In My Darkness: La Chatte Noire

Chapter Thirty-Two: Unexpected Visitors

Chapter Thirty-Two: Unexpected Visitors

Dedicated to Nibblesfan.

One Month, Two Weeks, and Three Days, Mireval

Camillé smiled at the sight of Philippe de Chagny and the young man behind him. He bent down and kissed her knuckles like a pure gentleman. When he stood straight again, she beamed at his friendly grin. She gestured for him to sit down and sat down beside him in her study.

"How many years has it been now, Camillé?" he asked, as he leaned back.

She tilted her head as she tried to remember. "Well… I would say… somewhere around ten or eleven years since we last saw each other?"

"That sounds reasonable."

"Oui, the last time I saw you, you were chasing around Katherine Beaumont and saying you were going to be King someday," she joked, making them both laugh, then looked over at the young man, "And the last time I saw you, Raoul, you were claiming you were going to marry a girl you called 'Little Lottie?' Where is this young girl we heard so much of?"

He cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. "Her father died and she was taken away some years ago. I do not know where she is now."

"Oh, what a shame," she remarked, truly saddened by the news, then changed the subject. "So, Philippe, why are you and Raoul gracing me with your presences?" she asked, giving a sense of mock formality.

Philippe laughed. "You are quite the feisty one. I seem to remember a far more silent version of you when we were young."

Camillé blushed and looked to the side. "Does my manner offend you?"

"Non, non, of course not," he assured her with a grin, "In reality, you are a breath of fresh air. Most women who meet me are very formal and it is impossibly stuffy around them. I can hardly breathe."

"Well, I'm glad I can do something for you. Now, back to the subject of your arrival?" she prompted, gesturing to indicate that he ought to tell her.

Philippe shifted in his seat. "Ah, oui. You see, we were passing by and had heard of your father's recent death – my condolences, Camillé, if there is anything I can do for you, ask – but I decided both to come pay a visit to an old friend and aid in your search for a husband."

She sighed deeply and placed her hands back on her lap, right folded over left. "I hate to destroy your good intentions, Philippe, but I am not looking for a husband."

"You are not?" he asked, genuinely shocked.

Raoul crossed one of his legs over the other in a similar way to Samuel. "Pourquoi non (Why not)?"

"I would prefer to marry for love than for money," she admitted, then swallowed, "I suppose these days that is an old-fashioned ideal."

"It most certainly is not," he told her, and his older brother scoffed.

Philippe gestured at his brother. "He is still waiting to find Little Lottie again. I hate to inform you that you are likely right. However, I must ask; how do you intend to deal with the business if not marry a man who can care for it? Surely you do not mean to run the business yourself."

"Non, I do not," she agreed, shaking her head, "I intend to find someone who can take it over for me and run it well. That is the least I can do for my father's legacy."

"Why do you not intend to carry it on yourself?" Raoul asked candidly.

She sighed. "Because I wish to return to Paris. I have been living there for two years and I fully intend to go back to my home there."