Dafne could not have hated Dominique more. Genevieve, the object of her love and fascination, was gone. Her father had a change of heart and had released Genevieve to marry that idiot farmer. She had asked Dominique for help and what had she done—played Queen of Loudun again and gotten in the center of everyone’s business. She never asked her to go talk to Genevieve’s father—only to make her happier with the convent.
Kneeling in the pews in the small chapel, Dafne thundered silently at God. How could you take her away from me? Dafne was sure that she hated God, just as much as Dominique in this moment. Dafne cried, wiping tears away with the sleeve of her robes, I will end up a shriveled old witch just like Marguerite, she thought to herself.
Sitting in the pew behind Dafne, the gentleman quietly cleared his throat. Breaking from her reverie, Dafne turned and sniffing tearfully apologized for her embarrassing show of emotion. “Sir, forgive me, you have come here to pray, not listen to me snivel.” He was dressed well; obviously this was someone of standing. A medallion hung around his neck and shone brightly against his dark coat. Dafne eyes lit on the medallion and recognized it as one that a courtier from the Royal Court would wear.
“Good afternoon, Sister.” He bowed slightly from his seated position. “It is I who apologize for interrupting you. You seem troubled and for the heaviness of your heart, I am sorry.” He had her full attention now. “I am new to the village and perhaps you might be able to help me,” he ventured. “Do you, by chance, know of a woman by the name of Dominique Collier?”
Dafne’s eyes flew open with surprise at the mention of her nemesis. Given her current train of thought, Dafne was amazed at the coincidence. “Why, yes, I do, sir.” Tentatively, she asked, “Might I be so bold as to ask what you want with this woman?”
“We will get to the particulars but let me ask you—you have known her for a long time? And how much do you know of her private activities?” Now Dafne was intrigued. “Well, sir, I have known Dominique since she arrived at the convent at the age of eleven. And frankly, what I have suspected of her private activities, as you call them, gives me great pause.” Adopting her best pious attitude, Dafne continued, “I do know that she left the convent after giving birth to the bastard child of our Abbot.” She had lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper and asked, “Does this have anything to do with…,” looking around for anyone listening before she continued, “The Confraternity?”
Knowingly, the Emissary from the Court nodded. “Dominique Collier is suspected of having defied Church law by performing pagan rituals. As you know, this is strictly prohibited and could be interpreted as witchcraft, in the most severe of cases. The future Queen does not wish for any impropriety to be linked with the Abbey, and its patron, the royal family by extension. This is, as you know, home to her husband’s Captain of the Guard. Now, how would it look for the Royal Family to be giving tacit approval and sanctuary to someone so blatantly flaunting Church law?” He thought he might have seen a slight smile at the corner of Dafne’s mouth.
“Now, Sister, I am assured of your piety. Despite whatever friendship you share with this woman, she must be stopped.” Dafne saw her opportunity and seized it. “Sir, Dominique is no friend of mine. I abhor her actions. I am a Lamb of God and find her behavior reprehensible.” Dafne wanted to be pivotal in this man’s retribution against Dominique. It was her chance to get even.
“How might I be of service to the Queen?” she offered.
“Your loyalty is admirable, Sister.” The Emissary lowered his voice to ensure that their conversation was quite private. “In about a month, the Inquisitor will be near this area. The Queen wishes for you to get word to him of Dominique’s blatant disregard of the Law. But it is absolutely imperative that he, nor anyone else, know of the Queen’s involvement in this. Do you understand so far?”
“Wouldn’t it be worse to get the Inquisitor involved?” Dafne asked, not really seeing how this helped her. It was not her goal for Dominique to be killed—just hurt like she had hurt Dafne.
“It is absolutely necessary.” The courtier continued, “You see, Sister, the Abbot’s rule is absolute—except against the Inquisitor. Once the Inquisitor is involved, the Abbot would be forced to acquiesce to his ultimate authority. His…umm…shall we say, cooperation has been secured. He will ensure Madame Collier’s public transgression so you will be able to confront her. Upon her arrest, Madame Collier will be sent to Paris to await the arrival of her child, at which time she will be tried on the charges of participating in pagan rituals. No harm will come to her unborn child.”
“If you agree to participate by alerting the Inquisitor to Dominique’s crimes against the Church, then there is an added bonus for you.” Dafne fairly tingled with the anticipation of his offer. It was already a win for her, how could he possibly sweeten the pot?
“Now you must understand the delicacy of this matter. The Queen must never be connected to this matter. The next part of our little contract is to be considered of the utmost secrecy. Do I have your word that you can be trusted implicitly?” he demanded. “Oh, absolutely, sir! I vow on my life to keep this information completely secret, you have my solemn oath.” Dafne was fairly salivating at the further intrigue.
“Well, as you may very well be aware, our future Queen has encountered difficulties in conceiving a child and potential heir to the throne. His Highness has, shall we say, wandered and is losing interest in her continued attempts to conceive. It is imperative that Queen Catherine produce an heir and quickly as his interest in Diane de Poitiers becomes more ardent. This situation has required us to resort to some subterfuge, I’m afraid.” The Queen’s Emissary spoke in the quietest of tones, leaving Dafne to strain to hear him.
“Once Dominique, who is with child, is transported to Paris to await trial, you will be asked to follow along with her so that you might take custody of the child once he is delivered. Ostensibly, you will be asked to return the child to its father, but what we are proposing is that you bring the child, post haste, to Catherine’s bedside where she will claim the child as her very own.” The Emissary seemed very sure that the Inquisitor would have no taste for trying Dominique while pregnant. He assured Dafne that he was much too squeamish for that. Taking a moment to let this information sink in, he continued, “So you see how delicate this matter is and you are pivotal to the success of our plan and thereby the continued success of our future Queen. Catherine is prepared to reward you handsomely for your complicity and wishes you to know that she will be completely indebted to you.” He bowed his head slightly to let this last piece of information ruminate.
Dafne began slowly, allowing the possibilities to turn in her mind. “Dominique will believe that the child is safely returned to his father and no one will know what has happened, correct?” “Absolutely,” came the reply. “You will get word to Henri that the child has died en route to him and no one will be any the wiser.”
Dafne had just one more question, “What is Her Highness prepared to do for me in exchange for my participation? Not that my loyalty to the Crown is not sufficient but you are asking me to take a number of risks.” Dafne was actually delighted at the prospect of besting her nemesis.
“Sister, you would be rewarded handsomely. We understand the risks that you would undertake. The future Queen, in addition to monies, will ensure that you have a position as Lady-in-Waiting in her Court. As you well know, this is a prestigious position and would align you with the wealthiest and most politically influential in the land. It is an honor reserved for the highest in society. If you are prepared to leave the convent, Catherine would be pleased to welcome you to her Court.”
Details of their plan were discussed and agreements were made. Dafne felt the thrill of intrigue and the burning satisfaction that she would finally be able to pursue the revenge for which she longed. Standing at the upper level window overlooking the cemetery, Dafne glanced down only to see Dominique enter the garden at the back of her cottage. She looked heavenward and smiled as she held her ever-growing belly lovingly.
Dafne grinned maliciously, and thought, enjoy him now, my old friend, because you will never know the love of this child. You will, however, know the burn of losing the love of your life—just as I have.