She drew a deep breath. “As ready as I’ll ever be. With luck, we might find Lucas on the way. What will you do if you find him? Try to coax him back to England?”
“I haven’t really thought about it,” Simon admitted. “I would like that above all things, but if he has a vocation for the religious life, it’s not my place to interfere. It will be enough to know that he is alive and well.”
And if this Frère Jude wasn’t his cousin—well, Simon had dealt with loss often enough in the past. He would survive losing Lucas again.
As they climbed into the carriage, he told Maurice, “Please take us to the Grand Place. I’d like to show it to Madame Duval.”
Maurice nodded and set the carriage in motion. Simon said, “The Grand Place is the heart of the old city and it’s one of the finest plazas in Europe. The Hôtel de Ville, the city hall, is magnificent.”
Suzanne smiled and took his hand. “So we are successfully combining your search with seeing the sights. An excellent start to our stay here.”
“Will you be ready to set off to Namur and Chambron tomorrow?” he asked.
She nodded. “I’m as curious as you are.”
He smiled at her, thinking how lucky he was that she’d agreed to marry him. They might still face challenges, but together, they were overcoming them one by one.
* * *
Suzanne was feeling hopeful on Simon’s behalf. She guessed that he was forcing himself not to be optimistic because if the mystery friar wasn’t Lucas, the disappointment would be like losing his cousin all over again. So she would be hopeful for both of them.
Simon pointed ahead of them. “We’re almost to the Grand Place. See that tall spire ahead of us? That’s the town hall, which takes up one whole side of the square. This was a great wealthy trading city for centuries, so guild houses and other buildings on the square are equally splendid.”
As their carriage neared the Grand Place, the shouts of a crowd could be heard. Suzanne asked Maurice, “Is the Grand Place always so noisy?”
He frowned. “Only when there’s big news, madam.”
“Which doesn’t necessarily mean good news,” Simon added quietly.
When they entered the square, she saw that a raucous crowd was churning in front of the Hôtel de Ville. An official-looking man stood in front of the city hall holding a document and trying to make himself heard over the clamor while members of the crowd were starting to break into smaller groups and talking animatedly.
“Stop here, Maurice,” Simon said when he saw the crowd. As soon as the carriage came to a halt, he jumped from the vehicle and walked toward the nearest cluster of gesticulating men. “Sirs, what is the news?”
A young man swung about and called jubilantly, “The emperor is free and he has returned to France to reclaim his throne!”
Chapter 18
Suzanne gasped, feeling as if she’d been struck a physical blow. There had been so much speculation about if and when Napoleon might burst from his captivity, but the announcement was still a paralyzing shock.
More collected, Simon asked, “Are there any details? Has he reached Paris yet?”
“He landed near Cannes on March first. He returned with the violets, as he promised!” the man exclaimed. “He began marching to Paris with a handful of men at his back and he entered the city at the head of an army. All without a single shot being fired. Not one!”
Another man said eagerly, “Regiment after regiment went over to him as soon as they came into his magnificent presence. The great Marshal Ney himself swore to the king that he’d bring Napoleon to Paris in an iron cage, then bowed his head to his master when they met.” The man spat at the ground. “The fat king fled the city the night before, the coward. Long live the emperor!”
“Emperor be damned!” a man in a nearby group roared. “That Corsican bandit has been a plague to all of Europe, bringing death everywhere he set foot. May the devil take his rotten soul!”
One of the Bonapartists shouted back, “Belgium is truly part of France and it is time that we rejoined our brothers!”
“Bedamned to those French scum!” another man bellowed furiously. “We want no part of them! We need to drive out the damned Dutch as well so Belgium can be free and independent, as we deserve!”
The crowd exploded into an angry mob. Shouts and fists and rocks began flying in all directions.
Simon started to retreat but he was engulfed by two different factions. A hurled stone struck his head and he disappeared into the seething mass of struggling men.
Horrified, Suzanne snapped, “Give me the reins, Maurice! Then get my husband out of there!”
Grimly Maurice thrust the reins at her and leaped to the ground. Suzanne climbed awkwardly into the front seat and concentrated on calming the frightened horse.
