CHAPTER XV.
Before a mirror of the most beautiful polish that it was possible toconceive, and a toilet table covered with all the most costly essencesand perfumes which could be procured from the four quarters of theglobe, appeared the Duchess of Valentinois, seated in a large armchairof rich velvet, towards nine o'clock in the evening of the day whereofwe have just been speaking. She was clothed in a dressing-gown of silvertissue, and all the stately and somewhat cumbrous apparel of the day hadbeen put off, while, with three maids all busy about her person, she wasdressing for the assembly of the court, which was to be held thatevening. Nor did she appear in the least the less lovely that she waswithout any of the additions that dress and ornament sometimes make tobeauty; nor, strange to say, did she appear less young when thusunassisted by art, than even when dressed in the most sumptuous mode ofthe court. The eye of the woman who was combing her long, rich,luxuriant brown hair, detected not one silver thread marking the passingof years among the rest. The teeth were as white and pearly as those ofyouth. The brow and neck without a furrow ploughed by the hand of time.
On a footstool at the lady's feet sat a very lovely girl, bearing in hercountenance a slight resemblance to herself. She was already dressedwith great splendour, and sat looking up in the face of the duchess, asif admiring and wondering at the beauty which seemed to set even thegreat destroyer of all things at defiance.
The duchess, upon her part, looked down at her with pleasure andaffection, calling her "Ma belle Henriette," and, parting the hairfarther away from her brows with her own hands, she said, "You must lookyour loveliest to-night, Henrietta; for you must do much in the way ofcaptivation."
The girl smiled playfully, and replied, "No, no! that were bad policy; Iwould rather not look so lovely now as afterward. His love, at present,I can count upon. But I must try and be more captivating hereafter, tokeep it when he is my husband."
The duchess smiled in turn: "Ah, my Henrietta," she said, "the love ofman is not so difficult to keep, if woman do but use the same efforts toretain it that she does to win it. We often make men fickle who would befaithful, thinking that to captivate them once is all-sufficient. Howmany do I daily see, Henrietta, who take all imaginable pains to winaffection; who are gay and cheerful, courteous and kind, willing toplease and ready to be pleased; robing themselves, as it were, in smallgraces and sweet allurements; and who, when the object is attained, castaway, at once, every effort; are dull and cheerless, exacting, sullen,and harsh, and then wonder that the won heart is lost more quickly thanit was gained! When children catch flies, my Henrietta, they put notdown a drop of honey, which the insects can eat and fly away. There mustbe enough honey to keep them, my child."
"It is a lesson that I will remember," replied Henriette de la Mark."But, as I have always thought, dear lady, that it is happiness we seek,and not admiration, I trust I should never have forgotten that the samemeans must be taken to keep affection that are used to win it. But hark!there are manifold sounds below. Surely the guests are not arrivingalready?"
The question was soon answered; for, a moment after, one of the femaleattendants was called to the door, and returned to tell the duchess thattwo gentleman had arrived in haste, and anxiously desired to speak withher. She turned towards the woman with somewhat of angry scorn in hercountenance, asking if they had been told that she was at her toilet.The woman replied in the affirmative; but that they had, nevertheless,urged the important nature of their business.
"Bid them send me their names," replied the duchess, after thinking fora moment. "Meyrand's letter declared that he would soon be here. Perhapshe has come himself."
It was as she thought. But the other name which the servant brought backwas that of the Lord of Masseran.
"Bid them wait but a moment," replied the duchess. "I will not be long.Tie up my hair, Laurette, in a large knot. Any how, any how; but bequick."
Then, drawing the dressing-gown more closely round her, and preceded byone of her women bearing a light, she descended to a saloon below,making a sign to Henriette de la Mark to remain till she returned.
Standing near a table in the room which Diana of Poitiers now entered,appeared the tall and graceful Count de Meyrand, and the dark-lookingand subtle Marquis of Masseran. Each, to a certain degree, retained hisusual aspect, though neither could entirely banish from his countenancethe varied emotions which were busy at his heart. Graceful and dignifiedin demeanour Meyrand still was. Indeed, it was so much a matter of habitwith him to act with ease and calm self-possession, that they couldnever be entirely lost; but still his usual air of indifference wasgone, and there was an eager impatience in his eye which marked thatstrong and busy passions were agitating him within. On the other hand,the look of calm subtlety, which was the reigning expression of thecountenance of the Lord of Masseran, but which we have already seen, onmore than one occasion, give way to fiercer passions, had now yielded toan expression of restless disquietude, while his eye turned sharp andflashing at every sound.
On the appearance of Madame de Valentinois, the count advanced withsigns of low and humble homage, and raised the hand which she profferedhim respectfully to his lips. The Lord of Masseran came a step behind,and then a momentary pause took place. It was broken, however, by theduchess herself, who was much too impatient to learn the cause of theirsudden arrival to wait till it was explained in the course ofconversation.
"Welcome to Paris, Monsieur de Meyrand!" she said. "But say, what is itthat brings you here at this hour? It must be business of importance, Iam sure."
"Nothing but business of immediate moment, madam, would have induced methus to trespass upon you," replied the count; "but I have myselfarrived within this half hour in the capital. I came, I confess, withsome wrongful suspicions of my good friend the Marquis of Masseran here,in regard to the lady of whom I wrote to you. I fancied that he had beeninstrumental in preventing me from executing my purpose of bringing herwith all speed to the presence of the king. His manner, and his solemnassurances, however, madam, both show me that I was mistaken; and itwould appear--"
"But stay, stay, Monsieur de Meyrand," said the duchess; "first tell meexactly what is the case, and how you and Monsieur de Masseran areinterested in the business. I remember well Mademoiselle de Brienne, ofwhom you speak, and a sweet girl she was, well fitted to set anycavalier's heart on fire, so that I can easily conceive that yours wastouched, Monsieur de Meyrand, with that same flame of love. But, if allfriends agree, the lady surely can never have such great objections toyourself as not to be won by less forcible means than those you seem tohave been using. I will speak with her: I will see what can be done. Letme thank you, my good lord, for the tidings you sent me concerning theedict: I have turned them this day to good advantage. But still the kingis not easily won in this matter."
"By Heaven! madam," replied Meyrand, vehemently, "he must be won, andthat right soon, or all will go wrong with us. But hear me, dearestlady! hear me out. You have a faint and very wrong idea of all thisaffair. We are all deeply concerned; and, pardon me for saying it, butyour own wishes and excellent views are closely and intimately connectedwith our objects and purposes. You ask for a frank and candidexplanation: you shall have it in a very few words. The Lord of Masseranand I are equally, but somewhat differently, interested in this matter.I am moved in some degree, as you are pleased to say, by love. Yes!" headded, "it is so! by love the most strong and passionate; and yet, Iknow not why or how, but something very like hatred mingles with it:deep and bitter indignation at having been made the sport of a meregirl, and determination to force her to be mine or die--"
He paused and bit his lip, and a shade of dissatisfaction came over thebrow of Diana of Poitiers as she listened; but the next moment the countwent on, with a slight sneer.
"The Lord of Masseran is affected otherwise. He, madam, as you know,married the mother of this fair dame; and to this bright Isabel descend,at that mother's death, certain fair estates close to the frontier lineof France and Savoy."
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br /> "I understand, I understand," replied Diana of Poitiers, interruptinghim. "The Count of Meyrand may be easy in his dealings about thoseestates, if he but obtain the hand of the fair lady. Is it not so, mygood lords?"
"Something of the kind, madam," replied the count.
"A treaty of partition! ha?" continued the lady. "Now for the obstacle,and for the manner in which this affects me?"
"The obstacles are somewhat difficult to be encountered, madam," joinedin the Lord of Masseran, "especially as this noble count is somewhat ofa suspicious nature. But, to make a long tale short, madam, there was,it seems, in years long past, a promise made by the old Count of Briennethat his daughter should marry a certain young nobleman named Bernard deRohan. That promise was foolishly committed to writing; but I hold thatit was of course conditional, and requires to be confirmed by theconsent of the mother. The young gentleman we speak of has been longwarring with the armies in Italy; but, called thence, as I believe, bythe young lady herself, who has a marvellous love for her own way, heappeared in Savoy some short time ago. I absented myself for a few daysfrom my own home, making a pretence of coming to Paris, in order to seewhat would take place. But, although I had good information of all thatpassed, what between the young lady's wit and the youth's impudence,they had very nearly won the race. Myself and Monsieur de Meyrand, here,surprised them in the very celebration of a clandestine marriage."
"Were they married? Were they married?" demanded the duchess, eagerly;for, whatever be her own views, woman's heart is rarely without interestin a tale of love.
"There was a ring upon the young lady's finger," replied the Marquis ofMasseran, while the Count de Meyrand stood silent and bit his lip;"farther we know not."
"What did you do next?" exclaimed the lady, with an impatient look,which neither of her two companions thought very favourable to theircause.
"Why," replied the Lord of Masseran, "we separated them, of course; andI carried the young lady some way through the mountains, arranging, infact, a little sort of drama or mystery with my good friend the count,wherein he played the part of deliverer, rescued the young lady from myhands, and, according to our agreement, was bringing her here to Paris,in the trust that you, from wise motives which the count knew you topossess, would support the right of the mother to dispose of herdaughter's hand to whom she pleased."
The marquis, in delivering this account, had paused and hesitatedseveral times, and Diana of Poitiers had remarked that he avoidedcarefully all mention of the after-fate of Bernard de Rohan.
"What has become," she asked at length, interrupting him, and fixing hereye full upon his face, "what has become of the young Baron de Rohan,sir?"
The Lord of Masseran turned his look to the Count de Meyrand withoutanswering; but the duchess went on sternly and impetuously, "I insistupon knowing, sir, what was done in regard to Monsieur de Rohan? Yousurprised him at the very altar, you say! You have gone too far not tosay more!"
"Why, of course, madam, it was necessary to separate them," replied theCount de Meyrand. "Monsieur de Rohan was carried into the chateau of myfriend, Monsieur de Masseran, who kindly and liberally undertakes toprovide the young gentleman with board and lodging for a certain time.No evil was done him, though the very act that he was performing mightwell have justified more violence than was used."
"In short, sir," said the duchess, addressing the Lord of Masseransternly, "in short, sir, you have imprisoned one of the king's very bestofficers and most faithful subjects--the right hand of the Marechal deBrissac--and one who has rendered himself famous in the wars of Italy,and without whose assistance the difficulties which surround the marshalin Piedmont would be terribly augmented."
"Madam," replied the Count de Meyrand, with a slight sneer, which noprudence could repress, at the reputed tenderness of the duchess towardsBrissac, "had we known that Monsieur de Rohan was so absolutelynecessary to your graceful friend, we would have sent him under a strongescort across the mountains, for time was all that we wanted."
"He must speedily be set at liberty," answered the duchess; "for I cannothave it said that anything in which I take a share is connected with atransaction so detrimental to the service of the king; and now, Monsieurde Meyrand, show me in what way you think I am interested in thisaffair."
"Why, madam, you must clearly see--" said the count.
"It matters not what I clearly see, my lord," exclaimed the duchess,interrupting him. "Give me your own showing of the matter."
"Why thus it is," replied the count. "Since I had the honour of bearingto Rome the copy of an edict proposed by the king, you have three orfour times done me the great favour of writing to me, and consultingwith me in regard to the opposition made to that edict, and to the bestmeans of inducing the king to promulgate it. Now, madam, one clause inthat edict annuls all existing marriages which have been contractedwithout the consent of parents or guardians; and you did me the honourto reveal to me that such a clause was absolutely necessary to theproposed marriage of the Duke of Montmorency and the king's daughter,Madame de Farnese, and to that between the constable's second son, theDuc Damville, and your fair relation, Mademoiselle de la Mark. Thatclause is equally necessary to me and to Monsieur de Masseran, in orderthat, the clandestine marriage of Mademoiselle de Brienne with the Baronde Rohan being annulled, she may, with her mother's consent, give herhand to me. Thus, madam, what I pray and beseech you to do is, as theviews of both tend absolutely to the same point, to give us the mostzealous aid and co-operation in persuading the king to promulgate thisedict at once."
Diana of Poitiers paused for a moment in intense thought ere sheanswered, while the two noblemen stood gazing upon her in silence. "Iwill do so," she replied at length; "but, in the first place, Monsieurde Rohan must be set at liberty."
"Madam, that is impossible," exclaimed the Lord of Masseran. "Were heset at liberty, all our plans and prospects are at an end together. Hisvery first act would be to seek this rash, imprudent girl, who thinksherself fully justified by her father's written consent; and, dependupon it, he would soon find means of discovering her, though we cannot."
"Why, in the name of Heaven, where is she?" demanded the duchess. "Why,you said but now, Monsieur de Masseran, that you left her in the count'shands, that he might bring her to Paris."
"Ay, but she escaped from his hands, madam," replied the Lord ofMasseran. "Whether the count is quite innocent of all knowledge offemale wiles, or whether he had been somewhat harsh and importunate withher, I cannot tell; but at the end of the very first day's journey shecontrived to escape from him, how or when no one can discover. I hadcome on to Paris in order to justify the detention of Bernard de Rohan,and, in fact, to give an account of my whole conduct to the king; butthe good count, thinking that I must have some hand in the lady'sflight, followed me hither as rapidly as possible, without takingsufficient time to inquire after her on the spot."
The duchess heard him to an end, but her mind had run on far before her;and she was gazing thoughtfully upon the ground, with various feelingscontending more strongly in her bosom than her two companions imagined.Bernard de Rohan, she well knew, was the dearest friend of one whocertainly possessed her highest esteem--perhaps her highestaffection--the Marechal de Brissac, and she loved not to take any sharein injuring or grieving him. We must say even more. Not being naturallyof a harsh or unkindly disposition, she was anything but disposed toabet such machinations against two people who loved each other; and shecould not but feel at her heart that there existed between the Lord ofMasseran and the Count de Meyrand a dark and shameless conspiracy forfrustrating the intentions of the Count de Brienne, and thwarting theaffections of his daughter. All these considerations opposed themselvesto the very thought of aiding them in their purposes; but yet her ownviews, her own dearest objects, were to be obtained by the same meanswhich tended to promote theirs; and she clearly saw that, if withoutexposing, as she might do, the real views and purposes of the partiesconcerned, she were to bring this case before the king as
a new instanceof a marriage in opposition to the parent's consent, she would instantlyobtain the promulgation of the edict which was so necessary to her owndesigns. She paused, then, and thought, considering, in the first place,the opposing motives which led her this way and that, and afterwardasking herself whether she could not combine the two; whether it was notpossible to use the fact of this clandestine marriage in order to obtainthe king's signature to the edict, without ultimately separating thehands of Bernard de Rohan and Isabel de Brienne. A few moments convincedher that she could do so. The edict would, of course, annul theirmarriage; but then she thought, "the great services of this youngcavalier, the friendship of Brissac, the support of Montmorency, thefather's written consent, will surely be enough to obtain for himafterward the hand of this fair girl from the king himself; at least, mymanagement shall render these things sufficient;" and, trusting that itwould be so, she resolved upon that evil policy of employing bad meansin the hope of directing them to good results; a policy which hasseldom, if ever, yet failed to end in misery and ruin.
"What says the mother?" demanded the duchess, after this long pause.
"Oh, she says the same as myself, of course," replied the Lord ofMasseran.
"Of course!" replied the lady, her lip curling slightly as she spoke. "Ihad forgotten! Is she in Paris?"
"She is here," replied the Lord of Masseran; "and not only ready, buteager, to declare that this marriage has been against her will."
"Indeed!" said the duchess: "and the brother? There is a youth I haveseen about the court, a gay, thoughtless, high-spirited lad, who gainedsome renown under this very Baron de Rohan: what says he to themarriage?"
"Oh! he is too young and thoughtless," replied the Count de Meyrand. "Hehas been asked nothing on the subject, though there is reason to fear,we must not deny, that he would give his voice in favour of his oldcompanion."
"But one thing is clear and certain," added the Lord of Masseran. "Hisconsent was not asked to the marriage; therefore it was without hisapprobation and against the mother's."
"So far so good," replied Diana of Poitiers. "Now mark me, gentlemen,you must leave the whole conduct of this business to me; and if youpledge yourselves to act exactly as I am about to dictate, I, on mypart, will pledge myself to obtain the promulgation of an edictannulling this marriage within twelve hours from this time."
A glad smile lighted up the face of the Count de Meyrand. But the Lordof Masseran asked in a low, sweet tone, "Pray what are the conditions,madam?"
"These," replied the duchess at once. "And remember, gentlemen, that Iam one who will not be trifled with; so that, if you fail to performexactly your part, you shall find your whole schemes fall about yourheads, and perhaps crush you in the ruins thereof. The very moment thatI have obtained that edict, Monsieur de Masseran, without the loss of asingle hour, you shall depart from Paris, and set this young cavalier,Bernard de Rohan, at liberty. Do not interrupt me! This isindispensable. You can leave the marchioness behind. In the next place,to guard against the evil consequences which I see you anticipate, youshall engage the young Count of Brienne to set off instantly in searchof his sister, in order to bring her at once to Paris to the presence ofthe king. You, Monsieur de Meyrand, shall not make the slightest attemptto seek for her yourself, nor shall you at present quit Paris. But thisyoung gentleman, instructed that this edict annuls the clandestinemarriage, and is upon the very point of being signed, shall go as theguardian of his sister's honour, and, at the same time, as the friend ofMonsieur de Rohan, to bring her safely back to the protection of hermother and of his majesty. His own sense of what is right, under suchcircumstances, will be a sufficient guarantee that he do not suffer hissister to remain an hour with a man who is not her husband; and now--"
"But, madam," said the Count de Meyrand, "if you will pardon me for thusrudely interrupting you, I would point out one slight obstacle to thearrangement you propose, which renders it absolutely impossible, and maymake it expedient that I should go myself. Henry of Brienne is atGrenoble, I understand."
"Well, then, sir," said the duchess, imperiously, "some one else mustgo. _You_ must not! Were the other the lowest valet in my household, heis more fit than you are to bring this lady to Paris."
The Lord of Masseran had remained silent till the duchess's answer wasmade, but he then joined in the conversation again, in one of hissweetest tones, saying, "The count is mistaken, dear madam; Henry ofBrienne is in Paris. He thought of going to Grenoble, but did not go. Hewas with his sweet mother not an hour ago."
"Well, then, hear me!" said the duchess. "Do you undertake, Monsieur deMeyrand, not to set out upon this search at all?" The count laid hishand upon his heart, bowed with mock humility, and replied, "Who everyet resisted your commands? Nay, I am not jesting! I give you mypromise, madam."
"Then, my Lord of Masseran," continued the duchess, "all I have to sayis this: Wait here for five minutes till I write a note above. Give itto Henry of Brienne: afford him every direction and hint for finding hissister, and bringing her at once to Paris. As soon as he has set out,come with your fair lady to the palace to offer your complaint regardingthis clandestine marriage to his majesty. I will take care that youshall have an immediate hearing, and I pledge myself that the edictshall be signed this night. To-morrow morning, at daybreak, you departalone, posthaste, to liberate Bernard de Rohan. Is it not so?" and shefixed her keen eye firm upon him.
"It is, madam," replied the Lord of Masseran, better pleased at thearrangement than she knew.
"As for you, Meyrand," she added, with a smile, "take my advice: comealso to the court, appear totally unconcerned in this whole business,and press your suit upon the king, if you so please, when the edict issigned."
"A woman's policy is always the best, madam," replied the count, "and inthis instance I shall follow it to the letter."
"I must now leave you," said the lady, "for I am already late. Wait herefor the note, and then let us to our several parts with all speed."
In less than the time that she had specified, a servant brought in anopen note, which contained these words:
"Diana, duchess of Valentinois, to Henry, count of Brienne, greeting:
"These are to inform you that your sister Isabel de Brienne has contracted a clandestine marriage with Bernard, baron de Rohan; and that, inasmuch as this night an edict will be signed annulling all marriages of the sort, it is absolutely necessary to your own honour and to that of your sister that you should immediately proceed to find and bring her to Paris till the farther pleasure of the king be known. The Baron de Rohan having been arrested the moment that the marriage was celebrated, will be set at liberty immediately; but it is requisite that you should prevent all communication between him and your sister until it be authorized by his majesty."
The Lord of Masseran made no scruple of reading the contents and showingthem to the Count de Meyrand, who marked them with a smile, and adding,"We must make quite sure of the youth, however," led the way from theapartments of the duchess.