Chapter XXXVIII. The Courier from Madame.
Charles II. was busily engaged in proving, or in endeavoring to prove,to Miss Stewart that she was the only person for whom he cared at all,and consequently was avowing to her an affection similar to that whichhis ancestor Henry IV. had entertained for Gabrielle. Unfortunately forCharles II., he had hit upon an unlucky day, the very day Miss Stewarthad taken it into her head to make him jealous, and therefore, insteadof being touched by his offer, as the king had hoped, she laughedheartily.
"Oh! sire, sire," she cried, laughing all the while; "if I were to beunfortunate enough to ask you for a proof of the affection you possess,how easy it would be to see that you are telling a falsehood."
"Nay, listen to me," said Charles, "you know my cartoons by Raphael;you know whether I care for them or not; the whole world envies me theirpossession, as you well know also; my father commissioned Van Dyck topurchase them. Would you like me to send them to your house this veryday?"
"Oh, no!" replied the young girl; "pray keep them yourself, sire; myhouse is far too small to accommodate such visitors."
"In that case you shall have Hampton Court to put the cartoons in."
"Be less generous, sire, and learn to love a little while longer, thatis all I have to ask you."
"I shall never cease to love you; is not that enough?"
"You are smiling, sire."
"Do you wish me to weep?"
"No; but I should like to see you a little more melancholy."
"Thank Heaven, I have been so long enough; fourteen years of exile,poverty, and misery, I think I may well regard it as a debt discharged;besides, melancholy makes people look so plain."
"Far from that--for look at the young Frenchman."
"What! the Vicomte de Bragelonne? are you smitten too? By Heaven, theywill all grow mad over him one after the other; but he, on the contrary,has a reason for being melancholy."
"Why so?"
"Oh, indeed! you wish me to betray state secrets, do you?"
"If I wish it, you must do so, for you told me you were quite ready todo everything I wished."
"Well, then, he is bored in his own country. Does that satisfy you?"
"Bored?"
"Yes, a proof that he is a simpleton; I allow him to fall in love withMiss Mary Grafton, and he feels bored. Can you believe it?"
"Very good; it seems, then, that if you were to find Miss Lucy Stewartindifferent to you, you would console yourself by falling in love withMiss Mary Grafton."
"I don't say that; in the first place, you know that Mary Grafton doesnot care for me; besides, a man can only console himself for a lostaffection by the discovery of a new one. Again, however, I repeat, thequestion is not of myself, but of that young man. One might almost betempted to call the girl he has left behind him a Helen--a Helen beforethe little ceremony she went through with Paris, of course."
"He has left some one, then?"
"That is to say, some one has left _him_."
"Poor fellow! so much the worse!"
"Why do you mean by 'so much the worse'?"
"Why not? why did he leave?"
"Do you think it was of his own wish or will that he left?"
"Was he obliged to leave, then?"
"He left Paris under orders, my dear Stewart; and prepare to besurprised--by express orders of the king."
"Ah! I begin to see, now."
"At least say nothing at all about it."
"You know very well that I am just as discreet as anybody else. And sothe king sent him away?"
"Yes."
"And during his absence he takes his sweetheart from him?"
"Yes; and, will you believe it? the silly fellow, instead of thankingthe king, is making himself miserable."
"What! thank the king for depriving him of the woman he loves! Really,sire, yours is a most ungallant speech."
"But, pray understand me. If she whom the king had run off with waseither a Miss Grafton or a Miss Stewart, I should not be of his opinion;nay, I should even think him not half wretched enough; but she is alittle, thin, lame thing. Deuce take such fidelity as that! Surely, onecan hardly understand how a man can refuse a girl who is rich for onewho is poverty itself--a girl who loves him for one who deceives andbetrays him."
"Do you think that Mary seriously wishes to please the vicomte, sire?"
"I do, indeed."
"Very good! the vicomte will settle down in England, for Mary has aclear head, and when she fixes her mind upon anything, she does sothoroughly."
"Take care, my dear Miss Stewart; if the vicomte has any idea ofadopting our country, he has not long to do so, for it was only the daybefore yesterday that he again asked me for permission to leave."
"Which you refused him, I suppose?"
"I should think so, indeed; my royal brother is far too anxious for hisabsence; and, for myself, my _amour propre_ is enlisted on his side, forI will never have it said that I had held out as a bait to this youngman the noblest and gentlest creature in England--"
"You are very gallant, sire," said Miss Stewart, with a pretty pout.
"I do not allude to Miss Stewart, for she is worthy of a king'sdevotion; and since she has captivated me I trust that no one else willbe caught by her; I say, therefore, finally, that the attention I haveshown this young man will not have been thrown away; he will stay withus here, he will marry here, or I am very much mistaken."
"And I hope that when he is once married and settled, instead of beingangry with your majesty, he will be grateful to you, for every one trieshis utmost to please him; even the Duke of Buckingham, whose brilliancy,which is incredible, seems to pale before that of this young Frenchman."
"Including Miss Stewart even, who calls him the most finished gentlemanshe ever saw."
"Stay, sire; you have spoken quite enough, and quite highly enough, ofMiss Grafton, to overlook what I may have said about De Bragelonne. But,by the by, sire, your kindness for some time past astonishes me: youthink of those who are absent, you forgive those who have done you awrong, in fact, you are as nearly as possible, perfect. How does ithappen--"
"It is because you allow yourself to be loved," he said, beginning tolaugh.
"Oh! there must be some other reason."
"Well, I am doing all I can to oblige my brother, Louis XIV."
"Nay, I must have another reason."
"Well, then, the true motive is that Buckingham strongly recommended theyoung man to me, saying: 'Sire, I begin by yielding up all claim to MissGrafton; I pray you follow my example.'"
"The duke is, indeed, a true gentleman."
"Oh! of course, of course; it is Buckingham's turn now, I suppose, toturn your head. You seem determined to cross me in everything to-day."
At this moment some one rapped at the door.
"Who is it who presumes to interrupt us?" exclaimed Charles,impatiently.
"Really, sire, you are extremely vain with your 'who is it whopresumes?' and in order to punish you for it--"
She went to the door and opened it.
"It is a courier from France," said Miss Stewart.
"A courier from France!" exclaimed Charles; "from my sister, perhaps?"
"Yes, sire," said the usher, "a special messenger."
"Let him come in at once," said Charles.
"You have a letter for me," said the king to the courier as he entered,"from the Duchess of Orleans?"
"Yes, sire," replied the courier, "and so urgent in its nature that Ihave only been twenty-six hours in bringing it to your majesty, and yetI lost three-quarters of an hour at Calais."
"Your zeal shall not be forgotten," said the king, as he opened theletter. When he had read it he burst out laughing, and exclaimed, "Uponmy word, I am at a loss to understand anything about it." He then readthe letter a second time, Miss Stewart assuming a manner marked by thegreatest reserve, and doing her utmost to restrain her ardent curiosity.
"Francis," said the king to his valet, "see that this excellent
fellowis well taken care of and sleeps soundly, and that on waking to-morrowhe finds a purse of fifty sovereigns by his bedside."
"Sire!" said the courier, amazed.
"Begone, begone; my sister was perfectly right in desiring you to usethe utmost diligence; the affair was most pressing." And he again beganto laugh louder than ever. The courier, the valet, and Miss Stewarthardly knew what sort of countenance to assume. "Ah!" said the king,throwing himself back in his armchair: "When I think that you haveknocked up--how many horses?"
"Two!"
"Two horses to bring this intelligence to me. That will do, you canleave us now."
The courier retired with the valet. Charles went to the window, which heopened, and leaning forward, called out--"Duke! Buckingham! come here,there's a good fellow."
The duke hurried to him, in obedience to the summons; but when hereached the door, and perceived Miss Stewart, he hesitated to enter.
"Come in, and shut the door," said the king. The duke obeyed; and,perceiving in what an excellent humor the king was, he advanced,smiling, towards him. "Well, my dear duke, how do you get on with yourFrenchman?"
"Sire, I am in the most perfect state of utter despair about him."
"Why so?"
"Because charming Miss Grafton is willing to marry him, but he isunwilling."
"Why, he is a perfect Boeotian!" cried Miss Stewart. "Let him say either'Yes,' or No,' and let the affair end."
"But," said Buckingham, seriously, "you know, or you ought to know,madame, that M. de Bragelonne is in love in another direction."
"In that case," said the king, coming to Miss Stewart's help, "nothingis easier; let him say 'No,' then."
"Very true; and I have proved to him he was wrong not to say 'Yes.'"
"You told him candidly, I suppose, that La Valliere was deceiving him?"
"Yes, without the slightest reserve; and, as soon as I had done so, hegave a start, as if he were going to clear the Channel at a bound."
"At all events," said Miss Stewart, "he has done something; and a verygood thing too, upon my word."
"But," said Buckingham, "I stopped him; I have left him and Miss Mary inconversation together, and I sincerely trust that now he will not leave,as he seemed to have an idea of doing."
"An idea of leaving England?" cried the king.
"I, at one moment, hardly thought that any human power could haveprevented him; but Miss Mary's eyes are now bent fully on him, and hewill remain."
"Well, that is the very thing which deceives you, Buckingham," said theking, with a peal of laughter; "the poor fellow is predestined."
"Predestined to what?"
"If it were to be simply deceived, that is nothing; but, to look at him,it is a great deal."
"At a distance, and with Miss Grafton's aid, the blow will be wardedoff."
"Far from it, far from it; neither distance nor Miss Grafton's help willbe of the slightest avail. Bragelonne will set off for Paris within anhour's time."
Buckingham started, and Miss Stewart opened her eyes very wide inastonishment.
"But, sire," said the duke, "your majesty knows that it is impossible."
"That is to say, my dear Buckingham, that it is impossible until ithappens."
"Do not forget, sire, that the young man is a perfect lion, and that hiswrath is terrible."
"I don't deny it, my dear duke."
"And that if he sees that his misfortune is certain, so much the worsefor the author of it."
"I don't deny it; but what the deuce am I to do?"
"Were it the king himself," cried Buckingham, "I would not answer forhim."
"Oh, the king has his musketeers to take care of him," said Charles,quietly; "I know that perfectly well, for I was kept dancing attendancein his ante-chamber at Blois. He has M. d'Artagnan, and what betterguardian could the king have than M. d'Artagnan? I should make myselfperfectly easy with twenty storms of passion, such as Bragelonne mightdisplay, if I had four guardians like D'Artagnan."
"But I entreat your majesty, who is so good and kind, to reflect alittle."
"Stay," said Charles II., presenting the letter to the duke, "read, andanswer yourself what you would do in my place."
Buckingham slowly took hold of Madame's letter, and trembling withemotion, read the following words:
"For your own sake, for mine, for the honor and safety of every one,send M. de Bragelonne back to France immediately. Your devoted sister,HENRIETTA."
"Well, Villiers, what do you say?"
"Really, sire, I have nothing to say," replied the duke, stupefied.
"Nay, would you, of all persons," said the king, artfully, "advise menot to listen to my sister when she writes so urgently?"
"Oh, no, no, sire; and yet--"
"You have not read the postscript, Villiers; it is under the fold of theletter, and escaped me at first; read it." And as the duke turned down afold of the letter, he read:
"A thousand kind remembrances to those who love me."
The duke's head sank gradually on his breast; the paper trembled inhis fingers, as if it had been changed to lead. The king paused for amoment, and, seeing that Buckingham did not speak, "He must follow hisdestiny, as we ours," continued the king; "every man has his own shareof grief in this world; I have had my own,--I have had that ofothers who belong to me,--and have thus had a double weight of woe toendure!--But the deuce take all my cares now! Go, and bring our friendhere, Villiers."
The duke opened the trellised door of the summer-house, and pointing atRaoul and Mary, who were walking together side by side, said, "What acruel blow, sire, for poor Miss Grafton!"
"Nonsense; call him," said Charles II., knitting his black browstogether; "every one seems to be sentimental here. There, look at MissStewart, who is wiping her eyes,--now deuce take the French fellow!"
The duke called to Raoul, and taking Miss Grafton by the hand, he ledher towards the king.
"Monsieur de Bragelonne," said Charles II., "did you not ask me the daybefore yesterday for permission to return to Paris?"
"Yes, sire," replied Raoul, greatly puzzled by this address.
"And I refused you, I think?"
"Yes, sire."
"For which you were angry with me?"
"No, sire; your majesty had no doubt excellent reasons for withholdingit; for you are so wise and so good that everything you do is welldone."
"I alleged, I believe, as a reason, that the king of France had notrecalled you?"
"Yes, sire, that was the reason you assigned."
"Well, M. de Bragelonne, I have reflected over the matter since; ifthe king did not, in fact, fix your return, he begged me to render yoursojourn in England as agreeable as possible; since, however, you ask mypermission to return, it is because your longer residence in England isno longer agreeable to you."
"I do not say that, sire."
"No, but your request, at least," said the king, "signified that anotherplace of residence would be more agreeable to you than this."
At this moment Raoul turned towards the door, against which Miss Graftonwas leaning, pale and sorrow-stricken; her other hand was passed throughthe duke's arm.
"You do not reply," pursued Charles; "the proverb is plain enough, that'silence gives consent.' Very good, Monsieur de Bragelonne; I am now ina position to satisfy you; whenever you please, therefore, you can leavefor Paris, for which you have my authority."
"Sire!" exclaimed Raoul, while Mary stifled an exclamation of griefwhich rose to her lips, unconsciously pressing Buckingham's arm.
"You can be at Dover this evening," continued the king, "the tide servesat two o'clock in the morning."
Raoul, astounded, stammered out a few broken sentences, which equallyanswered the purpose both of thanks and of excuse.
"I therefore bid you adieu, Monsieur de Bragelonne, and wish you everysort of prosperity," said the king, rising; "you will confer a pleasureon me by keeping this diamond in remembrance of me; I had intended it asa marriage gift."
"Tell him to remain, I implore you!" said Buckingham to Mary.
"No, I will tell him to go," replied Miss Grafton, with returninganimation; "I am not one of those women who have more pride than heart;if she whom he loves is in France, let him return thither and bless mefor having advised him to go and seek his happiness there. If, on thecontrary, she shall have ceased to love him, let him come back hereagain; I shall still love him, and his unhappiness will not havelessened him in my regard. In the arms of my house you will find thatwhich Heaven has engraven on my heart--_Habenti parum, egenti cuncta_.'To the rich is accorded little, to the poor everything.'"
"I do not believe, Bragelonne, that you will find yonder the equivalentof what you leave behind you here."
"I think, or at least hope," said Raoul, with a gloomy air, "that shewhom I love is worthy of my affection; but if it be true she is unworthyof me, as you have endeavored to make me believe, I will tear her imagefrom my heart, duke, even if my heart breaks in the attempt."
Mary Grafton gazed upon him with an expression of the most indefinablepity, and Raoul returned her look with a sweet, sorrowful smile, saying,"Mademoiselle, the diamond which the king has given me was destinedfor you,--give me leave to offer it for your acceptance: if I marry inFrance, you will send it me back; if I do not marry, keep it." And hebowed and left her.
"What does he mean?" thought Buckingham, while Raoul pressed Mary's icyhand with marks of the most reverential respect.
Mary understood the look that Buckingham fixed upon her.
"If it were a wedding-ring, I would not accept it," she said.
"And yet you were willing to ask him to return to you."
"Oh! duke," cried the young girl in heart-broken accents, "a woman suchas I am is never accepted as a consolation by a man like him."
"You do not think he will return, then?"
"Never," said Miss Grafton, in a choking voice.
"And I grieve to tell you, Mary, that he will find yonder his happinessdestroyed, his mistress lost to him. His honor even has not escaped.What will be left him, then, Mary, equal to your affection? Answer,Mary, you who know yourself so well."
Miss Grafton placed her white hand on Buckingham's arm, and, while Raoulwas hurrying away with headlong speed, she repeated in dying accents theline from Romeo and Juliet:
"_I must be gone and live, or stay and die_."
As she finished the last word, Raoul disappeared. Miss Grafton returnedto her own apartments, paler than death. Buckingham availed himself ofthe arrival of the courier, who had brought the letter to the king,to write to Madame and to the Comte de Guiche. The king had not beenmistaken, for at two in the morning the tide was at full flood, andRaoul had embarked for France.
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