“I know what I am saying. I am sure I hope I shall not be buried out
there; but the climate is murderous, and I may encounter a cannon-ball.
It is always better to be prepared.”
He paused a moment to collect his thoughts; and then he went on.
“You alone, in this world, Maxime, know all my private affairs. I have
no secret from you. I have friends whom I have known longer than you;
but I have none in whom I feel more confidence. Besides, my old friends
are all sailors,--men, who, like myself, may at any moment be sent,
Heaven knows where. Now I want a reliable, safe, and experienced man,
possessed of prudence and energy, and sure not to leave Paris. Will you
be that man, Maxime?”
M. de Brevan, who had remained in his chair, rose, and, putting his hand
on his heart, said,--
“Between us, Daniel, oaths are useless; don’t you think so? I say,
therefore, simply, you may count upon me.”
“And I do count upon you,” exclaimed Daniel,--“yes, blindly and
absolutely; and I am going to give you a striking proof of it.”
For a few moments it looked as if he were trying to find some brief and
yet impressive form for his communication; and then he said, speaking
very rapidly,--
“If I leave in despair, it is because I leave Henrietta in the hands of
the enemy. What persecution she will have to endure! My heart bleeds at
the mere thought. Miss Brandon must be meditating some terrible blow, or
she would not have been so anxious to keep me at a distance.”
He sobbed almost, so great was his excitement; but he instantly became
master again of his emotion, and continued,--
“Well, Maxime, I shall ask you to watch over Henrietta. I intrust her to
you as I would intrust her to my brother, if I had one.”
M. de Brevan was about to state some objections; but Daniel cut him
short, saying,--
“I will tell you how and in what manner you can watch over Miss
Ville-Handry. To-morrow evening I shall see her, and tell her the new
misfortune which has befallen us. I shall take leave of her then. I know
she will be terrified; but then, to reassure her, I shall explain to her
that I leave her a friend, another myself, ready, like myself, to assist
her at her first summons, and ready, like myself, to run any danger in
order to succor her. I shall tell her to appeal to you as if it were to
myself; to write to you as she used to write to me; to keep you informed
of all they may attempt to do; to consult and to obey you without
hesitation.
“As to what you will have to do, Maxime, I cannot tell you that, even
in a general way, as I know nothing of Miss Brandon’s plans. I rely
upon your experience to do what is most expedient. Still there are two
alternatives which I can foresee. It may be that her father’s house
becomes impossible for Henrietta, and that she should wish to leave
it. It may also be, that, under certain circumstances, you may think it
inexpedient for her to remain there, and that you have to advise her
to escape. In either case, you will take Henrietta to an old lady, a
relative of mine, who lives at the Rosiers, a little village in the
department of Maine-et-Loire, and whose address I will give you, while I
will inform her beforehand of what may happen.”
He paused, trying to remember if there was any thing else, and,
recalling nothing, he said,--
“This, my dear Maxime, is all I expect you to do for me.”
With open brow, a clear eye, and grave face, M. de Brevan replied in
a solemn tone of voice, speaking like a man who feels that he deserves
such confidence,--
“Friend Daniel, you may sail without fear.”
But Daniel had not done yet.
Pressing his friend’s hand heartily, he thanked him, and then with
a careless air, under which he very imperfectly concealed his real
embarrassment, he said,--
“There remains only to provide the means for carrying out these
measures, and for possible contingencies. You are not rich, my dear
Maxime, I mean rich in comparison with the people who are your friends;
you have told me so more than once.”
He touched a wound which was always open, and always bleeding.
“Certainly,” replied M. de Brevan, “in comparison with a number of my
friends, with men like Gordon Chalusse, for instance, I am only a poor
devil.”
Daniel did not notice the bitterness of this reply.
“Now,” he said, “suppose, at a given moment, Miss Henrietta’s safety
should make a certain sum of money necessary,--perhaps a very large
sum,--are you sure you will always have enough in your drawer, and be
able to dispose of it without inconvenience?”
“Ah! you expect too much of me; but I have friends.”
“And you would ask them! you would expose yourself to the humiliation of
hearing those set excuses which serve to conceal refusals! I could never
permit that.”
“I assure you”--
“Let me tell you that I have forgotten nothing. Although my means are
modest, I can, by selling out some bonds, realize enough to secure you
against any embarrassment on that score. I also own property in Anjou
which is valued at fifty or sixty thousand dollars, and I mean to sell
it.”
The other man opened his eyes wide.
“You mean,” he said slowly.
“To sell it, yes. You heard right. Except, however, my home, my father’s
house, with the little garden in front, the orchard, and the meadow
adjoining the house. In that house my father and my mother have lived
and died. I find them there, so to _say_, whenever I go in; their
thoughts are still filling the rooms, after so many years. The garden
and the orchard are the first little bits of land my father bought from
his earnings as ploughboy. He cultivated them in his leisure hours, and
there is literally not a foot of soil which he has not moistened with
the sweat of his brow. They are sacred to me; but the rest--I have
already given orders.”
“And you expect to sell every thing in the three days before your
departure?”
“Oh, no! But you are here.”
“What can I do?”
“Take my place, I should think. I will leave you a power-of-attorney.
Perhaps, if you make haste, you can get fifty thousand dollars for the
property. You will invest that so as to be able to use it any moment.
And, if ever Miss Henrietta should be compelled to leave her father’s
house, you will hand the money over to her.”