The rising sun woke him through the cracks in the door. Waking up, Bertrand tried to stretch his stiff body. Every movement was painful. After a while, he tried to see through the door what was happening outside. The smoke gave me an unbearable headache. And itching in my throat. The landing in front of the house was quiet, and Bertrand risked opening the door. Cautiously, he stuck his head out and looked around. The house itself was a pile of burnt stones. The window openings gaped with black holes, some of which had torn curtains dangling from them. The whole area was littered with fragments of burnt furniture and broken china. Fires were smoking nearby. Bertrand counted four of them. “So, besides Guillaume, Sarah and Mathieu, there was someone else whom I did not see,” thought Bertrand, carefully getting out. The abrasions on his body were bleeding in places, and torn clothes did not save from the morning cold. Shivering, Bertrand walked across the landing. The charred body of Gu

For a while everything went well. Lulled by the rolling of the road, the passengers slowly relaxed. After a while, they heard the sounds of an approaching crowd, and the carriage stopped with a strong push. The horses whinnied in fear.What's the matter? asked a plump man, leaning out of the window.And he asks, what's the matter? - a frail, unshaven man shouted indignantly into his face with anger on his unprepossessing face. You are King Louis. And you're going to run away from the country.Gentlemen, - the man said loudly, leaning out of the carriage. - You are wrong. I am not a king. And even more so, I do not want, as this man said, to run away from the country. I am Monsieur Durand. And this is the Baroness de Corfe with the children and the governess. And we are going to Russia to the husband of the baroness, who is now dying.Give us your documents, - the man demanded arrogantly.For starters, with whom do I have the honor? asked the man in the carriage politely.I am Drouet,

Guillaume de Gauss stood almost at the very edge of the scaffold. He saw the king, trembling with cold and fear, ascend the scaffold. He heard the executioner of the Republic read out his sins. He heard the King deny these accusations in a shaky voice. He heard the verdict on a man called for some reason Ludovic Capet, the former king. He heard his appeal to the people. He heard the prayer of the king before his last steps on this sinful earth. He saw how the king, bending on his feet, was led by the arm to the guillotine. And then time seemed to slow down its run: the blade of the guillotine began to slowly slide down. Another second, and the head, crowning a full body that loved to eat, slowly fell into the basket. At that moment, something exploded in Guillaume's chest, and he, beside himself, flew up to the scaffold. Pushing the dumbfounded guards and the executioner, he jumped up to the basket and grabbed his head, which had just fallen, by its short hair. Throwing it up on

The rustle of Bertrand's clothes did not alert Bianca, and she did not expect that his powerful hand would pin her to the carriage wall.Either you go on your own, or I'll tie you up. Twice is enough. Bianca frantically searched again for the handle on the carriage door. She felt the wood paneling and upholstery around her. Tears unwillingly flowed down her cheeks. In desperation, she shook the door. Suddenly, an unreasonable weight fell on her head, and she lost consciousness.I warned you, stupid moth, - hissed Bertrand, tying Bianca and rocking in time with the movement of the carriage. On one of the potholes, the carriage tilted heavily, and Bertrand, throwing the rope, rested his hands on the walls of the carriage. When the balance was restored, Bertrand took up the rope again. Finally, having tied Bianca, he left her lying on the seat and sat down opposite.Damn it, you blissful bastard, - he gasped, tearing the lace collar. - How much fuss with you.

The ritual then went well: our saint is expecting twins, - said Bertrand, sitting in a stone room by the hearth, shaking his leg in a white stocking.Agree. But why did she have to cut her arms and legs? Katherine asked grumpily. Standing aside at the stone table, she was crushing some herbs in a mortar. She wouldn't run away from us anyway.The cripple doesn't need guards. And our golems don't last long, you know. Well, relatives in the form of guards are like launching a rooster into a chicken coop, - Bertrand burst out laughing. The first months are fine. And then? Suddenly, with their agility, they harmed the child?Quickly. You will say too.Yes, dear cousin. With the mind, God began to deprive our relatives, but he measures lust in tubs. He laughed again. - Nothing. Children will be born, we will perform one more ritual.If she doesn't die during childbirth.And this is your business, - Bertrand said, suddenly becoming serious. He left the stone room and ascended throug