Page 2 of A Fierce Wind

A fierce wind had swept France to the end of an era, but did this celebration mark the beginning of something better?

As though answering his unspoken question, cannons at the other end of the field boomed, sending smoke billowing into the air.

Exuberant cheers rose from the crowd.

The rain stopped as if on cue.

Talleyrand, surrounded by hundreds of priests, doubtless ones who had accepted their new roles, mounted the podium above the cannons to say mass.

The liturgy was mercifully short. As it ended, into the arena, on a splendid white horse, rode Lafayette, chief of the new National Guard, hero of the American Revolution and confidant of the king.

The crowd thundered its approval. At Freddie’s side, caught up in the fervor, Zoé clasped her hands to her bosom.

Lafayette dismounted and climbed the steps to bow before the king. Then he turned to address the massive crowd. In a loud voice, he proclaimed, “We swear to always remain faithful to the nation, to the law and to the king, to uphold by all our power the constitution decreed by l’Assemblée nationale…”

The people erupted in loud applause.

Watching Lafayette’s face, Freddie was inclined to think the marquis believed his own words. Freddie exchanged a glance with Donet that spoke loudly of their shared doubt as to where such oaths would lead.

When the cheers died down, King Louis rose from his chair in the royal box not far from where Freddie stood. “I, King of the French, swear to maintain the constitution decreed by l’Assemblée nationale and accepted by me.”

An awkward silence hung in the air, followed by a few random displays of clapping.

The hairs on the back of Freddie’s neck prickled. The veneer of unity had cracked.

Zoé pressed her fingers to her mouth and looked from the king to the silent crowd.

Marie Antoinette suddenly lifted her son, the dauphin, in her arms. “Look, my son, they’re united, just like me, with the same sentiments!”

The people rose to their feet and applauded enthusiastically.

Zoé beamed her pleasure and joined in.

Freddie fought the urge to dampen her enthusiasm, but refrained. It would do no good. For the moment, she had become a supporter of the revolution. Instead, he leaned toward Donet. “King Louis may have pledged his oath to the new constitution and the queen may have joined him, but after the humiliation they have suffered and their virtual imprisonment in the Tuileries Palace, I doubt they are as agreeable as they appear.”

Donet’s ebony brows drew together above his intense black eyes. “The king’s own brother, the comte d’Artois, left France days after the Bastille fell, like a rat quitting a sinking ship. I cannot help but think Louis should have gone with him. Already the nobles clamor to book passage on my ships to carry them away from what they fear is coming.”

Freddie shifted his gaze to Zoé, comforted in the knowledge that when the storm broke, she would be safe on Guernsey.