CHAPTER XXX
THE VICOMTE D'HALLUYS RECEIVES BROTHER JACQUES' ABSOLVO TE
The fort had four large compartments which consisted of a mess-roomalready described, a living-room, general sleeping quarters for theJesuit Fathers, lay brothers and officers, and a large room for stores.A roomy loft extended over the mess-room, to be resumed again over thesleeping quarters, the living-room being situated between. Unknown tothe Iroquois, a carpenter's shop had been established in the loft forthe purpose of constructing some boats.
From the living-room there came to the Chevalier the murmur of voices,sometimes a laugh. He was unaware of how much time passed. He wasconscious only of the voices, the occasional laugh, and the shiningpieces of silver in his hand. The perpendicular furrow above his nosegrew deeper and deeper, the line of his lips grew thinner and thinner,and the muscles of his jaws became and remained hard and square.Presently he shook his head as a lion shakes his when about to leap.He righted the corporal's chair and pushed his own under the table. Hehad forgotten his hunger. With the coin closed tightly in his fist, hestarted toward the door which gave into the living-room. He stoppedstill when his foot touched the threshold, and leaned against the jamb,gloomily surveying the occupants of the room. He saw Victor seated athis table, making corrections on the pages of what was to be his bookof lore. Father Chaumonot and Brother Jacques shared the table withthe poet, and both were reading. The gentlemen who had been forcedeither by poverty or the roving hand of adventure to take parts in thismission drama were gathered before the fire, discussing the days ofprosperity and the court of Louis XIII. A few feet from the poet'stable stood another, and round this sat Major du Puys, Nicot, and thevicomte, engaged in a friendly game of dominoes. D'Herouville,Corporal Fremin, Jean Pauquet and a settler named The Fox, were notamong the assemblage.
Victor saw his friend, nodded and smiled. But the Chevalier did notreturn the smile. Had Victor looked closer he would have seen the pallof impending tragedy on the Chevalier's darkened brow.
"Ha!" said the vicomte, as he stirred the dominoes about; "there youare, Chevalier. Come and take a hand." He smiled encouragingly.
The Chevalier went slowly toward the table, never taking his eyes fromthe vicomte's face. When he finally stood beside the vicomte's stool,he stretched out his arm and opened his hand.
"Monsieur le Vicomte," he said, "do you recognize these ten pieces ofsilver?"
Not a man among them all but felt the ice of a chill strike his spineat the sound of the Chevalier's voice. Every head in the room turned.
"Recognize?" The vicomte looked from the hand to the owner's face uponwhich lay a purpose as calm and relentless as it was deadly."Recognize? What do you mean, Monsieur?"
The Chevalier answered with a repellent laugh. "Your economy does youcredit; you have sold me to a drunken corporal for ten pieces ofsilver." With a swift movement he flung the silver into the vicomte'supturned face.
The vicomte covered his face with his hands and sprang to his feet.But no sound escaped him. When he withdrew his hands his lips werebleeding and there were blue ridges on his cheeks and forehead.
Confusion. Priests and soldiers and adventurers gathered quicklyaround. Du Puys took the Chevalier by the shoulders and pressed himback from the table, while Brother Jacques threw his arms around thevicomte. Only the Chevalier and the victim of his rage were apparentlycalm.
"Are you mad, Chevalier?" demanded Du Puys. "What the devil!"
"Be seated, Messieurs," said the vicomte, wiping his lips. "You areall witnesses to this unprovoked assault. There can be but one result.You shall die, Monsieur," to the Chevalier.
"It is possible." The Chevalier brushed aside Du Puys's hands andtried to reach his sword.
"I will have one or the other of you shot, or both of you," roared DuPuys. But his heart was not in his voice.
"That is a small matter," said the Chevalier.
"What is the meaning of all this?" cried Chaumonot.
"Tell him, Monsieur le Chevalier," laughed the vicomte; "tell him!"
The Chevalier was mute; but his chest heaved and his eyes glowed with aterrible fury.
"Monsieur," continued the vicomte, "you and I will step outside. Thereis moonlight."
"You will do nothing of the sort, Monsieur le Vicomte," said BrotherJacques coolly.
"I will brook no interference from priests!" declared the vicomte. Hiscalm was gradually leaving him. But before he could prevent it,Brother Jacques had whipped out the vicomte's rapier and had broken itacross his knee. "Curse you, you meddling Jesuit!" He wrenched loosea hand and struck Brother Jacques violently in the face.
Brother Jacques caught the wrist. "He grows profane," he said blandly."Be quiet, Monsieur, or I will break your wrist so badly that you willnever be able to handle a sword again."
The vicomte in his rage struck out with the other hand, but the youngpriest was too quick for him. Both the vicomte's wrists wereimprisoned as securely as though bauds of iron encircled them. Hestruggled for a space, then became still.
"That is more sensible," Brother Jacques said smoothly.
"In Heaven's name, Paul," cried Victor, "what does this all mean?"
"It means, lad, that there are no more masks. That is all. I amsorry, Messieurs, that Monsieur le Vicomte's sword has been broken.Will one of you lend him one?"
"I place you both under arrest," declared Du Puys, emphatically.
"Major," interposed Brother Jacques, "leave Monsieur le Vicomte to me.There will be no duel between these two gentlemen. I will arrange theaffair. Unless Monsieur le Chevalier desires to apologize."
"Nothing of the kind!" replied the Chevalier harshly.
"Release my wrists, sneaking priest!"
Brother Jacques nodded toward the Chevalier to signify that he woulddepend upon his own offices. "Monsieur le Vicomte, listen to me. Willyou follow me to your cabin?"
"You?"
"Even so. I have something to say to you."
"Well, I have nothing to say to you. Will you let go of my wrists?"
Brother Jacques lost none of his blandness. "I have only a singlequestion to ask of you. I will first whisper it. If that does notconvince you, I will ask it aloud. There are those here who willunderstand its value." He leaned toward the angry man and whispered adozen words into his ear, then drew back, still holding the strainingwrists.
The vicomte looked steadily into the priest's eyes. There wassomething lurking in his gaze which would have caused many a brave manto lower his eyes, But there was a vein of fine metal in this priest'scomposition; and the vicomte's glance broke harmlessly.
"Stare as long and as hard as you please, Monsieur. Shall I ask thisquestion before all these men?"
"I will accompany you." The vicomte had suddenly recovered all hismental balance.
Brother Jacques released his wrists, took up a lighted candle; and thetwo of them left the room, followed by wondering glances, not the leastof these being the Chevalier's, who was at loss to explain thevicomte's sudden docility. The priest and the vicomte soon entered thelatter's cabin, and the former placed the candle on the table.
"Yes, Monsieur le Vicomte, where were you on the night of thenineteenth of last February?"
"What is that to you?"
"To me? Nothing. To you? Everything."
"That is a curious question."
"It had power enough to bring you here with me," replied BrotherJacques complacently.
"Why do you wish to know?"
"I saw you," briefly.
"A great many persons saw me that night. I was on guard at the Louvre."
"Between the hours of eleven and twelve?"
Silence. A spider, seeing the light, swung down in jerks from thebeams and dangled at the side of the candlestick. Suddenly the priestreached over and caught the vicomte's restless hand.
"Rest assured, Jesuit, that when you broke my sword you left meweaponless."
"I did well
to break that sword. It was an evil one."
"You are very strong for a priest," coolly.
"Oh, do not doubt that there is a man within these robes. Listen.Your path and that of the Chevalier du Cevennes must not cross again."
"You speak in riddles."
"Not to you. Behind De Leviston you struck first; now from behind adrunken soldier. It was you all the time. You tricked us cleverly.You were such a good fellow, laughing, witty, debonair. For my part, Iwould have sworn that D'Herouville was the man. Besides you, Monsieur,D'Herouville is a tyro, a Mazarin to a Machiavelli."
"You flatter me. But why not D'Herouville instead of me?"
"Monsieur, your very audacity betrayed you. Last night you put on thegrey cloak. A log spurted a flame, and at once I remembered all."
"Indeed," ironically.
"Yes. You knocked a priest into the gutter that night as you wereflying from the scene of your crime. I was that priest. But for thecloak and your remarkable nerve in putting it on, I should haveremained in total darkness."
"Beginning with a certain day, you will ever remain in darkness." Thevicomte's face was not very pleasant just then.
"The first time you annoy Monsieur le Chevalier, who is the legitimateson of the Marquis de Perigny. . . ."
"Are you quite sure?" the old banter awakening. Suddenly he staredinto the priest's face. "My faith, but that would be droll! What isyour interest in the Chevalier's welfare? . . . They say the marquiswas a gay one in his youth, and handsome, and had a way with the women.Yes, yes; that would be more than droll. You are quite sure of theChevalier's standing?"
"So sure, Monsieur," said Brother Jacques, "that if you continue toannoy him I shall denounce you."
"The marquis will die some day. How would it please your priestly earto be called 'Monsieur le Marquis'?"
"Annoy either the Chevalier or Madame de Brissac, and I will denounceyou. That is all I have to say to you, Monsieur. To a man of youradroit accomplishments it should be enough. I have no interest in thePerigny family save a friendly one."
"I dare say." The vicomte let his gaze fall till the spider camewithin vision. He put a finger under it, and the insect began to climbfrantically toward its web.
"Thus, you see there will be no duel between you and the Chevalier."
The vicomte turned and looked out of the window; moonlight and gloomsand falling leaves. He remained there for some time. Brother Jacqueswaited patiently to learn the vicomte's determination. He was curious,too, to test this man's core. Was it rotten, or hard and sound? Therewas villainy, but of what kind? The helpless villainy of a Nero, orthe calculating villainy of a Tiberius? When the vicomte presented hiscountenance to Brother Jacques, it had undergone a change. It wasmasked with humility; all the haughtiness was gone. He pluckednervously at his chin.
"I will confess to you," he said simply.
"To me?" Brother Jacques recoiled. "Let me call Father Chaumonot."
"To you or to no one."
"Give me a moment to think." Brother Jacques was secretly pleased tohave tamed this spirit.
"To you or to no one," repeated the vicomte. "Do you believe in theholiness and sacredness of your office?"
"As I believe in God," devoutly. Fervor had at once elevated BrotherJacques's priestly mind above earthly cunning.
"You will hear my confession?"
"Yes."
The vicomte knelt. From time to time he made a passionate gesture. Itwas not a long confession, but it was compact and telling.
"_Absolvo te_," murmured Brother Jacques mechanically, gazing towardHeaven.
Immediately the solemnity of the moment was jarred by a laugh. Thevicomte was standing, all piety gone from his face; and a rollickingdevil shone from his eyes.
"Now, my curious friend," tapping the astonished priest on the breast,"I have buried my secret beneath this black gown; tell it if you dare."
"You have tricked me in the name of God?" horrified.
"Self-preservation; your knowledge forced me to it. And it was apretty trick, you will admit, casuist that you are."
"And if I should break my vows?" furiously.
"Break your vows and I promise to kill you out of hand."
"From behind?"
"In whatever manner appears most expedient. That fool of a Brissac; hesimply committed suicide. There was no other mode of egress open tome. It was my life or his. That cloak! Well, that was to tell talesin case I was seen from a distance. It nearly succeeded. And I willmake an additional confession," throwing back his head, his eyesnarrowing, his whole attitude speaking a man's passion. "Yes, yourkeen intuition has put its finger on the spot. I hate the Chevalier,hate him with a strong man's hate, the unending hate of wounded vanity,of envy, of thwarted desires. There was a woman, once, whom he luredaway from me; he gained the commission in the Guards over my head; hewas making love to Madame de Brissac, while I, poor fool, loitered inthe antechamber. I should have sought all means to bring about hisruin, had he not taken the labor from my hands. But a bastard!"Brother Jacques shuddered. "Bah! What could I do? I could becomeonly a spectator. My word for it, it has been a fine comedy, thisbonhomie of mine, this hail-fellow well met. And only to-night he sawthe pit at his feet. If that fool of a corporal had not been drunk."
"Wretch!" cried the priest, trembling as if seized with convulsion.Duped!
The vicomte opened the door, and bowed with his hand upon his heart.
"Till the morning prayers, Father," with mock gravity; "till themorning prayers."