Stepsister(81)

“Hugo, stay here for a minute, will you?” she said now.

“Why? Where are you going?”

“To get Tavi. I’ll be right back.”

Isabelle found her sister in the dairy house. She made her come with her back to the stables, then she led them both into an empty horse stall and told them to sit down in the hay.

“Why are we hiding in a horse stall?” Hugo asked.

“So no one sees us. Or hears us.”

Tavi gave her a questioning look. “This is all very mysterious, Isabelle.”

Isabelle waited until they’d settled, then said, “Felix gave us a way out of the wedding. If we want to take it.”

“Yes!” Hugo shouted, leaping to his feet. “We do! We absolutely do!”

“Be quiet!” Isabelle hissed, grabbing his arm and pulling him back down.

When he was seated again, Isabelle told them what had happened. Both reassured her that Felix would come back, and both felt that using the money to leave Saint-Michel was the only way to stop the wedding.

Isabelle listened to them, but still felt uneasy with the decision. “There might be one other way out,” she said.

“Go on,” Tavi urged.

“I could use the money to rent rooms for us right here, in Saint-Michel,” Isabelle offered. “If we do that, Hugo and I still wouldn’t have to marry, but you and I and Maman would have shelter.”

Tavi crossed her arms. “Yes, let’s rent rooms. Smack in the middle of the village, if possible,” she said. “It will make it so much easier for Cecile and the baker’s wife and whoever it was that burned our house down to call us ugly and throw things at us. Why, we can have our windows broken every day!”

Isabelle, stung by the sarcasm, tossed her a dirty look.

“Tavi’s right. The people here won’t forget. And they’ll never let you forget,” said Hugo. “Start over, Isabelle. Somewhere new. That’s what Felix wants for you. It’s why he gave you the money. Can’t you see that?”

Isabelle knew Hugo was right. And so was Tavi; the abuse would never end if they stayed here.

“It will be hard getting to Italy, Tavi. And once we’re there, we’ll have to live frugally to make the money last. One room for all of us. Few pleasures or luxuries,” Isabelle cautioned.

Tavi shrugged. “It might be hard, but it won’t be bad. For me, at least,” she said. “In fact, it will be wonderful. Every bit as wonderful as life here, on the farm, has been. Maybe even more so.”

“Wonderful?” Isabelle repeated, incredulous. “In case you haven’t noticed, you’ve been living in a hayloft. Milking cows and cutting cabbages and digging potatoes all day long. What is wonderful about any of that?”

Tavi examined her work-roughened hands. “My gowns are burned, my satin shoes and silk corsets destroyed. Parties and balls are a thing of the past. Suitors no longer come to my door. The world calls me ugly and stays away.”

Isabelle’s heart ached at her sister’s words, but then Tavi raised her head and Isabelle saw that she wasn’t sad; she was smiling.

“And so the world sets me free,” Tavi said, her smile deepening. “The days are hard, yes. But at night I have a candle and quiet and my books. Which is all I’ve ever wanted. So, yes. Wonderful. Don’t you see? A pretty girl must please the world. But an ugly girl? She’s free to please herself.”

“All right, then,” Isabelle said, swallowing the lump in her throat. “We’ll go.”

Tavi grinned. Hugo threw his arms around her. And then the three of them immediately set about making a plan.

Isabelle would not hear of leaving Nero behind, so she, Tavi, and Maman would ride to Italy. She’d managed to salvage two saddles from the stables when the Maison Douleur burned; Hugo said she could take an old one of theirs, too. They would sleep at inns along the way but would need to buy food, canteens for water, and oilskins, in case it rained. New dresses, too, as theirs were little more than rags, and warm things for the cooler weather. It was September now; it would be well into autumn by the time they arrived at their destination.

Isabelle had moved the other two horses she’d rescued from the slaughter yard to the pasture at the Maison Douleur to make Madame happier. They had filled out on the sweet grass there and had built up a bit of muscle. Tavi could ride one, Maman the other. Martin would have to stay behind. Isabelle choked up at the thought, but he was too old to make the trip.

“I’m not going unless you swear on your life to take good care of Martin,” she said to Hugo.

“I will.”

“Swear, Hugo, or I’ll stay here and marry you!”

Hugo swore, quickly and vehemently.

Tavi estimated it would take them four days to assemble their supplies, which meant they could leave on Friday—one day before the wedding. The girls would take turns going to market with Hugo and shop for provisions while they were there. They decided to say nothing of their plans to Maman—who could not be trusted to keep secrets—Tantine, or Hugo’s mother. Avara and Tantine would likely be furious when they learned that the wedding was off and might make Isabelle and her family leave the farm before they were ready.

They rose and left the horse stall, and the stables, together. They were resolute, determined to go about their chores and keep to their routines in order to raise no suspicions.