CHAPTER XIII.

Mataura Ensign, Volume V, Issue 224, 26 January 1883, Page 5

CHAPTER XIII.

THB KING'S ORDER PROVES OF SOME SERVICE. The page was dazzled by the sight of Madame da Mailly. She was more radiant and loveiy than ever, and the charming smile that arched her lips caused our hero to forget that an insurmountable barrier had been raised between her family and his own. M. de Launay walked up to the marchioness and her niece to pay his respects, and Louis, attracted by an invincible loadstone, followed him. ' Madam/ the governor said in a low voice to the canoness, ' You see I have kept my word; here is your partner for the minuet.' And he presented the page. 'Ah ! Monsieur de Cbastenay/ the old marchioness said on seeing him and remembering that she owed her life to him, 'it is very polite of M. de Launay to have invited you, and equally polite of you to Have acocptedt' The page kissed her hand. *I know that I should meet you here, madam/ he fsaid, with a gallantry that proved his breeding. • You must have forgotten us/ the marchioness continued, ' for it is more than a month since we have seen you at the Place Boyale.' • I have been on a journey, madam.' The explanation waa sufficient, and the marchioness was satisfied with it. •Well/ she said, 'as you are here, Monsieur de Chastenay, offer your hand to my niece; I am going to accept M. de Laune/s, for I have to scold him severely.' The young people exchanged a glance of intelligence; Heaven was on their side. Madarao de Mailly leant carelessly on Louis' arm, who at once had twenty rivals, so lovely was she. They walked through the rooms, at first exchanging very few few words, for they were both as much affected as during the nocturnal interview at which the ladder of Father Matthias had served as go-between ; andj then as between two lovers it is always the lady who succeeds first in gaining the mastery over herself, the canoness said !/> Louis-^ 'Then you are ia the Bo.it.ile, chevalier ?' ' Yes, madam, for the last eighteen days, and I am well aware t6vffhoßs~l o^o the happiness! im* 1 now tasting/. An angelic smile played round the young lady's lips. / Happiness has a morrow/ she amrmured. ' Whq knows ?' said the Chevalier, his heart beating violently. ' Do you remember a certain walnut V ' Oh, yes.' ' And a note it contained ?' • It was from you, was it not P' ' What/ she asked with delicious coquet tißhness ' do you know my handwriting ?' • No ; but my heart beat so terribly/ ' Well, what did the note say P' ' That those who loved should hope. 1 Louis gazed at the canoness with such tender glances that she understood he had a right to be free ; and, in his turn, he felt the young lady's hand tremble in his own. •Do you remember chevalier, a certain night?' ♦Ah/ murmured Louis, 'can you ask that ?' « Have you earned your pardon ?' He stooped down to her ear. « If dreaming day lasd night of the woman you love, living for her every minute of your life, and turning your eyes incessantly toward the distant horizon behind which she is — if all this can be called constancy, you may feel satisfied, madam, I have been constant/ The little hand trembled more and more in that of the page. ' If it be so/ she said, 'it is but right that you should be free j you shall be so.' ' How ? Louis asked/ remembering M. de Launay's terrible words, 'people rarely leave the Bastile.' ' I know/ she went on, ' why you were arrested ; you behaved nobly and served the king like a faithful gentleman, but you wsre the dupe of your heart and a traitor laid a snare for you/ •Dv Vernaia.l 1 murmured Louis, in whose ear the word traitor, as applied to the chevalier by the canoness, had a sweet sound. •Himself/ she answered. '1 had detested him for a long time, though unable to explain that aversion to myself. I now understand it; but he has reckoned without me. 1 And one of those smiles played round the lips of the canoness, in which the power of a woman is revealed. • Without you?' the jpage murmured in surprise. 'Of course The canoness hesitated. —^-for I love you.' She concluded the sentence In a very low voice. Louis . forgot his captivity. « I love you ' —he had only these words in his heart, and they proceeded thence incessantly to his lips. At one moment he drew closer to Madame de Mailly, as if afraid of losing her; at another he trembled as if in an ague fit ; he turned half round to gaze on her, to intoxicate himself with the sight of her waist, her smile, her soft eyes in turn flashing and languishing. He walked through the ball,room as if on clouds. All at once, while passing an open window half hidden behind flowers, and long silken curtains, bis eyes fell on one of the gloomy, towers of the Bastile. Memory returned to 1 him. • Why was I arrested ?' he asked. • While you were arresting M. Fouquet/ she said, 'Pepe, a man in your service, though wounded and weak from loss of blood, found means to speak with Dv Vernais, who entrusted him with a secret message for the superintendent. You started; the wonnded;man got' ahead of j you, foundJeverywhere freßh horses, thanks to a pass Dv yernais had given to him, arrived in Paris before you, arid was at M. Fouquet's house before you reached the jalace.l 'Impossible/, said the chevalier. 'I rode at full gallop, and Pepe was a dying mm.

Only love or revenge could parform such miracles.' ' Have you had that man long ?' 'I do not know him/ the page replied ; 'he was a servant accidentally picked up.' 'He is your implacable enemy ! On your arrival Colbert ransacked the abbe's pouch, and found abundant proofs of Fouquet's treachery • but an important document was missing which he wanted to haye — the o?)ly one he could show the judges, the only one that bears the signature of the conspirators. Colbert knew that it was constantly kept in this pouch, but it was no longer there. While the superintendent hurried to Vaux to destroy the papers, Colbert sent robbers to his house in Paris.' * Robbers P* 1 Eeal robbers ! — cut-purses, taken expressly from the Chatelet by the provost, and instructed to lay hands on the superintendent's papers and jewels ; the latter for themselves, the papers for M. Colbert. And do you know what they delivered to him?' 'The document the abbe carried about with him, and which I wss unable to find.' ' Not that ; but a letter from Pepe to the superintendent, only containing these words: Monseigneur, the Chevalier de Chastenay has arrested your brother in order to obey the king. He restores you this paper, in order to prove his devotion to you.' This letter of Pepe'e is in the king's hands, so that he has no evidence against Fouquet, but possesses it against you.* 'But,' said Louis, 'it is an infamous falsehood !' 'It is an invention of Pepe and Dv Vernais to ruin you. The letter was lying on the superintendent's desk, and he had not probably read it; bat Pepe would infallibly have conveyed it to Colbert, if Colbert had not had it carried off. 'The villain! And the king condemns me on the accusation of such a scoundrel and on a scrap of paper.' * What do you say ?' Pepe is locked up in the Chatelet ; he accuses you, and swears by all the gods that you betrayed the king.' * Are you sure of it ?' * Hte te!4 *»« «> kitaaalf.' 'But M. Fouquet onghfc to be eXamined/ 'He disavows all his agents. Moreover Dv Vernais is in a league with Pepe. I have seen his deposition at M. Colbert's' ' Oh, heavens ! to moulder here, and be regarded as a traitor ! And there is no one to tell the king that I would have shed the laßt drop of blood for him !' ' 1 told the king so.' ' You, madam, you have seen the king ! you have seen Colbert ! you visited Pepe in his dungeon ! you found means to see me — to write to me ' 'Silence!' said Madame de Mailly. 'I spent two days in weeping like a woman, and a week in toiling like a lover. You will leave this place — nay, I insist on it,' she said, on seeing the chevalier shake his head, — 'I have already friends inside. It required a considerable amount of diplomacy to get Poppy appointed one of the guardians of the Bastile under a false name. Rest in peace — await the result of our efforts, and whatever may happen, feel surprised at nothing.' ' Alas !' the chevalier said with a sigh, 'it is only possible to leave the Bastile at_ the king's pleasure/ ....." . "~~~ v : f jSktmeme'" said the canoness, with a smile, aa Bhe pressed his hand ; • a truce to gloomy thoughts. Forgetting is the secret of enjoyment. I have in my possession a talisman that will open even the doors of the Bastile. Let us dance, sir; our conference has perhaps already lasted too long, and may have caused M. de Launay to feel suspicious.' The intoxicating melody of a waltz, that dance brought from Poland by Henry 111., was heard ; and the pa ge, mad with love, passing his arm round the lady's flexible waist, spun round in a whirlwind of harmony, silk and velvet, in the drawing-rooms of the governor of the Bastile. After the confession that had escaped from Madame de Mailly, this waltz of ten minutes must have been an age of felicity to the two lovers, and yet the age came to an end. The violins uttered their last note — the waltzers stopped — and the canoness, into whose hand Louis had slipped the king's parchment, whispered to him — ' Now leave me I for M. de Launay must not have the slightest suspicion. You will be free to-morrow night. Your liberator will give you a horse, a safe conduct for the Low Countries, and advise you to set out; but instead of taking the Flanders road, you will enter the forest of Chantilly, and reach a small villa situated at its northern extremity. Perhaps it may be midnight when you arrive, but no matter, rap thrice and the door will be opened to you. The chevalier has duped you, but I wili supply you with the means of regaining favour in the king's sight.' Madame de Mailly stepped away after saying this, and left Louis standing in the centre of a group of young gentlemen, who eagerly complimented him upon the charming way in which he waltzed and the beauty of his partner. It was at this time, too, that M. de Lannay joined him,— ' Palsembleu, chevalier/ he said to him, ' I have been young and understand something about love. lam persuaded ?of one fact-' « What is it, sirP' ' That the canoness loves lyou.' 'Do you think so?' the page asked, hypocritically. ' I firmly believe It, chevalier.' c Well, aud auppose it were so V * I wcuid give you a piece of advice.' 'What is it V ' Marry her I' * Nonsense j you forget where I am/ * Who knows P you may, perhaps, be let out/ ' And yet you told me the exact contrary. 'On my word sir/ the governor said, sententiously, 'I am too great a gambler not to believe in luck. If you have it on your side, you will get out } if it be against you, you will never marry tht. marchioness's niece. It is a mere matter of speculation.' * Suppose I escaped ?' Louis said boldly. M. de Launay started. 'Not to-night at any rate/ he said, 'for I hold your word/ * Not to-night, but say to-morrow.* 'On my honour, sir, the thing is so difflcut that I would not recommend you your trying it/ And M. de Launay bowed to the page, and left him. •Poor young man/ the oid gentleman said to himself with a smile, ( I am well aware that he will die here, but I gave him a little consolation. It waa my duty as host, and the governor of the Bastile can offer no objection to it/ M. de Launay rubbed his hands, and walked up to a group of charming ladies. Louis walked round the rooms twice or thrice more, exchanged a few meaning glances with the canonftss, and then withdrew to his cell at a sign from her. He fell asleep to the final strains of the music, with his. head and heart in a state of delirium; he had dreams as blessed as could visit an oriental intoxicated with

opium or saturated with hasheesh, and only awoke at daybreak. A bitter and crushing thought awaited his waking; a pale, heartrending figure was standing by his bedside— it was that of his sister. The brother had dishonoured the his family, and he, Louis, dared to dream of love while remembering his sister. • Oh no/ he exclaimed, ' that shall not be —it cannot, be! I will not accept my liberty !— l prefer dying here !' The last evening had been delicious ; today was destined to gloom and sorrow. The young man fell into the same state of melancholy which prostrated him ere he had received the nut, or seen Poypy again. He remained the whole day with his face against the bars, his forehead bathed with perspiration, his hands clenched in fury. Thus the hours passed away, and the evening arrived. It was the time when Louis was usually fetched to take an airing on the platform. Steps echoed at the door of his cell ; it was thrown wide open. A man appeared behind the gaoler, and ordered the latter to retire ; he was at once obeyed. At the sight of this man the page uttered a cry of surprise, and recoiled. It waa the Viscount de Mailly. •At last !' the latter said, running up to Louis — «at last, dear friend, I see you again.' He was about to take him in his arms, but the page repulsed him. In his turn the viscount fell back in ourprise. 'Can your abode in the Bastile have turned your brain, my friend ? or is it that you do not recognise me in the darkness ?' ' I am not at all mad, sir/ Louis made answer: 'and I recognise you perfectly we ll — y OU are the Viscount de Mailly. I can even guess why you are here ; you wish to aid me in escaping from the Bastile. A thousand thanks, sir ; but I will not owe my safety to the assassin of my honour !' The viscount uttered a cry, and staggered back to the door. • I will, sir, with your permission/ Louis continued, 'tell you a sorrowful story: — There lived at Blois an old man, a maiden, and a child. The old man was my father ; the maiden my sister; the child myself. Wo lived happilj ~~*=u **»ifi£oi«tune and shame burst upon our home. A stranger seduced, and carried off the maiden; he took her with him, and dragged her after him during twelve years to all parts of the world. What she suffered God alone perhaps knows. The old man dressed his child in mourning, and told him that his sister was dead. Then he died in his turn, of shame and grief, and Jthe boy wus left alone and grew up, lamenting at once his father and his sister. One night, sir, long after, and about two years ago, while everybody was aßleep in the orphan's house, there waa a knock at the door ; a man.servant, suddenly aroused, ran to open it, and uttered a cry of astonishment and terror. The shade of my sister had returned ! Tes, it was truly her pale and despairing shadow, the shadow of the pure maiden who smiled like the angels, whom I now saw dressed in black, with fever-sparkling eyes and face thinned by sorrow. She took me in her arms, and said to me •I am ' not dead — but I do not know whether I am alivo, for 1 1$ ve SftSsj^l^ Jfearf. iilljv rBo > juoir questiciL me-rrnever}fd^ so— but hide me. I wish, to be dead to" tftel vrorld/ ". ' ' From that day, air, she never left the house, and no one in Blois suspected that Mile. Anne de Chastenay was not dead. Well, sir, accident — the terrible accident that rends the thickest veil — has told me the name of her seducer — it is yourself !' And^Louis gave the viscount a withering glance of contempt. M. de Mailly had listened with pallid face and drooping head to the page's sad narration. He raised his head when the latter had ceased to speak, and replied — 'Be kind enough to listen to me, sir, and I will tell you even a more melancholy story : — Mile. Anne de Chastenay has been for the last twelve years the Vicountess de Mailly!' Louis gave a start. 'It is impossible !' he exclaimed. 'It is true/ the viscount replied with dignity; Mile, de Chastenay is my wife !' While uttering these words he became of a livid pallor, and drops of perspiration beaded on his forehead. ' But we have no time to lose/ he added, mastering his feelings by a great effort; ' let us begone, chevalier ; I possess the means to get you out of the Bastile ; let us not lose a moment.' And he walked towards the door. But Louis sat down again with an air of bewilderment. 'No sir !' he said j' if you did not seduce my sister, you abandoned her. I cannot accept your services/ •In heaven's name, chevalier, follow me j your honour is at stake 1' 'My honour!' the chevalier exclaimed, starting and springing from the seat ; but he fell back murmuring— •My honour I— Do I know what you have done to it ?' 'Reflect that my sister orders you to fly.' Louis sighed, but made no answer. The viscount walked toward him and tried to take hia hand. The- chevalier was on his feet in an inßtant, with purpled cheek and flashing eyes. •Back sir/ he shouted j you see that I am unarmed. ' But who tella/ the visconnt exclaimed, 1 that you have any satisfaction to claim of meP' ' Anne I You insult Anne —my sweet Anne — my adored angel 1 Proofs, air, proofs — I demand proofs ! Oh, you wiil retract this calummy ! Oh, you will give me satisfaction! All your blood! Prisoner! oh, Heaven I I am a prisoner !' Whils Louis wrung his bands in despair the viscount gazed on him with a mingled pity and tenderness. • You wish for proofs ?' he said j 'follow me, and I s will give them to you. You desire vengeance ? Follow me out of Paris. There are swords in the carriage awaiting us/ c We have a terrible account to settle, Bir/ and for that I require liberty. I follow you, sir t we will go to your house/ (To be continued.)