The Bath Keepers Volume Ii Part 59

"Already! Who, pray?"

"Officers--king's troops! I am not quite sure who they were. However, they were evidently very anxious to see monsieur le comte, for they came in and searched all the wings,--those gentry are very unceremonious,--and when they went away they said: 'He doesn't seem to have slept at home.'"

The marchioness listened to these details with the most intense agitation; then she thanked the concierge and returned swiftly to her own house, unable as yet to believe what Miretta had told her, but none the less a prey to the most acute suffering.

Miretta awaited her mistress in her apartment, and questioned her with her eyes. Valentine threw herself into a chair without uttering a word; but the pallor of her cheeks and the distortion of her features betrayed her suffering; and Miretta, deeply moved by her grief, dared not ask her a question. The two women had been in this position for some time when the Marquis de Santoval entered the room.

Monsieur de Santoval's face wore a more amiable expression than usual; he was almost laughing as he entered his wife's apartment.

"Palsambleu! madame la marquise," he cried, "I must tell you some strange news--a report that is in circulation this morning concerning our dear friend Comte Leodgard de Marvejols. I thought it would amuse you, and that is why I have come to tell you about it."

"What is it, pray, monsieur le marquis?"

"Oh! I must begin by telling you that it is utterly absurd, and that I do not believe a word of it. However, Birague, who has just told me the story, acted almost as if he believed it."

"I am waiting for you to explain yourself, monsieur; but perhaps Miretta's presence embarra.s.ses you?"

"No, she may remain. Indeed, I am confident that your maid will soon hear this ghastly story below stairs; it will certainly make the circuit of the city, and some action will be taken.--Fancy, madame, that Birague was at the office of the lieutenant of police this morning, when he received his reports of the night as usual. One of them was so extraordinary that the lieutenant could not repress an exclamation of surprise as he read it, and he said to Birague:

"'You can never guess what happened last night! My patrols gave chase to Giovanni, who had just attacked someone, and as he ran away they fired at him. Some of the watch pursued him, and at the entrance to Place Royale, where they had lost track of him, they fell in with a young woman, all alone, who seemed terribly frightened. They asked her if she had seen the man they were pursuing; she answered in the affirmative.

And, in fact, they picked up at her feet the frightful hairy cap that Giovanni usually wears, and a false beard with which he conceals a large part of his face.'"

"But, monsieur, these details----"

"Pardon, madame; all these details, you will see, are of great importance to the story. The lieutenant of police continued: 'This girl then answered that she had seen the robber, but she added: "You are mistaken; the man you are pursuing is not Giovanni; he is----"' Ah! this is what will surprise you, madame.--'She cried: "The man who is running away, the man who wore this cap and this false beard, is Comte Leodgard de Marvejols!"'--Well! what do you say to that, madame?"

"Really, monsieur, it seems to me so absurd, that I am surprised that anyone can have repeated it!"

"I agree with you. Although I am an enemy of the count, I am capable of doing justice to his valor, his n.o.bility of character--in a word, he belongs to one of the most ancient families of France, whose honor is stainless. When the lieutenant had finished, Birague could not help laughing. Whereupon the official said to him: 'I have ordered the sergeant who was in command of the watch to be sent here. I am going to question him. Remain, if you are interested.' Birague asked nothing better; he remained, and the sergeant of the watch soon appeared. He told a story which corresponded exactly with the report, but added this: 'When we picked up the cap and false beard, we saw blood on the ground, which proved that we had wounded our man.'--'And what did you do then?'

asked the lieutenant.--'Monseigneur, as the moon was shining, we followed the blood along Place Royale to a point where it suddenly stopped, as if the wounded man had gone no farther.'--'And you observed that spot?'--'Yes, monseigneur; it was directly in front of the gate of the Hotel de Marvejols.'--As you may imagine, madame, that fact seemed decidedly strange to the lieutenant as well as to Birague.--'And the girl--what became of her?' monseigneur asked the sergeant, who admitted that he had paid no further attention to her.--'You are a fool!' said the lieutenant; 'you should have arrested the girl and taken her to the guardhouse, and then have brought her before me. When a person presumes to make so serious a charge against one of the first n.o.blemen of the court, she should not be allowed to disappear. From this girl we could ascertain how much truth there is in this story; we could learn whether you had an interview with a madwoman, or with a person who had some reason to hate the count. You must find the girl, sergeant, do you hear?

You must find her.'--For my part, I consider that the lieutenant of police was perfectly right, and that the arrest of this girl might lead to some very curious revelations.--What do you think, marchioness?"

For several moments past, Valentine had turned all her attention to Miretta; she kept her eyes fastened upon her with a glance of supplication, as if the girl's action were a matter of life or death to her. But Miretta, standing like a statue at the end of the room, kept her eyes fixed on the floor; and there was nothing to betray what was taking place in her mind.

"Well, madame, you do not answer," continued Monsieur de Santoval.

"Oh! I beg pardon, monsieur! The fact is that this story is so strange, so absurd---- Really, I do not understand how so much importance can be attached to it!"

"Pardon me, madame, but it is a curious affair.--While I place no faith in the words of this girl, I believe that there is some mystery beneath it all. But the riddle will be solved; this unknown maiden will be found, let us hope!--By the way, I have not told you all: the lieutenant of police, after dismissing the sergeant, ordered some of his subordinates to go to Rue de Bretonvilliers, to the little house which the count has occupied again since he has recovered from a--a certain wound, and to inquire if any accident had happened to his lordship."

"Well--what did they learn there?"

"Comte Leodgard was absent, and, according to all appearance, had not pa.s.sed the night there."

"And they consider that very remarkable, too, I suppose; although I fancy that it is in accordance with the young gentleman's habit."

"I have told you the whole story, marchioness; I thought that it would amuse you, but I see that I was mistaken."

"Pardon me, monsieur, I find it very amusing--like everything that is utterly devoid of sense! And I shall be obliged to you if you will keep me informed if you learn anything more concerning this affair."

"If that is so, madame, I will not fail.--Ah! the most important thing is to find that girl!"

The Marquis de Santoval had no sooner left his wife's apartment, than she ran to Miretta, clasped her hands, and almost knelt to her, saying, in a trembling voice and with tears in her eyes:

"Miretta! I implore you! do not say that it was you! do not make yourself known! My life depends on your silence!--You will not say that it was you? promise me!"

"I will wait, madame," the girl replied, with a sombre expression; "to obey you, I will wait; but Giovanni must be avenged!"

LV

THE CARDINAL DE RICHELIEU

When Leodgard fell bleeding in the courtyard of the abode of his ancestors, the concierge, having come from his lodge to ascertain who had entered, uttered a cry of distress on recognizing his master lying on the pavement. But the latter, who, notwithstanding the gravity of his wound, was entirely conscious, ordered the concierge not to give the alarm in the house, but simply to call a servant to aid in taking him to his apartment.

Then, while the concierge left him to carry out this order, Leodgard, despite his pain and his great weakness, succeeded, by dint of rolling over and over on the ground, in extricating himself from the olive-green cloak in which he was enveloped; he then folded the garment and held it against his breast until his people arrived.

The count was carried to his apartment, as he desired; and while he was being transported thither, he did not relax his hold of the olive-green cloak and the short, broad sword with which he was armed.

When he was safely in bed, the wounded man bade the servant tell the countess and request her to come to him.

"And I, monseigneur, will run to fetch a doctor," said the concierge.

"I forbid you to do it!" replied Leodgard, angrily. "Let no one dare to leave the house! I have been wounded--in a duel; but it is a slight wound, and I wish no one to know that I fought. The man who forgets my orders will be dismissed instantly.--Go now and tell the countess."

The servant woke Marie, and she stole softly into her mistress's room to give her the message. When she learned that her husband had returned to the hotel, but that he had returned wounded, Bathilde hurriedly slipped on a loose garment and went at once to the bedside of the man whom she had never ceased to love.

The sight of Bathilde seemed now to allay the count's pain; he tried to smile at her, and said in a faint voice:

"Close the doors; I wish to be alone with you."

"But you are wounded, monsieur le comte; should we not send for a surgeon first of all?"

"No, madame.--If you wish to gratify me, do only what I ask you to do.

We are quite alone, are we not?"

"Yes, monsieur."

"Give me some of that cordial--in that phial on the table yonder. It is what the doctor gave me when I was so ill--some time ago."

Bathilde at once gave Leodgard the cordial, and he drank several swallows of it.

"That is enough," he said.

Revived by that draught, he succeeded, with his wife's aid, in sitting up in bed, and with his own hand applied bandages to the wound, which stopped the flow of blood.