Souvenir of Monique — Marion Zimmer Bradley

She left behind a legacy of fear.

WIFE BY PROXY

Count Etienne de Montigny made an unusual proposition to orphaned Laura Monteith: she would pose as Monique, his wife, who had disappeared and undoubtedly had been killed. Struck by her incredible resemblance to Monique, the Count intended to use Laura to expose the murderers. -- Laura soon had reason to suspect that the handsome, brooding Count, with whom she was unwillingly falling in love, might not be as nobly motivated as he pretended.

Trapped as she was by hostile relatives in the ancient family chateau, Laura also wondered whether she could escape the same fate as Monique.