They had no shortage of suitors and were soon married, Jacqueline marrying Lord Leverton. a Parisian baron, and Léonie a dashing American, Captain Samuel Sinclair, whom she had followed to the United States. No doubt Jacqueline harbored some concern about the fate of her cousin Escort Girl because she had wanted to become her daughter's godmother, assuring her of her desire to protect her if necessary, and to receive her. The letter was old, the ink had faded, and the paper yellowed, but Celia held this document as a kind of talisman, the held but unique bond which connected her to her family and which was to allow her to establish a solid starting point. for his great purpose.
The time had come. After so much suffering, and so many tears, the hour of his revenge would sound. For almost ten years, only the hope of accomplishing it had kept him alive. From now on, no obstacle would break his momentum. She hugged the iron railing tighter. The forest of masts seemed to open like a field of reeds on the way to the ship. Steeples and towers faded into the sky, very near or very far away. His mother would have liked this moment, this landscape. She whose life had died nine years earlier, along with the newborn, the innocent aftermath of the Northington crime. The little boy, who had lived only a few seconds, had been buried with the unfortunate victim of the violence, in the square granted by the city to the destitute.
From the age of thirteen, in the orphanage that housed her, Celia had applied herself to teaching French to her companions, then to students, to the great satisfaction of the nuns. After three years of voluntary work, his services had been remunerated. At eighteen, she had resolved not to leave the community, extending the scope of her activities to an outside clientele, and patiently accumulating the savings needed to carry out her mission. Living in the permanent memory of the sufferings and death of his mother, all his efforts were directed towards the realization of his great design: to crush Lord Northington under the weight of a scandal, in his country, in the eyes of his peers. In his crosshairs, with Lady Leverton's letter, were the official notices issued by the judicial authorities of Georgetown, As the criminal had hastened to leave the United States without appearing before the judge, the accusation was not barred. Celia intended to denounce Northington's false respectability and make him atone for his crime. How exactly? She still didn't know. The support of Lady Leverton was to enable him to associate with society. He would then have to play the character and interpret the role that had been prepared for so long. The support of Lady Leverton was to enable him to associate with society. He would then have to play the character and interpret the role that had been prepared for so long. The support of Lady Leverton was to enable him to associate with society. He would then have to play the character and interpret the role that had been prepared for so long.
A cool wind had risen. Lost in thought. as in the contemplation of the landscape, Celia remained indifferent to it. The bridge came to life. Most of the passengers had just crossed the ocean, but two days before a certain number of people had boarded the Liberté, during a short stopover in Liverpool. Very ordinary men indeed, with the exception of an individual with original and imperious looks, who could pass for disturbing. Tall, dark-haired, unashamedly displaying an arrogance that reminded Celia only too well of that of the infamous Viscount, he stood aloof from his companions and seemed to prefer the company of officers. Had it been suggested that he was interested in his looks or his elegance, Celia would have exclaimed indignantly. However, she enjoyed watching him when he appeared on the upper deck, exchanging a few words with the second in command. Dressed quite simply in buff trousers and horse-riding mud, his jacket open over his white shirt, he could have looked like a rich country squire. But there was something fierce and imperious about his expression. With a slender face, and elegant and well-defined features, he seemed endowed with too strong a personality to be just a simple provincial nobility. But there was something fierce and imperious about his expression. With a slender face, elegant and well-defined features, he seemed endowed with too strong a personality to be just a simple provincial nobility. But there was something fierce and imperious about his expression. With a slender face, and elegant and well-defined features, he seemed endowed with too strong a personality to be just a simple provincial nobility.
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