Louis woke to daylight and the weight of two sleeping bodies. He did not know where he was at first. Then he recognized the guest room and remembered the bolted door. He lay still. Angelique stirred. Her hand tightened against his chest before she opened her eyes.
“Good morning,” he said quietly.
The corners of her mouth softened into a smile he had not seen on her face in days. “Good morning.”
Gladice groaned into the pillow as she woke. She opened her eyes, saw both of them awake, and shut them again.
“Five more minutes,” she mumbled.
Louis laughed.
Angelique sat up and slapped Gladice’s ass. “Get up.”
Gladice buried her face deeper in the pillow. “You are not my mother.”
“No,” Angelique said. “But I will kick you out of bed.”
Gladice laughed into the pillow. She sighed and lifted her head. Still half asleep, she looked from Angelique to Louis.
“Well,” she said, her voice thick with sleep. “We’re not dead.”
“Not yet,” Louis said.
Someone knocked at the door. Louis stopped laughing. They turned toward the sound.
A man spoke from the corridor. “Mr. Collins. Miss Bourbon. Miss Simington. General Vance requests the honor of your company at breakfast in thirty minutes.”
Louis said, “Understood.”
Gladice sat up, pushed her hair back from her face, and looked toward the locked door with a flat expression. “There it is.”
Angelique withdrew her arm slowly and sat back against the pillows.
“Breakfast,” she said. “It’s more than that.”
“Yes,” Louis said. “We should get up.”
Gladice swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood. “Give me the bathroom first,” she said. “I may be awhile.”
Louis pushed himself upright carefully. He glanced at the nightstand where the painkiller lay. He decided not to take it. He wanted to think as clearly as possible. By the time the knock came again, the three of them were ready enough to be seen. An officer stood outside with two soldiers behind him. He took them in with one glance and inclined his head.
“This way.”
They were taken to a smaller morning room on the eastern side of the house. The windows opened toward the side lawns and a gravel service court now occupied by several military vehicles and a communications truck. Two signalmen worked at a field table.
Inside, the table had been set for four. Coffee, juice, bacon, toast, fresh fruit, small pots of butter and jam. Eggs kept warm beneath a silver cover. General Vance was already seated at the head of the table. He rose when they entered, which surprised Louis more than it should have. On the table beside his right hand lay a folder. A cup of coffee steamed untouched at his left.
“Mr. Collins,” he said. “Miss Bourbon. Miss Simington. Please.”
He indicated the three chairs opposite him. They sat. Louis in the center, Angelique to his right, Gladice to his left. Vance resumed his own seat. A soldier closed the door behind them from the outside.
“For clarity,” Vance said, “this is not an interrogation. It is breakfast. If you decline to answer a question, the meal will continue. If you choose to answer, I will listen.”
Gladice said, “That’s very generous of you.”
Vance looked at her once. “You are welcome to remain silent, Miss Simington. But if you speak, please do so with discipline.”
She held his gaze for a beat, then looked down at the table. Vance turned to Louis.
“How is the knee?”
Louis blinked. “Better. Still sore.”
Vance nodded. He gestured once toward the table. “Help yourselves. The food will cool.”
They did. Angelique took juice. Gladice poured herself a cup of black coffee. Louis took a piece of toast and placed an egg on his plate. Vance let them serve themselves before touching his own plate. He watched them in silence as they ate.
After a minute, Vance said, “I want several simple points established before the day proceeds.”
He opened the folder.
“First. I am informed that the ceremony last night did not reach pronouncement, signing, or formal completion under civil record. Is that your understanding?”
“Yes,” said Louis.
“Yes,” said Angelique.
Gladice tore a biscuit apart. “It was a sham.”
Vance did not react to the word. He wrote something down. Then he inclined his head. “Second. Were either of you”—his eyes moved to Louis and Angelique—“acting voluntarily in the matter?”
“No,” said Louis.
“No,” said Angelique.
Vance looked at them for a moment then back to the folder.
“Third,” he said, “the manner of your arrival on this property. You were taken by force and concealed from lawful authority. That is also my understanding.”
Louis hesitated before answering. He was still calculating how much to admit, how much Vance already knew. He nodded once.
“Yes.”
Vance made another note. Then he closed the folder. “That will do for now.”
He returned to his meal and buttered half a biscuit.
“You should understand the present arrangement,” he said. “Secretary Hargrove remains under restricted supervision pending Council direction. The property remains under military control. No member of the Hargrove household has independent authority over your movement, custody, medical treatment, or communication.” He looked first at Louis, then at Angelique, then at Gladice. “You are free to walk the grounds during daylight under escort. You are not free to leave them. You will not be permitted to contact outside parties without approval. That will change when the Council makes its decision. Until then, your security is guaranteed by my command.”
Gladice swallowed a mouthful of coffee. “We’ll try to stay grateful while kidnapped.”
Vance’s voice was flat. “You remain alive. Consider that a start.”
Angelique said, “How long will this take?”
“I cannot say. The Council is deliberating with urgency. Your identities are known. The political situation is complex. I am not a politician. I enforce. Others decide.” Vance picked up his coffee cup and sipped before speaking. “When there is movement, you will be informed.”
Louis looked at him. “And Theodore? What happens to him?”
Vance held his gaze. “That too is for the Council to decide.”
Louis nodded. Vance set the cup back on its saucer.
“There is one other matter.” He said. “Last night’s shared accommodation was an emergency military arrangement. It does not continue by default.”
Louis stared at the general. Vance went on.
“The three of you were placed together because the house had not yet been fully secured, the chain of custody had not yet been rebuilt, and concentrated supervision was the soundest option available under active transition. That transition is no longer active in the same way. By this evening, separate quarters will be assigned.”
Gladice put down her fork. “No.”
Vance turned his gaze to her. “Miss Simington.”
“I said no.” Her voice was calm, but the edge was back in it. “We are not separating.”
Angelique also spoke. “We will stay together.”
Vance looked at her, then back to Gladice, and finally to Louis.
“You were together for security,” he said. “The situation has stabilized.”
Gladice shook her head once. “It hasn’t. Not for us.”
“We are safer together,” Angelique added.
Vance looked at Louis. “And you?”
Louis met his eyes. “I am responsible for Miss Bourbon and Miss Simington.”
“You are not in command here, Mr. Collins.”
“I know.” Louis kept his voice even. “But I am not leaving them alone.”
Vance considered him.
“It’s inappropriate for a man and two unmarried women to share quarters under military discipline,” he said.
Gladice laughed, short and sharp. “You are worried about propriety now? After what you walked into last night?”
Vance raised his voice. “I am responsible for order.”
“Then leave us in one room,” Louis said. “We are not going to cause problems for you.”
Vance watched him. Then he leaned back slightly in his chair. His voice became flat again. “Why does it matter to you?”
“Because they are my people.”
The words hung in the air between them. Vance studied Louis for a moment before speaking again.
“That is a large claim, Mr. Collins.”
Louis did not look away. “It’s the truth.”
“The three of you are asking me to ignore a great deal,” Vance said.
Louis did not look away. “I’m asking you not to separate us.”
Vance’s eyes rested on him. Then he said, evenly, “No. You are doing more than that. You are claiming responsibility where you have not been granted authority. That is a large distinction, Mr. Collins.”
Louis said, “I know what I am doing, General.”
“Perhaps.” Vance stared at him. “Truth, however, does not become order merely because a young man speaks it with conviction.”
His gaze moved to Angelique, then to Gladice, and then returned to Louis.
“I am not recognizing whatever private arrangement the three of you believe exists between you,” he said. “Nor am I prepared to let Theodore Hargrove’s chaos harden into a custom under my command.”
Gladice’s mouth tilted. “That sounds like no.”
“It sounds,” Vance said, “like you should wait until I finish the sentence.”
She rolled her eyes and looked away.
Vance turned back to Louis. “For the present, I judge concentrated supervision the lower-risk arrangement. You may remain together today.”
“Thank you,” Louis said.
Vance’s tone did not change. “Do not mistake me. It is my decision. It stands because I choose, for now, to observe what exactly binds the three of you, and whether you understand the burden of the claim you just made.”
Angelique spoke then. “And tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow,” said Vance, “I decide again.”
Gladice leaned back slightly in her chair. “So it’s just like last night?”
“Yes. The same room,” Vance said. “But if I am given cause to revise the arrangement, I will do so without debate.”
His eyes settled once more on Louis.
“You said they are your people. Very well. I will remember that. And I will judge your conduct accordingly, Mr. Collins.”
Louis held his gaze. “Understood.”
“That’ll be all.” Vance stood up. “I’ll leave you to finish breakfast. You have the morning to yourselves. Stay on the property. Remain within sight of your escort. You may walk the garden, the front lawns, and the field beyond the south wall. Do not approach the vehicles or the guard posts. Good day.”
He left without looking at them again. The door shut behind him. Louis let out a breath slowly through his nose and looked down at the remains of his plate.
“Men,” Gladice snorted. “Always so impressed by their own command.”
Angelique shook her head and smiled at that. Louis looked up at her.
“He gave us something at least,” Angelique said.
Gladice glanced at her. “A longer leash. He can take it back.”
Louis looked at the empty chair. “He will. But he’ll watch first.”
Gladice leaned her elbows on the table. “You do realize you just told a Dixie general that we belong to you.”
Louis took a drink of coffee. “No. I said you are my people.”
“And what exactly is the difference?”
Louis looked at her. “We are in this together. That is the difference.”
Gladice shook her head and sighed. “Fine. We’re your people. Just remember you said that the next time I borrow your toothbrush.”
Angelique laughed outright at that. The sound was bright and sudden enough to make Louis smile. It was the most beautiful thing he had heard in a week. They finished eating slowly after that. The sun had risen fully outside.
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