“How could she do it?” he asks with anguish when I reach him.
“I don’t know.”
“Is he here?” He looks shattered.
I nod. “He’s inside.” As we walk across the drive, Étienne appears in the doorway.
Albert comes to a sudden stop. “Mon Dieu,” he whispers with shock as he stares at his grandson. “You look just like my boy,” he adds in a small voice. “I’m so sorry.” He shakes his head helplessly. “I’m so sorry for my daughter. I didn’t know. If I had known—” His face crumples and the next thing I know Étienne is striding toward Albert and folding him in his arms.
I’m reeling, but at the same time, I can’t imagine him acting any other way. Albert’s shoulders heave as he breaks down. Étienne looks past him at me, his eyes shining. I’m fighting back tears myself.
“I can’t believe how much you look like Sébastien,” Albert says as he pulls away to study Étienne’s face.
There are familial resemblances between Albert and Étienne too: the profile of their noses and the span of their eyebrows. They’re of a similar height and build and even their shoulders have the same square shape about them.
“But you look like your mother too,” Albert adds, sounding choked. “I am so sorry you lost them both.”
“Thank you,” Étienne murmurs.
Albert meets my eyes. “How can I ever forgive her for this?”
“It’s a lot to take in,” I concede.
“Come inside,” Étienne encourages.
“What a lovely place you have,” Albert comments as he takes in his surroundings.
Étienne has been patching up the plasterwork so the house is a dappled mix of gray and apricot, but the sun has not yet slipped behind the mountains so everything is bathed in evening light.
“It still needs a lot of work,” Étienne replies with a shrug as he waves us through the open doorway ahead of him. “But we’re getting there.” He smiles at me as he pulls the door closed.
He seems remarkably calm.
“Oh no,” Albert says when he spies the saucepan on the hob. “I’ve interrupted your dinner.”
“It’s okay,” Étienne reassures him. He glances at me hesitantly before offering, “Would you like to stay? We’re having coq au vin.”
Albert’s expression brightens. “Do you have enough to go around?”
“More than enough,” Étienne replies. “What would you like to drink?”
“Why don’t you take Albert to the terrace?” I suggest. “I’ll bring dinner out.”
“Are you sure?” Étienne checks.
“Absolutely.”
When they’ve gone, I nip back out the front door and hurry down the lane until my phone picks up reception. I call Jackson.
“Did you know Albert was coming here to Les Saules?” I ask when he answers.
“Shit, really? No, I didn’t.”
“He just turned up, out of the blue.”
“Sorry. I would have warned you if I’d known.”
“Don’t worry, there’s no reception at the house anyway.”
