So now you’re free, chérie. I have my answer.
Paulette had left this world with the machines still going. She hadn’t wanted to wait until the harvest.
It was over.
Silent sobs shook his body. He fought for control. “Has the family been notified?”
“Yes.”
He wiped his eyes. “I’ll be right over. Thank you, Louise. I’ll always be indebted to you and the staff for the impeccable care you’ve given her all this time.”
“It was our privilege.” Now she was in tears. “I can’t tell you how sorry we all are.”
“That’s very kind. A month ago Giles told me her spirit had left her body. In my heart I think I knew it was true, but I wanted to give it until the end of the summer.”
“You did everything possible and more. We all admire you. So often I’ve wondered how you’ve managed when I know how much you suffered. You’re a very strong man to have endured this much pain. Que Dieu vous bénisse, Luc.”
Everything passed in a blur as he rushed to the hospital. He found Father Pourdras in the room surrounded by the Brouet relatives. The priest who’d married him and Paulette had started a prayer over her body now covered by a sheet.
“The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away…”
The doctor had confirmed Rachel was pregnant and that her due date was March the third.
After she left his office, she realized she couldn’t put off telling Luc any longer.
The manager of the restaurant where she was training had been nice enough to give her time off for personal leave.
Two days later she flew to Paris, and from there to Colmar where she’d booked a hotel.
If Luc joined her at an obscure little restaurant in the town, they could talk without fear of someone recognizing him. Rachel didn’t want word getting back to Madame Chartier that her son was still carrying on a clandestine affair with her.
But Rachel soon came to find out that the best laid plans didn’t always work out.
After she checked in the Deux Couronnes Hotel, she called his cell phone from the phone in her room. If she used her new cell, he would be forewarned by seeing her name on the caller ID.
Rachel wanted the element of surprise on her side in order to feel she was in control. But the surprise rebounded on her because, instead of picking up, he’d left his voice mail on.
She debated what to do. It wasn’t as if she were on a buying trip and could set her own time schedule.
In the end, she called him again, this time on her cell, and told him she needed to see him as soon as possible. It was urgent. Would he please call her.
At a loose end and frustrated because it had taken her so long to gather the courage to phone him in the first place, she left the hotel to do some exploring.
The Deux Couronnes sat along one of the many canals of the Petite Venice area. Myriad cobblestoned streets gave the impression she’d entered a bygone age.
She was once again charmed by the many treasures of Alsace, and it came to her that all this beauty would be part of her baby’s heritage. Now that she’d been to the doctor, her pregnancy had become real to her.
Was it a little half-Fre
nch boy or girl who was tucked in behind her flat stomach? She wouldn’t know the answer to that question for another couple of months.
By the time it was getting dark, he still hadn’t phoned and she was exhausted. The doctor had told her exercise was good, but she’d probably overdone it.
Indescribably disappointed not to have heard from him, she returned to the hotel and ate a quick dinner.
Maybe he was on vacation, though she doubted it with Paulette in the hospital.
The most likely reason for his silence was a heavy workload. His schedule included entertaining clients who kept him busy at all hours.