, she'd believed he was in love with her. She probably still did.
"Is anything wrong?" she asked, a look of tender concern on her face.
He chuckled, hoping it sounded awkward. "I'm just stunned. I'd tried to move on . . . Your beauty has only increased."
"My dearest one," she said softly. "How I longed for us to reunite! But every time we planned to meet, something interfered."
"You were in Belfast for years."
She nodded. "I then returned to Venice. I was so concerned about you during the war. You can't know how happy I am to see you alive and well!"
I believe that. You're probably already plotting how to make me your tool.
"When did you arrive in France?" she asked.
"During the Civil War." He shrugged. "There were no painting commissions in England or court performances. I had no choice. It wasn't easy but I established a new identity. My name is Jean Blanchet now."
"Are you in Molière's troupe?"
"Yes, are you coming to tonight's performance?"
"I wouldn't miss it, especially now that I know you're in it."
Jack assumed that would be the case. He knew he wouldn't have been able to conceal his presence from her. The best he could hope for was to play it to his advantage.
Aurora drew close. Her perfume overwhelmed his senses. She traced the opening of his shirt with her index finger, a reminder of how her finger felt against his bare chest. "Afterward, come to my room," she murmured. "We'll resume where we left off."
He stepped hastily back. "I can't!"
"Of course, you can, my love. No one will ever know." She glanced down at his viol. "I summoned you for a private performance. I have every confidence your instrument will live up to my expectations."
Jack swallowed hard. "You don't understand. There's another . . . I couldn't betray her." His confidence growing, he added, "You're so pure of heart, I know you would hate me if I went behind her back, and I would deserve your contempt."
Her eyes widened in abject dismay. "But you can't be in love!"
"But I am. We've been separated for so long, and those first years I missed you terribly. She comforted me as a friend, and slowly that friendship developed into something much deeper, much more powerful." To sell the deception, he needed to believe it too. He had to make her realize there could never be anything between them. "Bryn is your friend too. I know you understand."
"Bryn?" she said, shocked. "I knew you two were close but I'd heard rumors." Her words trailing off, she shrugged.
Did Aurora know about Bryn's preference for women? They'd met in Venice before Aurora traveled to London. Jack couldn't take the risk.
"She was surprised as well," he said, smiling blissfully. "We took it as a sign we were meant to be together." Jack started to relax, pleased at how it was working out. He hadn't admitted anything while going along with Aurora's assumption.
Suddenly he sniffed lavender and chamomile. Bryn was with them in an instant. "Two of my favorite people together? How delightful!"
Aurora gave her an amused look. Jack shot Bryn a desperate mute appeal to go along with whatever he said. The rampart he'd so carefully constructed was crumbling away in front of him.
Notes: Aurora first appeared in my story, No Love Lost. I assumed Gerbert has many children, but so far Deborah Harkness hasn't provided any details. Given Gerbert's character, a daughter with many of the characteristics of Lucrezia Borgia seemed appropriate.