CHAPTER XII.
ANDREA IN FAVOR.
At three in the afternoon Mdlle. de Taverney came out of her roomsdressed to perform her duty as reader to the princess.
On reaching the Trianon Summerhouse she was told that her mistress wasin the grounds with her architect and head-gardener. In the upper storycould be heard the whizz of the turning-lathe with which the Dauphin wasbusy making a safety lock for a chest which he thought a great deal of.
To join the Dauphiness, Andrea crossed the garden where, although theseason had come on the pale flowers were lifting their heads to catchthe fleeting rays of a still paler sun. Dark came at six, and thegardeners were covering the plants from the frost with glass bells.
On the lawn at the end of a walk hedged with trimmed trees and Bengalroses, Andrea suddenly perceived one of these men who, on seeing her,rose from stooping over his spade and saluted her with more grace andpoliteness than a common man could do. Looking she recognized Gilbert,whom she had seen from a child on her father's estate. She blushed inspite of herself, for the presence of this ex-retainer seemed a verycurious kindness of destiny.
He repeated the salute and she had to return it as she passed on. Butshe was too courageous and straight-forward a creature to resist amovement of the spirit and leave a question unanswered of her disturbedsoul.
She retraced her steps, and Gilbert, who had lost color and was eyeingher ominously, returned to life and made a spring to arrive before her.
"How do you happen to be here, Gilbert?" she began.
"A man must live, and honestly."
"Well, you ought to be happy in such a position!"
"I am very happy indeed to be here."
"Who helped you to the place?"
"Dr. Jussieu, a patron of mine. He is a friend of another patron, thegreat Rousseau."
"Good luck, Gilbert," said Andrea, preparing to go.
"I hope you are better--after your accident?" ventured the young man inso quivering a voice that one could see that it came from a vibratingheart.
"Yes, thanks," she coldly answered. "It did not amount to anything."
"Why, you came near dying--the danger was dreadful," said Gilbert, atthe hight of emotion.
Andrea perceived by this that it was high time that she cut short thischat in the open with a royal gardener.
"Will you not have a rose?" questioned he, shivering.
"Why, how can you offer what is not yours?" she demanded.
He looked at her surprised and overcome, but as she smiled withsuperciliousness, he broke off a branch of the finest rose-tree andbegan to pluck the flowers and cast them down with a noble coolnesswhich impressed even this haughty Patrician girl.
She was too good and fair-dealing not to see that she had wantonlywounded the feelings of an inferior who had only been polite to her.Like all proud ones feeling guilty of a fault, she resumed her strollwithout a word, although the excuse was on her lips.
"Gilbert did not speak either; he tossed aside the rose-twig and took upthe spade again, bending to work but also to see Andrea go away. At theturning of the walk she could not help looking back--for she was awoman.
"Hurrah!" he said to himself; "she is not so strong as me and I shallmaster her yet. Overbearing with her beauty, title and fortune nowrising, insolent to me because she divines that I love her, she onlybecomes the more desirable to the poor workingman who still trembles ashe looks upon her. Confound this trembling, unworthy of a man! but sheshall pay some day for the cowardice she makes me feel. I have doneenough this day in making her give in," he added. "I should have beenthe weaker as I love her, but I was ten times the stronger."
He repeated these words with savage delight, struck his spade deep intothe ground and started to cut across the lawn to intercept the younglady at another path when he caught sight of a gentleman in the alley upwhich Andrea was proceeding in hopes to meet her royal mistress.
This gentleman wore a velvet suit under a cloak trimmed deeply withsable; he carried his head high; his hat was under his arm, and his lefthand was on his sword. He stuck out his leg, which was well made, andthrew up his ankle which was high, like a man of the finest training. Onseeing him, Gilbert uttered involuntarily a low exclamation and fledthrough the sumach bushes like a frightened blackbird.
The nobleman spied Andrea and without quickening his measured gait hemanoevred so as to meet her at the end of a cross-path.
Hearing the steps, she turned a little aside to let the promenader passher and she glanced at him when he had done so.
He looked at her, and with all his eyes; he stopped to get a better viewand turning round, said:
"May I ask why you are running so fast, young lady?"
At this, Andrea saw, thirty paces behind, two royal lifeguards officers,she spied the blue ribbon under the speaker's mantle, and she faltered,pale and alarmed by this encounter and accosting:
"The King!"
"I have such poor sight that I am obliged to inquire your name?"returned the monarch, approaching as she courtseyed lowly.
"I am Mdlle. de Taverney," she murmured, so confused and trembling thatshe hardly made herself understood.
"Oh, yes; are you making a voyage of discovery in the place?"
"I am going to join her Royal Highness, the Dauphiness, whom I am inattendance," replied Andrea more and more agitated.
"I will see you to her," said the King, "for I am going to mygrand-daughter-in-law to pay her a call like a country neighbor. So,kindly accept my arm."
Andrea felt her sight dimmed and her blood boiling up in her heart. Likea dream appeared this honor to the impoverished nobleman's daughter, tobe on the arm of the lord overall--a glory despaired of, an incrediblefavor which the whole court would covet. She made a profound courtesy soreligiously shrinking that the King was obliged to return it with a bow.When Louis XV. remembered his sire, he did so in ceremonious matters: itis true that French royal attentions to the fair sex dated back to KingHarry Fourth of gallant memory.
Though the King was not fond of walking, he took the longest way roundto the Trianon: the two guards officers in attendance saw this as theywere not any too warmly clad.
They arrived late as the Dauphiness had started, not to keep her lordand master waiting. They, too, were at the table, with Lady Noailles,nicknamed, "Lady Stickler," so rigid about etiquet was she, and the Dukeof Richelieu in attendance, when the servant' voices echoed through thehouse:
"The King!"
At this magic word, Lady Noailles jumped up as if worked by a spring;Richelieu rose leisurely as usual; the Dauphin wiped his mouth with hisnapkin and stood up in his place, with his face turned to the door.
The Dauphiness moved towards the door to meet the visitor the sooner anddo him the honors of the house.
Louis was still holding Andrea by the hand and only at the landing didhe release her, saluting her with so long and courteous a bow thatRichelieu had time to notice the grace of it, and wonder to what happymortal it was addressed.
The Dauphiness had seen and recognized Andrea.
"Daughter," said Louis taking the Austrian's arm, "I come withoutceremony to ask supper. I crossed the park and meeting Mdlle. deTaverney on the road I entreated her to keep me company."
"The Taverney girl?" muttered Richelieu, almost stunned. "By my faith,this is very lucky, for she is daughter of an old friend of mine."
"The consequence is that, instead of scolding the young lady for beinglate, I shall thank her for having brought your Majesty," said theDauphiness pleasantly.
Red as the cherries garnishing a dish on the table, Andrea bowed withoutreplying.
"Deuce take me but she is very lovely," thought Richelieu, "and that oldrogue Taverney never sang her up highly enough."
After receiving the bow of the Dauphin, Louis sat at table, where aplace was always reserved for him. Endowed with a good appetite like hisancestors, he did honor to the spread which the steward had ready as ifby magic. But while eating, the King, whose bac
k was to the door,fidgetted as though he was looking for somebody or something.
The fact was Mdlle. de Taverney, having no fixed position in thehousehold, had not entered the dining-room but after bowing to theDauphin and his lady, went into the sitting-room where she was wont toread to her mistress.
The Dauphiness guessed whom her royal relative was looking for.
"Lieut. Coigny," she said to a young officer behind the King: "Will youplease request Mdlle. de Taverney to come here. With the leave of LadyNoailles we will derogate from the regulations to-night."
In another instant, Andrea came in, trembling as she could notunderstand this accumulation of favors.
"Find a place there, by the Dauphiness," said the Dauphin.
She went upon the raised platform for the Royalties, and had what seemedthe audacity to sit within one step of Lady Noailles. She received sucha withering glance from the latter that the poor girl recoiled at leastfour feet as though she had been shocked by an electrical discharge.
Louis the King smiled as he saw this.
"Why, here are things running along so smoothly," thought old Richelieu,"that there will hardly be any need of my helping them."
The King turned on the marshal who was prepared to meet his look.
"How do you do, duke?" he said; "are you still chiming in with LadyNoailles?"
"Sire, the duchess is good enough still to treat me like awhipping-post."
"I suppose you have been on the road to Chanteloup?"
"I, Sire? I have all the _cheering_ news I desire from your Majesty tomy house."
"What have I done for you?" asked the King, who had not expected thisretort and did not like to be jested with when he had wanted to have hisfun.
"Sire, your Majesty has given my nephew Aiguillon the command of theRoyal Light-horse. To do that for a nobleman who has many foes, all yourMajesty's energy and statecraft were required--it is almost a movementof Royalty itself against all comers."
This was at the end of the repast; the King just waited an instantbefore he rose. Conversation might have embarrassed him: but Richelieudid not want to release his prey. While the King was chatting with theothers he worked round so dextrously as to have an opening to say:
"Sire, it is well-known that success emboldens a man."
"Are you bold, then, duke?"
"I make so bold as to ask for another boon after the many I am thankingyour Majesty for: it is for an old comrade of mine, a good old friend,and one of your Majesty's best servitors. He has a son in the army. Heis a young man of merit but wants the purse. An august princess hasgratified him with the brevet rank of captain but he has no company tocommand."
"Is the princess my daughter?" asked the King.
"Yes, Sire, and the young gentleman is the son and heir of BaronTaverney."
"My father!" Andrea could not help exclaiming, "Philip? do you beg acompany for my brother, Philip?"
Ashamed of her breach of etiquet in speaking without the Royals puttinga question, she fell back a step, blushing and wringing her hands. TheKing turned to admire her blushes and emotion; then he gave the wilycourtier a glance teaching him how agreeable the request was by reasonof its timeliness.
"Really, the young chevalier is charming and I promised to make hisfortune," struck in the Dauphiness; "How unhappy we princes are! When wehave the willingness to oblige, heaven bereaves us of memory or reason.Ought I not have thought that the young gentleman might lack lucre andthat the rank was a snare without the soldiers to back it?"
"Why, lady, how could your Highness have known?"
"But I did know," interrupted the Austrian, recalling the glimpse shehad at the poverty-stricken abode of the Taverneys on her passingthrough Touraine; "and I ought to have thought of that when I gave therank."
The King looked at the speaker's noble and open countenances: then hiseyes fell on Richelieu's, also illumined by a ray of their generosityreflected.
"Duke," he whispered, "I shall be embroiled with La Dubarry. But," heproceeded aloud, turning to Andrea, "do you tell me that this willafford you pleasure?"
"I entreat it," she said, clasping her hands.
"It is granted then," said Louis. "Duke, select a good company for theyoung hero. I will provide the expenses if it is not fully raised andall paid for."
This good action rejoiced all the attendants. It earned the donor aheavenly smile from Andrea, and a grateful one from the same toRichelieu.
Some visitors dropped in, among them the Cardinal Prince Rohan who paidassiduous court to the Dauphiness. But the King had attention and sugarywords solely for Richelieu that evening. He took the joyous old marshalwith him when he left to go home. Andrea was relieved by the Dauphinesswho said:
"You will want to send this good piece of news to your parent in town.You can retire."
Preceded by a lackey carrying a lantern, the young lady crossed thegrounds to her part of the palace. Before her, from bush to bush,bounded what seemed a shadow in the foliage; it was Gilbert whosesparkling eyes watched her every movement. When Andrea was left at thedoorway, the footman returned. Thereupon Gilbert went up to his room inthe stable lofts, where his window overlooked the girl's at the corner.
He saw her call a strange waiting-woman who let the curtains fall likean impenetrable veil betwixt the beloved object and the young lover'sburning gaze.