“No, you cannot come in!” Eugénie yelled through the half-open door. She blocked entry into the lavatory and kept her back to Louisa. “She needs a moment. Here, use this.” She thrust a large-handled chamber pot out the door and waggled it.

Louisa’s eyes darted to the records room and the half-opened window. It would be a close call to reach the dormitory before the headmistress, but now she needed to go on the trip to protect the Clan of the Dissipated from Gabrielle’s foul plans.

Like a once-caged bird on its first flight, Louisa luxuriated in the liberation of perching so high above the rest of the world. From the ridgeline of the Basilica, she looked out over the twinkling lights of Paris. Fantasies sparkled like the skyline before her, the distant lights calling her to adventure.