The letter was not signed, but Canolles recognized Madame de Cambes as he had recognized Pompée; he looked to see if anybody was looking at him, and blushing like a child over his first love, he put the paper to his lips, kissed it ardently, and placed it upon his heart.
Then he mounted the crown of the bastion, whence he could follow the course of the Garonne well-nigh a league, and could see the whole extent of the surrounding plain.
Nothing was to be seen upon land or water.
"The day will pass like this," he muttered; "they won't come by daylight; they have probably halted to rest on the way, and will begin the attack this evening."
He heard a light step behind him, and turned. It was his lieutenant.
"Well, Monsieur de Vibrac, what news?" said Canolles.
"They say, commandant, that the princes' flag will float over Île Saint-Georges to-morrow."
"Who says that?"
"Two of our scouts who have just come in, and have seen the preparations the citizens are making."
"What answer did you make when they said that?"
"I answered, commandant, that it was all the same to me so long as I wasn't alive to see it."
"Ah! you stole my answer, monsieur."
"Bravo, commandant! we asked nothing better; and the men will fight like lions when they know that that is your answer."
"Let them fight like men, that's all I ask. What do they say as to the manner of the attack?"
"General, they are preparing a surprise for us," said De Vibrac, with a laugh.
"Peste!what sort of a surprise? this is the second warning I have received. Who leads the assailants?"
"Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld the land forces, Espagnet, councillor of Parliament, the naval forces."
"Very good!" said Canolles; "I have a little advice to give him."
"Whom?"
"The councillor."
"What is it?"
"To re-enforce the urban militia with some good, well-disciplined regiment, who can show the tradesmen how to receive a well-sustained fire."
"He hasn't waited for your advice, commandant; I think he must have been more or less of a soldier before he became a man of the law, for he has enlisted the services of the Navailles regiment for this expedition."
"The Navailles regiment?"
"Yes."
"My old regiment?"
"The same. It has gone over, it seems, bag and baggage, to the princes."
"Who is in command?"
"Baron de Ravailly."
"Indeed?"
"Do you know him?"
"Yes—a fine fellow, and brave as his sword. In that case it will be warmer than I supposed, and we shall have some fun."
"What are your orders, commandant?"
"That the posts be doubled to-night; that the troops retire fully dressed, with loaded muskets within reach. One half will stand guard, while the other half sleeps. Those who are on guard will keep out of sight behind the embankment. One moment—Have you informed anybody of the news brought by the scouts?"
"Nobody."
"Good; keep it secret for some little time yet. Select ten or twelve of your worst soldiers; you should have some fishermen, or poachers?"
"We have only too many of them, commandant."
"Well, as I was saying, select ten of them, and give them leave of absence till to-morrow morning. Let them go and throw their lines in the Garonne, and set their snares in the fields. To-night Espagnet and Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld will take them and question them."
"I don't understand—"
"Don't you understand that it is most essential that the assailants should believe that we are entirely unprepared for them? These men, who know nothing, will take their oaths with an air of sincerity, which will carry conviction because it will not be assumed, that we are sound asleep in our beds."
"Ah! excellent!"
"Let the enemy approach, let him disembark, let him plant his ladders."
"But when shall we fire on him?"
"When I give the word. If a single shot is fired from our ranks before I order it, the man who fires it shall die, my word for it!"
"The deuce!"
"Civil war is war twice over. It is important, therefore, that it be not carried on like a hunting party. Let Messieurs les Bordelais laugh, and laugh yourselves if it amuses you; but don't laugh until I give the word."
The lieutenant retired to transmit Canolles' commands to the other officers, who looked at one another in amazement. There were two men in the governor,—the courteous gentleman, and the implacable soldier.
Canolles returned to take supper with Nanon; but the supper was put ahead two hours, as he had determined not to leave the ramparts from dusk till dawn. He found Nanon running through a pile of letters.
"You can defend the place with confidence, dear Canolles," said she, "for it won't be long before you are re-enforced. The king is coming, Monsieur de La Meilleraie is coming with his army, and Monsieur d'Épernon is coming with fifteen thousand men."
"But, meanwhile, they have a week or ten days before them. Nanon," added Canolles, with a smile, "Île Saint-Georges is not impregnable."
"Oh! while you are in command I have no fear."
"Yes; but just because I am in command I may be killed. Nanon, what would you do in that case? Have you thought about it?"
"Yes," replied Nanon, smiling back at him.
"Very good! have your boxes ready. A boatman will be waiting at a certain spot; if you have to take to the water, four of my people who are good swimmers will be at hand, with orders not to leave you, and they will take you ashore."
"All precautions are useless, Canolles; if you are killed I shall need nothing."
Supper was announced. Ten times, while they sat at table, Canolles rose and went to the window, which looked upon the river, and before the end of the repast he left the table altogether; night was beginning to fall.
Nanon would have followed him.
"Nanon," said he, "go to your room, and give me your word that you will not leave it. If I knew that you were outside, exposed to the slightest danger, I would not answer for myself. Nanon, my honor is at stake; do not trifle with my honor."
Nanon offered Canolles her carmine lips, more brilliant in hue from the pallor of her cheeks, and went to her room, saying:—
"I obey you, Canolles; I choose that enemies and friends alike should know the man I love; go!"
Canolles left the room. He could not withhold his admiration from this strong nature, so quick to comply with his wishes, so responsive to his will. He had hardly reached his post ere the night came down, threatening and awe-inspiring, as it always is when it conceals in its dark depths a bloody secret.
Canolles took up his position at the end of the esplanade, which overlooked the course of the stream and both its banks. There was no moon; a veil of dark clouds overhung the earth. There was no danger of being seen, but it was almost impossible to see.
About midnight, however, it seemed to him that he could distinguish dark masses moving upon the left bank, and gigantic shapes gliding along the surface of the stream. But there was no other noise than the moaning of the night wind among the branches.
The masses ceased to move, the shapes became stationary at some distance. Canolles thought that he must have been mistaken, but he redoubled his watchfulness; his eager eyes pierced the darkness, his ear was awake to the slightest sound.
The clock on the fortress struck three, and the slow, mournful reverberation died away in the darkness.
Canolles was beginning to think that the warning he had received was a hoax, and he was on the point of retiring, when Lieutenant de Vibrac, who stood beside him, suddenly placed one hand upon his shoulder and pointed with the other toward the river.
"Yes, yes," said Canolles, "there they are; we have no time to lose. Go and wake the men who are off duty, and station them behind the wall. You told them, didn't you, that I would kill the first man who fired?"
"Yes."
"Well, tell them again."
By the first streaks of dawn long boats laden with men, who were laughing and talking in low tones, could be seen approaching the island, and there was a very pronounced eminence on the bank, which did not exist the night before. It was a battery of six guns which Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld had set up during the night, and the men in the boats had delayed their arrival because the battery was not ready to begin operations.
Canolles asked if the weapons were loaded, and upon being answered in the affirmative, bade the troops reserve their fire.
The boats came nearer and nearer, and there was soon light enough for Canolles to distinguish the cross-belts and peculiar hats worn by the Navailles regiment, to which, as we know, he formerly belonged. In the prow of one of the foremost boats was Baron de Ravailly, who had succeeded him in command of his company, and at the stern the lieutenant, who was his foster brother, a great favorite among his comrades because of his joyous nature, and his inexhaustible store of jokes.
"You will see," said he, "that they won't stir, and Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld will have to wake them up with his cannon.Peste!how they sleep at Saint-Georges; I'll surely come here when I'm ill."
"Dear old Canolles plays his rôle of governor like a paterfamilias," said Ravailly; "he's afraid his men will take cold if he makes them mount guard at night."
"Upon my soul," said another, "there's not a sentinel to be seen!"
"Holà!" cried the lieutenant, stepping ashore, "wake up, up there, and lend us a hand to come up."
Shouts of laughter arose along the whole line at this last pleasantry, and while three or four boats pulled toward the harbor, the rest of the force disembarked.
"I see how it is," said Ravailly; "Canolles prefers to have it appear that he was taken by surprise in order not to get into trouble at court. Let us return him courtesy for courtesy, messieurs, and kill no one. Once in the fort, mercy for all, except for the women, who may not ask it,sarpejeu!Don't forget that this is a war between friends, boys; I '11 run through the first man who unsheathes his sword."
The merriment broke out afresh at this command, which was given with true French gayety, and the soldiers joined in with the officers.
"Ah! my friends," said the lieutenant, "it does one good to laugh, but we mustn't let it interfere with what we have to do. Ladders and grappling-hooks!"
The soldiers thereupon drew forth long ladders from the boats, and advanced toward the wall.
At that, Canolles rose with his cane in his hand, and his hat on his head, like a man who was taking the fresh morning air for pleasure, and approached the parapet, which reached only to his waist.
It was light enough for him to be recognized.
"Ah! good-morning, Navailles," he said to the regiment; "good-morning, Ravailly; good-morning, Remonenq."
"Look, it's Canolles!" exclaimed the young officers; "are you awake at last, baron?"
"Why, yes! what would you have? we live like the King of Yvetot here,—early to bed, and late to rise; but what the devil are you doing at this time of night?"
"Pardieu!" said Ravailly, "I should think that you might see. We are here to besiege you, that's all."
"Well, why are you here to besiege me?"
"To take your old fort."
Canolles began to laugh.
"Come," said Ravailly, "you surrender, don't you?"
"But I must know first to whom I am surrendering. How happens it that Navailles is serving against the king?"
"Faith, my dear fellow, because we have turned rebels. On thinking it over we concluded that Mazarin was a downright rascal, unworthy to be served by gallant gentlemen; so we went over to the princes. And you?"
"My dear fellow, I am an enthusiastic Épernonist."
"Pshaw! leave your people there and come with us."
"Impossible—Ho! hands off the drawbridge chains down there! You know that those things are to be looked at from a distance, and it brings bad luck to touch them. Ravailly, bid them not touch the chains, or I'll fire on them," continued Canolles, frowning; "and I warn you, Ravailly, that I have some excellent marksmen."
"Bah! you are joking!" rejoined the captain. "Let yourself be taken; you are not in force."
"I am not joking. Down with the ladders! Ravailly, beware, I beg you, for it's the king's house you are besieging!"
"Saint-Georges the king's house!"
"Pardieu!look up and you will see the flag on the crown of the embankment. Come, push your boats off into the water, and put the ladders aboard, or I fire. If you want to talk, come alone or with Remonenq, and we will breakfast together, and talk as we eat. I have an excellent cook at Île Saint-Georges."
Ravailly began to laugh, and encouraged his men with a glance. Meanwhile another company was preparing to land.
Canolles saw that the decisive moment had arrived; and, assuming the firm attitude and serious demeanor befitting a man burdened with so heavy a responsibility as his, he cried:—
"Halt there, Ravailly! A truce to jesting, Remonenq! not another word or step, or I fire, as truly as the king's flag is above, and as your arms are raised against the lilies of France."
Suiting the action to the threat, he overturned with his strong arm the first ladder that showed its head over the stones of the rampart.
Five or six men, more eager than their fellows, were already on the ladder, and were overturned with it. They fell, and a great shout of laughter arose from besiegers and besieged alike; one would have said they were schoolboys at play.
At that moment a signal was given to indicate that the besiegers had passed the chains drawn across the mouth of the harbor.
Ravailly and Remonenq at once seized a ladder and prepared to go down into the moat, shouting:—
"This way, Navailles! Escalade! escalade! up! up!"
"My poor Ravailly," cried Canolles, "I beseech you to stop where you are."
But at the same instant the shore battery, which had kept silent hitherto, flashed and roared, and a cannon-ball ploughed up the dirt all around Canolles.
"Go to!" said Canolles, extending his cane, "if you will have it so! Fire, my lads, fire all along the line!"
Thereupon, although not a man could be seen, a row of muskets appeared, pointing down at the parapet, a girdle of flame enveloped the crown of the wall, while the detonation of two huge pieces of artillery answered Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld's battery.
Half a score of men fell; but their fall, instead of discouraging their comrades, inspired them with fresh ardor. The shore battery replied to the battery on the rampart; a cannon-ball struck down the royal standard, and another killed one of Canolles' lieutenants, named D'Elboin.
Canolles looked around and saw that his men had reloaded their weapons.
"Fire!" he cried, and the order was executed as promptly as before.
Ten minutes later not a single pane of glass was left on the island. The stones trembled and burst in pieces; the cannon-balls knocked holes in the walls, and were flattened on the great flags; a dense smoke overhung the fort, and the air was filled with shrieks and threats and groans.
Canolles saw that Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld's artillery was doing the greatest amount of damage. "Vibrac," said he, "do you look out for Ravailly, and see that he doesn't gain an inch of ground in my absence. I am going to our battery."
He ran to the two pieces which were returning Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld's fire, and himself attended to loading and sighting them; in an instant three of the six guns on shore were dismounted, and fifty men were stretched on the ground. The others, who were not anticipating such a resistance, began to scatter and fly.
Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld, trying to rally them, was struck by a fragment of stone, which knocked his sword out of his hands.
Canolles, content with this result, left the captain of the battery to do the rest, and ran back to repel the assault, which was continued by the Navailles regiment, supported by Espagnet's men.
Vibrac had maintained his ground, but had received a bullet in his shoulder.
Canolles, by his mere presence, redoubled the courage of his troops, who welcomed him with joyful shouts.
"Pray pardon me," he cried to Ravailly, "for leaving you for a moment, my dear friend; I did it, as you may see, to dismount Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld's guns; but be of good cheer, here I am again."
As the captain, who was too excited to reply to the jest,—indeed, it may be that he failed to hear it amid the terrific uproar of artillery and musketry,—led his men to the assault for the third time, Canolles drew a pistol from his belt, and taking aim at his former comrade, now his enemy, fired.
The ball was guided by a firm hand and sure eye; it broke Ravailly's arm.
"Thanks, Canolles!" he cried, for he saw who fired the shot. "Thanks, I will pay you for that."
Notwithstanding his force of will, the young captain was forced to halt, and his sword fell from his hands. Remonenq ran to him and caught him in his arms.
"Will you come into the fort and have your wound dressed, Ravailly?" cried Canolles. "I have a surgeon who's as skilful in his line as my cook in his."
"No; I return to Bordeaux. But expect me again at any moment, for I will come, I promise you. The next time, however, I will select my own hour."
"Retreat! retreat!" cried Remonenq. "They are running over yonder. Au revoir, Canolles; you have the first game."
Remonenq spoke the truth; the artillery had done tremendous execution among the forces on shore, which had lost a hundred men or more. The naval contingent had fared little better. The greatest loss was sustained by the Navailles regiment, which, in order to uphold the honor of the uniform, had insisted upon marching ahead of D'Espagnet's citizen soldiers.
Canolles raised his pistol.
"Cease firing!" said he; "we will let them retreat unmolested; we have no ammunition to waste."
Indeed, it would have been a waste of powder to continue the fire. The assailants retired in hot haste, taking their wounded with them, but leaving the dead behind.
Canolles mustered his men and found that he had four killed and sixteen wounded. Personally he had not received a scratch.
"Dame!" he exclaimed, as he was receiving Nanon's joyful caresses ten minutes later, "they were not slow, my dear, to make me earn my governor's commission. What absurd butchery! I have killed a hundred and fifty men at least, and broken the arm of one of my best friends, to prevent his being killed outright."
"Yes," said Nanon, "but you are safe and sound, aren't you?"
"Thank God! surely you brought me luck, Nanon. But look out for the second bout! The Bordelais are obstinate; and, more than that, Ravailly and Remonenq promised to come again."
"Oh, well," said Nanon, "the same man will be in command at Saint-Georges, with the same troops to sustain him. Let them come, and the second time they will have a warmer reception than before, for between now and then you will have time to strengthen your defences, won't you?"
"My dear," said Canolles, confidentially, "one doesn't get to know a place all at once. Mine is not impregnable, I have discovered that already; and if my name were La Rochefoucauld, I would have Île Saint-Georges to-morrow morning. By the way, D'Elboin will not breakfast with us."
"Why not?"
"Because he was cut in two by a cannon-ball."
The return of the attacking party to Bordeaux presented a doleful spectacle. The worthy tradesmen had left home triumphantly on the previous day, relying upon their numbers and upon the ability of their leaders; in fact, their minds were entirely at ease as to the result of the expedition, from sheer force of habit, which sometimes answers all the purposes of confidence to men who are in danger. For who was there among them who had not in his young days haunted the woods and fields of Île Saint-Georges? Where could you find a Bordelais who had not handled the oar, the fowling-piece, or the fisherman's net in the neighborhood which they were about to revisit as soldiers.
Thus the defeat was doubly depressing to the honest fellows; the locality shamed them no less than the enemy. So it was that they returned with hanging heads, and listened resignedly to the lamentation and wailing of the women, who ascertained the losses sustained by the vanquished forces, by counting them after the manner of the savages of America.
The great city was filled with mourning and consternation. The soldiers returned to their homes to describe the disaster, each in his own way. The chiefs betook themselves to the apartments occupied by the princess at the house of the president.
Madame de Condé was at her window awaiting the return of the volunteers. Sprung as she was from a family of warriors, wife of one of the greatest conquerors in the world, and brought up to look with scorn upon the rusty armor and absurd headgear of the militia, she could not restrain a feeling of uneasiness as she thought that those same citizens, her partisans, had gone out to contend against a force of old, well-disciplined soldiers. But there were three considerations from which she derived some comfort: in the first place, Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld was in command; in the second place the Navailles regiment had the right of the line; in the third place, the name of Condé was inscribed upon the banners.
But every one of these considerations, which gave the princess ground for hope, was the source of bitter grief to Madame de Cambes; even so did everything that grieved the illustrious dame become a source of triumph to the viscountess.
The Duc de La Rochefoucauld was the first to make his appearance, covered with dust and blood; the sleeve of his black doublet was torn open, and there were spots of blood upon his shirt.
"Is this true that I hear?" cried the princess, darting to meet him.
"What do you hear, madame?" he asked, coolly.
"That you were repulsed."
"You have not heard the whole, madame; to put it frankly, we have been beaten."
"Beaten!" cried the princess, turning pale; "beaten! it isn't possible!"
"Beaten!" murmured the viscountess; "beaten by Monsieur de Canolles!"
"How did it happen, I pray to know?" demanded Madame de Condé, in a freezing tone eloquent of her bitter indignation.
"It happened, madame, as all miscalculations happen, in play, in love, in war; we attacked those who were more clever or stronger than ourselves."
"Pray is this Monsieur de Canolles such a gallant fellow?" queried the princess.
Madame de Cambes' heart throbbed with delight.
"Oh!mon Dieu!" replied La Rochefoucauld with a shrug, "not more so than another! But as he had fresh soldiers, stout walls, and was on the lookout for us, having probably received warning of our attack, he had the advantage of our good Bordelais. Ah! madame, let me remark parenthetically that they are sorry soldiers! They ran away at the second volley."
"And Navailles?" cried Claire, heedless of the imprudence of such a demonstration.
"Madame," replied La Rochefoucauld, "the only difference between Navailles and the militia is that the militia ran away, and Navailles fell back."
"The only thing we lack now is to lose Vayres!"
"I don't say that we shall not," retorted La Rochefoucauld, coolly.
"Beaten!" exclaimed the princess, tapping the floor with her foot; "beaten by upstarts, commanded by a Monsieur de Canolles! the very name is absurd."
Claire blushed to the whites of her eyes.
"You think the name absurd, madame," rejoined the duke, "but Monsieur de Mazarin thinks it sublime. And I should almost venture to say," he added with a swift, keen glance at Claire, "that he's not alone in his opinion. Names are like colors, madame," he continued with his bilious smile; "there's no accounting for tastes concerning them."
"Do you think Richon is the man to allow himself to be whipped?"
"Why not? I have allowed myself to be whipped! We must wait until the vein of bad luck is exhausted; war is a game; one day or another we shall have our revenge."
"This wouldn't have happened," said Madame de Tourville, "if my plan had been adopted."
"That's very true," said the princess; "they are never willing to do what we suggest, on the ground that we are women and know nothing about war. The men have their own way and get beaten."
"Mon Dieu,yes, madame; but that happens to the greatest generals. Paulus Æmilius was beaten at Cannae, Pompey at Pharsalia, and Attila at Chalons. There are none but Alexander and yourself, Madame de Tourville, who have never been beaten. Let us hear your plan."
"My plan, Monsieur le Duc," said Madame de Tourville in her primmest manner, "was to lay siege to the fortress in regular form. They wouldn't listen to me, but preferred acoup de main.You see the result."
"Answer madame, Monsieur Lenet," said the duke; "for my own part I do not feel sufficiently strong in strategy to maintain the conflict."
"Madame," said Lenet, whose lips thus far had opened only to smile, "there was this to be said against your idea of a regular siege, that the Bordelais are not soldiers but citizens; they must have supper under their own roof and sleep in their own bed. Now, a regular siege requires those concerned in it to dispense with a multitude of conveniences to which our worthy burghers are accustomed. So they went out to besiege Île Saint-Georges as amateurs; do not blame them for having failed to-day; they will travel the four leagues and recommence the struggle as often as need be."
"You think that they will begin again?" the princess inquired.
"Oh! as to that, madame," said Lenet, "I am quite sure of it; they are too fond of their island to leave it in the king's hands."
"And they will take it?"
"Most assuredly, some day or other."
"Very good! on the day that they take it," cried Madame la Princesse, "I propose that this insolent Monsieur de Canolles shall be shot unless he surrenders at discretion."
Claire felt a deathly shudder run through her veins.
"Shot!" echoed the duke; "peste!if that's according to your Highness's ideas of war, I congratulate myself most sincerely that I am numbered among your friends."
"Let him surrender, then."
"I would like to know what your Highness would say if Richon were to surrender."
"We're not talking of Richon, Monsieur le Duc; Richon is not in question now. Bring me a citizen, a sheriff, a councillor,—somebody to whom I can talk and assure myself that this cup is not without bitterness to those who have put it to my lips."
"Luckily enough," said Lenet, "Monsieur d'Espagnet is even now at the door, soliciting the honor of an audience of your Highness."
"Admit him," said the princess.
Throughout this scene Claire's heart had beaten at times as if it would burst, and again had felt as if it would never beat again. She said to herself that the Bordelais would make Canolles pay dear for his triumph.
But it was much worse when Espagnet, by his protestations surpassed Lenet's confident anticipations.
"Madame," said he to the princess, "I beg that your Highness will have no fear; instead of four thousand men we will send eight thousand; instead of six pieces of cannon, we will take along twelve; instead of one hundred men, we will lose two, three, four hundred, if need be, but we will take Saint-Georges!"
"Bravo! monsieur," cried the duke; "spoken like a man! You know that I am with you, whether as your leader or as a volunteer, as often as you undertake this task. But bear in mind, I beg, that at the rate of five hundred men lost for each of four expeditions like this one, our army will be reduced one-fifth."
"Monsieur le Duc," rejoined Espagnet, "we have thirty thousand men in condition to bear arms at Bordeaux; we will drag all the cannon from the arsenal to the fortress, if necessary; we will discharge enough ammunition to reduce a mountain of granite to powder; I will myself cross the river at the head of the sappers, and we will take Saint-Georges; we have just sworn a solemn oath to do it."
"I doubt whether you will take Saint-Georges so long as Monsieur de Canolles is alive," said Claire in an almost inaudible voice.
"Then we will kill him, or have him killed, and take Saint-Georges afterward," rejoined Espagnet.
Madame de Cambes stifled the cry of dismay that came to her lips.
"Do you desire to take Saint-Georges?"
"Do we desire it!" cried the princess; "I should say as much; we desire little else."
"Very well!" said Madame de Cambes, "let me have my way, and I will put the place in your hands."
"Bah!" exclaimed the princess; "you promised much the same thing once before and failed."
"I promised your Highness to make an attempt to win over Monsieur de Canolles. That attempt failed because I found Monsieur de Canolles inflexible."
"Do you expect to find him more easy to approach after his triumph?"
"No; for that reason I did not say this time that I would turn over the governor to you, but the place itself."
"How so?"
"By admitting your soldiers into the very heart of the fortress."
"Are you a fairy, madame, that you undertake such a task?" La Rochefoucauld asked her.
"No, monsieur, I am a landowner," said the viscountess.
"Madame is pleased to jest," retorted the duke.
"Not at all, not at all," said Lenet. "I can imagine a world of meaning in the three words just uttered by Madame de Cambes."
"Then that is all I require," said the viscountess; "Monsieur Lenet's approval means everything to me. I say again that Saint-Georges is as good as taken, if I may be allowed to say four words in private to Monsieur Lenet."
"Madame," chimed in Madame de Tourville, "I too can take Saint-Georges, if I can have my way."
"Let Madame de Tourville first set forth her plan so that we can all hear," said Lenet, checking the effort Madame de Cambes was making to lead him into a corner; "then you shall whisper yours to me."
"Say on, madame," said the princess.
"I would start at night with twenty boats carrying two hundred musketeers; another party, equal in number, would creep along the right bank; four or five hundred more would ascend the left bank; meanwhile ten or twelve hundred Bordelais—"
"Bear in mind, madame," interposed La Rochefoucauld, "that you already have ten or twelve hundred men engaged."
"I will take Saint-Georges with a single company," said Claire; "give me Navailles, and I will answer for the result."
"'Tis worth considering," said the princess, while Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld, with his most contemptuous smile, gazed pityingly at these women who presumed to discuss military questions which embarrassed the boldest and most enterprising men.
"I will listen to you now, madame," said Lenet. "Come this way."
He led Claire to a window recess, where she whispered her secret in his ear.
Lenet emitted a joyful exclamation.
"Indeed, madame," said he, turning to the princess, "if you will give Madame de Cambescarte blanche,Saint-Georges is ours."
"When?" the princess demanded.
"When you please."
"Madame is a great captain!" sneered La Rochefoucauld.
"You may judge for yourself, Monsieur le Duc," said Lenet, "when you enter Saint-Georges in triumph, without firing a single shot."
"When that time comes I will approve."
"If it's as certain as you say," said the princess, "let everything be prepared for to-morrow."
"On such day and at such hour as your Highness pleases," said Claire. "I will await your commands in my apartment."
With that she bowed and withdrew; the princess, who had passed in an instant from wrath to hope, did the same, followed by Madame de Tourville. Espagnet, having renewed his protestations, took his departure, and the duke was left alone with Lenet.
"My dear Monsieur Lenet," said the duke, "as the women seem to have taken charge of the war, I think it would be a good plan for the men to do a little intriguing. I have heard of a certain Captain Cauvignac, whom you commissioned to raise a company, and who is represented to me as an exceedingly clever sort of fellow. I sent for him; is there any way for me to see him?"
"He is waiting, monseigneur," said Lenet.
"Let him come in, then."
Lenet pulled a bell-cord, and a servant appeared.
"Send Captain Cauvignac hither," said Lenet.
An instant after, our old acquaintance appeared in the doorway; but, prudent as always, there he halted.
"Come hither, captain," said the duke; "I am Monsieur le Duc de La Rochefoucauld."
"I know you perfectly well, monseigneur," said Cauvignac.
"Ah! so much the better, then. You received a commission to raise a company?"
"It is raised."
"How many men have you at your disposal?"
"A hundred and fifty."
"Well armed and equipped?"
"Well armed, poorly equipped. I looked out for the weapons first of all, as the most essential thing. As to their equipment, as I am a very disinterested youth, and as I am moved principally by my affection for Messieurs les Princes, I came rather short of money, Monsieur Lenet having given me but ten thousand livres."
"You have enrolled a hundred and fifty men with ten thousand livres?"
"Yes, monseigneur."
"That's a marvellous achievement."
"I have methods known to myself alone, monseigneur, to which I have resorted."
"Where are your men?"
"They are here; you will see a fine company, monseigneur, especially in respect to their morals,—all men of rank; not a single nobody among them."
Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld walked to the window, and saw in the street a hundred and fifty individuals of all ages, sizes, and conditions, drawn up in two lines, and kept in place by Ferguzon, Barrabas, Carrotel, and their two colleagues, arrayed in their most magnificent attire. The rank and file resembled a party of bandits much more nearly than a company of soldiers.
As Cauvignac had said, they were very much out at elbows, but remarkably well armed.
"Have you received any orders concerning the place where your men are to be stationed?" the duke inquired.
"I have been ordered to lead them to Vayres, and I am simply awaiting the ratification of that order by Monsieur le Duc to turn over my company to Monsieur Richon, who is expecting its arrival."
"But do not you remain at Vayres with them?"
"My principles, monseigneur, forbid my ever doing such a foolish thing as to shut myself up within four walls, when I am at liberty to go where I please. I was born to lead the life of the patriarchs."
"Very good; go where you choose; but despatch your men to Vayres as soon as possible."
"Then they are really to form part of the garrison of that place?"
"Yes."
"Under Monsieur Richon's orders?"
"Yes."
"But, monseigneur, what are my men to do in the fort, where there are already about three hundred men?"
"You are very inquisitive."
"Oh! it's not mere curiosity that makes me ask, monseigneur; it is fear."
"What are you afraid of?"
"That they will be condemned to inaction, which would be a great pity; any man makes a mistake who allows a good weapon to rust."
"Don't be alarmed, captain, they won't rust; in a week they will have a chance to fight."
"In that case they may be killed!"
"It's very likely,—unless, in addition to your secret method of recruiting soldiers, you have a secret method of making them invulnerable."
"Oh! it's not that; but before they are killed I would like to have them paid for."
"Didn't you tell me that you had received ten thousand livres?"
"Yes, on account. Ask Monsieur Lenet; he is a man of method, and I am sure he will remember our agreement."
The duke turned to Lenet.
"It is true, Monsieur le Duc," said the straightforward counsellor; "we gave Monsieur Cauvignac ten thousand livres by way of advance for the first outlay; but we promised him a hundred crowns per man."
"In that case," said the duke, "we owe the captain thirty-five thousand francs?"
"Just so, monseigneur."
"They will be given you."
"Might it not be done now, Monsieur le Duc?"
"No, impossible."
"Why so?"
"Because you are one of us, and strangers must be settled with first of all. You understand that only those people we fear have to be coaxed."
"An excellent maxim!" said Cauvignac; "in all bargains, however, it is customary to fix a time for payment."
"Very well, let us say a week," said the duke.
"A week it is," said Cauvignac.
"But suppose that when the week has elapsed we have not paid?" suggested Lenet.
"In that case I resume control of my men."
"That is no more than fair," the duke agreed.
"And I can do what I choose with them?"
"Of course, as they belong to you."
"But—" Lenet began.
"Nonsense!" said the duke in a low tone,—"when we have them safely shut up in Vayres!"
"I don't like this sort of bargain," said Lenet, shaking his head.
"They are very common in Normandy," said Cauvignac; "they are called conditional sales."
"Is it agreed?" asked the duke.
"It is," Cauvignac replied.
"When will your men start?"
"At once, if you so order."
"I do so order."
"Then they are off, monseigneur."
The captain went down into the street and said two words in Ferguzon's ear, and the Cauvignac company, followed by all the idlers whom its strange appearance had attracted, marched away toward the harbor, where the three boats were waiting which were to transport it up the Dordogne to Vayres, while its commander, faithful to the principle of freedom of action just enunciated by him to Monsieur de La Rochefoucauld, stood watching his men affectionately as they moved away.
Meanwhile the viscountess in her own apartments was sobbing and praying.
"Alas!" she moaned, "I could not save his honor unimpaired, but I will at least save the appearance of honor. He must not be conquered by force; for I know him so well that I know that he would die in defence of the place; it must be made to seem to him that he is overcome by treason. Then, when he knows what I have done for him, and, above all, my object in doing it, beaten as he is, he will bless me still."
Consoled by this hope, she rose, wrote a few words which she hid in her breast, and returned to Madame la Princesse, who had sent to ask her to go with her to look to the needs of the wounded and carry consolation and material assistance to the widows and orphans.
Madame la Princesse called together all who had taken part in the expedition. In her own name and that of the Dc d'Enghien, she praised the exploits of those who had distinguished themselves; talked a long time with Ravailly, who, although he carried his arm in a sling, declared his readiness to begin again the next morning; laid her hand upon Espagnet's shoulder, and told him that she looked upon him and his gallant Bordelais as the firmest supporters of her party; in fine, she succeeded so well in inflaming their minds that the most disheartened swore that they would have their revenge, and would have started for Île Saint-Georges on the instant.
"No, not at this moment," said the princess; "take to-day and to-night for rest, and day after to-morrow you shall be in possession there forever."
This assurance was welcomed by noisy demonstrations of warlike ardor. Every shout sank deep into the heart of the viscountess, for they were like so many daggers threatening her lover's existence.
"You hear what I have agreed, Claire," said the princess; "it is for you to see that I do not break my word to these good people."
"Never fear, madame," was the reply. "I will perform what I have promised."
That same evening a messenger set out in hot haste for Saint-Georges.
VIII.
The next day, while Canolles was making his morning round, Vibrac approached him and handed him a note and a key which had been brought to the fortress during the night by a strange man, who left them with the lieutenant of the guard, saying that there was no reply.
Canolles started as he recognized the handwriting of Madame de Cambes, and his hand trembled as he broke the seal.
This is what the letter contained:—
"In my last note I gave you warning that Saint-Georges would be attacked during the night; in this, I warn you that Saint-Georges will be taken to-morrow; as a man, as an officer of the king, you run no other risk than that of being made prisoner; but Mademoiselle de Lartigues is in a very different situation, and the hatred which is entertained for her is so great that I would not answer for her life if she should fall into the hands of the Bordelais. Therefore persuade her to fly; I will furnish you with the means of flight."At the head of your bed, behind a curtain upon which are embroidered the arms of the lords of Cambes, to whom Île Saint-Georges formerly belonged,—Monsieur le Vicomte de Cambes, my late husband, presented it to the king,—you will find a door to which this is the key. It is one of the entrances to an extensive underground passage which passes beneath the bed of the river, and comes out at the manor of Cambes. Persuade Mademoiselle Nanon de Lartigues to fly through that passage—and, if you love her, fly with her."I answer for her safety upon my honor."Adieu. We are quits."VICOMTESSE DE CAMBES."
"In my last note I gave you warning that Saint-Georges would be attacked during the night; in this, I warn you that Saint-Georges will be taken to-morrow; as a man, as an officer of the king, you run no other risk than that of being made prisoner; but Mademoiselle de Lartigues is in a very different situation, and the hatred which is entertained for her is so great that I would not answer for her life if she should fall into the hands of the Bordelais. Therefore persuade her to fly; I will furnish you with the means of flight.
"At the head of your bed, behind a curtain upon which are embroidered the arms of the lords of Cambes, to whom Île Saint-Georges formerly belonged,—Monsieur le Vicomte de Cambes, my late husband, presented it to the king,—you will find a door to which this is the key. It is one of the entrances to an extensive underground passage which passes beneath the bed of the river, and comes out at the manor of Cambes. Persuade Mademoiselle Nanon de Lartigues to fly through that passage—and, if you love her, fly with her.
"I answer for her safety upon my honor.
"Adieu. We are quits.
"VICOMTESSE DE CAMBES."
Canolles read and re-read the letter, shivering with fear at every word, growing paler with every reading; he felt that a mysterious power, which he could not fathom, enveloped him, and directed his actions. Might not this same underground passage, from his bedroom to the Château de Cambes, which was to serve to assure Nanon's safety, serve equally well, if the secret were generally known, to deliver Saint-Georges to the enemy?
Vibrac followed, upon the governor's expressive features, the emotions which were reflected there.
"Bad news, commandant?" he asked.
"Yes, it seems that we are to be attacked again to-night."
"The fanatics!" said Vibrac. "I should have supposed we had given them a sufficient dressing-down, and were not likely to hear of them again for a week at least."
"I have no need to enjoin the strictest watchfulness upon you," said Canolles.
"Have no fear, commandant. Probably they will try to surprise us, as they did before?"
"I have no idea; but let us be ready for anything, and take the same precautions that we took before. Finish my round of inspection for me; I must go to my room; I have some orders to give."
Vibrac touched his hat and strode away with the soldierly indifference to danger often exhibited by those whose profession brings them face to face with it at every step.
Canolles went to his room, taking every possible precaution not to be seen by Nanon; and having made sure that he was alone, locked himself in.
At the head of his bed were the arms of the lords of Cambes, upon a tapestry hanging surrounded by a band of gold.
Canolles raised the band, which was not attached to the tapestry, and disclosed the crack of a door. With the aid of the key which accompanied the viscountess's letter, he opened the door, and found himself confronted by the gaping orifice of a subterranean passage.
For a moment Canolles was struck dumb, and stood motionless, with the sweat pouring from his brow. This mysterious opening into the bowels of the earth terrified him in spite of himself.
He lighted a candle and prepared to inspect it.
First, he descended twenty steep stairs, then kept on down a gentler slope farther and farther into the depths.
Soon he heard a dull, rumbling noise, which alarmed him at first, because he could not think to what cause to attribute it; but as he went forward he recognized it as the roar of the river flowing above his head.
The water had forced its way through the arch in divers places at one time or another, but the crevices had evidently been detected in time and filled with a sort of cement, which became harder in course of time than the stones it bound together.
For about ten minutes Canolles heard the water rolling over his head; then the noise gradually died away until it was hardly more than a murmur. At last even the murmuring ceased, to be succeeded by perfect silence; and after walking a hundred feet or more in the silence, Canolles reached a staircase similar to the one by which he had descended, and closed at the top by a massive door which the united strength of ten men could not have moved, and which was rendered fire-proof by a thick iron plate.
"Now I understand," said Canolles; "she will await Nanon at this door and help her to escape."
He retraced his steps beneath the river-bed, ascended the staircase, re-entered his room, replaced the gold band, and betook himself deep in thought to Nanon's apartments.
Nanon was, as usual, surrounded by maps, letters, and books. In her own way the poor woman was carrying on the war in the king's interest. As soon as she saw Canolles, she gave him her hand joyfully.
"The king is coming," said she, "and in a week we shall be out of danger."
"He is always coming," returned Canolles, with a sad smile; "unfortunately, he never arrives."
"Ah! but this time my information is reliable, my dear baron, and he will surely be here within the week."
"Let him make what haste he may, Nanon, he will arrive too late for us."
"What do you say?"
"I say that instead of wearing yourself out over these maps and papers, you would do better to be thinking of means of escape."
"Of escape? Why so?"
"Because I have bad news, Nanon. A new expedition is preparing, and this time I may be forced to yield."
"Very well, my dear; didn't we agree that I should share your fate and your fortune, whatever they may be?"
"No that cannot be; I shall be too weak, if I have to fear for you. Did they not propose at Agen to burn you at the stake? Did they not try to throw you into the river? Nanon, in pity for me, do not insist upon remaining, for your presence would surely make me do some cowardly thing."
"Mon Dieu,Canolles, you frighten me."
"Nanon, I implore you to give me your word that you will do what I bid you, if we are attacked."
"Why should I make such a promise?"
"To give me the strength to do my duty. Nanon, if you do not promise to obey me blindly, I swear that I will take the first opportunity to seek my own death."
"Whatever you wish, Canolles; I swear it by our love!"
"Thank God! Dear Nanon, my mind is much more at ease now. Get together your most valuable jewels. Where is your money?"
"In a small iron-bound chest."
"Have it all ready. You must take it with you."
"Oh! Canolles, you know that the real treasure of my heart is neither gold nor jewels. Canolles, is this all a mere pretext to send me away from you?"
"Nanon, you deem me a man of honor, do you not? Very good; upon my honor, what I now do is inspired solely by my dread of the danger that threatens you."
"You seriously believe that I am in danger?"
"I believe that Île Saint-Georges will be taken to-morrow."
"How, pray?"
"That I cannot say, but I believe it."
"And suppose I consent to fly?"
"I will do everything in my power to preserve my life, Nanon, I swear."
"Do you command, my dear, and I will obey," said Nanon, giving her hand to Canolles, regardless, in the intensity of her gaze, of two great tears which were rolling down her cheeks.
Canolles pressed her hand and left the room. Had he remained a moment longer, he would have wiped away those two pearls with his lips; but he placed his hand on the viscountess's letter, and that gave him strength to tear himself away.
It was a cruel day. The positive, definite threat, "To-morrow Île Saint-Georges will be taken," rang incessantly in Canolles' ears. How?—by what means? What ground had the viscountess for speaking with such conviction? Was he to be attacked by water or by land? From what quarter was this invisible yet indubitable disaster to burst upon him? He was well-nigh mad.
So long as the daylight lasted, Canolles burned his eyes out in the glaring sunshine, looking everywhere for the enemy. After dark he strained his eyes trying to peer into the depths of the forest, scanning the sky-line of the plain, and the windings of the river; all to no purpose, he could see nothing.
When night had fallen altogether, he spied a light in one wing of the Château de Cambes; it was the first time he had detected the slightest sign of life there while he had been at Île Saint-Georges.
"Ah!" said he, with a long-drawn sigh, "there are Nanon's saviors at their post."
What a strange, mysterious problem is that of the workings of the human heart! Canolles no longer loved Nanon, Canolles adored Madame de Cambes, and yet, at the moment of separation from her whom he no longer loved, he felt as if his heart would break; it was only when he was far away from her, or when he was about to leave her, that Canolles felt the full force of the singular sentiment with which he regarded that charming person.
Every man in the garrison was on duty upon the ramparts. Canolles grew weary of gazing, and questioning the silence of the night. Never was darkness more absolutely dumb, or apparently more solitary. Not the slightest sound disturbed the perfect calmness, which seemed like that of the desert.
Suddenly it occurred to Canolles that it might be that the enemy proposed to make their way into the fort by the underground passage he had explored. It seemed highly improbable, for in that case they would have been unlikely to give him warning; but he resolved none the less to guard the passage. He ordered a barrel of powder to be prepared with a slow-match, selected the bravest man among his sergeants, rolled the barrel down upon the last step of the subterranean staircase, lighted a torch, and placed it in the sergeant's hand. Two other men were stationed near him.
"If more than six men appear in this passage," he said to the sergeant, "call upon them to withdraw; if they refuse, set fire to the match and give the barrel a roll; as the passage slopes down, it will burst in the midst of them."
The sergeant took the torch; the two soldiers stood motionless behind him, in its reddish glare, with the barrel of powder at their feet.
Canolles ascended the stairs with his mind at rest, in that direction at least; but as he stepped into his room he saw Nanon, who had seen him come down from the ramparts and return indoors, and had followed him in quest of news. She stared in open-mouthed dismay, at this yawning orifice of which she had no knowledge.
"Oh!mon Dieu!" said she, "what is that door?"
"The door of the passage through which you are to fly, dear Nanon."
"You promised me that you wouldn't require me to leave you except in case you were attacked."
"And I renew my promise."
"Everything about the island seems to be quiet, my dear."
"Everything seems quiet within, too, does it not? And yet there are a barrel of powder, a man, and a torch within twenty feet of us. If the man should put the torch to the powder, in one second not one stone would be left upon another in the whole fort. That is how quiet everything is, Nanon."
The color fled from the young woman's cheeks.
"Oh! you make me shudder!" she cried.
"Nanon, call your women," said Canolles, "and bid them come hither with all your packages, and your footman with your money. Perhaps I am mistaken, perhaps nothing will happen to-night; but never mind, let us be ready."
"Qui vive?" cried the sergeant's voice in the underground passage.
Another voice replied, but in a friendly tone.
"Hark," said Canolles, "they have come for you."
"There is no attack as yet, dear heart; all is quiet. Let me stay with you; they will not come."
As Nanon ceased to speak, the cry of "Qui vive?" rang out thrice in the inner court-yard, and the third time it was followed by the report of a musket.
Canolles darted to the window, and threw it open.
"To arms!" cried the sentinel, "to arms!"
Canolles saw a black, moving mass in one corner; it was the enemy pouring forth in floods from a low, arched doorway opening into a cellar used as a wood-house, to which there was no doubt some secret issue.
"There they are!" cried Canolles; "hurry! there they are!"
As he spoke the sentinel's shot was answered by a score of muskets. Two or three bullets shattered the glass in the window, which Canolles hastily closed.
He turned back into the room and found Nanon on her knees. Her women and her man-servant came running in from her apartment.
"There's not an instant to lose, Nanon!" cried Canolles: "come! come!"
He took her in his arms as if she weighed no more than a feather, and plunged into the underground passage, calling to her people to follow him.
The sergeant was at his post, torch in hand; the two soldiers, with matches lighted, were ready to fire upon a group of men, among whom was our old acquaintance, Master Pompée, pale with fear, and uttering profuse protestations of friendliness.
"Ah! Monsieur de Canolles," he cried, "pray tell them that you were expecting us; what the devil! one doesn't indulge in pleasantry of this sort with one's friends."
"Pompée," said Canolles, "I place madame in your charge; one whom you know has agreed upon her honor to answer to me for her; you shall answer to me for her upon your head."
"Yes, I will answer for everything," said Pompée.
"Canolles! Canolles! I will not leave you!" cried Nanon, clinging to the young man's neck; "Canolles, you promised to go with me."
"I promised to defend Saint-Georges while one stone stands upon another, and I propose to keep my promise."
Despite Nanon's shrieks and tears and entreaties, Canolles gave her into Pompée's hands, and he, with the assistance of two or three servants of Madame de Cambes and the poor girl's own attendants, carried her off into the dark passage.
For an instant Canolles looked after the fair, white phantom, as it was borne away with arms outstretched toward him. But suddenly he remembered that he was expected elsewhere, and rushed back to the stairway, shouting to the sergeant and the two soldiers to follow him.
Vibrac was in the governor's room, pale and hatless, with his drawn sword in his hand.
"Commandant," he cried as soon as he caught sight of Canolles, "the enemy!—the enemy!"
"I know it."
"What must we do?"
"Parbleu!a pretty question!—sell our lives dearly, of course!" and Canolles darted down into the court-yard. On the way he spied a miner's axe, and took possession of it.
The court-yard was full of the invading force; sixty soldiers of the garrison stood in a group, trying to defend the door leading to the governor's apartments. In the direction of the ramparts, there was much shouting and firing, and it was evident that fighting was in progress everywhere.
"Commandant! Here's the commandant!" cried the soldiers, when they saw Canolles.
"Yes," he shouted back, "the commandant has come to die with you. Courage, my lads, courage! they have surprised us by treachery, because they couldn't whip us in a fair fight."
"All's fair in war," said the mocking voice of Ravailly, who, with his arm in a sling was urging his men on to take Canolles. "Surrender, Canolles, surrender, and you shall have good terms."
"Ah! is it you, Ravailly?" was the reply. "I thought I had paid you my debt of friendship; but you are not content. Wait a moment—"
As he spoke, Canolles darted forward five or six steps, and hurled the axe he held in his hand at Ravailly with such force that it cut through the helmet and gorget of a militia officer, who stood beside the captain of Navailles, and who fell dead.
"Damnation!" exclaimed Ravailly; "how courteously you reply to proffered courtesies! I ought, though, to be well-used to your ways. He's mad, boys! fire on him! fire!"
At the word a brisk volley came from the enemy's ranks, and five or six men about Canolles fell.
"Fire!" cried he; "fire!"
But only four or five muskets responded. Taken by surprise, just when they were least expecting it, and confused by the darkness, Canolles' troops had lost their courage.
He saw that there was no hope.
"Go in," he said to Vibrac, "go in and take your men with you; we will barricade ourselves, and we won't surrender at all events until they have carried the fort by assault."
"Fire!" shouted two new voices, those of Espagnet and La Rochefoucauld. "Remember your dead comrades, who are crying out for vengeance. Fire!"
The storm of lead came whistling again about Canolles without touching him, but decimating his little troop once more.
"Back!" cried Vibrac, "back!"
"At them! at them!" cried Ravailly; "forward, my lads, forward!"
His men obeyed and rushed forward; Canolles, with hardly more than a half a score of men, sustained the shock; he had picked up a dead soldier's gun, and used it as a club.
The soldiers entered the governor's house, Vibrac and he bringing up the rear. With their united efforts they succeeded in closing the door, despite the efforts of the assailants to prevent them, and secured it with an enormous bar of iron.
There were bars at the windows.
"Axes, crow-bars, cannon if necessary!" cried the voice of Duc de La Rochefoucauld; "we must take them all, dead or alive."
His words were followed by an appalling discharge; two or three bullets pierced the door, and one of them shattered Vibrac's thigh.
"'Faith, commandant," said he, "my account is settled; do you look now to settling yours; I am done with it all."
He lay down by the wall, unable to stand erect.
Canolles glanced about him; a dozen men were still in fighting trim, among them the sergeant he had stationed in the underground passage.
"The torch!" said Canolles; "what did you do with the torch?"
"I threw it down beside the barrel, commandant."
"Is it still burning?"
"Probably."
"Good. Send out all your men through the rear doors and windows. Obtain for them and for yourself the best terms you can; the rest is my affair."
"But, commandant—"
"Obey!"
The sergeant bent his head and bade his soldiers follow him. In a twinkling they all disappeared toward the rear of the house; they understood the purpose Canolles had in mind, and were not at all solicitous to be blown up with him.
Canolles listened for an instant. They were at work on the door with axes, but the fusillade did not abate; they were firing at random, mostly at the windows, where they thought that the besieged might be lying in ambush.
Suddenly a loud shout announced that the door had yielded, and Canolles heard the assailants rushing from room to room with cries of joy.
"Ah me!" he muttered, "five minutes hence these cries of joy will change to shrieks of despair."
He rushed into the underground passage, where he found a young man sitting on the barrel, with the torch at his feet, and his face buried in his hands.
He raised his head at the sound of footsteps and Canolles recognized Madame de Cambes.
"Ah! here you are at last!" she cried, as she rose.
"Claire!" murmured Canolles, "why have you come here?"
"To die with you, if you are determined to die."
"I am dishonored, ruined, and there is nothing for me But to die."
"You are saved and your honor is secure,—saved by me."
"Ruined by you! Do you hear them? they are coming; here they are! Claire, make your escape while you may; you have five minutes, it is more than enough."
"I will not fly, I will remain."
"But do you know why I came down here? Do you know what I propose to do?"
Madame de Cambes picked up the torch, and put it near the barrel of powder.
"I have a suspicion," said she.
"Claire!" cried Canolles in dismay. "Claire!"
"Say again that you propose to die, and we will die together."
The pale face of the viscountess indicated such resolution that Canolles realized that she was quite capable of doing what she said; and he stopped.
"Tell me what you wish," he said.
"I wish you to surrender."
"Never!"
"Time is precious," continued the viscountess; "surrender. I offer you life and honor, for I give you the excuse that you were surprised by treachery."
"Let me fly, then; I will lay my sword at the king's feet, and beseech him to give me an opportunity to have my revenge."
"You shall not fly."
"Why not?"
"Because I can live in this way no longer; because I cannot live apart from you; because I love you."
"I surrender! I surrender!" cried Canolles, throwing himself at Madame de Cambes' knees, and hurling away the torch she still held in her hand.
"Ah!" she murmured, "now I have him, and no one can take him away from me again."
There was one very peculiar thing, which is capable of explanation, however; namely, that love acted so differently upon these two women.
Madame de Cambes, shy, timid, and gentle by nature, had become resolute, bold, and strong.
Nanon, capricious and wilful, had become shy, timid, and gentle.
Herein lies the explanation of the phenomenon: Madame de Cambes felt more and more confident that she was beloved by Canolles; Nanon felt that Canolles' love for her was growing less day by day.
X.
The second return of the army of the princes to Bordeaux was very different from the first. On this occasion there were laurels for everybody, even for the vanquished.
Madame de Cambes with consummate tact had assigned an honorable rôle to Canolles, who, as soon as he had entered the city, side by side with his friend Ravailly, whom he was so near killing on two occasions, was surrounded and congratulated as a great captain and a gallant soldier.