CHAPTER XLI.
Helen De La Tremblade sat alone in the priest's room; and sad andterrible were the thoughts that crossed her mind. It may seem that tohave found one even out of many, though but a mere boy, sincerelyattached, and willing to risk all and sacrifice all, for her happinessand deliverance, might well have brought, cheering consolation to herheart. _He_ could have no concealed motive. _He_ had no dark treacheryto practise. There, in his young enthusiasm, he had stood before her,a friend indeed. But what was the errand on which he had beensent?--the errand which he had refused to fulfil?--To bear herpoison!--to consign her to the grave at the mandate of one who hadpromised with specious and sweet-spoken words, to guard, protect,cherish, watch over her.--To consign her to the dark and silent grave!Such had been the command of the Marchioness de Chazeul, after havingneglected, abandoned, ill-treated her.
There were glimpses of some of the darkest realities of earth breakingon the mind of one who had lived her youth as in a dream; and oh, howcold, and more cold, grew her heart, as proof after proof was given ofwhat human beings can become, when Godless, and heartless, they givethemselves up to the mastery of strong passion. It was more than eventhe kindness of the poor boy could compensate, though she had foundsome relief in every word he spoke.
She sat and gazed upon the poisoned drink, with thoughts, almostapproaching to madness, flashing through her brain. She asked herself,"Shall I drink it?--Then pain, and anguish, and remorse, and shame,will be all over. I shall be delivered from all this weight, thisintolerable burden. I shall be free.-They cannot say I did it.--It isno fault of mine. They sent it to me. They are murderers, not I.--Oh,how I long to be at rest!--But Rose, dear, good Rose,--I must notleave her to struggle on unaided. And yet it were a pleasant thing todie; but for the terrible world beyond the grave.--Oh no, I must not,dare not, die, with all my sins upon my head. I must have time forpenitence and prayer.--The boy said he would soon be here. I willsee," and opening the window, she looked down to the bottom of thedeep corridor, or passage, between the ch?teau and the walls.
There was nobody there, however. All was solitary; and even on theramparts, the scanty watch had dwindled away to nothing; every one whodared, hurrying away to witness the gay wedding of Mademoiselled'Albret, and all making their own comments upon the decency andpropriety which their noble lord and master displayed in burying hisbrother, and marrying his nephew on the selfsame morning.
The eye of Helen de la Tremblade ran along the wall towards thechapel, in which she had found her uncle, on her first arrival, notmany hours before; and she examined every prominent point,attentively. First came a large mass of masonry containing some of thebest rooms in the ch?teau, projecting from the rest of the building;then appeared a round tower with a turret fastened to its side; andthen the roof of the chapel, built against the walls, was seen withpart of one window, peeping out from behind the tower. But all the waydown, neither on the walls, nor between them and the ch?teau, couldHelen descry any one.
As her eye strayed casually, however, to some low trees and bushes,which ran down the slope in the neighbourhood of the chapel, shethought she saw something move amongst the grey branches, but couldnot distinguish what; and, as she was gazing more eagerly to trace theobject as it proceeded, she heard high tones speaking in the adjacentroom; and turned to listen. She recognized the voices of Monsieur deLiancourt and Rose d'Albret; but she could not catch the words thatwere uttered, though some of them were spoken loud and in apparentanger.
"He has come to take her," said Helen to herself, "and she will notgo.--Oh, that I could aid her!"
Her first impulse was to approach nearer the door, in order to pushback the lock with the dagger which the boy had left with her; butthen she reflected, that singly, she could do nothing to prevent theCount from dragging poor Rose to the altar.
"No!" she said, re-seating herself near the window, and a look of darkand gloomy determination coming over her face. "No! I will let themtake her away--and then I will confront them all.--Ay, in the hall,amidst menials and soldiers and friends; and they shall heartruth.--Hark, how loud he speaks! He is threatening her.--Poor Rose!'Tis all silent now--she must be gone!--Hark, the door bangs to!--Theyhave dragged her away. Now, boy, now; for I must follow soon."
She ran hastily to the window again, and gazed out. The page was notyet there; and Helen hesitated whether to wait or hurry away to thehall.
At that moment, the sound of a hunting horn reached her ear, and shelooked up from the passage between the walls, on which her eyes hadbeen bent, to the undulating country straight before her, beyond thedefences of the ch?teau. There was a large party of horsemen issuingfrom the nearest wood, distant about half a mile; and Helen, with herquick fancy cried, "It may be De Montigni!"
But just then, from the bushes beyond the chapel, a man on foot dartedforth, and ran round, as if he perceived her at the window. Sheinstantly recognized Estoc, and stretched her head farther forward, inorder that he might certainly see her. The old soldier pausedimmediately opposite, and came as near to the wall as he could,without losing sight of her; and then he raised his voice, and pointedwith his hand to the party of horsemen--still advancing.
But the distance rendered most of his words indistinct, andHelen caught only the few last, "--The postern a little to yourright--before they can arrive; for they have barred us out by thechapel," was all that she could distinguish.
"Then these are enemies coming," she thought; "and all depends uponEstoc getting in first."
She tried to make him hear in vain; her weaker voice was lost in air;but just as she was about to withdraw, force back the lock, run downand open the postern, she saw the figure of the page coming round thesquare tower. He had a heavy basket on his arm, and was proceeding,with his eyes cast down, to wind up, with boyish habits, a quantity ofstring upon a piece of wood; but Helen called aloud, "Philip! Philip!"
The boy looked up. "Run round, without a moment's delay," cried Helen,"and open the first postern to the west; show yourself beyond, and youwill find Estoc.--Run, Philip, run, if you would save us all."
The boy threw down the basket, and sped forward as rapidly aspossible. Helen saw the postern unlocked and pushed open; and thenwithdrawing from the window, she murmured, "Now then, to stop themtill help arrives! I will at least do that, if it cost my life or thatof others.--He said my uncle was in the room at the bottom of thegreat staircase. Perhaps I can set him free too;" and, hastening tothe door which led out at once at the top of the stairs, she easilyforced back the lock with the well-tempered blade of the boy'sponiard, and threw it open. She started, however, on seeing the maid,Blanchette, straight before her; but resolved to pass at all risks,she grasped the dagger firmly in her hand, and gazed upon the girl'scountenance for an instant.
It was as pale as death; but Blanchette, seeing her thus pause andlook at her, exclaimed, "Pass on, Mademoiselle Helen--pass on to thehall. You may see things there that you do not expect.--I wont stopyou.
"Woe to those who try!" vehemently cried Helen; and darting on withoutanother word, she descended that flight of stairs, and passed throughthe corridor below. An old man met her as she went, but started backas if she had been a spectre; and Helen hurried forward, reached thefoot of the great staircase, rushed towards the chamber, which the boyhad mentioned as her uncle's place of confinement.
The door was locked, and the key had been taken out; the lock too wasin the inside. Helen shook the door wildly, and exclaimed, "Are youthere? are you there?"
"I am," replied the voice of her uncle from within. "Is that you,Helen?"
"Yes," cried the girl, "How can I let you out quickly?"
"Run up the passage," cried the priest, "and take the key out of thelast door on the right hand. It fits this lock."
Helen flew rather than ran, returned with the key, unlocked the door,and threw it open.
"Quick, quick!" she cried. "There is not a minute to spare. They arenow forcing her to the marriage; but I will confront them all. I wi
llstop them or die!" and with her whole frame thrilling with excitement,her eyes flashing with unnatural light, and the wildness almost ofinsanity in her look, she darted away, up the great staircase, throughthe corridor at the top, and reached the door of the hall. Before it,stood the man Martin, who as soon as he beheld, her, exclaimed "Ah,Mademoiselle Helen! you cannot pass here."
"Stand back, or I will stab you to the heart!" exclaimed Helen,raising the dagger; and as he retreated a step to avoid the blow thatseemed ready to descend, she darted forward, and, before he could stopher, was in the midst of the hall.
CHAPTER XLII.
All had been prepared in the great hall of the Ch?teau de Marzay forthe marriage of Rose d'Albret with Nicholas de Chazeul, as far as thetime and circumstances would admit. A few of such flowers, as theearly season of the year afforded, had been gathered to strew thefloor, or to form into nosegays. Various old banners and decorationshad been brought forth, to give an appearance of splendor and gaietyto the scene; and if friends and relations had not been summoned tohonour the occasion, their places were filled up by the servants andattendants of the family, dressed in their best attire. All Madame deChazeul's maids were there, all the women servants of the ch?teau,with the sole exception of Blanchette, who, as the reader knows, hadremained in her mistress's apartments.
But the principal group in the room, was stationed near the table, inthe midst, on which lay the contract of marriage, neatly tied withwhite riband, and surrounded by a chaplet of violets and snow-drops.That group consisted of the young Marquis de Chazeul, dressed in allthe most extravagant finery of that extravagant day, of theMarchioness his mother, and the notary public of the Holy RomanEmpire, who, called upon continually to deal with great people, wasconversing familiarly with his two companions, and giving them hisadvice how to proceed in certain cases, which they had suggested forhis consideration.
When first Madame de Chazeul had entered the room, she was followed byher page; but in the conversation which succeeded, between herself,the notary, and her son, she did not remark that the boy slipped awayquietly and quitted the hall, without attracting the attention of anyone.
The reader will have the kindness to remember that, as I describedthis hall at first, it might be entered by three different doors; theone communicating with the great staircase, by means of a shortcorridor with deep windows at the south end; another leading, by aseparate passage, to the apartments of the Count de Liancourt, and tothose which Rose d'Albret had formerly occupied; and the third on thewestern side, giving exit to the walls, by the little flying bridge,which we have more than once already mentioned.
As it was the door on the north by which Rose d'Albret and the Countwere expected to enter, the eyes of the whole party were turned, fromtime to time, in that direction; but yet, for more than a quarter ofan hour after the Marchioness de Chazeul had entered, no one elseappeared; and she herself seemed to be, as probably she really was,somewhat anxious and impatient of the long delay which took place.Every one remarked that her face looked pale, notwithstanding herrouge, and that a sort of sharp and irritable twitching about themuscles of the mouth and nostril displayed itself in a manner whichnone of them had ever seen before.
At the end of that quarter of an hour, she advanced to the table atthe further side of the hall, where various refreshments had been setout, and drank a quantity of water and some wine. Then she sat down;and then she rose again; and then advancing to her son, she whispered,"How long they are! I fear your uncle has been fool enough to let herargue with him, instead of stopping her at once."
"But just as she spoke, the door was thrown sharply open, and theCount de Liancourt himself appeared, accompanied by poor Rosed'Albret. She was as pale as death; and before she entered she paused,and put her hand twice to her head, as if her brain grew giddy; butMonsieur de Liancourt took her by the arm, not quite as gently asmight be, and led her into the hall. All parties made way, and formeda circle round the table, on which the contract lay, leavingsufficient space for the principal parties to advance and sign thedocument.
"I am faint," said Rose, as the Count hurried on; "give me somewater."
"Give her some water, give her some water," cried the Count."Mademoiselle d'Albret is somewhat faint."
Chazeul instantly sprang to the other table, and fetched a cup ofwater; but when he brought it, Rose put it aside, with a look ofdisgust, replying, "Not from your hand!" and, seeming to recoverstrength and courage from the effort, she took a step forward as iftowards the table.
The notary immediately advanced with the pen in his hand, saying, "Thecontract has been read, Mademoiselle, by your guardian, Monsieur deLiancourt, on your part, and by Monsieur de Chazeul on his own. It is,therefore, doubtless, unnecessary to read it over to yourself, as theyare quite satisfied."
"Oh! quite unnecessary," cried the Count. "Point out where she is tosign."
"Stay a moment," cried Rose d'Albret; "I told you, Sir, before I camehither, that I did not intend to sign this paper--that nothing shallever induce me to sign it: and my only object in appearing here now,is to protest before all these witnesses, that I will never be thewife of Nicholas de Chazeul."
Looks of surprise passed round the greater part of the crowd; and manyof them whispered to their neighbour, inquiring what would be donenext, while Madame de Chazeul stepped forward with a flashing eye, anda quivering lip to say something in a low tone to her brother, andNicholas de Chazeul, stretching out his tall form to its full height,tossed back his head with a look of scornful indignation.
"What says Monsieur de Liancourt?" said the notary, who had receivedhis instructions from the Marchioness. "Does he admit of this protest?for the lady, I conceive, must act by her guardian."
"No, I do not admit it," cried the Count. "I insist that the marriagego forward. Is it competent for me to sign on her behalf?"
The notary hesitated. "No," he said, at length; "I think we must haveher signature."
"That you shall never have," replied Rose. "I would rather cut off myhand."
"I would pass over ceremonies, Sir, if I were you," said the notary,speaking to the Count in a whisper. "The lady's hand can be guidedover the paper."
"It shall be done," replied the Count; and Madame de Chazeul beckonedup one of her men, saying in an under voice to her brother, "do itsuddenly, and it will be over before she is aware."
"In the first place," rejoined the notary, in the same tone, "to makeit all formally right, we had better inquire whether there be any onewho wishes to take act of opposition to the marriage.--You are sure ofall in the hall, I suppose?"
The Marchioness nodded her head; and the notary proceeded to demand,in a louder voice, if there was any one who had any lawful cause ofopposition to the marriage, between Nicholas, Marquis de Chazeul, andRose Demoiselle d'Albret.
There was a sudden noise at the other side of the hall, even while hewas speaking, and the moment after he had ceased, a voice, sweet andmelancholy though clear and firm, exclaimed, "I have;" and, as thecrowd broke away, and turned towards the spot whence the soundsissued, Helen de la Tremblade advanced, and stood directly oppositethe Marquis de Chazeul and his mother.
Chazeul turned first as red as fire, and then as pale as ashes; andthe Marchioness stood by his side, not with the rage and vehemencewhich might have been supposed, not with the ready command ofresources and the power, as well as the will, to bear down opposition,but with her teeth chattering, her face pale, her lips white, and herlimbs trembling.
"I feel ill," she said, "I feel ill.--I must have taken the wrongcup.--Chazeul, I feel ill."
But none attended to her; for the notary had turned to Helen de laTremblade, and was inquiring in a formal but scornful tone, what werethe grounds of her opposition, when another voice was heard,exclaiming "These!" and father Walter strode forward and took her bythe hand, holding forth an open letter, "These are the grounds of heropposition," he said, "inasmuch as she is contracted with Monsieur deChazeul, _par paroles de future_."
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sp; The notary turned and looked to Monsieur de Liancourt, who exclaimed,in a furious tone, "They are all in a conspiracy to stop the marriage.I will have it go forward as I have sworn."
"You can pass over this objection, Sir," said the notary. "If it be atall valid, it may be pleaded hereafter in nullification."
"Well, then, pass it over," cried the Count. "Will you sign,Mademoiselle d'Albret?"
"Never!" answered Rose, firmly. "Never! so help me God!"
"Then thus I will make you," muttered Monsieur de Liancourt; and,seizing her suddenly by the wrist, he dragged her forward to thetable; and while the man, Ren?, stood behind to prevent her escape, heplaced the pen partly in her hand, partly held it in his own, and wasactually running it over the paper, before Rose was well aware of whathe was doing.
"I protest, in the name of God, and the Holy Catholic Church, againstthis violent and outrageous act!" exclaimed Walter de la Tremblade,lifting up his hands to Heaven.
"Hold!" cried a voice of thunder at the same moment; and, stridingforward through the crowd, a stout short man, with a grey beard andhair, dressed in a plain suit of russet brown, advanced to the table,and struck the pen out of Monsieur de Liancourt's hand, exclaiming,"Hold! Hear a word or two first!--Parbleu! you make quick work of it!"
The Count laid his hand upon his sword, demanding fiercely, "Who areyou, insolent villain?"
"Why, this is that man, Chasseron," cried Chazeul. "What have you todo with this affair, Sir?"
"Why, Ventre Saint Gris! I oppose the marriage," cried Chasseron, "asthe lady's cousin."
"Her cousin!" exclaimed Chazeul, bursting into a scornful laugh. "Whoever heard of you before?"
"That will not avail, unless you can prove your relationship,"exclaimed Monsieur de Liancourt, looking to the notary.
But that worthy officer was gazing down upon the ground somewhat palein the face; and Chasseron, in his bluff way, replied, "Will that notdo?--Pardi, then, this will!" and, drawing his sword, he laid it nakedupon the table. Then, taking up the contract of marriage, he tore itto atoms.
Chazeul sprang towards him with fury in his countenance. But thenotary darted in between, holding up both his hands, and exclaiming,"The King! the King!"
"The King!" cried Chazeul staggering back.
"The King!" exclaimed Monsieur de Liancourt, gazing upon him.
"The King! the King!" cried many voices in the hall; and at least onehalf added, "Vive Henri Quatre!"
"Even so, my good friends," said Henry. "Monsieur de Liancourt, youwill excuse me for taking such liberties in your ch?teau. I have beenobliged to make it my halting-place this morning, with about a coupleof hundred of my friends, who have just been hunting with me in thesewoods. But we shall all depart before night, and leave you in fullpossession of your own again, as I came with no hostile intention, butmerely to do a little act of justice. And now, my fair cousin," hecontinued, turning to Rose d'Albret, "you must prepare for a journeyto-night, for we intend to take you with us."
"My lord the King," said the Count de Liancourt, assuming a tone ofdignity for a last effort. "I have to beg that, whatever you do, youwould abstain from meddling with the arrangements of my family."
"Parbleu!" exclaimed Henry, "what would the man have? Without,there!--Send in the captain of the guard and a file of soldiers.Either as a friend or an enemy, Monsieur de Liancourt--either as agood and obedient subject, or a rebel against his King!--You shall actwhich character you please, and I will behave accordingly. In the meantime, Sir, this lady is no longer your ward; for, let me tell you,that you have attempted to violate the contract with her father, bymeans--of which the less we say the better. It shall be my task tocarry that contract into execution. Ha! the guard!--Attach Monsieur deChazeul for high treason--But! what have we got here?" he continued,looking to a spot a little behind the Count, where the servants ofMadame de Chazeul had placed her in a chair and gathered round her. "Adead woman, I think!--By my life! my old acquaintance, Jacqueline deChazeul!"
"Good God, my mother!" exclaimed Chazeul darting towards her: but thehand that he took was cold and inanimate; and, "the poisoned chalice"she had prepared for others, had worked too certainly upon herself.
At first, it was supposed, she did but faint: but the truth was soonascertained; and when Chazeul rose from his knee, and turned round tothe rest of the party, he beheld what was to him a more painful sightthan even that on which he had been just gazing. It was Rose d'Albretin the arms of Louis de Montigni: while Monsieur de Liancourt, withall his assumed firmness gone, was apparently making amends to theKing by courtesy and explanation, for the tone which he had at firstassumed towards him.
But, in another part of the hall stood Helen de la Tremblade, with herhand in that of her uncle, while her eyes were buried on the old man'sshoulder; and around,--at each door of the hall, and filling up thewhole of one side,--were seen the scarred and weather-beaten faces ofthe veteran royalist soldiery, with their white scarfs over theirshoulders, and their naked swords in their hand.
Chazeul turned again to the form of his dead mother, and then oncemore bent his eyes on Helen de la Tremblade. "It is the hand of God!"he murmured. "It is the hand of God!" and then, as the captain of theguard advanced to arrest him, he said, "Wait one moment," and strodeacross the room towards the priest and his niece.
"Helen," he said in a low tone, "Helen, I have done you wrong.--I amready to make atonement.--Will you be my wife?"
"No!" cried Helen, turning round towards him, "No!--My fate is fixed.The cloister is the only shelter for one whose heart has been trampledon like mine."
"Nay, nay!" cried Henri Quatre stepping forward. "Remember, my fairfriend, penitence should be always accepted. Were it not so, howshould I ever find grace, as I yet hope to do?--Nay, suffer me to bethe mediator. Here, Monsieur de Chazeul," he continued, taking Helen'shand, and placing it in that of the Marquis. "Take her: and if shehave loved you too well heretofore, it is a thousand chances toone that you soon teach her to mend that fault, when you are herhusband.--However, you shall have fair room to try; for we must notcage so promising a bridegroom. Captain, we shall not want your goodoffices for the present."
The augury of the King was unhappily but too correct; and two yearshad barely elapsed, when Helen, Marchioness of Chazeul, retired forever from the busy world, with the consent of her husband, to theconvent of a sisterhood of cloistered nuns.
FOOTNOTES
[Footnote 1: This phenomenon was seen distinctly by many persons inboth armies, immediately before the battle of Ivry, and was visibleover an extent of more than twenty leagues.]
[Footnote 2: The duel of one to one, without seconds or witnesses, wasnot uncommon at this time in France, especially when men were of highrank, and wished to void a serious quarrel without danger ofinterruption. They often also took place on horseback with the pistol,but Monsieur de Monteil is wrong in stating under the reign of HenryIV., that it was a new custom to introduce seconds into duels. Duringthe reign of Charles IX. and Henry III., the practice of fighting witha number of seconds who all took part in the affray, was general; andin the famous challenge of Henry IV. himself, when King of Navarre, tothe Duke of Guise, he offered to figght him one to one, two to two, orten to ten.]
THE END.
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