It was not until we were in France that he told me of his family and whom I should meet. Strangely enough, until that time I had not thought of his having a family. He had talked so much about his life at Court, and I could not imagine him in the heart of domesticity.
He began: ‘My daughter Sophie would be a year or so older than you. I hope you will be friends.’
‘Your daughter!’ I cried as the realization dawned upon me. ‘Why … she is my sister!’
‘Half-sister,’ he corrected. ‘Her mother died five years ago. She is a good girl. She will become your friend, I am sure. In fact, I shall insist that she does.’
‘A sister …’ I murmured. ‘I do hope she likes me. All your insistence won’t be able to make her if she doesn’t.’
‘She has been brought up to obey … a little more strictly, I imagine, than you have been.’
‘Sophie,’ I murmured. ‘How interesting. Oh, I do look forward to seeing her.’
‘I want you to be prepared for our household. I also have a son, Armand, Vicomte de Graffont. Graffont is a small estate we have in the Dordogne district. Armand will, of course, have my title when I die. He is five years older than Sophie.’
‘So … I have a brother, too. How exciting! I wonder how many people have families they don’t know about.’
‘Thousands. Life is not always lived to a regular pattern, you know. I suppose almost everyone has a secret tucked away somewhere.’
‘It is fascinating. Oh, I do so long to meet them. Will they be at the château or in Paris?’
‘Sophie will be at the château with her governess. I cannot speak for Armand. He leads his own life.’
‘It sounds so interesting.’
‘I trust you will find it so.’
‘I am so excited. It grows more fascinating every minute. First a new father … and now a sister and brother. Are there any more relations?’
‘Distant ones who won’t concern you. That is all my immediate family circle.’
I was so excited I scarcely noticed the countryside. We had come to France by way of Le Havre and travelled to Elboeuf and then spent a night at Evreux, the capital of Eure, in which province the Château d’Aubigné was situated.
When we reached Evreux, the Comte sent two of the grooms on to the château to warn them of our coming, and very soon we were making our way southwards, for, said the Comte, now that he was so near home he had an irresistible urge to be there.
As we approached, I had my first glimpse of the castle, which was set on a slight incline; built of grey stone it was overpoweringly intimidating with its buttresses and corbelled watch-towers. I gazed in wonder at the imposing edifice with its pepperpot-like roofs on either side of the gatehouse.
The Comte saw how impressed I was and said: ‘I am gratified. I think you like my château. Of course it is no longer as it was originally. Once it was just a fortress. What you see now is as it became in the sixteenth century, which was when French architecture was at its best.’
Dusk was falling and in the half light the château looked mysterious, almost forbidding, and excited as I was when I rode into the courtyard, I felt a sudden shiver of apprehension as though I was being warned of a certain menace.
‘In the morning I will show you the inside of the chateau myself,’ said the Comte. ‘I am afraid you will find me rather boastful and over-proud.’
‘Anyone would be,’ I told him.
‘Well, it is your family now, Lottie,’ he replied.
I stood in the hall with the Comte beside me, his hand on my shoulder while he watched me closely to see the effect his home was having on me. Needless to say, I was overcome with mixed emotions. It was so grand, so redolent of the past; I could believe that I had stepped into another century; there was a pride in my knowledge that I belonged to the people who had lived here for centuries, and after what had happened to me I was prepared for anything. But there was that. faint feeling of unease which persisted and which I could not understand.
I looked at the ancient walls hung with tapestries depicting what appeared to be scenes of battle, and where there was not tapestry there were gleaming weapons; several suits of armour stood in darkened corners like watching sentinels and I could easily have convinced myself that they moved and that there was something here in this hall which was assessing me in the same way as I was this house. On the long oak table were two candelabra—one at each end—and the candles threw flickering light on the vaulted ceiling.
A man came hurrying into the hall; he looked very important in his blue and green livery with heavy brass buttons. He greeted the Comte obsequiously.
‘Everything is prepared, Monsieur le Comte,’ he said.
‘Good,’ said my father. ‘Does the Vicomte know I have returned?’
‘Monsieur le Vicomte was out hunting when your messengers arrived. He had not yet returned.’
The Comte nodded. ‘Mademoiselle Sophie …’
‘I will send someone to her apartment, Monsieur le Comte.’
‘Do so, with all speed.’
The man disappeared and the Comte turned to me.
‘It is best for you to meet Sophie first. She can make sure that everything is all right.’
‘What will they say when they know?’
He looked at me questioningly and I went on: ‘When they know who I am … our relationship.’
He smiled blandly. ‘My dear child, it is not for anyone to question my actions.’
At that moment I had my first glimpse of Sophie.
She was coming down the beautiful staircase which was at one end of the hall. I studied her eagerly. There was no physical resemblance between us whatsoever. She was short in stature with dark brown hair and olive skin. She was certainly not very pretty—in fact she was what kindly people call homely and those less kind call plain. She was overweight and too dumpy to be attractive, and her blue gown with its tightly laced bodice and large hooped skirt, which stood out round her like a bell, did nothing for her.
‘Sophie, my dear,’ said the Comte, ‘I want you to come here and meet Lottie …’
She came forward hesitantly. I guessed she was greatly in awe of her father.’
‘I want to explain to you about Lottie … She is going to stay with us for a visit and you are to make sure she is comfortable while she is with us. I have something very important to tell you about her. She is your sister.’
Sophie’s jaw dropped a little. She was astonished and that did not surprise me.
‘We have just discovered each other. Now, Sophie, what have you got to say?’
Poor Sophie! She stammered and looked as though she were going to burst into tears.
I said: ‘I am very pleased to have a sister. I always wanted one. It’s like a miracle to me.’
‘There, Sophie, listen to your sister,’ said the Comte. ‘I am sure you feel the same. You will get to know each other in the next few days. In the meantime, Lottie is tired. She wants to get out of her riding habit and wash, I dare say. Sophie, you know where she is sleeping. Take her there and make sure she has everything she wants.’
‘Yes, Papa,’ said Sophie.