Agnes, or, Beauty and Pleasure — page 295: what you’re looking at

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9 AGNES; OB, BEAUTY AND PLEASURE. 287 ~ 7 “ Yes,” answered the Countess: “ by half-past eleven o’clock all will have retired.” The Countess quitted the guard-room: Charles and Fossano were now alone together. “T shall seize this opportunity,” said the spy, “of penning my billet.” *Do so,” said Charles. “It were better to write it unobserved and thus run no risk of detec- tion.” Fossano was scarcely a minute in committing a few hieroglyphic lines to paper; and when he had finished, he was about to fold the missive. “One moment!” said Charles; “let me see what you have written :’—and deliberately taking up the paper, he read its contents, which ran as follow :— “The attempt is to be made upon Leghorn. The expedition sails from Genoa, Fifty persons were assembled here. Ortona commands. The sisters will go. Let the chaise be stopped and myself and companion liberated.” You see,” said Fossano, “ that I am dealing fairly by you. I stipulate for your release as well as for my own.” “‘T know it,” said Charles ; “and this considera- tion shall have its weight with me.” “What do you mean?” asked the spy, with uneasiness depicted in his looks. * J mean,” rejoined De Vere sternly, “ that by the exercise of more dissimulation than ever I have before displayed in all my life, I have gleaned your secrets.” “Good God!” murmured Fosgsano, turning deadly pale; “is it possible that you mean to be- tray me ?” “No! that is not my purpose,” replied our hero: “that is to say, provided you fulfil my com- mands.” “But surely, surely I have not misunderstood you?” said Fossano, still speaking as if under the weight of consternation: “surely you wish to emancipate yourself ?” “Not by the violation of oaths deliberately taken,” answered Charles; “nor under circum- stances which must lead to the betrayal of many of my fellow-creatures to the scaffold no, nor to the prejudice of those two sisters so high- minded and so unselfish, so beautiful and so mag- manimous! No, vile wretch! nor to put gold into the pocket of such as thou! But quake not !—it is not my purpose to bring about your own de- struction. Take your pen, and write another billet to my dictation in this same cipher.” Fossano—terribly crestfallen, and inwardly en- raged—found bimself completely in De Vere’s power; and concealing his emotions as well as he was able, ho prepared to write to the young gentlemaa’s dictation. The words which De Vere thus dictated ran as follow :— No attempt is to be made for the present : but Lam leaving Turin to follow up a clue which I have obtained. You will hear from me in due course, when [ shall know more. It is needless to watch the Spartivento palace: indeed, it were much better that there should be no espionage in that quarter.” “What can be the meaning of this ?” asked Fossano, in amazement. ‘ Instead of endeavour- ing to defeat the conspiracy, you are giving it all the succour in your power !—instead of adopting measures for your own escape, you are compelling yourself to go to Leghorn, where who knows what may befall you ?” “ [have already told you that I will not betray these conspirators—and therefore I will not frus- trate the conspiracy ; because it is impossible to accomplish one thing apart from the other. As for compelling myself to go to Leghorn, it is my business, not your’s.” While Charles was thus speaking, Fossano re- flected deeply ; and all in a moment he sprang up from his seat, crushed the letter in his hand, and tossed it into the fire. “Villain! do you defy me?” ejaculated Do Vere. “ No !—but I accuse you as a spy!” ejaculated Fossano : and springing upon Charles, who had not an instant’s leisure to defend himself, ho hurled him upon the pavement-floor, at the same time crying out for help. The door was burst open—three or four of the brethren rushed in — and our hero was made a prisoner, * Search him at once!” cried Fossano ; “ and let some one hasten to make a report to the Mar- quis!” CHAPTER L., THE ACCUSATION AND THE DEFENCE. ALL that we have just related took place so sud- denly—indeed with such whirlwind rapidity—that Charles was smitten as it were with complete dis- may; and thus there was something in his looks which seemed to corroborate the accusation flung out against him by the treacherous Tuscan. The brethren searched him; and from his waistcoat pocket they took the billet in cipher which Fos- sano had first written, and which Charles, while dictating the second note, had inadvertently folded up and thus placed about his person. “Signors, I am innocent!” he exclaimed, at length recovering his self-possession. “* I am inno- cent, I take heaven to witness !—and that man is the spy !” “You will not get many people to believe that assertion, my friend,’’ said Fossano, with a sneer. “What is the matter?” inquired the Marquis of Ortona, who at this instant entered the guard. room. “What! they say De Vere is a spy? Impossible !” “ [t is true, my lord!” said the Tuscan emphati- cally. “Tt is false!—false as pandemonium itself exclaimed our kero indignantly. ‘“ Let me bo heard !” “Good heavens, quarrelling! disputing! when there should be naught but the complest unani- mity of action! For shame, signors!” 1t was the Countess di Milazzo who thus spoke at the instant she reached the threshold : but she caught not the words that were previously ut- tered from the lips of our hero and the Marquis. “What can it all mean?” she demanded, think- ing it must be something moré than a quarrel ee natn re eee oO ComMmicdoo sae LS eS —<—r OO oer S (©) 5}