"Butwithfriends;butinyourowncarriageasfarasOrl閍ns;inyourownbargeasfarasNantes;alwaysreadytodefendyourself，ifyouareattacked;toescape，ifyouarethreatened。？Infact，youwillcarryyourmoneyagainstallchances;and，whilstflying，youwillonlyhaveobeyedtheking;then，reachingthesea，whenyoulike，youwillembarkforBelle—Isle，andfromBelle—Isleyouwillshootoutwhereveritmaypleaseyou，liketheeaglethatleapsintospacewhenithasbeendrivenfromitseyrie。"
A
generalassentfollowedP閘isson'swords。？"Yes，doso，"saidMadameFouquettoherhusband。
"Doso，"saidMadamedeBelli鑢e。
"Doit！doit！"criedallhisfriends。
"I
willdoso，"repliedFouquet。
"Thisveryevening？"
"Inanhour？"
"Instantly。"
"Withsevenhundredthousandlivresyoucanlaythefoundationofanotherfortune，"saidtheAbb？Fouquet。
"WhatistheretopreventourarmingcorsairsatBelle—Isle？"
"And，ifnecessary，wewillgoanddiscoveranewworld，"addedLaFontaine，intoxicatedwithfreshprojectsandenthusiasm。
A
knockatthedoorinterruptedthisconcertofjoyandhope。？"Acourierfromtheking，"saidthemasteroftheceremonies。
A
profoundsilenceimmediatelyensued，asifthemessagebroughtbythiscourierwasnothingbutareplytoalltheprojectsgivenbirthtoamomentbefore。？Everyonewaitedtoseewhatthemasterwoulddo。？Hisbrowwasstreamingwithperspiration，andhewasreallysufferingfromhisfeveratthatinstant。？Hepassedintohiscabinet，toreceivetheking'smessage。？Thereprevailed，aswehavesaid，suchasilenceinthechambers，andthroughouttheattendance，thatfromthedining—roomcouldbeheardthevoiceofFouquet，saying，"Thatiswell，monsieur。"？Thisvoicewas，however，brokenbyfatigue，andtrembledwithemotion。？Aninstantafter，FouquetcalledGourville，whocrossedthegalleryamidsttheuniversalexpectation。？Atlength，hehimselfre—appearedamonghisguests;butitwasnolongerthesamepale，spiritlesscountenancetheyhadbeheldwhenheleftthem;frompalehehadbecomelivid;
andfromspiritless，annihilated。？A
breathing，livingspecter，headvancedwithhisarmsstretchedout，hismouthparched，likeashadethatcomestosalutethefriendsofformerdays。？Onseeinghimthus，everyonecriedout，andeveryonerushedtowardsFouquet。？Thelatter，lookingatP閘isson，leaneduponhiswife，andpressedtheicyhandoftheMarquisedeBelli鑢e。
"Well，"
saidhe，inavoicewhichhadnothinghumaninit。
"Whathashappened，myGod！"saidsomeonetohim。
Fouquetopenedhisrighthand，whichwasclenched，butglisteningwithperspiration，anddisplayedapaper，uponwhichP閘issoncastaterrifiedglance。？Hereadthefollowinglines，writtenbytheking'shand:
"'DEARANDWELL—BELOVEDMONSIEURFOUQUET，—Giveus，uponthatwhichyouhaveleftofours，thesumofsevenhundredthousandlivres，ofwhichwestandinneedtoprepareforourdeparture。
"'And，asweknowyourhealthisnotgood，weprayGodtorestoreyou，andtohaveyouinHisholykeeping。
"'LOUIS。
"'Thepresentletteristoserveasareceipt。'"
Amurmurofterrorcirculatedthroughtheapartment。
"Well，"
criedP閘isson，inhisturn，"youhavereceivedthatletter？"
"Receivedit，yes！"
"Whatwillyoudo，then？"
"Nothing，sinceIhavereceivedit。"
"But—"
"IfIhavereceivedit，P閘isson，Ihavepaidit，"saidthesurintendant，withasimplicitythatwenttotheheartofallpresent。
"Youhavepaidit！"criedMadameFouquet。？"Thenweareruined！"
"Come，nouselesswords，"interruptedP閘isson。？"Nexttomoney，life。？Monseigneur，tohorse！tohorse！"
"What，leaveus！"atoncecriedboththewomen，wildwithgrief。
"Eh！
monseigneur，insavingyourself，yousaveusall。？Tohorse！"
"Buthecannotholdhimselfon。？Lookathim。"
"Oh！
ifhetakestimetoreflect—"saidtheintrepidP閘isson。
"Heisright，"murmuredFouquet。
"Monseigneur！？Monseigneur！"criedGourville，rushingupthestairs，fourstepsatonce。？"Monseigneur！"
"Well！
what？"
"I
escorted，asyoudesired，theking'scourierwiththemoney。"
"Yes。"
"Well！
whenIarrivedatthePalaisRoyal，Isaw—"
"Takebreath，mypoorfriend，takebreath;youaresuffocating。"
"Whatdidyousee？"criedtheimpatientfriends。
"I
sawthemusketeersmountingonhorseback，"saidGourville。
"There，then！"criedeveryvoiceatonce;"there，then！isthereaninstanttobelost？"
MadameFouquetrusheddownstairs，callingforherhorses;MadamedeBelli鑢eflewafterher，catchingherinherarms，andsaying:"Madame，inthenameofhissafety，donotbetrayanything，donotmanifestalarm。"
P閘issonrantohavethehorsesputtothecarriages。？And，inthemeantime，Gourvillegatheredinhishatallthattheweepingfriendswereabletothrowintoitofgoldandsilver—thelastoffering，thepiousalmsmadetomiserybypoverty。？Thesurintendant，draggedalongbysome，carriedbyothers，wasshutupinhiscarriage。？Gourvilletookthereins，andmountedthebox。？P閘issonsupportedMadameFouquet，whohadfainted。？MadamedeBelli鑢ehadmorestrength，andwaswellpaidforit;shereceivedFouquet'slastkiss。？P閘issoneasilyexplainedthisprecipitatedeparturebysayingthatanorderfromthekinghadsummonedtheministertoNantes。
ChapterXXXVI:
InM。Colbert'sCarriage。
AsGourvillehadseen，theking'smusketeersweremountingandfollowingtheircaptain。？Thelatter，whodidnotliketobeconfinedinhisproceedings，lefthisbrigadeundertheordersofalieutenant，andsetoffonposthorses，recommendinghismentousealldiligence。？Howeverrapidlytheymighttravel，theycouldnotarrivebeforehim。？Hehadtime，inpassingalongtheRuedesPetits—Champs，toseesomethingwhichaffordedhimplentyoffoodforthoughtandconjecture。？HesawM。Colbertcomingoutfromhishousetogetintohiscarriage，whichwasstationedbeforethedoor。？InthiscarriageD'Artagnanperceivedthehoodsoftwowomen，andbeingrathercurious，hewishedtoknowthenamesoftheladieshidbeneaththesehoods。？Togetaglimpseatthem，fortheykeptthemselvescloselycoveredup，heurgedhishorsesonearthecarriage，thathedrovehimagainstthestepwithsuchforceastoshakeeverythingcontainingandcontained。？Theterrifiedwomenuttered，theoneafaintcry，bywhichD'Artagnanrecognizedayoungwoman，theotheranimprecation，inwhichherecognizedthevigorand鄍lombthathalfacenturybestows。？Thehoodswerethrownback:oneofthewomenwasMadameVanel，theothertheDuchessedeChevreuse。？D'Artagnan'seyeswerequickerthanthoseoftheladies;hehadseenandknownthem，whilsttheydidnotrecognizehim;andastheylaughedattheirfright，pressingeachother'shands，—
"Humph！"
saidD'Artagnan，"theoldduchesseisnomoreinaccessibletofriendshipthanformerly。？ShepayinghercourttothemistressofM。Colbert！？PoorM。Fouquet！thatpresagesyounothinggood！"
Herodeon。？M。ColbertgotintohiscarriageandthedistinguishedtriocommencedasufficientlyslowpilgrimagetowardthewoodofVincennes。？MadamedeChevreusesetdownMadameVanelatherhusband'shouse，and，leftalonewithM。
Colbert，chatteduponaffairswhilstcontinuingherride。？Shehadaninexhaustiblefundofconversation，thatdearduchesse，andasshealwaystalkedfortheillofothers，thougheverwithaviewtoherowngood，herconversationamusedherinterlocutor，anddidnotfailtoleaveafavorableimpression。
ShetaughtColbert，who，poorman！wasignorantofthefact，howgreataministerhewas，andhowFouquetwouldsoonbecomeacipher。？Shepromisedtorallyaroundhim，whenheshouldbecomesurintendant，alltheoldnobilityofthekingdom，andquestionedhimastothepreponderanceitwouldbepropertoallowLaValli鑢e。？Shepraisedhim，sheblamedhim，shebewilderedhim。？Sheshowedhimthesecretofsomanysecretsthat，foramoment，Colbertthoughthewasdoingbusinesswiththedevil。？SheprovedtohimthatsheheldinherhandtheColbertofto—day，asshehadheldtheFouquetofyesterday;andasheaskedherverysimplythereasonofherhatredforthesurintendant:"Whydoyouyourselfhatehim？"saidshe。
"Madame，inpolitics，"repliedhe，"thedifferencesofsystemoftbringaboutdissentionsbetweenmen。？M。Fouquetalwaysappearedtometopracticeasystemopposedtothetrueinterestsoftheking。"
Sheinterruptedhim。—"IwillsaynomoretoyouaboutM。Fouquet。？ThejourneythekingisabouttotaketoNanteswillgiveagoodaccountofhim。？M。Fouquet，forme，isamangoneby—andforyoualso。"
Colbertmadenoreply。？"OnhisreturnfromNantes，"continuedtheduchesse，"theking，whoisonlyanxiousforapretext，willfindthattheStateshavenotbehavedwell—thattheyhavemadetoofewsacrifices。？TheStateswillsaythattheimpostsaretooheavy，andthatthesurintendanthasruinedthem。？ThekingwilllayalltheblameonM。
Fouquet，andthen—"
"Andthen？"saidColbert。
"Oh！
hewillbedisgraced。？Isnotthatyouropinion？"
Colbertdartedaglanceattheduchesse，whichplainlysaid:"IfM。Fouquetbeonlydisgraced，youwillnotbethecauseofit。"
"Yourplace，M。Colbert，"theduchessehastenedtosay，"mustbeahighplace。？Doyouperceiveanyonebetweenthekingandyourself，afterthefallofM。Fouquet？"
"I
donotunderstand，"saidhe。
"Youwillunderstand。？Towhatdoesyourambitionaspire？"
"I
havenone。"
"Itwasuseless，then，tooverthrowthesuperintendent，MonsieurColbert。？Itwasidle。"
"I
hadthehonortotellyou，madame—"
"Oh！
yes，Iknow，allabouttheinterestoftheking—but，ifyouplease，wewillspeakofyourown。"
"Mine！
thatistosay，theaffairsofhismajesty。"
"Inshort，areyou，orareyounotendeavoringtoruinM。Fouquet？？Answerwithoutevasion。"
"Madame，Iruinnobody。"
"I
amendeavoringtocomprehend，then，whyyoupurchasedfrommethelettersofM。
MazarinconcerningM。Fouquet。？NeithercanIconceivewhyyouhavelaidthoselettersbeforetheking。"
Colbert，halfstupefied，lookedattheduchessewithanairofconstraint。
"Madame，"
saidhe，"Icanlesseasilyconceivehowyou，whoreceivedthemoney，canreproachmeonthathead—"
"Thatis，"saidtheoldduchesse，"becausewemustwillthatwhichwewishfor，unlesswearenotabletoobtainwhatwewish。"
"Will！"saidColbert，quiteconfoundedbysuchcoarselogic。
"Youarenotable，hein！？Speak。"
"I
amnotable，Iallow，todestroycertaininfluencesneartheking。"
"ThatfightinfavorofM。Fouquet？？Whatarethey？？Stop，letmehelpyou。"
"Do，madame。"
"LaValli鑢e？"
"Oh！
verylittleinfluence;noknowledgeofbusiness，andsmallmeans。？M。Fouquethaspaidhiscourttoher。"
"Todefendhimwouldbetoaccuseherself，woulditnot？"
"I
thinkitwould。"
"Thereisstillanotherinfluence，whatdoyousaytothat？"
"Isitconsiderable？"
"Thequeen—mother，perhaps？"
"Hermajesty，？thequeen—mother，hasaweaknessforM。Fouquetveryprejudicialtoherson。"
"Neverbelievethat，"saidtheoldduchesse，smiling。
"Oh！"
saidColbert，withincredulity，"Ihaveoftenexperiencedit。"
"Formerly？"
"Veryrecently，madame，atVaux。？ItwasshewhopreventedthekingfromhavingM。Fouquetarrested。"
"Peopledonotforeverentertainthesameopinions，mydearmonsieur。？Thatwhichthequeenmayhavewishedrecently，shewouldnotwish，perhaps，to—day。"
"Andwhynot？"saidColbert，astonished。
"Oh！thereasonisofverylittleconsequence。"
"Onthecontrary，Ithinkitisofgreatconsequence;for，ifIwerecertainofnotdispleasinghermajesty，thequeen—mother，myscrupleswouldbeallremoved。"
"Well！haveyouneverheardtalkofacertainsecret？"
"A
secret？"
"Callitwhatyoulike。？Inshort，thequeen—motherhasconceivedabitterhatredforallthosewhohaveparticipated，inonefashionoranother，inthediscoveryofthissecret，andM。FouquetI
believeisoneofthese。"
"Then，"
saidColbert，"wemaybesureoftheassentofthequeen—mother？"
"Ihavejustlefthermajesty，andsheassuresmeso。"
"Sobeit，then，madame。"
"Butthereissomethingfurther;doyouhappentoknowamanwhowastheintimatefriendofM。Fouquet，M。d'Herblay，abishop，Ibelieve？"
"BishopofVannes。"
"Well！thisM。d'Herblay，whoalsoknewthesecret，thequeen—motherispursuingwiththeutmostrancor。"
"Indeed！"
"Sohotlypursued，thatifheweredead，shewouldnotbesatisfiedwithanythinglessthanhishead，tosatisfyherhewouldneverspeakagain。"
"Andisthatthedesireofthequeen—mother？"
"Anorderisgivenforit。"
"ThisMonsieurd'Herblayshallbesoughtfor，madame。"
"Oh！itiswellknownwhereheis。"
Colbertlookedattheduchesse。
"Saywhere，madame。"
"HeisatBelle—蝜e—en—Mer。"
"AttheresidenceofM。Fouquet？"
"AttheresidenceofM。Fouquet。"
"Heshallbetaken。"
Itwasnowtheduchesse'sturntosmile。？"Donotfancythecapturesoeasy，"saidshe;"donotpromiseitsolightly。"
"Whynot，madame？"
"BecauseM。
d'Herblayisnotoneofthosepeoplewhocanbetakenwhenandwhereyouplease。"
"Heisarebel，then？"
"Oh！？MonsieurColbert，wehavepassedallourlivesinmakingrebels，andyetyouseeplainly，thatsofarfrombeingtaken，wetakeothers。"
Colbertfixedupontheoldduchesseoneofthosefiercelooksofwhichnowordscanconveytheexpression，accompaniedbyafirmnessnotaltogetherwantingingrandeur。？"Thetimesaregone，"saidhe，"inwhichsubjectsgainedduchiesbymakingwaragainstthekingofFrance。？IfM。d'Herblayconspires，hewillperishonthescaffold。？Thatwillgive，orwillnotgive，pleasuretohisenemies，—amatter，bytheway，oflittleimportancetous。"
Andthisus，astrangewordinthemouthofColbert，madetheduchessethoughtfulforamoment。？Shecaughtherselfreckoninginwardlywiththisman—Colberthadregainedhissuperiorityintheconversation，andhemeanttokeepit。
"Youaskme，madame，"hesaid，"tohavethisM。d'Herblayarrested？"
"I？—Iaskyounothingofthekind！"
"Ithoughtyoudid，madame。？ButasIhavebeenmistaken，wewillleavehimalone;thekinghassaidnothingabouthim。"
Theduchessebithernails。
"Besides，"
continuedColbert，"whatapoorcapturewouldthisbishopbe！？Abishopgameforaking！？Oh！no，no;Iwillnoteventaketheslightestnoticeofhim。"
Thehatredoftheduchessenowdiscovereditself。
"Gameforawoman！"saidshe。？"Isnotthequeenawoman？？IfshewishesM。
d'Herblayarrested，shehasherreasons。？Besides，isnotM。d'Herblaythefriendofhimwhoisdoomedtofall？"
"Oh！nevermindthat，"saidColbert。？"Thismanshallbespared，ifheisnottheenemyoftheking。？Isthatdispleasingtoyou？"
"Isaynothing。"
"Yes—youwishtoseehiminprison，intheBastile，forinstance。"
"IbelieveasecretbetterconcealedbehindthewallsoftheBastilethanbehindthoseofBelle—Isle。"
"Iwillspeaktothekingaboutit;hewillclearupthepoint。"
"Andwhilstwaitingforthatenlightenment，Monsieurl'Ev阸uedeVanneswillhaveescaped。？Iwoulddoso。"
"Escaped！
he！andwhithershouldheescape？？Europeisours，inwill，ifnotinfact。"
"Hewillalwaysfindanasylum，monsieur。？Itisevidentyouknownothingofthemanyouhavetodowith。？YoudonotknowD'Herblay;youdonotknowAramis。？Hewasoneofthosefourmusketeerswho，underthelateking，madeCardinaldeRichelieutremble，andwho，duringtheregency，gavesomuchtroubletoMonseigneurMazarin。"
"But，madame，whatcanhedo，unlesshehasakingdomtobackhim？"
"Hehasone，monsieur。"
"Akingdom，he！what，Monsieurd'Herblay？"
"Irepeattoyou，monsieur，thatifhewantsakingdom，heeitherhasitorwillhaveit。"
"Well，asyouaresoearnestthatthisrebelshouldnotescape，madame，Ipromiseyouheshallnotescape。"
"Belle—Isleisfortified，M。Colbert，andfortifiedbyhim。"
"IfBelle—Islewerealsodefendedbyhim，Belle—Isleisnotimpregnable;andifMonsieurl'Ev阸uedeVannesisshutupinBelle—Isle，well，madame，theplaceshallbebesieged，andhewillbetaken。"
"Youmaybeverycertain，monsieur，thatthezealyoudisplayintheinterestofthequeen—motherwillpleasehermajestymightily，andyouwillbemagnificentlyrewarded;butwhatshallItellherofyourprojectsrespectingthisman？"
"Thatwhenoncetaken，heshallbeshutupinafortressfromwhichhersecretshallneverescape。"
"Verywell，MonsieurColbert，andwemaysay，that，datingfromthisinstant，wehaveformedasolidalliance，thatis，youandI，andthatIamabsolutelyatyourservice。"
"ItisI，madame，whoplacemyselfatyours。？ThisChevalierd'HerblayisakindofSpanishspy，ishenot？"
"Muchmore。"
"Asecretambassador？"
"Higherstill。"
"Stop—
KingPhillipIII。ofSpainisabigot。？Heis，perhaps，theconfessorofPhillipIII。"
"Youmustgohighereventhanthat。"
"Mordieu！"criedColbert，whoforgothimselfsofarastoswearinthepresenceofthisgreatlady，ofthisoldfriendofthequeen—mother。？"HemustthenbethegeneraloftheJesuits。"
"Ibelieveyouhaveguesseditatlast，"repliedtheduchesse。
"Ah！then，madame，thismanwillruinusallifwedonotruinhim;andwemustmakehaste，too。"
"Suchwasmyopinion，monsieur，butIdidnotdaretogiveityou。"
"Anditwasluckyforushehasattackedthethrone，andnotus。"
"But，markthiswell，M。Colbert。？M。d'Herblayisneverdiscouraged;ifhehasmissedoneblow，hewillbesuretomakeanother;
hewillbeginagain。？Ifhehasallowedanopportunitytoescapeofmakingakingforhimself，soonerorlater，hewillmakeanother，ofwhom，toacertainty，youwillnotbeprimeminister。"
Colbertknittedhisbrowwithamenacingexpression。？"Ifeelassuredthataprisonwillsettlethisaffairforus，madame，inamannersatisfactoryforboth。"
Theduchessesmiledagain。
"Oh！ifyouknew，"saidshe，"howmanytimesAramishasgotoutofprison！"
"Oh！"
repliedColbert，"wewilltakecarethatheshallnotgetoutthistime。"
"ButyouwerenotattendingtowhatIsaidtoyoujustnow。？DoyourememberthatAramiswasoneofthefourinvincibleswhomRichelieusodreaded？？Andatthatperiodthefourmusketeerswerenotinpossessionofthatwhichtheyhavenow—
moneyandexperience。"
Colbertbithislips。
"Wewillrenouncetheideaoftheprison，"saidhe，inalowertone:"wewillfindalittleretreatfromwhichtheinvinciblecannotpossiblyescape。"
"Thatwaswellspoken，ourally！"repliedtheduchesse。？"Butitisgettinglate;hadwenotbetterreturn？"
"Themorewillingly，madame，frommyhavingmypreparationstomakeforsettingoutwiththeking。"
"ToParis！"criedtheduchessetothecoachman。
AndthecarriagereturnedtowardstheFaubourgSaintAntoine，aftertheconclusionofthetreatythatgavetodeaththelastfriendofFouquet，thelastdefenderofBelle—Isle，theformerfriendofMarieMichon，thenewfoeoftheoldduchesse。
ChapterXXXVII:
TheTwoLighters。
D'Artagnanhadsetoff;Fouquetlikewisewasgone，andwitharapiditywhichdoubledthetenderinterestofhisfriends。？Thefirstmomentsofthisjourney，orbettersay，thisflight，weretroubledbyaceaselessdreadofeveryhorseandcarriagetobeseenbehindthefugitive。？Itwasnotnatural，infact，ifLouisXIV。wasdeterminedtoseizethisprey，thatheshouldallowittoescape;theyounglionwasalreadyaccustomedtothechase，andhehadbloodhoundssufficientlyclevertobetrusted。？Butinsensiblyallfearsweredispersed;thesurintendant，byhardtraveling，placedsuchadistancebetweenhimselfandhispersecutors，thatnooneofthemcouldreasonablybeexpectedtoovertakehim。？Astohisposition，hisfriendshadmadeitexcellentforhim。？WashenottravelingtojointhekingatNantes，andwhatdidtherapidityprovebuthiszealtoobey？？Hearrived，fatigued，butreassured，atOrl閍ns，wherehefound，thankstothecareofacourierwhohadprecededhim，ahandsomelighterofeightoars。？Theselighters，intheshapeofgondolas，somewhatwideandheavy，containingasmallchamber，coveredbythedeck，andachamberinthepoop，formedbyatent，thenactedaspassage—boatsfromOrl閍nstoNantes，bytheLoire，andthispassage，alongoneinourdays，appearedthenmoreeasyandconvenientthanthehigh—road，withitspost—hacksanditsill—hungcarriages。？Fouquetwentonboardthislighter，whichsetoutimmediately。？Therowers，knowingtheyhadthehonorofconveyingthesurintendantofthefinances，pulledwithalltheirstrength，andthatmagicword，thefinances，promisedthemaliberalgratification，ofwhichtheywishedtoprovethemselvesworthy。？ThelighterseemedtoleapthemimicwavesoftheLoire。？Magnificentweather，asunrisethatempurpledallthelandscape，displayedtheriverinallitslimpidserenity。？ThecurrentandtherowerscarriedFouquetalongaswingscarryabird，andhearrivedbeforeBeaugencywithouttheslightestaccidenthavingsignalizedthevoyage。？FouquethopedtobethefirsttoarriveatNantes;therehewouldseethenotablesandgainsupportamongtheprincipalmembersoftheStates;hewouldmakehimselfanecessity，athingveryeasyforamanofhismerit，andwoulddelaythecatastrophe，ifhedidnotsucceedinavoidingitentirely。？"Besides，"saidGourvilletohim，"atNantes，youwillmakeout，orwewillmakeout，theintentionsofyourenemies;wewillhavehorsesalwaysreadytoconveyyoutoPoitou，abarkinwhichtogainthesea，andwhenonceupontheopensea，Belle—Isleisyourinviolableport。？Yousee，besides，thatnooneiswatchingyou，nooneisfollowing。"？Hehadscarcelyfinishedwhentheydiscoveredatadistance，behindanelbowformedbytheriver，themastsofahugelightercomingdown。？TherowersofFouquet'sboatutteredacryofsurpriseonseeingthisgalley。