Chapter 17
“Dani is just here, madam,” said Amelia Broom, pushing open the door. She extended an open palm. “It is my extreme pleasure
to present Princess Danielle d’Orl—”
“Amelia please,” Dani called, horrified. “ ‘Dani Allard’ will be sufficient.”
Dani could not see her visitor, but she heard a soft Thank you from a woman’s voice, her French accent giving a slight bend to the words. Dani’s heart stopped. She would be married, she
would leave home and reside on a grand estate, and she would meet her sister. What had she told Miriam about the compound
effect of secret keeping? A wellspring? Dani now swam in it.
There was shuffling in the corridor. Elise had not yet stepped into the room. The space was small, and Amelia’s hat was so
big. Miriam’s cat chose that moment to dart to freedom.
“Oh, sorry,” called Amelia, “do mind the cat.”
When Dani could bear it no longer, she stepped up and called, “Hello?”
“I’ll just get the cat, shall I?” said Amelia, sliding down the wall.
And then there she was. Princess Elise Allard d’Orleans Crewes.
She wore a dress of pale coral, the color of a sunset.
She was small, with chestnut hair and a full mouth.
Her eyes were hazel. Something about the shape made them look strikingly like Dani’s own.
And the strong brow. And her nose, of course.
Like Dani’s, Elise’s nose was proudly Gallic.
If ever there was a doubt this woman was her sister, it vanished.
The resemblance was clear. Dani felt the echoey ache deep inside her chest again, the one she’d felt when Bannock had first said Elise’s name.
The first time, it felt like a call. Now, looking at this woman, she heard the answer.
“Bonjour,” the woman whispered.
“Bonjour,” Dani whispered back. Beside her, Miriam let out a little whimper. Dani wrapped an arm around her mother’s waist, pulling
her against her. Miriam resisted, owl-eyed and rigid. Dani tugged her again, and this time Miriam came.
“I am Dani,” Dani said simply, switching to English.
“Yes,” the woman said. “Danielle.” Her French accent made Dani’s name sound lyrical and foreign. It was like a song.
Elise Crewes took a step toward Dani.
“Please allow me to introduce my mother, Mrs. Miriam Dinwiddie,” Dani said.
Elise paused, her eyes going wide. She blinked at Miriam with a careful smile.
“How do you do?” Elise said. She extended a hand. For a long moment, Dani thought Miriam would bolt from the room. But she
peeled from Dani’s side, took Elise’s hand, and bobbed a perfect curtsy.
“Pleasure,” Miriam said.
Elise smiled with genuine warmth. “The pleasure is mine, madam.” Tearing her attention back to Dani, she said, “You’re so beautiful.
I can barely look at you, you are so beautiful.
And you are well? You are in good health?
And happy? And loved?” She laughed. “Sorry. These have been my prayers, daily, all these years.”
“Oh yes. Entirely,” Dani assured her. She could feel herself smiling back at her. A tear fell from her eye and she swiped
it away.
Elise laughed again, the broken sound revealing her own tears. “You look so very much like our mother. That is, the mother
of your birth. She was Spanish—did you know? With black hair and green eyes, just like you. She has passed on; but I saw her,
briefly, on the occasion of my own wedding. The resemblance is striking. Oh . . .”
Elise dropped her face into her hands and let out a tearful breath, the sound of exhaustion and relief. When she looked up,
she was smiling through tears. “I’ve been searching for you, Danielle. For years, we have searched. We’ve a brother—Gabriel—and I searched for him, too. Gabriel and I reunited a little more than two years
ago. He’s on his way here, actually. He and his wife live in Guernsey but I sent word, just in case it was— Just in case this
was real . . . that it was actually you. And now here you are, and you’re so very real.”
“Oh yes,” Dani said, wiping away another tear, “quite real.”
“But I’m being terribly rude—to interrupt your most important day. I had no idea. An investigator was making inquiries, and
we followed the questions, and we learned he was hired by none other than the national war hero Captain Luke Bannock. And
then my investigator met with the captain’s investigator, and we learned your location. We came as soon as we’d heard—we left Middlesex the same day. I’ve brought my
family with me—I couldn’t be bothered to make other arrangements. We’d been searching for so long, as I’ve said. I could only
think to come to you.”
“I’m . . . I’m so very glad you did.” Dani looked at Miriam. Her mother gaped at Elise like she was a debt collector evicting her from her home.
“I’d love to . . .” Dani began. She wiped away another tear. “That is, perhaps we can speak more after the—” A tearful chuckle.
“Sorry.”
“Oh course. Go, go, go. I’ll just— I meant only to see you with my own eyes. Please, carry on. If there is an inn in the village,
we’ll take rooms. I’ve my daughters with me. And my friend Marie—oh, you must meet Marie. She is the nun who secreted me out
of France; she’s been by my side for twenty years. Then Killian, of course, and his nephew, Lord Bartholomew. On second thought,
there’s not likely to be an inn here large enough for the very great lot of us. We’ll embark on Maidstone. Days from now,
when you take a breath—”
“But you must stay for the wedding,” Dani said. “Please. All of you. I insist. There should be room for everyone. If not on
my family’s side of the aisle, then certainly on Captain Bannock’s. I should like to introduce you to him—the captain. I would . . .
I would learn more about you, if you have time.”
“Yes,” Elise was saying, nodding and wiping tears away. “Yes, yes. If you’re certain. We’ll not be in the way, I promise.
Thank you so much. I never dreamed to be included in the wedding of my . . . of my sister.” A watery sob.
“I would like that very much,” said Dani, grinning at her. Then she and Elise were quiet, smiling and drinking in the sight
of each other. The moment pulsed and shone with love, and potential, and a shimmering peacefulness.
After ten seconds of grinning and staring, when Dani could no longer resist, she burst forward and threw herself at Elise. Her sister leaped, pulling her in, and they clung in a tight embrace. They cried in earnest now, rocking back and forth.
“We’ve found you, we’ve found you, after all this time, we’ve found you,” Elise whispered into her veil. “And you appear so
very well. Praise God, you are well.”
Over Dani’s shoulder, Elise spoke to Miriam, her words thick with tears. “Thank you, Mrs. Dinwiddie, for raising up our sister.
Thank you, thank you, thank you . . .”