CHAPTER XXX
FONTAINEBLEAU
"Where are we? Will this road never end?"
The voice of La Valentinois cut sharply into the warm, moonlit night;and De Lorgnac, who was standing near the window of the coach, answered:
"We are at the end of the plain of La Brie, madame, and have stopped tochange your horses and breathe ours."
From over his shoulder I caught a glimpse of a beautiful, sullen face,and La Valentinois sank back again amongst her cushions, where we lefther to her thoughts--such thoughts they must have been!
It was the first time she had spoken since we left the Louvre, whilstall the bells of Paris were chiming vespers. She had uttered never aword of protest, even when her Syrian was prevented from accompanyingher, with the meaning order: "By the Queen's command!" and through thehours, as the coach, drawn by four horses at a gallop, jolted and swungover the weary road, she lay back, still as a stone, her eyes closed asif she slept.
Now and again as I rode by her window I had glanced into the coach; butnever was there any change in her position, and it was only when wehalted at the post-house that her pent-up fury broke out into an angryquestion, to relapse at once into an air of frozen indifference.
The escort had dismounted, and stood with their horses in two darkgroups in the front and in the rear of the coach. There was hurry andstir in the post-house at the unexpected coming of the great Duchess;and De Lorgnac and I, having given our horses to a trooper to hold,paced slowly together to and fro, now and again exchanging a word.
Suddenly, almost in answer to the thoughts that moved me, he stopped,and putting a hand to my shoulder, said:
"Look you, Orrain! The game is not yet won. She has a last card."
"I feel that. It is what I think."
"If she plays on the King's madness for her she may win all,unless----" And he put down his hand, and hesitated.
"Unless what?"
"The gossip is true that the King bitterly regrets the infamous granthe made to her, and would give his right hand to escape from his word."
"Le Brusquet is certain of it. He was there when the grant was made,if you remember."
"In that case there is but one course open to her, and she will takeit. She will, as if of her own accord, surrender the grant, aftergetting the pardon of Mademoiselle de Paradis. Thus, though balked atpresent, she will retain her hold on the King, and wait for anotherday."
"I care not what she does so long as mademoiselle is saved."
"The horses are ready, messieurs." It was Pierrebon, whom I hadordered to accompany me, who broke in upon our talk, and five minuteslater we were once more upon our way, the still figure within the coachimmovable and silent as ever.
All through the night we rode, and at last, when the moon sank and thedarkness that precedes the dawn came, we clattered through the narrowstreets of Bois-le-Roi, and entered the forest of Fontainebleau.
In a moment the clear, cloudless sky, in which a stray star or so yetlingered, as if awaiting the day, vanished from our view, and weplunged into an endless avenue of mighty trees, the overarchingbranches forming an arcade above us. As we swept into the shadow thelamps of the coach threw the gnarled trunks into fantastic shapes, thatseemed to live and move. It was as if we raced between two rows ofgrisly phantoms, things of air, that vainly reached forth long,writhing arms to stay us, only to sink back and dissolve into the gloomas we sped past.
After a while we came upon more open ground, now and again passing thefires of a beater's camp, and then, on rounding a turn, we saw risingbefore us the vast irregular outlines of the Chateau. Ten minuteslater the coach swung through the gates, and, white with foam and dust,the horses were pulled up before the Horseshoe Stair. It was not yetdawn; but lights were glittering everywhere, and the Chateau wasalready astir, for the King never spared himself, or others, at thechase. Indeed, that and a tourney were the only two things which evermoved his dull spirit to action. Our coming was a complete surprise;but the broad steps of the stairway were already crowded, and soon amurmuring, curious throng had gathered about the coach.
I myself opened the door, and as I offered La Valentinois my arm toassist her to alight I said in a low voice:
"We cannot give you much time, madame. It must be before the Kingstarts."
Her eyes flashed defiantly, but she made no answer, and, declining myproffered aid, stepped out lightly. She stood for a moment on thelowest step of the stair, a tall, hooded figure, the lights of thetorches playing on her, and all bowing respectfully; and then DeLorgnac called out in a loud voice:
"Madame would see his Majesty the King!"
Almost on his words a lean shadow came running down the steps towardsus. By the lights of the torches flickering through the grey of themorning I saw it was Simon of Orrain himself. La Valentinois saw himtoo, and stood motionless until he came up to her. Simon's eyes blazedwith a hundred unasked questions, but he merely said:
"His Majesty has just heard of your return, madame, and is overjoyed.It will be a great hunt to-day. Permit me!" And then he caught sightof me, and started back, his half-outstretched arm falling to his side,his lips curled back in a snarl.
"You keep madame waiting, Monsieur le Vidame," I said, "and herbusiness is of vital import."
He was about to answer when La Valentinois placed her hand on his arm,and muttering something under his breath, Simon turned and led her upthe stairway, all bowing as though she were the Queen. Whilst the twowent up, they began to talk in low, hurried tones, and twice Simonlooked back at me, the hate of a devil in his glance. Most of thosepresent followed them; but there still remained many who crowded aroundus buzzing with questions; but we put them aside, saying we were weary,and needed rest.
As the red dawn came I found myself seated on a wooden bench near myhorse's stable wondering, fearing, and hoping. The escort had beendismissed by De Lorgnac, with orders to return to Paris under M. deTolendal, as soon as the horses were rested, and De Lorgnac himself hadgone off somewhere. So two hours must have passed, and it seemed to methat the movement in the courtyards and in the Chateau grew less andless. Presently half a dozen huntsmen, leading their hounds, passedclose to me, talking in loud and aggrieved tones.
"_Mille diables_!" exclaimed one. "To think it is all off!"
"Never have I known the like!" said another.
"What has happened, my friends?" I asked; and the first speaker replied:
"The hunt is put off, monsieur. Put off, after we had marked down thelargest and fiercest boar in France! As high as that!" And he heldhis palm out almost on a level with his breast.
"Ay; and as grey as my beard," put in another, a little, shrivelled oldman. "He has the devil on his side, that boar. Five times has heescaped. Three of my best hounds has he slain. For a whole week haveI tracked him through the Dormoir, and now that we have him safe in hislair in the Gorges d'Apremont--the King does not hunt! He has thedevil on his side, I say!"
"Way! Way for Monsieur le Vidame's horse!" called out a stridentvoice, and a groom came up, leading a big white horse ready saddled.The huntsmen moved aside, and the groom led the horse towards theChateau; but ere he had gone ten steps Simon himself appeared hasteningtowards him.
Simon was still in his hunting suit of close-fitting dark green, ashort cloak thrown over his shoulder, and long boots that reached tohis thighs. His sword was slung scabbardless to his side, and he worea baret on his head, with a single cock's feather in it, underneathwhich his pale face looked like that of a corpse.
As he came forward hastily towards his horse, his shoulders bent, andhis wolf's eyes fixed before him, there was that in his air which wasominous of danger, and, springing to my feet, I drew my sword andstepped towards him. He saw me too, and came up like a truculent dog.We both reached the horse almost at the same time, and I fully expectedhim to draw on me at once; but stopping, he said:
"You seem to forget, brother, that the edict applies to Fontainebleauas well a
s the Louvre."
"Not in the least; but one is allowed to kill vermin in the forest."
He glanced at me in speechless, blue-lipped rage. Twice his handsought the hilt of his sword, and twice he drew it back. But that Iknew him utterly fearless I might have thought his heart had failed himas he stood before me, the veins swollen on his forehead, and hisfingers twitching convulsively. At last he found voice, and, laughingharshly, said:
"Not now; give me twenty-four hours, brother, and then as you wish, or,rather, whether you wish or not."
"So be it," I answered, and he laughed again, bitter, mirthlesslaughter, and reached out for the reins of his horse; but ere hemounted he turned once more on me, another gust of anger shaking hisframe.
"Look you! You think you have beaten me because you have beaten thatblack-eyed strumpet who bewitches the King. I tell you I hold her inthe hollow of my hand, and she cannot buy from me what she has boughtfrom you. As for you, you have stood in my way long enough; neveragain shall it be. Fool! think you I cannot read your soul? Think youI will let you win the prize I should have won? I promise you that, inthese twenty-four hours, which will make you long for death--I, Simonof Orrain, swear it!"
With this he swung round, and, springing into the saddle, went off at agallop, leaving me staring after him, wondering what devilry lay behindhis words. I watched him till he rounded the elbow of the wood thatlay without the gates, and then, sheathing my sword, went slowlytowards the Horseshoe Stair.
Under other circumstances I should have looked with wonder andadmiration on the magnificent pile that the splendour of the late Kinghad erected on the old-time fortress of Louis VII, but, as it was, Ipaced up and down the Cour du Cheval Blanc, gazing at the wide stairwayand the silent walls, every minute that passed seeming an hour to me inmy impatience. At last I saw a figure at the head of the Horseshoe.It was De Lorgnac, and he beckoned to me. In a moment I was by hisside.
"Have you heard anything?" I asked.
"Nothing."
"She has had three hours." And I pointed to the sun.
"You must give her time. It will be sufficient if we hear by noon."
Then I told him of Simon and his strange departure, and whilst we spoketogether Carnavalet, one of the chamberlains, appeared, and walkedleisurely up to us.
"Messieurs," he said, "you are wanted. Have the goodness to follow me."
The Galerie de Cerfs, into which Carnavalet took us, was all thatremained in the modern Chateau of the old hunting-lodge and fortress ofthe Kings of France, and, despite the trophies of the chase andtapestries that hung to its walls, it still retained the grim andforbidding aspect of the past.
It was used as an ante-room, not only to the King's apartments but tothe council chamber, and was crowded when we entered. Placing us neara pillar Carnavalet bade us wait until he returned, and threading hisway through the press passed through a door at the extreme end of thegallery that led to the private apartments of the King.
Many and curious were the glances cast at us as we stood there,dust-begrimed and travel-stained; and a number of those whom we had putoff in the early morning swarmed round us again with their endlessquestions, which we were hard pressed to parry.
Almost beside us was another door, opening into the council chamber,and interest seemed to be divided between us and what was passingthere. It was clear that something of importance was in the air, forsecretaries came out and went in with quick, rapid steps, and bundlesof documents under their arms, and every now and again a messengerwould hurry forth, and we could hear the clattering of his horse'shoofs as he galloped away.
De Lorges, the captain of the Archer Guard, joined us just as one ofthe express riders hurried past.
"I wager a hundred pistoles against a flask of Joue that means an endof the Spanish peace," he said, with a laugh, and rubbing his handstogether. "I am sick of these rusting times. They say that Colignyhas attacked Douai already. Ah! here he comes!"
He turned as he spoke towards the entrance of the gallery, and at oncethe subdued hum of voices stilled to silence, and the crowd of gailyclad courtiers parted, making way with low bows for someone who hadjust entered. For a second I thought it was the King himself; but alook showed me not the King but the stern figure of the Constable ofFrance.
Montmorenci walked up the gallery, glancing to the right and left ofhim from under his bushy white brows, now and then returning asalutation. He was in complete mail, all except his helmet, which wasborne by a page behind him, and his sinister appearance accorded wellwith his terrible fame. He was of middle height, with broad andprominent shoulders, and hair as white as snow. His face, tanned to adark brown by constant exposure, was stern, and yet sad, with fierce,bloodshot eyes set far back in his head, and the grimness of hiscountenance was enhanced by the two projecting teeth which stuck outfrom his lower jaw like a boar's tusks.
He came forward slowly, bearing himself with princely dignity, and whenhe got near to us he stopped, and addressing Lorgnac, whom he knew,inquired:
"From Douai?"
"No, monseigneur; from Paris."
"I must ask the Queen to spare me her hard riders," repliedMontmorenci, with a grim smile, as he pointed at our dust-soiledapparel, and passed on into the council room.
"It is war, as sure as I stand here," exclaimed De Lorges; and at oncea hubbub of voices arose, in the midst of which Carnavalet appeared,and beckoned to us. It took us a little time to reach him, but on ourdoing so he passed us through the door at once, entering with us, andclosing it after him. Then pointing to the curtains before him, hesaid:
"The King awaits you there, messieurs. Enter!"
So tremendous was the issue for me that now that the crisis had come Ifelt for the moment almost unable to move. But De Lorgnac gripped meby the arm.
"Come," he said; "we either win or lose all in the next five minutes.Come!"
With this he set aside the curtains, and we passed through.
There were but three persons in the room we entered. The King wasstanding, a hand resting on the back of the chair in which LaValentinois sat, as radiantly lovely as though all the fatigues of thenight had never been. A little behind them was Bertrandi, the keeperof the seals, a lean, ascetic figure, holding a paper in his hands, andeyeing us with a vulpine curiosity. Somewhat to my surprise the Kingreceived us graciously, saying:
"_Eh bien_, messieurs, you have served madame here well, and in doingso have served me. Have they not, Diane?" And he began toying withthe black curls of her hair. La Valentinois looked up at him, a worldof tenderness in her glance, but made no reply, and we remained silent,struck dumb by the infinite resource of her audacity. Evil as she wasit was impossible not to admire her courage; and, as De Lorgnac hadrightly foreseen, she had played a great game, but even we were farfrom guessing the extent to which her duplicity would carry her.
"Messieurs," the King went on, "madame has joined her entreaty to thatof the Queen for the life of Mademoiselle de Paradis, and verywillingly and from my heart have I signed this pardon." With this hetook the paper Bertrandi held and placed it in Diane's hands.
"I give this to you, _mignonne_," he said, "for from you comes themercy of France. Give it to these gentlemen to bear to the Queen; andfor the present I must leave you for an hour, for the council awaitsme. Come, Bertrandi." With these bald words, delivered in a stiltedfashion, his voice only warming as he bade _au revoir_ to LaValentinois, the King left us, followed by Bertrandi.