Part 89 (1/2)
”I did go there”
”Well?”
”She was no longer there, but she had left her new address”
”Where was she?”
”Guess; I give you a thousand chances”
”How should I knohere the ht? for I presume it hen you left me that you went to visit her”
”At the Hotel de Ville, my dear fellow”
”What! at the Hotel de Ville? Has she, then, been appointed provost of merchants?”
”No; but she has become queen of Paris, ad interim, and since she could not venture at once to establish herself in the Palais Royal or the Tuileries, she is installed at the Hotel de Ville, where she is on the point of giving an heir or an heiress to that dear duke”
”You didn't tell etfulness then; pardon me”
”Now,” asked Athos, ”what are we to do with ourselves till evening? Here we are without occupation, it seeet, my friend, that we have work cut out for us in the direction of Charenton; I hope to see Monsieur de Chatillon, who time, there”
”Why have you hated hiny”
”Ah, true! he who presumed to be a rival of yours, for which he was severely punished; that ought to satisfy you”
”'Yes, but it does not; I ama that proves me to be a churchman Do you understand? You understand that you are in no way obliged to go with ”
”In that case, my dear friend, if you are resolved to accompany me there is no time to lose; the drum beats; I observed cannon on the road; I saw the citizens in order of battle on the Place of the Hotel de Ville; certainly the fight will be in the direction of Charenton, as the Duc de Chatillon said”
”I supposed,” said Athos, ”that last night's conferences would eht, none the less, if only to mask the conferences”
”Poor creatures!” said Athos, ”who are going to be killed, in order that Monsieur de Bouillon may have his estate at Sedan restored to hiiven to the Duc de Beaufort, and that the coadjutor may be made a cardinal”
”Come, come, dear Athos, confess that you would not be so philosophical if your Raoul were to be involved in this affair”
”Perhaps you speak the truth, Ara is, for that is the nan, Porthos, and possibly even Raoul Stop, there are a fine body of citizens passing; quite attractive, by Jupiter! and their captain--see! he has the true military style”
”What, ho!” said Grimaud
”What?” asked Athos
”Planchet, sir”
”Lieutenant yesterday,” said Aramis, ”captain to-day, colonel, doubtless, to-ht the felloill be ht,” said Athos
Planchet, prouder than ever of his new duties, deigned to explain to the two gentlemen that he was ordered to take up his position on the Place Royale with two hundredthe rear of the army of Paris, and to march on Charenton when necessary
”This day will be a warm one,” said Planchet, in a warlike tone
”No doubt,” said Aramis, ”but it is far from here to the enemy”
”Sir, the distance will be diminished,” said a subordinate
Ara toward Athos: ”I don't care to camp on the Place Royale with all these people,” he said ”Shall we go forward? We shall see better what is going on”
”And then Monsieur de Chatillon will not come to the Place Royale to look for you Coo forward”
”Haven't you so to say to Monsieur de Flamarens on your own account?”
”My friend,” said Athos, ”I have made a resolution never to draw my sword save when it is absolutely necessary”
”And how long ago was that?”
”When I last drew my poniard”
”Ah! Good! another souvenir of Monsieur Mordaunt Well,except that you should feel re killed that fellow”
”Hush!+” said Athos, putting a finger on his lips, with the sad smile peculiar to hi bad luck” And Athos set forward toward Charenton, followed closely by Aramis
78 The Battle of Charenton
As Athos and Aramis proceeded, and passed different co near the field of battle
”Ah! ht us? I fancy I perceive around us faces of different officers in the royal ar toward us with his brigadiers?”
”Good-day, sirs,” said the duke, advancing; ”you are puzzled by what you see here, but one ill explain everything There is now a truce and a conference The prince, Monsieur de Retz, the Duc de Beaufort, the Duc de Bouillon, are talking over public affairs Now one of two things ed, or they will be arranged, in which last case I shall be relieved of ain”