He lost color, as if it were a spirit that he saw, and, indeed,
mademoiselle, motionless and pale, looked not unlike some beautiful
being of another world.
"Who are you?" asked La Chatre, in a startled tone.
"It is I--Mlle. de Varion."
La Chatre promptly came to himself; but he looked somewhat confused,
abashed, and irritated.
"Mlle. de Varion, indeed!" he said. "And why comes Mlle. de Varion here?"
And now Montignac spoke, fixing his eyes on La Chatre, and using a quiet
but resolute tone:
"She comes too late. La Tournoire will be taken without her aid."
"Be silent, Montignac!" said La Chatre, assuming the authoritative for
the sake of appearance. "It is true, mademoiselle; you are too late in
fulfilling your part of the agreement."
He spoke with some embarrassment, and I began to see why. Inasmuch as he
had been at Clochonne but little more than one day, no more time had
passed than would have been necessary for the arrangement of the ambush.
Therefore it could not be honestly held that she had been tardy in
fulfilling her mission; that is to say, when he told her that she was too
late, he lied. Hence his embarrassment, for he was a gentleman. Now why
did he put forth this false pretext of tardiness on her part?
"Too late in fulfilling your part of the agreement," said the governor.
"I came, monsieur," said mademoiselle, heedless of the lie and the
apparent attempt to put her at fault, "to be released from my agreement.
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