Part 10 (1/2)

What a transformation!

St. Udo stood in speechless surprise.

A woman with a stout figure, keen, dark face, and pale, green eyes.

Where were the graceful, lissome figure, the dainty complexion, the pa.s.sion-darkened eyes.

And madam's hair was gray as Thoms' grizzly locks--no waving tresses of serpentine gold saw he. Madam's lips were blue with fright, no longer thin, scarlet beauty-lines with a string of pearls between. Madam was old, awkward, and spoke nothing but French.

Puzzled in the extreme, St. Udo was obliged to content himself by watching the next incident of interest, Madam Estvan's behavior to Colonel Calembours.

They met--he with round, suspicious eyes snapping with eagerness, she with downcast lids and bra.s.sy brow, and each performed a charming obeisance.

”Le Chevalier de Calembours,” says he.

”Madam Estvan, at your service, messieurs,” returns she.

They bow again, retire a pace, their eyes meet--they both smile a little; but Calembours' color fades to a sickly yellow, and madam's face reddens under the brown.

”We are forced to request your house for a temporary hospital,” remarks St. Udo, breaking the utter silence.

The spell dissolves--they both turn to him, and both become natural, and that is all St. Udo can discover in the meeting.

Madam Estvan immediately set her house at their disposal. Nothing would give her more gratification than to be of use to the Federal soldiers, for that she was not of the South they both must see.

She led them through the whole house, a.s.sisting them with charming graciousness to select the most suitable apartments, and bewailing the meagerness of her domestic force which would compel the soldiers to wait upon themselves. But do what she would, St. Udo could not divest himself of the conviction that she and the fair Sabrina figure were identical.

At last they returned to the lower hall and essayed to depart.

Madam Estvan accompanied them to the door with bland courtesy.

St. Udo was already opening the door, when a rattle of shot against the roof of the piazza startled him, and a cannon-ball immediately followed and crashed in the side of the doorway.

A fearful shriek burst from Madam Estvan; she rushed forward and clung to the little chevalier's arm.

”_Mon Dieu!_ woman, let me go!” hissed he, with an ominous scowl.

”No, no, Ladislaus, save me, your poor Alice, who ever loved you! Don't desert me again!” wailed the woman, frantically.

Her voice rang out pure and flute-like in the English language; her terror tore aside the cunning mask, and plainly revealed to St. Udo the lovely vision he had seen before.

”_Sacre!_ I suspected as much!” swore the chevalier, shaking her roughly off. ”Away, traitress!”

He sprang across the piazza, followed by St. Udo, and the wretched woman sank, a helpless heap, upon the floor.

Looking back, each from his post, at the fairy palace, the two colonels saw a stream of fire running along the piazza roof, licking the airy balconies up, creeping serpent-like around the pillars, and so through smoking portico to the senseless woman lying on the hall floor where she had fallen.

CHAPTER VI.