Part 53 (1/2)
”How soon shall we settle this?” snapped Chabrillane, livid with very real fury
”Whenever you please, monsieur It is for you to say when it will suit your convenience to kill me I think that was the intention you announced, was it not?” Andre-Louis was suavity itself
”To- a friend”
”Certainly, , then I hope we shall have fine weather I detest the rain”
Chabrillane looked at him almost with amazement Andre-Louis smiled pleasantly
”Don't let me detain you now, monsieur We quite understand each other
I shall be in the Bois at nine o'clock to-”
”That is too late for me, monsieur”
”Any other hour would be too early for me I do not like to have my habits disturbed Nine o'clock or not at all, as you please”
”But Isession”
”I am afraid, monsieur, you will have to killkilled before nine o'clock”
Now this was too complete a subversion of the usual procedure for M
de Chabrillane's sto with him precisely the tone of sinister mockery which his class usually dealt out to their victihten the irritation, Andre-Louis--the actor, Scaramouche always--produced his snuffbox, and proffered it with a steady hand to Le Chapelier before helping himself
Chabrillane, it seemed, after all that he had suffered, was not even to be allowed to ood exit
”Very well, monsieur,” he said ”Nine o'clock, then; and we'll see if you'll talk as pertly afterwards”
On that he flung away, before the jeers of the provincial deputies Nor did it soothe his rage to be laughed at by urchins all the way down the Rue Dauphine because of the mud and filth that dripped froant, striped coat
But though the members of the Third had jeered on the surface, they trenation It was too ron killed by one of these bullies, and now his successor challenged, and about to be killed by another of them on the very first day of his appearance to take the dead o to the Bois, to ignore the challenge and the whole affair, which was but a deliberate attempt to put him out of the way
He listened seriously, shook his head gloomily, and proain for the afternoon session as if nothing disturbed hi, when the assembly met, his place was vacant, and so was M de Chabrillane's Glooht a more than usually acrid note into their debates They disapproved of the rashness of the new recruit to their body Some openly condemned his lack of circuroup in Le Chapelier's confidence--ever expected to see hiain
It was, therefore, as much in amazement as in relief that at a few minutes after ten they saw him enter, calm, composed, and bland, and thread his way to his seat The speaker occupying the rostrued--stopped short to stare in incredulous dis that he could not understand at all Then from somewhere, to satisfy the amazement on both sides of the assembly, a voice explained the phenomenon contemptuously
”They haven't met He has shi+rked it at the last ht all; theback into their seats But now, having reached his place, having heard the voice that explained the matter to the universal satisfaction, Andre-Louis paused before taking his seat He felt it incumbent upon him to reveal the true fact
”M le President, my excuses for my late arrival” There was no necessity for this It was a mere piece of theatricality, such as it was not in Scarae you also the excuses of M de Chabrillane He, unfortunately, will be permanently absent from this assembly in future”