Minutes after they arrived, a man walked onto the grounds carrying a shovel and a watering can. He was clearly one of the gardeners, but she didn’t recognize him. He began shoveling dirt under some bushes. She hadn’t been there in over a year, so it didn’t surprise her to see a new face on the grounds. He respectfully touched his cap as she got out of the car and walked toward Pierre with a quick step, then shook his hand. He was wearing brown leather Hermès gloves and was very chic in a dark brown suede jacket, gray turtleneck sweater, crisply pressed jeans, and brown suede low boots. He looked like the cover of a men’s magazine.

“I’m so sorry, I got delayed,” she apologized, and he smiled. She studied his face as he did and noticed again how handsome he was. She didn’t know why she had such a viscerally negative reaction to him, but it was the oily way he always seemed on the make for what he could get out of a situation. There was nothing real or natural about him. It really seemed too bad. He was very good-looking and painfully polite, which made him socially acceptable, along with his aristocratic name, although she was sure he had no money other than what he made on his deals.

She pointed out the gardens and orchards to him and said that they were designed by Le Nôtre, who had done the gardens at Versailles. Everything was in immaculate condition, and it tugged at her heart to see the place again and remember how much Matthieu had loved it, and why. It brought back tender memories for her too, of their happy times and watching Axel grow up there. They had gone faithfully almost every weekend.

The château had been Matthieu’s first step back to restoring his family’s property and fortune, and it had been deeply symbolic for him. He had been so eager to pass it on to Axel one day, and always made Axel walk the property with him, telling his son all about it. Inevitably one day Axel would have learned of the family’s strong Nazi connections too, and that they’d lost everything they had as a result.

“Do you mind if I take a brief look in the house?” Pierre asked politely, and she nodded.

“Of course.” She led the way and asked Daniel to bring in two suitcases she had brought with her for her clothes, and the two men followed her up the front steps. She had given the inside staff the afternoon off. She didn’t want anyone around for her first visit back since the kidnapping. She wanted to be alone with her painful memories without anyone watching her. It was hard enough having de Vaumont there.