Rebellion in Her Touch
Copyright© 2026 by Rachael Jane
Chapter 9: Whispers in the Halls
“What sort of problem?” asks Colette. “Tell me so that we can solve your problem together.”
“Hah! If only it was that simple. Please understand that I love you with all my heart and I would gladly marry you ... if I was able. But church law says that we may not marry.”
“Pfff to church law!” replies Colette with some feeling. “I refuse to live a life dictated by others. I’m not a slave, and nor are you. We’ll simply circumvent whatever impediment prevents us from marrying.”
“Do you mean that you are willing for us to live together outside of wedlock?” asks Jeanne, shocked at Colette’s apparent willingness to break one of the bourgeois strictest codes of moral behaviour.
Jeanne had long ago accepted that she would never be married, and that becoming some man’s mistress was the only option open to her. Without a dowry, Jeanne couldn’t hope to marry a respectable man, and she has no interest in living the life of a labourer’s wife. Now Colette is offering a new choice Jeanne hadn’t thought possible. However, would that offer still apply if Jeanne reveals her true gender?
“If that’s what is necessary, then yes,” replies Colette. “However, I think you owe me an explanation as to why this impediment exists. I don’t risk excommunication from the church on a whim.”
Jeanne reveals the truth and tells Colette of her father and life at the château. She skips over some of her early life, but mentions her engagement to Jean-Paul Girod, and of his tragic death during the war. She concludes the first part of her story by telling Colette of the baron’s mental illness and how he thought Jeanne was his wife. Disguised as a man using her former fiancé’s spare uniform, Jeanne’s story dovetails into what she has already told Colette and her father.
Colette is silent for a few moments, and Jeanne nearly bursts into tears at the prospect of her revelation ruining the relationship they had. When Colette reaches for Jeanne’s hand and draws her close for a kiss, Jeanne cannot hold back her tears any longer. Only these are now tears of joy.
“We had better work out what we are going to do from here,” says Colette.
“I should confess my deception to your father,” says Jeanne.
“No,” replies Colette in alarm. “That could ruin everything.”
Having confessed her deception to Colette, Jeanne feels as though a great weight has been removed from her shoulders. Colette’s willingness to continue their intimate relationship is more than Jeanne had believed possible. However, even with Colette’s help, Jeanne is far from solving all the problems her actions have caused.
While Colette has embraced Jeanne’s true gender, Jeanne cannot expect Henri to do the same. Indeed, Colette believes that telling her father of Jeanne’s deception would result in Jeanne being thrown out of Henri’s house, and Jeanne’s dismissal from her job. Jeanne must continue the disguise of Jean-Paul until such time the Colette and Jeanne can leave Lyon. At the moment, that seems an impossible goal. Running away together would be folly. Henri would spare no expense in finding and retrieving his daughter. Jean-Paul is not going to be permitted to take Colette anywhere without marrying her first.
The usual rumours about Jean-Paul continue to circulate among the servants. The slightest slip in Jeanne’s disguise seems to be observed by one servant or another. While Colette trusts her own maid, Sophie, the same cannot be said of the other servants. However, as long as the rumours stay away from the ears of Henri, the two lovers are reasonably safe. Unfortunately, a few of the more speculative rumours have gained Henri’s attention. While he dismisses them as fanciful gossip, it only reinforces his determination to investigate Jean-Paul’s background.
A week later, Louis makes one of his periodic visits to Henri’s house. These days Louis rarely stops for more than a couple of nights, much to the relief of the residents. Henri takes Louis aside after dinner and asks him to make inquiries in Besançon and the surrounding villages about Jean-Paul’s background. Given Louis’s designs over Colette, it is one of Henri’s more foolish decisions. Louis knows that finding even the smallest flaw in Jean-Paul’s story will sabotage his chances of marrying Colette. That will effectively leave Colette at Louis’s mercy.
Louis’s task would be easier if Jean-Paul was told of Henri’s desire to validate his background. Louis could then question Jean-Paul for more details of his past life. Instead Louis must begin his search with limited and ambiguous information. He makes provision for a three day stop in Besançon on his return from Belfort.
“No, there has never been a Jean-Paul Montfaucon among my congregation,” says a priest in Besançon when Louis visits a local church. “But there are three other churches in the area that he may have attended. Have you made inquiries in the village of Montfaucon? His family name makes it likely that he came from there.”
Louis tries the other churches in Besançon, but none of those he speaks with know of a Jean-Paul Montfaucon.
“A cavalry officer, did you say?” queries the local mayor when Louis buys the man a drink in a tavern. “I thought I knew all the military officers who come from this area. What rank was this man?”
“A sous-lieutenant in the Hussars,” replies Louis.
“Oh! Well that explains why I don’t know him. A second lieutenant hardly qualifies as being an officer. If he is related to the Baron de Montfaucon et Saône, then you are best making inquiries at the château in Montfaucon. The old baron died recently, but I believe there’s someone tending to the château while the baron’s estate is sorted out.”
With two other townspeople pointing Louis in the direction of Montfaucon and its château, that’s where Louis finds himself on the second day of his venture.
The local peasants in Montfaucon are surly towards Louis and only provide minimal answers Louis’s questions. All he learns is that Jean-Paul and Montfaucon are common names hereabouts, but nobody will confirm that they know of a Jean-Paul Montfaucon of the right age. In desperation, Louis treks along the winding dirt road to the old château.
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