The Sunflowers: A Novel of the Sun King's Court

Chapter Ten

Margot.

Dr. Faustus.

Margot felt Cecile's hand on her shoulder.

"Who's Dr. Faustus, Margot?" Cecile asked, her voice a barely audible squeak.

Margot removed the book from the shelf, opening it and flipping through the pages. Yes, this one was in Latin, too, and if she had the time and a place where she could work alone, she could quite easily translate it.

"Are you going to take the book with you?" Cecile said, glancing over her shoulder apprehensively.

Margot chewed on a cuticle, deliberating. Granduncle Roland wouldn't be back for another week at least, and she would be able to contrive some excuse to find some time to herself so that she might read the book and translate its contents.

"Of course I am," Margot replied, clutching the book close to her chest and turning to face Cecile. She gestured toward the door. "Come on. Let's go back to bed before your mother gets back."

Cecile regarded Margot as though she was a madwoman, her lips trembling slightly. Then she turned on her heel, walking out of the room ahead of Margot. Margot followed her out, careful to shut the door to the study behind them. As they made their way back to Margot's room, Cecile remained silent, her lips pressed together and a glare marring her forehead.

Once they had returned to Margot's room, Cecile rounded on her, placing her hands on her hips.

"You're a fool!" she hissed out. "Do you even know what's in that book? What if it... what if it..." Cecile's voice trailed off, and she shuddered in terror.

"What if it what?" Margot said, placing her candle on her bedside table and sitting down on her bed. "You can speak freely, Cecile. There's no one else here but you and me."

Cecile thrust her arms to her sides, clenching her fists. She stared at the ceiling for a few moments, as though to gather her thoughts, then, closing her eyes, inhaled deeply before lowering her head and addressing Margot.

"It's alchemy, Margot!" she exclaimed. "The Church has forbidden it! The King has forbidden it! Why is it in your granduncle's house? You know that if someone got wind of it, the King could have all of us arrested and locked away in the Bastille, and who knows what would happen after that..."

"Cecile, no one is going to say anything about it," Margot said, rolling her eyes and scrubbing her hand across her face. "Granduncle Roland's servants haven't said anything about the book, and you and I are the only other people who know about it. And it isn't as though either one of us would say anything about it, because we're both the thieves who stole it from his study."

Cecile's eyelids flicked down, and she sniffed, wiping a few tears from her eyes. "Thieves!" she repeated. "Is that what we are? Oh, Margot, stealing is a sin, though!"

"Not if we return the book when we're done, and not if we're truly sorry about stealing it in the first place. And what would the priest have us do if we confessed — a penance of some kind?"

The corners of Cecile's lips twitched. "Yes," she said, "I suppose that's what he would do."

"So," Margot said, rising from her bed to place the book underneath the feather mattress of her bed, "we can do our own penance, can't we, after we return the book? If we're truly sorry for being curious, and for taking the book but returning it because we knew it was wrong, it's not really a sin, is it?"

Cecile sighed. "Oh, Margot, how easily you can justify it!" she exclaimed. "Don't you know that you've also sinned against the Comte, your guardian, who has opened his home to you?"

"My home," Margot corrected her, straightening. Cecile gasped in surprise at this. "No, but it's truly my home," Margot insisted. "This house was my father's house, and I was born here. Granduncle Roland might have inherited the title and the fortune, but this is still my house."

Cecile came to Margot's side, taking her hand. "Oh, Margot, don't say such things!" she cautioned. "The Comte has been ever so kind to Maman and me, and to you! Really, one couldn't wish for anything more, could one?"

Margot placed her hand over Cecile's, stroking it comfortably. No, one couldn't ask for anything more from such a worthy guardian, but Margot was sure that there was more to the Comte de St. Leon than met the eye.

******

The Baronne d'Aubront didn't return from the dinner until after dawn, yet she invited the girls to her toilette later that morning so that they might take their breakfast with her.

Margot still didn't know what to make of the Baronne. Yes, it was quite clear that she was devoted to her daughter and her interests, but there was a hardness about the Baronne that put her off somehow. Here was a woman who knew what she wanted and knew how to go about getting it.

"How was the supper last night, Maman?" Cecile asked her mother.

The Baronne smiled before leaning back against her pillows and sipping her chocolate. "It was absolutely splendid, darling! It was at the house of an old friend from convent school. She introduced me to so many people, many of whom hold positions of influence at court. And of course there was Madame d'Albret..."

The famous salonniere, whose precieuses were some of the brightest stars of the French court. Margot adjusted her position in her chair, leaning forward so that she could hear more. The lovely Athenais de Montespan had been a member of Madame d'Albret's salon, and was one of her most famous precieuses. La Montespan was known for her sparkling wit and cleverness, and all of that had come from her time alongside the salonniere.

"I told Madame d'Albret about you, Cecile, and of course Mademoiselle de St. Leon, and she did the most wonderful thing! She's extended us an invitation to one of her salons! Can you imagine, Cecile? You're going to be able to put everything you've learned here to use, and learn more besides!" The Baronne stroked her daughter's hair. Cecile sprung up and clapped her hands in delight.

"And to think," she exclaimed, "that we'll soon be able to rival great ladies of the court like La Montespan!"

"It will take some time, my dear," her mother reminded her as she buttered her bread. She looked up at Margot, an indulgent smile on her face. "And of course you must come with us, dear Margot! Think of how diverting the conversation will be! And you're much cleverer than Cecile and me, you'll be able to run rings around the other guests of the salon..."

Margot set aside her napkin, plastering a smile on her face. "I'm sure Cecile and I both will be able to, Madame la Baronne," she said, and the Baronne smiled back at her, though Margot would say that it was more of a satisfied smirk than a smile of appreciation.