Belle Rose: A Romance of the Cloak and Sword — page 120: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

108 A STEP TOWARD THE TOMB. prey, by the look which her mistress threw her. A mo- ment after, both mounted a carriage and hurriedly took the road to Ecouen. The rest is known. Belle-Rose wan- dered about till morning, struggling with all his soul against madness and despair. Monsieur d’Assonville was dead, and she whom Monsieur d’Assonville loved was his mistress. Belle-Rose reproached himself with the death of the captain, and remorse entered his soul along with grief. The freshness of the dawn calmed his agitation; a duty was left him to fulfill, the voice of honor prevailed, in the tumult of his thoughts, and he heard its voice. Belle-Rose bid adieu for the last time to the inanimate body of his protector, wrote some lines which he addressed to Madame de Chateaufort, also two notes which he sent to Cornelius and Claudine, to inform them of his departure and his res. olution to go to see Monsieur de Naucrais, saddled a horse and left the chateau at a gallop. The duchess had scarcely awoke from her long fainting, when she heard the park gate roll upon its hinges and the shoes of a horse striking the pebbles. She hastily arose, and at a bound reached the balcony; a cloud of dust was whirling along the road. She saw Belle-Rose disappear under the white, winding sheet, and her heart repeated his name. The next moment a lackey presented himself, letter in hand. Madame de Chateaufort took this letter, and, falling upon a sofa, made a sign to the lackey to retire. She broke the seal, and with eyes full of tears read: ‘‘MapamrE:—You have deprived me of the right of avenging Mon- sieur d’Assonville, but I recommend to you his mortal remains ; give to his body the repose which you have refused to his heart. Mon- sieur d’Assonville has charged me with asacred mission. What he wished, I shall wish; so act that I may never be forced to hate you. ‘*BELLE-RosB..”’ Madame de Chateaufort threw herself back pale and in- animate. She no longer had either voice to complain or tears to weep; a burning fever devoured her. In the mean- time Belle-Rose, leaving his horse at the first relay, took a post-horse and arrived the next day at Cambria, where Monsieur de Naucrais’ regiment then was. Monsieur de Naucrais was working in his room when Belle-Rose pre- sented himself before the soldier on guard. At the sound of his voice, Monsieur de Naucrais leaped from his chair and ran himself to open the door; scarcely had Belle-Rose passed it, when his captain repulsed him violently. Gomichboo Ss EO