In the Court of the Sun King

Chapitre VII: Le Forfait Du Bonheur

"Coming here was a mistake." Marie ripped the dress away from her shoulders and kicked the slippers across the room. "I'm leaving."

"You can't be serious." Hortense looked aghast, standing in the open doorway of Marie's room, her dress still askew from her romp with the servant boy. "This is the safest place for us!"

"Lorenzo cannot find me if I keep moving." Marie ignored her sister's protest and searched through the wardrobe until she found a brown and green gown suited for travel.

"So where will you go?"

"Spain," Marie opened the bag that she came with and began to gather the essentials in the room, even taking a few of the gifts provided by the King. He owed her at least that much.  "Greece, Austria, Prussia. Wherever I must."

"What caused this?" Hortense cried and ran inside, grabbing at her sister's arm. "What has happened to make you so afraid?"

"I am not afraid." It was true. 

"Do not lie to me, sister." Hortense clung stubbornly to her. "Something happened today, didn't it?"

Marie said nothing.

"You were summoned weren't you?" Hortense gasped excitedly. "The King himself summoned you?"

"I do not wish to discuss this with you," Marie pulled away and pressed her trunk closed. " I am leaving. Are you coming or not?"

Hortense pressed a hand to her chest, offended. "Of course I am! As crazy as you may be, you're still my sister."

"Yes, I'm the crazy one." Marie mumbled. "It isn't madness at all that you spent the day holed up in your chamber with a servant boy."

"Marcel is a perfect gentleman." Hortense stated, her chin lifted in a haughty way. Tired of everyone's careless promiscuity, Marie's patience snapped. 

"Well, that's fine for you," She spat. "I, for one, refuse to be any man's whore."

Hortense froze and spun to Marie. The elder sister knew she had crossed a line, and yet Hortense seemed more shocked than angry. Marie knew she should apologize, but before she could open her mouth, Hortense whispered. "He still loves you, doesn't he?"

Marie stopped what she was doing and met her sister's gaze, pursing her lips. "He doesn't know me."

"Marie, you fool!" Hortense cried. "You are running because the King among lovers has declared his devotion to you?"

"He is devoted to no one." Marie argued, the memory of his guiltless eyes at her accusations of his unfaithfulness. "And he is not my husband."

"Your husband is a monster!" Hortense threw her hands in the air. 

"He is the father of my sons."

"You left your sons!"

Marie felt her mouth fall open at Hortense's harsh words. Her sons, the people she loved most in the world, and her sister had just accused her of abandoning them with a monster. Hortense realized too late her mistake.

"Oh, Marie!" She cried. "I didn't mean that! I know that you had no choice!"

"Keep your filthy lies to yourself!" Marie spat angrily, hot tears gathering in her eyes. "You can't even keep your skirts down long enough to think. Don't you ever dare to presume you understand what it is like to have children!"

Hortense tried to respond, but Marie would not let her, the tears now streaming freely. "My sons mean more to me than this entire world. If I had brought them with me, Lorenzo would have stopped at nothing until we were all of us dead! The only way to save my children was to leave them in their father's care! I will run for the rest of my life, but I will never put my children in danger!"

"I know that, Marie!" Hortense was now crying as well. She once again reached for her sister's arm, and Marie was now crying too hard to push her away. "You are the most loving mother in the world. I was foolish and arrogant and spoke out of turn and I will never forgive myself! But you mustn't throw away your only chance at happiness."

Marie recovered her wits quickly, drawing one hand under her eyes. She then lifted her bag from the bed and strode resolutely toward the door. "I threw away my chance at happiness twenty years ago. And I would do it again."