Section 14: Odalisque, pages 811-852 Summary

On November 21, 1608, Monsieur Bonaventure Rossignol writes His Majesty Louis XIV from Chateau Juvisy to inform the king that he believes the Countess de la Zeur uses a cypher to shield the nature of her correspondence. She writes frequently to Leibniz about Versailles society, but Rossignol does not believe such a woman wastes so much time writing about such superfluous matters. Two years earlier, d'Avaux also studied her epistolary habits and came to suspect Eliza was secretly corresponding with William through Sophie. At the beginning of the year, Eliza engaged in a flirtation with Liselotte which was thought to be a love affair, but soon after her arrival at St. Cloud, Eliza wrote d'Avaux, and the letter found its way to Rossignol's desk. In August 1688, Eliza writes d'Avaux about life at St. Cloud, including her intention to demonstrate...