The Marquis de Sade, bored with the required attendance forced upon him for this weekend, sought other entertainment. In mid afternoon he took the ride into Paris from his chateau just outsidethe city and instructed the driver to head to an area of Paris that was teeming with "femmes de débauche". Sure enough, there were a number of women seeking compassion on this afternoon.

She was moving slowly down the Rue des italiens when he spotted her, pleading for alms from passersby. "Please, good sir, “She told him, "I've not eaten in two days and cannot find work…"
 

Looking into her eyes, de Sade held back the contempt he felt in anticipation of a fine evening's sport. "What kind of work do you do, dear lady? Perhaps I may have use for one like you…"
 

"I am a cook by trade, good sir, my name is Rose Keller."
 

"Well, Rose Keller, we are both in luck! For here you are, a cook between engagements, and here stand me, a man of prodigious appetites. Come away with me at once, for my hunger grows even as we speak…"
 

Her own hunger, pushing aside common sense, led her to step into the stranger's carriage. As they into the countryside beyond Paris, de Sade assured the girl, time and again, that she would be taken care of with precision and forethought. Finally, the carriage arrived at his chateau, where her host led Rose to a room and promptly commanded that she strip off her clothing. Confused and somewhat afraid, Rose asked why, but all de Sade said was, "For fun, my dear… For fun."
 

Almost every article of Rose's clothing lay scattered about the floor, but when she balked at removing her shirt, de Sade flew into a rage, ripping the shirt from her body. The woman screamed, but de Sade might as well have been deaf as he threw her to the bed, face down, and, using a cat-o-nine-tails, began to whip her backside. Driven on to greater heights by the woman's screams and her fear of death, the Marquis de Sade gave forth violent shrieks himself as he faced a Little Death all his own.
 

After her "benefactor" left the room, Rose Keller rushed to shred the bed sheets, fashioning a long rope to aid her escape. Tying the rope to the bed stand, she lowered herself into the garden and fled. And as de Sade watched her go from an upstairs window, he mused, "Poor little cook… She will never be free until she sees that what truly binds her are the experiences she has had this afternoon and her want to have them again." Then, as he imagined himself punishing her for leaving unbidden, that which so recently died, sprang fully to life again.