The Lavender Garden (56 page)

“No, only that Sebastian has come back with even more outrageous demands. Of course, he won’t get what he wants, but I almost feel like paying him off now just to get rid of him. The lawyers’ fees will end up costing more than the settlement.”

“I’m sure my presence in the mix hasn’t exactly helped.” Alex sighed. “It’s meant that Sebastian’s been able to assuage any guilt of his own by painting you as a hussy and me as a cad and a bounder, stealing his wife from right under his nose.”

“I’m sure.” Emilie paused before she said, “Alex, there’s something I haven’t told you. I’ve invited someone to visit. And he arrives tomorrow. I was sure it was a good idea at the time, but now . . . now, I’m nervous.”

“You’d better tell me, then.”

•  •  •

Jacques was dozing by the fire as he heard a car pull up in front of the cottage. It had been a long, cold winter, and once more he had succumbed to bronchitis. He’d wondered, as he did every year, whether he’d live to see another summer.

He heard the door to the kitchen open and remembered Emilie had arranged to bring a friend of hers around for lunch.

Jean appeared first in the sitting room. “Papa, are you awake?”

“Yes.” Jacques opened his eyes as his son walked toward him.

“Papa”—Jean took hold of his hand—“Emilie has brought someone to see you.”

“Hello, Jacques,” Emilie said as she led her guest into the room with her.

Jacques stared at the guest. He was an old man, like him. Tall, straight-backed, and elegant.

“Jacques,” the man spoke to him, “do you remember me?”

His French had a strong accent. He was definitely familiar, but Jacques struggled to place his face.

“It is over fifty years since we last stood in this room together,” the man prompted.

Jacques stared at the faded but still piercing blue eyes. And finally realized exactly who this man was.

“Frederik?”

“Yes, Jacques, it is I.”

“My God! I cannot believe it!”

Jacques dropped his son’s arm and refused help as he hoisted himself to standing. The two men stared at each other for a few seconds, a multitude of memories passing between them. Then Jacques held out his arms to the German, and the two men embraced.

•  •  •

Alex arrived with Anton at the cottage after lunch, as Emilie had requested. He’d recently bought himself a custom-made car, controlled with his arms, rather than his legs, which had revolutionized his life and given him some autonomy, albeit only reserved for short journeys and accompanied by Emilie or Anton.

Anton lifted the wheelchair out of the back of the car and brought it around to Alex’s door. “Who is it that Emilie wants me to meet?” Anton asked as he helped Alex from the car into his chair.

“I think I’ll leave it to her to tell you that.”

As the two of them entered the kitchen, Anton saw Emilie, Jean, and Jacques, and another old man, drinking coffee at the kitchen table.

“Hello,” Anton said awkwardly.

Immediately, Emilie stood up, came over to him, and put an arm around Anton’s shoulder.

“Anton,” she said as she watched Frederik’s eyes fill with tears at the sight of the boy, “this is your grandfather Frederik. And, when you’re ready, he has a story to tell you about your family. . . .”

M
y very grateful thanks go to Peter Borland, Judith Curr, and the wonderful team at Atria. Jeremy Trevathan and Catherine Richards at Pan Macmillan UK. Jonathan Lloyd, Lucia Rae, and Melissa Pimentel at Curtis Brown. Olivia Riley, my fantastic PA; Jacquelyn Heslop, Susan Grix, and Richard Jemmett. Almuth Andreae, Susan Boyd, Sam Gurney, Helene Ruhn, Rita Kalagate, each one a friend and a fount of invaluable advice, both personal and professional.

Damien and Anne Rey-Brot and their friends and family at Le Pescadou in Gassin; Tony Bourne and Monsieur Chapelle of the Domaine du Bourrian, whose surname, Château and
cave
was borrowed by Constance and her fellow characters before I knew such a family and their beautiful home actually existed in reality. I walked into my own fictional story last August and it was a humbling and magical experience. Thank you for all the details you gave me. Any mistakes are certainly mine, not yours. Also Jan Goesing, who gave me a vivid potted history of pre-war Germany, and Marcus Tyers; Naomi Ritchie and Emily Jenkins at St Marys Books; Stamford, who kindly sourced two old valuable French volumes on which to base my fictional rare books.

To all my wonderful foreign publishers, who have invited me to their countries and welcomed me with open arms. The travel and culture feeds my imagination and provides me with fertile ground for future settings.

And of course, “The Family,” whose support and encouragement in this past, manic year has been invaluable. My children: Harry for the insightful editorial comments and the speeches; Bella for the initial plot discussions and naming two of the main characters; Leonora for the beautiful poem that she wrote for me as “Sophia” at the same age; and Kit, for being the household’s number one Amazon customer . . .
in the sports section! My mother, Janet; my sister, Georgia; and my husband, Stephen, who has been simply amazing.

And lastly, to every single reader across the world who has spent their hard-earned money on one of my books. Without each one of you, I’d be a very miserable writer without an audience and I’m honored that you choose my stories to read. Thank you.

Lucinda Riley

January 2013

The Lavender Garden
is a work of fiction set against a historical background. The sources I’ve used to research the era and detail on my characters’ lives are:

Lucie Aubrac,
Outwitting the Gestapo
(Bison Books, 1994).

Matthew Cobb,
The Resistance
:
The French Fight Against the Nazis
(Pocket Books, 2009).

Squadron Leader Beryl E. Escott,
The Heroines of SOE: F Section: Britain’s Secret Women in France
(History Press, 2010).

Hans Fallada,
Alone in Berlin
(Penguin, 1994).

Anna Funder,
All That I Am
(Viking, 2011).

Sarah Helm,
A Life in Secrets: The Story of Vera Atkins and the Lost Agents of SOE
(Abacus, 2006).

John Van Wyck Gould,
The Last Dog in France
(AuthorHouse, 2006).

Also by Lucinda Riley

The Orchid House

The Girl on the Cliff

PHOTO CREDIT: FRANCESCO GUIDICINI

LUCINDA RILEY
is the #1 internationally bestselling author of
The Orchid House
and
The Girl on the Cliff
. She lives in the English countryside and in France with her husband and four children. Visit her online at
www.LucindaRiley.com
.

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This book is a work of fiction. Any reference to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, or persons are products of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2012 by Lucinda Riley

Cover Design By Alan Dingman
Cover Photography By ArcAngel

Originally published in 2012 in Great Britain by Pan Books,

an imprint of Pan Macmillan.

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First Atria Paperback edition June 2013

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Riley, Lucinda.

The lavender garden ; a novel / by Lucinda Riley.—First ATRIA Books trade paperback edition

pages cm

1. Country homes—England—Fiction. 2. World War, 1939-1945—Fiction. I. Title.

PR6055.D63L38 2013

823’.914—dc23

2013005536

ISBN 978-1-4767-0355-8

ISBN 978-1-4767-0356-5 (ebook)