Delphine’s Wig

A story of Revolutionary-Era France about a woman with a magical hairpiece

Photo by cottonbro studio: https://www.pexels.com/photo/backview-of-an-elegant-woman-wearing-white-colored-wig-6834831/

Paris, 1789

Confession

In the dim, cold confines of the Bastille, Delphine Malveaux sat on a rough-hewn bench, her slender fingers tracing invisible patterns on her ragged dress. Despite her worn and tattered clothing, her striking beauty was undiminished. Her skin was unblemished, and as fair as a milkmaid’s. Her eyes were still the color of the sea, as undimmed as sparkling Caribbean waters. Her face, framed by an elaborate wig of powdered curls adorned with a fake bird and even a bird’s nest with bright blue robin’s eggs, seemed almost surreal in contrast to her gloomy surrounding.

The heavy iron door creaked open, and a priest was ushered in, his face solemn and lined with the weight of his duty. He approached Delphine, clutching his rosary and a small leather-bound book of prayers. He spoke firmly, but not unkindly.

“Madame Malveaux, you have been condemned to execution for your crimes,” he began, his voice echoing slightly in the stone chamber. “Would you like to make a confession before you meet your fate on the execution block?”