Kate's Parisian Escape

Chapter 7

June 15th, 2011

Lorie Valley, France

To: Katherine Perryman <dreamchaser89@gmail.com>

From: Henri De La Fontaine <dangerouslycharming26@gmail.com>

Re: Je suis désolé

Salut Kate,

I know I should have sent this email sooner, but I was so embarrassed I just couldn't bring myself to do so until now. Je suis tellement désolé a thousand times Kate. I am so sorry for how I acted. I was an ass! I realize that now. I can only imagine what you must think of me. Whatever horrible thoughts you have had, I deserve them. I had told you to come visit if you were ever in Paris and instead, I treated you like a stranger and humiliated you in a packed café. I want you to know it's over with Elise. Not that that forgives my behavior but if you are still in Paris, I would like to make things up to you. Take you out for a wonderful evening, my treat! Please think about it, I feel just awful, and you really are one of the most beau, enchanteur, gentil women I have ever met.

Profondément honteux,

Henri

It has now been five days since Kate arrived at Château de Langlois and like clockwork every evening, she continues to hear the eerie voices whispering of a secret plot. Despite her best attempts Jeremy would still not reveal the details of the "legend" his mother had spoken of. Of course, she also hadn't mentioned she was hearing voices because unlike Joan of Arc she knew that revelation could only lead to disaster.

Still, she was certain these voices were somehow connected to the legend. After waking and finding the email from Henri. And spending ten minutes deciding if she should delete it which ultimately, she did not. She quickly dressed in a lavender skirt and off the shoulder white top and headed to the kitchens. Cook, who later she learned went by Mrs. Dufour, was making Garbure, a French ham and vegetable stew, for later but on the counter was an array of croissants, fresh fruit, and brioche. Kate grabbed two croissants which she wrapped in a napkin, bade Mrs. Dufour who was a charming middle-aged woman with kind blue eyes, thinning blond hair twisted into a long braid down her back and plump apple kissed cheeks, good morning and left to do some investigating.

If Jeremy wasn't going to tell her about this legend, then she was just going to have to figure it out herself. She would ask Colette, but she was hardly ever around, it appeared she slept until noon every day and then went to town for as Jeremy put it, "a good gossip and some shopping." As for, Mr. LeClair, he was quite devoted to the gardens and spent much of his time there. Apparently, the pruning, watering, and planting was cathartic to him. But secretly Kate believed he just used it as an excuse not to get finagled into accompanying Colette to town.

Eating her croissants along the way she slowly meandered through the long and drafty corridors of the château. The walls were hung with mesmerizing paintings and Kate stopped here and there to contemplate their meanings. But art wasn't really her thing, so she was sure she was interpreting them all wrong.

Finally, she reached a wing closed off from the rest of the château. Kate knew she should turn around and go back but she was curious about what she might find inside and so she cautiously eased the heavy door open and slipped through the small gap.

Again, she found herself in a long hallway with doors on either side. Carefully she began walking along the velvet red carpeting. She stopped at a door near the end of the corridor and tried the handle. It gave way and she entered the room.