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| Silent Yearning |
Chapter 10: Company
Absorbed in thought, Victor Clement Count de Girodelle twisted the long stack of a black rose, not feeling the little twitches of the numerous thorns. He looked out of the window of his carriage towards the limited scenery that view offered him. He stood not far from the Tuileries at the Seine and watched the sparkling, mellifluous water. In the old palace things became alive again.Regardless of the antediluvian facilities, the Royal Family had to make themselves at home in the Tuileries. There were only a few noblemen left who surrounded the royal couple. A sadly small number of courtiers remained loyal to them.
Although Count de Girodelle abdicated his position in the Royal Guard, he kept on supporting the King. He regularly went to the old palace to complete smaller missions. The stalk of the rose was one round too long twisted in the manicured fingers of the Count. The stalk broke. With a feeling of regret, Girodelle put it next to him on the bench. A couple of deep black petals loosened and fell to the floor.
Whisperingly at first, then louder and louder the news spread among the aristocrats. The former commander of the Royal Guard, the loyal friend of the Queen, the noble Lady Oscar had changed sides, to oppose the King and her family. And that with a family which had remained loyal to the King for generations. When the rumour spread that the defector had fallen at the Storming of the Bastille, the noble ladies and gentlemen wrinkled their powdered nose and said that served her right. Forgotten was the admiration that Lady Oscar received, whenever you came across her in Versailles. Silently and straightly, Victor Clement Count de Girodelle remained faithful to her.
In his heart she would keep on existing and lose nothing of her splendour.
Again he softly ran his fingers over the petals of the black rose.
As the door of the carriage was opened, a light breeze came inside. The door slammed again and the wind was locked out. Count de Girodelle dropped his jaw open. He was incapable of issuing anything more than a hoarse groan.
�Bonjour Girodelle. Shut your mouth! You look like a fool.� Oscar furrowed her brows and was looking at him as if his disbelieving behaviour was incomprehensible for her.
Had Girodelle been alone, he would have crossed himself.
�Lady Oscar?� he broke the barrier of silence at last. �You are not dead?�
�No, on the contrary, I�m feeling very vivid.� Embarrassed, Oscar raised her lateral rump and pulled out a crumpled bunch of black roses.
�Forgive me, I have ruined your flowers.�
�That does not matter. They were in remembrance of you anyway.�
�Thank you.� Oscar smiled warmly, almost tenderly, and put the broken flowers next to her. Girodelle reciprocated the smile affectionately. �You are alive. I am overjoyed. You do look gorgeous.� His gaze slid adoringly and desirously over her body. Uncomfortable, Oscar drew her shawl closer.
�Count de Girodelle, can you help me?�
�Of course. Anything you desire.�
�I need an opportunity to get to the Chateau de Jarjayes.�
�Your wish is my command.� Smiling, the Count beckoned to his coachman and the carriage moved off.
For a long time Oscar and Girodelle let the landscape sink in as they left the crowded city of Paris and drove along the long, with trees decorated avenue that led them to the Chateau de Jarjayes.
�Count de Girodelle?� Oscar said suddenly. Her companion saw that she was still looking out of the window on her right. She seemed to be absorbed in thought. He could not remember the last time Oscar had addressed him with his title of nobility. Before she left the Royal Guard, she had been the higher ranked officer.
It had all started with a duel 20 years ago.
�Have you maybe heard how my family has been faring since the Storming of the Bastille?�
She turned to him and Girodelle could see hope in her eyes. Hope for the survival of her parents or maybe hope for them forgiving her conduct.
Girodelle lowered his head and smiled. �They are alive, Lady Oscar. Your father still serves his Majesty loyally, even though he does not visit the Tuileries very often. Your mother as well is still officially a court lady of her Majesty, the Queen. I have not seen her for a long time. She has retired from court life.�
Yes, Oscar had sensed that in the hour of need, her father would be completely at the King�s disposal. An honour she could not confer upon the Queen anymore.
�I have betrayed my family�� Oscar said guiltily and reflectively. �I have opposed everything they believe in. But there is no way back and I don�t feel any remorse.�
�You certainly had reasons for your actions. I don�t know them, but your decision got me thinking,� Girodelle answered. �The nobility will have to answer for many wrongdoings. Nevertheless, I think that a King is inviolable. They hold the King and the Queen captive in the Tuileries�� he ranted, disgusted.
Girodelle looked her in the eyes and smiled. Oscar could see that he did not lose even a whiff of his love for her.
�Only for you, I myself would change sides, I assured you once, and I still would,� he repeated. �Lady Oscar, I offer you my hand again. Escape behind the security of my name! A marriage without any duties. You don�t have to do anything you do not want to do.�
Oscar truly appreciated his words, but she just could not ask him for such a sacrifice. She smiled dismissively.
�I could never give you the love that you actually deserve, Count. You would lead an unhappy life, that I would blame myself for. I have a name that I want to live under. Yet, I care about you a lot and I would like to regard you as a friend, if you let me!�
Oscar hoped that he could accept her offer. Before Girodelle was able to reply anything, the carriage had stopped. Oscar looked out of the window and saw the big entrance to the Chateau, which stood open.
�Would you wait here for me?� she asked her revenuer, who nodded immediately.
�I thank you.�
Oscar stopped breathing. Her fingers clawed into the fabric of her dress. She had walked through the gate and did not know whether she could still trust her eyes. In front of her chaos and destruction was spreading.
Battered pieces of wood and balks lay on the once well-tended gravel way. Appalled, she realized that it must have been one of the carriages that had been smashed. The turf around the house showed dark spots and over the entire yard it was smelling scorched. When Oscar turned her gaze towards the house, her eyes filled with tears. The windows were partially broken. Curtains blew sadly through the shattered window glass. Marble statues were knocked over and pieces of them broken. The broad entrance door only hangs loose in the hinges. The house had lost its glamour. It seemed to have aged hundreds of years, and suddenly any hope of finding her family alive faded away.
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