"
She turned her back on him; and, bowing to the other persons in
the room with the old formal courtesy of by-gone times, walked
slowly and steadily to the door. Stopping there, she looked back;
and then the artificial courage of the moment failed her. With a
faint, suppressed cry she clutched at the hand of the old
servant, who still kept faithfully at her side; he caught her in
his arms, and her head sank on his shoulder.
"Help him!" cried the general to the servants near the door.
"Help him to take her into the next room!"
The old man looked up suspiciously from his mistress to the
persons who were assisting him to support her. With a strange,
sudden jealousy he shook his hand at them. "Home," he cried; "she
shall go home, and I will take care of her. Away! you
there--nobody holds her head but Dubois. Downstairs! downstairs
to her carriage! She has nobody but me now, and I say that she
shall be taken home."
As the door closed, General Berthelin approached Trudaine, who
had stood silent and apart, from the time when Lomaque first
appeared in the drawing-room.
"I wish to ask your pardon," said the old soldier, "because I
have wronged you by a moment of unjust suspicion. For my
daughter's sake, I bitterly regret that we did not see each other
long ago; but I thank you, nevertheless, for coming here, even at
the eleventh hour."
While he was speaking, one of his friends came up, and touching
him on the shoulder, said: "Berthelin, is that scoundrel to be
allowed to go?"
The general turned on his heel directly, and beckoned
contemptuously to Danville to follow him to the door.
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