The Award

Chapter 1

Delphine Lambert, a dark-­haired, serious young woman, was reading Le Figaro intently in her apartment on the rue du Cherche-­Midi on the Left Bank in Paris, on New Year s Day. She was reading a list carefully, as she did every year on that day, and had for several years. At twenty-­nine, a political journalist and historian, she had two books to her credit that had done well, and frequently published articles in the press. Her long straight hair concealed part of her face as she pored over the newspaper, as Georges Poitier, the man she lived with, watched her and smiled. He had already guessed what she was reading. She had been chasing a dream since she was seventeen years old.

What are you looking for? he asked her gently. The list was published twice a year, on New Year s Day, and the fourteenth of July.

You know . . . my grandmother, she answered without looking up, not wanting to lose her place. There were five hundred names on the list, and she feared that the name she hoped to see wouldn t be on it yet again. It hadn t been so far, despite all of Delphine s efforts for the past dozen years, and she had worked tirelessly on the project. How long are they going to wait? she muttered, fearing disappointment again. Her grandmother, Gaëlle de Barbet Pasquier, was ninety-­five years old, and she was far less concerned about it than her granddaughter, to whom it had become a sacred cause. The list was of the upcoming recipients of the Légion d Honneur, the most distinguished award in France.

Gaëlle had never expected to be decorated, and had none of the aspirations Delphine had for her, and thought it entirely unnecessary. Delphine insisted it was only right. The entire family knew how hard Delphine had worked to get her grandmother exonerated and recognized. Gaëlle was at peace about her life. The events she would have been acknowledged for were all so long ago, during the war. They were chapters of her life that were a distant memory now.

Danielle Steel has been hailed as one of the world s most popular authors, with over 650 million copies of her novels sold. Her many international bestsellers include Rushing Waters, Magic, The Apartment, Property of a Noblewoman, Blue, Precious Gifts, Undercover, and other highly acclaimed novels. She is also the author of His Bright Light, the story of her son Nick Traina s life and death; A Gift of Hope, a memoir of her work with the homeless; Pure Joy, about the dogs she and her family have loved; and the children s books Pretty Minnie in Paris and Pretty Minnie in Hollywood.

Praise for Danielle Steel

Steel is one of the best! Los Angeles Times

Few modern writers convey the pathos of family and material life with such heartfelt empathy. The Philadelphia Inquirer

Steel pulls out all the emotional stops. . . . She delivers! Publishers Weekly

What counts for the reader is the ring of authenticity. San Francisco Chronicle