Franck turned around, relieved to find that the dog didn’t have the little animal in his jaws; it looked like he hadn’t caught it. The dog came quietly closer and positioned himself near them, shaking his head like someone who is annoyed with himself. It was at that point, both disheartened and exhilarated, that Franck realised he had made a real ally, a firm, unfailing ally; and now he would be able to get this dog to do anything, but the deal needed to be sealed with a real reward.

Lise bent down to stroke the big, sullen animal, and she could feel he was hot under his soft, rough coat, but the stubborn dog remained despondent. Lise spoke to him tenderly and reassuringly and cuddled him like an exhausted runner, but the poor dog only had eyes for Franck. He looked right at him as if expecting forgiveness, and more importantly, the promise of doing it again. Yes, Franck could sense that Alpha was counting on him to play again the next day, but with a different target, something that wasn’t a hare this time, nor a ball or cypress cone. Yes, next time he had to aim for something much bigger, something more valuable and incriminating, a much more dignified game animal. Why not a deer or a wild boar, a stag, or a man? Why not …?

May 1915

May 1915

That morning as she saddled her horse Joséphine was troubled. There was no reason why she shouldn’t go up there, but she felt guilty about it. However, should anyone see her going up that side of the mountain, if anyone down below saw her disappearing behind the junipers and climbing up towards Mont d’Orcières, they would assume that she was going to visit Le Simple in the pastures. In a sense that was true. It was just that she had a hope that she held on to as tightly as the reins of her horse, that she would meet that man again. No one doubted that it was out of the sheer goodness of her heart that she had already taken provisions up to the shepherd three times in the last fortnight, bringing him bread and fresh milk. As the ewes were delicate and their feet were always bumping against ruts and thorns, Joséphine would take a pot of copper sulphate and some Vaseline to treat their wounds. She was certain that every time she examined their feet she would find cuts. Joséphine knew how to look after ewes. Her parents owned land in Bergerac and, unlike her sisters, she had spent a lot of time on the smallholdings, because she loved all animals, not just her horse. Back then she saw the world as a large book made up of exciting scenarios, each of which had a role for her, whether in the flower-filled rooms of the parental home, or in the farms on the estate.