by Eugène Sue
CHAPTER XXXVIII. REVELATIONS.
Mdlle. de Cardoville, much astonished at the alarm displayed by Rodin,when she had asked him for some explanation of the formidable and farreaching power of the Abby d'Aigrigny, said to him: "Why, sir, what isthere so strange in the question that I have just asked you?"
After a moment's silence, Rodin cast his looks all around, with wellfeigned uneasiness, and replied in a whisper: "Once more, madame, do notquestion me on so fearful a subject. The walls of this house may haveears."
Adrienne and Dagobert looked at each other with growing surprise. MotherBunch, by an instinct of incredible force, continued to regard Rodinwith invincible suspicion. Sometimes she stole a glance at him, as iftrying to penetrate the mask of this man, who filled her with fear. Atone moment, the Jesuit encountered her anxious gaze, obstinately fixedupon him; immediately he nodded to her with the greatest amenity. Theyoung girl, alarmed at finding herself observed, turned away with ashudder.
"No, no, my dear young lady," resumed Rodin, with a sigh, as he sawMdlle. de Cardoville astonished at his silence; "do not question me onthe subject of the Abbe d'Aigrigny's power!"
"But, to persist, sir," said Adrienne; "why this hesitation to answer?What do you fear?"
"Ah, my dear young lady," said Rodin, shuddering, "those people are sopowerful! their animosity is so terrible!"
"Be satisfied, sir; I owe you too much, for my support ever to failyou."
"Ah, my dear young lady," cried Rodin, as if hurt by the supposition;"think better of me, I entreat you. Is it for myself that I fear?--No,no; I am too obscure, too inoffensive; but it is for you, for MarshalSimon, for the other members of your family, that all is to be feared.Oh, my dear young lady! let me beg you to ask no questions. There aresecrets which are fatal to those who possess them."
"But, sir, is it not better to know the perils with which one isthreatened?"
"When you know the manoeuvres of your enemy, you may at least defendyourself," said Dagobert. "I prefer an attack in broad daylight to anambuscade."
"And I assure you," resumed Adrienne, "the few words you have spokencause me a vague uneasiness."
"Well, if I must, my dear young lady," replied the Jesuit, appearing tomake a great effort, "since you do not understand my hints, I will bemore explicit; but remember," added he, in a deeply serious tone, "thatyou have persevered in forcing me to tell you what you had perhapsbetter not have known."
"Speak, Sir, I pray you speak," said Adrienne.
Drawing about him Adrienne, Dagobert, and Mother Bunch, Rodin said tothem in a low voce, and with a mysterious air: "Have you never heard ofa powerful association, which extends its net over all the earth, andcounts its disciples, agents, and fanatics in every class of societywhich has had, and often has still, the ear of kings and nobles--which,in a word, can raise its creatures to the highest positions, and with aword can reduce them again to the nothingness from which it alone coulduplift them?"
"Good heaven, sir!" said Adrienne, "what formidable association? Untilnow I never heard of it."
"I believe you; and yet your ignorance on this subject greatlyastonishes me, my dear young lady."
"And why should it astonish you?"
"Because you lived some time with your aunt, and must have often seenthe Abbe d'Aigrigny."
"I lived at the princess's, but not with her; for a thousand reasons shehad inspired me with warrantable aversion."
"In truth, my dear young lady, my remark was ill-judged. It was there,above all, and particularly in your presence, that they would keepsilence with regard to this association--and yet to it alone did thePrincess de Saint-Dizier owe her formidable influence in the world,during the last reign. Well, then; know this--it is the aid of thatassociation which renders the Abbe d'Aigrigny so dangerous a man.
"By it he was enabled to follow and to reach divers members of yourfamily, some in Siberia, some in India, others on the heights of theAmerican mountains; but, as I have told you, it was only the day beforeyesterday, and by chance, that, examining the papers of Abbe d'Aigrigny,I found the trace of his connection with this Company, of which he isthe most active and able chief."
"But the name, sir, the name of this Company?" said Adrienne.
"Well! it is--" but Rodin stopped short.
"It is," repeated Adrienne, who was now as much interested as Dagobertand the sempstress; "it is--"
Rodin looked round him, beckoned all the actors in this scene to drawnearer, and said in a whisper, laying great stress upon the words: "Itis--the Society of Jesus!" and he again shuddered.
"The Jesuits!" cried Mdlle. de Cardoville, unable to restrain a burstof laughter, which was the more buoyant, as, from the mysteriousprecautions of Rodin, she had expected some very different revelation."The Jesuits!" she resumed, still laughing. "They have no existence,except in books; they are frightful historical personages, certainly;but why should you put forward Madame de Saint-Dizier and M. d'Aigrignyin that character? Such as they are, they have done quite enough tojustify my aversion and disdain."
After listening in silence to Mdlle. de Cardoville Rodin continued, witha grave and agitated air: "Your blindness frightens me, my dear, younglady; the past should have given you some anxiety for the future, since,more than any one, you have already suffered from the fatal influence ofthis Company, whose existence you regard as a dream!"
"I, sir?" said Adrienne, with a smile, although a little surprised.
"You."
"Under what circumstances?"
"You ask me this question! my dear young lady! you ask me thisquestion!--and yet you have been confined here as a mad person! Is itnot enough to tell you that the master of this house is one of the mostdevoted lay members of the Company, and therefore the blind instrumentof the Abbe d'Aigrigny?"
"So," said Adrienne, this time without smiling, "Dr. Baleinier"
"Obeyed the Abbe d'Aigrigny, the most formidable chief of thatformidable society. He employs his genius for evil; but I must confesshe is a man of genius. Therefore, it is upon him that you and yours mustfix all your doubts and suspicions; it is against him that you must beupon your guard. For, believe me, I know him, and he does not look uponthe game as lost. You must be prepared for new attacks, doubtless ofanother kind, but only the more dangerous on that account--"
"Luckily, you give us notice," said Dagobert, "and you will be on ourside."
"I can do very little, my good friends; but that little is at theservice of honest people," said Rodin.
"Now," said Adrienne, with a thoughtful air, completely persuaded byRodin's air of conviction, "I can explain the inconceivable influencethat my aunt exercised in the world. I ascribed it chiefly to herrelations with persons in power; I thought that she, like the Abbed'Aigrigny, was concerned in dark intrigues, for which religion servedas a veil--but I was far from believing what you tell me."
"How many things you have got to learn!" resumed Rodin. "If you knew, mydear young lady, with what art these people surround you, without yourbeing aware of it, by agents devoted to themselves! Every one of yoursteps is known to them, when they have any interest in such knowledge.Thus, little by little, they act upon you--slowly, cautiously,darkly. They circumvent you by every possible means, from flattery toterror--seduce or frighten, in order at last to rule you, without yourbeing conscious of their authority. Such is their object, and I mustconfess they pursue it with detestable ability."
Rodin had spoken with so much sincerity, that Adrienne trembled; then,reproaching herself with these fears, she resumed: "And yet, no--I cannever believe in so infernal a power; the might of priestly ambitionbelongs to another age. Heaven be praised, it has disappeared forever!"
"Yes, certainly, it is out of sight; for they now know how to disperseand disappear, when circumstances require it. But then are they themost dangerous; for suspicion is laid asleep, and they keep watch in thedark. Oh! my dear young lady, if you knew their frightful ability! Inmy hatred of all that is oppressive, cowardly, and hypocriti
cal, I hadstudied the history of that terrible society, before I knew that theAbbe d'Aigrigny belonged to it. Oh! it is dreadful. If you knew whatmeans they employ! When I tell you that, thanks to their diabolicaldevices, the most pure and devoted appearances often conceal the mosthorrible snares." Rodin's eye rested, as if by chance, on the hunchback;but, seeing that Adrienne did not take the hint, the Jesuit continued:"In a word--are you not exposed to their pursuits?--have they anyinterest in gaining you over?--oh! from that moment, suspect all thatsurround you, suspect the most noble attachments, the most tenderaffections, for these monsters sometimes succeed in corrupting yourbest friends, and making a terrible use of them, in proportion to theblindness of your confidence."
"Oh! it is impossible," cried Adrienne, in horror. "You must exaggerate.No! hell itself never dreamed of more frightful treachery!"
"Alas, my dear young lady! one of your relations, M. Hardy--the mostloyal and generous-hearted man that could be--has been the victim ofsome such infamous treachery. Do you know what we learned from thereading of your ancestor's will? Why, that he died the victim of themalevolence of these people; and now, at the lapse of a hundred andfifty years, his descendants are still exposed to the hate of thatindestructible society."
"Oh, sir! it terrifies me," said Adrienne, feeling her heart sink withinher. "But are there no weapons against such attacks?"
"Prudence, my dear young lady--the most watchful caution--the mostincessant study and suspicion of all that approach you."
"But such a life would be frightful! It is a torture to be the victim ofcontinual suspicions, doubts, and fears."
"Without doubt! They know it well, the wretches! That constitutes theirstrength. They often triumph by the very excess of the precautionstaken against them. Thus, my dear young lady, and you, brave and worthysoldier, in the name of all that is dear to you, be on your guard, anddo not lightly impart your confidence. Be on your guard, for you havenearly fallen the victims of those people. They will always be yourimplacable enemies. And you, also, poor, interesting girl!" added theJesuit, speaking to Mother Bunch, "follow my advice--fear these people.Sleep, as the proverb says, with one eye open."
"I, sir!" said the work-girl. "What have I done? what have I to fear?"
"What have you done? Dear me! Do not you tenderly love this young lady,your protectress? have you not attempted to assist her? Are you not theadopted sister of the son of this intrepid soldier, the brave Agricola!Alas, poor, girl! are not these sufficient claims to their hatred, inspite of your obscurity? Nay, my dear young lady! do not think that Iexaggerate. Reflect! only reflect! Think what I have just said tothe faithful companion-in-arms of Marshal Simon, with regard to hisimprisonment at Leipsic. Think what happened to yourself, when, againstall law and reason, you were brought hither. Then you will see, thatthere is nothing exaggerated in the picture I have drawn of the secretpower of this Company. Be always on your guard, and, in doubtful cases,do not fear to apply to me. In three days, I have learned enough by myown experience, with regard to their manner of acting, to be able topoint out to you many a snare, device, and danger, and to protect youfrom them."
"In any such case, sir," replied Mdlle. de Cardoville, "my interests, aswell as gratitude, would point to you as my best counsellor."
According to the skillful tactics of the sons of Loyola, who sometimesdeny their own existence, in order to escape from an adversary--andsometimes proclaim with audacity the living power of their organization,in order to intimidate the feeble-R-odin had laughed in the face of thebailiff of Cardoville, when the latter had spoken of the existence ofthe Jesuits; while now, at this moment, picturing their means of action,he endeavored, and he succeeded in the endeavor, to impregnate the mindof Mdlle. de Cardoville with some germs of doubt, which were graduallyto develop themselves by reflection, and serve hereafter the darkprojects that he meditated. Mother Bunch still felt considerable alarmwith regard to Rodin. Yet, since she had heard the fatal powers of theformidable Order revealed to Adrienne, the young sempstress, far fromsuspecting the Jesuit of having the audacity to speak thus of a societyof which he was himself a member, felt grateful to him, in spite ofherself, for the important advice that he had just given her patroness.The side-glance which she now cast upon him (which Rodin also detected,for he watched the young girl with sustained attention), was fullof gratitude, mingled with surprise. Guessing the nature of thisimpression, and wishing entirely to remove her unfavorable opinion, andalso to anticipate a revelation which would be made sooner or later,the Jesuit appeared to have forgotten something of great importance,and exclaimed, striking his forehead: "What was I thinking of?" Then,speaking to Mother Bunch, he added: "Do you know where your sister is,my dear girl?" Disconcerted and saddened by this unexpected question,the workwoman answered with a blush, for she remembered her lastinterview with the brilliant Bacchanal Queen: "I have not seen my sisterfor some days, sir."
"Well, my dear girl, she is not very comfortable," said Rodin; "Ipromised one of her friends to send her some little assistance. I haveapplied to a charitable person, and that is what I received for her."So saying, he drew from his pocket a sealed roll of coin, which hedelivered to Mother Bunch, who was now both surprised and affected.
"You have a sister in trouble, and I know nothing of it?" said Adrienne,hastily. "This is not right of you, my child!"
"Do not blame her," said Rodin. "First of all, she did not know that hersister was in distress, and, secondly, she could not ask you, my dearyoung lady, to interest yourself about her."
As Mdlle. de Cardoville looked at Rodin with astonishment, he added,again speaking to the hunchback: "Is not that true, my dear girl!"
"Yes, sir," said the sempstress, casting down her eyes and blushing.Then she added, hastily and anxiously: "But when did you see my sister,sir? where is she? how did she fall into distress?"
"All that would take too long to tell you, my dear girl; but go as soonas possible to the greengrocer's in the Rue Clovis, and ask to speak toyour sister as from M. Charlemagne or M. Rodin, which you please, forI am equally well known in that house by my Christian name as by mysurname, and then you will learn all about it. Only tell your sister,that, if she behaves well, and keeps to her good resolutions, there aresome who will continue to look after her."
More and more surprised, Mother Bunch was about to answer Rodin, whenthe door opened, and M. de Gernande entered. The countenance of themagistrate was grave and sad.
"Marshal Simon's daughters!" cried Mdlle. de Cardoville.
"Unfortunately, they are not with me," answered the judge.
"Then, where are they, sir? What have they done with them? The daybefore yesterday, they were in the convent!" cried Dagobert, overwhelmedby this complete destruction of his hopes.
Hardly had the soldier pronounced these words, when, profiting bythe impulse which gathered all the actors in this scene about themagistrate, Rodin withdrew discreetly towards the door, and disappearedwithout any one perceiving his absence. Whilst the soldier, thussuddenly thrown back to the depths of his despair, looked at M. deGernande, waiting with anxiety for the answer, Adrienne said to themagistrate: "But, sir, when you applied at the convent, what explanationdid the superior give on the subject of these young girls?"
"The lady superior refused to give any explanation, madame. 'Youpretend,' said she, 'that the young persons of whom you speak aredetained here against their will. Since the law gives you the right ofentering this house, make your search.' 'But, madame, please to answerme positively,' said I to the superior; 'do you declare, that you knownothing of the young girls, whom I have come to claim?' 'I have nothingto say on this subject, sir. You assert, that you are authorized tomake a search: make it.' Not being able to get any other explanation,"continued the magistrate, "I searched all parts of the convent, and hadevery door opened--but, unfortunately, I could find no trace of theseyoung ladies."
"They must have sent them elsewhere," cried Dagobert; "whoknows?--perhaps, ill. They will kill them--O God! they will k
ill them!"cried he, in a heart-rending tone.
"After such a refusal, what is to be done? Pray, sir, give us youradvice; you are our providence," said Adrienne, turning to speak toRodin, who she fancied was behind her. "What is your--"
Then, perceiving that the Jesuit had suddenly disappeared, she said toMother Bunch, with uneasiness: "Where is M. Rodin?"
"I do not know, madame," answered the girl, looking round her; "he is nolonger here."
"It is strange," said Adrienne, "to disappear so abruptly!"
"I told you he was a traitor!" cried Dagobert, stamping with rage; "theyare all in a plot together."
"No, no," said Mdlle. de Cardoville; "do not think that. But theabsence is not the less to be regretted, for, under these difficultcircumstances, he might have given us very useful information, thanks tothe position he occupied at M. d'Aigrigny's."
"I confess, madame, that I rather reckoned upon it," said M. deGernande; "and I returned hither, not only to inform you of thefruitless result of my search, but also to seek from the upright andhonorable roan, who so courageously unveiled these odious machinations,the aid of his counsels in this contingency."
Strangely enough, for the last few moments Dagobert was so completelyabsorbed in thought, that he paid no attention to the words of themagistrate, however important to him. He did not even perceive thedeparture of M. de Gernande, who retired after promising Adrienne thathe would neglect no means to arrive at the truth, in regard to thedisappearance of the orphans. Uneasy at this silence, wishing to quitthe house immediately, and induce Dagobert to accompany her, Adrienne,after exchanging a rapid glance with Mother Bunch, was advancing towardsthe soldier, when hasty steps were heard from without the chamber, and amanly sonorous voice, exclaiming with impatience, "Where is he--where ishe?"
At the sound of this voice, Dagobert seemed to rouse himself with astart, made a sudden bound, and with a loud cry, rushed towards thedoor. It opened. Marshal Simon appeared on the threshold!