And the old man lowered his
eyes, while Paul looked out of the window, and thrilled all
over. Circumstances made things very difficult for Madame to leave the
southern country where she was at present, but she had a very strong desire
to see the Excellency again--if such meeting could be managed.
He paused, and Paul exclaimed that of course it could be managed, and he
could start that night.
But Dmitry shook his head. That would be impossible, he said. Much planning
would be needed first. A yacht must be taken, and not until the end of May
would it be safe for the Excellency to journey south. At that time Madame
would be in a chateau on the seacoast, and if the Excellency in his cruise
could be within sight, he might possibly land at a suitable moment and see
her for a few hours.
Paul thought of Captain Grigsby.
"I will come in a yacht, whenever I may," he said to Dmitry.
So they began to settle details. Paul imagined from Dmitry continuing to
call his Queen plain "Madame" that she still wished to preserve her
incognito, so, madly as he desired to know, he would wait until he saw her
face to face, and then ask to be released from his promise. The time had
come when he could bear the mystery no longer, but he would not question
Dmitry. All his force was turned to extracting every detail of his
darling's health and well-being from the old servant, and in his guarded,
respectful manner he answered all he could.
Pages:
178
179
180
181
182
183
184
185
186
187
188
189
190
191
192
193
194
195
196
197
198
199
200
201
202