Page 30

The Road to Trust

She walked alongside Rollant down the uneven cobblestone street. Time seemed to slow the longer she walked on Rue de Charonne. It was farther down the street than she’d ever gone before.

The houses were spaced apart, each featuring a lit lantern hanging on the doorpost.

Quaint was the word that came to mind. It felt like a whole different world compared to just on the other side of the city wall.

The scent of paint and wine replaced the acrid smell of the city to which she had grown accustomed.

The frigid night wind whipped through her coat, causing her to shiver as she drew the collar up and slipped her hands back into her deep pockets.

Her attention shifted to Rollant, who had remained silent for most of the forty-minute walk.

Unlike the two times he had escorted her back to Au Pain Roux , he hadn’t taken her hand.

His brow was furrowed, and he walked with his eyes fixed ahead, never glancing at her.

A small sense of foreboding gnawed at her stomach.

Had she left Gabin’s lion’s den only to walk straight into Rollant’s viper pit?

He had played her well if he had something other than what he promised waiting for her.

She swallowed hard, the lump in her throat growing.

“I had said you’d find cheaper rent outside the city,” she murmured, hoping to elicit some conversation.

“Yes,” he said with a nod, but nothing further.

“Have I upset you?” she asked straightforwardly.

He stopped with a sigh and squared his shoulders to her.

“No,” he said curtly, his gaze lingering in her eyes.

He took a deep breath and rubbed his forehead.

“I am upset that you have even more bruises.” His attention dropped to her mouth.

“And a bloody lip. At least you aren’t near death this time.

” His jaw grew taut as he shook his head.

“Don’t go back to him,” he said. “Please. I’ll make it to where you can stay in this rented house forever. ”

She scoffed. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Rollant. If something happens to you, I’ll have no way to pay the rent.”

Rollant ran his hand over his mouth, letting it drop. He sighed and scanned the lush landscape. “I promise,” he said, nodding her down the road.

“But how?” she asked, keeping up with his brisk pace.

He stopped again and lowered his face to hers. Her heart skipped at the closeness. Something about him scared her, but he settled her, drew her in as if she belonged with him, yet pushed her away for safety.

Rollant’s whisper made her breath hitch. “I will provide for you, élise. You will never have to worry about food or a place to sleep. I promise you, and I am a man of my word. Surely you know this.”

She kept her lips pressed tight and gave a quick nod.

He had left her with Gabin for months to fulfill his oath to the king.

She dared not ask him again how he could keep such a promise.

Her chest tightened. Breaking the king’s oath would lead to death or imprisonment.

Breaking an oath to her meant nothing; there were no consequences there.

He had only ever been kind to her, but the fear of the unknown haunted her.

She had always known how to survive, and it meant trusting no one.

Though Rollant had explained why he was helping her at the inn in Le Marais, it felt odd and out of place now that they were walking the cobblestone path. What was he planning for her?

She followed him until he reached a modest one-story home with a low-pitched roof. Beyond the small garden, a short path led to a tall wooden door flanked by a window and secured with a simple iron padlock and hasp.

The smell of the morning’s bread and the fading fire graced their entry into the rented home.

élise stepped inside, and her jaw dropped.

She quickly closed it. Wooden planks spanned the length of the small entryway, leading into the main room beyond.

She took three steps to survey the main area.

A large hearth was positioned against the northern wall, while a small kitchen counter extended along the rest of its length, with a barrel for water tucked into the corner closest to the door.

A small wooden table for two stood near the center of the room, and a simple yet sturdy merchant sofa occupied the corner opposite the door.

An open doorway was located on the east side of the room, suggesting a private bedroom or storage space beyond.

“You live here?” élise asked, disbelief staining her tone.

“Yes,” he said.

“And you can afford the rent even though you are on a ship?” She crossed her arms. Education had never been afforded her, but his story did not add up. Was he a noble spy, as she had suspected from the start?

“Yes,” he answered as a hint of unease flashed in his eyes.

“How?”

“It’s a long story, élise.” He glanced at her, the corner of his mouth twitching into a faint smile, though his eyes gave nothing away. His gaze fell briefly to the ground. “Perhaps another time.”

But she wanted an answer. “How long did you say you were in the King’s Navy?”

He brushed past her into the main room, softly answering, “I didn’t.” He straightened and met her gaze with something unreadable in his face. “Some things are better left unsaid.”

Maybe he didn’t understand her question, she mused as he walked toward the hearth.

“I’ll ask you once more,” she said, staying rooted to the spot with the locked door at her back. The walls of the grand main room started closing in on her. “How can you afford this home on a navy man’s wage, even outside the city?”

He stooped and threw another log onto the nearly exhausted flame in the hearth.

The crackle covered the sound of her grumbling stomach and growing fear.

Her mind raced through all the reasons why he would have wanted her alone and outside the city.

Why try to win her trust unless he had planned something sinister?

Had he brought her to squeeze information from her?

Picked her as the most vulnerable, naive, gullible of the bunch?

“Did you hear me?” she asked again at his silence.

He took off his coat and tossed it on the sofa. “Yes, élise, I heard you.” He lifted his chin as he stared at her. His eyes were calculating. It seemed as though he wouldn’t answer her, at least not that night.

“I don’t want your pity, Rollant. I just want an answer.

” She hoped she could have the upper hand if he were truly a foul man like all the rest. “I will not treat you as my savior. I did not leave Gabin to enter another poisoned promise under your control.” She planted her feet firmly beneath her weight, keeping her arms crossed and head raised.

Rollant nodded. “I’ve already told you—I want nothing from you.

If you don’t want to live here, you may leave anytime.

This neighborhood is filled with good people who tend to the garden and the stable and are ready to share whatever you need, provided you do the same for them.

I thought this home would allow you to start over in peace.

You don’t need me. I won’t even be here.

I only have a few days every few months, sometimes even years.

” He gestured toward the city. “With everything happening within the gates, I’m not sure if this will be the last time I’m here, but I know I have enough for you to live here without earning a wage for at least three years.

If you earn a wage or barter with the owner, who, according to the neighbors, hasn’t been around in decades to collect rent, you could stay here forever if you wanted. ”

élise glanced around the house, her brow furrowing. “You know the owner hasn’t been around for decades, but you only now rented it?”

Rollant paused, then shrugged. “The neighbors told me. That’s how I found it.”

She wanted to believe him, but something about the ease with which he explained didn’t sit right. It was the same when he lied to Gabin after Le Marais. There was no hesitation in his voice, but she saw this time there was something unnatural in his eyes, but it soon was gone.

“élise, all I am offering you is this home. If you want to fall in love and start a family, you can do that here. If you want to paint or garden and live alone, you can do that here, too. If I ask anything of you, it’s that when or if I return, I can at least sleep on the sofa or a pallet on the floor. ”

Rollant’s offer of hope seemed genuine, sincere, and too good to be true.

“But why? Do you expect nothing from me? I don’t deserve any of this, Rollant.

I half-expected you to take me to a dingy apartment with holes in the walls and floors and rats in the bed, so as not to burden you too much. But this?”

She looked around at the plastered walls and polished wooden floors. The comfort of the hearth fire had already reached her. The counter held a small cheese wheel and bread, along with a few wine bottles.

“A new dress? A new coat? I thought that was too much, and yet”—she swallowed her disbelief—“you tell me that I’m free here, free to stay, free to leave.

I don’t work for you or anyone. I only have to be kind to the neighbors?

” She shook her head and waved her hands to dismiss it all.

“What are your terms, Rollant? I don’t believe for a moment that this is the new life you promised. ”

He approached the table and pulled out a chair.

They locked eyes, and he spoke with his voice low and raw.

“You are gold, élise—precious and valuable, with a rare beauty worthy of admiration. I’m sorry you’ve been treated as the utilitarian and undervalued iron all your life.

I want you to see your worth. You deserve all of this and more.

” He gestured to the seat. “Please sit, and I will make us dinner.”