CHAPTER XXXVI.
'VIVE LE ROI!'
He took his leave with those words. But his departure, which I shouldhave hailed a few minutes before with joy, as a relief fromembarrassment and humiliation, found me indifferent. The statement towhich he had solemnly pledged himself in regard to the King ofNavarre, that I could expect no further help from him, had prostratedme; dashing my hopes and spirits so completely that I remained rootedto the spot long after his step had ceased to sound on the stairs. Ifwhat he said was true, in the gloom which darkened alike my room andmy prospects I could descry no glimmer of light. I knew His Majesty'sweakness and vacillation too well to repose any confidence in him; ifthe King of Navarre also abandoned me, I was indeed without hope, aswithout resource.
I had stood some time with my mind painfully employed upon thisproblem, which my knowledge of M. de Turenne's strict honour inprivate matters did not allow me to dismiss lightly, when I heardanother step on the stairs, and in a moment M. la Varenne opened thedoor. Finding me in the dark he muttered an apology for the remissnessof the servants; which I accepted, seeing nothing else for it, in goodpart.
'We have been at sixes-and-sevens all day, and you have beenforgotten,' he continued. 'But you will have no reason to complainnow. I am ordered to conduct you to His Majesty without delay.'
'To St. Cloud!' I exclaimed, greatly astonished.
'No, the king of France is here,' he answered.
'At Meudon?'
'To be sure. Why not?'
I expressed my wonder at his Majesty's rapid recovery.
'Pooh!' he answered roughly. 'He is as well as he ever was. I willleave you my light. Be good enough to descend as soon as you areready, for it is ill work keeping kings waiting. Oh! and I hadforgotten one thing,' he continued, returning when he had alreadyreached the door. 'My orders are to see that you do not hold conversewith anyone until you have seen the king, M. de Marsac. You willkindly remember this if we are kept waiting in the ante-chamber.'
'Am I to be transported to--other custody?' I asked, my mind full ofapprehension.
He shrugged his shoulders. 'Possibly,' he replied. 'I do not know.'
Of course there was nothing for it but to murmur that I was at theking's disposition; after which La Varenne retired, leaving me to putthe best face on the matter I could. Naturally I augured anything butwell of an interview weighted with such a condition; and thiscontributed still further to depress my spirits, already lowered bythe long solitude in which I had passed the day. Fearing nothing,however, so much as suspense, I hastened to do what I could to repairmy costume, and then descended to the foot of the stairs, where Ifound my custodian awaiting me with a couple of servants, of whom onebore a link.
We went out side by side, and having barely a hundred yards to go,seemed in a moment to be passing through the gate of the Castle. Inoticed that the entrance was very strongly guarded, but an instant'sreflection served to remind me that this was not surprising after whathad happened at St. Cloud. I remarked to M. la Varenne as we crossedthe courtyard that I supposed Paris had surrendered; but he replied inthe negative so curtly, and with so little consideration, that Iforebore to ask any other questions; and the Chateau being small, wefound ourselves almost at once in a long, narrow corridor, whichappeared to serve as the antechamber.
It was brilliantly lighted and crowded from end to end, and almostfrom wall to wall, with a mob of courtiers; whose silence, no lessthan their keen and anxious looks, took me by surprise. Here and theretwo or three, who had seized upon the embrasure of a window, talkedtogether in a low tone; or a couple, who thought themselvessufficiently important to pace the narrow passage between the waitinglines, conversed in whispers as they walked. But even these were swiftto take alarm, and continually looked askance; while the generalcompany stood at gaze, starting and looking up eagerly whenever thedoor swung open or a newcomer was announced. The strange silence whichprevailed reminded me of nothing so much as of the Court at Blois onthe night of the Duke of Merc[oe]ur's desertion; but that stillnesshad brooded over empty chambers, this gave a peculiar air ofstrangeness to a room thronged in every part.
M. la Varenne, who was received by those about the door with silentpoliteness, drew me into the recess of a window; whence I was able toremark, among other things, that the Huguenots present almostoutnumbered the king's immediate following. Still, among those whowere walking up and down, I noticed M. de Rambouillet, to whom atanother time I should have hastened to pay my respects; with Marshald'Aumont, Sancy, and Humieres. Nor had I more than noted the presenceof these before the door of the chamber opened and added to theirnumber Marshal Biron, who came out leaning on the arm of Crillon. Thesight of these old enemies in combination was sufficient of itself toapprise me that some serious crisis was at hand; particularly as theirprogress through the crowd was watched, I observed, by a hundredcurious and attentive eyes.
They disappeared at last through the outer door, and the assemblageturned as with one accord to see who came next. But nearly half anhour elapsed before the Chamber door, which all watched so studiously,again opened. This time it was to give passage to my late visitor,Turenne, who came out smiling, and leaning, to my great surprise, onthe arm of M. de Rosny.
As the two walked down the room, greeting here and there an obsequiousfriend, and followed in their progress by all eyes, I felt my heartsink indeed; both at sight of Turenne's good-humour, and of thecompany in which I found him. Aware that in proportion as he waspleased I was like to meet with displeasure, I still might have hadhope left had I had Rosny left. Losing him, however--and I could notdoubt, seeing him as I saw him, that I had lost him--and counting theKing of Navarre as gone already, I felt such a failure of courage as Ihad never known before. I told myself with shame that I was not madefor Courts, or for such scenes as these; and recalling with new andkeen mortification the poor figure I had cut in the King of Navarre'santechamber at St. Jean, I experienced so strange a gush of pity formy mistress that nothing could exceed the tenderness I felt for her. Ihad won her under false colours, I was not worthy of her. I felt thatmy mere presence in her company in such a place as this, and amongthese people, must cover her with shame and humiliation.
To my great relief, since I knew my face was on fire, neither of thetwo, as they walked down the passage, looked my way or seemedconscious of my neighbourhood. At the door they stood a moment talkingearnestly, and it seemed as if M. de Rosny would have accompanied theVicomte farther. The latter would not suffer it, however, but took hisleave there; and this with so many polite gestures that my last hopebased on M. de Rosny vanished.
Nevertheless, that gentleman was not so wholly changed that on histurning to re-traverse the room I did not see a smile flicker for aninstant on his features as the two lines of bowing courtiers openedbefore him. The next moment his look fell on me, and though his facescarcely altered, he stopped opposite me.
'M. de Marsac is waiting to see His Majesty?' he asked aloud, speakingto M. la Varenne.
My companion remaining silent, I bowed.
'In five minutes,' M. de Rosny replied quietly, yet with a distantair, which made me doubt whether I had not dreamed all I remembered ofthis man. 'Ah! M. de Paul, what can I do for you?' he continued. Andhe bent his head to listen to the application which a gentleman whostood next me poured into his ear. 'I will see,' I heard him answer.'In any case you shall know to-morrow.'
'But you will be my friend?' M. Paul urged, detaining him by thesleeve.
'I will put only one before you,' he answered.
My neighbour seemed to shrink into himself with disappointment. 'Whois it?' he murmured piteously.
'The king and his service, my friend,' M. de Rosny replied drily. Andwith that he walked away. But half a dozen times at least before hereached the upper end of the room I saw the scene repeated.
I looked on at all this in the utmost astonishment, unable to guess orconceive what had happened to give M. de Rosny so
much importance. Forit did not escape me that the few words he had stopped to speak to mehad invested me with interest in the eyes of all who stood near. Theygave me more room and a wider breathing-space, and looking at measkance, muttered my name in whispers. In my uncertainty, however,what this portended I drew no comfort from it; and before I had foundtime to weigh it thoroughly the door through which Turenne and Rosnyhad entered opened again. The pages and gentlemen who stood about ithastened to range themselves, on either side. An usher carrying awhite wand came rapidly down the room, here and there requesting thecourtiers to stand back where the passage was narrow. Then a loudvoice without cried, 'The King, gentlemen! the King!' and one in everytwo of us stood a-tiptoe to see him enter.
But there came in only Henry of Navarre, wearing a violet cloak andcap.
I turned to La Varenne and with my head full of confusion, mutteredimpatiently, 'But the king, man! Where is the king?'
He grinned at me, with his hand before his mouth. 'Hush!' hewhispered. ''Twas a jest we played on you! His late Majesty died atdaybreak this morning. This is the king.'
'This! the King of Navarre?' I cried; so loudly that some round uscalled 'Silence!'
'No, the King of France, fool!' he replied. 'Your sword must besharper than your wits, or I have been told some lies!'
I let the gibe pass and the jest, for my heart was beating so fast andpainfully that I could scarcely preserve my outward composure. Therewas a mist before my eyes, and a darkness which set the lights atdefiance. It was in vain I tried to think what this might mean--to me.I could not put two thoughts together, and while I still questionedwhat reception I might expect, and who in this new state of thingswere my friends, the king stopped before me.
'Ha, M. de Marsac!' he cried cheerfully, signing to those who stoodbefore me to give place. 'You are the gentleman who rode so fast towarn me the other morning. I have spoken to M. de Turenne about you,and he is willing to overlook the complaint he had against you. Forthe rest, go to my closet, my friend. Go! Rosny knows my willrespecting you.'
I had sense enough left to kneel and kiss his hand; but it was insilence, which he knew how to interpret. He had moved on and wasspeaking to another before I recovered the use of my tongue, or thewits which his gracious words had scattered. When I did so, and got onmy feet again I found myself the centre of so much observation and theobject of so many congratulations that I was glad to act upon the hintwhich La Varenne gave me, and hurry away to the closet.
Here, though I had now an inkling of what I had to expect, I foundmyself received with a kindness which bade fair to overwhelm me. OnlyM. de Rosny was in the room, and he took me by both hands in a mannerwhich told me without a word that the Rosny of old days was back, andthat for the embarrassment I had caused him of late I was more thanforgiven. When I tried to thank him for the good offices, which I knewhe had done me with the king he would have none of it; reminding mewith a smile that he had eaten of my cheese when the choice laybetween that and Lisieux.
'And besides, my friend,' he continued, his eyes twinkling, 'You havemade me richer by five hundred crowns.'
'How so?' I asked, wondering more and more.
'I wagered that sum with Turenne that he could not bribe you,' heanswered, smiling. 'And see,' he continued, selecting from some on thetable the same parchment I had seen before, 'here is the bribe. Takeit; it is yours. I have given a score to-day, but none with the samepleasure. Let me be the first to congratulate the Lieutenant-Governorof the Armagnac.'
For a while I could not believe that he was in earnest; which pleasedhim mightily, I remember. When I was brought at last to see that theking had meant this for me from the first, and had merely lent thepatent to Turenne that the latter might make trial of me, my pleasureand gratification were such that I could no more express them thenthan I can now describe them. For they knew no bounds. I stood beforeRosny silent and confused, with long-forgotten tears welling up to myeyes, and one regret only in my heart--that my dear mother had notlived to see the fond illusions with which I had so often amused herturned to sober fact. Not then, but afterwards, I remarked that thesalary of my office amounted to the exact sum which I had been in thehabit of naming to her; and I learned that Rosny had himself fixed iton information given him by Mademoiselle de la Vire.
As my transports grew more moderate, and I found voice to thank mybenefactor, he had still an answer. 'Do not deceive yourself, myfriend,' he said gravely, 'or think this an idle reward. My master isKing of France, but he is a king without a kingdom, and a captainwithout money. To-day, to gain his rights, he has parted with half hispowers. Before he win all back there will be blows--blows, my friend.And to that end I have bought your sword.'
I told him that if no other left its scabbard for the king, mineshould be drawn.
'I believe you,' he answered kindly, laying his hand on my shoulder.'Not by reason of your words--Heaven knows I have heard vows enoughto-day!--but because I have proved you. And now,' he continued,speaking in an altered tone and looking at me with a queer smile, 'nowI suppose you are perfectly satisfied? You have nothing more to wishfor, my friend?'
I looked aside in a guilty fashion, not daring to prefer on the top ofall his kindness a further petition. Moreover, His Majesty might haveother views; or on this point Turenne might have proved obstinate. Ina word, there was nothing in what had happened, or on M. de Rosny'scommunication, to inform me whether the wish of my heart was to begratified or not.
But I should have known that great man better than to suppose that hewas one to promise without performing, or to wound a friend when hecould not salve the hurt. After enjoying my confusion for a time heburst into a great shout of laughter, and taking me familiarly by theshoulders, turned me towards the door. 'There, go!' he said. 'Go upthe passage. You will find a door on the right, and a door on theleft. You will know which to open.'
Forbidding me to utter a syllable, he put me out. In the passage,where I fain would have stood awhile to collect my thoughts, I wasaffrighted by sounds which warned me that the king was returning thatway. Fearing to be surprised by him in such a state of perturbation, Ihurried to the end of the passage, where I discovered, as I had beentold, two doors.
They were both closed, and there was nothing about either of them todirect my choice. But M. de Rosny was correct in supposing that I hadnot forgotten the advice he had offered me on the day when he gave meso fine a surprise in his own house--'When you want a good wife, M. deMarsac, turn to the right!' I remembered the words, and without amoment's hesitation--for the king and his suite were already enteringthe passage--I knocked boldly, and scarcely waiting for an invitation,went in.
Fanchette was by the door, but stood aside with a grim smile, which Iwas at liberty to accept as a welcome or not. Mademoiselle, who hadbeen seated on the farther side of the table, rose as I entered, andwe stood looking at one another. Doubtless she waited for me to speakfirst; while I on my side was so greatly taken aback by the changewrought in her by the Court dress she was wearing and the air ofdignity with which she wore it, that I stood gasping. I turned cowardafter all that had passed between us. This was not the girl I hadwooed in the greenwoods by St. Gaultier; nor the pale-faced woman Ihad lifted to the saddle a score of times in the journey Paris-wards.The sense of unworthiness which I had experienced a few minutes beforein the crowded antechamber returned in full force in presence of hergrace and beauty, and once more I stood tongue-tied before her, as Ihad stood in the lodgings at Blois. All the later time, all that hadpassed between us was forgotten.
She, for her part, looked at me wondering at my silence. Her face,which had grown rosy red at my entrance, turned pale again. Her eyesgrew large with alarm; she began to beat her foot on the floor in amanner I knew. 'Is anything the matter, sir?' she muttered at last.
'On the contrary, mademoiselle,' I answered hoarsely, looking everyway, and grasping at the first thing I could think of, 'I am just fromM. de Rosny.'
'And he?'
'He has made me Li
eutenant-Governor of the Armagnac.'
She curtseyed to me in a wonderful fashion. 'It pleases me tocongratulate you, sir,' she said, in a voice between laughing andcrying. 'It is not more than equal to your deserts.'
I tried to thank her becomingly, feeling at the same time more foolishthan I had ever felt in my life; for I knew that this was neither whatI had come to tell nor she to hear. Yet I could not muster up couragenor find words to go farther, and stood by the table in a state ofmiserable discomposure.
'Is that all, sir?' she said at last, losing patience.
Certainly it was now or never, and I knew it. I made the effort. 'No,mademoiselle,' I said in a low voice, 'Far from it. But I do not seehere the lady to whom I came to address myself, and whom I have seen ahundred times in far other garb than yours, wet and weary anddishevelled, in danger and in flight. Her I have served and loved; andfor her I have lived, I have had no thought for months that has notbeen hers, nor care save for her. I and all that I have by the king'sbounty are hers, and I came to lay them at her feet. But I do not seeher here.'
'No, sir? I she answered in a whisper, with her face averted.
'No, mademoiselle.'
With a sudden brightness and quickness which set my heart beating sheturned, and looked at me. 'Indeed!' she said. 'I am sorry for that. Itis a pity your love should be given elsewhere, M. de Marsac--since itis the king's will that you should marry me.'
'Ah, mademoiselle!' I cried, kneeling before her--for she had comeround the table and stood beside me--'But you?'
'It is my will too, sir,' she answered, smiling through her tears.
* * * * *
On the following day Mademoiselle de la Vire became my wife; theking's retreat from Paris, which was rendered necessary by thedesertion of many who were ill-affected to the Huguenots, compellingthe instant performance of the marriage, if we would have it read byM. d'Amours. This haste notwithstanding, I was enabled by the kindnessof M. d'Agen to make such an appearance, in respect both of servantsand equipment, as became rather my future prospects than my pastdistresses. It is true that His Majesty, out of a desire to do nothingwhich might offend Turenne, did not honour us with his presence; butMadame Catherine attended on his behalf, and herself gave me my bride.M. de Sully and M. Crillon, with the Marquis de Rambouillet and hisnephew, and my distant connection, the Duke de Rohan, who firstacknowledged me on that day, were among those who earned my gratitudeby attending me upon the occasion.
The marriage of M. Francois d'Agen with the widow of my old rival andopponent did not take place until something more than a year later, adelay which was less displeasing to me than to the bridegroom,inasmuch as it left madame at liberty to bear my wife company duringmy absence on the campaign of Arques and Ivry. In the latter battle,which added vastly to the renown of M. de Rosny, who captured theenemy's standard with his own hand, I had the misfortune to be woundedin the second of the two charges led by the king; and being attackedby two foot soldiers, as I lay entangled I must inevitably haveperished but for the aid afforded me by Simon Fleix, who flew to therescue with the courage of a veteran. His action was observed by theking, who begged him from me, and attaching him to his own person inthe capacity of clerk, started him so fairly on the road to fortunethat he has since risen beyond hope or expectation.
The means by which Henry won for a time the support of Turenne (andincidentally procured his consent to my marriage) are now toonotorious to require explanation. Nevertheless, it was not until theVicomte's union a year later with Mademoiselle de la Marck, whobrought him the Duchy of Bouillon, that I thoroughly understood thematter; or the kindness peculiar to the king, my master, whichimpelled that great monarch, in the arrangement of affairs so vast, toremember the interests of the least of his servants.
THE END.
Historical Romances: Under the Red Robe, Count Hannibal, A Gentleman of France Page 88