第90章 THE LAST VALOIS.(1)

I stood for a few moments on the stairs,wondering what I should do in an emergency to which the Marquis's message of the afternoon attached so pressing a character.Had it not been for that I might have waited until morning,and felt tolerably certain of finding mademoiselle in a more reasonable mood then.

But as it was I dared not wait.I dared not risk the delay,and I came quickly to the conclusion that the only course open to me was to go at once to M.de Rambouillet and tell him frankly how the matter stood.

Maignan had posted one of his men at the open doorway leading into the street,and fixed his own quarters on the landing at the top,whence he could overlook an intruder without being seen himself.Satisfied with the arrangement,I left Rambouillet's man to reinforce him,and took with me Simon Fleix,of whose conduct in regard to mademoiselle I entertained the gravest doubts.

The night,I found on reaching the street,was cold,the sky where it was visible between the eaves being bright with stars.

A sharp wind was blowing,too,compelling us to wrap our cloaks round us and hurry on at a pace which agreed well with the excitement of my thoughts.Assured that had mademoiselle been complaisant I might have seen my mission accomplished within the hour,it was impossible I should not feel impatient with one who,to gratify a whim,played with the secrets of a kingdom as if they were counters,and risked in passing ill-humour the results of weeks of preparation.And I was impatient,and with her.But my resentment fell so far short of the occasion that I wondered uneasily at my own easiness,and felt more annoyed with myself for failing to be properly annoyed with her,than inclined to lay the blame where it was due.It was in vain I told myself contemptuously that she was a woman and that women were not accountable.I felt that the real secret and motive of my indulgence lay,not in this,but in the suspicion,which her reference to the favour given me on my departure from Rosny had converted almost into a certainty,that I was myself the cause of her sudden ill-humour.

I might have followed this train of thought farther,and to very pertinent conclusions.But on reaching M.de Rambouillet's lodging I was diverted from it by the abnormally quiet aspect of the house,on the steps of which half a dozen servants might commonly be seen lounging.Now the doors were closed,no lights shone through the windows,and the hall sounded empty and desolate when I knocked.Not a lackey hurried to receive me even then;but the slipshod tread of the old porter,as he came with a lantern to open,alone broke the silence.I waited eagerly wondering what all this could mean;and when the man at last opened,and,recognising my face,begged my pardon if he had kept me waiting I asked him impatiently what was the matter.

'And where is the Marquis?'I added,stepping inside to be out of the wind,and loosening my cloak.

'Have you not heard,sir?'the man asked,holding up his lantern to my face.He was an old,wizened,lean fellow.'It is a break-up,sir,I am afraid,this time.'

'A break-up?'I rejoined,peevishly.'Speak out,man!What is the matter?I hate mysteries.'

You have not heard the news,sir?That the Duke of Mercoeur and Marshal Retz,with all their people,left Blois this afternoon?'

'No?'I answered,somewhat startled.'Whither are they gone?'

'To Paris,it is said,sir,--to join the League.'

'But do you mean that they have deserted the king?'I asked.

'For certain,sir!'he answered.

'Not the Duke of Mercoeur?'I exclaimed.'Why,man,he is the king's brother-in-law.He owes everything to him.'

'Well,he is gone,sir,'the old man answered positively.'The news was brought to M.le Marquis about four o'clock,or a little after.He got his people together,and started after them to try and persuade them to return.Or,so it is said.'

As quickly as I could,I reviewed the situation in my mind.If this strange news were true,and men like Mercoeur,who had every reason to stand by the king,as well as men like Retz,who had long been suspected of disaffection,were abandoning the Court,the danger must be coming close indeed.The king must feel his throne already tottering,and be eager to grasp at any means of supporting it.Under such circumstances it seemed to be my paramount duty to reach him;to gain his ear if possible,and at all risks;that I and not Bruhl,Navarre not Turenne,might profit by the first impulse of self-preservation.

Bidding the porter shut his door and keep close,I hurried to the Castle,and was presently more than confirmed in my resolution.

For to my surprise I found the Court in much the same state as M.

de Rambouillet's house.There were double guards indeed at the gates,who let me pass after scrutinising me narrowly;but the courtyard,which should have been at this hour ablaze with torches and crowded with lackeys and grooms,was a dark wilderness,in which half a dozen links trembled mournfully.

Passing through the doors I found things within in the same state:the hall ill lit and desolate;the staircase manned only by a few whispering groups,who scanned me as I passed;the ante-chambers almost empty,or occupied by the grey uniforms of the Switzer guards.Where I had looked,to see courtiers assembling to meet their sovereign and assure him of their fidelity,I found only gloomy faces,watchful eyes,and mouths ominously closed.

An air of constraint and foreboding rested on all.A single footstep sounded hollowly.The long corridors,which had so lately rung with laughter and the rattle of dice,seemed already devoted to the silence,and desolation which awaited them when the Court should depart.Where any spoke I caught the name of Guise;and I could have fancied that his mighty shadow lay upon the place and cursed it.