Her Royal Lover: A Novel — page 260: what you’re looking at

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

252 HER ROYAL LOVER. a CHAPTER XXXV. “YOU MUST EXPEL THAT WOMAN.” It is certainly easier to conceive than to describe the impression produced upon the King of Thessaly, being lost in perfect felicity with his beloved wife on this first night of the wedding, when sud- denly, despite the explicit orders which he had given, raps precipitately repeated on the door with- drew the two lovers from their beatitude. Najeska Ivanowna, shivering, terrified, cowered yet more closely against the heart of her august husband. The king, as well as she, comprehended immediately that such an infraction of the rules of etiquette could only be caused by an unusual event. In all haste, half-dressed, the king passed in the adjoining apartment, from whence, in an angry voice, he demanded who dared to come to thus dis- turb him. It was his poor chamberlain, much frightened by the terrible message which he had to deliver. At these words: “The Empress of Hindustan insists on seeing your majesty this very evening,” the king felt a shiver run through his whole frame. She knew all, then! This express summons to see him, without delay, proved to him alone how great was the old sovereign’s wrath. Surely, the scene would be frightful! terrible! But, as sooner or later it would have to come to that, perhaps it was bet- ter to explain himself immediately. “Tell her majesty that I will be at her orders in half an hour,” said the king. GEomicbooks. co