Chapter 63
Victoria breathed deep of countless old books, well-seasoned leather, and a lingering trace of ceremonial incense. She hadn’t realized how dear that unusual combination of smells had become to her until she spent nearly a month away from it.
Jean’s study was in its usual state of causal disarray, with books, papers, and writing instruments scattered over each of the tables. Victoria’s gift of a bottle of the Haversham Plantation rum stood unopened in the middle. She knew from many hours working alongside the Frenchwoman that not one single thing was actually out of place.
Jean claimed being able to see everything at once allowed her mind the freedom it needed.
The scholar herself—wearing her usual black pants and a man’s shirt in green rather than white—sat quietly in her ov
