The Sheik's Son(57)

***

The Paris police force was formed in 1667 and was overseen by a lieutenant general of police. The current lieutenant was Louis Thiroux de Crosne, who had been in the position since 1785. Underneath the lieutenant were various police commissioners, and each commissioner was assigned police inspectors. Paris was divided into numerous districts and each commissioner was in charge of one.

Inspector Vennard was assigned to the district under Commissioner Tondreau. When he had received his latest assignment, he had not expected it nor wanted it. A treasonous pamphlet was circulating Paris and he was tasked with finding the writer. He had not been particularly pleased; the assignment seemed boring, and at best, chasing some overzealous intellectual would not win him any accolades.

But the more he pondered his assignment, the more he realized it might be the key to what he had been craving for so many years. For there was only one thing that Vennard truly wanted—and that was power.

***

Sophie nibbled on the end of her quill pen. She had heard comments about the pamphlet from several people that day and none of them were good.

Her father called the piece “revolutionary trash” while Lizette’s father called it “garbage.” She didn’t take much stock in her grandmother’s opinion, but added the word “rubbish” to her mental list. She was suddenly very worried about the pamphlet and began a letter to Monsieur Blanche, asking him to print no more copies of it, but then stopped herself.

She should be more circumspect. Despite her reluctance, she knew in retrospect that she should have given the pamphlet to Sebastian to read before sending it to the printers. She had been rash and excited at the new information and had wanted to write her thoughts and emotions on paper. But she should have waited.

She set the quill pen aside. She would wait until everything had died down. After the ball she would see how she felt then, but for now, she would write no more.

***

Madame Necker read the pamphlet and admired it greatly. She had come to suspect Sophie was Jean Inconnu and she was deeply proud of her. She had become convinced at the chateau when she witnessed Sophie defend her position against the intellectual men.

It was gratifying for her to see Sophie was learning and growing to understand the underlying issues affecting France. But she was also treading a dangerous path, and Madame Necker knew she must speak to Sophie at the upcoming ball. She had made her point with the pamphlet and now people were talking, but for her own safety, she must cease writing.

***

Sebastian clenched his teeth in anger. Sophie was trying to get herself killed; that was the only logical outcome he could imagine. He had read the pamphlet several times, and factually it was correct and he could not fault it. But that she had placed these items on paper and had it printed was beyond anything he could imagine.

Dorset had brought it to his attention that the inspector in the district was looking for the printer to find the writer. He knew that the pamphlet was gaining attention and people were talking about it. Her words were on their lips and the attention she was generating was for the people in a time when Paris was becoming more unstable. The authorities would want her to cease writing. He didn’t think they would do anything to her, but he was not sure of anything anymore.

He would see her at the upcoming ball and talk to her. Sophie must see reason.





Chapter 16

Sophie and Luc strolled next to each other in the Jardin des Tuileries while Eugenie followed at a respectable distance as chaperone. The Jardin had been a royal garden until author Charles Perrault of Sleeping Beauty requested it be opened to the public. It was the first royal garden to do so.

The date of her ball was growing near and Sophie was excited for it, but she was also in a state of great concern. She knew more and more people were talking about the pamphlet and those in her circle of acquaintances did not agree at all with her writings. They thought it to be the writings of a bourgeoisie who had no understanding of the true workings of government and the monarchy.

Then, late one evening, she heard her father with a colleague discussing the pamphlet over a glass of brandy. It was the first time she learned that there was an inspector in the district tasked with finding the identity of the printer. Once the printer was found, they would find the writer.

The conversation did nothing to quiet her thoughts and she was concerned about being discovered. How many printers were in Paris? How long before they found Monsieur Blanche? She was certain he would be tracked down in a short amount of time. But all he would be able to say was that the pamphlets were written by a Jean Inconnu and the go-between was a maid named Marie. Certainly there must be a thousand maids in Paris named Marie, so she felt relatively safe.