Volume I Part 13 (1/2)
”About a month after your last visit she saw him for the first time He must have thrown a spell over her, for our Lucie was as pure as a dove, and you can, I believe, bear testioodness”
”And no one knohere they are?”
”No one God alone knohat this villain will do with her”
I grieved asra two hours I cogitated over considerations, some true, some false, which were all prefaced by an if If I had paid this visit, as ILucie would have confided in me, and I would have prevented that self-murder If I had acted with her as with Nanette and Marton, she would not have been left by me in that state of ardent excitement which must have proved the principal cause of her fault, and she would not have fallen a prey to that scoundrel If she had not knownthe courier, her innocent soul would never have listened to such a ed ent of this infamous seduction; I had prepared the way for the villain
Had I knohere to find Lucie, I would certainly have gone forth on the instant to seek for her, but no trace whatever of her whereabouts had been discovered
Before I had been reat pride at having had sufficient power overwhat had happened I was ashamed of my own reserve, and I promised myself that for the future I would on that score act ination painted the probability of the unfortunate girl being left to poverty and sha me as the first cause of her misery This fatal event caused me to adopt a new system, which in after years I carried souests of the countess in the gardens, and received such a welcoain in hted everyone
My sorroas so great that it was necessary either to drive it away at once or to leave Pasean But a new life crept intoas I examined the face and the disposition of the newly- to feel afraid of a novice; I thought the work too great
This newly-e, drew upon herself everybody's attention by her over-strained and unnatural reat talker, with a memory crammed with maxims and precepts often without sense, but of which she loved to make a show, very devout, and so jealous of her husband that she did not conceal her vexation when he expressed his satisfaction at being seated at table opposite her sister, she laid herself open tofelloho perhaps felt very deep affection for his wife, but who iht to appear very indifferent, and whose vanity found pleasure in giving her constant causes for jealousy She, in her turn, had a great dread of passing for an idiot if she did not shew her appreciation of, and her resentood cohly at ho nonsense, she would stare at ht stupid, she would laugh out of season Her oddity, her aardness, and her self-conceit gave an to dance attendance upon her
My attentions, important and unimportant, my constant care, ever my fopperies, let everybody know that I reat show of intrepidity, he answered with a joke every time he was told that I was a formidable rival On my side I assumed a modest, and even sometimes a careless appearance, when, to shew his freedom from jealousy, he excited me to make love to his wife, who, on her part, understood but little how to perfor reat constancy, when, taking a ith her in the garden, she i her husband, and horong he was to give her any cause for jealousy I told her, speaking as an old friend, that the best way to punish him would be to take no apparent notice of her, husband's preference for her sister, and to feign to be herself in love with me In order to entice her more easily to followa very difficult one to carry out, and that to play successfully such a character a woman must be particularly witty I had touched her weak point, and she exclaimed that she would play the part to perfection; but in spite of her self-confidence she acquitted herself so badly that everybody understood that the plan was of
If I happened to be alone with her in the dark paths of the garden, and tried to make her play her part in real earnest, she would take the dangerous step of running away, and rejoining the other guests; the result being that, on htened the bird away I would not fail at the first opportunity to reproach her for her flight, and to represent the triumph she had thus prepared for her spouse I praised her s of her education; I said that the tone, the ood society, and proved the great esteeence, but in the middle of all my fine speeches, towards the eleventh or twelfth day of my courtshi+p, she suddenly puta priest, I ought to know that every amorous connection was a deadly sin, that God could see every action of His creatures, and that she would neither da to her confessor that she had so far forgotten herself as to commit such a sin with a priest I objected that I was not yet a priest, but she foiledpoint-blank whether or not the act I had in vieas to be nue to deny it, I felt that I ument and put an end to the adventure
A little consideration having considerably cal dinner; and the old count, as very fond of a joke, expressed loudly his opinion that such quiet demeanour on n
Considering such a remark to be favourable to me, I took care to spew e, but all this was lost labour Luck, however, stood ood stead, andmanner
On Ascension Day, we all went to pay a visit to Madaali, a celebrated Italian poetess On , e for four persons in which her husband and sister were already seated, while I was alone in a theeled chaise I exclai that such a mark of distrust was indeed too pointed, and everybody reht not to insulttold the postillion that I wanted to go by the nearest road, he left the other carriages, and took the way through the forest of Cequini The sky was clear and cloudless e left, but in less than half-an-hour ere visited by one of those storms so frequent in the south, which appear likely to overthrow heaven and earth, and which end rapidly, leaving behind theood than harm
”Oh, heavens!” exclaimed my companion, ”we shall have a storh the chaise is covered, the rain will spoil your pretty dress I am very sorry”
”I do not htens ?”
”Postillion, let us go somewhere for shelter”
”There is not a house, sir, for a league, and before we come to it, the storm will have passed off”
He quietly keeps on his way, and the lightning flashes, the thunder sends forth its ht The rain comes down in torrents, I take off my cloak to shelter us in front, at the sa, and the electric fluid strikes the earth within one hundred yards of us The horses plunge and prance with fear, and my companion falls in spasmodic convulsions She throws herself upon one down, I stoop to place it around us, and i my opportunity I take up her clothes She tries to pull them down, but another clap of thunder deprives her of every particle of strength
Covering her with the cloak, I draw her towardsto my assistance, she falls over me in the most favourable position I lose no ti my watch in my fob, I prepare myself for the assault On her side, conscious that, unless she stops reat effort; but I hold her tightly, saying that if she does not feign a fainting fit, the post-boy will turn round and see everything; I let her enjoy the pleasure of callingshe likes, but my victory is the most complete that ever a cha, the wind, which was very high, blew in our faces, and, compelled to stay where she was, she said I would ruin her reputation, as the postillion could see everything
”I keepof us, and even if he should turn his head, the cloak shelters us from him Be quiet, and pretend to have fainted, for I will not let you go”