Chapter One ~ The Confrontation

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The sun had long since set when I saw my brother return home. His hair was ruffled and his cheeks red from excitement. A minute later he was in the room.
"By the Lord! Suzette, why are you here? Should you not be asleep?" He asked, I just shrugged pretending that my book was too exciting and my presence in his room were completely normal.
"I was having trouble sleeping... I was wondering where you were...?" I responded.
His shoulders tensed up like they always did when I asked questions he was uncomfortable answering, like when I was eight and my favorite doll broke and he with a trembling lip swore he had nothing to do with it.

"Out with my class mates, ma petit sæur, where else would I be in such an hour?"

"All right. If you say so, mon frere, goodnight." I sighed.

It was the fourth time this month he had lied to me about his whereabouts. And the month before it had happened at an equal occasion. It was not that I was mad at him, he was after all protecting me from what really went on at the what I knew to be l'ABC café, but I was rather disappointed that he did not trust me.

"Good night" he returned as I walked to my room.
I took me an hour before sleep finally hit me, and when it did I dreamed of my brother and his mischiefs. And a letter, being written.

The following afternoon, after my piano lesson, Marius once again left our house without any other explanation than "I will be back before dinner".
But this time I had a plan.

The coachman, Michel, had agreed to take me for a ride that afternoon, and I quite subtly told him to follow my brother down the rue.
When Marius turned around the corner towards l'ABC cafe I simply asked him to stop, let me out of the carriage and take it back home to la Maison de Pontmercy.
He did it, slightly unwillingly, but still, after only five minutes I found myself in the ABC cafe.

Through the smoky air I spotted my brother, sitting in a chair, blended over a piece of paper and another man by his side.
The two were talking passionately about general Lamarque and his principals, but when Marius saw me, his face lit up with anger and he turned quiet. The silence before the storm. He got up and grabbed my arm, yanking me to the other end of the room.
"Why are you here Syzz'? This is no place for a young girl to be!"
" I am fifteen!" I defended myself.
"And by that logic you should not be here either!...But you are, and I..." He disrupted me before I could finish.

"Suzette go home! This is not a safe place for you, and I know you think it is simply a game for us, but what we discuss here... It is if the utmost importance. For France and for the rest of the world." He said proudly.
"I know and Marius... Do you not understand? I want to help! All those books of yours that I read when you do not notice, I believe in your cause. I want to help!"
I explained to him. He furrowed his eyebrows.
"How can you help us Suzette? You cannot fight and even if you could I would not let you. And you have no idea what we even do here."

"But that is just it Marius...mon chere, I know what you do and I could help you, I could write everything down or carry messages, no one would suspect me of anything!"

Another crease appeared on his forehead and I could see he considered my offer.

"That is not an entirely bad idea Suzette."

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⏰ Last updated: Sep 09, 2016 ⏰

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